Who was overall the better Headmaster/Headmistress?

I love the New X-Men series (2004) so my vote goes to Cyclops and Emma when they were normal and sane!

X

Not sure why Storm's on that list as she's barely done anything of import, with her time. And i'm not sure why Jean's not on that list as she was the Headmistress during Morrison's run :s. Would have voted for her, but i'll vote for Xavier.

Prof. X.

Cyclops, while he was being written in character and by people with IQs above double digits, was the ideal headmaster. He understood the problems of the students and was respected by the staff.

Charles is the best.

I haven't read books when all those characters where headmasters so I can only go with Xavier.

Sadly, I think I'm the only person in the universe who not only doesn't like Charles but think he was quite hypocritical and unethical...but we won't get into that.

But as manager of the X-men and headmaster of his student's education he did his jobs well... despite my aforementioned negative thoughts about him.

<p>Emma, she was a real headmistress and she cared for her students more than anyone, maybe except Xavier, but I've never liked him a lot lol, but he and Emma are the best headmasters, anyway, while Storm and Scott are very good leaders, the best ones, but they're not the best headmasters</p>

Lol at the 0% vote for Wolverine. Even if he's not the best, he's at least entertaining.

I have to say Emma Frost. She actually seemed like the most protective and best fit for this type of position. She's not an action heroine, doesn't like adventuring for its' own sake and is good with managing money and/or people. It's strange that they stated that the Hellions lack of field experience cost them their lives when they held their own against the X-Men and were shown to be more cunning individually than the New Mutants were. But whatevs - it's kind of cyclical to kill off the younger characters at this point.

P.S. Storm shouldn't be on the list. She hasn't done anything of note and under her leadership, the X-Men abandoned the school, Charles' own preference was for a brainwashed Magneto to take the helm who ultimately jumped ship and the class of original New Mutants were destroyed. She's not a teacher, she's a superhero.

I'm not even a big Jean Grey fan (and I love all these other characters), but if she had been on this list, I would have voted for her.

I'd like to see Frost give a press conference like that.

@phoenixofthetides: Storm's well capable of doing both. You're acting as if her scope of expertise can only compensate for the one.

1) Charles
2) Storm and Emma tie.

@poisonfleur: This is probably going to spark a discussion.

Jean.

@ageofhurricane said:

@oldnightcrawler said:

I'm not even a big Jean Grey fan (and I love all these other characters), but if she had been on this list, I would have voted for her.

I'd like to see Frost give a press conference like that.

yeah. This seemed like the role Jean was born for; Morrison's run was the first time I was really all that into her. And I guess the last time, too.

We're not talking about capability - the question is "Who was the better headmaster/headmistress?" And I still don't think Storm is the type of person to be a teacher or lead in that way, TBPH. She's never lead the school in the past, mainly the X-Men, and has been co-headmaster for so short a period of time that she has no track record. She's never shown any interest in the training or development of younger students. Heck, when the X-Men were going to operate primarily as a school in New X-Men, she decided to go off on her own mission - she's an action oriented character and really doesn't seem to have the interest or expertise to fill that role whereas Charles and Emma at least studied and have run schools in that role before. If you re-read the Australian Era X-Men books, it was actually Wolverine that primarily trained the newer X-Men, and Storm was often working on their overall goal. Further back, during the All New All Different lineup, it was Cyclops and Professor X who developed the training program for Storm and the other new recruits. Once again: There is absolutely nothing wrong with a character not having the interest or ability to be all things to all people. So, yeah, I don't think she has any expertise in that area nor does she have the skills or mindset to be more than a mentor. It can happen: You'd just need a writer who was more comfortable writing Storm do administrative tasks in a suit plus artists who stopped treating her as a cape-wearing thunderbolt canon. But the way she is currently written is far more of a superhero type than executive decision maker for an educational institution.

And I would have voted for Jean, as well.

I'm starting to think she would have won this if she was an option.

I guess she wasn't because she's dead? but then, why is Xavier there? @papad1992: ?

