The X-Men Have Officially Turned Jean Grey into Marvel’s Most Powerful Hero – Ever

Jean Grey has had quite a journey since her debut in 1963’s X-Men (Vol. 1) #1. She was the token girl on the team (who her mentor was in love with because it was the Silver Age and the ick was basically a cultural phenomenon that no one really noticed yet), her psychic powers useful but not on the level yet. She was a fine character and when the original X-Men failed, she disappeared for a bit before saving the second team in X-Men (Vol. 1) #101, becoming the Phoenix. This was, at the time at least, the biggest thing to happen to the character. Writer Chris Claremont wanted to use her as a “Thor analogue” to take the team on cosmic adventures and that would lead to “The Dark Phoenix Saga”, a story that I will go to my grave insisting is the best Marvel comic ever.

Since then, Jean has had a lot of ups and downs. She’s been resurrected, died, resurrected again, and so much more. She’s gotten married and been revealed as an Omega-telepath. She’s led her own X-team. And, finally, the Phoenix has returned to her, with Grey coming clutch in at the end of the Krakoa Era, defeating the most powerful villain in Marvel history (more on that later). Jean Grey’s always been a powerful character, but her latest dalliance with the Phoenix Force is taking her to the next level. She has become the most powerful hero in Marvel history, blowing past the others out there easily.

Jean Grey Is a Walking, Talking Force of Nature

Power-scaling has always been a part of superhero comics, but it’s only in recent years that it got that name. Heroes and villains gaining more power is normal and long-established powers have often been expanded upon. For years, Jean has definitely prospered because of power-scaling, her psi powers increasing more and more. And now, because of the nature of comics in the 2020s, the Phoenix Force has become more powerful than ever.

The Phoenix Force always made Jean into something akin to a god, but like every other thing in the current Marvel Universe, it’s become more powerful. Going back to Jean’s most recent 15-issue series has her doing some insane things with its power. In the first issue, she is able to save a planet from a black hole. She fractures reality itself in another issue. Honestly, the entire series is more about establishing Jean as all-powerful rather than good storytelling (Phoenix and Storm are basically the same book, one set in space and the other set on Earth). Once upon a time, the Phoenix Force was fire and psi power, the power over life and death. Now, it’s a force that can manipulate the very fabric of reality itself.

Jean regained the Phoenix after being killed again in 2023’s X-Men: The Hellfire Gala #1, its power bringing her back and allowing her to battle against Enigma, the former Nathaniel Essex, now a Dominion. Dominions are on another level compared to other all-powerful Marvel characters. They exist outside of time and space, able to manipulate everything. They make gods look quaint and Jean had to fight against one, stopping him from changing the past and dooming mutants, before a final confrontation that saw her empower the entire mutant race to defeat the Dominion.

Feats are talked about a lot online nowadays. Looking at what Jean’s done with the Phoenix since she regained it, she’s been doing things that other heroes just can’t do. She has been positioned as the perfect Phoenix, the one who can tap into its full power without losing herself to it. She’s been doing things that we’ve never seen in Marvel comics before, pulling off feats that make even heroes like Hulk and Thor, usually the winner of the House of Ideas’ feat contests (Hulk fans are especially bad about this; arguing with them is basically just having feat after feat thrown at you to prove that Hulk can beat anyone and everyone), would find impossible. She’s become the most powerful one there is, and it’s honestly not all that close.

Power Becomes Her

Jean Grey’s link to the Phoenix has been an important part of her character since it was first introduced. While some of us are tired of Jean and the Phoenix’s link, it’s hard to deny just how powerful she’s become. She’s long been one of the most potent X-Men, but she’s become something new, something more. Whether that’s a good thing or not remains to be seen.

She’s the most powerful Marvel character right now by a wide margin. While Phoenix (Vol. 1) was a failure, it defined exactly what she can do and it’s insane. Personally, I’ve always found Jean’s struggle with her powers to be more interesting than making her into an all-powerful cosmic avatar who is perfect, which is one of the reasons I find this whole situation to be distasteful. They’ve given her the power, but they’ve taken away everything interesting about it. It’ll be intriguing to see where they take her next and how they’ll deal with her godlike power.

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