How popular are the x-characters individually?

[Doom'nGloom]

And at one point in the 00s WW books were subsided by the other two of the big 3. Which promoted the classic female characters can't sell conversation if WW can't sell. Persistence is key
.
Though if you're talking the FF I think they're long past their shelf life even with big named artists and writers they are definitely missing the X-Factor

:Google fight' used to exist to compare search results

Emma Frost 22,000 searches a month while Warren Worthington 400
Laura Kinney 3600 v Lucas Bishop 480

FF are Marvel's loyalty. Their importance might have waned over the years but they still sell and they still have fans, many of them old school. I don't think it is a title with a lot of potential of attracting young readership but this also applies to a lot of Marvel properties, even X-men which is way past its heyday during 80s and 90s. It was simply a different time.

[Force de Phenix]

FF are Marvel's loyalty. Their importance might have waned over the years but they still sell and they still have fans, many of them old school. I don't think it is a title with a lot of potential of attracting young readership but this also applies to a lot of Marvel properties, even X-men which is way past its heyday during 80s and 90s. It was simply a different time.

I'm assuming Disney is going to start giving the Fantastic Four more presence soon since their movie should be coming out. And when that happens, we'll see how they go about their marketing, whether it be making them time displaced, having Franklin and Valeria as teens, or dig into their rogue's gallery. I hope they give Reed more importance. It looked like he formed the Illuminati in MoM. I think they're trying to fill out the world of Marvel, but they haven't been given the same push as the X-Men in comics.

[Criticalfan]

Now, I haven't thought a lot about this, and am basically extemporizing, but Claremont's little fiefdom kinda meant that the characters couldn't explode since he could only do so many books at once.
So they were subtly kept from having chance to do so until they were locked in as "only" team players.
I think the ANAD team were a great team, but what are they gonna do solo because they were each plucked out of their home countries. They don't know anyone here and were kept in the mansion for years!
The outback team could have had some breakouts into solos maybe but any opportunity was missed. Dazzler was about done; Rogue took until the 90's to rehab from so recently being a villain, Psylocke didn't tap into Marvel UK/Excalibur stuff, etc.
90s... well, Cable was specifically created to be an A-lister, Gambit and Bishop also had potential. But IMHO the rogues' galleries and the art teams on these books just were not equal to the task. Not like CC/Frank Miller launched Wolverine.

To be fair, this stuff is hard. I can't think of an Avenger either that didn't already have a solo book that escaped the book & became a big solo seller either, so it's not solely an X-problem.
One thing that might be an X-problem is that the stories & editorial since the 1st Hellions vs. NM dynamic and the X-Men vs. Marauders never went back to setting up each character with their own rival. The 90s had only the MLF/Dark Riders/Acolytes mush that never created the interpersonal dramas that drive individual popularity. (best example is Wolverine/Sabertooth)
One final thought: the conceit of mutancy in general is that is basically the 1st exciting event in each teenager's life, so they literally can't have backstories.

[Jackraow21]

90s... well, Cable was specifically created to be an A-lister, Gambit and Bishop also had potential. But IMHO the rogues' galleries and the art teams on these books just were not equal to the task. Not like CC/Frank Miller launched Wolverine.

And he was. Back in his heyday he was everywhere, teaming up with Ghost Rider one minute or the New Warriors the next, appearing in Captain America (when he was Cap-Wolf). At that time he was definitely the second most popular X-man, right behind Wolverine. He stayed really popular until the late 90s, where not only Cable but all the X-books started to really wane. But I believe his series is still today the second longest running solo X-book.

The question for me is A) what happened and B) could you restore him to his previous glory as an A-lister? I think the answer to A is more complex, but IMO the answer to B is "absolutely." That doesn't mean that his solo would sell in the numbers that it did back then, as nothing does anymore. But he could be a more prominent character under a writer who knew how to fix what went wrong with him. In terms of what went wrong? I think they leaned too hard into the time travel aspect. While it was an important part of his origin story, making him some kind of "time cop" who jumps around in time to protect the timeline was dumb. Jeph Loeb, Joe Casey and even David Tischman had it right... so did Fabian Niceiza over in Cable/Deadpool. The guy was born in this era! He is of this era, and his mission is to protect this era's future. Period. He's a superhero, just like all the rest, who uses his future knowledge, training and technology to try and create a better future. He's mysterious, with safe houses all over the globe (and even off planet if you count his Graymalkin orbiting space station); and he's bad ass, and he's always a step ahead. Like a psychic mutant version of Batman or something.

