10 Best X-Men Stories of the ‘90s, Ranked

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In the 80s, the X-Men gained significant popularity, with numerous comics captivating readers’ interest. The team was particularly creative during this period, boasting talented creators such as Chris Claremont, Louise Simonson, Marc Silvestri, Bill Sienkiewicz, John Byrne, Paul Smith, and more, who delivered exceptional stories to fans. The X-Men were Marvel’s most intricate characters, and the success of the 80s laid the foundation for some of their best tales ever. However, the 90s brought about a shift. Although the X-Men enjoyed tremendous sales success, easily outperforming every other Marvel and DC Comic on the shelves during that time, creatively, they didn’t reach the same heights. This was a common trend for most Marvel comics in the 90s, which were characterized by extreme artistic styles. At times, the X-Men can be overrated, and the 90s serve as a prime example of this phenomenon — they were the bestselling books, but not always the best quality books.

In contrast, just because not all writers from the ’90s were particularly well-liked, it doesn’t diminish the fact that there were some fantastic tales emerging from that era. The X-Men comics boasted some incredibly talented artists during the ’90s, and while a few of the writers may have had their detractors, they managed to create some truly outstanding stories at times. If we examine the X-Men comics from the ’90s more closely, it’s clear that there were indeed some hidden gems – stories that delivered the high-octane action fans had come to expect from this iconic team. These ten X-Men stories from the ’90s are undeniably the cream of the crop and continue to hold their own even today.

10) “Onslaught”

As a passionate film buff of comic books, I’ve always felt that the criticism towards “Onslaught” has been somewhat exaggerated. In my opinion, “Onslaught” embodies the essence of Marvel event cheese in the best possible way, delivering on every promise it made. The concept of Onslaught as a villain was intriguing and offered an engaging challenge for the heroes of the Marvel Universe.

The invasion of New York City by Onslaught and the deployment of the Sentinels against our beloved superheroes created a thrilling narrative that I found particularly captivating. The issues of “Uncanny X-Men” and “X-Men” during this event stood out as exceptional, while the bookend issues were equally engaging. I strongly recommend revisiting “Onslaught: X-Men” #1 and “Onslaught: Marvel Universe” #1 for a quintessential Marvel event experience.

If you take the time to read the “Phases” issues (there were two types of chapters in “Onslaught”: the main ones called “Phases”, and the less important ones called “Impacts”), you’ll find a well-crafted story that is truly representative of what Marvel event comics have to offer.

9) “The X-Cutioner’s Song”

1992 was a tough year for me as an X-Men fan. Key creators like Jim Lee, Whilce Portacio, Marc Silvestri, and Rob Liefeld left the X-Men office to establish Image Comics, a significant loss given that the X-Men universe had been heavily influenced by them ever since Chris Claremont departed. However, Marvel wasn’t going down without a fight, and “X-Cutioner’s Song” was their response to losing our beloved creators.

In this epic saga, Professor X is struck by a techno-organic virus at the hands of Cable, sending various X-Men teams on a mission to find the mutant soldier and X-Force. But things are far from simple, and as the dust settles, the true identity of Stryfe is unveiled, and it turns out Apocalypse has made his return. “X-Cutioner’s Song” is pure ’90s X-Men brilliance, a captivating story with some major unexpected twists. It stands on the shoulders of giants to provide fans like me with an exciting narrative, boasting stunning artwork from Andy Kubert, Brandon Peterson, Greg Capullo, and Jae Lee. While it may not be the most eloquently written tale, it’s still a thrilling journey.

8) “X-Tinction Agenda”

Despite being published in 1990, “X-Tinction Agenda” feels like a farewell to the ’80s in the X-Men comics due to its narrative style and themes. In this story, Cameron Hodge, a former ally of X-Factor, joins forces with the Magistrates of Genosha and a mind-controlled Havok to launch an attack on the X-Men. The X-Men, New Mutants, and X-Factor team up to rescue their captured comrades from Hodge’s grasp. This is an action-packed X-Men tale that wraps up the Genosha storylines, featuring stunning artwork by Jim Lee and John Bogdanove (although Rob Liefeld’s art is less admired today). Chris Claremont and Louise Simonson did a fantastic job with this narrative, making it one of the standout X-Men stories from the Claremont/Simonson era.

7) “Fatal Attractions”

The storyline titled ‘Fatal Attractions’ significantly impacted the X-Men series in the 1990s. This saga marked the return of Magneto, who was believed to be dead since X-Men (Vol. 2) #3, as he embarked on his deadliest attack plan. Magneto started scouting for mutants globally, considering them fit for his new space fortress, Avalon. The X-Men and their allies were at their weakest, following the demise of Illyana Rasputin, and a shocking high-ranking defection. When Magneto immobilized the world, the team responded swiftly, leading to one of the most significant X-Men comics in the 1990s – X-Men (Vol. 2) #25. In the aftermath, Magneto was deprived of his memories and Wolverine’s adamantium was ripped from his body.

Although ‘Fatal Attractions’ had its inconsistencies, the standout chapters – Uncanny X-Men #304, X-Men (Vol. 2) #25, and Wolverine (Vol. 2) #75 – were truly exceptional. Moreover, this storyline was one of the defining narratives of the ’90s. It fundamentally transformed the X-Men and Marvel’s most popular character of the decade for years to follow.

