X-Men Monday #185 – Jordan D. White Reflects on 2022 and Teases 2023

Welcome, X-Fans, to 2022’s final, uncanny edition of X-Men Monday at AIPT!

X-Men Monday had quite the year. We kicked off 2022 with the X-Office’s X-Men election endorsements. We celebrated Marauders Monday with Steve Orlando and dropped not one, not two, but three interviews with the new captain of the Marauder in a single day. And around a billion X-Men creators took part in the now-iconic X-Men Monday Valentine’s Day Special.

Several X-Men legends stopped by: Roy Thomas, Ann Nocenti, and Chris Claremont — twice in one year!

And then there were all the first-time guests, including Steve Foxe, Jason Loo, Alex Paknadel, Luciano Vecchio, Alyssa Wong, Charlie Jane Anders, and Nyla Rose.

Of course, there were several other first-timers, and many returning champions, so if you don’t read X-Men Monday religiously, first, rectify that in 2023, and second, be sure to browse through every edition to date via this handy link.

Now, before we get to our main event — our annual, end-of-year conversation with X-Men Senior Editor Jordan D. White — we need to reveal the results of our X-Men Monday 2022 Survey. Many, many X-Fans participated, and here’s what they had to say…

Favorite X-series of 2022

1. X-Men Red

2. Immortal X-Men

3. X-Men

Favorite X-moment of 2022

“The Hour of Magneto” from X-Men Red and A.X.E.: Judgment Day

Favorite X-character of 2022

1. Magneto

2. Storm

3. Synch

Breakout X-character of 2022

1. Synch

2. Destiny

3. Sunspot/Exodus (Tie)

Favorite X-couple of 2022

1. Cyclops and Jean Grey

2. Captain Britain and Askani

3. Mystique and Destiny

Surely, you have opinions about these results. Jordan did too. Read on and see for yourself.

AIPT: Welcome back to X-Men Monday, Jordan! 2022 kicked off by bringing Jonathan Hickman’s “official” involvement in the X-Office to a close with Inferno #4. X Lives and X Deaths of Wolverine followed along with the start of the Destiny of X era and a new slate of titles and creators. There was also a little crossover event called A.X.E. Judgment Day and several returns to the past in series like X-Men Legends. From my point of view, it seems like 2022 was a very busy year for the X-Office, but I’m curious how it was for you. What were the main challenges and what are you most proud of?

Jordan: Obviously, the biggest challenge was the shifting of the structure of the office away from having Jonathan be part of it, because he was such a big part of it. I mean, the whole thing came from him — repositioning the X-Men in such a cool way in House of X and Powers of X, and everything very much flowed from that. And while everything we do still flows from that, the structure and the feel of the office on the inside is very different without Jonathan.

You can go back through the many X-Men Mondays we’ve done where I just talk about how great he is and how brilliant he is. It’s all still true. So obviously, we miss him and having him as our kind-of guiding light — the person who, at the end of the day, we’re like, “What are your thoughts?” because we all respect him, his storytelling chops, and his intelligence so much that we wanted to run so much by him. So not having him there is definitely a bummer and took some getting used to.

As you mentioned, his “official” involvement ended, and that is very true. But because he was in the office while he was working on Inferno, we were already planning up into “Sins of Sinister.” We were talking about “Sins of Sinister” stuff well before Jonathan left. So he was involved in the early stages of planning for a lot of this stuff. And honestly, I want to say this is about towards the end of where we planned out, but that’s not even true because a bunch of the stuff that we’re going to be doing over the next year he was involved in and chimed in.

But we all got used to him not actually being there on a day-to-day basis. I think it’s worked out well. And then, Kieron Gillen being part of the office was another a big shift. Kieron is terrific and having him as part of the group in such a major way by doing such a big book for us is huge.

As you pointed out, partway through the year, the idea for A.X.E.: Judgment Day got hatched. Man, I think Kieron did an amazing job on that. On some level, I want to say that’s something to be proud of, but I didn’t actually edit that book, so I don’t want to take too much credit for it at all. Tom Brevoort did a great job on it and Kieron nailed it. I’m super proud of all the things we did on our side as part of it. I think that as far as Marvel events go — like big blockbuster, giant crossovers — it’s the best one in ages. I think it reads so well and I’m really thrilled at how much we got from it, because again, it was a story that was fun to read and I felt like it was giving to the things that crossed over with it. It provided story opportunities rather than being a thing we had to do. It was like, “No, we want to do this — this is great.”

