The most iconic X-Men members have been around for between five and six decades, but there have been some powerhouses released since 2000. The original X-Men debuted in 1963, with Cyclops, Iceman, Jean Grey, Beast, and Angel, along with Professor X as their leader. In 1975, the All-New X-Men debuted, with Wolverine, Nightcrawler, Colossus, Storm, and Thunderbird. Since then, the X-Men’s memberships have just included heroes added slowly, often one by one, and there have been dozens upon dozens of mutants on the team. This includes several major names who didn’t even debut in Marvel Comics until the 21st century.
Videos by ComicBook.com
Here is a look at the seven best X-Men members introduced in Marvel Comics since 2000, ranked by power.
7) X-23
Laura Kinney made her debut in NYX #3 in 2003, a runaway who lived with other unhoused mutants on the streets of New York City. However, she had a very different origin story, artificially created in the Facility using Wolverine’s DNA. This makes her Logan’s biological daughter and one of his few children who actually chose the role of hero in their lives, thanks to the Xavier Institute taking her in. She ended up calling herself Wolverine, although she had used the name X-23 for years.
While Laura died in the Fall of X in 2024, and she remains in the White Hot Room now, she will almost assuredly return one day. Laura has the same powers as Wolverine, including her regenerative healing factor, retractable claws, and covert ops training as a member of X-Force. When she returns to life, there is no telling how powerful Laura might become.
6) Rockslide
It seems hard to believe that Rockslide became one of the longest-running X-Men members when it came to not leaving the team, since he never debuted until after 2000. Santo Vaccarro didn’t debut in Marvel Comics until New Mutants #3 in 2003. Rockslide joined the Young X-Men with other young mutants in 2008.
As for power levels, Rockslide’s mutant powers include psionic energy, which turned him into the form of a stone golem when his powers manifested. He has superhuman strength, durability, and stamina, and can lift up to 75 tons. Thanks to his stone body, he can do a lot of damage in any fight.
5) Armor
Hisako Ichiki’s power as Armor makes her one of the most powerful X-Men introduced since 2000, debuting in Astonishing X-Men #4 in 2004. Her power involves creating a psionic exoskeleton (her “armor”), which gives her superhuman strength when she is inside it. It also provides her with protection from other attacks, as there is a constant buffer between her body and the armor, which even keeps her from feeling the impact of blows.
While some might question her power since it is all about her psionic armor, it does not differ from Iron Man when he wears his armor. When it comes to fighting villains, Armor is a heavy hitter and can do damage with the best of them.
4) Fantomex
Fantomex is a genetically engineered super-Sentinel who joined the X-Men to work with the mutants. Fantomex debuted in New X-Men #128 in 2002. He has a lot of powers, and this comes from his sidekick E.V.A., which is his mutant nervous system. While he has all these powers, he likes to use guns more than almost anything else, but he uses special bullets that Brian Braddock created.
The biggest thing about Fantomex is that he has three separate brains, which makes him one of the smartest characters in Marvel Comics, since all three brains work together. He also has a telepathy-blocking mask and is one of the most dangerous mercenaries in all of Marvel.
3) Tempus
Tempus is one of the most dangerous mutants to debut in Marvel Comics since 2010, and she might be the most powerful of them all. Premiering in All-New X-Men #1 in 2012, Tempus is a near-Omega-level mutant with powers unlike almost anyone else in Marvel Comics. Her power involves manipulating time like no other mutant before her could. When she debuted, she accidentally stopped time in her town, and the X-Men had to come and rescue her.
At the lowest levels of her power, Tempus creates bubbles of stopped time, and she actually used them to beat the entire Avengers roster by herself. Tempus can also speed up and slow down time with her bubbles, and with training, she learned how to time-travel as well. She actually went back in time to keep Mathew Malloy, the most powerful mutant in Marvel Comics history, from being born by keeping his parents from meeting.
2) Kid Omega
Kid Omega showed up for the first time in New X-Men #134. While he was part of the Xavier Institute, he was arrogant and believed he was smarter and better than others, including the professors. Quentin Quire started his own gang of students who dressed like Trask and became antagonistic to the other mutants. However, over time, he gained some maturity and trained with Jean Grey on how to control his powers.
While Jean Grey was training Kid Omega, his psychic powers rivaled even hers, although she is better trained and has more control over her powers than he does. Since he and Jean are both Omega-level mutants, their powers are different enough, although he still struggles with his own mental control. Quentin can read, affect, and manipulate minds on a massive scale, and the recent Age of Revelation showed he can actually shut down several psychics at once, an incredibly powerful feat.
1) Hope Summers
As important as she has been in Marvel Comics, it seems almost wild to think that Hope Summers’s introduction wasn’t until X-Men #205 in 2007. Hope has only been a Marvel character for 19 years, and while she is dead tight now, thanks to Fall of X, she was one of the most powerful mutants in existence. She debuted as the first mutant baby born after Wanda said “No More Mutants,” and the Messiah Complex storyline revealed she would one day cause a mutant apocalypse.
This makes her very important in mutant history, but the Earth-616 version of Hope aged thanks to time travel and avoided this terrible fate from Bishop’s world of Earth-1191. Her powers were immense, as she could mimic the powers of any mutant near her to a level where she was an Omega-level mutant herself. She also shares some of the Phoenix Force, which added to her overall power level. After the Fall of X, she died and remained in the White Hot Room, but there is no doubt Hope Summers will return one day.
What do you think? Leave a comment below and join the conversation now in the ComicBook Forum!
Most Viewed
-
Image Courtesy of Toei Animation
