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In the X-Men's very first mission, they do battle with their greatest foe of all, and welcome a new member to their ranks: a (*gasp*) girl!
This write-up has been REDUXED! Read the updated version from 2021 here!
Written By: Stan Lee
Drawn By: Jack Kirby
Inked By: Paul Reinman
Lettered By: S. Rosen
Originally Published September 1963
As characters, the X-Men are mostly ciphers, blank slate protagonists, but they have one defining characteristic... when Professor X tells them they're getting a new female teammate, they all rush to the window to ogle her (except Iceman, who stomps off so quickly only his boot is visible.) Jean is referred to as "doll" several times and even has her looks remarked on by Prof. X., her teacher, so we know where this book stands on creepy old school sexism (for it.) This is one of a handful of allusions the series makes toward Xavier being somehow interested in Jean, including one in an upcoming issue that is as explicit as it gets, before the creators themselves seem to realize that ew, ick, gross, no, stop.
For what it's worth - and it may not be much but this was usually seen as the counterbalance to casual sexism in the bygone era - Jean gets a chance to one-up her male classmates when she demonstrates her powers, and all is considered well. She has a real "anything the boys can do, this dame can do as well!" attitude which was seen as progressive at the time, I think.
The first half of the issue gets us acquainted with the X-Men-men, with each getting a chance to show off his mutant power in a training room sequence: Professor X's telepathy, Beast's agility, Angel's flight, Cyclops' eyebeams (which are force-blasts, not lasers, so it's like he's punching you with his eyes, not cutting you or burning a hole through) and Iceman's... ice... manliness. As soon as Jean arrives, she too demonstrates her special skill: telekinesis, ie the best possible power so far, especially since as the boys note, it doesn't mess up her looks the way, say, being having Angel's wings or Beast's feet does. ("Slim" Summers notes she "looks normal enough," which may be high praise from such a buttoned-down source. Keep it in your trunks, Slim.)
The original X-Men's powers aren't always, in every case, the most useful abilities: Angel can fly and that's it, and there's not always a use for a guy who can make ice... and the franchise will struggle to include and reinvent them as time goes by, to varying degrees of success, as mutants with similar but more impressive powers start to crop up. But I do like the scope of powers on display from the beginning: some physical, some mental, some "other." It really sells the idea that anything could be a mutant power, whether it's a physical deformity or the command of some element of nature. The X-gene is a lottery, and over the years we'll see some real winners and some real... not-so-much winners.
Xavier explains to Jean all the stuff he probably should have included in the brochure: that this is a secret school for mutants, people born with special powers (Magneto is the first to declare them "homo superior," but Angel himself mockingly says that "limits are for homo sapiens!") There are evil mutants who do not believe the Earth is meant to be shared between themselves and humans, and it is the X-Men's duty to use their powers for the good of mankind.
And thus the elegance of the X-Men's premise is explained, neatly. They're a superteam with a particular mandate that specifically relates to them, rather than the Fantastic Four just jumping in their space-car and seeing what's out there, or the Avengers waiting to see which aliens are gonna try to conquer Earth this week. And even though Spider-Man's "Great power comes with great responsibility" line has become the most iconic phrase in superhero comics, the X-Men having to protect a world that hates and fears them is a close second. The condition of the X-Men's existence means they will always have foes that only they can truly comprehend. Until, of course, they end up just fighting random aliens and monsters.
So naturally, right this very second, the first evil mutant in the queue is plotting his evil mutant scheme. It's good to see the X-Men's most iconic villain, Magneto, in his most iconic helmet, showing up to get the party started. You never know what is going to stick: this isn't like the Fantastic Four tangling with the Mole Man in their first appearance, or Spider-Man foiling the Chameleon to kick off his series. It's clear that the creative team either had a high opinion of Magneto as a foe for the X-Men, or that it was just too hard to think of other bad guys after a while. Honestly, it's hard to make a case against a villain who has such impeccable skywriting penmanship.
Magneto's plan is to sabotage the U.S. Army's missiles at Cape Citadel and display his power over magnetism, and therefore right to rule/exterminate humankind as he sees fit. Essentially waltzing in looking to take over the base, it's an impressively ambitious opening move, and appears to be going well, until the X-Men show up. They ask nicely to get involved, are permitted to do so, and manage to defeat Magneto by using all of their powers: The particular MVP's of this mission are Iceman, who cools the missiles' guidance systems down so as to render them useless, and newbie Jean "Marvel Girl" Grey uses her powers to hurl a missile into the ocean. Not to be underestimated.
