Spoilers ahead. You’ve been warned. For more on Planet-Sized X-Men, read our review.
Marvel’s Planet-Size X-Men #1 is out today and it’s a comic X-Men Senior Editor Jordan D. White promised, “is absolutely the most important issue of the month.” That may be so, as the new one-shot written by Gerry Duggan with art by Pepe Larraz and Marte Gracia sends our mutants to space. To Mars, specifically. It’s what a group of mutants can do together on Mars that is the most spectacular thing and it’s yet another example of mutants working together to enact godlike abilities.
What’s beautiful about this issue’s grander purpose is how community is so important within X-Men comics and with mutants more specifically. It sends the message that mutants–and us measly humans–work better together. As a community, but also working together with a specific purpose and focus makes us all stronger together.
Planet-Sized X-Men #1 shows how powerful mutants working together can be. We’ve already seen it twice before with “The Five” who can resurrect any mutant who dies and the “First Circuit of the Six.” With “The Five,” Goldballs, Eva Bell, Elixir, Proteus, and Hope Summers together can bring a mutant back to life. Then it just requires Xavier to plop a mutant’s consciousness back into the body.
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The “First Circuit of the Six” did their collaboration for the first time in S.W.O.R.D. #1. In this case, six mutants worked together to teleport an entire team beyond reality. Those mutants included Manifold, Blink, Lila Cheney, Vanisher, Amelia Voght, and Gateway with the help of Manifold.
Courtesy Marvel Comics
In today’s Planet Size X-Men #1, Mars is changed forever from a dry and lifeless planet to a planet brimming with life and possibility. It’s also the new home for Arakki mutants. That’s where mutant teamwork comes into play.
To make the planet hospitable it takes 10 omega-level mutants (check out the data page on Krakoa omega mutants here): Magneto, Iceman, Elixir, Storm, Arakki’s named Sobunar, and Xilo, Monarch, Hope, Vulcan, and Proteus. It all starts when Magneto brings a whole lot of iron to Mars and thrusts it deep inside. In fact, this issue explains it was Magneto’s plan all along that he kept a secret.
Courtesy Marvel Comics
Afters some cleanup crew and heating of the core by Vulcan with a boost from Hope it’s now on Iceman to get some liquid on the planet.
Courtesy Marvel Comics
Later, Sobunar uses their blood to infuse the Martian oceans with an ecosystem of life. Alongside them is Monarch and Hope to help increase Sobunar’s power.
Courtesy Marvel Comics
Then Xilo adds chemicals and micro bacteria into the soul to advance the biology of the soil of Mars.
Courtesy Marvel Comics
By pairing multiple mutants in stages, Magneto ends up creating a planet rife with life that would take millions of years to do naturally. It’s an epic feat and I recommend checking out all the steps and how it goes down in Planet-Size X-Men #1 yourself!
Oh and finally, Jean Grey and Jamie Braddock work together to form a new S.W.O.R.D. station to hover over the planet. You gotta see it to believe it. This final combo of powers working together is a shining example of how characters who may have butted heads before can still stop what they’re doing and do something for others together. Something that will help all mutants.
All told, this collaboration of mutants required more mutants in total, but not all at once but in smaller combinations at different times. The only surprising thing all told is that this new combination of planet-creating mutants doesn’t have a name like the previous two groups. Get on that Marvel!
All jokes aside, this latest issue reveals the biggest event done by a group of mutants to date and further shows when mutants work together god-like abilities can take place. If only real-world society as a whole could do the same.
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