With over 50 years worth of characters and storylines, the X-Men were Marvel's most popular characters (pre-modern MCU, of course). It became one of the largest franchises in comic book history, particularly at the height of the comic book boom in the '90s. One of the earlier spin-offs was The New Mutants, a book intended to introduce the next generation of X-Men who were still young students at the Xavier Institute. Characters such as Wolfsbane, Cannonball, Moonstar and Magik trained together and eventually fought battles alongside, and instead of, the X-Men.

In 1991, writer/illustrator Rob Liefeld helped revamp The New Mutants and made them into the all-new X-Force. The team was largely made up of former New Mutants, but also added new characters like Domino, Shatterstar and Feral to the mix. Brought together to be a more militant and aggressive team compared to the X-Men, X-Force has had several iterations since its inception. However, the team was almost always designed to be a "Black Ops" version of the X-Men, willing to do morally compromising things to get an end result. With the team set to make their cinematic debuted in Deadpool 2, CBR takes a look at some of our favorite members of X-Force throughout the years.

20 MARROW

Marrow in X-Force

Marrow grew up as a member of the underground mutant colony, the Morlocks, but grew up to form a violent splinter group called Gene Nation. Gene Nation went up against the X-Men and lost, causing the leader of the Morlocks, Callisto, to order Marrow to join the X-Men to gain a better understanding of what they do. She would stay with the team on and off for the next few years, but eventually joined the reinvigorated Weapon X program, which was meant to give her better control over her ability to grow bones out of her skin to use as weapons or armor.

Instead, the program wiped her memory clean and stripped her of her powers.

In 2014, Marrow resurfaced as a member of Cable's new X-Force team, along with some semblance of her powers still intact. Though this is a mystery, Doctor Nemesis examines her and discovers that she is no longer a mutant and it is eventually revealed that Marrow sought out the same person who stole her powers in order to restore them. At this point, Marrow was pregnant and, despite the risk to her child, went through with the procedure. It worked and restored her powers but killed her unborn child in the process. Understandably distraught, Marrow went off on pretty much everyone around her, but it was Cable who was able to calm her with the help of an inhibiting collar.

19 COLOSSUS

Everyone's favorite heavy metal mutant, Colossus has been a part of the X-Men's family for decades. After being a longtime member of the core X-Men team, he would go on to join Excalibur and X-Force in later years. With a body of organic steel and the heart of an artist, Colossus quickly became a fan favorite and a stalwart member of many different iterations of the X-Men team. His on and off romance with fellow teammate Kitty Pryde only added to his growing popularity, despite the somewhat large age difference that seems to be ignored. During one of his off again phases with Kitty, Colossus would have a brief fling with his Excalibur teammate, Meggan.

Following the events of the "Avengers vs. X-Men" storyline, Colossus completely lost control of his powers. Apparently due to the loss of the Phoenix Force, parts of his body stayed flesh as he tried to use his power and transform into his usual organic steel. Colossus joins X-Force after Cable develops a harness that stabilizes his fluctuating condition. After his outing with Cable's mutant team, he would later rejoin the X-Men after quitting Cable's team following the results of the Cable and X-Force/Uncanny X-Force: Vendettas storyarc.

18 HOPE SUMMERS

The very first mutant born after the world-altering events of the "House of M" and "Decimation" storylines, Hope Summers debuted in 2007. She ultimately ends up in the custody of Cable, who takes her to the future to raise her without being harmed. However, an adamant Bishop decides to follow Cable and Hope throughout time in an attempt to kill her to stop his dystopic future from happening. She would go on to lead her own team in Generation Hope, that consisted of other newly powered mutants like herself.

Hope then becomes a mainstay member of the X-Men through storyarcs like "Schism", "Regenesis" and "Avengers vs. X-Men".

In one of the latest iterations of X-Force, Hope is in a coma after being infected by a virus that attacked herself and Cable. However, using her powers of mimicry, she assumed the identity of a brain-dead mutant named MeMe. Hope's ruse is discovered by Psylocke but she agrees to keep her secret until her identity is revealed by Mojo. She returns to her own comatose body, allowing MeMe to finally pass away. Hope convinces a power-crazed Fantomex to attack X-Force, allowing her to access his power and rid herself of the virus. She then assumes leadership of the team after firing Cable for leading them down a morally questionable route.

