X-Force
X-Force is a fictional 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 (April 1991) 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.
X-Force's first leader was the mutant Cable. An offshoot of the X-Men, X-Force takes a more militant and aggressive approach towards its enemies compared to the X-Men.
Publication history
Publication
The X-Force series was successful in the early 1990s, but its popularity waned after Liefeld left, which caused Marvel to implement several reforms to the title from 1995 until 2001 with varying degrees of success. Low sales on the X-Force series eventually prompted Marvel to revamp the title in 2001 with a new cast in the form of a group of self-interested young mutants who were gathered together by a corporation to become media stars and used the name X-Force. X-Force was canceled with #129 and relaunched as X-Statix, which coincided with a similar rebranding of the team in the story. After X-Statix was canceled with #26, Marvel reunited the original X-Force team for a six-issue 2004 limited series plotted and drawn by Liefeld.
In 2007–2008, during the Messiah Complex crossover, a new version of the X-Force team was formed with Wolverine leading a more militaristic black-ops branch of the X-Men. This squad would form the basis for a new X-Force series starting February 2008 by writers Craig Kyle and Christopher Yost, plus Clayton Crain as the artist. The series came to a conclusion in September 2010 as part of the Second Coming storyline that ran through various X-titles. The title was then relaunched in October 2010 as Uncanny X-Force with Rick Remender and Jerome Opeña as the creative team and Wolverine, Psylocke, Deadpool, Archangel, Fantomex, and E.V.A. as the initial roster.[1]
The Uncanny X-Force series ended at issue #35 in 2012 and was once again relaunched as Uncanny X-Force vol. 2 as part of Marvel NOW!, with a new team led by Storm and Psylocke, written by Sam Humphries. A concurrent X-Force book written by Dennis Hopeless, Cable and X-Force, was released at the same time, bringing Cable back into the X-Force fold. The two series ended in 2014 after a crossover between the two titled "Vendetta". A new X-Force (vol. 4), was launched featuring a black-ops squad composed of Cable, Psylocke, Fantomex and Marrow, written by X-Men: Legacy writer Simon Spurrier.[2]
X-Force Volume 1: 1991-2001
Liefeld period
X-Force was created by illustrator Rob Liefeld after he started penciling The New Mutants comic book in 1989 with #86. The popularity of Liefeld’s art led to him taking over the plotting duties on the book.[citation needed] With help from writer Fabian Nicieza, who provided the dialogue for Liefeld’s plots, Liefeld transformed the New Mutants into X-Force in New Mutants #100, the book's final issue. Liefeld and Nicieza launched X-Force in August 1991. Rob Liefeld obtained the name for the series from an unknown artist at a convention a few months prior to its release. With the aid of a multiple-variant poly-bagged card, the book sold a record 5 million copies[citation needed], and remains the second highest selling American comic book of all time, surpassed only by Jim Lee's X-Men book that same summer with 8 million copies.[citation needed] The original line-up of the team included Boom Boom, Cable, Cannonball, Domino, Feral, Shatterstar and Warpath. In later issues, X-Force's roster would include Siryn, Rictor and Sunspot.
The main opponents of X-Force during its first year were the terrorist Mutant Liberation Front, led by Stryfe, a masked mutant with a mysterious link to Cable. Early issues also featured the wise-cracking mercenary Deadpool, the immortal Externals, and a new version of the Brotherhood of Mutants.
Propelled by Liefeld's art, X-Force became one of Marvel’s bestselling comic books immediately after its debut. The series rivaled The Amazing Spider-Man and Uncanny X-Men in popularity, particularly with the adolescent demographic.[citation needed] Toy Biz responded to X-Force's popularity by introducing an X-Force action figure line alongside its X-Men action figure line. Liefeld illustrated the series up to #9 and stopped plotting it after #12 as Liefeld had become increasingly frustrated that he did not own the characters he created and that his art was being used on a variety of merchandise while he received little royalties.[citation needed] Along with six other popular Marvel artists, Liefeld left Marvel Comics in 1992 to form Image Comics.
Mid-1990s: Nicieza and Loeb
X-Force continued with Nicieza writing and Greg Capullo illustrating. Nicieza, who also wrote X-Men, vol. 2, helped plot the X-Cutioner's Song storyline that overlapped into most X-Men related books in the fall of 1992. In that story, Stryfe frames Cable for an assassination attempt on the X-Men’s founder Professor X, leading to a clash between the X-Men and X-Force. The crossover boosted Cable's popularity, despite the character's apparent death in X-Force #18, leading to his own solo series being launched in 1993.
After X-Cutioner’s Song, X-Force continued under Nicieza and Capullo, and later pencilled by Tony Daniel. Having temporarily lost their leader, X-Force attempted to develop an identity of their own. The team gradually developed into a dysfunctional family after Cable's return in #25, and the title regularly combined soap opera plot threads, such as romance and Siryn's alcoholism, with violent action. Nicieza fleshed out previously unknown elements of each character's history, including Siryn's family in Ireland,[3] Rictor's in Mexico,[4] and Cannonball's in Kentucky,[5] as well as the mysterious origins of Shatterstar.[6] This period also saw the reintroduction of characters from the group's New Mutants days, such as Rusty and Skids,[7] Danielle Moonstar,[8] and Cypher and Wolfsbane.[9] A long-simmering sub-plot about Reignfire and the disappearance of Sunspot came to a climax just as the book went on hiatus for the Age of Apocalypse crossover event in 1995.
