X-MEN

The comic

Original title: X-Men characters: Cyclops, Beast, Angel, Marvel Girl, Ice Man, Havok ,, Polaris, Mime, Banshee, Colossus, Nightcrawler, Burning Sun, Storm, Thunderbird, Wolverine, Shadowcat, Phoenix ,, Byrne, Forge, Gambit, Jubilee, Longshot, Dazzle , Psylocke, Jamie, Rogue Authors: Stan LeeJack Kirby Publishers: Marvel Comics, Corno Editorial Country: USA Year: September 1963 Gender: Cartoon superheroes Recommended age: Teenagers aged 13 to 19

Stan Lee e Jack Kirby , inspired by the success achieved with the "Fantastic Four", they decided to invent superheroes who had not acquired their powers from an external source (such as cosmic rays or the sting of a radioactive animal), but who were born with those characteristics as natural genetic mutations, these individuals took the name, in fact, of mutants X-men, a group of good mutants, always with the characteristic style Marvel: super heroes with super problems. In fact in this comic, superpowers are seen almost as a form of handicap that increases the complexes of our protagonists. The world sees mutants as a kind of danger for humanity, these represent the latest evolution of man (Gay Superior), the even more perfect one, which could potentially dominate the earth. Mutants, who have always been discriminated against and hated by humans, are therefore divided into two groups, on the one hand the followers of Magneto, those who have sworn war on humanity and who actually want to reign over the earth with their power, on the other hand the students of Professor x (the x-men, in fact) who want to put their power at the service of humanity, in order to convince people that a peaceful coexistence is possible.

The story begins when the Professor x (Charles Xavier), a man forced to stay in a wheelchair because paralyzed in the lower limbs, but able to read minds, decides to found a school for gifted young people, ready to welcome all the mutants who are willing to put their powers serve humanity. The starting basic quintet is composed of: Cyclops (Scott Summer) always equipped with an optical protective mask (when in costume) or with a pair of glasses with dark ruby ​​quartz lenses (when wearing civilian clothes), as with its powerful optical rays it could kill those around him , he uses them only in combat, opening the window of the mask afterwards Professor x is the leader of the group; Marvel girl (Jean gray) a beautiful red-haired girl is the girlfriend of Scott Summer, a telekinet capable of lifting objects and people, with the power of thought, this feature also allows it to fly and read in thought, to the point of entering people's minds; Bobby Drake, l Ice Man, a man with his body covered in ice, as he is able to freeze the air and everything around him with the power of thought alone, in combat he throws very hard ice balls or other objects and can travel in the air by building ice slopes.Angelo (Warren Worthington) is a real angel with wings behind his back that allow him to fly, when he must remain anonymous he is forced to fold his wings and hide them under his shirt and jacket, something that causes him many pains; Henry Hank McCoy, a scientist who is gifted with large hands and big feet which allow him to make extraordinary leaps is very agile and has prodigious strength especially in kicking and punching, for these characteristics he has been nicknamed the Bestia. The five practice incognito inside the school gym, super equipped and able to put a strain on the qualities of its athletes, this allows them to develop full control and mastery of their means. The x-men defend the earth from the "evil" mutants of Magneto, a man capable of controlling all the ferrous elements of the planet thanks to the magnetic charges of his brain waves. The Magneto group consists of: Mastermind, aka Jason Wyngarde, an illusionist capable of altering the sense of reality, Toad a small hunchback with agility similar to the beast, but much less strong. He is Magneto's faithful servant. Finally, the most important characters of the group: two brothers Pietro (Quicksilver) and Wanda (Scarlet). Quicksilver dressed in a white-light blue tights he has an incredible speed (in this he is very reminiscent of Flash from DC comics), which allows him to hit opponents at a dizzying pace; Scarlet she wears a red dress with a cape and is a sorceress (or witch depending on your point of view). Among the other mutants who clashed with the boys of Xavier, we also remember the Mimo, a person capable of absorbing the powers and characteristics of the people who stood beside him, thanks to which he was able alone, to contain all the powers of the five x-men. The adventures of these characters lasted until 1975, that is, when a profound revolution of the newspaper took place.

It was during an episode in which the x-men, except Professor x and Cyclope, were taken prisoner, that Xavier decided to recruit other mutants to save his students. So they came Banshee, (once an enemy of the x-men) a man capable of emitting a cry so high that it destroys not only the classic glass, but also weapons, armored doors, tanks and many other very resistant objects, this feature also allows him to fly; colossus (aka the Russian Peter Rasputin) capable of transforming his skin into strips of very hard organic steel, also endowed with extraordinary strength; Nightcrawler (Kurt Wagner) a blue-skinned, arrow-tailed creature with only three fingers in both hands and feet, can teleport and climb almost anywhere, due to its appearance it cannot hide its true identity; Storm (Ororo Monroe), a beautiful woman with white hair and ebony skin, capable of controlling atmospheric agents, but who is afraid of narrow spaces, as she escaped death from the collapse of a house, where her parents lost their lives; Wolverine (Logan), gifted with an animal sense of smell and three retractable artificial claws of adamantium, capable of cutting anything, can regenerate his own wounds in a prodigious way, but he suffers whenever he has to pull his powerful weapons from his skin finally the Indian Thunderbird (John Proudstar), who died after just three episodes. Cyclope's brother was also part of the group Havok, capable of emitting destructive rays e Polaris, a charming green woman with powers similar to those of Magneto. The old and new x-men could not live together, even for character reasons, therefore there was the abandonment of Marvel Girl, Havok, Polaris, Iceman and Angel (the latter two joined the superhero group "The champions") decided to change their life, while Cyclops, initially undecided, chose to stay in the ranks of the x-men and be the leader of the new group. He was given the task by Xavier to train the new recruits, also having heated fights with Thunderbird, which did not pay enough attention to the machines in the gym. But Jean Gray, Marvel Girl is destined to reappear and unfortunately for many readers also to disappear. In fact, following being possessed by a cosmic force that has altered her psyche and transformed her into the evil Black Phoenix, she commits suicide after returning conscious, as she understands that she has committed crimes of galactic proportions and that her power it could potentially make other victims as well. Of all these characters, the most beloved by readers is undoubtedly Wolverine, to the point of having a title all to himself. To this group will be added from time to time other mutants. We remember Arrogant a mutant whose physical contact absorbs anyone's physical traits and talents, including superpowers and memories. First enrolled in the ranks of the "bad" mutants of the "Brotherhood", after a disappointment, she turned to Professor Xavier, who enlisted her in the x-men. It still retains some of the superpower stolen from Ms Marvel. Then there is Shadowcat which has the property of passing through solid bodies with its own body. She was enrolled at a very young age from Professor Xavier's school and after the separation of her parents, the x-men became their replacement family, in particular she bonded a lot with Tempesta and Colossus. This new edition of the X-men was curated by the screenwriter Chris Claremont and the designer Jim Lee, who raised him after a period of anonymity. Recently the film about the x-men was shot under the direction of Bryan Singer where despite a good characterization of the actors, not all the characters have the same powers as those of the marvel comics (for example Storm does not fly), a well made film and full of special effects that we hope will have a follow up to (or even better) than the first.

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