17 PETE WISDOM

Pete Wisdom in X-Force

A former British Secret Service agent, Pete Wisdom is a mutant with the ability to throw blades of energy, which he calls hot knives, from his fingertips. He first appeared during Excalibur's initial run as a member of the British covert organization Black Air who meets up with the team while investigating a series of murders on the island of Genosha. Pete is invited to join Excalibur and quickly begins a romantic relationship with Kitty Pryde (which leads to an ongoing feud between Pete and Lockheed). After an assassination attempt on his life that leaves Nightcrawler injured, Pete withdraws from Kitty and the team over his guilt, eventually ending both partnerships.

A few years later, Pete resurfaces as the leader of an organization of former intelligent operatives to fight against black-ops groups and individuals.

He would request X-Force's help in recovering a cybernetic brain from Genosha, going up against Magneto in the process. Wisdom is later seen as the new leader of the team, acting as a mentor who shows the team members how to use their powers in new ways. However, Pete's sister, Romany, resurfaces as a villain, seemingly murdering him and the rest of X-Force except for Domino. He  would later be shown as still alive and joins a new Excalibur team following the events of M-Day.

16 WOLFSBANE

Wolfsbane in X-Force

A Scottish mutant, Wolfsbane was born with the ability to transform into a wolf or a mid-transition state similar to a werewolf. Over the years, she honed her power to shift between her human and wolf forms but must keep her animalistic instincts at bay when she is in her full wolf form. She is one of a handful of mutants who have been a member of every major X-Men group throughout the years. Wolfsbane started out as a member of the X-Men's '80s junior team The New Mutants. In the early '90s, Wolfsbane joined the government-sponsored iteration of X-Factor, then joined Britain's Excalibur for a while. She briefly appeared as a teacher at Xavier's Academy in New X-Men, followed by a stint as a member of the X-Factor Investigations detective agency and, mostly recently, joined the latest incarnation of X-Force.

Following the events of "Messiah Complex," Cyclops forms a new black-ops version of X-Force lead by Wolverine and recruits Wolfsbane to join the team. In a somewhat disturbing recurring theme for her, she is brainwashed by the religious man who raised her into attacking her teammates, specifically Angel. Wolfsbane was so far gone that she actually ripped his wings off, returning them to her father. Still under the influence of mental manipulation, she attacks her father and, tragically, ends up devouring him.

15 ARCHANGEL

Archangel in X-Force

One of the original X-Men, Warren Worthington III adapted the codename of Angel after his mutation gave him feathered wings to fly. A tragic run-in with the Marauders and Apocalypse turned him into Archangel, a shadowy alter-ego with razor-like wings. Warren would go back and forth between identities throughout the years, at times gaining new abilities such as healing powers. He would also become a member of various teams throughout the Marvel Universe such as the Defenders, the Champions and X-Factor.

Archangel is one of the rare characters who has shared membership as an X-Man and part of X-Force at the same time.

Warren goes through another identity crisis of sorts following an attack by a brainwashed Wolfsbane that leaves him without the use of his feathered wings. Elixir informs Warren that even though they were organic, they were still a manifestation of his "Death" powers he had received at the hands of Apocalypse. In the "Dark Angel Saga"Warren is completely taken over by his Death persona that leads him to fight his former X-Force teammates. Psylocke, his lover at the time, has no other choice than to kill Warren, who is later resurrected with his memory wiped clean and free from his Archangel persona.

14 BEDLAM

Bedlam in X-Force

Bedlam first appeared in the mid-'90s during the "Age of Apocalypse" event as one of Apocalypse's henchmen. The character is then later reintroduced in main continuity as a member of X-Force towards the end of the title's initial run. Originally, he had the ability to create a biological electromagnetic field that could scramble any localized technology. After the High Evolutionary reset every mutant's genetic makeup, Bedlam's powers expanded to include the ability to disrupt other people's brain chemistry. He often uses his mutant power to project the illusion of pain and confusion into any of his enemies.

He first encounters X-Force while he is searching for his long-lost brother and the team is searching for a captive Domino. He helped the team rescue Domino and in return, she helped Bedlam track down his family. He would stay on with the team following the departure of mainstays like Moonstar and Domino and even learned to expand his abilities under the tutelage of X-Force's new leader, Pete Wisdom. Even though he isn't one of the premier mutants to join an X-Force team, Bedlam is scheduled to appear in the big screen version of the team in the upcoming Deadpool 2 and will be played by Terry Crews.

13 PSYLOCKE

Psylocke in X-Force

Captain Britain's younger sister, Elizabeth "Betsy" Braddock used her telepathic abilities to fight evil as a member of the X-Men, first appearing in the late '70s. Her character would gain popularity following a mind-swap in which Elizabeth's personality and powers are placed into the mind of a ninja known as Kwannon. It would take decades to work out the extent of this event, but eventually Elizabeth became Psylocke, one of the X-Men's fiercest fighters. She would go on to have an intimate on and off again relationship with Archangel, with many fans feeling as though they were a perfect fit since they both knew what it was like to have their mind and bodies transformed against their will.