Due to falling sales,[citation needed] X-Force emerged from the Age of Apocalypse event with a new creative team of writer Jeph Loeb and illustrator Adam Pollina, who significantly revised the team with issue #44. Loeb introduced new team uniforms, had the team move in with the X-Men at the X-Mansion, and placed emphasis on character-driven stories with fewer fight scenes. Rictor quit the team and Cannonball joined the X-Men. Caliban, a super-strong albino mutant who possessed the mind of a child, joined the team. Loeb's stories included revelations about Shatterstar’s origin and the transformation of Boomer (formerly Boom Boom) into the more aggressive Meltdown. Fan response was generally positive.[citation needed]
Post-Cable period
In 1997, writer John Francis Moore, portrayed the team as carefree walkers exploring the open road and had X-Force break away from Cable and the X-Men. The roster of that incarnation was Meltdown, Siryn, Sunspot, Warpath, and Danielle Moonstar.
In 1998, Moore and new artist Jim Cheung had X-Force move to a new headquarters in San Francisco, returned Cannonball and later Domino to the team, and added Bedlam, a mutant who could disrupt electronic equipment. However, towards the end of this run, sales on the title began to fall drastically.[citation needed]
Writer Warren Ellis, who was known for his dark, cynical style, revamped three books, (X-Force, Generation X, and X-Man), as part of the Revolution revamp of the X-Men series of titles in 2000. Ellis' stint on X-Force, co-written by Ian Edginton and illustrated by Whilce Portacio, saw Bedlam, Cannonball, Meltdown, and Warpath become a covert ops superhero team under the leadership of Pete Wisdom, a British mutant and former intelligence agent who could shoot burning blades of energy from his fingers. Sales remained about the same despite the changes in creators.[10]
Cancellation and replacement
In early 2001, the X-Force title was completely reimagined by writer Peter Milligan and artist Mike Allred, who replaced the existing incarnation of the team with an entirely different group of mutants using the X-Force name. In X-Force #115, Bedlam, Cannonball, Meltdown, and Warpath all appear to die in an explosion, though all subsequently return. The next issue, #116, saw the introduction of a new, sardonically toned X-Force consisting of colorfully dressed and emotionally immature young mutants put together and marketed to be media superstars. X-Force was canceled with #129 in late 2002 and replaced with the retitled X-Statix series in late 2002.
In 2004, Marvel released a new six-issue X-Force miniseries, once again plotted and illustrated by Liefeld, with dialogue by Nicieza, that gathered many of the characters featured in the first X-Force, to critical panning yet decent sales.[citation needed] Some controversy arose from Liefeld's insertion of over ten pages from previous unpublished comic books (Weapon X and Cable: First Contact) with word balloons edited to make them fit the X-Force storyline.[citation needed] It was subsequently followed with a four-issue prequel X-Force: Shatterstar miniseries.
X-Force Volume 3: 2008–2010
A new X-Force ongoing series was launched in February 2008, written by Craig Kyle and Christopher Yost and drawn by Clayton Crain.
Cyclops forms a black ops incarnation of X-Force that uses lethal force to permanently deal with threats against mutants. Warpath, Wolfsbane, Wolverine and X-23 form the starting lineup, with Angel, Domino and Elixir joining soon after. Yost had at one point stated that Deadpool would join the cast to bring more diversity to the team, but this did not happen until after his run and the launch of Uncanny X-Force.
Uncanny X-Force
X-Force was replaced in October 2010 with Uncanny X-Force by Rick Remender and Jerome Opeña.[11][12] This new series introduces team members Psylocke, Fantomex, and Deadpool. According to Remender, "This is a group of characters that have had their souls stained by evil forces in the past, a common thread connecting them. They've already made the hard compromises in the past; they've all taken life."[13]
The title had a three-issue "Fear Itself" tie-in mini-series, written by Rob Williams, with art by Simone Bianchi.[14] As of Issue #34, 31 characters were killed and 14 of them were from the "Age of Apocalypse" timeline.
Marvel NOW!
As part of Marvel NOW!, two new X-Force series would replace Remender's Uncanny X-Force. Prior to their announcement, the two titles were teased by a single word and the book's creative team: "Wanted" with Dennis Hopeless and Salvador Larroca and "Killers" with Sam Humphries and Ron Garney. "Wanted" was first revealed to be the brand new "Cable and X-Force"[15] with "Killers" later revealed to be a relaunched "Uncanny X-Force."[16]
Cable and X-Force, written by Dennis Hopeless and penciled by Salvador Larroca, featured Cable on the run after awakening from a coma in the post-AvX world. Harkening back to the early days of the original X-Force, Cable would lead an outlaw X-Force team consisting of Domino, Colossus, Forge, Doctor Nemesis and Boom-Boom, whose missions of stopping huge tragedies before they happen puts them at odds with the newly formed Uncanny Avengers, led by Cable's uncle, Havok.
The relaunched Uncanny X-Force was written by Sam Humphries and penciled by Ron Garney, and featured a Psylocke-led team with an initial roster of Storm, Puck, and Cluster. They would be joined by Spiral and Bishop as they sought to locate a psychic mutant girl who had been kidnapped.
X-Force Volume 4: 2014
As part of the "All-New Marvel NOW!" campaign, a new volume of X-Force was launched in February 2014, replacing Cable and X-Force and Uncanny X-Force vol. 2. It features a team of Cable, Psylocke, Fantomex and Marrow, written by X-Men: Legacy writer Simon Spurrier.[2] The title has ended with 15 issues.
