X-Men Monday #339 – Gail Simone Talks ‘Uncanny X-Men’

Welcome, X-Fans, to another uncanny edition of X-Men Monday at AIPT!

At long last, Uncanny X-Men writer Gail Simone is back! While Gail has appeared alongside X-Manhunt Omega co-writer Murewa Ayodele and X-Men writer Jed MacKay, she hasn’t had an X-Men Monday all to herself since August 2024. That’s a problem when every issue of Uncanny X-Men overflows with so much story and character development. And, as you’ll see, the diversity of questions X-Fans have for Gail truly reflects how much ground she’s covering in this series.

AIPT: Welcome back to X-Men Monday, Gail! Let’s kick things off with a question from X-Fan Julia, who loves how much representation you have in your books. You have Ransom, Jitter, and Deathdream as people of color, queer representation via Calico and Jitter, and also Jitter, Deathdream, and maybe Mutina (if she joins the team and we get to explore more about her) as neurodivergent representation. When did you decide you wanted to be part of that change and introduce more diverse characters to the X-Men line?

Gail Simone: Thank you, Julia!   

I feel this is kind of two cars coming from different directions that had the same destination in mind all along. Giant-Size X-Men was the comic that made me fall in love with diverse casts… for me, the biggest thrill was these people who only had one thing in common: They were mutants. Otherwise, they were from Japan, Germany, Cairo, Russia; this stuff was huge to me. And it’s informed my character creation my entire career. A big part of why I love to create diverse characters is that I found an X-Men comic at a garage sale, and it changed my life.

So, just the X-Men doing what the book has done for decades, by making the kinds of casts I love best, really!

AIPT: X-Fan Patrick Maloney says of all the X-titles in the Shadows of Tomorrow era, Patrick feels your cast of characters face the most daunting challenges. From venturing to Atlantis in Unbreakable X-Men to the X-Men and Outliers putting themselves out there for their New Orleans community, how do you decide what obstacle to throw at your heroes next?

Gail: Hey, Patrick! Fun question.

Okay, this is at least partially because I got bored with the shock elements a lot of comics were doing in the grim period of comics, where a character would die this issue and another would get his face ripped off or whatever. I’ve always said, there are worse fates than death. 

I love writing powerful heroes really being challenged. Like, for example, in our first arc, the two most powerful Uncanny X-Men got completely demolished, like, barely-wanting-to-continue destroyed, by the villain of the book, Sarah Gaunt.

I like seeing a hero get knocked down. But I LOVE seeing them get up again, anyway.

AIPT: As a writer, you’re truly blessed to have David Marquez and Luciano Vecchio as your rotating collaborators. I’m curious to learn how their artistic talents and preferences influence the types of stories you tell with them across Uncanny X-Men arcs. 

Gail: Those two, I can’t even explain. 

For one thing, they can draw anything. A common thread in my scripts is that I like there to be dread in the humor and laughs in the horror; I like to mix the emotions at the most improbable of times. Both of them get that; they have that quality that artists like, say, Nicola Scott or Dale Eaglesham have, that they convey the humor without being silly, so that it’s still terrifying or tragic. 

Dave kills me, he just is one of the best artists for drawing sexy without being cheesy. He can draw any genre. He’s a miracle worker. Every day that new pages came in is a huge deal with David.

Luciano is not just a great artist; he is SO invested, he contributes to every script, he adds detail, he notices things, and he provides ideas. He’s just a blessing in a book with a big cast.

I think it helps in both cases that they are terrific writers themselves. They know story.

AIPT: Calico and Ember — X-Fans demand answers. Specifically, B4D, GodGivnName, John Klein III, and Zach all ask if you can provide clarity around the exact nature of Becca’s powers and what exactly Ember is (or when we might learn more if this is an ongoing mystery).