But if I had to go with one awesome thing… it’s sad because on some level, I feel like you’re asking me to choose my favorite child. But I’ve been really knocked out by X-Men Red. Again, I love all my books. Immortal X-Men is amazing. X-Men is amazing. The Hellfire Gala this year was such a blast. But I feel like X-Men Red really sings and achieves things story-wise that I think are astounding to see achieved in a 20-page comic book.

The story hits on so many levels. It sets things up and it pays things off. I’ve seen people compare it, plotting-wise, to Game of Thrones. I feel like absolutely, it nails that. And I remember there was a time when Game of Thrones was one of the most popular things in the world, and that got thrown around a lot in comics: “This series we’re going to do now is going to have a Game of Thrones kind of feel.”

I don’t want to say it never worked, but it very rarely worked because that’s not easy. Game of Thrones is, especially originally, a billion-page book, right? That allows you to get deep into characters’ heads and know about the nuances of trickery that they’re going to pull and their schemes — and then it switches to someone else and their counter scheme and all that stuff. That’s not easy to do in 20 pages a month. I feel like Al Ewing has done so much to set up the characters and make them feel so real and rich while immersing us in a foreign culture that we have to learn about as we go. It’s insane, it’s impressive, and I love every issue of that.

AIPT: Well, you’ve managed to perfectly segue into the results of the end-of-year survey of X-Men Monday readers I conducted. The clear winner for favorite X-series of 2022 was X-Men Red — a series you edit. You started to touch on this, but what, in your opinion, makes X-Men Red such a standout book?

Jordan: Every issue has knocked my socks off — every single issue. And as you said, I’m an editor, right? I’m here to edit things and give notes, but man — I don’t want to say Al’s unique, because I’ve worked with lots of writers who’ve done this — but Al absolutely turns it in. Maybe there’s a typo somewhere, and I’ll fix that, but gee whiz, the scripts are amazing.

And then the artists that we’ve been working with have been terrific. Stefano Caselli is so great. We had a couple of fill-in artists who have also stepped up and nailed it. Al does a thing where when we need to have a fill-in artist, he’ll write this big issue that has multiple scenes drawn by various artists. He did it again here and it was so effective. It was three different scenes that all meditate on death and resurrection and what it means to different people.

Of course, Al did not create the idea of the Arakii, but he has developed and fleshed it out in a way that no other writer has, including Jonathan, who came up with them in the first place. And it just makes it so rich and so real. I think that’s part of the reason it resonates — because it’s such a surprise. It’s not what you expect from a Marvel comic. It’s not what you expect from an X-Men comic.

I mean, it does have awesome X-Men stuff in it as well. It’s had amazing Magneto stories, amazing Storm stories, amazing Sunspot stories — big things for big X-characters. But I think you don’t typically go, “I’m going to pick up this X-Men book and find an exploration of what other cultures can be and what being a warrior culture that was immersed in war for thousands of years can do to you.”

So I do think that people buy the book for various reasons. They may buy the book going, “I like Storm, let’s see what she’s up to,” and they find something far richer than they were expecting. And I love that. I love that people do love it so deeply.

AIPT: And you didn’t even mention what Al’s been doing with Vulcan.

Jordan: I didn’t.

AIPT: I remember when I first saw the cover to X-Men #1, I thought, “Is that Vulcan?” And all these years later, thanks to X-Men Red, I’m a Vulcan fan.

Jordan: That’s amazing. I mean, that’s another thing. Al is very well-suited to Marvel Comics and superhero comics in many ways. But one of the ways that he’s really well-suited to it is that he’s incredible at playing the ball where it lies. Here’s where this character was left. Here are the weird disparate elements that have come up in the history of this element of this thing. Here’s a thing that was an accident, and so on.

He’s able to take those and go, “No, I can spin that into great storytelling.” I know some people in the past have done those sorts of things in jokey ways or winky ways of like, “Haha, we know about this.” Al’s like, “No, I accept it at face value. It’s part of the world and I’m using it.”

So you talk about Vulcan — and obviously, I’m referencing that Jonathan and I, because I don’t want to leave myself out, made a terrible mistake. We had at one point intended to have Petra and Sway be figments of Vulcan’s imagination. And then Jonathan was like, “Ah, I screwed up and had one of them interact with someone and that blew it.” And Al was like, “I got it, don’t worry about it.” I think it was actually funny because I’m pretty sure Al said that and I think Jonathan forgot, which is part of why he was like, “I’m just going to tell people about this in an interview.” And so then we were like, “Jonathan, we’re fixing it.” He was like, “Oh, sorry,” which was very funny. 