In case you missed it, Magneto's response to the X-Men's interference is to throw surface-to-air missiles at them. The Master of Magnetism doesn't kid around. He makes one more valiant attempt to murder the X-Men before scampering off to fight another day.
With a job well done, the commanding officer declares that the name X-Men will be honoured in his base forever after, thus beginning the ping-ponging question of the X-Men's public image: hated and feared or celebrated? Why not both, like Kanye West?
Further Notes:
Since this is an introductory issue for what was, at the time, an entirely new premise and set of characters, all being invented on the fly, I'm not going to spend a ton of time trying to score cheap points by listing inconsistencies between this issue and later canon - even as quickly as a few issues later. The main thing to note is that the Beast and Iceman have a little back-and-forth here that is clearly meant to remind us of the Human Torch (fun-loving young prankster) and the Thing (gruff brute,) right down to Beast droppin' his G's, instead of being the erudite, verbose, witty-in-the-Noel-Coward sense persona he adopts only a few issues later. We can forgive the shorthand usage of self-plagiarism here since we get past it pretty quickly.
Sixties clunkiness aside - and we're going to have to not get too hung up on the minute details because we are going to be talking about these Sixties comics for a while so we should just take a lot of this as given - I think this is a good introductory issue. The individual X-Men aren't explored all that much, but the premise is neatly explained and we know enough so that we can let the details get fleshed out later. One thing you've got to give old comics credit for is their ability to get their audience to just buy into the premise instead of taking agonizing lengths to set it up. Most new comic series, which don't have to introduce an entirely new premise because they're all based on something Lee and Kirby (or Ditko) created in the '60's, begin with a four or six-issue arc to set the status quo, which amounts to 1/4 or so of the title's running time before a big Marvel Universe reboot brings a new creative team (or cancelation.)
That's not to say decompression is a modern invention - we're going to see some serious cases of padding before we get out of the Sixties. And the Seventies.
Marvel Girl admires her new superhero outfit, comparing "whoever designed [it]" to Christian Dior. Whether that means Kirby or Xavier, let's not get carried away. The original X-Men uniform is perfectly OK, a good generic outfit that has gotten an extended life because it visually signifies either A) When a new X-Man is young and inexperienced or B) Periods when the creators want to emphasize that the X-Men are a team, rather than a group of individuals who need to work together. Anyway, the X-People will have a lot of fashion woes over the course of 50 years, and really this is probably the least of it.
Drawn By: Jack Kirby
Inked By: Paul Reinman
Lettered By: S. Rosen
Originally Published September 1963
An unwritten rule states that every single interpretation of the X-Men must begin with a young female student arriving at the school for the first time, so that the characters and premise can best be explained . In the 80's there was Kitty Pryde in "Pryde of the X-Men." In the 90's there was Jubilee in the FOX Kids Animated series. On the big screen it was Hugh Jackman's Wolverine Anna Paquin's Rogue. And of course, way way back at the beginning of The Uncanny X-Men, it was Jean "Marvel Girl" Grey being introduced to the other four original X-Men.
As characters, the X-Men are mostly ciphers, blank slate protagonists, but they have one defining characteristic... when Professor X tells them they're getting a new female teammate, they all rush to the window to ogle her (except Iceman, who stomps off so quickly only his boot is visible.) Jean is referred to as "doll" several times and even has her looks remarked on by Prof. X., her teacher, so we know where this book stands on creepy old school sexism (for it.) This is one of a handful of allusions the series makes toward Xavier being somehow interested in Jean, including one in an upcoming issue that is as explicit as it gets, before the creators themselves seem to realize that ew, ick, gross, no, stop.
 |
The first half of the issue gets us acquainted with the X-Men-men, with each getting a chance to show off his mutant power in a training room sequence: Professor X's telepathy, Beast's agility, Angel's flight, Cyclops' eyebeams (which are force-blasts, not lasers, so it's like he's punching you with his eyes, not cutting you or burning a hole through) and Iceman's... ice... manliness. As soon as Jean arrives, she too demonstrates her special skill: telekinesis, ie the best possible power so far, especially since as the boys note, it doesn't mess up her looks the way, say, being having Angel's wings or Beast's feet does. ("Slim" Summers notes she "looks normal enough," which may be high praise from such a buttoned-down source. Keep it in your trunks, Slim.)