Plot summary
Volume 3
Angels and Demons
The team's first mission has them investigating the theft of Bastion's head from a S.H.I.E.L.D. base. The trail leads back to the Purifiers, led by Matthew Risman and the mysterious Eli Bard. They attach Bastion's head to the body of a Nimrod unit, to use the revived Bastion in their "holy war" against mutantkind. Bastion retrieves an offspring of the technarch Magus from the ocean floor and revives several deceased X-Men villains, including Cameron Hodge, Bolivar Trask and Graydon Creed, by infecting their corpses with the Technarch Transmode Virus. The virus allows Bastion a degree of mental control over the revived corpses. He also infects two living subjects with the virus: Donald Pierce and the Leper Queen.
During X-Force's raid on a Purifer base, Risman holds Wolfsbane hostage. While Wolverine calls for the team to stand down, X-23 decides Risman is bluffing and activates a concealed detonator that sets off a series of powerful explosives. The explosion brings most of the base down around them, but Risman is able to escape with Wolfsbane during the chaos. Wolverine later admonishes Laura for being so reckless with the lives of her teammates and for allowing Rahne to be kidnapped. After interrogating and killing numerous Purifiers, X-Force finds Rahne held in a warehouse, barely alive. Angel retrieves Elixir to heal Rahne, who wakes up soon after. Laura then catches the scent of Elixir's and Angel's blood, and runs off to help them. She reaches the room just in time to see Wolfsbane standing above Angel with his severed wings in her jaws. While in the Purifiers' custody, Rahne had been brainwashed by her deranged father, Reverend Craig, causing her to go berserk at the sight of an angelic figure. Wolfsbane savagely attacks Laura before handing over Angel's wings to the Purifiers.
Elixir heals both his and Angel's wounds, then discovers that Angel's wings aren't organic and can't be regrown. Angel transforms into Archangel, complete with metallic wings. Archangel wounds Wolverine and X-23 before taking off toward the Purifiers' base, sensing his old wings. Meanwhile, the Purifiers use samples of Angel's stolen wings to develop techno-organic wings for their soldiers, giving them similar abilities to Archangel. The group of Purifiers given wings is dubbed "The Choir." X-Force pursues Archangel to the Purifiers' base and slaughters most of The Choir, while Risman discovers Eli Bard absorbing the Technarch offspring into his hand. X-23 kills Risman with a headshot, and briefly fights Eli. Eli overpowers her, but is prevented from killing her when Warpath stabs him, causing him to flee. Wolverine takes on Bastion, who deems the threat posed by Wolverine "unacceptable" and retreats. Afterwards, X-Force finds Archangel unconscious and in human form, complete with feathered wings. Wolverine informs Cyclops of the turn of events, and Cyclops asks which of X-Force's targets should be next.[17]
Old Ghosts
Once X-Force regroups at Angel's Aerie, they test the reactions of Rahne and Angel to one another. Rahne reverts to full feral form upon seeing Angel, who responds by transforming into Archangel. Wolverine and Elixir restrain Wolfsbane while Cyclops talks down Archangel, who has trouble controlling his Apocalypse-like mentality while in his transformed state. Laura calls in the Stepford Cuckoos to erase Elixir's memories of X-Force, to help them remain covert. Before they do so, Angel informs them of a live telecast featuring Graydon Creed, who claims an L.M.D. was assassinated in his place and publicly denounces mutants once more. Cyclops assembles X-Force, including Elixir, and unexpectedly declares the Vanisher as their next target.
It is revealed that Scalphunter, a former Marauder, contacted Cyclops about a break-in at an old lab of Mister Sinister that held an altered version of the Legacy Virus. While in pursuit of the Vanisher, the team runs into Domino, who joins forces with them to recover the Legacy Virus. After cornering Vanisher and inducing an inoperable brain tumor (courtesy of Elixir) to ensure his cooperation, Vanisher reveals he lost the virus while escaping from a horde of Marauder clones that were awakened after the death of Sinister. X-Force returns to the lab and kill the cloned Marauders inside. Domino retrieves the virus, only to be confronted by The Right's shocktroopers, who have come to take the virus for themselves. X-23 is injected with the virus while doing battle, and runs toward a nearby molten vat to destroy herself (thus destroying the virus). Elixir catches Laura as she jumps, and uses his healing powers to purge her of the virus, declaring that his purpose in X-Force is to ensure no more of his friends will die. With Vanisher in tow, X-Force returns home.[18]
Meanwhile, Warpath returns to his tribe's reservation at Camp Verde to visit his brother's grave, but discovers the empty graves of his entire tribe before being violently attacked by the Demon Bear. Just as he's about to be killed, Warpath is saved by Ghost Rider, who offers to teach him how to kill a demon. After engaging the Demon Bear in battle once more, Ghost Rider realizes the demon is reacting to pain caused by a dagger embedded in its body. Once Warpath removes the dagger, the demon is revealed to be the spirit guides of Warpath's tribe, corrupted by the black magic of the dagger. These spirits grant Warpath a vision that reveals the history of the man responsible for digging up the graves of his tribe: Eli Bard. Warpath returns home and tells X-Force what the spirits showed him, which ends with the revelation that Eli is using the Technarch Transmode Virus to revive dead mutants as an offering to his queen, Selene.[19]
Soon after, Beautiful Dreamer mysteriously dies after losing control of her powers and killing hundreds of civilians. Cyclops realizes this was likely caused by the mutated Legacy Virus, and assembles X-Force to deal with the situation. Cyclops also reveals he's in the process of tracking down Cable, and gives each of them a time-travel device that will be remotely activated when Beast determines Cable's exact location in the timestream. Fever Pitch loses control of his powers soon after, resulting in a similar massacre. While escaping the explosion, Archangel spots the Leper Queen and informs Cyclops. Once Boom Boom, Hellion and Surge are kidnapped, the Stepford Cuckoos use Cerebra to track them down. Hellion and Surge are injected with the altered Legacy Virus and teleported out just as X-Force storm the Leper Queen's base. As Wolverine questions the Leper Queen, Cyclops informs him that Cable has been found and X-Force is being sent after him. Despite Wolverine's protests, Cyclops activates the time-travel devices, sending X-Force forward in time before they can kill the Leper Queen.[20]
Messiah War
X-Force is involuntarily sent to the future to retrieve Cable and Hope. The landscape is a barren, ravaged area, and the team quickly encounters danger. Apocalypse has been defeated, and Stryfe controls this future. X-Force and Cable struggle to save Hope from Bishop and Stryfe.