Psylocke joined X-Force during it's Uncanny X-Force iteration at the request of Wolverine.

During this time, she faced familiar foes such as the Reavers and Shadow King. The latter succeeding in freeing Warren's Dark Angel persona, which she had been keeping in check up until that point. Psylocke and the rest of X-Force traveled to the "Age of Apocalypse" timeline to find a cure that would revert Warren to his former self. That reality's version of Jean Grey helped Psylocke discover hidden powers to achieve their goal, upgrading her to Omega-level mutant status. After the team disbanded, she rejoined the X-Men, becoming head of the school's security team.

12 RICTOR

Rictor in X-Force

Rictor first appeared in the late '80s as a supporting character in X-Factor, but would eventually become a team member of the original New Mutants and X-Force teams. He has the ability to create and manipulate seismic energy in a variety of ways to produce shock-waves to shatter objects and even earthquakes. An unfortunate victim of bad '90s fashion, complete with bright colors and a neckerchief, Rictor is obviously one of the most powerful mutants around. He is also one of the many mutants to temporarily lose his abilities following the events of M-Day, though he continued to appear regularly through the X-Men titles. He would eventually become a mainstay member of the X-Factor Investigations team.

Though he had previously been around for over a decade, Rictor's character development didn't really start until he joined X-Force during Fabian Nicieza's classic run. Under the ledaersHe became an integral part of the team, helping them to defeat villains such as Stryfe and the Mutant Liberation Front, and had a particularly close relationship with Shatterstar. It wasn't until almost another decade later that the true nature of their relationship was revealed as Rictor and Shatterstar shared the first same-sex kiss in a mainstream Marvel publication.

11 CALIBAN

Caliban in X-Force

A character that has been around since the early '80s and as such, has been depicted in multiple ways throughout the years, Caliban has appeared in almost every single major X-Men-related title at some point in time. Starting out as a supporting character as a member of the underground group of mutants known as the Morlocks, he would eventually learn to use his mutant-tracking abilities in the good service of X-Factor and X-Force. During his run on X-Force, he was also given super strength and heightened senses along with his tracking powers, making him quite the formidable fighter in the X-Men universe.

Following a latest run-in with Apocalypse, a mentally unstable Caliban is befriended by Cable, who invites him to join X-Force.

Strangely, Caliban's coloring and appearance are changed from white and monstrous to a semi-friendly purple Ogre-like form. Caliban has many adventures with the team, such as confronting Mojo and his demented forces, and upon Mister Sinister's infiltration into the X-Mansion, Apocalypse mental leash on Caliban causes him to savagely attack Sinister. Caliban would also have several unpleasant confrontations with Sabretooth along the way. Movie fans might remember him in both X-Men: Apocalypse and in Logan but as different character portrayed by two different actors for whatever reason.

10 X-23

X-23 in X-Force

One of the few comic book characters to appear in an animated series first, X-23 is the cloned "daughter" of the X-Men's Wolverine. She debuted in the Kids' WB X-Men: Evolution back in 2003 but didn't make her official appearance in the comics until 2004. Created to be the perfect killing machine, she proved to be quite the capable assassin working for an organization called the Facility. A series of tragic events eventually led her to Wolverine and the X-Men. She briefly attended school at the X-Mansion and eventually became a member of X-Force. Like Wolverine, X-23 possesses a rapid healing factor, heightened senses and adamantium-coated bone claws in both her hands and feet.

During the "Messiah Complex" storyline, Cyclops forms a new the new X-Force team lead by Wolverine that included X-23. She also shares Wolverine's stubbornness and quick-temper, leading to reckless behavior early in her crime-fighting career. After a while, she was able to control her rage and use it to make herself a better fighter. Following her time with X-Force, she is integrated into the X-Men and eventually becomes the new Wolverine following Logan's death. X-23 is portrayed by Dafne Keen in the X-Men cinematic universe's Logan.

9 FORGE

A mainstay of the X-Men starting in the early '80s, Forge's heightened intelligence made him invaluable to the team but never really reached the heights of popularity as some of his fellow X-Men members. His power allowed him to create various types of technology in the fight against evil, eventually becoming a government contract weapons maker. This ability also allowed him to create cybernetic prosthetic limbs to replace the arm and leg he lost fighting in the Vietnam War. He also shared an on and off again relationship with Storm, that infamously imploded due to a doomed marriage proposal with Mystique at the center of the conflict.