But, of course, over the years many other characters have actually ripped off his aesthetic. The bionic (or T-O in Nathan's case) arm has become a staple. With the Winter Soldier beating Cable to the big screen and essentially serving as a MCU mash-up of Cable and Wolverine, he visually stole Nathan's whole cybernetic arm look and put it out there for mass audiences before Cable made his film debut... even though he had it first in the comics. Also, you had Bishop come along right after Cable in the comics, as another time-displaced gun-toting hardcase. So he just became less and less unique, and felt too derivative and like he was just a mash-up of lots of other characters. So I think it's high time for a talented writer (like Al Ewing) to take him and try to figure out how you make him stand out again in the modern era. But is it doable? Absolutely. They'd need to make his techno-organics mean more than just "he's part cyborg," for one thing. And his powers need to be more unique than just another telepath/telekinetic too.

I have my thoughts on this, and how I'd do it. But I would basically streamline his look and simplify his powers somehow. Probably akin to how Nicieza did it during Cable/Deadpool when he lost them but replaced them with technology. Maybe I'd run with this merger with Xilo that Ewing kind of teed up in Sins of Sinister to do this? After all, the adult version of Cable gifted his onboard A.I. program, Belle, to his younger self. So why not merge with a "mutant quantum computer" in the form of XILO... or what's left of him anyway after Uranos almost destroyed him? When this happens, though, it fundamentally alters Nathan's biology. The interface of XILO with his techno-organics mutates the virus, making it benign and controllable. It becomes something entirely new. And because his raw TK is so powerful without the virus keeping it in check, which would cause his body to literally burn out/break down over time, his power set changes too. So he becomes...

"A mutant soldier raised in a war-torn future, Nathan Summers was engineered and manipulated from birth to be a weapon. Merged with an ancient mutant collective, the mysterious being known as XILO, he uses his strange new abilities to fight a never-ending war for a better future. In his life, he's been called many things and known by many names. Today he goes by X-man."

... or something along those lines. Maybe he shouldn't take the name X-man, but I thought it was a cool twist in SoS. And since Nate Grey is from another reality anyway and currently off the board, it seems like fair game. *shrugs*

As for what his powers are, I'd probably just have him have XILO acting as his "infonet" in place of his TP, but maybe let him keep some low-level precognition like he had during Spurrier's X-Force run. XILO being part of him also allows him to self-repair/regenerate, by consuming matter to replace any damaged cells/tissue. And his TK would basically be nerfed down to just "tactile TK," so he can't use it offensively but it augments his strength and durability in physical combat. No flying or force fields, but he has a force field generator in his left wrist/forearm that he can use (similar to the one he had in the Deadpool 2 film). So... Nathan is basically a low-level psychic now with other mysterious gifts granted through XILO (namely all the collective knowledge plus restorative abilities). And maybe he goes back to using his psimitar again too, in lieu of guns; as channeling his (now tactile) TK through it is the only way he can use it offensively. I always liked that weapon and loved the Joe Casey/Ladronn run on Cable where they introduced it.

I'd have him lean into this "Agent of SWORD" status quo interacting with a variety of Marvel characters, mutant and non-mutant alike, on Earth and on Planet Arakko, and even off-world at times. Make him a big player again. Like I said, Al Ewing could do it. Take the "Immortal" approach to Cable... er, X-man. Whatever he wants to call him. Point is, under the right writer and with some tweaks to make him more distinct, I think Nathan Summers could be an A-lister again.

[OG Storm]

They had 40+ years for Storm to be a thing and she never became solid in the 90's as a solo, or even during the any of the X-Men movies, they chose Mystique, who competes with Storm because she was leader in the movies, and even after the past six year X-Men push, no one cared to make her a thing either. She's had plenty of time and you can't use a three year period on the comics side, because Storm was in major blockbuster movies at that time, as an excuse.