Gail: Oh, this story. I’ve been waiting for just the right moment… Calico’s story is going to shock some people, and she’s just one of the Outl—I’m sorry, she’s just one of the NEW MUTANTS. They ALL have killer stories to tell. That’s all I can say for now, but it’s on the way. And it’s a ka-POW moment.

AIPT: X-Fan Tom D has really enjoyed your entire run, especially the growth of the Outliers and Rogue/Gambit becoming more like parents than teachers. But as a huge Nightcrawler fan, Tom D thinks his storyline has been great so far. What can you share about what’s coming up for Kurt?

Gail: Kurt is, without question, my all-time favorite X-Man, but we had some stories to tell that really focused on Rogue and Gambit. I promise, Kurt and Jubilee are getting time right away, in both of our next two stories. And I find his growing affection for a single mom and her family in New Orleans to reveal the best part of Kurt, the guy who sees the good in people.

AIPT: Speaking of Jubilee… first, X-Fan Kevin wants to thank you for the awesome run thus far. Kevin’s question pertains to Jubilee’s son Shogo, who has been referenced a handful of times throughout the past few years’ worth of issues. It’s been several years since Jubilee has seen Shogo, without any type of closure or resolution to their relationship. I’m sure he’s likely living as a dragon in Otherworld, but Jubilee has never been shown saying goodbye to him on-panel, which goes against everything her character is about. Are there still plans to give Jubilee this story in Uncanny X-Men, so we can either see her say goodbye or (hopefully) reconnect with her son? Also, X-Fan Andrew really connected to Jubilee’s story as an adoptive parent, so Andrew’s also wondering if there’s anything Shogo-related on the way.

Gail: This is so important. It is a story that got pushed back a little. I apologize for that, but yes, we will be addressing Shogo. It’s a part that means a lot to me. I am a child of adoption, and we also had a foster child for several years. It’s a story I really want to tell… all I can say is, it’s on the schedule, and I think it’s going to be a little brutal, emotionally. In a good way? In a bad way?  Maybe both.

AIPT: X-Fan Jamesons loved the Dark Artery concept. Jamesons finds it fascinating to explore mutant communities that don’t revolve around Charles Xavier and the X-Men. How did this idea come about, and will we see more of this concept and its characters in future stories?

Gail: Hey, Jamesons!

The Dark Artery is a very special story for this book. I was thrilled that Marvel was so enthusiastic about it, and the readership genuinely demanded to know more.  

My thinking was, the X-Men books have done a fantastic job of making the Holocaust a real part of the lore. They didn’t shy away from it, they’ve made a fantastic world of comics characters actually discuss real-world evil in a meaningful way.

But we haven’t really seen that same attention paid as much to racial injustice in America, not in a sustained way. The idea of mutants in the Jim Crow era, I just think it’s important. And the idea of a mutant graveyard that’s been kept secret all this time, that feels like a real addition to the lore.

My joy is that creators like historian/bestselling author Mikki Kendall want to add to the mythology, which is always something you hope for in a shared universe.

People asked for more Lady Henrietta, that’s very joyful.

AIPT: As I’m sure you’re aware, a lot of X-Fans have strong opinions about Graymalkin Prison and its continued existence in the modern X-era. X-Fan Jared wonders if you could talk a bit about how Graymalkin is positioned in Uncanny X-Men. Jared feels that, on one hand, it’s an abhorrent spit in the face of everything the X-Men did and stand for. On the other hand, Rogue’s X-Men team continues to be complicit in and perpetuates its existence. Anything you can share?

Gail: Well, I agree with Jared. But, I mean, let’s look around us and read the news. 

When I was a kid, I was a complete weirdo, and I read Gulag Archipelago by Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn, all three volumes, when my friends were reading, you know, Boxcar Children or whatever. And it made me look at how we treat prisoners, all over the world. How the very idea of rehabilitation upsets so-called ‘average’ citizens. How they have become profit centers and more. I mean, criminals are criminals, but is it our goal to make them worse?