I want to say Prof X but I keep hearing all these things about him erasing memories on his students and sending others to die, all the while being a horrible excuse for father and father figure. I'm going to say Emma Frost because she always seems like she wants to draw out the deadliest potential of her students' powers and not pussy foot around self defense like Xavier.

@mezmero: Xavier is one of the all-time best X-men characters, but it's not because he was good at his job.

This ^^^

@phoenixofthetides: And i wasn't replying directly to the OP. You said she's a superhero not a teacher, and i said she's well capable of doing both, hence why she's currently enrolled at the JGS as acting Headmistress while teaching a few other classes, quite right in that her role as current Headmistress will never reach the same levels and recognition as her predecessors because of Aaron, but still.

And she tutored both Sofia Mantega and Nezhno, not that this is anything significant, just saying. Before you write her off.

Xavier, hands down. Anything less is just...uncivilized.

Voted for Cyke and Emma.

She's been a good mentor to a lot of great characters, really. But the closest we've seen to her being in the headmaster role was with the original New Mutants. And then she just left them with Magneto to pretend she was dead in Australia, so..

well, let's just hope she actually sticks it out this time, because I think she's pretty good for the role. Well, between her, Wolverine and Kitty, I think there's a reasonable voice to come out of the dialogue.

That felt like I was reading a thesis paper... Storm has every right to be up here, she's currently the headmistress, she's been a veteran X-Man since her creation, she's one of the best leaders in the entire Marvel Universe, and she's credible to fill any slot of any "job." I wanted to keep the poll even and relative. Prof X, Cyclops, and Emma do not need any explanations on their position up there, Kitty was Headmistress since Wolverine and the X-Men's start, and Storm has just been inducted as the headmistress... sure I could have put Jean Grey up there instead of Storm, but I felt that would have been too cliched and typical. She was headmistress in a book that really centered on a core team of X-Men rather than the students and the facility. Sure there was the riot, and Dust's introduction, as well as other minute details but to me she just had the title of headmistress (played it well) but really didn't do anything with it student-wise!

Mm. Funny. Lol.

And unless Wood's writing it, i don't, because both Aaron and Bendis are horrible writers.

@ageofhurricane said:

@oldnightcrawler said:

@ageofhurricane said:

Not sure why Storm's on that list as she's barely done anything of import, with her time. And i'm not sure why Jean's not on that list as she was the Headmistress during Morrison's run :s. Would have voted for her, but i'll vote for Xavier.

I'm not even a big Jean Grey fan (and I love all these other characters), but if she had been on this list, I would have voted for her.

I'd like to see Frost give a press conference like that.

Emma's a business woman, she is good at talking with people, including strong people(and not only talk, lol) ;)

Anyway, being able to make a good speech doesn't mean you are a good hedmistress. I have never seen Jean Grey being a point of reference for students, I haven't even ever seen ever talking with a student or help a student with his/her problems, while Emma did, she had a deeper relationship with her students IMO.

@veitha: Quite right. But she's never done something like that before. Ever.

@ageofhurricane: @veitha: i think jean was a teacher as long as emma maybe even longer, kitty pryde was her first student along with the rest as hinted in all-new x-men.....we just didnt see it in the books,maybe they should make a jean grey comicbook the untold story, hmmm......

Jean should have been on the pole.

I do like Xavier but he did his fair share of questionable things in his tenure as headmaster.

But whatever people say about Emma, she's a damn good teacher and she really does care for her students.

Emma Frost, shocker I know.

But in all seriousness I think Emma Frost was the best Headmistress alongside with Cyclops during both New X-Men (Academy X) & Astonishing X-Men. I also think she played a very good role as a teacher in Morrison's New X-Men run as well. Emma's always been a character who's put herself before her students. She's most protective over them and I believe that she's fit for the position. As mentioned before she's not an action heroine and doesn't like adventuring around for s%#!$ and giggles, she's the type of person to think things clearly out before reacting. She's had many different experiences being headmistress as well, with the Hellions, Generation X and at the Xavier Institute.

