Marvel’s X-Men Kills Off A Major Character – And The Killer Will Shock You

Marvel’s X-Men just killed off a major member of the mutant nation, and even more surprising than the character who died was the identity of the killer! 

Obviously, MAJOR SPOILERS FOLLOW for the current line of X-Men Comics! 

In Rise of the Powers of X #3, the current “Fall of X” event took a big step forward toward ending the Krakoa era of the X-Men, by forcing Professor Charles Xavier to make a drastic choice. 

Xavier traveled back to the time when Moira MacTaggert (the mutant known as “Moira X”) was just starting her tenth life cycle – the one where she would inspire Xavier and Magneto to unite and create Krakoa. Instead, Xavier intended to kill the young Moira and prevent Krakoa (and its disastrous fall) from ever happening. 

After much debate and soul-searching, Xavier still intended to carry out his grim duty – but his secret alliance with Mister Sinister was uncovered by his small cabal of allies (Rachel Summers, Sinsister’s clone Mother Righteous, and Sinister’s ultimate creation, Rasputin) who sought to stop the assassination. Out of respect for Rachel, Xavier spared Moira’s life, erasing her memory of his presence and returning to his base outside of time. Rachel had a different plan for fixing what had happened to the timeline: bringing back Jean Grey and the Phoenix to do the job. Xavier turns out to have another plan: shooting Rachel. 

Fall of X has gotten pretty convoluted, so it’s hard to tell at this point what Xavier is thinking, or why killing Rachel helps that plan. It seems clear that Xavier’s end goal is preventing the Krakoa Era and its disasters from happening; Rachel was recently reminded that she’s a member of the Askani, and as such has a duty to guard the timestream. Obviously, that’s a guardian Xavier cannot have around if he hopes to radically alter the timestream, so taking her out may be his only option. Where that leaves things with Rasputin will be interesting to see, as the all-powerful mutant “chimera” was also vehemently against Xavier’s plot to kill Moira. There’s also the question of what happens to the “Dead X-Men” squad that Rachel was guiding through the timelines of Moira’s past lives (over in that book), if their trip home has now been cut off. 

All in all, the Krakoa Era has divided X-Men fans with its depiction of Xavier (or “Prof. X”), and this latest twist is only going to widen that divide. 

The Fall of X event is unfolding in X-Men comics, before the series gets a major relaunch in the “From The Ashes” event this summer.