Following his time with the X-Men, he became an integral member of the government-sanctioned version of X-Factor along with former X-Man Polaris and former villains Mystique and Sabretooth.

As part of the Marvel NOW! reboot, Cable forms a new X-Force team that includes Forge, who has apparently restored his arm but still uses a prosthetic for his right leg. After Cable uses his telepathy to help restore Forge's mind from the previous strain of his misunderstanding of the universe. Following the disbandment of X-Force, Forge resurfaces as a member of Storm's X-Men, once again acting as the team's primary technician.

8 SIRYN

Siryn in X-Force

The daughter of veteran X-Men member Banshee, Siryn also possesses the same sonic abilities as her father. She was raised by Banshee's cousin and nemesis, Black Tom Cassidy, unbeknownst to Banshee. While Black Tom tried to manipulate Siryn into becoming a career criminal like himself, by the time she reached her late teens she had decided to join the forces of good. She would become a long-time member of both X-Force and the X-Factor Investigations team. Although fiercely independent, Siryn has been romantically attached to Warpath, Deadpool and Multiple Man throughout the years. She even ended up having a child, albeit briefly, with Madrox.

Siryn becomes a key member of the original X-Force shortly after it's formed, even acting as the team's field leader for a time. It's during her time with X-Force that Siryn begins a romantic relationship with Deadpool and it's her influence that convinces him to sway more towards the side of good. She faced down many threats with the team including Onslaught and Mojo, but also battled her own personal demons that involved becoming an alcoholic following the death of her father. Warpath helps her get sober, but she later leaves the team following a fight in which Feral severs her vocal cords, rendering her mute and powerless.

7 SUNSPOT

Sunspot in X-Force

Idealistic and impulsive, Sunspot was a founding member of the junior X-Men team, known as the New Mutants. He remained a member for the majority of the title's run and then rejoined as a member of X-Force. With the ability to absorb and channel solar energy, Sunspot uses his powers to become super strong, project heat blasts and even fly. Following his time with X-Force, he became affiliated with S.H.I.E.L.D. and is currently the leader of a division of the Avengers. It was recently announced that Sunspot has the potential to be the strongest hero in the Marvel Universe and even a very important member of the Avengers.

When Cable took over as leader of the New Mutants, now going by X-Force, Sunspot leaves the team and is taken under the wing of Gideon, an External and former business partner of Sunspot's father.

It is following Gideon's experiments, that Sunspot develops the ability to fly and generate blasts of solar energy. He later rejoins his former teammates as they embark on an extended road trip, following their separation from Cable. It is during this time that he has a brief fling with Cannonball's girlfriend Tabitha Smith, aka Meltdown, a teammate.

6 MOONSTAR

Dani Moonster in X-Force

Another founding member of the New Mutants, Dani Moonstar originally had the ability to mentally project illusions of her opponent's worst fears or wishes. However, she later developed additional psionic powers including telepathy and the ability to create weapons out of psychic energy. As a one-time Valkyrie of Asgard, Moonstar also gained limited magical powers as well as the ability to sense death. She has been a member of the New Mutants, X-Force and X-Men, even after losing her mutant abilities following M-Day.

Following her adventures in Asgard, Moonstar returns to Earth and ends up working undercover for S.H.I.E.L.D. as a member of the evil Mutant Liberation Front. She clashes with her former teammates on more than one occasion, but sticks to her mission to take down the organization from within. After most of the member of the MLF are taken into custody, Moonstar rejoins her friends as a member of X-Force just before they embark on their road trip. She temporarily gains the ability to channel quantum energy into concussive blasts, but this power disappears shortly thereafter. She's scheduled to appear in the forever-delayed mutant spin-off movie, The New Mutants, which looks to focus on the "Demon Bear" storyline made popular during the early days of the series.

5 COPYCAT

Copycat in X-Force

Copycat made quite the debuted following the revelation that she had used her shape-shifting abilities to assume the identity of X-Force's Domino. In fact, the real Domino didn't join the team until almost 20 issues into it's original run. Deadpool's lady love who was hired to infiltrate X-Force in order to kill Cable, she later backed out of her mission after she started caring about her team members. She even fooled herself into falling in love with Cable, sparing his life, but causing Deadpool to complete her mission by blowing up X-Force's headquarters (though they had already escaped).

Following a brief time of living life as a civilian, Copycat was abducted by the Weapon X program.

