The X-Men comic reboot has completely changed the complexion of the Marvel Universe, but fans have yet to see what The Avengers give their thoughts on the new mutant nation, intelligence agency, military force, or global trade network. But from the sound of things, that might not make the slightest bit of difference... now that Marvel's mutants realize the Avengers no longer compare.
That claim (from Marvel directly) is sure to ruffle some competitive feathers, likely due to The Avengers of Marvel's movie universe gaining worldwide fame. Of course, loyalties may change once the X-Men join the MCU, but until then, there's really no competition in the pages of Marvel Comics. Mutants are more powerful, more united, and more evolved than humanity. As a result, their greatest heroes--the new line-up of X-Men heroes and teams--are head and shoulders above the best that human beings can offer.
But readers shouldn't take that as our personal opinion, since it's been offered by X-Men editor Jordan D. White. As he explains in an interview with Newsarama, the new status quo for mutants means they are stronger than ever before. So in this new age, their days of competing with the Avengers (or any other team) are officially over:
Mutantkind are the most powerful people on the planet, and the X-Men are the elite defenders of mutantkind. So, X-Men as a series is following the planet’s most powerful protectors. The world’s number one super-heroes rising to the challenges of any threats the world over - be they threats to the whole world, or threats to themselves from the rest of the world… so they’re essentially the Avengers, except better and more.
Before anyone assumes the (obvious) bias at work in White's loyalties, he is speaking to the current state of mutants and their X-Men protectors. After all, if the X-Men were far superior to the Avengers then events like Avengers vs. X-Men wouldn't have happened. But that's part of the reason Hickman has alluded to in his goals for an X-Men relaunch. For once, the mutants are actually winning. And as White explains, that hasn't been the case for more than a decade (thanks for that, Scarlet Witch). Which also explains why this new "Dawn of X" is such a massive change in the role X-Men and mutants will play in the Marvel Universe:
There have been some really awesome X-Men stories in the last 10 years, but for the most part they were all working within the overarching X-Men status quo that was kicked off in the wake of House of M. I think of it as “The Extinction Era.” That era is officially over, and with House of X, Powers of X, and now “Dawn of X,” we are exploring a new era where even the things that are similar to the previous ones have been reframed and recontextualized... “No More Mutants” cast a very long shadow over the X-Books and represented a shift from mutants being the minority that we knew would eventually become the majority to being a literal endangered species. It changed the way people wrote them pretty aggressively.
Well said. Fans can make sure to get in on this bright new age of X-Men leaving the shadow of House of M in the past for a better future. Either by picking up Marvel's collection of new X-Men relaunch issues when it arrives in book stores, or beginning issue by issue, starting with X-Men #1. Find the full credits and plot synopsis below:
- X-MEN #1
- Written by: Jonathan Hickman
- Art by: Leinil Francis Yu
- Cover by: Leinil Francis Yu
- DAWN OF X! The X-Men find themselves in a whole new world of possibility... and things have never been better! Jonathan Hickman (HOUSE OF X, POWERS OF X, SECRET WARS) and superstar artist Leinil Yu (NEW AVENGERS, CAPTAIN AMERICA) reveal the saga of Cyclops and his hand-picked squad of mutant powerhouses!
X-Men #1 is available now from your local comic book shop, or direct from Marvel Comics.
Source: Newsarama