Not Forgotten
Not Forgotten takes place directly after X-Force's return to the present. X-23 emerges from the timestream just in time to save Boom Boom from being killed by the Leper Queen. Seconds after she kills the Leper Queen, both she and Boom Boom are taken into custody by agents of H.A.M.M.E.R. At the United Nations, Hellion and Surge are rescued from the Sapien League by Wolverine, Archangel and Elixir. Boom Boom is freed from H.A.M.M.E.R. custody by Warpath, while X-23 is returned to The Facility. She wakes up to find her left arm severed by Kimura, wielding a chain saw. Before she can cut off the right arm, Kimura is shot by Agent Morales. Agent Young is revealed to be a member of The Facility that infiltrated H.A.M.M.E.R. to acquire the intel that Morales had on X-23. When Young tries to recruit Morales into The Facility, she rejects his offer by beating him unconscious. In the present, X-23 and Morales make their way to a Facility lab that holds mass amounts of the chemical trigger that forces X-23 to kill. While inside the room, X-23 cuts the claws out of her severed arm and gives them to Morales for safekeeping. She lights a Molotov cocktail of sorts which sets the sprinkler system off. The Facility soldiers finish cutting through to Laura just as Kimura realizes the sprinklers are spraying the Trigger Scent everywhere. X-23 goes feral and kills all the soldiers in her way. She gets to the Facility head's office just as the sprinklers start spraying water, washing away the scent. Kimura manages to club Laura from behind and then kills the Facility head, planning on framing Laura for it. Agent Morales arrives and sets Kimura on fire to distract her while she and Laura make her escape. Morales reveals she rigged the place to explode and they get out in time. The rest of X-Force arrives and takes Laura and her severed claws home, leading into the events of Necrosha.
Necrosha
X-Force is involved in the battle against Selene's resurrected mutant forces on Utopia, until Cyclops sends them to Genosha to kill Selene.
They arrive at Necrosha and manage to rescue Warpath, who then leads them in battle against a god-like Selene, and manage to kill her using an old ritual of Warpath's tribe. Wolverine tells Cyclops that Warpath, X-23, Wolfsbane and Elixir are out of the team, but Cyclops insists that X-Force will be needed more than ever in the time ahead.
X-Men: Second Coming
X-Force is joined by Cable and Cypher on a time-traveling mission to stop an invasion of Nimrods sent from a possible dystopian future. As Cable only has one use remaining on his time-traveling device, it is believed to be a one-way suicide mission. After they complete their mission and Cable sacrifices himself to return X-Force to the present, Hope's mutant powers emerge and she destroys Bastion. After the battle, Logan is confronted by Storm about X-Force. She tells Logan that he never should have involved James, Rahne and Laura, and Logan tells her that he never wanted them involved, but doesn't regret what they did. Logan tells Laura that she's out and to figure out what she wants from life. Afterward, Logan discusses the future of X-Force with Cyclops, who decides to disband the team. Logan meets with his new team a short time later, consisting of himself, Archangel, Fantomex, Psylocke and Deadpool, deciding to run a new X-Force team without the knowledge of Cyclops or the other X-Men.[volume & issue needed]
Volume 4
Dirty/Tricks
Hide/Fear
Ends/Means
X-Force Roster
Volume 1
| Issues | Characters |
|---|---|
| #1–2 | Boomer, Cable, Cannonball, Copycat (as Domino), Feral, Shatterstar, Warpath |
| #3–14 | Boomer, Cable, Cannonball, Copycat, Feral, Shatterstar, Siryn, Warpath |
| #15–24 | Boomer, Cannonball, Feral, Rictor, Shatterstar, Siryn, Sunspot, Warpath |
| #25–28 | Boomer, Cable, Cannonball, Feral, Rictor, Shatterstar, Siryn, Sunspot, Warpath |
| #29–38 | Boomer, Cable, Cannonball, Domino, Rictor, Shatterstar, Siryn, Warpath |
