The X-Men became one of Marvel‘s most popular teams over the decades. There are numerous reasons for this, but a huge one is actually kind of simple — its adaptability. The X-Men have given birth to numerous types of teams. There have been black ops teams like X-Force and young hero teams like the New Mutants, Generation X, and the New X-Men. Marauders were the pirate team and the Hellions were the unhinged team. X-Factor has had a variety of roles over the decades, working as a government strike team, a detective team, and a corporate team. This has allowed the X-Men and its members to fulfill multiple roles in the Marvel Universe.
X-teams are all about variety. However, there’s one Marvel team role that the X-Men haven’t had a lot of experience with: the cosmic team. The X-Men have spent a lot of time in space, and the Krakoa Era had SWORD, but there are rarely any cosmic mutant teams. However, all of the pieces are there for one, especially right now, and a cosmic mutant team could play a huge role in the Marvel Cinematic Universe in the years to come.
The X-Men Have a Lot of Cosmic Experience
Chris Claremont changed the X-Men forever, and one aspect of this was to give them their own alien groups to focus on. First, the writer introduced the Shi’Ar Empire to Uncanny X-Men, the equivalent of the Kree for the Avengers and the Skrulls for the Fanatstic Four. The team battled the mad emperor D’Ken for the M’Kraan Crystal, dealt with the Imperial Guard, and have helped save the empire from threats of all kinds from the Brood to evil members of the race who wanted the throne.
There’s the Phoenix Force, a cosmic force of power that has become tied up with the history of the X-Men. Cyclops’s father leads the Starjammers, a group of alien pirates. There’s the Technarchy, a group of techno-organic aliens, and the Phalanx, which are basically the Technarchy mixed with the Borg and a little bit of cosmic horror. There’s the battle against the Breakworld and the team-up with SWORD, a group that protected the Earth from aliens, from Astonishing X-Men. A team of X-Men ended up fighting the Shi’Ar in the mid ’00s after “Rise and Fall of the Shi’Ar Empire”. Since the Phoenix Force returned to Jean Grey, she’s been out in space, and then there’s Manifold, a mutant who the universe speaks to.
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Marvel tried to use the highly inventive Krakoa Era to give fans a space team in the book S.W.O.R.D. However, the book never really reached its potential, getting tied up in event comic tie-ins and pushing the plot of Krakoa forward. Right now is an interesting time in the Marvel Universe. Imperial has rebooted the landscape of cosmic Marvel and in doing so has basically taken the Guardians of the Galaxy out of the game. Phoenix is out in space, using her godlike powers to do the most good for the universe. It’s a perfect time for a cosmic X-Men team.
Jean Grey has led the X-Men several times, so her bringing together a team of mutants to deal with cosmic threats is perfect. Manifold would be perfect for the group, Northstar can move at the speed of light, something very helpful in space, and there are plenty of powerful mutants who could easily fill out the roster. Xavier is out in the stars with Lilandra, and there’s the Arakkii on Mars. All of the pieces are there for a mutant Guardians of the Galaxy, and it’s honestly surprising that Marvel hasn’t actually pulled the trigger on a cosmic X-Men team yet. The cosmic side of the publisher has been woefully under-served for a while now, and maybe bringing a mutant team to the stars would make a big difference.
A Cosmic X-Men Team Could Fill a Variety of Roles
The cosmic side of Marvel needs a boost and an X-Men team could give it to them. The team has a long history in space and has faced off against numerous cosmic menaces. There are currently multiple members that would be perfect for a cosmic mutant team, one that could slot into the Guardians of the Galaxy’s place. This is super-important, especially since the MCU is currently without a cosmic team. Let’s be real — the MCU Guardians is done. Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 was the team’s swan song.
The MCU needs a new cosmic team, and with the X-Men approaching their film debut, a cosmic mutant team is perfect. Mutants are the next big thing for Marvel Studios and their adaptability will allow them to fill a variety of spots. Mutant teams of all kind have existed, and a new cosmic team, one that got some attention in the comics, would be perfect to bring over to the movies. The sooner the X-Men get a cosmic team, the better.
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