Greymalkin isn’t a pretty idea; it’s an eyesore. The first thing the warden did was burn all the X-Men’s personal belongings. That seems very real to me, and speaks to the kind of people behind it.

It’s a hideous thing. But the X-Men haven’t been ignoring it. And we see that like, RIGHT AWAY, so I have to shut up or we’re in spoiler territory!

AIPT: Speaking of Graymalkin Prison — X-Fan Colonel Gayle Cord-Becker has a Monet question. Given her snobbery and viciousness, what in your eyes makes Monet a hero worthy of bearing the ‘X’?

Gail: I love Monet, and her backstory is so complex and twisty. For me, it’s the difference between who she WAS and who she CAN be. I again have to be careful, because so much happens in the next couple of issues. 

But Monet is something special in the mutant world. And she’s not afraid to show it.  

Honestly, keep reading. She gets her spotlight, right damn soon.

AIPT: And, obviously, Inmate X has finally been revealed: Corina Ellis’ brother, Oscar. What can you share about the creation of this new character — and tease about the threat he poses to the X-Men?

Gail: Oh, again, he’s part of the tradition of evil/screwed-up family members in the X-Men books. Corina was the premier anti-mutant podcaster, and got put in charge of a prison she wasn’t qualified to run because of it.

But WHY does she hate mutants? Why does she loathe them to her bones?

Because her brother was a mutant. And tortured her with his reality-warping powers every day of her life.

She’s terrible. He’s much, much worse.

A lot of families have that!

AIPT: Now, X-Fans, before we wrap, let’s take a moment to eXclusively reveal the covers and solicitations for Uncanny X-Men #33 and 34, which go on sale in August 2026 and kick off the “Wild Ride” story arc!

UNCANNY X-MEN #33

Written by GAIL SIMONE

Art and Cover by LUCIANO VECCHIO

“WILD RIDE” starts here!

Gambit’s condition is worsening, causing an unexpected shake-up in the roster of the UNCANNY X-MEN. But is it merely magic that is taking over his form and behavior, or is it something far more sinister? Rogue desperately tries to save her husband in our most disturbing story yet!

On Sale 8/5

UNCANNY X-MEN #34

Written by GAIL SIMONE

Art and Cover by LUCIANO VECCHIO

“WILD RIDE” continues!

In desperation, Rogue takes Gambit for help to an unexpected, unreliable source, and the cure may be far worse than the disease! Meanwhile, the Outliers struggle and act out in the absence of the two people they have come to rely on most, JUST as a voice of malice from the past returns! And who is the terrifying being known only as REPENT?

On Sale 8/19

AIPT: Gail, “Wild Ride” promises a focus on Gambit’s worsening condition. What can you tease about this story arc, as well as how it will continue to test Rogue and Gambit as individual characters and husband and wife?

Gail: It’s a fascinating question, I think of characters like Dr. Strange and Guy Gardner, who both asked one of my favorite questions: What happens when you give ultimate power to a complete jerk?

Obviously, with time, they’ve softened. But it’s a great question, what happens when you give an Eye of Power to a guy whose whole gimmick is trickery and being altogether slick as greased lightning? Especially when he has no proclivity for magic?

You get a new Gambit. New look, new name, DANGEROUS hungers.

And if you’re his wife?

You get him an exorcist.

But you didn’t hear that from ME. 

AIPT: And on that note — Gail, thanks for stopping by X-Men Monday! X-Fans, we have one more eXclusive this week: the preview pages for Uncanny X-Men #29, which goes on sale June 3, 2026. Written by Gail Simone, illustrated by Luciano Vecchio, and lettered by VC’s Clayton Cowles, these pages pick up where we left off with Monet and Oscar.

“Sherlock” — who could that be? Probably not Mystique… you know… the actual Sherlock Holmes.

But we’ll see!

Next X-Men Monday – May 25, 2026

In the next edition of X-Men Monday, writer Steve Foxe returns to discuss X-Men ’97: Season Two!

Until next time, X-Fans, stay eXceptional!