X-Men: From The Ashes remakes Marvel's mutants for the future, and here's everything you need to know
What to expect from the upcoming linewide relaunch of X-Men (and when to expect it)
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Marvel’s X-Men are, famously, “hated and feared” by humanity — and the same terms could be used to describe fandom’s anxiety about change when it comes to the beloved superhero franchise. This summer, Marvel is preparing for the biggest change in its X-Men comic book line in five years, with the upcoming X-Men: From the Ashes — a line-wide relaunch of the property that sees the launch of three new X-Men teams and a number of new comic book series from some of comics’ biggest names. A purposeful pivot away from the recent “Krakoa era” of the X-Men, which saw the characters forming a new society on their own island and coming into conflict with humanity as a result, From the Ashes is a return to many elements that made the X-Men popular in the past — but with a twist.
What is X-Men: From the Ashes?
X-Men: From the Ashes is the name given to the upcoming reboot of Marvel’s X-Men publishing line, after the five-year-long 'Krakoan era' of the comic book franchise, which launched with Jonathan Hickman’s House of X/Powers of X miniseries in 2019. That cycle of stories comes to a conclusion in June, following the completion of the Fall of the House of X, Rise of the Powers of X, and X-Men: Forever miniseries in May, and the epilogue issue X-Men #35, to be released the following month.
The relaunch is being overseen by former Avengers editor Tom Brevoort, who has described it as “a far cry from building a new relaunch for Avengers or Fantastic Four, it’s relaunching an entire line of titles — creating the infrastructure between them that will make up the new parameters of their world and how they’ll all interact (and to what degree) as well as deciding what characters will end up where, in whose hands. I’ve done a lot of things in my years on this job, but I’ve never had to think so broadly about so many characters and books at one time.”
The title “From the Ashes” and the July launch date were announced by Marvel in late December 2023.
What comics are in X-Men: From the Ashes?
Fans will get their first chance to see the new era in the Blood Hunt/X-Men FCBD 2024 issue released as part of Marvel’s Free Comic Book Day 2024 offerings in May. Written by Gail Simone, with art by David Marquez, the story therein is teased by the publisher with the following text: “get a glimpse of the future of mutantkind as Jubilee learns that you cannot go home again!”
That will be followed by a story in X-Men #35 again written by Simone (the artist has yet to be confirmed), before the official launch of the line with no less than three new X-Men titles:
- X-Men by Jed MacKay and Ryan Stegman. “KRAKOA IS NO MORE…BUT THE X-MEN FIGHT ON!” reads Marvel’s description. “From their new base in Alaska, the X-Men raise a flag of defiance! Join CYCLOPS, BEAST, MAGNETO, PSYLOCKE, KID OMEGA, TEMPER (formerly OYA), MAGIK and JUGGERNAUT as they assemble against new forces, battling for the destiny and philosophy of the mutant species. Mutant business is their business.”
- Uncanny X-Men by Gail Simone and David Marquez. Per Marvel: “OUTLAW HEROES ONCE AGAIN, THE X-MEN EMBARK ON A NEW MISSION! Making themselves at home in the Big Easy, the X-Men protect a world that hates and fears them! Join ROGUE, GAMBIT, NIGHTCRAWLER, JUBILEE and WOLVERINE on explosive super hero adventures. Uncanny as ever, the X-Men are back to saving the day mutant-style!”
- Exceptional X-Men by Eve L. Ewing and Carmen Carnero. “MUTANTKIND’S TWO GREATEST TEACHERS MOLD THE NEXT GENERATION OF X-MEN!” Marvel’s description announces. “KATE PRYDE has returned home to Chicago following the war with ORCHIS. Having stepped away from the world of mutantdom, she is nevertheless called back into action as she crosses paths with a trio of new young mutants, BRONZE, AXO and MELEE, who clearly need training and guidance. Unfortunately for Kate, EMMA FROST thinks so as well!”
According to Marvel, additional titles — both new teams, and solo character series — will be revealed in the coming weeks and months. Logos teased at SXSW 2024 were for Phoenix, X-Factor, Storm, NYC, X-Force, and Wolverine.
Additionally, Marvel has also announced that an upcoming From the Ashes title will feature Rachel Summers and Betsy Braddock, although it's not clear what the title of this comic will be as yet; this series will begin in the fall.
Who are the X-Men: From the Ashes writers?
Gail Simone’s involvement with the From the Ashes relaunch has been an open secret for some time; as pointed out above, she was announced back in September 2023 as being the writer of the X-Men story in the upcoming Free Comic Book Day 2024 release in May. Then came the announcement in early March of X-Men #35, which is somehow inexplicably “the milestone 700th issue of Uncanny X-Men” — yes, despite X-Men and Uncanny X-Men having previously been entirely separate titles since 1991; don’t ask — and features Simone again providing what is described as “a glimpse of things to come in the new X-Men titles launching this summer.”
Simone has had limited experience with the X-Men franchise in the past; most notably, she’s written issues of Deadpool and its follow-on title Agent X in the early 2000s, and more recently, the Domino series from 2018.
Jed MacKay, meanwhile, is a Marvel mainstay of recent years, and is currently the writer of Avengers, Doctor Strange, Moon Knight, and upcoming Marvel event series Blood Hunt, amongst other projects. Should he become one of the core X-Men writers, it’ll be the first time in almost 30 years that the same writer has written primary X-Men and Avengers titles at the same time. (The last time would be in 1996, when Mark Waid did both for a very, very brief period.)
Eve L. Ewing has an extensive comic book writing background, having written Ironheart, Champions, Ms. Marvel, and Monica Rambeau: Photon for Marvel; she’s also the current writer of the Black Panther series. Perhaps more interestingly for those who like to think about the societal implications of the X-Men metaphor, Ewing is also an Associate Professor Department of Race, Diaspora, and Indigeneity in the University of Chicago's Division of the Social Sciences. (Not for nothing, her X-Men series is set in Chicago.)
How many comics will be part of X-Men: From the Ashes?
Although three new titles have been announced, we know more are on the way. Back in November 2023, Brevoort wrote that fans should expect “approximately the same general number of releases in a given family of titles month after month,” and that includes the X-Men line.
He did clarify, "We maybe won’t have quite as many at the jump as the end of the outgoing era does, but it’ll still be in the neighborhood—and will likely increase as we move ahead and more stuff gets green-lit."
It’s worth noting that, at the time he wrote that, the X-Men line consisted of six ongoing series and an additional eight limited series. The “end of the outgoing era,” in May, is made up of 16 different titles — 17, if you include The Invincible Iron Man, which got temporarily folded into the X-Men publishing line during the Fall of X storyline.
Is there an X-Men: From the Ashes trailer?
Yes, there is. Look below.
When does X-Men: From the Ashes launch?
Outside of the previews in the Free Comic Book Day release and June’s X-Men #35, X-Men: From the Ashes officially launches in July 2024.
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