X-Tinction Agenda

Last updated
"X-Tinction Agenda"
X-Tinction.jpg
Cover of The Uncanny X-Men 270 (Nov 1990), art by Jim Lee. First chapter of the X-Tinction Agenda storyline.
Publisher Marvel Comics
Publication dateNovember  1990  January  1991
Genre
Title(s)
The New Mutants #95-97
The Uncanny X-Men #270-272
X-Factor #60-62
Main character(s) X-Men
X-Factor
New Mutants
Cameron Hodge
Creative team
Writer(s) Louise Simonson
Chris Claremont
Artist(s) Jim Lee
Rob Liefeld
Jon Bogdanove
Guang Yap

"X-Tinction Agenda" is a 1990 crossover comic book storyline published by Marvel Comics that ran through Uncanny X-Men and its spin-off titles, X-Factor and New Mutants . "X-Tinction Agenda" not only reunited the X-Men after a prolonged period in which the team had been scattered around the globe (following the events of Uncanny X-Men #246-251), but featured the combined might of the three mutant teams for the first time, in their fight against the mutant-exploiting Genoshan government.

Contents

Plot

Genoshan magistrates, backed by the cyborg Cameron Hodge, and including an amnesiac Havok (a member of the X-Men), attack the X-Mansion and kidnap Storm and the New Mutants Warlock, Boom Boom, Rictor, and Wolfsbane. After expending his energy on freeing the others from their cell, Warlock is taken to have his power transferred to Hodge. Wolfsbane returns to rescue him, but instead unintentionally causes the transfer to go awry, killing Warlock. Wolfsbane is brainwashed, turned into one of Genosha's mindless mutate slaves, which form the backbone of the Genoshan economy and lifestyle. The remaining New Mutants and the X-Men recruit X-Factor and head to Genosha to save their teammates, only to be ambushed by Havok and the Genoshan magistrates. As Cyclops unsuccessfully attempts to jog Havok's memory, the Genoshans meet a humiliating defeat.

Wolverine, Psylocke, and Jubilee rescue Rictor and Boom-Boom from Genoshan magistrates. After entrusting Rictor and Boom Boom to the care of Jubilee, Psylocke and Wolverine put on the magistrates' uniforms to enter Hammer Bay. Havok, seeing someone else is wearing his lover's uniform, attacks his former teammates. Psylocke incapacitates Havok, but Hodge takes her and Wolverine prisoner. Meanwhile, Storm attempts to kill Genoshan engineer David Moreau, but is captured by Hodge and turned into a mutate slave. Jean, Cable, Gambit, Sunspot, and Forge place bombs throughout the outer levels of the capitol building, the Citadel, but are captured after the magistrate Wipeout blocks their powers. The remaining heroes set a trap at their hideout and attack the Citadel, but are defeated. Wanting payback for his earlier humiliation, Havok confronts Cyclops personally. This time Cyclops succeeds in making Havok remember who he is. However, deciding his only chance of helping is as an inside man, Havok tranquilizes Cyclops and turns him over to Hodge.

The X-Men, X-Factor, and New Mutants are put on trial, but when Wolverine attempts to kill the judge, he turns them over to Hodge to do with as he will. Pretending to be traumatized by Hodge's brutalities, Psylocke submits herself to the mutate process. She then escapes while being taken to Moreau. Once the others are left alone, Gambit uses a dart Hodge fired into his leg to pick their locks. Thinking the mutants are all safely captured, Hodge initiates his plan to betray Genosha, killing a number of magistrates, including Wipeout. The Chief Magistrate turns to the mutant teams for help against Hodge, using Storm's electrical power to restore their powers. The process inexplicably also undoes Storm's brainwashing and restores her to adulthood.

Jubilee, Rictor, and Boom-Boom stumble upon Moreau, who is taking his own steps to counter Hodge's treachery. He takes them to the Citadel. There, they are reunited with their teammates. Moreau directs Wolfsbane to change into wolf form; only by remaining in this form can she be free of her brainwashing. Moreau shoots Hodge point blank with a prototype weapon, but Hodge kills him before he can finish him off. The mutant teams hunt Hodge throughout the Citadel, with Cyclops and Havok finally destroying his body. Hodge's severed head still lives on due to the immortality bestowed on him by N'Astirh, so Rictor brings down the Citadel, burying him alive. Days later, Havok and Wolfsbane decide to stay in Genosha to help settle tensions between humans and mutants in the country. The mutant heroes return home and hold a funeral for Warlock. Per Wolfsbane's wishes, they spread his ashes over the grave of their teammate Cypher.