| #39 | Boomer, Cable, Cannonball, Domino, Prosh, Rictor, Shatterstar, Siryn, Warpath |
| #40-43 | Boomer, Cable, Cannonball, Domino, Rictor, Shatterstar, Siryn, Warpath |
| #44–50 | Boomer, Cable, Caliban, Domino, Shatterstar, Siryn, Sunspot, Warpath |
| #51–69 | Cable, Caliban, Domino, Meltdown (formerly Boomer), Rictor, Shatterstar, Siryn, Sunspot, Warpath |
| #70–81 | Meltdown, Moonstar, Siryn, Sunspot, Warpath |
| #83–86 | Bedlam, Cannonball, Meltdown, Moonstar, Siryn, Sunspot, Warpath |
| #87–91 | Bedlam, Cannonball, Domino, Meltdown, Moonstar, Siryn, Sunspot, Warpath |
| #92–101 | Bedlam, Cannonball, Domino, Meltdown, Moonstar, Warpath |
| #102–106 | Bedlam, Cannonball, Meltdown, Warpath, Wisdom |
| #107–115 | Bedlam, Cannonball, Domino, Meltdown, Warpath |
| #116 | Anarchist, Battering Ram, Doop, Gin Genie, Plazm, U-Go Girl, Zeitgeist |
| #117–118 | Anarchist, Bloke, Doop, Orphan, Phat, Saint Anna, U-Go Girl, Vivisector |
| #119 | Anarchist, Doop, Orphan, Phat, Saint Anna, U-Go Girl, Vivisector |
| #120 | Anarchist, Doop, Orphan, Phat, U-Go Girl, Vivisector |
| #121–124 | Anarchist, Doop, Orphan, Phat, Spike, U-Go Girl, Vivisector |
| #125–128 | Anarchist, Dead Girl, Doop, Orphan, Phat, Spike, U-Go Girl, Vivisector |
| #129 | Anarchist, Dead Girl, Doop, Orphan, Phat, Vivisector |
Volume 2
| Issues | Characters |
|---|---|
| #1–3 | Cable, Cannonball, Domino, Meltdown, Shatterstar, Sunspot, Warpath |
| #4-5 | Cable, Caliban, Meltdown, Shatterstar |
| #6 | Cable, Caliban, Domino, Meltdown, Shatterstar |
Volume 3
| Issues | Year | Characters |
|---|---|---|
| Messiah Complex | 2008 | Caliban, Hepzibah, Warpath, Wolfsbane, Wolverine, X-23 |
| #1–7 | Warpath, Wolfsbane, Wolverine, X-23 | |
| #8–10 | 2008–2009 | Archangel, Elixir, Warpath, Wolfsbane, Wolverine, X-23 |
| #11–25 | 2009–2010 | Archangel, Domino, Elixir, Vanisher, Warpath, Wolfsbane, Wolverine, X-23 |
| #26 | 2010 | Archangel, Domino, Vanisher, Wolverine |
| #27–28 | 2010 | Archangel, Cable, Cypher, Domino, Wolverine, X-23 |
| Second Coming #2 | 2010 | Team disassembling - Archangel, Domino, Wolverine, X-23.
Team reformation as Uncanny X-Force - Archangel, Deadpool, E.V.A, Fantomex, Psylocke, Wolverine |
Volume 4
| Issues | Year | Characters |
|---|---|---|
| #1–11 | 2014 | Cable, Dr. Nemesis, E.V.A., Fantomex, Hope Summers (as MeMe), Marrow, Psylocke |
| #12–13 | 2014 | Cable, Domino, Dr. Nemesis, Hope Summers (as MeMe), Marrow, Psylocke |
| #14–15 | 2015 | Cable, Domino, Dr. Nemesis, ForgetMeNot, Hope Summers, Marrow, Psylocke |
Creators
Writers
- Rob Liefeld: X-Force #1–12 & vol. 2 #1–6 (August 1991–July 1992 & October 2004–March 2005)
- Fabian Nicieza: X-Force #1–43 & Annual #1–3 & vol. 2 #1–6 (August 1991–February 1995 & October 2004–March 2005)
- Jeph Loeb: X-Force #44–61 (July 1995–December 1996)
- John Dokes: X-Force #62 (January 1997)
- John Francis Moore: X-Force #63–76 & #78–100 (February 1997–April 1998 & June 1998–March 2000)
- Joseph Harris: X-Force #77 & #101 (May 1998 & April 2000)
- Warren Ellis & Ian Edginton: X-Force #102–105 (May–August 2000)
- Ian Edginton: X-Force #102–115 (May 2000–June 2001)
- Peter Milligan: X-Force #116–129 (July 2001–August 2002)
- Craig Kyle & Christopher Yost: X-Force, vol. 3 #1–#28 (February 2008–September 2010)
- Si Spurrier: X-Force, vol. 4 #1–15 (February 2014-February 2015)
Art
- Rob Liefeld: X-Force #1–7 & #9 & vol. 2 #1–6 (August 1991–June 1992 & October 2004–March 2005)
- Mike Mignola: X-Force #8 (March 1992)
- Mark Pacella: X-Force #10–13 (May–August 1992)
- Terry Shoemaker: X-Force #14 (September 1992)
- Greg Capullo: X-Force #15–25 (October 1992–August 1993)
- Matt Broome: X-Force #26–27 & #29
- Tony Daniel: X-Force #28, #30–36, #38–41 & #43
- Paul Pelletier: X-Force #37
- Adam Pollina: X-Force #44–81
- Jim Cheung: X-Force #82–84, #86–88, #90, #94–95 & #98–100
- Whilce Portacio: X-Force #102–106 (May–September 2000)
- Mike Allred: X-Force #116–123 & #125–128 (July 2001–August 2002)
- Darwyn Cooke: X-Force #124
- Duncan Fegredo: X-Force #129
