WARNING: This article contains major spoilers for X-Men Red #1, by Tom Taylor, Mahmud Asrar, Ive Svorcina and Cory Petit, on sale now.


The original, adult Jean Grey is back in the Marvel Universe thanks to the events in Phoenix Resurrection and she's jumping right into a leadership role in X-Men Red. If there's anyone who would value a second (or third) chance at being reborn, it's Jean Grey, of course. Thus, this has prompted the X-Man to set a pretty lofty goal for herself upon seeing how much has changed in her absence.

RELATED: X-Men Red Adds Gambit to Jean Grey's Team

During the period when she was deceased, the world has become more divisive than ever. The number of mutant-related incidents is on the rise, and some countries are making it legal to imprison -- or kill -- anyone even suspected of being a mutant. Jean plans to make the world a better place for mutants and humans alike, but she'll need some help to make it a reality.

Unfortunately, the surprising return of a villain from the X-Men's past looks to jeopardize Jean's new mission before it gets off the ground.

I Need A Different Perspective

The issue opens with Jean helping two young mutants escape harm. The first involves a girl named Heather being chased by an angry mob, with her own mother among the hateful people out for mutant blood. Thankfully, Jean and her team of X-Men arrive in the nick of time to rescue the scared child, a mission that also allows us our first full look at the roster of X-Men Red. Joining Jean are Nightcrawler, Wolverine (Laura Kinney), Honey Badger (Laura's cloned sister), Namor the Sub-Mariner, Wakandan mutant Gentle and an all-new character named Trinary.

It appears Jean has set up her base of operations underwater, in a place she dubbed "Searebro," which is a playful combination of their undersea locale (most likely thanks to Namor) and the X-Men's mutant-tracking technology, Cerebro. The second rescue actually takes place two months prior, and involves a baby named Toby manifesting his powers after a car-snatching. On the scene ahead of Jean and Nightcrawler were Wolverine and Honey Badger, which is how they end up on the X-Men Red team.

After watching how the local news covers these mutant incidents, Jean realized she'll need a different perspective to tackle the type of problems that have risen since her absence. And to do that will involve some of the greatest thinkers on Earth.

Page 2: [valnet-url-page page=2 paginated=0 text='X-Men%20Red%27s%20First%20Major%20Villain%20Will%20Sorely%20Test%20Jean%20Grey']



A Way Forward

Not arrogant enough to believe she has all the answers, Jean reaches out to representatives from Turkey, Pakistan, East Timor, Wakanda and Atlantis for assistance. Their one common trait is they all have once-in-a-generation minds, which is why Jean would like to borrow them. Using her telepathic abilities to probe all of their minds, Jean hopes to build an idea strong enough to change the world. You have to admire her ambition; as one of the most powerful telepaths on the planet, she could assume she has all of the answers. But no, Jean realizes true power comes from working together.

With this new plan, Jean confronted the United Nations with one demand: if countries are going to sit around and discuss mutants issues, then mutants should have a seat at the table. The first step in that comes from Atlantis and Wakanda recognizing this new mutant nation Jean is hoping to launch.

You Upset The Status Quo

During Jean's speech to the United Nations, there was one person who was a dissenting voice, and that was the Ambassador from the United Kingdom. As the two talk outside the capital building, the Ambassador's cool demeanor takes a dark turn, as she begins namedropping the Phoenix and Jean's resurrection upsetting the status quo. Just as Jean begins to sense something in the woman's mind, her head explodes in front of bystanders and a news crew.

What could have possessed the Ambassador, and who was it that Jean sensed in her mind? It's none other than Charles Xavier's evil twin sister, Cassandra Nova.

Cassandra first appeared in Grant Morrison and Frank Quitely's New X-Men run, and was the mastermind behind the destruction of Genosha. The massacre resulted in the death of millions of mutants on the island. In fact, Cassandra's monologue on the final page appears to be a nod to that attack, as she can be seen holding the head of a Sentinel. The mutant-hunting robots were the lethal force behind her Genoshan attack. Cassandra was last seen escaping from the X-Men's clutches, using her psychic powers to hop from host to host.

RELATED: Jean Grey's Full X-Men Red Roster Includes An All-New Mutant

Pitting Jean Grey against a telepath on the same power level as her should make for an interesting dichotomy. Cassandra mentioned that Jean's interference in the United Nations meeting has disrupted her finely-laid plans, so there's no telling just how long Cassandra's was in the Ambassador's body. Perhaps she is the one behind the recent increase in mutant hysteria around the globe. And if that's true, then Jean's new team of X-Men will have their work cut out for them.