Impact

Published during the comic book speculator boom, the involvement of Jim Lee and Rob Liefeld caused the issues of the crossover to sell for $10–20 on the secondary market when the books were first published, though the issues have since gone down in value.

The storyline also had several lasting effects on the various titles.

Secret Wars (2015)

The Secret Wars storyline features a new "X-Tinction Agenda" miniseries that is part of the event. It takes place on the Battleworld domain of X-Topia.

Chronological reading order

  1. The Uncanny X-Men #270 (November 1990)
  2. The New Mutants #95 (November 1990)
  3. X-Factor #60 (November 1990)
  4. The Uncanny X-Men #271 (December 1990)
  5. The New Mutants #96 (December 1990)
  6. X-Factor #61 (December 1990)
  7. The Uncanny X-Men #272 (January 1991)
  8. The New Mutants #97 (January 1991)
  9. X-Factor #62 (January 1991)

Collected editions

The storyline has been collected into a trade paperback:

Collects The Uncanny X-Men #270-272; The New Mutants (1983) #95-97; X-Factor (1986) #60-62

Collects The Uncanny X-Men #235-238, #270-272; The New Mutants (1983) #95-97; X-Factor (1986) #60-62

It has also been collected into a hardcover:

Collects The Uncanny X-Men #235-238, #270-272; The New Mutants (1983) #95-97; X-Factor (1986) #60-62

Related Research Articles

Genosha is a fictional country appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. It is an island nation that exists in Marvel's main shared universe, known as "Earth 616" in the Marvel Universe and a prominent place in the X-Men chronology. The fictional nation served as an allegory for slavery and later for South African apartheid before becoming a mutant homeland and subsequently a disaster zone. The island is located off the Southeastern African coast northwest from Seychelles and northeast of Madagascar. Its capital city was Hammer Bay.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">X-Factor (comics)</span> Comic book superhero team

X-Factor is a group of fictional mutant superheroes appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">X-Men</span> Comic book superhero team

The X-Men are a superhero team appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by artist/co-plotter Jack Kirby and writer/editor Stan Lee, the team first appeared in The X-Men #1. Although initially cancelled in 1970 due to low sales, following its 1975 revival and subsequent direction under writer Chris Claremont, it became one of the most recognizable and successful franchises of Marvel Comics. They have appeared in numerous books, television shows, the Disney's 20th Century Studios X-Men films, and video games. The X-Men title may refer to the superhero team itself, the eponymous comic series, or the broader franchise including various solo titles and team books such as the New Mutants, Excalibur, and X-Force.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Havok (comics)</span> Fictional character in Marvel Comics

Havok is a fictional superhero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics, commonly in association with the X-Men. He first appears in The X-Men #54, and was created by writer Arnold Drake and penciller Don Heck. Havok generates powerful "plasma blasts", an ability he has had difficulty controlling. One of the sons of Corsair, he is the younger brother of the X-Men's Cyclops, and the older brother of Vulcan. He often resents Cyclops's authoritarian attitude and reputation as a model member of the X-Men.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Polaris (Marvel Comics)</span> Fictional character from Marvel Comics

Polaris is a character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer Arnold Drake and artist Jim Steranko, the character first appeared in The X-Men #49. Lorna Dane belongs to the subspecies of humans called mutants, who are born with superhuman abilities. She can control magnetism in a manner similar to her father Magneto. The character has been known as Polaris, Malice, and Pestilence at various points in her history. Dane has also been a member of the X-Men and the X-Factor.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tabitha Smith</span> Marvel Comics fictional character

Tabitha Smith is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics, commonly in association with The X-Men and related titles. Created by Jim Shooter and Al Milgrom, the character first appeared in Secret Wars II #5. She then appeared as a member of X-Force and later as a member of Nextwave.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wolfsbane (character)</span> Marvel Comics fictional character

Wolfsbane is a fictional superhero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character is commonly associated with the X-Men. A Scottish mutant, Wolfsbane can transform into a wolf or a transitional state somewhere between human and wolf, similar to a werewolf. She honed her powers to shift between human and wolf characteristics but must keep her feral instincts at bay when she does.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cannonball (Marvel Comics)</span> Marvel Comics fictional character

Cannonball is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics, commonly in association with the X-Men. Created by writer Chris Claremont and artist Bob McLeod, Cannonball first appeared in The New Mutants.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">X-Force</span> Group of fictional characters

The X-Force is a team of superheroes appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics, most commonly in association with the X-Men. Conceived by writer/illustrator Rob Liefeld, the team first appeared in New Mutants #100 and soon afterwards was featured in its own series called X-Force. The group was originally a revamped version of the 1980s team, the New Mutants.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Warlock (New Mutants)</span> Fictional character in Marvel comics