Now, unlike Xavier, Emma never tampered her students thoughts or decisions and most of all she wasn't living in a world where "Xavier's DREAM" was the only answer. Emma definitely respected Xavier but she wasn't bound to his desire of mutants and humans coexisting with one another and I think that was Xavier's biggest flaw. The fact that Emma lived outside of Xavier's dream has made her a stronger Headmistress because she was living in the real-world, so to speak, and not in the bubble that Xavier wanted everyone (especially his students) to live in. I think she's best fit as a Headmistress because she has always put her STUDENTS before any dream and has protected them at the best of her ability.

PS. For the worst Headmaster/Headmistress, Wolverine and Storm should seriously get crossed off of that list. If you're going to be a headmaster/mistress BE AT THE SCHOOL not off in every other X-Book gallivanting on missions. VERY annoyed that Kitty Pryde is no longer the Headmistress at the school. At least with her she was TRYING to engage with the students, Wolverine picked his favourite, $!%^^y Oya and Storm, god knows what she's doing other than chopping off her hair.

can you only put six options on a poll?

because, if that's the case, I would've given Kitty's spot to Jean in this. And that's despite Kitty being one of my favourite characters and Jean being one of my least favourite; she just genuinely deserves it more.

haha, well that's just, like, your opinion, man.

but I do mostly agree with you about Aaron, anyway, though even he's written some cool stuff.

And, hey, I'm just pointing out the facts; you know I'm always in Storm's corner.

@oldnightcrawler: That's not really a fact lol. Sounded almost analogous to what a crack-head mother would do to her children. "And then she just left them", we both know the circumstances at the time.

@illyanarasputin: Storm stepped up to the position because Katherine willingly stepped off, pressure and all. Naturally. And Storm's doing a pretty good job, in terms of management, but it's only been a few months, we've of yet to see her come into this role before shooting judgments. And she's only in UXF currently. lol.

Emma.

That's why I said she is more of a mentor than a teacher. But, as I said, not to take from her potential - after all, any character written in a certain way by certain writers has "potential": it's not like these characters are treated as real people or fully realized personalities by Marvel, but the question was past-tense, and she just recently stepped into the role, and combined with past actions, I don't think of "teacher" in her character traits. Being in the headmaster role does conflict with being a superhero, though, and I think writers often find it impossible to juggle the solid qualities necessary for a teacher with the fluid independence of a superhero. Cyclops, in many ways, was more mature in this role in the original and second roster than he became in the '90s. And Storm is already slated to be on two plus team rosters at the same time, which makes being an effective teacher or headmistress very unlikely without some PIS from the writing staff. It's hard to be there for a mentee or be an effective teacher if you are absent for days, weeks or months on end on adventures.

I do. Given her relationship with Kitty, Rogue, Rachel, the original New Mutants, and several others since, I definitely do.

You do make a good point about her duties as leader of the X-men coming into conflict with her duties as headmaster, in so far as I don't think any character has ever juggled both roles very effectively, but that doesn't mean that it can't be done, and if anyone's qualified to try, Storm is.

As for her being on two teams, I'm only speculating here, but I can't help but think that her role in X-force will greatly diminish, if not disappear entirely, once she's put together her own team of X-men.

@AgeOfHurricane I know. But I think the writers made a huge mistake doing that because Storm's already apart of the new UXF team, and Avenger and will be a focal point in the new X-Men comic coming up. Kitty would have been the best candidate for character development as Headmistress and I think she'd relate well with the students.

RE: "I do. Given her relationship with Kitty, Rogue, Rachel, the original New Mutants, and several others since, I definitely do."

Storm rarely, if ever, acted in that role with the New Mutants - Professor X did most of their day-to-day training, handled the classroom teaching with a handful of staff members for support and while both teams lived in the same mansion, the X-Men were often on missions putting the New Mutants in the position of having to take matters into their own hands (a writing conceit that gave them a reason to leave the grounds on unsupervised superheroic outings).

