Your Top 20 X-Men of all time.

[airdreams]

01. Emma Frost
02. Cyclops
03. Magneto
04. Banshee
05. Magik
06. Kitty Pryde
07. Rogue
08. Professor X
09. Jubilee
10. Pixie
11. Dazzler
12. Wolverine
13. Magma
14. Beast
15. Colossus
16. Stepford Cuckoos
17. Armor
18. Husk
19. Skin
20. Karma

[Diammandis]

1.Emma Frost
2.Kitty Pryde
3.Anole
4.Iceman
5.Stepford Cuckoos
6.Armor
7.Pixie
8.Rictor
9.Shatterstar
10.Monet
11.Magik
12.Cyclops
13.Dazzler
14.Psylocke
15.Teen Jean
16.Frenzy
17.Karma
18.Benjamin Deeds
19.Quentin Quire
20.Daken

[Osvaldoeaf]

I actually put it in chronological order, but these are my 20 essential X-Men:

1 - Professor X
2 - Cyclops
3 - Jean Grey
4 - Beast
5 - Angel
6 - Iceman
7 - Wolverine
8 - Storm
9 - Nightcrawler
10 - Colossus
11 - Kitty
12 - Rogue
13 - Dazzler
14 - Psylocke
15 - Gambit
16 - Jubilee
17 - Bishop
18- Emma
19- Sage
20 - Havok

[Indigo_Lady]

Not necessarily what I would consider to be essential, but my top 20 favorites. I'd love a book with the top 10.

1. Nightcrawler
2. Storm
3. Adult Jean Grey
4. Colossus
5. Psylocke
6. Rogue
7. Gambit
8. Beast (Avenger’s Era)
9. Charles Xavier
10. Sage
11. Kitty Pryde
12. Wolverine
13. Bishop
14. Penance
15. Blink
16. Nocturne
17. Chamber
18. Jubilee
19. Husk
20. Banshee

[Kisinith]

1- Magneto
2- Cyclops
3- Jean Grey
4- Magik
5- Rogue
6- Wolverine (Pre-Schism/Post schism isn't on the list)
7- Emma Frost
8- Cable
9- Xavier
10- Storm
11- Psylocke
12- Archangel
13- Jubilee
14- Sunspot
15- Nightcrawler
16- Colossus
17- Stepford Cuckoos
18- Gambit
19- Iceman
20- Moonstar

*Beast used to be on the list, pretty high hell he used to be in my top 5, but unlike Wolverine I can't separate the character from the writing of the past few years.

My top 5 are pretty well set for me, the next five are consistent but their placement fluctuates with my mood and the bottom 10 round out characters I like but have little investment in. Or more specifically I'd read a book for the characters in the top 10 but wouldn't go out of my way for those in the bottom 10

[Jaddor]

I feel like kicking myself for forgetting Legion.


added him to my list.

[Gortam]

1-Jean Grey
2-Psylock
3-Cyclops
4-Wolverine
5-Magik
6-Xavier
7-X-23 Laura Kiney
8-Magneto
9-Colossus
10-Emma Frost
11-Kitty Pryde
12-Rogue
13-Northstar
14-Nightcrawler
15-Beast (pre... a lot, before ANX i guess)
16-Cable
17-Stepford Cuckoos
18-Dazzler
19-Iceman (old)
20-Danger

[Agent of Wolfram & Hart]

-Wolverine
-Deadpool
-Juggernaut
-Cannonball
-Gambit
-Forge
-Nightcrawler
-Banshee
-Bishop
-Beast
-Warpath
-Cable
-Firestar
-Magneto
-Namor
-Joseph
-Mimic
-Iceman
-Thunderbird
-X-Man

List varies based on their Time spent as X-Men and their prominence on my favorite character list

[Master of Sound]

1 - Rogue
2 - Sunspot
3 - Cyclops
4 - Cannonball
5 - Archangel
6 - Psylocke
7 - Iceman
8 - Northstar
9 - Havok
10 - Cable
11 - Namor
12 - Domino
14 - Magma
15 - Emma
16 - Dazzler
17 - Karma
18 - Bishop
19 - T-Bird III (Neal Shaara)
20 - Forge

[Nabu]

Those listed below are the ones I that I can't imagine the franchise without. That doesn't mean I love or even like all of 'em, some I would be glad to be ridden off for good... but I can't be biased and deny their importance to the overall story:

1. Charles Xavier - duh, you can't have the X-men without the founder
2. Cyclops - I am happy he's dead but he was the field leader and one of the original ones after all
3. Jean Grey - the original gal, can't wait for her to come back
4. Beast - The Smart Guy of X-men, please be redeemed soon
5. Rogue - my fav, one of the most iconic with hands down the most compelling powers-and-story combination
6. Storm - aside from Rogue, she is the definition of an X-woman to me
7. Psylocke - sometimes I feel she's underrated and overshadowed in the mainstream, but I'll always like Betsy
8. Wolverine - The ultimate Ensemble Darkhorse turned the face of the franchise, for better or worse
9. Kitty Pryde - somehow the most relatable one
10. Iceman - I am just beginning to like him as a character on his own, not a comic relief
11. Nightcrawler - for being the Heart of the team even though sometimes I prefer his telly shows counterpart to his original version
12. Gambit - Not a fan of Mr. Remy who I find cringy as **** but he was a part of my fav Blue Team and TAS, so he gotta have a place here
13. Jubilee - Mostly thanks to TAS, her gruffy mentor - cocky protege relationship with Wolverine, and her cheeky comebacks
14. Emma Frost - Because she's the HBC
15. Dani Moonstar - My fav among New Mutants, patiently waiting for her powers to come back and reclaim the leader position
16. Magik - The l'enfant terrible of X-men
17. Colossus - I found him utterly boring and bland, but he's the reliable one you need to keep the team going
18. Rachel Grey - She never appeared on my radar, but recently I came to appreciate her contributions to the team
19. Angel - I prefer him to stay away from X-men, but like with Gambit, he was around during my quintessential X-men years
20. Bishop - I maintain there's an untapped potential with him that hopefully Astonishing will explore

