They don't deserve to rot in limbo

While most of the main X-titles are focused on pretty much the same characters, there are plenty others that don't deserve being overlooked. What about Warpath, Elixir, Nate Grey and other New X-men/Mutants/Academy X. What about the (ex-)villains like Exodus and other ex-Marauders/ex-Acolytes? Damn, even Joseph is out there, and nothing, not even a clue. I think there are even more of them..

i really miss him lol

@mcklayn:

I see a lot of love for him on this forum, but where the hell is he? =\

I don't think this first statement is really accurate, I think the casts of the X-men books right now are actually pretty diverse and representative of a lot of great characters.

I do agree that I, personally, would be interested in seeing Warpath and some of the New X-Men get in some more good roles; but with so many characters, I get that even with multiple books it's pretty much impossible to have every character around all the time.

Also, if you always know where every character is, there's less chance of being surprised or interested when they eventually return. I'm actually totally fine with not knowing where every character is all the time.

I got to agree with Oldnightcrawler, slowly but very surely the books are looking much more like they did from the 90's with each title having a real cast and not just one group of x men in 100 books, sure there are some repetitions (like Psylock and storm seem to be the most over used atm) but its getting better i hope it continues in that direction and im really excited about X factor :D

Wood's X-Men, WAXM, (past) Astonishing X-men and (now) Amazing X-men, you want to tell me they're not pretty much about the same characters? Even ANXM was, until recently. I'm not saying that every character has to have an ongoing, but there are TOO MANY of those who just disappeared and writers seem careless writing only the most recognizable of them. And when you have at least 3 books about the same ones, I don't feel how diverse it is. All this books focus on a "school" of invisible "children" and cameos, for real they don't really give these children a chance, not representative enough for me.

I think right now it's like:

X-Men Storm, Psylocke, Jubilee, Monet, Rachel, and Bling

Uncanny X-Men Cyclops, Emma, Magik, Magneto, the Cuckoos, Triage, Tempus, Hijack, Deeds, and Gold-ball

Amazing X-Men Storm, Wolverine, Nightcrawler, Northstar, Firestar, Iceman, and Beast

^^^^(those are the ones I read regularly, and the only overlapping character is Storm, who is, after all, the leader of the main team)

All-New X-Men Kitty, the O5 (who should be considered different versions of their adult counterparts any way), and X-23?

(Storm and Psylocke are both onUncanny X-Force, but that book's getting cancelled (and no one should have to read that to get a Storm or Psylocke story :)). Cable and X-Force has no overlapping members, nor does the forthcomingX-Factor book.

Wolverine & the X-MenWolverine, Storm, Quire, Oya, Broo, Kid Apocalypse, Kid Gladiator, and Armor?, as well as other new characters.

So, out of those seven books, Storm's featured in 3 and Wolverine's featured in 2.

If you count the O5, Cyclops, Iceman, and Beast are also all featured in 2. But, considering that those are five of the consistently most popular X-men (and that, of them, only Wolverine has his own solo series), it doesn't seem like that much overlap, really.

it's why I've tried to make myself care less about new characters being introduced to the X-Franchise because 9 times out of 10 they'll end up in limbo...it's also why I didn't really mind that the Avengers Academy kids were being put on death row in Avengers Arena because at least they were getting used outside of their cancelled series

I would love to see more of Warpath, Hellion, Rockslide, Sage, Match, Anole....... I could go on.

I have been of the opinion for years that they needed to either utilize already established characters rather than make new ones. I love a good book that makes B or C-list characters interesting and/or relevant again. Frankly, I would not be said to see some characters disappear. For example, Bishop should back to his timeline. I wish Storm would have stayed with Black Panther and out the X-books for awhile..

Warpath,Sage, Dani Moonstar, Magma and most of the Academy X kids have been missing for a while. IMO they are interesting characters and I'd love to see them on good teams. Especially Warpath and Sage, both of whom would be great in Uncanny as well as Moonstar and Magma. Storm, Psylocke and Wolverine being in more than one book when other characters dont get anything is a bit annoying. Even Gambit has been done wrong imo. Though I am happy that this seems to be changing a bit with new books and all.

