It’s been a little over a month since Marvel first announced their new X-Men Blue and Gold titles for their ResurreXion line. These titles joined the new Iceman and Cable series to form an exciting new branch of Marvel comics. The only thing the latest announcement lacked was a team for each, and today that information has been revealed!
It turns out Marc Guggenheim (of Arrow and Legends of Tomorrow fame) will be in charge of X-Men Gold, with art by Ardian Syaf. The team will be composed of Storm, Colossus, Nightcrawler, Old Man Logan and Rachel Grey. Kitty Pryde, meanwhile, serves as their leader.
As Guggenheim told IGN, Kitty will no longer be part of Guardians of the Galaxy. Instead she will be working to ensure the future of the X-men. “They’re at a point where they are trying to decide, is there a future for the X-Men? ” He explained. “And Kitty is very much of the mindset that there is a future for the X-Men and it’s a bright future.”
Despite her leadership position, the series will be more of a team effort. Guggenheim says he intends to explore racism against mutants in a 21st century context, so that should make for some deep and at times dark material.
Rachel Grey will also be undergoing a transformatio
n in this series, taking on a new costume and superhero name in the form of Prestige.
Meanwhile, X-Men Blue is being helmed by Deadpool‘s Cullen Bunn with art by Jorge Molina. Five original members make up the team: Cyclops, Iceman, Beast, Angel and Jean Grey leading the charge. Now that Professor X is dead, Magneto has turned from their greatest enemy into their mentor.
Putting Magneto in such a central role “immediately raises a lot of questions,” Bunn told IGN. “Why would these X-Men be working with him? What is he trying to accomplish now? Do they feel that he’s changed his ways?”
It’s interesting to note that both writers have previously worked on all-female line-ups (Gugggenheim on another X-Men series and Bunn on A-Force), and are now putting women in charge of their teams. Gender dynamics will therefore probably be on full display in both series, along with other important issues such as Iceman’s sexuality.
The teams on X-Men Gold and Blue are meant to be separate, but they will operate in the same headquarters and intermingle in both books. ResurreXion spins out of the upcoming Inhumans vs. X-Men event. The Blue and Gold titles will launch in April 2017 and be available twice monthly.