The X-Men are one of Marvel’s most popular teams to this day. Obviously, that’s for more reasons than we can truly say, as everything from resonant storytelling to luck plays a factor in becoming this well-known. Still, there’s no doubt that a major contributing factor is the X-Men’s massive, ever-changing lineup. There have been more X-Men than you can shake a stick at, and the cast is always growing. They have the perfect built-in way to introduce new mutants, and thus, new heroes and villains, whenever they want, and they’ve used it to give a whole host of characters the center stage. There are countless classic X-Men, from Phoenix to Psylocke.
Unfortunately, not every X-Man can be a fan-favorite. Some are destined to be just good, some mid, and some bad. The worst, however, the absolute worst, is the X-Men who were so terrible that Marvel prays you never remember they existed. These X-Men range from reminding fans of stories or ideas that Marvel wants to move on from to being downright insane takes that should never have left the mouth of the person who suggested them. Today, we’re looking at five X-Men who cover all aspects of that spectrum. Without further ado, let’s examine these X-Men.
Mimic was the practically forgotten sixth member of the original team. In fact, he was the first non-founder added to the X-Men, predating Havok and Polaris. His mutant ability, although he was long thought not to be a mutant, let him copy the powers of the original X-Men. There are some advantages and negatives to a guy whose power is “all the other guys’ powers,” but the real mistake was his attitude. Mimic only joined to try to permanently absorb his teammates’ powers, and yet, for some reason, he was elected leader when Scott stepped down. Mimic was a jerk and not much of a team player, so Marvel typically tends to overlook him when harkening back to this era. Unfortunately, things only go down from here.
After the X-Men’s patented Danger Room was upgraded with Shi’ar technology, she wound up developing sentience. In one of his foundational character assassination moments, Professor X decided to keep this hidden and keep Danger trapped like a slave. She eventually busted free and made her own body, aiming to take revenge on the X-Men. The Danger Room coming alive and becoming a threat is an interesting storyline, but Danger really only represents Professor X’s downward spiral from a good teacher to the most manipulative man in existence. With the X-Men’s stardom in the Marvel Cinematic Universe looming closer, and signs of Marvel shifting Professor X to be more like his classic self, Danger really only serves as an indicator of everything an X-villain and ally shouldn’t be.
No, not Jean Grey, but the Phoenix Force itself. Long after she died in the “Dark Phoenix Saga,” Jean’s death that caused her to bond to the Phoenix Force in Uncanny X-Men (1963) #101 was retconned to have never been Jean at all. Instead, the Phoenix Force created a duplicate that had all her memories and inhabited that, while the original was locked in a cocoon at the bottom of the bay for years. This means that all of Jean’s most iconic moments weren’t really her at all, but a fake who thought she was the original. It really clashes with the perception of those stories and Marvel’s current stance on tying Jean and the Phoenix Force so closely. This is one tidbit that’s best ignored.
Tom Corsi is one of the most insane and regrettable characters Marvel has ever made. For starters, he’s a non-mutant who joined the X-Men, but that’s not as rare as you might think. Corsi was an average caucasian police officer before he got caught up in the New Mutants’ confrontation with Demon Bear in New Mutants (1983) #20. Demon Bear transformed Corsi into his demon acolyte, but after the New Mutants defeated the villain, Corsi was turned to be Native American. I don’t need to explain why race-swapping a character like this should never have happened. Not only was this idea inherently terrible, but Corsi never contributed to any significant plotline. He quietly faded into the background, where he should stay.
Would you believe that Marvel didn’t just introduce one race-swapped human into the X-Men, but two? Sharon Friedlander was introduced alongside Corsi, and she has all her counterpart’s detriments and then some. Their most regrettable storyline was easily their fight with Empath. He commanded them to fall in passionate love to distract them while he snuck inside Xavier’s school. Somehow, this resulted in them becoming addicted to each other and showing back up in what was basically bondage gear. This pair never should have existed, but Sharon takes first place because of the way she was unceremoniously killed off. It wasn’t bad enough that she was a poorly aged idea before her introduction, but then Marvel frigid her, too.
Which X-Man do you think Marvel regrets letting join the team the most? Leave a comment in the comment section below and join the conversation on the ComicBook Forums!