@oldnightcrawler:

It wasn't exactly like that, ANXM right until BOTA heavily interacted with JGS teachers, WAXM, some of Aaron's fovorite students and same teachers, Astonishing - teachers again and Amazing will be also pretty much about those teachers. Then there are Wood's XX-men and even UXF. Which is exactly what I'm talking about. To many of JGS crew I'm not really intersted in.

I like seeing some characters (Havok and Sunfire) being used in Uncanny Avengers.

Agreed. But Bendis and Aaron love to create new stupids students that no one cares about.

I do see what you mean, and I agree.

My point was more that I think now they're going in the right direction. All-New X-Men started as an introduction to not only that team, but also to the main characters of the two schools, but now they've broken away from the JG School and can exist as their own separate thing.

Amazing X-Men seemed redundant when it was first announced, but in light of Astonishing X-Men, X-Men: Legacy and Wolverine & the X-Men all being cancelled, it seems far less so. It makes it like X-Men and Amazing' take on the roles that X-Men and Uncanny X-Men had in the 90's -of two books that represent one big, main team.

Yeah, WatX-men is getting relaunched, but if the point of the new volume is to focus on the students as has been claimed, that still gives it a separate cast and role from the other books.

Uncanny X-Force is really more of a Psylocke book. I don't think it's any great shakes, but it seems to exist for fans of Psylocke who, despite being on Storm's X-Men, has not been terribly integral to the stories. It's like how Hawkeye's on the Avengers, but also has his own book, because he also works in stories that aren't Avengers stories. And it's also getting canceled.

So, yeah, while I do definitely see your point, I more just wanted to point out that I do think it's going in the direction of getting better, as each book becomes more autonomous with it's own defined cast and role.

This is actually something else I want to address, which is that even when characters are represented, it's not always going to be in a way that satisfies their fans, because not all stories are going to be good, or what those fans want to see.

Gambit not only was in Astonishing X-men but also had his own solo series, and fans (myself included) still wanted to see more of him, because neither role satisfied what they wanted to see the character be/do. So now both of those books are cancelled, despite featuring one of the more popular characters.

Warpath had been on Storm's recon team, but because that book wasn't as popular (despite being one of the better books at the time), and deemed redundant, the book was cancelled. Same with the New Mutants. I would love to see Cannonball and Moonstar return to the X-men, but both of them have still been around this whole time (in Avengers and Fearless Defenders, respectfully), I just haven't been reading those books.

My point is just can we really expect that every b-list X-men character is going to be featured in a main role, that all of their fans find satisfying, at all times?

.And, even if we could, would we really want that?

@oldnightcrawler: I dont think its really asking alot that some of the characters be given a chance over others being featured in multiple books. And really there is enough room in the x-books for just about everyone to be on teams that have separate agendas and can be written in a way that's not redundant.

Sure sometimes the characters are not written in a way that appeals to fans but in most cases that's because the writer does something stupid with them or just has them as wallpaper like what is being done to the Academy X kids.

Right off the top of my head I can think of 7 or 8 different teams that could be formed with different goals and agendas that wouldn't be redundant and could have a different cast of no more than eight in each book. I say this and Im not really an imaginative person at all.

It just seems a little ridiculous to spend time changing someone like Frenzy from being a villain to a hero and then sit her on the sidelines. As far as Cannonball and Moonstar being in Defenders and the Avengers.... meh..... it aint an really an x-book and im not a fan of the avengers being portrayed as the big leagues and drafting all the interesting mutants. I may be in the minority but I prefer them separate more-so than the avengers always grabbing xmen for their teams.

@oldnightcrawler: Great posts, great points.

I see your point, but I think what your basing this on is an appeal to fairness, which, as much as anything, works itself out through sales. For example, it may not be fair that, say, Warpath isn't being used in any X-men books; but, much as I like Warpath, his presence alone would not be enough to make me buy his book, if the book itself seemed redundant or not interesting.

