Nightcrawler (Image via Marvel)
Join us for a look at twenty of our favorite mutants from the X-Men comics, from the ones you know like Storm and Wolverine to ones you might not know.
As soon as I started making this list, I realized that I was in huge trouble. You see, the X-Men universe is filled to bursting with characters of all ages, shapes, colors, and abilities. Not only that, but everyone has their own favorite character and vehement opinions to go along with them. Very vehement opinions, as it turns out.
So, I’m afraid that, no matter what I do, I’m going to leave at least one of your favorite characters off this list. It’s inevitable, unless I list every single X-Men character ever created. That would be possible, sure, but then again I enjoy eating regular meals and seeing the sun occasionally. So, I apologize in advance. Please be gentle.
With that in my, here’s my crack at twenty of the best X-Men characters. Since the publication of the first X-Men comic, The X-Men #1 (1963), there has been a seeming avalanche of characters. Some are so famous that you could probably recognize them without ever having seen the movies or the inside of a comic book. Wolverine, Storm, Cyclops, and Professor X are all probably part of our genetic memory by now. Others, like Magik, Forge, and Warlock, might be only recognizable to those of the nerdier persuasion.
I stuck with the standard Marvel continuity, known as Earth-616, for simplicity’s sake. Sometimes, I dipped into other universes when they were especially interesting, but only then. The Earth-616 reality is complicated enough on its own, thank you.
Once again, I’m compelled to include a spoiler warning here. While discussing some of the characters, I had to reveal a few different plot points. However, the X-Men franchise is so chock full of twists and turns that I couldn’t spoil everything. If you have even a passing familiarity with the X-Men, you’ve probably even heard of these spoilers in passing. Still, here’s your final warning.