Marvel Explores Original X-Men's Time-Travel Mystery

The time-displaced adolescent X-Men of Marvel Comics' X-Men Blue don't just fight to protect a world that fears and hates them -- they fight for a world that may not even be their own.

Ever since the team appeared to travel forward in time to the present day Marvel Universe, they've been surrounded by questions. If they are, in fact, the original X-Men of the Marvel Universe, why hasn't the history of the team changed since they're made the leap forward in history? And if they're not from the prime Marvel Universe, which of the myriad realties of the Multiverse do they hail from?

This November, writer Cullen Bunn and artist Thony Silas will begin to tackle those very questions as they kick off a new Marvel Legacy arc in X-Men Blue #16. The story, titled “Cross Time Capers,” will send the cast into the past as well as the possible future, where they'll cross paths with several fan favorite characters from X-Men history.

CBR: In the current “Mojo Worldwide” crossover, you and Marc Guggenheim are pitting your respective X-Teams against the machinations of one of the most grotesque and unique characters in X-Men history. What's it been like writing Mojo and collaborating with Marc?

Cullen Bunn: Well, it’s certainly interesting dealing with a megalomaniac who thinks he controls all of reality through his devious television machinations.

And then there’s Mojo.

I kid, of course! Working with Marc is terrific. We both genuinely love the X-Men and their long, wild history, and we’ve had a lot of fun figuring out how this might work.

EXCLUSIVE: art from X-Men Blue #15 by Jorge Molina and Matt Milla

Mojo is a character I’ve been planning to do something with for a while now. He appeared very briefly in my Uncanny X-Men run, leading up to this story. I had in my initial notes for X-Men Blue that Mojo would be the central villain for an arc, but when we started talking about ideas for Legacy, it just made sense to bring Mojo into that.

One big developments in the "Mojo Worldwide" crossover came in X-Men Gold #14 when Cyclops revealed to Kitty Pryde that Magneto was still alive and his team was working with the Master of Magnetism. What can you tell us about how that revelation will impact the remainder of this crossover and your book moving forward?

Well, Kitty’s not happy about Magneto being involved with the Original Five. She’s especially unhappy that the X-Men didn’t trust her enough to tell her what is going on. This revelation impacts Magneto more than anything. I think he was enjoying being “dead” for a little while. Now that the world knows he’s alive, he may not think that hiding is a viable option.

Another major development was the apparent death of the team's newest member, the vampiric Bloodstorm, though she could possibly return before the story is finished. What inspired you to bring this character into the book? What do you feel she adds to the group dynamic?

Bloodstorm was one of my first choices for an addition to the Original Five, but because of various moving parts, we introduced Jimmy Hudson first. One of the things that I wanted to do with this team is make sure all the members fit into a theme of sorts. They’re all “duplicates” of other characters. They’re all a little younger than their counterparts. They’re all lost, either from another time or another reality. I’ve always liked the idea of vampiric Ororo, so I thought she was a great and unexpected addition to the team.

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In November, then, you kick off "Crosstime Capers."

For a while now, there’s been a question about the Original Five X-Men. Are they the original versions? Are they alternate reality versions? If they are the real deal, wouldn’t their presence disrupt all of reality? This story is going to answer some of those questions, because the X-Men have to travel through time in order to save all reality. Good thing Magneto’s been quietly building a time machine for them -- it’s almost as if he knew this day was coming.

What can you offer up about some of the characters your cast will run into and afoul of in this arc?

The X-Men have a destination in mind when they start time-traveling, but they don’t get there right away. They end up bouncing into the future, encountering the X-Men of 2099. Then they bounce to the past, meeting up with the original Generation X (and the White Queen, who presents a very interesting take on the woman they all think of as a villain right now). Then they go a little further into the past and encounter... themselves!

How would you describe the overall tone and feel of "Crosstime Capers?"

It’s a weird, twisted, sci-fi, time travel action adventure! The stakes are high (aren’t they always for the X-Men), but readers will have a good time checking out these impossible adventures!

Which artists are you working with on "Crosstime Capers?" What did they bring to this story in particular?

The first issue of the arc is drawn by Thony Silas, and he helps us get introduced to the weird nuttiness that awaits the X-Men. Then, once the X-Men are actually whipping through time, RB Silva comes on to work his magic. Both artists had to balance drawing some classic characters with some very new twists and some very strange goings-on.

“Crosstime Capers” continues into January, the same month that sees the release of X-Men:Blue Annual #1 by you and artist Edgar Salazar, where you team your cast with Venom. What's it like bouncing the adolescent X-Men off of Eddie Brock?

Figuring out how Eddie and the X-Men might get together was a bit of a challenge, but once that came together, writing the rest of it is a delight. In particular, I like the relationship between Eddie and Scott. Eddie takes on a weird role with the team as a whole, but Cyclops has a unique... friendship (?) with Venom. There’s a kind of understanding between them that I’d like to continue to explore. But really, all of these characters on a space adventure is just a recipe for fun for me.

EXCLUSIVE: art from X-Men Blue #16 by Thony Silas and Rain Beredo

This story is titled “Poison-X," and it crosses over issues of X-Men Blue and Venom. I’m not sure how much I can give away... It involves alien symbiotes. It involves the Starjammers. It takes the X-Men to the far reaches of space and pits them against a terrible and unexpected foe. This adventure changes the X-Men -- some more than others. And -- hey! -- it’s exciting for me to write a few more issues of Venom!

Remember when I said the adventure will change the X-Men? Well, that goes beyond individual changes. Because of things that happen in the space adventure, you’re going to see a completely new team of X-Men take shape. That team will be dealing with some major story threads, including the revelation of Mothervine, the strange secondary mutations that are popping up with some long-standing mutant characters.