It also has to do with which writers have access to which characters, and just because Warpath's available, doesn't mean that anyone who has access to him has any good reason to use him in the stories their telling.

thanks :v

@oldnightcrawler: I dont disagree with that. Im just saying that the whole concept of the Xmen is about being a team. Personally i dont buy the x-books for one character which is why when there's too much focus on one it's annoying to me. I want interesting teams with different characters on each and a different concept for each team. This way I think you appeal to the masses.

However Im with you 100% on writers not using characters when they dont have a good reason. I would hate to see some drug through the mud like often happens. It just sometimes feels like when you have Wolverine in ten books and he's cutting with claws and being grumpy, at least in one of those books you could substitute Warpath who cuts with knives and can be grumpy, lol. Like I said I just think there's room for all and if the concepts are good and the stories are good then that is what will sell books. Its why companies like Image, Dark Horse, IDW and Valiant still exist while not having the huge characters that DC and Marvel do.

At times it feels like everybody gets a book and it runs for 8-12 issues and then is dropped and they are using the same old characters. I kinda feel that there's no need for a new book always just to tell a story. Books for me should be about concepts and different ones at that, not just "im putting a team together to go save Nightcrawler". Thats an event, not a reason for a book. But if it was a book expanding on that concept and focused on exploring the afterlife and trying to resurrect dead characters or bring them peace then I could see that better as a concept.

I will say that currently Im happier with the direction and differences than i have been in a long time. I just dont understand how creativity just goes out of the window and settling for redundancy becomes the norm.

I would really love to see Warpath in a book again. I was hoping he would join up with Cyclops' group when they came to the JGS and Angel and the Cuckoos joined them.

It's funny you mention that. Though I was hot and cold with Astonishing X-Men in it's last few years, one of the things I did like was the cast. It seemed like it was just Wolverine's team of leftover characters, but they were mostly pretty distinct, solid characters who hadn't been in the limelight so much at the time; they were a bit of a quirky group, but ended up gelling pretty well all the same. Maybe it was because they were mostly all sort of outsiders to the X-men,who knows? Anyway, I remember thinking that the thing that really made the book feel sort of redundant was Wolverine, and that if they'd switched him out with someone like Warpath, the whole group would feel that much more distinct.

I'm sort of Glad we're using Warpath for this example, both because he's a favorite of mine, but also because he makes such a good example of what I'm talking about. Because he's always been something of an outsider in the X-men, because he doesn't just make sense on whatever random X-men team, you really have to come up with some kind of justifiable reason for him being there. I think that's why he's not always around, because he's the kind of guy who wouldn't be.

Like you say, there's usually enough teams around that someone can figure something out, if they have any interest at all in using him, but you still have to come up with something, or why is he even there? I know some of the more marquee characters are just always going to be around, regardless; but that makes me feel like I'd rather that some of my fan-faves, like Warpath, weren't always around: so that if someone does have an actually good reason they want to use them, they're available for that, and not just being wasted in the background somewhere.

Have you read Amazing X-Men? the first two issues are actually quite good.

I actually think the purpose of the book is to replace both Astonishing and WatX-men as the more traditional, school-based team. And I guess they figured the Nightcrawler story (which isn't how you describe it, really, he is still dead), would be a suitable one for establishing that this is the more classic-style version of the team. Considering that I already like this one book more than either of those two, I think it was a good move.

And personally, I'm glad this is just a story happening in it's own book. If it were some kind of event, I think it would be a big turn off for me, and it probably would not be as good.

It really is just because some characters are more popular. I mean, if I want to read a new X-men comic with, say, Storm, I've got three options: read about her new team of X-Men, read about her as part of the X-Men faculty, or watch her be wallpaper in Psylocke's soon to be cancelled book. Personally, I'm glad that Storm is in more than just that last one. I mean, she's in more books than most of the X-men, but she's still in less books than many of the Avengers.