- Clayton Crain: X-Force, vol. 3 #1–6, #11–16 & #21–25 (February–August 2008, January–June 2009 & November 2009–March 2010)
- Mike Choi: X-Force, vol. 3 #7–10, #17–20 & #26–28 (September–December 2008, July–October 2009 & April–June 2010)
- Alina Urusov: X-Force, vol. 3 #11 (January 2009)
- Rock-He Kim: X-Force, vol. 4 #1–3, #7-9, #11-12, #14-15 (February 2014-February 2015)
- Jorge Molina: X-Force, vol. 4 #4–6 (April-June 2014)
- Tan Eng Huat: X-Force, vol. 4 #10 (October 2014), #13 (December 2014)
Cover art
- Rob Liefeld: X-Force #1–9 & #11 and #50 & #100 variants (August 1991–January 1996)
- Greg Capullo: X-Force #15–27 (October 1992–October 1993)
- Whilce Portacio: X-Force #102–109 (May 2000–December 2000)
- Mike Allred: X-Force #116–128 (July 2001–August 2002)
- Clayton Crain: X-Force, vol. 3 #1–6, #11–13, #14–16 (variants) & #21–25
- Bryan Hitch: X-Force, vol. 3 #1 (variant)
- Mike Choi: X-Force, vol. 3 #7–10 & #17–20 (November 2008–February 2009 & September–December 2009)
- Kaare Andrews: X-Force, vol. 3 #14–16
- Adi Granov: X-Force, vol. 3 #26–28
- David Finch: X-Force, vol. 3 #26–28 (variants)
Collected editions
Various stories and series have been collected into trade paperbacks:
Volume 1
| Title | Material collected | Publication date | ISBN |
|---|---|---|---|
| X-Force Omnibus - Vol. 1 | New Mutants #98-100, Annual #7; X-Men Annual #15; X-Factor Annual #6; X-Force #1-15; Spider-Man #16; Cable: Blood & Metal #1-2; material from New Warriors Annual #1, X-Force Annual #1 | February 2013 | 0785165959 |
| X-Force: A Force To Be Reckoned With HC | New Mutants #98–100; X-Force #1–4; and Spider-Man #16 | January 2011 | 0-7851-4984-8 |
| X-Force: Under The Gun HC | X-Force #5–15 & material from Annual #1 | March 2011 | 0-7851-4985-6 |
| X-Men: X-Cutioner's Song | X-Force #16–18; Uncanny X-Men #294–296; X-Factor #84–86; and X-Men, vol. 2 #14–16 | May 1994 | 0-7851-0025-3 |
| X-Force: Assault on Graymalkin | X-Force #19–25 & New Warriors #31 | November 2011 | 0-7851-5899-5 |
| X-Men: Fatal Attractions | X-Force #25; X-Factor #92; Uncanny X-Men #304; X-Men, vol. 2 #25; Wolverine, vol. 2 #75; and Excalibur #71 | August 2000 | 0-7851-0748-7 |
| X-Force: Toy Soldiers | X-Force #26-31, Annual #2; Nomad #20 | April 2012 | 0-7851-6219-4 |
| X-Force: Child's Play | X-Force #32-37, Annual #3; New Warriors #45-46 | August 2012 | 0-7851-6269-0 |
| Origin of Generation X: Tales of the Phalanx Covenant | X-Force #38; Uncanny X-Men #316–317; X-Men, vol. 2 #36–37; X-Factor #106; Excalibur #82; Wolverine, vol. 2 #85; Cable #16; and Generation X #1 | June 2001 | 0-7851-0216-7 |
| X-Force: The Phalanx Covenant HC | X-Force #38-43; X-Factor #106; Excalibur #82 | May 2013 | 978-0-7851-6272-8 |
| Cable and X-Force Classic Vol. 1 | X-Force #44-48;Cable #21-28 | April 2013 | 978-0-7851-6272-8 |
| X-Men: The Complete Onslaught Epic, vol. 1 | X-Force #57; X-Men, vol. 2 #53–54; Uncanny X-Men #334–335; Avengers #400–401; Onslaught: X-Men; Cable #34; Incredible Hulk #444; and Fantastic Four #414–415 | December 2007 | 0-7851-2823-9 |
| X-Men: The Complete Onslaught Epic, vol. 2 | X-Force #58; Excalibur #100; Fantastic Four #415; Amazing Spider-Man #415; Sensational Spider-Man #8; Spider-Man #72; Green Goblin #12; Punisher #11; X-Factor #125–126; Wolverine, vol. 2 #104; X-Man #17; X-Men, vol. 2 #55; and Uncanny X-Men #336 | June 2008 | 0-7851-2824-7 |
| X-Men: The Complete Onslaught Epic, vol. 3 | X-Force #57; Avengers #402; Incredible Hulk #445; Iron Man #332; Thor #502; Wolverine, vol. 2 #104; Cable #35; X-Men, vol. 2 #55; Uncanny X-Men #336; and X-Man #19 | August 2008 | 0-7851-2825-5 |
| X-Men: Operation Zero Tolerance, | X-Force #67-70, Generation X #26-31, X-Men #65-70, Uncanny X-Men #346, Wolverine #115-118, Cable #45-47, X-Man #30 | August 2012 | 0-7851-6240-2 |
| X-Men: Powerless | X-Force #101; Uncanny X-Men #379–380; Cable #78; Wolverine, vol. 2 #149; and X-Men, vol. 2 #99 | August 2010 | 0-7851-4677-6 |
| Counter-X, Volume 1: X-Force (192 pages) | X-Force #102–109 | July 2008 | 0-7851-3304-6 |