And Vulcan is a great example because he’s got that stuff with the three aliens — what are the three aliens about? He’s got the stuff where they tear him open and they look inside of him. He has history from all sorts of places. And I think it was in the issue that just came out where we mentioned his kid with Deathbird, right? Al’s able to take all that in and go, “No, that’s all part of the picture.”

AIPT: I really appreciated that one. So many X-Fans have asked about that for past X-Men Mondays, and I always ask myself, “Does anyone really remember or care about this?” So, I stand corrected, X-Fans.

Jordan: Al is great at remembering the thing that you’re like, “Is it worth remembering?” Because as an editor, sometimes that’s a question you ask. There’s this thing in the history — is there a way we can make that work? Or does acknowledging and remembering that ruin our story? The thing that we’re trying to do is tell a good story and it’ll be about X, Y, or Z. And here’s this thing that happened 40 years ago and has barely been touched on since then — do we want to bring that up? Is there a way to reconcile it or is it just a pain in our butts? And sometimes the answer is it’s just a pain in the butt. Let’s look away a little bit and try to make room for it to still exist, but let’s not focus on it. Again, Al’s able to go, “No, let’s just say it’s there and here’s how it works.” And it’s like, oh, great. Never mind — it works.

AIPT: Moving on to X-Fans’ favorite moment of 2022 but staying with X-Men Red — it was hands-down “the hour of Magneto,” including Magneto and Storm’s efforts to defeat Uranos and, ultimately, Magneto’s death. Could you share some of the behind-the-scenes discussions that went into that game-changing sequence? Was there any debate around taking Magneto off the table?

Jordan: The question of whether any mutants were going to die in Judgment Day, and whether there would be any permanent sacrifices did come up relatively early in that discussion. I believe Al volunteered Magneto, going, “You know what? Actually Magneto could die, and here’s why and how.” I will say I was very much like, “Oh, I don’t know about that, he’s Magneto, he’s a big deal. And also, he’s a big part of your book and you’re doing amazing work with him. You really want to just go, Magneto is dead?” But again, he was very much like, “No, I think this works.”

As you can see when you read the whole series altogether, I think it’s clearly the trajectory he was on. He was in a dark place to begin with and he was thinking about his life and his mortality. It was gut-wrenching. I was scared to do it because I was going, “Ah, I don’t know if this is a great idea.” But once again, the story was so good that it was just undeniable when he first pitched us the idea that Magneto gets his heart ripped out and then keeps circulating his own blood by himself and through the force of his will, until he can do what he has to be done. We were all just like, “Yes, that’s amazing.” 

And then Kieron is an incredibly generous collaborator and did such a cool thing of going, “I want to send Uranos there and he attacks Arakko in this huge way.” And then goes, “Al, you write it.” We get so little of it in Judgment Day proper — it tells you the story, but then it’s like, well, what actually happened? And letting Al take that part of the story and do such great stuff with it, that still managed to be super surprising — it’s still such a great issue. So that’s awesome to hear that that was the moment of the year. 

AIPT: The X-Men Red sweep continues with X-Fans’ favorite X-characters of 2022. Based on the first two survey results, it should come as no shock to hear Magneto was the year’s top mutant, followed by Storm. Since Magneto’s dead, what can Storm fans look forward to from her in 2023?

Jordan: Well, she is obviously a big part of “Sins of Sinister.” She’s got one of the books named after her: Storm and the Brotherhood of Mutants. So she’s going to be big in that. And then, obviously, she’s absolutely a force to be reckoned with. The things that Magneto said to her on his deathbed are things that were said for very specific reasons and definitely are things that are not going to be forgotten. They’re going to be very relevant in the new year. 

First of all, she’s the only person on both councils, which is huge — although also a bit of a problem for her, right? Because she isn’t able to devote herself fully to either of them. I think she devotes herself much more to the Great Ring as a result, because she does have people she trusts on the Quiet Council. So the main places to look for her are X-Men Red and Immortal X-Men, but Storm of the Brotherhood of Mutants and “Sins of Sinister” are going to be huge for her.

AIPT: I’m not sure how this next one’s possible, but for the second year in a row, Synch has been named the year’s top breakout character. 

Jordan: How do you break out when you’ve already broken out? 