Same goes for Wolverine, he just has more fans than most of the characters. As a fan, I do think he's been overused in recent years, but they are cutting back. As of right now, he's only in two X-men books, one as an actual X-Man, and one where he's a teacher to the younger X-Men; those are two roles he works well in, at least they're somewhat distinct from each other. Some fans will probably like one and not the other, but that's why he's in two; there's too many Wolverine fans to risk alienating any of them with only one version of the character.

It's the same as for Superman or Batman, or some of the Avengers, there's always multiple writers going at the character in case any one or two of them fall out of favor with the fans. At least with Wolverine and Storm, they can use that popularity to help sell stories about some of the less popular, but equally good characters that we all want to see more of. We're not all going to agree on which ones, but that's why those characters get switched around from time to time, while Wolverine and Storm remain more constant.

Sometimes that leads to over-saturation, sure, but like I say, none of us have to read every X-book out there, so that stuff generally gets sorted through sales. Like you say, they do seem to be going in the right direction again now.

I want a Mauraders book in the vein of Inhumans, how the underground civilization developed and how it works

@thecheesestabber: Thats not a bad concept. Ive been saying for quite a while that I'd love to see an x-villain book. Maybe something following the Brotherhood and make a strong team that could rival any x-team too. I would even love a book about the Hellfire club (not the brats but the real deal). It could like an organized crime, mafia type book looking at their machinations for gaining ultimate power and control through their positions in the club. Those are two books I would buy religiously especially in this time when anti-heroes seem to be what people are relating to more

I actually like the feel of having certain characters overlap. For better or worst Storm and Wolvy run the X-men now so when you see them or Rachel Grey and Beast in the background of your book it makes the X-teams feel united. Granted I'd prefer a X-book with a Rotating roster of X-Men that are all based out of the school, that way we could see old school guys like Warpath team up with new favorites like Pixie and whatever guest star X-men they need this week (lets say Hellion).

you mean the Morlocks, right? ...I think that'd be really cool. Don't even bring them all back, just have the story set in the past, before they ever interacted with the X-men. That could actually be pretty interesting.

I like this idea in theory, but I'd rather just see it happen in X-men stories; half of what used to be good about the X-men was how great their rogues gallery was. They were all pretty well defined and interesting, and they got that just from being in the X-men's stories. Besides the fact that I think the villains themselves would lose some of their mystique to be featured in their own book, I personally think the X-men books themselves could use more actual villain presence now.

Though I'm sure if there was a decent looking miniseries about either of those teams, I would read it and probably like it.

I agree with the sentiment of both of these points, but I think that first one's especially interesting. So many people say they want to see the X-men "reunited", but then complain about overlapping characters which, as you point out, is a really simple and elegant way to show that most of the X-men actually are united. Good point.

Thanks. I agree, I think one of the best parts of the "Utopia Era" were the random mutant sightings, that pay off in moments like the "Fear Itself" Juggernaut battle. You can have every X-men appear in one book but it means something more when they pass other characters in the hall and don't need to say anything because they see them everyday.

Real villains are missing in the x-books so I guess thats why I want a villain book. It would be great though if we had real deal Brotherhood that was match for any xteam and when they tangle with each otherthe xmen dont always win. For me the Hellfire book concept is just something different. An organized crime comic book set in the marvel u.

With this I totally agree! What I liked about Utopia so much is that Utopians really felt like a family, protecting their home, interacting and being close to each other. With Aaron and his Schism everything fell downwards, but instead of making some order, with ANXM (skipping AVX) it's just continued the fall.

A lot of good points raised here, I still feel like more characters could have been given a spotlight, instead the same ones sticking with being drama queens :) This was a bad year, like really bad. UXF with Storm co-leading, no disrespect for her, but what is the point of X-force without killers? Such a waste of title. So many JGS-centric titles, without the school actually expanding and showing what they do or plan to do for new mutants. And "The Revolution" isn't really began. Oh, and of course the worst part - BOTA and O5. Damn, and that was the year I started actually reading comics, following weekly =\

THANK YOU, I've been complaining about this for a while now! At least, I've been complaining about the lack of Elixir and Nate Grey.