| Counter X: X-Force: Rage War | X-Force #110-115, 102 Rough Cut | August 2012 | 978-0785159735 |
| X-Force: Famous, Mutant & Mortal (hardcover) (288 pages) | X-Force #116–129 | July 2003 | 0-7851-1023-2 |
| X-Force: Famous, Mutant & Mortal, Volume 1: New Beginning (128 pages) | X-Force #116–120 | November 2001 | 0-7851-0819-X |
| X-Force: Famous, Mutant & Mortal, Volume 2: Final Chapter (224 pages) | X-Force #121–129 | November 2002 | 0-7851-1088-7 |
Volume 2
| Title | Material collected | Publication date | ISBN |
|---|---|---|---|
| X-Force and Cable: Legend Returns (144 pages) | X-Force, vol. 2 #1–6 | April 2005 | 0-7851-1429-7 |
| X-Force: Shatterstar (160 pages) | X-Force: Shatterstar #1–4 and New Mutants #99–100 | August 2005 | 0-7851-1633-8 |
Volume 3
| Title | Material collected | Publication date | ISBN |
|---|---|---|---|
| Volume 1: Angels and Demons (144 pages) |
X-Force, vol. 3 #1–6 | November 2008 (HC) February 2009 (SC) |
0-7851-3552-9 0-7851-2976-6 |
| Volume 2: Old Ghosts (120 pages) |
X-Force, vol. 3 #7–11 | June 2009 (HC) August 2009 (SC) |
0-7851-3821-8 0-7851-2977-4 |
| Volume 3: Not Forgotten (120 pages) |
X-Force, vol. 3 #12–13 & #17–20 | December 2009 (HC) March 2010 (SC) |
0-7851-4019-0 0-7851-3540-5 |
| X-Force/Cable: Messiah War (368 pages) |
X-Force, vol. 3 #14–16; X-Men: The Times and Life of Lucas Bishop #1–3; Cable, vol. 2 #11–15; Messiah War; and X-Men: Future History—The Messiah War Sourcebook | August 2009 (HC) December 2009 (SC) |
0-7851-3157-4 0-7851-3173-6 |
| X-Necrosha (448 pages) |
X-Force, vol. 3 #11, #21–25 & material from Annual #1; New X-Men, vol. 2 #32; New Mutants, vol. 3 #6–8; X-Men: Legacy #231–234; X-Force/New Mutants: Necrosha; and X-Necrosha: The Gathering | July 2010 (HC) December 2010 (SC) |
0-7851-4674-1 0-7851-4675-X |
| X-Men: Second Coming (392 pages) |
X-Force, vol. 3 #26–28; Second Coming: Prepare; X-Men: Second Coming #1–2; Uncanny X-Men #523–525; New Mutants, vol. 3 #12–14; and X-Men: Legacy #235–237 | September 2010 (HC) | 0-7851-4678-4 |
| X-Force by Craig Kyle & Chris Yost: The Complete Collection Volume 1 (384 pages) |
X-Force, vol. 3 #1–13; X-Force Special: Ain't No Dog #1 & material from X-Force Annual (2010) #1 | March 2014 (SC) | 0-7851-8966-1 |
| X-Force by Craig Kyle & Chris Yost: The Complete Collection Volume 2 (384 pages) |
X-Force, vol. 3 #17-25; X-Necrosha: The Gathering; X-Force: Sex & Violence #1–3; material from X-Necrosha and X-Force Annual (2010) #1 | September 2014 (SC) | 0-7851-9000-7 |
Volume 4
| Title | Material collected | Publication date | ISBN |
|---|---|---|---|
| X-Force Volume 1: Dirty/Tricks | X-Force (vol. 4) #1-6 | September 9, 2014 | 978-0785190264 |
| X-Force Volume 2: Hide/Fear | X-Force (vol. 4) #7-10; X-Men: Legacy (vol. 1) #300 | February 3, 2015 | 978-0785190271 |
| X-Force Volume 3: Ends/Means | X-Force (vol. 4) #11-15 | May 12, 2015 | 978-0785193913 |
Awards
Issues #57–58 of the first series were part of the Onslaught storyline which was a top vote-getter for the Comics Buyer's Guide Fan Award for Favorite Comic-Book Story for 1997.
The original X-Force
Before the team best known as X-Force debuted, Marvel introduced an unrelated, little-known group also called X-Force. It was a short-lived group that was designed to replace Freedom Force. The members were not mutants, but received their powers artificially and were named after the X-Men. This group was organized by a government agency known as M Branch and only appeared in the pages of Cloak and Dagger #9–10 (1990).
Toy Biz X-Force toys
In 1992 Toy Biz began releasing X-Force action figures. The toy line featured a variety of X-Force and X-Men characters, including heroes G. W. Bridge, Cable, Caliban, Cannonball, Domino, Grizzly, Kane, Quark, Rictor, Shatterstar, Sunspot, Warpath, and X-Treme and opponents Avalanche, Blob, Black Tom Cassidy, Commando, Commcast, Deadpool, Exodus, Forearm, Genesis, Gideon, Killspree, Krule, Mojo, Nimrod, Pyro, Slayback, and Stryfe.