And one of the elements of Ororo's relationships with Kitty and Rogue was less mentoring, and more about being friends or very close with someone younger, less confident or less experienced - not necessarily a mentor/mentee-type relationship. In many ways, this period of Storm's life (when she met Kitty and Rogue respectively) made her unfit to be a mentor, since she was so unsure of herself and focused on her own development - she was going through her own turmoil, and she herself pushed Kitty to think of her more as a friend than a mentor. I think that 'mentoring' and the responsibilities that come with it have never really been Storm's forte and when she has been in that role, it was because she had some similarity or liking for the person she formed a relationship with.

"As for her being on two teams, I'm only speculating here, but I can't help but think that her role in X-force will greatly diminish, if not disappear entirely, once she's put together her own team of X-men."

Maybe, maybe not. Storm is in a weird place and my gut feeling is that writers typically want her in the field wearing a cape and swimsuit. She might end up like Wolverine, being on multiple teams or involved in most of the events in some way, and not taking the decidedly less glamorous position that Prof. X or Frost used to be in, where they are reading reports about the action but more focused on report cards and evaluating teaching methodology. Even Magneto's time with the New Mutants had him more often than not sitting behind a desk or in the training room not involved with the major events at all.

I do think that some people conflate the terms mentor, teacher, headmaster/headmistress, coach/trainer and guidance counselor since the roles can overlap.

That said, to bring it back to the question at hand, she hasn't had time in the headmistress role to really compete with Professor X, Emma, Cyclops or even Jean.

@illyanarasputin: She would have, but like i just said, Kitty's the one who willingly renounced the position. She had her shot, for quite some time actually, and didn't do a great deal other than tell a fake Ironman off and teach some lessons. And Storm isn't an Avenger, nor will she be receiving a great deal of attention in UXF, while including that X-Men title, it's going to focus around the JGS, of which she's the Headmistress of.

@phoenixofthetides: Don't really recall Cyclops being the headmaster of anything before the new millennium. Though i see your point. She has not had enough time to prove herself which, so her being on this list does baffle me.

And take note, 1 of these 2 teams operates from the JGS itself, considering she's its current headmistress. Not that you've been reading much Storm comics lately, but she is taking her role seriously, safe-guarding the future of Mutantkind by making sure the new mutants are safe. Magneto also isn't a good example to follow, as he also left them. And they didn't much like him, either.

Currently, they need someone who's hands on--not some behind the desk pacifist who won't see to the upfront matters, because times are changing. Xavier's dead and there are several factions of MK, but then, you also haven't seen Brian Wood write her, so you wouldn't know whether or not there is a writer out there who's capable of having her take "the back seat", because it has been done.

At this point in time, i don't think the X-Men need a Headmaster who can just teach, they need one who can lead.

I do get the feeling that we'll probably see more of Kitty in the role of mentor, with Storm and Wolverine being primarily more in the role of figureheads, acting as advisors to her more than the students themselves; but that's a bit of conjecture on my part.

Yeah, that's a pretty good point, actually. We might be splitting hairs a bit over this, but I can't deny this assessment, at least.

well, like I said, I'm just speculating. But you're right that she hasn't served the same way some of the others have. I guess we'll see..

Deal with it people... Kitty and Storm are up there and Jean isn't...

and u can put a lot of people on a poll, but I wanted to keep it at 3 guys and 3 girls! Plus the amount of praise from loyal fans of Jean would flood her vote and be too dominant! Plus I don't like Jean. She annoys me...

@papad1992: Well, to be logical, when you're looking to do research into a theory, you need a varied audience, and an unbiased view, to get reliable and representative results.

You should have put Banshee and/or Moira MacTaggert up there just to give them a bit of credit lol. I'm not sure how many Jean fans would have voted - I think the most vocal lurk in the Battle section or her forum to proclaim the omniscience of the Phoenix Force whenever necessary. I'm actually not sure how many are fans of 'Jean' and how many are fans of 'Jean w/Phoenix Force'!

Stop it... Comp 2 was last semester!!

@papad1992: LOL :) Just saying.