I would add the Gen X kids and even those mutants who were depowered. Why is there no mention of them? Would that not be a great angle for a new book -- the re-emergence of their powers and what it means to them after living their lives without it for a while?

This clearing of the guard and introduction of new mutants doesn't sit well with me when so many characters are out there, left in limbo. The point made by @danhimself is bang on. I have a hard time committing to any new character when history has taught me the odds of them falling to the wayside is likely within a short period of time. So much diversity and a wealth of personalities and powers to play with. It's a waste.

Which mutants who were depowered? There were a lot of them, please specify.

@squares:

Frankly, all of them if possible.

Sofia Mantega (Wind Dancer) would be great and her interaction with Hellion at the school could be expanded on. It's something many Hellion fans had been looking forward to considering how their relationship ended.

Callisto would have been a fun addition too, especially now that Marrow will be part the new X-Force. There is also whoever else was left over from the group of Genosha survivors who were left to recuperate with O.N.E. operatives after the failed attempt of Quicksilver to permanently have their powers restored by stolen Terrigen Crystals. (Freakshow and Wicked were two). Now that the New Warriors are being relaunched, it would have been great to see some of these mutants come back into the fold to deal with the Inhumans as well.

Barnell (Beak) and Angel and their children are another group. I would love to see them again - maybe something pursued along the lines of Beak transforming back into his previous physical form, that kind of thing?

The Corbo brothers were pretty much dropped and nothing been heard of them since their depowerment. Due to their Canadian citizenship, Windshear can come back to Canada and head up another Alpha Flight team since the most recent team was slaughtered in an Avengers story arc a little while back (minus one). That was a storyline left hanging.

Oh, and any remaining Guthrie siblings who lost their powers as well.

@lykopis: Yeah, I had enough of depowered mutants from that crappy New Warriors run during Civil War. I'll pass.

@cheesesticks: But...I care...

@maddpanda531: Then you have no taste

Darn i miss sofia. Never heard of her in a long time.

@cheesesticks: Ah, I see. My opinion is different from yours, so, of course, it is wrong. How silly of me to question you. I apologize for having an opinion.

It's ok, we all make mistakes.

Wolverine and the X-Men is limbo for most characters IMO. If you ask about any character created after 2000 then the answer most likely is "At the Jean Grey School doing nothing". It kind of pisses me off that Kid Omega gets all the attention in that title. He's been around since 2003. Shouldn't he have graduated by now? What about Surge, Dust, Pixie, Rockslide, Hellion, Gentle, Loa, Elixir, Anole, Indra, Match, Trance, Mercury, Bling, Transonic, Velocidad, and Primal? I like those X-Students better than Broo and Kid this and Kid that.

IDK, for some reason I have no tolerance for any X-Characters created by Morrison or Aaron. Save maybe the Cuckoos most of their characters seem like they would be more at home in the Morlocks. I mean Glob Herman? No Girl? Broo? Eye Boy? Shark Girl? Give me a damn break...

QFFT. I'm totally with you on this, not interested at all in these "weird" mutants. What's the point? Their ultimate story was told with the Morlocks, I mean does anyone interested to read about giraffe-boy or cancer-head-boy? No? Me too. Aaron thinks he continues Morrison's legacy. But Morrison did it with a purpose, he wanted to show us how wrong our hatred towards the "ugly" and used a pseudo-intellectual note to make it interesting somehow, while all Aaron used instead was awkward and "fun". Maybe for him, as for me it is a failed joke.

@adamtrmm: @skypilotbinky: I agree with these assessments all he way. I dont like the silly, stupid stuff

When i become an X-Writer, Sofia is going to receive her red carpet return. Damn right.

I'd like to see more of the savage land characters like Ka-Zar and Sauron.

Gallery

Just two panels of these kids written correctly, and everything looks much better..

Zuzha Yu (Puck) and her husband Major Mapleleaf should be brought back to life. The rest of Alpha Flight that died during the attack by the Collective got brought back to life already but why didn't they? They had a son together too so what's going on there?