If you're a fan of the X-Men, then you're aware Marvel Comics has some exciting plans for the merry mutants this summer. Jonathan Hickman will make his return to Marvel to pen two X-Men related miniseries: House of X and Powers of X with artists Pepe Larraz and R.B. Silva, respectively. Hickman's last Marvel work was the universe-altering Secret Wars in 2015, and the amount of years and build-up that led into the event gives fans hope that he can bring that same energy to the X-Men franchise.
The newest piece of teaser artwork by Mark Brooks offers a glimpse of the heroes and villains who could possibly play a role in House of X and Powers of X. Now, if you look very closely, you'll notice there have been some surprising changes made to a few key members of the X-Men, which could allude to where Hickman and his collaborators plan on taking their stories.
X-Men Powers Unite
It takes precision teamwork to be a successful superhero unit, which is why the X-Men used to spend time training together in the Danger Room. One of the techniques perfected by Wolverine and Colossus was the "Fastball Special," where Colossus would literally toss his teammate like a baseball at their opponents. While there is no evidence of this taking place in the X-Men teaser, there is proof of working together possibly going a bit too far in the physical appearance of a few characters.
For example, take a look at two characters spotted with dominant positions on the left and right borders of the image. Beginning on the left is a man with what looks like Nightcrawler's body, fingers and costume, but his skin tone is a tanned orange. His face, hair and red eyes belong to Gambit, who does not appear anywhere else on the teaser. However, Nightcrawler in his regular form can be seen on the teaser's right side.
Speaking of the right portion of the teaser, there is a woman holding Magik's Soulsword in her armored left hand. Her bare right hand and the skin on her face is metallic, like Colossus, meaning the brother and sister have now become one. To add one more observation to the discussion, the woman's uniform and ponytail hairstyle match those of the New Mutant Dani Moonstar. So what has happened to combine so many of these X-Men together in this manner? Individually, Magik, Colossus and Moonstar aren't featured, but we do have them together in one body.
To Be Young Again
Again, we're putting the spotlight on two more X-Men that share a similar characteristic: Storm and Havok. Mohawk Storm, first appearing in 1983's Uncanny X-Men #173, has a place on the artwork, but we also have a young Storm who was once de-aged by the villain Nanny. She is dressed in the clothing she once wore as a thief, before meeting Gambit (who she happens to be hiding behind on the teaser).
On the opposite side of the image is a Baby Havok. Of course, he is an adult in Wolverine and Cyclops' current run on Uncanny X-Men following the weekly "Disassembled" story arc, but there is also a history of a Baby Havok in the X-Babies. Created by Mojo once the X-Men were believed to be dead, the X-Babies are infant versions of the X-Men.
Baby Havok is the only member of the X-Babies to appear on the artwork, perhaps teasing the return of the fan-favorite characters. The X-Babies share one thing in common with the Colossus and Magik from earlier: they all appeared in spinoff miniseries of Hickman's 2015 event, Secret Wars. Inferno starred Colossus and Magik, with Giant-Size Little Marvel: AvX featuring the X-Babies. Even though Hickman didn't pen Inferno and Giant-Size Little Marvel: AvX, they were a product of his Marvel event. Could fans be looking at the early stages of another massive Marvel event from Hickman centered around the X-Men?
The Classics Are Back In Style Again
Our last look at the House of X and Powers of X teaser highlights many of the X-Men in their classic forms and costumes. Dazzler's costume and hairstyle is the same as her first appearance in Uncanny X-Men #130; Wolverine from the past and present stand at the ready with a Logan from Weapon X, Grant Morrison and Frank Quitely's New X-Men and the current day version wearing his classic brown costume; Jean Grey in her Marvel Girl outfit; Beast back to how he used to look following his first transformation; the older Cable alive again; and Charles Xavier looking very youthful and possibly able to use his legs again.
If Charles was still without the use of his legs, he would have a harder time getting his right leg to rest on his knee, therefore providing some evidence that this could be a younger version of the X-Men's founder. He also appears to be sitting next to Moira MacTaggert, who also looks very youthful herself.
Marvel seems determined to invoke nostalgia in longtime X-Men fans by using images from the franchise's heyday. We could be looking at House of X and Powers of X taking place in either an alternate dimension or timeline, which are familiar themes in some of the most popular X-Men storylines. Uncanny X-Men has gone retro with the current team donning their older costumes, so it wouldn't be out of the ordinary to see future comics continue the trend.
Some potential threats stand among the X-Men, with Master Mold, Nimrod, Mister Sinister, Apocalypse and Magneto making their presence felt. These are only some of the takeaways from Marvel's teaser for House of X and Powers of X, but we'll know if our observations turn out to be accurate when both series debut in July.