7 Biggest Mistakes of X-Men’s Krakoa Era

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The X-Men comics are currently struggling. After a relaunch in 2024, sales and reader interest have dropped significantly, and many fans are looking back fondly on the previous era, known as the Krakoa Era, which lasted five years. The Krakoa Era, which began in 2019 after Disney’s acquisition of 20th Century Fox, was a particularly creative period for the X-Men, spearheaded by writer Jonathan Hickman. It saw the mutants establish their own nation and explore new dynamics, delivering some of the most celebrated X-Men stories ever.

It’s easy to remember the Krakoa Era fondly, but it wasn’t perfect. Despite some amazing moments, Marvel made several significant errors during that time. Here are seven of the biggest mistakes that ultimately harmed the era and contributed to its underwhelming conclusion.

7) Fall of the House of X

The comic series Fall of the House of X is widely considered a failure and played a significant role in ending the Krakoa Era. Written by Gerry Duggan, who had previously struggled with the X-Men (Vol. 6) title, the series suffered from weak humor, inconsistent character portrayals, and a simplistic plot. While artist Lucas Werneck is typically excellent, his work in this series appeared rushed and didn’t meet his usual high quality. Overall, the book was a misstep that negatively impacted the conclusion of the Krakoa storyline.

6) The Synch and Talon Relationship

Issues #18-19 of X-Men (Vol. 5) were a standout story, but it introduced a plot point that later became a major problem. These issues trapped Synch and Wolverine II together for centuries within the Vault, a place with distorted time, with only Synch managing to escape. When the team eventually returned to the Vault, they discovered Wolverine II’s body in stasis. Their relationship was then rekindled, but it became one of the weakest aspects of X-Men (Vol. 6). The story repeatedly told readers how deeply they loved each other, but their interactions didn’t reflect that, ultimately feeling like wasted space and contributing to the overall poor quality of the series.

5) Doctor Stasis

Marvel has introduced some great villains recently, but Doctor Stasis unfortunately didn’t measure up. He served as the main villain in a poorly received run of X-Men (Vol. 6) and felt like an unnecessary character. Similar to Mister Sinister, he was a clone of Nathaniel Essex, focused on achieving Dominion with human assistance. The main issue is that Doctor Stasis felt like a redundant copy of Sinister – the only distinction being who they allied with. We already had Sinister, and Doctor Stasis didn’t offer enough unique qualities to justify his existence. It seems the writer wanted to use Sinister in their story but couldn’t due to appearances in the Immortal X-Men series, leading to this less-successful imitation that negatively impacted the end of that X-Men run.

4) The Moira MacTaggert Villain Turn

Moira MacTaggert was a central figure during the Krakoa Era of X-Men comics. It was discovered she was a mutant with a unique ability: she was reborn at birth every time she died, reliving her life repeatedly. After witnessing mutant failures throughout countless lifetimes, she dedicated herself to establishing Krakoa, a mutant nation intended to ensure their survival. Plans for a dedicated comic series focusing on her were underway, but when COVID-19 hit and writer Jonathan Hickman departed, everything changed. Moira was abruptly turned into a villain, portrayed as suddenly and inexplicably hateful towards mutants. This shift felt poorly executed and remains a low point in the Krakoa Era, as there were more thoughtful approaches that could have been taken.

3) Krakoan Resurrection

The Krakoa era brought major changes for mutants, and one of the biggest was the ability to bring them back from the dead. A team including Tempus, Proteus, Hope, Elixir, and Egg could use mutant DNA and stored memories to essentially resurrect fallen mutants. While exciting at first, this process quickly became overused. Characters were constantly killed and brought back, making death feel meaningless and removing tension from storylines. Plus, it raised questions about whether the resurrected individuals were truly the originals or just copies.

2) The COVID Response

The COVID-19 pandemic significantly impacted the comic book industry, causing delays and cancellations. While the X-Men titles continued to perform well, and fans were intrigued by upcoming stories featuring characters like Moira MacTaggert and the Imperial Guard, Marvel ultimately scrapped many of those plans. Instead, readers received less-inspired titles like X-Corps and Children of the Atom, along with the start of Gerry Duggan’s run on X-Men (Vol. 6). Rather than taking risks on potentially interesting ideas, these choices resulted in disappointing books and ultimately harmed the overall “Reign of X” initiative.

1) Straying From Jonathan Hickman’s Original Outline

Jonathan Hickman was the driving force behind the Krakoa Era of X-Men, creating the initial concepts, assembling the writing team, and establishing the guiding principles. However, after two years, he stepped away. Several factors contributed to his departure: other writers wanted to explore different storylines, Marvel wanted to prolong the success of the era due to its profitability, and fans seemed content with the established status quo. While initially presented as a mutual decision, later interviews revealed Hickman’s frustration with how his vision was altered. Although some resulting books were excellent, much of the era was merely average. Knowing what Hickman originally planned, it’s clear Marvel made a significant error by letting him leave.

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2026-03-15 02:11