AIPT: I guess Everett’s not done breaking out. It’s a two-year process. So what does 2023 have in store for Synch?

Jordan: Wait, sorry, I question the results here. So is this open, and people can write in?

AIPT: Yeah, my one regret is I don’t make this survey multiple choice…

Jordan: [Laughs]

AIPT: Because people don’t always spell their responses correctly, and then I have to tally up every possible spelling of “X-Men Red.” Spoiler alert: Somehow, there are a lot of ways. So, the actual results for this one were Synch at No. 1, then Destiny, and then Sunspot and Exodus tied in third.

Jordan: Oh, that’s great. Let me talk about all of those really briefly. But first of all, Synch rules. So yes, I mean all the reasons that he was great last year — he’s still great now. In fact, he just had a great moment at the end of the last issue of X-Men where he’s reunited with Vault Laura.

And obviously, we’ll have resolution on that coming up. But that was a great moment for him. He did some awesome things this year and he continues to grow. At the Hellfire Gala, we found out that while he is able to call upon what Gerry Duggan’s calling muscle memory to bring back powers he’s used before, it has a toll on him, and it’s making him age quicker, which is very interesting. We’ll see how that goes. So, no, I understand him winning. But it’s a little weird for him to win twice in a row. 

AIPT: I think it just means Synch has some very die-hard fans.

Jordan: Absolutely. That said, I think Destiny is a great choice as well for runner-up. She’s back alive for the first time in quite a long time. She got an issue showcasing her and her point of view in Immortal X-Men. She’s obviously become a big, important mover and shaker. She’s on the Quiet Council. She will continue to be a big deal on Krakoa and in the X-books. So that’s a great choice. 

And then, Sunspot again is so great. He had a couple of great reveals — that moment in X-Men Red where he’s at the challenge of Magneto and Tarn and he engages with Isca and he bets that Tarn will win was amazing. That was so good. And that was another one where when I read that script, I was just like, “YES!”

This one was a little bit less of a surprise to me, because I knew this was coming, but him revealing that he was a member of the Night Seats of the Great Ring was just so great and very much him. Al is a master at writing him being brilliant and pretending he’s not — very much the Bruce Wayne playboy personality. Except, it is him. Like, it’s not like he isn’t a guy who loves bars and disco and Tom Selleck — that’s who he is. He just plays it up and goes, “Oh, you don’t have to worry about me for that reason.” When really there’s so much more going on underneath it. He’s very good at showing what he wants to show and not revealing the secrets until the end. 

And then the other one was Exodus. Again, another character who I think has gotten such a great showcase this year. A character who, I’ll be honest with you, I didn’t know that much about when we put him on the Quiet Council. Like, I knew he was a former Acolyte of Magneto’s, and I knew vaguely his powers, and that he was a Crusader and that was about it. I couldn’t have told you that much about who he is and what he’s like as a person. And Kieron really jumped into that in a big way, going, “Oh no, I know what that’s like and here’s what it is.” And the relationship he’s developed with Hope — so good, so interesting.

So all four of those are great choices and I thank you for sharing the full list. I think those are all terrific.

AIPT: With the final survey category — favorite X-couple of 2022 — Cyclops and Jean Grey managed to dethrone last year’s top X-couple, Psylocke and Greycrow, with a huge lead over other pairings. Despite a few decades of hiccups between 1963 and today, Scott and Jean are still going strong. Why do you think they nabbed the top spot?

Jordan: Well, first of all, speaking to the longevity of their relationship — I know that fans of things want couples to work out. Nobody watches a couple and goes, “I hope they break up sometime soon.” Not typically, unless you have another pairing you’re more invested in or something like that. There are definitely Emma fans who want that…

AIPT: [Laughs] I was going to say, I believe they’re called Scemma fans.

Jordan: But on the whole, if you’re just enjoying a thing where characters kind of came together, you want them to stay together. Like, oh, they flirted for a long time. They thought about each other in big, clunky, ’60s thought bubbles. And then they eventually got together. You want that to work out naturally. And yes, you’re right. They’ve hit huge, huge, speed bumps in the road since then. Some really absurdly big. But I think, generally, they’re end game, right? Like, that seems like the one that’s going to go. Is it going to be that that way forever? Who knows.

It’s definitely one that we’re currently very invested in. Gerry’s very invested in showing them together and what they are to each other and what they do for each other. So I think we’re in a place where they have a real great relationship. They’re feeling good about themselves and each other and they are very supportive and it’s been really nice in a way.

