Comic book fans know that character deaths rarely stick around for too long. Over the years, several major characters have been killed off, only to return a few months or so later. Sometimes, characters will stay dead for the duration of an arc. With that in mind, not all comic book deaths are meaningless.
Just because a character is sure to be back eventually doesn’t mean that there was no growth or noble sacrifice to begin with. In regards to Marvel’s X-Men, many characters have died, only to make a triumphant return to the living in some way or another. In fact, some characters have even died more than once. With many formerly deceased X-Men now back in action and big changes for the mutants ahead, here is our list of the 10 Most Important X-Men resurrections.
10 Charles Xavier
Throughout the X-Men’s extensive history, Charles Xavier has actually died on several occasions. However, he never seems to stay dead for long, as his role and importance within the X-Men community usually leads him to a speedy resurrection. More recently, Charles was murdered by Cyclops, who killed him while under the influence of the Phoenix Force.
Eventually, Charles’ soul and consciousness is revealed to have survived, allowing him to inhabit Fantomex’s body a few years later. Despite being the founder of the team, Charles’ resurrection could have been a bit more impactful. Perhaps it's because he has died before, but he simply hasn’t been doing much since his return, at least up until the launch of House of X.
9 Scarlet Witch
After the events of the Onslaught saga, Scarlet Witch, along with several other key Marvel heroes, were believed to be deceased. Despite a rather dramatic exit, it is later revealed that she and the others were actually transported to another dimension. While there, the characters underwent several key changes, with Scarlet Witch emerging as a founding member of a new Avengers team.
Though her resurrection still needs a lot of scientific backing, Scarlet Witch would go on to have one of the most important impacts on the entire Marvel Universe, with events like House of M. As a result, her resurrection is definitely more important than some others.
8 X-Man
For those unfamiliar, X-Man is an alternate version of Cable who was created as part of the Age of Apocalypse storyline. After the conclusion of the series, Nate is revealed to have survived, making his way into the main Marvel Universe. During his time there, Nate would continue to be an on and off member of the X-Men, oftentimes acting like a villain.
More recently, however, Nate launched an incredibly brutal attack against the X-Men, leading to the disappearance of many of them. Though the team was able to stop him in the grand scheme of things, Nate’s overall power was still so great that it makes his return to the living all the more important to the story.
7 Rogue
Even before her brief death, Rogue was always one of the most important X-Men. Her unique abilities can make her incredibly powerful and her switch from bad guy to good guy makes her one of the more compelling mutant characters. For a brief time, Rogue was dead after losing her life to the villain, The Grim Reaper.
By the end of the arc though, Rogue’s fellow Avengers are able to restore parts of the timeline, undoing Rogue’s death as well as the other destruction she had caused earlier in the arc. Even after the fact, Rogue has continued to hold a great role as a member of the X-Men, making it easy to see why her return would hold a lot of importance.
6 Colossus
The death of Colossus lasted a relatively long time. After sacrificing himself to prevent the spread of a virus, Colossus successfully managed to save all of mutantkind. From there, he would remain dead for several years until he was brought back during Joss Whedon’s Astonishing X-Men run.
There, it was revealed that Colossus was resurrected by an alien race that believed him to be the destroyer of their planet. While this didn’t turn out to be the case, Colossus eventually rejoined the X-Men and has played a major role on the various teams ever since. Because of this, he is easily one of the more important mutant resurrections.
5 Nightcrawler
Nightcrawler is certainly a popular member of the X-Men. Because of this, it was incredibly sad when he sacrificed himself to save Hope Summers. Thankfully though, readers took comfort in seeing him in heaven. After a while, Nightcrawler’s dad began an assault on the kingdom, with Nightcrawler being one of the only people standing in his way.
With the help of his fellow teammates, Nightcrawler was able to drive his father away, but at the cost of his place in heaven. Since his return, Nightcrawler has been a key member of the X-Men in almost every main title since. Likewise, he remains part of the group’s heart, due to his pure personality, making him one of the more important resurrected X-Men.
4 Angel
Briefly, Angel was considered dead after his private jet exploded. Soon after, it is revealed that a new threat to the X-Men, Apocalypse, had taken Angel in and transformed him into the evil mutant, Archangel. While the rest of the X-Men were initially glad to see Warren again, his new wings also came with a new personality that forced them all into an altercation.
Since his “rebirth” of sorts, Warren has continually struggled with the Archangel persona, making for some interesting character arcs and interactions. As a founding member of the original X-Men, Warren’s transformation from Angel to Archangel and back has easily made him one of the more important players in X-Men history.
3 Cyclops
Cyclops is one of the most recent mutants to see a return from the grave. After falling victim to the Terrigen Mist, Emma Frost succeeded in turning Cyclops into a martyr. Therefore, when his son Cable brought him back to life, Cyclops wasn’t exactly welcomed back with open arms.
Regardless, he is still a founding member of the X-Men, as well as the team’s original leader. While Scott has certainly made some mistakes over the years, he can typically be counted on to do what’s best for the team as well as his species. Though some people may hate Cyclops as a character, there’s no denying his importance and role as an X-Man, making him one of the more important resurrections, especially recently.
2 Wolverine
Unlike many comic book characters, Wolverine managed to stay dead for a fairly long time. While he was substituted with the likes of Old Man Logan and X-23, fans still felt his absence among the X-Men. Therefore, it was incredibly exciting to learn that the most popular mutant was making a return. While there are still a few gaps around his return, Wolverine has been a crucial member of the X-Men since.
Now that he is officially back, things just feel like a much more classic take on the team. Furthermore, it is evident that he will continue to play a big role as an X-Man thanks to what we know of Jonathan Hickman’s upcoming X-Men relaunch. With so many big things coming, Wolverine’s return definitely feels necessary.
1 Jean Grey
No other X-Man has died and come back as often as Jean Grey. No matter how long she stays around, it only seems inevitable that she will shortly meet another demise. With the current interpretation, however, it does seem as though Jean will finally be sticking around for a while once more.
Despite all the bad she has done as Dark Phoenix, Jean Grey remains one of the most important X-Men in history. Her moral example and drive to do good inspired many mutants, long after her initial death. Moreover, it is also evident that she will continue to play a large role in the X-Men comics going forward, making her the most important resurrected X-Man.