The X-Men have what many consider to be the best rogues gallery in comics. The key is diversity. There’s basically every kind of bad guy you can think of among the X-villains. Need some aliens? They got aliens. Need some bigots? They got bigots. Need some all-powerful conquerors? They got them. These villains have challenged the men and women of X in a variety of ways, with some deciding that the best way to beat a team of heroes was to join with other villains. They have teamed up, in duos and in teams, to face off against Marvel’s merry mutants, creating some legendary groupings.
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These groupings have done a lot of damage to the team and the cause of human/mutant cooperation over the years. Some of them have become icons on their own, joining the pantheon of great Marvel villain groups. These seven X-Men villain team-ups in the team’s history, menacing their heroic foes with their threat.
7) The Human Council
The Human Council is one of the most dangerous assemblages of anti-mutant bigots ever. Bastion, the hybrid Nimrod/Master Mold, brought together and resurrected big name bigots like Graydon Creed, Stephen Lang, Reverend Stryker, Cameron Hodge, and several others to destroy mutantkind after M-Day. The group united various anti-mutant groups into one army with connections to the government and corporations. They launched a near-apocalyptic strike on the mutant home of Utopia, killing Nightcrawler in the process. Their plan was almost flawless, and they tested the X-Men past the breaking point.
6) Apocalypse and Mister Sinister
Mister Sinister is one of Marvel’s most dangerous villains, and one of the reasons he’s risen to the level he has is because of an alliance with Apocalypse. Nathaniel Essex met En Sabah Nur before he created his four Sinister clones, and the two of them worked together, unlocking new advances in mutant genetics and running afoul of Cyclops and Jean Grey, both in the past and the present. The two of them had a long-running partnership, but neither trusted the other. In fact, Sinister’s entire plan with Madelyne Pryor was for her to mate with Cyclops so that they could produce a child who would destroy Apocalypse just in case he needed to kill his “ally”. The two of them have since fallen out, but they were once one of the greatest threats in the shadows.
5) The Horsemen of Apocalypse
The Horsemen of Apocalypse has been a force to be reckoned with for centuries. The first group of Horsemen were the children of Apocalypse and his wife Genesis, but since then many have joined the ranks. Archangel, Wolverine, Polaris, Hulk, Gambit, Sunfire, and many others have all been Horsemen at one time or another (and even more in alternate universes), and the group has been a grave challenge whenever a new roster is chosen. Their powers are enhanced by the Celestial technology, making them even greater threats than they would have been otherwise, and the X-Men fear having to deal with them.
4) Juggernaut and Black Tom
Juggernaut has been on a quite journey, starting out as a villain who hated his stepbrother Charles Xavier and his X-Men, and eventually becoming a member of several mutant hero teams. He’s currently a member of the X-Men in good standing, but there was a time when he was part of another team. He ended up teaming up with Banshee’s cousin Black Tom Cassidy. The two of them menaced the X-Men for years and worked as mercenaries in the greater mutant community. They were the best of friends, and made for a formidable duo.
3) Magneto and the Acolytes
Magneto has become a hero and X-Man, but there was a time when he was the team’s greatest enemy. He’s founded two teams of villains, with the second of them being the Acolytes. There have been two major rosters of this group. The first was a group of mutants chased by SHIELD to Asteroid M, where they talked the mutant master of magnetism back into the fight against humanity. With his help, they would defeat the X-Men, but they were all killed after Trevor Fitzroy betrayed them to the humans. Exodus would join with Magneto and bring together a new version of the team based in Avalon, Cable’s former space station Greymalkin. This group has showed up several times over the years even without their mentor at the helm, fighting for the rights of mutants everywhere in their own way.
2) The Hellfire Club
The Hellfire Club was a powerful assemblage of the wealthiest people in New York City. However, their Inner Circle was taken over by mutants and they became a group of villains out to mold mutantkind in their greedy image. Sebastian Shaw has been the linchpin of the group over the years with members like Emma Frost, Magneto, Selene, Mastermind, Mystique, Donald Pierce, even Jean Grey when she had the Phoenix Force. They were always a force to be reckoned and one of the greatest villains of the X-Men.
1) The Brotherhood of Mutants
The Brotherhood of Mutants first appeared under another name: the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants. The group was brought together by Magneto and was the chief enemy of the X-Men, fighting for mutant supremacy. Eventually, Mystique and Destiny would start their own team, menacing the X-Men and eventually becoming the Freedom Force, working with the government while also doing their own thing. Since then, everyone from Toad to Wolverine’s son Daken has led the Brotherhood, battling the X-Men and fighting for mutants in the most violent ways possible.
What’s your favorite mutant team-up? Leave a comment in the comment section below and join the conversation on the ComicBook Forums!
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