With all this talk of March Madness, I wanted to make a 64 Tournament of X-Men characters. So. Why not.
#1 Seeds:
This is easy. You’re talking about major characters, who not only have high pop cultural visibility, but also matter in the X-Universe. I’d say there’s conveniently four X-men who fit this pretty easily:
Cyclops (1) - Not only is he the original leader, which I mean, is sort of a de facto number 1, but since Morrison’s run and now, post AvX, he is kind of back to alpha dog status in the X-Men.
Wolverine (1) - Chris Haley could easily tell you why Wolverine’s pop culture status has “ruined” his true character in the X-Universe, but it only makes sense that post-Schism and the fact that he is also a de facto “leader” now at the JG school, he’s easily a 1 seed. He’s the UNC to Cyclops’s Duke.
Professor X (1) - Some would argue that Professor X may not have the most…consistent visibility in the universe, being that he dies or goes to space or, I dunno, is in a coma or trapped in someone’s mind somewhere else from time to time, but he’s gotta be there. John Wooden-esque UCLA team. A stalwart.
Magneto (1) - Gotta put a villain. And if you put a villain first, obviously it’s Magnus. Duh.
#2-4 Seeds:
We’re in the territory of evergreen characters, people who’ve always been around, always been important, sometimes even arguably the center of the universe, but instantly recognizable and bankable.
Jean Grey (2) - easy call for a 2 seed. Arguably got robbed of her 1 seed status, but someone has to be left out when the music stops.
Cable (2) - overrated at 2 due to his “coolness” factor? Maybe. But he deserves to be here, especially post-Second Coming.
Emma Frost (2) - some may call this a reach, but post Hellfire Club/Morrison Frost, she’s arguably been one of the most consistent characters in the X-Universe.
Beast (2) - Not one of my favorites, but sort of can’t rank him lower than this. The heart and soul of the X-Men. Importance is nebulous, spiritual.
Gambit (3) - Coolness over actual importance, he hovers towards the top but is vulnerable, no question.
Iceman (3) - Opposite of Gambit, in that his importance overshadows how much people think he’s …well, cool (pun not intended). Original 5 status gives you a bump.
Colossus (3) - Not quite a 2 seed, but couldn’t rank him any lower.
Storm (3) - Teenager, mohawk, leader of the Gold team, and one of the most instantly recognizable characters? Yeah, she’s here.
Archangel (4) - Drops a bit, due to the fact that him as just “Angel” was never nearly as interesting a character as Archangel was.
Rogue (4) - She may have been robbed, Sugah. But 4 is about right.
Sabretooth (4) - it’s hard to know who the second villain would be. Like Apocalypse is no question way more powerful, but is he cooler than Creed here? I say no. No other villain, other than Magnus, really approaches the visibility of Sabretooth over the history of the X-Men.
Nightcrawler (4) - If only for the fact that his Bamf! is now so ingrained in the comic world, he vaults a few other people who probably deserve this spot more.
#5 Seeds:
The mythos of the 5 seed is historic. Vulnerable to upset, we see some people who undoubtedly deserve a high ranking, but present problems that younger, more exciting characters can probably knock out.
Psylocke (5) - Does she get this high because, well, uh. You know why.
Hope (5) - You’re like, what? But I say, yes. But she is insanely vulnerable.
Havok (5) - The other Summers Brother seems to always be second place, and I mean, he will be. And deserves to be. A strong 5 seed, b/c you could argue he should go higher.
Kitty Pryde (5) - She dropped a bit due to some other characters, so a very strong 5 seed as well.
#6-7 Seeds:
Seems to be the leftovers of the top tier, perhaps the beginning of the second tier
Cannonball (6) - i’m never sure what to exactly think of Cannonball, is he an immortal, is he one of the new mutant kids, is he a major X-Man? He’s sort of a wild card, and thus, he gets a bit of a bump from versatility.
Bishop (6) - I don’t want to put him this high either, but his arrival changed the direction of the whole franchise for over a decade.
Madrox (6) - coolest power ever.
Quentin Quire (6) - the best of the new characters.
Deadpool (7) - Gets bumped down because it’s hard to call him an X-Man, I mean, I don’t know why. It just doesn’t feel right. But I guess his presence on Uncanny X-Force earns him the X on his shoulder. But he is unquestionably underranked, and it gives him something to whine about.
Apocalypse (7) This is where he should go.
Banshee (7) what up old man. He was a leader of a team. he’s been around. He seems to be the calvary a lot of the times. He’s about right here.
Longshot (7) an OG, his coolness overshadows how often he’s actually been on the team comparably to others.
#8-9 Seeds:
Not even an upset if a 9 seed beats an 8 seed, so these are equals. OGs and Young bucks toe to toe, who will survive
Forge (8) - OG, one of my least favorite characters, but he’s handy and made the blackbird so, y’know.
Magik (8) - one of my favorites, she’s been on the rise in the past few years in her status.
Dazzler (8) another OG, has plenty of uniforms to choose from when she hits the court
Fantomex (8) his powers and his run on Uncanny X-Force get him a bump from what his actual character has been in the books, which is marginally cool at the most.
X-23 (9) - hey, it sells.
Shadow King (9) - I know people would argue that Mr. Sinister is a bigger villain, but I would argue that SK’s effectiveness as a villain bumps him over the top.
Mystique (9) hard to pin her down, she seems to hover in the middle. About right.
Polaris (9) she gets a bump just having been around Havok so much.
That’s all I got for now. Now tell me how omg wrong I am, b/c I seriously wrote this without looking up anything.