I mean, obviously, I talk a lot about how stories come from drama, right? People are upset about this. Why did you do this to that character? Why did you do that to that character? And most of the time the answer is, “Well, to make the story interesting and worth telling,” right? Those characters are in a place right now where that’s not needed for their relationship. It’s not necessary to go, “What is their squabble right now? What is upsetting their marriage? Why are they getting torn apart?” There’s a lot of other stuff going on, and right now they are very supportive of each other and they are helping each other through larger, terrible things, and it’s going great.

Will there be problems for them in the future? Well, keep looking. There might be. Hopefully they’ll make it through it. I like them as a couple.

AIPT: I think there’s a “Dark Web” they’re currently caught in.

Jordan: Yeah, “Dark Web” is certainly bringing up some of their past issues for sure. But we’ll see how Jean feels about that, how Scott feels about that, how Madelyne feels about that. That would be a pretty shocking ending, right? If Scott and Maddie just got back together. [Laughs] He’s like, “You know what? Maddie’s right. I’m going to leave you, Jean.”

AIPT: Well, Chris Claremont would be happy. Now, Rachel Summers clearly takes after her parents, because her relationship with Betsy Braddock earned her the runner-up spot for favorite X-couple of the year. 

Jordan: Honestly, I’m sort of surprised that didn’t win, because yeah, this is one that’s been building for quite a while in the actual books that we’ve been publishing. In addition, that specific relationship is something that Tini Howard’s been building for a few years in each of them. I don’t want to say it’s the culmination, because there’s lots to come, but it was the acknowledgement of something that was believed and or hinted at for a long time without being explicitly put on the page. I’m really excited that they were able to tell that story, get that in there, get that out into the world, and make that part of the official Marvel history of who these characters are, what they do in their life, who they are at their core, and that will always be a part of them.

AIPT: What can we expect from this new power couple in the pages of Betsy Braddock: Captain Britain?

Jordan: Well, Betsy’s obviously been a character we’ve been showcasing for the last few years, but giving her her own series is exciting. There hasn’t been a Captain Britain book for a really long time and never one that was hers, obviously. So we’re super excited to have that happen. And the fact that her and Rachel are in relationship is going to be a big part of that, and that’s why Rachel will be right there in it with her. So it’s going to be terrific. It’s going to shift a little bit away from the multiverse aspects and a little bit more towards the Marvel Universe proper. But I think it’ll be really cool.

AIPT: I just want to add that Mystique and Destiny were in third place.

Jordan: Well, they’re finally together and everything will work out. You know, when you’ve got two great people like them in a relationship, nothing can go wrong.

AIPT: Not ominous at all. OK, now I want you to put on your own Destiny mask and I’m going to throw some rapid-fire questions your way. First, who are three X-characters X-Fans will be talking about in the new year? The first three that come to mind… go!

Jordan: Whatever comes to mind… no, I can’t say that…

Certainly Emma.

I literally am thinking of the ones I really, really can’t say…

Probably Iceman. 

AIPT: OK, last one. It’s a long year.

Jordan: It is, it is. And I’m trying to cast my mind across what I know is going to happen…

Let’s say Kate.

AIPT: So Emma Frost, Iceman, and Captain Kate Pryde.

Jordan: Yeah, they all have some big stuff coming. 

AIPT: Do you see any new romance?

Jordan: Do I see new romances? Oh yeah, sure. I mean, I’m not going to tell you.

AIPT: Are there any new X-series we’re not currently aware of being worked on?

Jordan: Definitely. 

AIPT: Last one — do you see costume designs for a third Hellfire Gala?

Jordan: I mean, come on. Yeah, of course.

AIPT: How do they look?

Jordan: Great so far. So far, so great. 

AIPT: OK, as we wrap up, I know “Sins of Sinister” is the next major event, but I need to ask about “Fall of X.” It’s early, but what can you share about this summer event? Have the seeds been planted for it, or do we have no idea what lies ahead?

Jordan: Both. Absolutely both. There’s some stuff that we have already for sure been setting up or have set up for a while. And there are other parts that are going to be hopefully a total surprise that haven’t been shown yet. I don’t think people will expect where it’s going — but I’m very excited about where it’s going. There are some really cool plans that we’ve been working on for a little while now. And yeah, it starts in the summer and goes through the fall.

AIPT: “Fall of X” is inspired by Weezer’s SZNZ, isn’t it?