The original X-Men's powers aren't always, in every case, the most useful abilities: Angel can fly and that's it, and there's not always a use for a guy who can make ice... and the franchise will struggle to include and reinvent them as time goes by, to varying degrees of success, as mutants with similar but more impressive powers start to crop up. But I do like the scope of powers on display from the beginning: some physical, some mental, some "other." It really sells the idea that anything could be a mutant power, whether it's a physical deformity or the command of some element of nature. The X-gene is a lottery, and over the years we'll see some real winners and some real... not-so-much winners.
 |
Xavier explains to Jean all the stuff he probably should have included in the brochure: that this is a secret school for mutants, people born with special powers (Magneto is the first to declare them "homo superior," but Angel himself mockingly says that "limits are for homo sapiens!") There are evil mutants who do not believe the Earth is meant to be shared between themselves and humans, and it is the X-Men's duty to use their powers for the good of mankind.
And thus the elegance of the X-Men's premise is explained, neatly. They're a superteam with a particular mandate that specifically relates to them, rather than the Fantastic Four just jumping in their space-car and seeing what's out there, or the Avengers waiting to see which aliens are gonna try to conquer Earth this week. And even though Spider-Man's "Great power comes with great responsibility" line has become the most iconic phrase in superhero comics, the X-Men having to protect a world that hates and fears them is a close second. The condition of the X-Men's existence means they will always have foes that only they can truly comprehend. Until, of course, they end up just fighting random aliens and monsters.
 |
So naturally, right this very second, the first evil mutant in the queue is plotting his evil mutant scheme. It's good to see the X-Men's most iconic villain, Magneto, in his most iconic helmet, showing up to get the party started. You never know what is going to stick: this isn't like the Fantastic Four tangling with the Mole Man in their first appearance, or Spider-Man foiling the Chameleon to kick off his series. It's clear that the creative team either had a high opinion of Magneto as a foe for the X-Men, or that it was just too hard to think of other bad guys after a while. Honestly, it's hard to make a case against a villain who has such impeccable skywriting penmanship.
 |
In case you missed it, Magneto's response to the X-Men's interference is to throw surface-to-air missiles at them. The Master of Magnetism doesn't kid around. He makes one more valiant attempt to murder the X-Men before scampering off to fight another day.
With a job well done, the commanding officer declares that the name X-Men will be honoured in his base forever after, thus beginning the ping-ponging question of the X-Men's public image: hated and feared or celebrated? Why not both, like Kanye West?
Further Notes:
Since this is an introductory issue for what was, at the time, an entirely new premise and set of characters, all being invented on the fly, I'm not going to spend a ton of time trying to score cheap points by listing inconsistencies between this issue and later canon - even as quickly as a few issues later. The main thing to note is that the Beast and Iceman have a little back-and-forth here that is clearly meant to remind us of the Human Torch (fun-loving young prankster) and the Thing (gruff brute,) right down to Beast droppin' his G's, instead of being the erudite, verbose, witty-in-the-Noel-Coward sense persona he adopts only a few issues later. We can forgive the shorthand usage of self-plagiarism here since we get past it pretty quickly.
 |
Sixties clunkiness aside - and we're going to have to not get too hung up on the minute details because we are going to be talking about these Sixties comics for a while so we should just take a lot of this as given - I think this is a good introductory issue. The individual X-Men aren't explored all that much, but the premise is neatly explained and we know enough so that we can let the details get fleshed out later. One thing you've got to give old comics credit for is their ability to get their audience to just buy into the premise instead of taking agonizing lengths to set it up. Most new comic series, which don't have to introduce an entirely new premise because they're all based on something Lee and Kirby (or Ditko) created in the '60's, begin with a four or six-issue arc to set the status quo, which amounts to 1/4 or so of the title's running time before a big Marvel Universe reboot brings a new creative team (or cancelation.)
That's not to say decompression is a modern invention - we're going to see some serious cases of padding before we get out of the Sixties. And the Seventies.
Marvel Girl admires her new superhero outfit, comparing "whoever designed [it]" to Christian Dior. Whether that means Kirby or Xavier, let's not get carried away. The original X-Men uniform is perfectly OK, a good generic outfit that has gotten an extended life because it visually signifies either A) When a new X-Man is young and inexperienced or B) Periods when the creators want to emphasize that the X-Men are a team, rather than a group of individuals who need to work together. Anyway, the X-People will have a lot of fashion woes over the course of 50 years, and really this is probably the least of it.
" Most new comic series, which don't have to introduce an entirely new premise because they're all based on something Lee and Kirby (or Ditko) created in the '60's, begin with a four or six-issue arc to set the status quo, which amounts to 1/4 or so of the title's running time before a big Marvel Universe reboot brings a new creative team (or cancelation.)"
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