6) “Children of the Atom”

Following the departure of Claremont and Simonson, the quality of X-Men books wasn’t at its peak (with exceptions like Wolverine Vol. 2 that boasted some of the top writers in the X-books during the decade). This persisted until towards the end of the decade when Marvel brought on Joe Kelly and Steve Seagle to pen X-Men and Uncanny X-Men respectively. I highly suggest reading their entire run, but for this list, we’ll concentrate on two standout stories. The first is “Children of the Atom”, which unfolded across Uncanny X-Men #360 and X-Men #80. It begins with Charles Xavier, who hadn’t been seen since “Operation: Zero Tolerance”, gathering a fresh team of X-Men to confront the established team. The story is primarily about these two teams of X-Men colliding, culminating in a battle at the site of the X-Men’s initial fight with Magneto at Cape Citadel. This tale offers top-notch character development, thrilling action, and stunning artwork from Chris Bachalo and Brandon Peterson. Despite its simplicity, it is one of the best stories ever told.

5) X-Men (Vol. 2) #53

Mark Waid had a brief stint on X-Men Volume 2, departing due to disagreements with writer Scott Lobdell. His six-issue tenure is generally well-regarded, and the standout issue being X-Men Volume 2 #53, co-created by Waid and Andy Kubert. Jean Grey gets drawn into the Astral Plane by Onslaught in this issue, engaging in a thoughtful debate with him. Here, Onslaught attempts to make Jean question Professor X’s true nature. The issue lacks major action sequences but offers some intriguing character interactions between Onslaught and the symbolic figure of the X-Men. Kubert’s art in this issue is exceptional and represents some of his finest work on the series. This comic was highly anticipated when it first came out, as it introduced readers to Onslaught for the first time. However, even without that initial excitement, this remains a fantastic read.

4) “Magneto War”

As a passionate comics aficionado, I recently immersed myself in a gripping saga known as “Magneto War” which unfolded across issues #1 of X-Men: Magneto War, #366-367 of Uncanny X-Men, and issues #86-87 of plain old X-Men. This epic tale, penned by Alan Davis along with Fabian Nicieza and masterfully illustrated by Leinil Yu, brings the enigmatic Magneto back into the limelight.

In this storyline, Magneto orchestrates a chilling plan to seize control of the world by threatening to reverse the Earth’s magnetic poles. The X-Men leap into action, but they’re not alone in their efforts as an adversary from Magneto’s past enlists Joseph with the grim task of taking down the Master of Magnetism.

This thrilling narrative marked a significant milestone in Alan Davis’ tenure as writer for both Uncanny X-Men and X-Men, a run that, despite some controversy, I’ve always found to be captivating and would highly recommend. As the author sought to wrap up numerous plot threads from the ’90s, this tale unveiled the truth about Joseph – a revelation that left readers spellbound.

In essence, it’s an exceptional storyline, delivering all the elements that make X-Men comics so endearing to fans like myself.

3) Uncanny X-Men (Vol. 1) #268

During the start of the ’90s, Chris Claremont’s tenure on Uncanny X-Men was drawing to a close, with both its duration and quality decreasing (as editor Bob Harras favored artist’s concepts over Claremont’s, leading to not all stories being top-notch). However, there were some remarkable tales from this period. One of the finest, renowned for its impact even today, is Uncanny X-Men (Vol. 1) #268, a collaboration between Claremont and artist Jim Lee. In this issue, they narrated Wolverine’s initial encounter with Black Widow and Captain America – a tale that enriched the histories of three of Marvel Comics’ most significant characters. This story offers readers an engaging blend of action, adventure, and some of Jim Lee’s finest artwork during his time on Uncanny X-Men.

2) “The Hunt for Xavier”

Joe Kelly and Steve Seagle’s tenure on the X-books deserves more recognition for its exceptional quality, as evidenced by “The Hunt for Xavier,” which spanned issues #362-364 of Uncanny X-Men (Vol. 1) and #82-84 of X-Men (Vol. 2). The X-Men begin to uncover hints about Professor X’s whereabouts, only to encounter their toughest adversary yet: the sentient Cerebro, who is also in pursuit of Xavier. A thrilling adventure unfolds as the X-Men confront an enemy that knows their every vulnerability. This represents the pinnacle of ’90s X-Men with a top-tier cast of X-Men characters from that decade (even surpassing the Blue Team). The artwork by Chris Bachalo, Adam Kubert, Leinil Yu, and Pascual Ferry is exceptional, vividly bringing this mini epic to life. This story is often overlooked but is a must-read for any X-Men enthusiast.

1) X-Men (Vol. 2) #1-3

Chris Claremont and Jim Lee’s concluding X-Men tale together stands out as one of the finest X-Men stories from the ’90s. It marked the emergence of the Blue/Gold Team division, unveiled the Acolytes, and repositioned Magneto as the X-Men’s arch-nemesis once more, shifting him from his role as an ally that Claremont had established since the ’80s. This narrative sparked a wave of X-Men fandom among countless readers and continues to be highly acclaimed in X-Men storytelling. While it may sometimes appear overly praised, it remains nearly flawless for introducing new fans to the team, even three decades later. It features arguably the best X-Men vs. Magneto battle ever depicted, and Lee’s artwork represents the pinnacle of his long and distinguished career.

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2025-06-29 17:11