Jordan: It just means autumn, that’s all. It’s not even bad for them at all. It’s actually really awesome and exciting. It’s an “autumn of X” and we just didn’t like that word. No, no, no. Obviously, it’s going to be very hard on them. It won’t be pleasant for them. But listen, for those of you who are worried about mutants having a hard time, let me just tell you, the X-Men are amazing heroes and they can get through anything — but we are going to put them to the test on that. 

AIPT: Terrifying. Let’s change the subject. Beyond Krakoa, what brought you, Jordan D. White, joy in 2022?

Jordan: Oh, interesting. Well, it was the end of last year when I started really getting into vinyl. I have so many records now. So many. Like a stupid number for not having collected that long.

It wouldn’t be X-Men Monday if we didn’t talk about Weezer a little bit, but it really has been fun to be able to look forward to a new Weezer EP at the start of every season.

AIPT: What’s your favorite song on each EP?

Jordan: All right. On Spring, it’s probably “Angels On Vacation,” which I really adore. Although “A Little Bit Of Love” is also great.

On Summer… oh wow. That’s a toughie because there are so many good ones. I’m torn between “Blue Lake Jazz” and “Thank You And Goodnight.” The ending of “Thank You And Goodnight” just rocked so hard. I love it so much… but I guess I’ll go with “Blue Lake Jazz.” It just edges it out.

And then in Autumn… oh man, just looking at Autumn again, it’s like — this is really good. I guess “Get Off On The Pain,” because there are things about that that I think are so much fun. 

For Winter, “Dark Enough To See The Stars” takes it for me so far. But they really are all good. All of these albums are terrific.

What else have I been really into? I’m still doing LEGO. I’m still reading mystery novels.

AIPT: What about non-X-Men comics you were really into?

Jordan: Oh, great question. I mean, I don’t read comics as frequently as I used to. I used to read them every Wednesday. Now I fall really far behind, so I end up reading at least a few issues at a time of things. I just read a handful of We Only Find Them When They’re Dead, which were terrific. I also just caught up on Once & Future, which was awesome.

My favorite comic of the year, though, is Human Target. Human Target‘s just been absolutely knocking my socks off every issue. I love it.

Eight Billion Genies has been nuts and a total surprise. I had no idea what to expect from that book and it’s been so crazy and fun. Stillwater is a great read. Chip Zdarsky is really great at writing characters. It’s the same with Public Domain. I just finished that a couple days ago as well. And his Batman — to be honest with you, I had fallen off of reading any regular ongoing DC books for a very long time. But I decided it’s been a long time since I was reading Batman on a regular basis, let me pick it up. Now that Chip’s on it, I’ve been digging it. So it’s getting me back into DC monthlies. 

Other than that… man, my son started kindergarten. Oh, video games too. I started playing video games. the LEGO Star Wars video game rules. Both Spider-Man games rule. The Guardians of the Galaxy game also rules. Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order is harder than those other ones for me, but I’m working my way through that. I’m really digging that too. So I don’t have a ton of video games, but those are the ones I’ve like really loved so far.

AIPT: That’s a lot and I don’t know how you find the time for all of it.

Jordan: I don’t do any of them as much as I’d like to.

AIPT: Finally, before we wrap up 2022, is there anything you’d like to say to X-Fans?

Jordan: Thank you for reading both the books and the column, of course. Again, the only reason we are able to do what we do is because of the support of y’all. The fact that the online excitement for the X-books is as big as it is is really great.

And obviously, I haven’t been on Twitter for a couple years now, but it’s a bummer that the thing is falling apart. Because I do know that the X-Twitter #XSpoilers tag has been such a great, active thing and it’s neat that the fans are so engaged and so excited about the books. So I hope that if Twitter crashes, there’s still some way for fans to engage with that.

But yeah, we love how much you love the X-Men and we’re so thrilled to be putting out stories that you care so much about. 

AIPT: On that note, Jordan, thanks for taking the time to reflect and look ahead. Merry Christmas, Happy New Year, and we’ll talk again in 2023!

But of course we’re not done yet, X-Fans. For this week’s eXclusive preview images, I asked Jordan to put that Destiny mask back on and see what he could pluck from 2023. Jordan went so far into the new year, you’ll see these images aren’t even finished!

A pretty nice holiday present, wouldn’t you say?

Until next time, X-Fans, stay exceptional and here’s to a safe and happy New Year!