Warning: The following article contains spoilers from X-Men/Fantastic Four #4 by Chip Zdarsky, Terry Dodson, Rachel Dodson, Ranson Getty, Laura Martin and VC's Joe Caramagna, on sale now.
With the X-Men's recent status change, humanity has begun to view mutantkind with even more fear and distrust than normal. Even the X-Men's peers in the superhero community have questioned the team's actions, with Sue Richards of the Fantastic Four making the surprising declaration that the X-Men are not heroes.
In the latest issue of X-Men/Fantastic Four, Sue Richards makes another assessment of what the mutants have become -- and it's a sentiment backed up by actions the team has taken across the Marvel Universe.
X-Men/Fantastic Four #4 follows the two teams to Doctor Doom's island, in pursuit of Franklin Richards and a group of missing mutants. While Doom works in conjunction with the resident scientists of the Fantastic Four and the X-Men, the rest of the heroes investigate what has happened to the missing mutants. Seeing their actions as a threat (and wanting to keep his secrets), Doom unleashes his Doombots and Doom Sentinels upon the heroes, which the X-Men discover are housing the brainwashed mutants.
This, of course, does not sit well with either team of heroes. The X-Men and Fantastic Four combine their might against Doom's forces, working to not only free the mutants from forced captivity but also to protect the Latverian citizens living on the island from the ensuing battle.
With help from Franklin Richards himself, the robots are defeated and the teams peacefully decide that Franklin is free to both explore Krakoa with the other mutants and use the teleportation gate to be with his parents whenever he wishes.
Although Sue Richards is initially reluctant to agree with Franklin being free to go to Krakoa, Franklin convinces her to allow him to go and learn more about himself with the mutants on the island. She then recants her earlier statement about the X-Men and apologizes for her reaction to them.
She further states that although she disagrees with the way Professor Xavier has been doing things lately, she still has to acknowledge that the X-Men were there right beside her team, fighting to protect not only the mutants but also the humans on the island -- in short, being heroes.
Sue Richards' final assessment of the X-Men was not only more fair than her previous one, but also more accurate. In addition to their work on Doom's island, the members of the X-Men have been engaged in other heroic ventures.
Wolverine worked alongside the Avengers in Absolute Carnage and protected the Richards children in Dan Slott and Paco Medina's Fantastic Four #21, while Magik works with Doctor Strange, Scarlet Witch and others to teach the next generation of magic users in Strange Academy.
Susan's initial statement about the X-Men was both harsh and unfair and was an inaccurate reflection of the mutants and what they stand for. Thankfully, Professor X and company have shown the Fantastic Four and the rest of the superhero community that they are and continue to be heroes.