Marvel Comics created The New Mutants as a way to introduce the next generation of mutant heroes. It is something Marvel has done extensively over the past two decades with Young Avengers, The Champions, Strange Academy, and Avengers Academy. However, it was The New Mutants that did it first. The first team remains the most iconic, with members going on to become X-Men members including Cannonball, Sunspot, Wolfsbane, Karma, and Danielle Moonstar. Over the years, the team has changed, evolving into X-Force when Cable felt they needed to be more militant, and then reassembling later with the original members as teachers.
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Originally debuting in Marvel Graphic Novel #4 in 1982, The New Mutants have over 40 years of history, and some of its members have gone on to become major A-list players in Marvel Comics since serving on the team.
6) Strong Guy
The ceiling for Strong Guy didn’t seem very high when he first appeared in New Mutants Vol. 1 #29. Guido Carosella is a mutant with the ability to absorb kinetic energy. Strong Guy can absorb kinetic energy when he strains or flexes his body while taking damage, which increases his muscle mass. However, he can only hold it for 90 seconds, or he will suffer physical deformations, making him no better than a short-term offensive weapon. He also has a weak heart, which is exacerbated when he exerts his powers. That said, his story became much bigger than anything in The New Mutants when Strong Guy lost his soul and eventually became the new King of Hell, replacing Mephisto in the role.
5) Domino
Domino is an interesting case when it comes to the New Mutants. This is because it wasn’t the real Domino who was part of the team, but an impostor. This was a mutant named Copycat, who was pretending to be Domino when Cable asked her to join the New Mutants in New Mutants #98. However, the real Domino ultimately appeared after this and agreed to join the team after it was rebranded as X-Force, making her official debut in X-Force #8. While Copycat has remained an obscure villain, Domino has become an A-level mutant and has become so popular that she got to make her movie debut in Deadpool 2.
4) Sunspot
Sunspot was one of the original New Mutants. His father was a very wealthy man and was part of the Hellfire Club. Bobby, knowing that his parents wanted to be rid of him thanks to his mutation, was often hot-headed but eventually became close friends with Cannonball, and the two became part of the team’s backbone in its early days. Sunspot was so powerful that he even joined the Avengers at one point. However, when Sunspot’s father died, he became the heir to the Brazilian fortune and used the money for good. He used the wealth to finance his version of the Avengers, using AIM technology that he had purchased the rights to.
3) Magik
Magik first appeared as a young child when her brother Colossus joined the X-Men. She later returned to stay with the X-Men and became close friends with the team’s youngest member, Kitty Pryde. When she was only six, the demon Belasco kidnapped her and took her to Limbo. By the time she returned, she was several years older (although only minutes passed in the real world). After this, she joined the New Mutants along with Kitty, and she became a powerful warrior. Her mutant power is creating Stepping Discs to teleport anywhere (including across dimensions). Thanks to he time in Limbo, Magik is also a powerful sorceress, and she has become one of the X-Men’s most powerful members as she grew into adulthood.
2) Cable
Cable is Scott Summers and Madelyne Pryor’s son, born when Cyclops believed Jean Grey was dead. Since Madelyne was a Jean Grey clone, Cable gained much of her psychic powers, and when he was sent to live in the future after developing the techno-virus, he became a powerful warrior. He returned to the present day to prevent the world from falling into ruin after witnessing its devastating end in his future, and he assumed leadership of the New Mutants. He soon turned them into X-Force, to take on more dangerous enemies, and since that time, Cable has become one of Marvel Comics’ most popular and powerful characters.
1) Douglas Ramsey
Douglas Ramsey was one of the worst members of The New Mutants when he first appeared. He was a hacker and a teenager who didn’t even know he was a mutant when he enrolled at the Xavier Institute. However, his mutant powers included the ability to read, understand, and speak any language, whether human, alien, or even technological. His arrogance and desire to be a hero are what turned off most readers, and when he died, most fans didn’t miss him. However, he became important later on Krakoa when he was the only mutant who could communicate with the island. He also proved he was willing to go behind the Quiet Council’s back to help Krakoa (the island). He is now the main bad guy in the X-Men: Age of Revelation crossover series after Apocalypse gave him a power upgrade.
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Image courtesy of Focus Features.
