The X-Men have been Marvel's most popular hero team for a long time. They've been able to keep that title for a variety of reasons, from the team's central metaphor to their great villains to the characters themselves. Of course, like any team, there are tiers within the group itself, as some X-Men are just way cooler than the rest of the team. These are the stand-out members, the ones who every fan loves.
The X-Men made their bones by being Marvel's coolest team. Every member brings something unique to the team, with the coolest members giving the team their reputation.
10 Cyclops Is Cooler Than He Gets Credit For
Cyclops is often considered the X-Men's resident stick in the mud. The longtime team leader has always been the one to keep his compatriots on the straight and narrow, to help them train, and is the greatest warrior for Xavier's dream. He's pretty corny a lot of the time, honestly, but that's actually the source of a lot of his charm.
What makes Cyclops so cool is that he's always willing to do the right thing, no matter what. He wants to make sure everyone survives the battle and will do anything to make sure that happens. He looks out for everyone and that's why he's so cool, even if it doesn't always seem that way.
9 M Is The Epitome Of Cool
Monet St. Croix has always been the coolest mutant imaginable and she doesn't have a problem telling everyone about it. She has all the best powers, she's smarter than everyone around her, and dresses better. Her confidence is through the roof and it's completely justified. She may seem arrogant, but that's just part of her deal. It's her world and she's letting everyone else live in it.
M is the best and that's all there is to it. She spent years trapped in her Penance form, but never let that bring her down. Even her Penance form is cool. M is the coolest person in the room, even if no one else knows it.
8 Wolverine Followed In Her Father's Cool Footsteps
Wolverine had some big shoes to fill when she joined Krakoa's X-Men team. Anyone named Wolverine has to be the coolest person on their team, and that was a lot for her to live up to. Luckily, she's Wolverine, so she was able to pull it off, no stress.
Wolverine has been exceeding expectations for years. She had the same mysterious vibe that her father had when she first showed up, and she had the tragic bad girl cool that so many other characters are missing. While her most recent stint on the X-Men wasn't a blockbuster, she was still as cool as they come.
7 Kate Pryde Was So Cool She Became A Pirate
Kate Pryde has been with the X-Men since she was a young woman and has gone through identities and costumes like few others. Since the beginning of her tenure with the team, she's brought a youthful exuberance that other members were missing. Kate has always been a superstar among the X-Men; all of her teammates knew it, it just took her time to realize it.
Kate is a superhero, a ninja, and a pirate. It really doesn't get much cooler than that. She's taken an elder stateswoman role among the mutant race Krakoa's establishment and is cooler than ever, leading her own team and helping lead the new nation.
6 Jean Grey Is The Queen Of The X-Men
Jean Grey has had a rough time with the X-Men. She witnessed her best friend's death when she was a child and her telepathy placed her inside her friend's mind when it happened. Her mentor, Charles Xavier, fell in love with her while she was a teen. She was replaced by the Phoenix Force and put in suspended animation. Her friends were scared of her for years, following the Dark Phoenix fiasco, her husband psychically cheated on her, and she literally died.
However, through all of that, Jean did her best to remain the X-Men's heart and soul. She's the queen X-Man, the team's first lady, and she handles the pressure with the bearing of a titan. Jean is classic cool, and the team is better with her than without her.
5 Iceman Is The Coolest Literally And Figuratively
Iceman has been with the team since the beginning. Bobby was the youngest of the original five X-Men and the team's original practical joker. He was always ready with a quip and loved to needle his teammates, but he was also the first to help in a crisis. His powers expanded exponentially over the years, but he always kept the same great outlook on the world.
Coming out of the closet did wonders for Iceman, as he was finally able to embrace his true identity, inside and out. This was a huge step forward and he became a lot cooler, becoming a better person with greater control over his powers in the process.
4 Magneto Brought His Rebel Cool To The X-Men
Magneto is an unlikely hero. For years, he was the X-Men's greatest enemy, battling against his former friend Charles Xavier over their two conflicting dreams for mutantkind. Magneto had joined the X-Men before, but it wasn't until after the depowering of the mutant race by Scarlet Witch that he truly devoted himself to the team.
Since then, Magneto has brought his brand of rebellious cool to the X-Men. He's in it to protect mutants and if he saves humans as well, that's just icing on the cake. Magneto's cool heel energy has stayed with him as a hero and he's easily among the X-Men's coolest.
3 Gambit Made A Name For Himself Because He Was Cool
Gambit's debut with the team saw him helping a de-aged Storm before reluctantly joining the group. The ex-thief had a man of mystery aura, a cool trenchcoat, and an attitude that made people want to find out what was underneath his cocksure exterior. Since then, many of Gambit's secrets have been revealed, for better and for worse, but he's also become a better person as a result.
Gambit is cool now, even after he should be cool. He's no longer a mystery man and he's married. However, he's managed to retain the aura that brings people in. He still has that sense of danger that made everyone love him. And the trenchcoat, of course.
2 Storm Is A Goddess
Storm brings a sense of regal, untouchable cool to the X-Men. Worshipped as a goddess with amazing weather powers, Storm has always been a heavy hitter on the team. She's an incomparable leader, looks great with a mohawk, and commands respect, all while displaying mutantkind's best costumes. However, the coolest thing about Storm is that as aloof and godlike as she can be, she still cares deeply about her friends.
Storm is great because she can be the goddess and the woman. One moment, she's destroying the enemies of mutantkind and the next she's a shoulder to cry on. She has toughness in spades, but is full of love and compassion for everyone around her.
1 Wolverine's Coolness Made The X-Men Cool
Wolverine is the best there is at what he does. In this particular case, that's being cool. Wolverine was the X-Men's original man of mystery, the gruff loner with a heart of gold. His mystique drew people in, but his heart is what kept them there. Wolverine can be a handful, but he loves deeply and will do anything to protect innocents and his friends.
Wolverine is cool because he exceeds expectations. It's easy to just think of him as just one kind of person, but he has layers. He has unparalleled animal magnetism. More importantly, his desire to do right by everyone, to make up for the sins of his past, makes him much cooler than just a thug with a healing factor could ever be.