Why do you relate to the X-Men?

[Psi-Lord]

Exactly what it says on the tin.

[yogaflame]

Disenfranchisement.

Gifted youngster.

Minority.

Powerful, hot, likes skin tight apparel.

[magneticmushroom]

I've been asking myself that for years and I'm still not sure if I have the answer.

I suppose its the old "introverted, weird, artsy outsider kid drawn to the mutant metaphor" but that seems overdramatic. When I initially started getting books, it was a way of bonding with my stepbrother over something that wouldn't end with him hitting me, like video games did. But no sooner did I get into X-Men than he stopped caring about comics.

I kept up though. Maybe it was the art, maybe it was the soap opera of mutant daily life, or maybe something else entirely. Either way, I'm still here, shelling out more than four times what I used to pay for these things.

[MythicalChicken]

Exactly what it says on the tin.

Especially in the Claremont years, it was about tapping into your inner strength regardless of what’s thrown at you, and even if it comes at a cost, and especially when your back is against the wall and there is no easy choice. It’s taken different iterations as more writers came along, but more than most franchises at marvel, that still speaks to me even (especially) as I’ve gotten older.

[Shreene]

I simply have a thing for redheads

[RachelGrey]

I remember when I first read Excalibur. Kitty and Rachel both felt a bit damaged, and I felt an empathy for them both. Kitty was injured to the point that she couldn't control her phasing and she had lost everyone she cared about and Rachel was a former slave trying to overcome all the traumas of her past. I guess it's like anything we gravitate toward the characters because we can empathize with their trials and tribulations. I think Rachel speaks for me best, her angst and very obvious mommy issues really do remind me of me sometimes. I can definitely feel her pain over the years.

That's the best part of the X-Men as a whole, there is always a character that speaks for you in some way or another.

For example, Emma and Jean are like polar opposites in some way but at the same time I feel a connection to them both because they both share some similar passions, they both care about the welfare of mutants, particularly the children, and they will both fight with every fiber of their being to protect their people. Their methods are far apart, but they have a similar passion and strength as characters is the thing that I admire most about them both.

Ironically Jean and Emma also both share a passion to be with Scott which can also bring out the best and worst in them.

I think the other thing I like about the X-Men is how much of it is tied to family. Summers and Grey Family, the Guthrie family, Frost family, Braddock Family etc... Then you have the relationship that some of the kids have with the older X-Men as parental figures. Bobby and Kitty have always been presented in how they relate back to their parents and in Bobby's case his siblings.

X-Men isn't like the avengers, they aren't a team of superheroes fighting together, they are a team of families fighting together. In the X-books there is always an underlying sense of family at all times, these aren't just people who fight together to defend the world, these people live together, they support each other in and out of the field, they run a school together, they teach students together.

You will always have a group of core X-Men that will be ongoing, similar to the Avengers, but intermixed with that in the X-Men is always the younger generation and some of the most compelling X-stories are the ones that involve the younger generation and how they relate to the older generation.

Why is Logan so popular, it's not just because he is a hardened soldier and fighter. It's also because he has also been a father figure to a lot of characters over the years, Kitty, Jubilee, and others.

Jean and Scott are the iconic parents of the X-Men who have brought fourth two of the most powerful children that became regular characters, Rachel and Cable, and also Nate too. They aren't the best of parents, but in a way they represent the ideal of what the X-Men are supposed to stand for.

Then you have Magneto and Emma, who are the sometimes enemies, but absolute passionate defenders of Mutant Rights who would lay down their lives to save mutants. I like both, but Emma is obviously my favorite, I have always loved how she struggles between being a teacher and being a leader. There is always a part of Emma that just wants to open a school for mutants and run it quietly as long as people leave her students alone. But if you try and hurt Emma's students, you better pray to god she doesn't find you.

[Snoop Dogg]

As a gamer, I know what it means to be hated and feared by the world around me.

[CRaymond]

I am also blue.

[U.N. Owen]

I actually struggled with mental health issues in the past and related to the mutants since, like many mentally ill people, are treated like a ticking time bomb.

[Frobisher]

As a gamer, I know what it means to be hated and feared by the world around me.

When did that ever happen?

[Zelena]

I'm tempted to say that it's my brother's fault because he bought the comics when we were children… So, the X-men feel now like old acquaintances.
But the truth is, it's Claremont's fault: he gave to each character a part of his soul and thanks to his thought balloons, his text inserts, he explained to me why the characters did what they did and it helped me to feel close to them.

[Grey]

I find a strong parallel between mutant relations and being gay.

For example...
Being able to “pass”, whether it’s ethical to even try and “pass”, being born a certain way, having people have a preconceived idea about you before they even meet you if they know you’re gay (a mutant), etc etc

[Stormrocks]

When I was 10 my family moved from the city to suburbs. As an African American family we were treated at outsiders and less than the rest of the people. I was this 10 year old black girl nobody wanted to be friends with. Claremont's Storm helped me get through. She was a powerhouse of poise, integrity and strength. She didn't take **** from anyone, but was still very loving. Not to mention she was team leader too. It impacted me greatly. She helped me be brave enough to find my voice. Once I become more secure in who I was, I found myself speaking up for not just me, but all of the people who were made to feel less than, even those who didn't particularly like me. I then had an impact. I went on to become class president and prom queen.

Now, I had loving parents and a great family support network and eventually wonderful friends that absolutely contributed to me blossoming. But I'd be lying if I said I didn't view Storm as a role model so a certain extend.

[nandes]

I also would like to frequent a school with no classes ruled by a manipulative white man

[Zelena]

I also would like to frequent a school with no classes ruled by a manipulative white man

The Danger Room sessions eluded you…