Names are important, they define us and help making us focused on the "mission"/crusade of our life.
Well, I was reflecting upon the title
"X-Man".
Frankly, I never ever liked the "
EXtra powers" meaning they gave at the beginning. I also never liked the "X-Gene" name, I would have called the mutation gene: "M-Gene". I don't like that the letter "X" could be so strictly associated to mutants, because it kinda detracts from the intrinsic value of the title "X-Man" IMHO.
To me, "X-Men" always stands for
"Xavier's men". THE men of Xavier.
In the movieverse, the X-Men are teachers for Xavier's School (X1-X3), Xavier's assistants and bodyguards (X1-X3) and members of Xavier's special anti-terrorist strike force all rolled into one. In the DOFP bleak future of 2023, they are also independent fighters against the Sentinel holocaust. Shadowcat, Bishop, Blink, Warpath, Iceman, Colossus and Sunspot indeed form an X-Men team.
Another instance: in DOFP Logan, Beast and Quicksilver form a small cell of X-Men because they also act as Xavier's bodyguards, assistants and "operative agents" on the field, even without uniforms.
Finally, to me Caliban was also an X-Man in "Logan", because he was Xavier's bodyguard, assistant, ally and agent on the field.
I'm also wondering: are the members of X-Force, X-Factor, Excalibur and Exiles supposed to be X-Men? Are those teams supposed to be "Sister/Spin-Off" X-Men teams, or they are different beasts altogether and must be considered as such?
Let me know.
I love this forum to the nth degree.