The X-Men have slowly entered a new era after the Age of Revelation, but that transition speeds up with X-Men: United #1 out this week. Eve L. Ewing and Tiago Palma are introducing a whole new corner for the X-Men via Emma Frost and a school mind palace where mutants can meet, learn, and coexist in safety. Or so she thinks and hopes. In the opening issue, Ewing establishes how this school functions while lighting a fire under Cyclops to stop it from getting more mutants killed.
There’s a lot that works in X-Men: United #1, introducing new character dynamics, threads, and conflicts in an extra-sized issue. At its core, this series is clearly a continuation of Exceptional X-Men, also written by Ewing. That’s because Ewing has carried over new mutants from that series and given them key roles in Emma Frost’s Graymatter Lane school. That makes this an easy pickup if you liked the previous series, or have any interest in new mutants Axo, Bronze, and Melee.
The issue opens with a message from Emma Frost and an interesting double-page splash that reveals how each mutant can enter the school through their own themed doorway. Once inside, there are various rooms to learn and meet, like the Danger Room, harkening back to the good old days of Xavier’s School for Gifted Youngsters. There are even teachers, like Wolverine and his daughter, Wolverine, Prodigy, and Kitty Pryde, to keep things progressing for new mutants. A fairly heady concept, a school of the mind, but it works.
A whole new world!
Credit: Marvel
A lot happens in this first issue outside of introducing the school, from the Wolverines giving a combat training session that goes wrong to introducing how Axo’s powers function in this school and how they can be used to find new mutant recruits.
Ultimately, this book has a classic X-Men feel, including the central conflict involving Cyclops. Historically, mutants have always been fighting mutants, and it seems Cyclops is taking the lead in stopping this school from existing before it can be exploited. Sure, Cyclops comes off as brash and controlling, but aside from talking things out, it suits his character to go this direction. The conflict involving Cyclops is the only element in the issue that feels underdeveloped, even though it’s the acting force in the cliffhanger. That makes this more of a setup issue, even if a lot happens.
The art throughout is fairly good, although it can be a bit rough around the edges at times. Character acting is good, and there are multiple striking moments, but the limited action can feel stuffy. Still, for a soap opera like X-Men, the art suits what is being delivered.
X-Men: United #1 lays the foundation for a new direction that blends classic X-Men themes with a bold new setting. Eve L. Ewing builds on the groundwork from Exceptional X-Men, bringing her newer characters forward while giving Emma Frost a fascinating role as architect of a psychic school meant to protect and guide mutantkind. The idea of a shared mental space where mutants can learn and connect is imaginative and full of storytelling potential. Tiago Palma’s art captures the character drama and surreal environments effectively, even if the action moments feel restrained. The issue reads primarily as a setup chapter, but the tension between Emma’s optimism and Cyclops’ suspicion hints at a larger ideological clash ahead that should drive the series forward.
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