The Best Comic Books for People Looking to Get Into the X-Men

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Submitted by Raven Oweiner on Tue, 12/14/2021 - 07:34

The X-Men are one of comic books most popular and beloved teams. They have had a history nearing 60 years, and have been at the top of the comic book industry on multiple occasions. They have also spawned a plethora of famous characters, who are to this day some of the most popular comic book characters of all time. The Gambit, Magneto, and of course, the ever popular Wolverine.

Throughout their sixty-year publication history, the X-Men have seen some great story arcs, but also have been subject to history erasure, retcons, and alternate realities that may make their story arcs a bit convoluted for new fans. For those looking to get into the X-Men, but are lost as to where to begin, the following are a few of the X-Men’s most popular, and beloved stories.

Trial of Gambit

Starting out the list, is one of the most popular story arcs, for one of the most popular X-Men. Gambit has been a fan favorite since he was first introduced in Uncanny X-Men Annual #14, by famed X-Men writer Chris Claremont.

Remy LeBeau, aka the Gambit, is a thieving, gambling, rogue with a heart of gold. His power involves the manipulation of kinetic energy, which he channels through a deck of cards, a symbol of his fun-loving personality. Throughout his career, he has been a thief, a cheater, and a gambler, roaming from city to city, scamming the highest-end casinos. Today, cheaters like Gambit won’t get far, as casinos have moved on, like many of us, to the internet. Online casino games like slots and poker can be played online, on one of the many casino websites. For fans of casino games, you can play them here.

For fan of Gambit, the story arc Trial of Gambit tells Gambit’s origin story, and his dark past. The story sees Magneto putting Remmy on trial for crimes against mutantkind. The X-Men defend him at first, but soon come to realize that there is a degree of truth behind Magneto’s words.

Ultimate X-Men vol. 1

The Marvel Ultimate Universe was an experiment on Marvel’s part to modernize their comic book universe, and bring in a new audience. It released a number of titles, the most popular of which was Ultimate Spider-Man, and the Ultimates. Among the titles released, was the Ultimate X-Men. With modernized origin stories for all of the X-Men and one continuous story arc, the first volume of Ultimate X-Men is far easier to get into and follow than the 60-year-old history of the more mainstream titles.

The 1982 Wolverine Mini-Series

Written by one of X-Men’s greatest writers, Chris Claremont, and drawn by another comic book legend, Frank Miller, this four issue mini-series tells a self-contained story about the past of the most popular, and beloved X-Men, Wolverine. Logan’s exploits are known to fans of superhero media thanks to the X-men films, where he is portrayed by Hugh Jackman.

This comic book sees the mutant go to Japan, battle against an army of ninjas, face off against the love of his life, and end up getting married. It is a great entrance point for fans looking to get into the X-Men.