X-MenSenior Editor Tom Brevoort has revealed his original pitches for the franchise’s current slate of titles – and I think it shows that his approach toX-storytelling is actually exactly what Marvel’sAvengersbooks need in order to thrive. It also highlights what made Marvel’sCivil Warso successful, and why Marvel is seeking to replicate that success withX-Menin 2025.
On his Substack, Tom Brevoortshared his initial email to outgoingX-Office Editor Jordan D. White, outlining his idea for what a line-wide relaunch would look like for the franchise. On the heels of an era of unprecedented unity for mutantkind, and cohesion betweenX-titles,Brevoort’s idea for a shake-up was to divide Marvel’s mutants once more, and let conflict arise between the disparate groups.
Surprisingly, I think this could also apply to the Avengers, who are traditionally associated with team unity, butmany of whose best storieshave, in fact, come from tensions within their membership.
Marvel Senior Editor Tom Brevoort’s Idea For X-Men’s New Era & What That Says About His Approach To The Franchise
Brevoort Shared His Original “From The Ashes” Pitch Sheet
Brevoort’s pitch list is fascinating for a number of reasons, and will promote discussion amongX-fans about the direction of the “From the Ashes” Era of the franchise so far – which I can only assume was the Senior Editor’s intent when releasing it. First, have a look at the list in full, and then we can dig into it a bit deeper:
X-MEN – Primary heroic super hero team. Focused on universal situations whether they specifically involve mutants or not.
UNCANNY X-MEN – Secondary heroic super hero team. Philosophically at odds with X-Men. Focused primarily on mutant situations.
School X-MEN – Kitty and new players recruit new mutants and train them in the use of their powers. Wear modified school uniforms ala New Mutants or Generation X. This book effectively is NEW MUTANTS but it could use a stronger X-centric title.
X-FORCE – The Krakoa Mossad, clinging to the idea and ideals of their destroyed homeland and taking the fight to its enemies.
X-FACTOR – Government-affiliated mutant squad. Freedom Force. If integration is the goal, then these are the most integrated heroes.
WOLVERINE – Wolverine as a solo player. Pick him up living in remote cabin in Canada, where he’s brought back into the fight by somebody?
THE SENTINELS – People transformed into stealth Sentinels. Programmed to hunt down mutants, but they can do more and be heroic as well.
MYSTIQUE – Cool spy/espionage book with a morally ambiguous lead.
“Professor M”? Magneto wheelchair-bound?
Take founders and ANAD characters off the board for a while?
Brotherhood of X
Need fewer active mutants overall, and need to scatter the ones we know across the globe.
New villains. Old villains in new and interesting places. Some theoretically heroic mutants now in villain roles.
Mutants mostly living under the radar/inside the closet. A Red State future. Trying to pry open the door again/regain lost rights and cultural gains.
Mutants have families and friends and lives apart from being mutant super heroes. Not everybody drops everything else in their lives to live as a mutant full time.
Mutants interacting with normal people in society, good and bad.
Build relations between all X-Teams so they’re each in opposition to at least one other faction, providing story grist. So X-FACTOR doesn’t like SENTINELS because they’re anti-mutant but they’re forced to work with them. One team of X-MEN doesn’t agree with the stance of the other team of X-MEN. X-FORCE has a chip on its shoulder for X-FACTOR, whom they consider sell-outs. And so forth. Arrange the factions like on a wheel.
So a few things changed along the way, of course. X-MEN and UNCANNY switched premises, X-FORCE went in an entirely different direction, the founders and ANAD characters were well in evidence, and so forth. But ultimately, this is very much what we wound up doing. And possibly, this memo was one of the reasons why I was handed the job.
What I find especially noteworthy are the points at which Brevoort emphasizes the distinctions between different titles, whichmakes it clear that his plan was always to cultivate drama between the different X-Men teams and other mutant groups.
“We’re Working to Remedy That”: X-Men’s Senior Editor Admits How Previous Era Failed Readers
The Krakoa Era let down its promise to fans of the X-Men franchise, as far as its senior editor is concerned. But how does Marvel plan to remedy this?
Take, for example, his note that theUncanny X-Menwould be “philosophically at odds with X-Men”– though intriguingly, he comments at the end that these two books “switched premises” – or how he suggests they “build relations between all X-Teams so they’re each in opposition to at least one other faction.” This, to me, is the core appeal of Brevoort’s approach, though many fans of the franchise’s previousKrakoan Era of mutant unitymight not be entirely pleased with it. It is also an approach that I think could be suitably adapted to fit theAvengersfranchise as well.
Earth’s Mightiest Heroes Could Use More Internal Conflict, Akin To Tom Brevoort’s Plans For Mutantkind
Hold On, Let Him Cook
Reading Tom Brevoort’s early pitch forX-Men’s"From the Ashes" Era gave me a better understanding of what Marvel is doing with the franchise, in both the short and long term. Surprisingly, though, it also made me start thinking about the publisher’sAvengerstitles, and how they could be reinvigorated along similar lines. While in theory – depending on the era, the editorial edict, etc. – Earth’s mutant population exceeds that of its extant number of non-mutant superheroes, the truth is that the figures are about equivalent, in terms of out-of-universe character counts.
I don’t think it’s a stretch to suggest that Tom Brevoort’s plan for inter-X-team disputes could also be applicable to Marvel’s other greatest franchise.
Meaning, Marvel has multiple teams of Avengers, nearly asmany as it does of X-Men. However, these teams often operate in isolation, with different books, even as they tell similar stories, focusing on similar themes of team unity. YetMarvel’s own GOAT crossover,Civil War, is a clear and present reminder that the peak of superhero drama involves pitting heroes against one anotheracross an ideological divide. So, I don’t think it’s a stretch to suggest that Tom Brevoort’s plan for inter-X-team disputes could also be applicable to Marvel’s other greatest franchise.
Superhero Vs. Superhero Conflicts Are A Way To Generate Narrative Tension & Make Stories More Consequential
Small-Scale Civil Wars In The Superhero Community
“Arrange the factions like a wheel,” Tom Brevoort wrote in his “From the Ashes” pitch email. In other words, set up the dynamics between differentX-squads so that however the wheel was spun, a potent narrative conflict could arise.When – not if – Marvel Comics wants to overhaul itsAvengerstitles, I think this would be a great way to bring more cohesion between the books; cohesion through disunity, by design, but still. In this way, the entire Marvel Universe doesn’t need to join amassiveCivil War-level crossover, but those same tensions can be explored on a smaller scale.
When the X-Men and Avengers fight one another, there is no telling exactly what the outcome, or the toll, will be.
I have to admit, I haven’t always agreed withTom Brevoort’s comments about theX-Menfranchise, since his takeover of theX-Office. Still, his pitch for why conflict between mutant teams is good for the franchise resonated with me, striking me as a keen articulation of a way to raise the stakes of superhero storytelling. While it can be expected for Marvel’s heroes to triumph over evil, when theX-MenandAvengersfight one another, there is no telling exactly what the outcome, or the toll, will be.
Source:Tom Brevoort, Substack
X-Men
The X-Men franchise, created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby, centers on mutants with extraordinary abilities. Led by the powerful telepath Professor Charles Xavier, they battle discrimination and villainous mutants threatening humanity. The series explores themes of diversity and acceptance through a blend of action, drama, and complex characters, spanning comics, animated series, and blockbuster films.