[Fokken]

1. Illyana "Magik" Rasputin aka My Ride-or-Die X-Man.

I came across the top left panel image whilst sifting through an X-Men centered issue of Wizard Magazine back in the early 90's that I'd acquired from a Toys R' Us. She was listed among the X-Men's allies (also, to my dismay, listed as deceased) and with that image, the seed of adoration was planted. This was all around the Jim Lee era, which was my first exposure to X-comics (but not my first exposure to the X-Men franchise) and spurred my seeking out comic shops and navigating that entire experience -- Wednesdays were new comic day, back issues were in drawers, etc etc. The X-Men animated series was my gate way drug into the X-world, and Illyana became my heroin(e). Ha ha. YEARS went by with many teases of her return, until the brilliant Craig Kyle and Chris Yost finally pulled the trigger and shot me square in the heart.

2. Scott "Cyclops" Summers aka My Dark-Horse X-Man.

DRY. STALE. BREAD. Scott Summers (again, circling back to his earliest animated portrayals -- Pryde of the X-Men, Spiderman and his Amazing Friends, XMTAS, etc) was just plain annoying. I'm a rules-following, do-gooder-type through and through and this guy endangered my eyesight with how often I'd eye roll his ridiculousness. Then the day came when ol' Slim did the unthinkable and found love (sex?) in a hopeless place: Miss Emma Frost. The tide had turned. An edge was sharpened. The gloves were off. And other applicable metaphors. Scott's vanilla got some swirl. The Boss became THE BOSS. And even though he's gone, he remains firmly seated in my X-greats pantheon and I will NEVER get tired of reading the time he reality-slapped that Mayor about NOT fucking with his people.

I won't babble on and on about every which X-love that made my top 20 but I wanted to give a little meat to my list, for funsies.

3. Sunspot-- good gravy, that Al Ewing is tickling my taint with how well he's handling that boy.
4. Emma Frost -- curiosity grew in Generation X but Morrison's (and Quietly's rendering) elevation is where the hunger really grew.
5. Rogue -- oddly enough, when I think of Rogue these days, my mind springs back to Fraction's scene on Utopia where she single handedly, but multi-empowered, demolishes that Predator X
6. Colossus -- the gentle giant and supreme beefcakey dreamboat of the X-house
7. Storm -- those platinum locks done hypnotized me in the arcade, making her my must-have-more-quarters-now-gurl
8. Cypher -- JV dream boat and first X-death to cause tears
9. Dani Moonstar -- that busted but not broken, using your foot to fire an arrow into that bitche's FACE moment THO!
10. Cannonball -- Mike Carey did wonders with this one
11. Husk -- the first few pages of Generation X, jogging and shedding and pulling at my heart strings
12. Nightcrawler - purest velvety swashbuckling charm
13. Magneto - yeah, I've got Daddy issues with this one
14. Dazzler - glamour and glitter, sparkle and fame
15. Iceman -- another Carey elevated character, currently being elevated further by the Grace of Sina
16. Wolverine - Laura Kinney - total sucker for tragic figures rising above
17. M - the earliest Gen X, M. Not the nonsense we've gotten recently
18. Shatterstar -- Peter David SAVES
19. Cipher -- those braids, those powers, that unsolved mystery -- I can't.
20. Kitty Pryde -- her Sprite years with the X-Men and her Shadowcat days in Excalibur

[maxhilary]

1, 2. Rogue, Gambit (tied)
3, 4. Iceman, Emma Frost (tied)
5. Psylocke
6. Jean Grey
7. Shadowcat
8. Rictor
9. Jubilee
10. Magik
11. Dani Moonstar
12. Shatterstar
13. Multiple Man
14. M
15. Northstar
16. Layla Miller
17. Dazzler
18. Elixir
19. Hellion
20. Storm

Honorable mentions: Cyclops, Polaris, Havok, Karma, X-23, Dust, Husk.

5. Rogue -- oddly enough, when I think of Rogue these days, my mind springs back to Fraction's scene on Utopia where she single handedly, but multi-empowered, demolishes that Predator X

Same!! That was such an awesome moment for her, and though I only read it once it's iconic in my mind.

[Fokken]

Same!! That was such an awesome moment for her, and though I only read it once it's iconic in my mind.

Gah! Twinsies! Meet for lunch?
haha.

[maxhilary]

Gah! Twinsies! Meet for lunch?
haha.

Brunch is where it's at

[Judicata]

1) Cyclops (the real)
2) Magneto
3) Wolverine (the real)
4) Rogue
5) Jean Grey (the real)
6) Emma
7) Gambit
8) Magik
9) Professor X
10) Angel/Archangel
11) Madrox
12) Nightcrawler
13) Storm
14) Beast (the real)
15) Iceman (the real)
16) Kitty Pryde
17) Polaris
18) Havok
19) Colossus
20) Cable

Honorable Mentions:

Psylocke, Longshot, Shatterstar, Rictor, Dani Moonstar, Dazzler, Daken and Laura/X-23

Extremely close to how I would list, except Wolverine at 1.