As X-Men begins its revolutionary crossover 'Raid on Graymalkin', On your own announces the official codename of its roster of mutant heroes. There are currently three teams of X-Men in Marvel continuity – Cyclops' team in X-Menthe Rogue team in Mysterious X-Menand Kitty Pryde's team at Exceptional X-Men. However, these comic book titles are not what each team calls itself, just how Marvel is differentiating its series at the comic book stands.
In a preview of Gail Simone, Edgar Salazar, David Marquez, Victor Olazaba, Matthew Wilson and Clayton Cowles' Strange X-Men #7​​​​​​, Rogue and Cyclops discuss their upcoming attack on Graymalkin Prison – a mutant gulag erected on the site of the former Xavier School. As Cyclops asks Rogue not to join the attack, the Mysterious X-Men leader refuses to hold back, leading his team into battle.
As Gambit uses his newly acquired Eye of Agamotto to teleport the team into battle, Rogue marks his attack “Louisiana's first X-Men attack.” It appears this is the name Rogue is using for her team in the world.
Rogue's chosen name emphasizes that her team is as much X-Men as Cyclops' team, despite their very different approaches to mutant heroism.
Rogue names its team the Louisiana X-Men
Meanwhile, Rogue's new mutant students are the outliers
As part of its new 'From the Ashes' era, Marvel is establishing a new status quo for its mutant heroes. After the loss of the mutant nation of Krakoa, their friendships and alliances are more strained than ever, with several teams rallying around the remaining mutant leaders. Surprisingly for someone who joined the team as a former hated villain, Rogue is one of the great leaders of this era, described as one of the two new 'pillars' of the franchise along with Cyclops.
Rogue's new team is based in Louisiana, where she and Gambit have a lot of personal history. So far, they spent their time training the Outliers, also known as Calico, Deathdream, Jitter, and Ransom. These young heroes are mutants who have passed through previous eras of the X-Men, with dramatic histories that prevented them from entering the Xavier school.
Hunted by the horrific villain known as the Witch, the young mutants are currently under the guardianship and protection of Rogue, Gambit, Nightcrawler and Wolverine. And with two of the Outliers taken to Graymalkin Prison, Rogue has no intention of being left out.
The 'From the Ashes' era is redefining what it means to be an X-Man, with no central leader defining the team's tactics and mission.
Rogue's chosen name is a vital point about her team
The X-Men follow the example of the West Coast Avengers
With teams like X-Force and X-Factor currently operating within Marvel Comics, It's important that Rogue still keeps the X-Men name. Declaring her team as a true X-Men lineup shows that Rogue sees them as continuing the fight for Xavier's dream, and considers them to be equal to Cyclops' lineup, which is operating in Alaska. This is crucial, because fans know that the Raid on Graymalkin will drive a wedge between Rogue and Cyclops, creating a new rivalry that will take a very more weight if both teams consider themselves the X-Men.
Headquartered in the north and south of the country, the X-Men/Mysterious X-Men The relationship echoes the Avengers tradition of forming a West Coast and East Coast team, with a new volume of West Coast Avengers having been recently released. The idea of ​​the Louisiana X-Men and the Alaskan X-Men (as well as Kitty Pryde's Illinois X-Men) emphasizes a key aspect of 'From the Ashes,' with Marvel's mutant heroes no longer operate as a cohesive group, but rather as several allied factions..
Cyclops and Rogue's new grudge makes having countless teams of X-Men across America that much more interesting.
The new era of the X-Men changed the way Marvel defines the mutant team
The X-Men heroes are no longer Xavier's students
The X-Men have traditionally operated out of Xavier's school, and in recent years almost all mutant teams have been based on the island nation of Krakoa. However, as friendships and alliances break down, it becomes clear that 'From the Ashes' is establishing a much more dispersed community of mutant heroism.
This is compounded by the fact that most mutants now consider Professor X a hated villain, after he apparently betrayed his students to the anti-mutant group Orchis. While Cyclops and Rogue still fight for the dream Xavier believed in, the lack of a philosophical leader means the 'X-Men' concept can mean very different things to different members. The name X-Men is being reinterpreted by several different heroes, representing Rogue's makeshift family in Louisiana and Cyclops' Alaska strike force, which he is using to threaten the US government into respecting mutant rights.
It will be interesting to see how the meaning of 'X-Men'is challenged and redefined in future editions, especially as Cyclops and On your ownThe new grudge puts extra distance between the two lineups.
Strange X-Men #7 is available from Marvel Comics on December 11th.