Other versions
In the alternate reality of the "Days of Future Now" storyline, the X-Force consists of Banshee, Black Tom Cassidy, Cannonball, Domino, Meltdown, and Omega Red.[volume & issue needed]
In X-Men '92, X-Force members are: Cable, Domino, Deadpool, Psylocke, Archangel and Bishop.
In other media
Television
- X-Force is mentioned for the first time outside of the comics in the anime series Marvel Anime: X-Men. In the second episode, Professor X briefly mentions that X-Force has encountered the U-Men. No other information is given about the team, other that they gave the X-Men all their intel about the villains.
In an early episode of Beavis and Butt-Head the duo vandalize their neighbors house by painting "X-FORCE RULES" on it.
Film
- 20th Century Fox are in development for a film version of X-Force.[21][22][23] On July 11, 2013, it was reported that Jeff Wadlow has been hired to write and direct the adaptation. Lauren Shuler Donner and Matthew Vaughn will produce.[24] On December 3, 2013, Rob Liefeld confirmed that Cable and Deadpool would be appearing in the film, with Ryan Reynolds returning as the latter. The film will be released sometime in the year 2017.[25] A concept art shows Cable, Domino, Warpath, Cannonball, and Feral as members of the team.[26] After the release of Deadpool, Reynolds felt that Deadpool would soon be in an X-Force film,[27] and Kinberg stated that there was potential for X-Force to be R-rated like Deadpool in contrast to the PG-13 "mainline X-Men movies".[28]
Video games
- The team (consisting of Domino, Fantomex and Archangel) appear in Deadpool's ending in Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3. They are shown celebrating Deadpool's victory over Galactus alongside Cable, Bob, Agent of HYDRA and several Capcom characters.
Miscellaneous
- In April 2010, the popular Web comic Homestar Runner featured a parody titled Xeriouxly Forxe, in which all but one of the site's characters were re-designed to look like X-Men.
References
- ^ "Comics - News - Marvel reveals 'Uncanny X-Force' team". Digital Spy. 2010-07-14. Retrieved 2011-02-11.
- ^ a b "Spurrier, Kim's Adjectiveless "X-Force" Launches in February". ComicBookResources. 2013-11-07. Retrieved 2013-11-12.
- ^ X-Force #31 (February 1994)
- ^ X-Force #34 (May 1994)
- ^ X-Force #37 (August 1994)
- ^ X-Force #29–30 (December 1993-January 1994)
- ^ X-Force #24 (July 1993)
- ^ X-Force #27 & 43 and X-Force 1994 Annual
- ^ X-Force #38 (September 1994)
- ^ CBGXtra.com - Comics Sales Charts Archived 2007-10-27 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Richards, Dave (April 18, 2010). "C2E2: Remender Unleashes 'New X-Force'". Comic Book Resources.
- ^ Manning, Shaun (September 9, 2010). "Marvel's Next Big Thing 'Uncanny X-Force' Call". Comic Book Resources.
- ^ Richards, Dave (August 25, 2010). "Remender Readies the 'Uncanny X-Force'". Comic Book Resources.
- ^ Ching, Albert (April 15, 2011). "Rob Williams Leads the UNCANNY X-FORCE Team Into FEAR ITSELF". Newsarama. Retrieved May 19, 2011.
- ^ Richards, Dave (September 14, 2012). "EXCLUSIVE: The Future Is Hopeless for "Cable and X-Force"". Comic Book Resources. Retrieved September 17, 2012.
- ^ Sunu, Steve (September 17, 2012). "Humphries & Garney Take On "Uncanny X-Force"". Comic Book Resources. Retrieved September 17, 2012.
- ^ X-Force #1–6
- ^ X-Force #7–10
- ^ X-Force #11
- ^ X-Force #12–13
- ^ ‘X-FORCE’ MOVIE IN THE WORKS AT FOX.
- ^ [1]
- ^ Fox To Use Comic-Con As Launching Pad For Wider X-Men Movie Universe, X-Force Film Included
- ^ 'Kick-Ass 2' Filmmaker Tackling Fox's 'X-Force' (Exclusive)
- ^ http://www.ign.com/articles/2013/12/04/rob-liefeld-praises-screenplay-for-x-force-movie
- ^ Jayson, Jay (December 27, 2015). "X-Force Movie Lineup Possibly Revealed". Comic Book.
- ^ Alex Osborn (February 9, 2016). "Getting an X-Force Movie Made Is Ryan Reynolds' Next Priority". IGN.
- ^ "'X-Force' Could Be Rated-R, Says Simon Kinberg". Collider.com. February 15, 2016. Retrieved February 16, 2016.
External links
- X-Men comics on Marvel.com
- X-Force, vol. 2 #1
- Comics Buyer's Guide Fan Awards
- X-Force at the Comic Book DB (archived from the original)
- X-Force (II) at the Comic Book DB (archived from the original)
- X-Force (III) at the Comic Book DB (archived from the original)
- X-Force (1991) at the Comic Book DB (archived from the original)
- X-Force (2004) at the Comic Book DB (archived from the original)
- X-Force (2008) at the Comic Book DB (archived from the original)
- Uncanny X-Force (2010) at the Comic Book DB (archived from the original)
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