Warlock is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rictor</span> Marvel Comics fictional character

Rictor is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics, primarily in the X-Men family of books. The character was created by writer Louise Simonson and artist Walt Simonson and first appeared in X-Factor #17. In subsequent years, the character was featured as a member of the original New Mutants team and the original X-Force team, and continued to appear in various X-Men franchise publications thereafter. In comic books published in the 1980s and 1990s, Rictor's mutant powers were to generate and manipulate seismic energy and creating tremendously powerful vibrations in any nearby object, inducing earthquake-like phenomena and causing objects to shatter or crumble. When the character was reintroduced in 2005, it was as one of many depowered mutants adjusting to civilian life. The character remained depowered until a 2011 comic.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">X-Cutioner's Song</span> Marvel Comics storyline

"X-Cutioner's Song" is a crossover storyline published by Marvel Comics' in twelve parts from November 1992 to early 1993. It ran in Uncanny X-Men, X-Men, X-Factor, and X-Force, and featured Stryfe as the central villain.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Phalanx Covenant</span>

"Phalanx Covenant" was a crossover storyline that ran through Marvel Comics' X-Men family of books in September and October 1994. One of its unique aspects was that the X-Men themselves only played a minor role in the story.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">X-Men: Eve of Destruction</span>

"Eve of Destruction" is an X-Men crossover storyline in the fictional Marvel Comics Universe. The storyline was written by Scott Lobdell and features artwork from Leinil Francis Yu, Salvador Larroca, and Tom Raney.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bloodties</span>

"Bloodties" is a 1993 Avengers/X-Men crossover that celebrates the 30th anniversary of both franchises. It is a direct sequel to the X-Men "Fatal Attractions" storyline, in which Charles Xavier mindwipes Magneto. The story of "Bloodties" details a civil war between the human and mutant populations of Genosha, incited by Magneto's former protégé Fabian Cortez. Unaware of Magneto's incapacitation, Cortez attempts to shield himself from his former master's wrath by kidnapping Magneto's granddaughter Luna. As Luna's father Quicksilver has strong ties to the X-Men and her mother Crystal is a member of the Avengers, both teams become involved in the Genoshan conflict. The situation is further complicated by Magneto's lieutenant and self-proclaimed heir Exodus, who seeks to kill both Cortez for his betrayal and Luna for "disgracing" Magneto's line by being merely human.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cameron Hodge</span> Fictional supervillain

Cameron Hodge is a fictional supervillain appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics, usually as an adversary in stories featuring the X-Men. Created by writer Bob Layton and artist Jackson Guice, he first appeared as a supporting character in X-Factor #1,

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jubilee (Marvel Comics)</span> Marvel Comics fictional character

Jubilation "Jubilee" Lee is a character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer Chris Claremont and artist Marc Silvestri, the character first appeared in Uncanny X-Men #244. Jubilee is a member of the human subspecies known as mutants, born with superhuman abilities. She can generate pyrotechnic energy blasts from her hands. Introduced as an orphaned "mall rat" from Beverly Hills, Jubilee joined the X-Men in the early 1990s, becoming the team's youngest member and often playing a sidekick role to her father-figure, Wolverine.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Days of Future Present</span>

"Days of Future Present" is a storyline published by Marvel Comics, appearing in the 1990 annuals of Fantastic Four, X-Factor, New Mutants and The Uncanny X-Men. Centered on the appearance of an adult version of the powerful mutant Franklin Richards, it is a sequel to the popular "Days of Future Past" story arc from The Uncanny X-Men #141–142. The storyline unites the Fantastic Four, X-Factor, the New Mutants, and the remnants of a then-disbanded X-Men against a common foe from a dystopian alternate future. It features the first appearance of Gambit, and the first encounter between Jean Grey and her alternate future daughter Rachel Summers. Cyclops' baby son Nathan Christopher Charles Summers and the full-grown mutant antihero Cable are depicted in this story as two separate individuals, although they are subsequently revealed to be one and the same.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">X-Men: Regenesis</span> Comic book

X-Men: Regenesis is a comic book branding used by Marvel Comics that ran through the X-Men family of books beginning in October 2011, following the end of the X-Men: Schism miniseries. This realignment of the mutant population is ahead of the 2012 Marvel event Avengers vs. X-Men which begins during Regenesis with the mini series Avengers: X-Sanction and brings back Cable, who was previously thought to be dead following the events of X-Men: Second Coming.