Their experiments left her with no memory of Deadpool or her mission, although she did manage to escape. Sabretooth recruited Deadpool to kill her, but he ends up warning her instead. Sabretooth then sends Kane to kill both of them instead, seemingly succeeding. However, as Deadpool recovered from his fatal injuries, he introduced his blood into Copycat's bloodstream and healed her injuries as well. She appears in the first Deadpool movie as Wade's girlfriend and we're very interested to see if she does turn into the comic book version of the character during the sequel.

4 MELTDOWN

Meltdown in X-Force

Appearing as far back as 1985, Tabitha Smith has been a member of the New Mutants, X-Force and also as a member of the superhero team known as Nextwave throughout the years. With the ability to create orbs of pure energy that explode with concussive and destructive force, Tabitha has had a few nicknames during her career like Boom-Boom, Boomer and, most recently, Meltdown. Lighthearted and silly, she also served as the primary love interest of Cannonball for years during their time as teammates. Their relationship started dissipating following Cannonball's "promotion" to the X-Men, she would later find solace in the arms of Sunspot.

Often the comic relief of the team, Meltdown eventually grew into a more serious and prolific fighter after a series of events during  her time with X-Force. One example of those events is when the team was staying at the X-Mansion and a wounded Sabretooth manipulated her into freeing him, allowing him to nearly eviscerate Psylocke in the process. Another is when Pete Wisdom took over as leader of the team, helping her to focus her powers in streams of guided energy, as well as training her in computer hacking and the manipulation of digital information.

3 WARPATH

Warpath in X-Force

Originally blaming the X-Men for the death of his brother, Thunderbird, Warpath joined the White Queen's Hellions team to get revenge on Charles Xavier and his mutant team of X-Men for what happened to Thunderbird during their mission to the island of Krakoa. He would later reconsider his actions and become a longstanding member of the X-Men's militant team, X-Force, initially joining up with Cable's original group of mutants. Later on, Warpath would be involved in several incarnations of the team besides the original, as he joined the black ops version put together by Cyclops following the birth and saga of Hope. He would also be romantically linked to fellow teammates Siryn and Domino throughout the years, as well as Hepzibah of the Starjammers after the X-Men's return from space.

Along with his superhuman strength, speed and heightened senses, Warpath also became proficient in wielding a pair of vibranium bowie knives during battle.

While he is an accomplished fighter, he wants nothing more than to have peace in his life, leading him to quit X-Force a couple of times over the years. He reappears following the events of "Schism" as a target of the Weapon X program, opting to join Old Man Logan's new team to combat the threat.

2 LILA CHENEY

Lila Cheney in X-Force

Lila Cheney is best known for being a singer and musician first, and an X-Man second. She frequently collaborated with her mutant bff Dazzler, touring galaxies for years at a time. Lila first appeared early on in the first The New Mutants run, at first just being a performer the team liked to go and see. She eventually became closer to the team, using her teleportation abilities to help them when they were in need. Lila and Cannonball also became involved in a romantic relationship with each other that lasted a couple of years. Ultimately, Lila is a galaxy-traveler, not meant to settle down, so she ended the relationship.

Lila would turn up from time to time in various X-Men titles such as the government-sponsored X-Factor and X-Treme X-Men. However, she would spend most of her time with the New Mutants, who later became X-Force. She appeared several times throughout the first series' run, sometimes helping and sometimes in need of help. Boom-Boom, who had engaged in a romantic relationship with Cannonball as well, would come to see her as a threat, one which Lila made perfectly clear that she was not interested in Sam like that anymore. During the "Age of Apocalypse" storyline, Lila was a member of a group of mutant bounty hunters called the X-ternals, lead by Gambit, who is also her lover.

1 FERAL

Feral in X-Force

A refugee from the underground world of the Morlocks, Feral was saved by Cable and agreed to join his team, X-Force, for protection. As one of the original members of the team, Wolfsbane was one of Cable's most dangerous fighters and continued to be during the early run of X-Force comics. With cat-like abilities and appearance, she was always the ticking time bomb of X-Force, barely able to keep her deadly temper under control which lead to her being in a lot of sticky situations. Her alliances would continue to shift throughout the years, going from X-Force to a member of the Mutant Liberation Front where she would face off against her former teammates.

During her time with X-Force, Feral got into a fight with Siryn in which she ended up severing her vocal cords rendering Siryn mute and powerless for years.

Cannonball discovers that when she was younger, Feral killed her own mother along with three other people. Following her arrest, Feral discovered that she had the Legacy Virus, although she would later be cured. She then rejoined the side of good by joining a branch of X-Corporation, however she would lose her powers following the events of M-Day.