By the time October's over, Jonathan Hickman will drastically change the X-Men forever - or at least until Marvel orders another reboot. Snide comments aside, we're excited to see the changes that will inevitably come with the slew of X-Men comics that are coming out soon.
House of X and Powers of X look to drastically shake things up for Marvel's mutants. We look forward to seeing what Hickman and his team come up with, especially considering Hickman's impressive track record. However, we can't make time move any faster. All we can do is speculate about what the new comics will bring while we wait. Here are some things we'd love to see!
10 Familiar Faces
Many of our favorite mutants are at the heart of both Powers of X and House of X. Charles Xavier, Jean Grey, and Max Eisenhardt are just a few of the characters who seem to be a the center of both comics.
However, we're hoping to see characters like Beast, Gambit, Rogue, and even Jubilee come back in a big way. Wolverine's handling business in the future, but he's yet to appear in the present in all his hairy, stabby glory.
9 More Chimera Mutants
Hickman also introduced a new class of mutants into the fray - Chimera Mutants. These characters possess multiple X-Genes from other mutants; Rasputin, for example, has the powers of Shadowcat, Colossus, Quentin Quire, Unus the Untouchable, and X-23!
These Chimera mutants are fascinating characters that resulted from Mister Sinister's experiments. In a way, these Chimera mutants are poetic - whatever their predecessors' weaknesses and shortcomings were, the Chimeras seem to lack them. However, the Chimeras wouldn't be here if it weren't for their genetic donors - flaws and all. We certainly hope to see more Chimera mutants in the future.
8 Morlocks
The Morlocks are a mutant subgroup that split from mainstream society due to their mutations. In their minds, their powers made them freaks - even in comparison to other X-Men - causing them to go into self-imposed exile.
We'd love to see the Morlocks rise from New York's sewers system and integrate back into society. At the very least, we'd like to see the Morlocks take part in Professor X's and Moira's extensive plans for mutantkind. We're rooting for these mutant underdogs, hoping that they'll play a major role in the events to come.
7 Earth's Mightiest Heroes
As of this writing, we've spotted a few non-mutant characters in the House of X and Powers of X comics. Namely pseudo-mutant Mister Sinister and the Fantastic Four. Now, we can't help but wonder when (not if) the Avengers will figure into Hickman's storylines.
Even though we're 99% sure that the Avengers will eventually show up, we want to reiterate how badly we want to see them. Plus, there are a ton of X-Men who've been a part of the team in one way or another. We figure one of them will pull an IOU when they need it.
6 Apocalypse's Return
In the distant future, Nimrod the Sentinel will launch a bloody campaign against mutantkind. Naturally, En Sabah Nur doesn't take too kindly to that - he's the self-proclaimed Lord of Mutantkind after all. This leads to Apocalypse and Nimrod waging war against each other, with tragic results.
Hopefully, Apocalypse returns in some way or another; perhaps a Chimera mutant can show up that possesses his powers. Or maybe Evan Sabahnur can reappear and take up his predecessor's mantle!
5 Magneto's Machinations
The Master of Magnetism typically has a love/hate relationship with Charles Xavier. Both Professor X and Magneto want the best for mutantkind, but they usually try to go about things in opposing directions. Over the years, the two mutant leaders have increasingly put their differences aside for the greater good. That's why we're not surprised that Magneto seems to be on X and Moira's side from the get-go.
What we hope to understand is what Magneto's angle is in all of this. Does he plan to betray Charles Xavier in the future, or is he truly on board with Professor X's plans? Hickman knows that we want to know, so we'll have to digest this juicy story as he feeds it to us.
4 What Equals X^1?
Powers of X isn't merely a cool name for a storyline - it hints at the cascading effects of Professor X's and Moira Kinross' actions. Hickman's storylines seem to fall into multiple categories - X^1, X^2, and X^3. For all of you math whizzes out there, you'll know those equations translate to 10, 100, and 1000 respectively (if you think of "x" like the Roman numeral for "10").
When we ask "what equals X^1?" we're saying that we want to know what events happen within the next ten years in the Marvel Universe. We also want to know why the X-Men keep falling apart after ten years go by in-universe.
3 As Well As X^2?
X^2 equals 100, as in 100 years from the present. In this timeline, Charles Xavier's daughter Xandra rules the Shi'ar Empire. This is also the timeline wherein Apocalypse and his X-Men (yeah, Apocalypse leads the X-Men at this point) die valiantly fighting the Man-Machine Ascendancy - Nimrod's faction.
This world is truly doomed, and we want to know why. What happens between Xavier, Moira, and Magneto that requires Apocalypse to pick up their slack? We're also curious to know whether any of this is part of Professor X's or Mister Sinister's plans.
2 How Did We Get To X^3?
Lastly, we have X^3 - a storyline set 1000 years into the future. Typically, mutants are depicted as a minority - with their population often falling low enough to consider them an endangered species. However, in this timeline, mutants are one of the most pervasive species on the planet - and humans are nearing extinction!
To make matters worse, the Phalanx is gunning for mutantkind with everything that they've got - causing Nimrod the Lesser to seemingly aid the new X-Men. X^3 has a lot to unpack, so we can't wait to explore this world in greater depth.
1 Professor X's Plans
The names House of X and Powers of X also refer to Charles Xavier himself. By far, Professor X is the biggest mover and shaker in Hickman's storylines. He even used his powers to control Mister Sinister and influence his experiments with Chimera mutants - though we don't yet know to what extent.
For the time being, we don't know what Charles' endgame is in all of this. We also don't know what causes the rift between himself, Magneto, and Moira. Lastly, we're not entirely sure if Professor X will remain on the side of good in the long-run. Hickman sure knows how to get you hyped for a comic!