Best Deceased X

Jul 02, 2023

Famous X-Men villains who appeared in stories like Days of Future Past, X of Swords, and Fall of X died but deserve comic book resurrections.

Under the guidance of Professor Xavier, the X-Men swore to protect a world that hates and fears mutants. They have spent decades shielding humanity, despite the fact that many of the Earth's humans would prefer to see them eradicated entirely. Still, no matter how much the X-Men work to defend their own enemies, many X-Men villains have met painful ends as a consequence of their often evil actions.

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While comic book characters rarely stay dead, there are some that have been permanently taken out of the picture. X-Men villains, from the iconic Magneto to Bolivar Trask, creator of the Sentinels, deserve to return in Marvel Comics.

The Sentinels are some of the best X-Men villains. While they have a somewhat absurd design, they represent an existential threat to the entire mutant race. After all, their original creator was Bolivar Trask, a man dedicated to ridding the world of mutants and other superheroes.

Trask eventually realized that his actions were misguided, but it was too late to change his legacy. Trask died destroying the original Master Mold, but his legacy has left a long shadow on the X-Men. A revival could be interesting, especially if Orchis tries to recruit Trask — only to realize that he is no longer the anti-mutant crusader that he once was.

Nimrod is currently leading Orchis against the X-Men, but he isn't the only Nimrod that has posed a threat to mutants. Created when the Master Mold bonded with the original Nimrod, Bastion is a human/sentinel hybrid with a deep hatred for mutants.

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Bastion was killed after Xorn removed his helmet and absorbed him into a miniature black hole. It was a brutal death, and it's disappointing that it took a great player like Bastion off the board. After the Sins of Sinister event, Nimrod has been struggling with his duty. If Bastion was in the field, he could temper Nimrod's concerns and bring victory to Orchis.

A profoundly religious man who believed that mutants were a threat to God, William Stryker began a one-man crusade against mutants. After the Decimation, he proceeded to launch an attack against the X-Men's school. Dozens of depowered mutants were killed.

Eventually, the Weapon X-Force killed Stryker and even destroyed his soul in the process. Still, it's a disappointment that Stryker is gone. As a star villain from God Loves, Man Kills, he has made his impact on the franchise and deserves another shot. In the current era of Orchis working against mutants and Krakoa developing new religions, Stryker can be an interesting addition.

The original Nathaniel Essex was a scientist desperately trying to uncover the secrets of human evolution. He wanted to find a way to achieve dominion, and so he created four different clones that were designed to seek it. One of those clones would become the infamous Mister Sinister. Unfortunately for Essex, he died shortly after Sinister's creation.

Though he has been dead for over a century, Essex set up the Fall of X event and even eventually achieved his coveted dominion. If allowed to return, Essex can reveal all the secrets that he has been keeping from his four clones. That alone could create a massive change for the X-Men franchise.

Some X-Men villains get a little too dedicated to their craft. Lionel Jeffries is one of them. The brother of the B-list X-Man Madison Jeffries, Lionel developed the mutant power to shape and absorb organic material. After becoming overwhelmed as a military healer, he became the villain known as Scramble.

After absorbing the entire Alpha Flight team, Madison killed his brother with a well-placed rocket blast. With Krakoan resurrection available and Madison Jeffries dead, no one is standing in the way of Lionel's revival. If resurrected, he could easily team up with Orchis and pose a massive threat to the entire Krakoan nation.

Long ago, the human race split into two lines. Those with the X-gene became mutants, and those without it remained unpowered humans. Yet mutants weren't the only offshoot. The Neo were another group who split off from humanity, and they chose to remain in isolation to wait for the humans to die off naturally.

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The Neo went absolutely nowhere after the Evolutionaries slaughtered them for posing a threat to the mutants. With the X-Men running a nation of their own and living in isolation, the Neo could be an interesting mirror in the modern age. They can also provide a potential explanation for why Kate Pryde can't pass through the gates.

The Days of Future Past introduced an entire world of mutants in crisis. At the heart of it all was Ahab, the ruler of a program designed to track down mutants and turn them into mutant-hunting hounds. Over the years, Ahab has reappeared numerous times to terrorize the X-Men — especially Rachel Summers.

While Ahab may have overstayed his welcome in X-Men books, he's an interesting villain who could become an important character during Fall of X. With mutants scattered across the universe, his hounds could help Orchis track them all down. After his recent death, a revival could very well prepare mutants for Fall of X.

The villain who took control of Hydra and started a cult of undead mutants, Gorgon has suffered a reduced role with the introduction of Krakoa. After being killed in Otherworld, his personality was wiped away. Much like Rockslide, Gorgon's body is still around, but the man himself is dead.

The real Gorgon desperately needs a comeback in Wolverine books. He posed a serious threat to Wolverine and the entire population of superhumans in the Marvel universe. If Gorgon can come back, he can more fully redeem himself by defending mutants in the Fall of X. After all, he has always believed that mutants deserve more.

Cassandra Nova was the monstrous villain who brought death to millions of mutants who were peacefully living in Genosha. While Jean Grey worked to teach her empathy, even that only produced a superficial change. Instead of killing mutants, she was dedicated to killing humans.

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After the conclusion of Marauders, Cassandra was left in Threshold, where she would face off against Arkea and Sublime for all time. Considering that Threshold existed two billion years before Krakoa, Cassandra is currently very dead. It's unfortunate, since she was one of the driving forces that caused Krakoa to exist in the first place. She should have been an easy recruit for Orchis, and she could pose a major threat if she can come back to life.

The first mutant that the X-Men ever faced, Magneto has flirted with heroism and villainy in equal measures. After retiring to Arakko, Magneto agreed to erase his Cerebro back-ups. When he was killed by Uranos after the Eternals attacked Arakko, he wasn't brought back.

More than anyone, Magneto deserves a chance to return. Krakoa is set to fall, and the mutants won't be able to survive with their greatest defender out of the picture. Magneto needs to be there to keep his children alive. He needs to be the villain that humanity fears if the mutants are to make it through the Fall of X.

Next: 10 X-Men Fights Where The Wrong Character Won

Lukas is a recent graduate of the Macaulay Honors College in New York City. A former Editorial Assistant now serving as a Senior News Writer, Lukas made the jump to Screen Rant in the hopes of getting the chance to be a professional writer. Having started graduate school this past August, Lukas intends to become a high school guidance counselor, all while writing articles about somewhat obscure comics like Alpha Flight and Last Flight Out, the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and any movies, games, or books he happens to come across. Lukas writes most of his articles with a cat on his shoulder.