They probably didn't go ahead with it because of how she was used in the 2000 movie, after which became an important turn for how the X-Men were marketed. A unit of licensing products that sold together and we're making movies, cartoons, and video games next to Spider-Man, to compete with Marvel, hence never including Marvel characters in any of the X-Men products they produced.

If Storm's lucky, she might do as well as Ms. Marvel since Kamala is being revoked her solo status.

Mystique doesn't compete with her though. The only reason she is in the conversation at all was because an Oscar winner played her for a few movies. She's never had the crossover appeal storm has. She's never had the success storm had. Storm was the most popular woman in Marvel for decades until Ike and a desire to switch that out.

[Force de Phenix]

Mystique doesn't compete with her though. The only reason she is in the conversation at all was because an Oscar winner played her for a few movies. She's never had the crossover appeal storm has. She's never had the success storm had. Storm was the most popular woman in Marcel for decades until Ike and a desire to switch that out.

Like I said, she had 40+ years and failed attempts at solos, and went nowhere in the Fox movies and not even Hickman or Marvel without Ike cared or saw enough potential to make her happen, and instead went with using Ms. Marvel to be the premiere female mutant next to Wolverine and Deadpool. Also saying she was the most popular woman at Marvel for decades is an exaggeration. She was one of the most popular X-Men characters. Marvel never cared to have a popular female character, and they aren't comparable to DC female characters.

That's why they were scrambling to find a female character to push. If they wanted to make Storm a solo character, and not just the member of a team that unites every now and then like the Avengers, they had to write their whole story differently and Hickman doubled down and made it it even more difficult for them to separate. They even made Franklin human and the Maximoff twins stayed human because they want more freedom with them.

[Sutekh]

Marvel never cared to have a popular female character, and they aren't comparable to DC female characters.

Given how DC has treated Wonder Woman over the years, and her series compared to the runs Batman and Superman have had, it could be argued that *DC* never cared to have a popular female character either, they just got lucky and were happy to point a finger and say 'see, we have Wonder Woman!' and play that card whenever they wanted cred for a strong female character.

[OG Storm]

Like I said, she had 40+ years and failed attempts at solos, and went nowhere in the Fox movies and not even Hickman or Marvel without Ike cared or saw enough potential to make her happen, and instead went with using Ms. Marvel to be the premiere female mutant next to Wolverine and Deadpool. Also saying she was the most popular woman at Marvel for decades is an exaggeration. She was one of the most popular X-Men characters. Marvel never cared to have a popular female character, and they aren't comparable to DC female characters.

That's why they were scrambling to find a female character to push. If they wanted to make Storm a solo character, and not just the member of a team that unites every now and then like the Avengers, they had to write their whole story differently and Hickman doubled down and made it it even more difficult for them to separate. They even made Franklin human and the Maximoff twins stayed human because they want more freedom with them.

She literally beat wonder woman in a popularity contest but please go on. She was the most popular woman in Marvel during the 80's and 90's. That's not an exaggeration, it's just a fact you don't like

[yogaflame]

I think Cable's time is over. The 90's were the era of big guns, a million pouches, hyper-macho, Terminator 2 time traveler vibes. Would it be impossible to have successful Cable projects catered to the older Cable fanbase? Of course not(Ewing's recent oneshot was fantastic!). But could Cable capture the hearts and minds of the current younger generation? Very questionable. I mean, look at Bable. They literally turned Cable into a kid to try to make him work recently, and while perhaps some did enjoy that version, I don't think it really resonated at a wide degree. The only angle I see OG Cable using to be relevant again in this day and age is the transhumanist/AI angle, which might could work, but to do so would be a poison pill, and I wouldn't like Nate to be that.

As for Storm, sure, she never really crossed over as a solo character in the comics, but that was one thing. If you did a Storm Disney Plus show or MCU film, it could easily be epic. Just in terms of visual storytelling, with the right effects, her kaleidoscopic 'weather vision' could be the most incredible thing onscreen, never mind just regular giant storms and lightning and everything. I mean, entire movies have been built around natural disasters. Add a supermodel-esque young African woman who is like a goddess, flying around, and loves to take showers in the rainforest and shit, and I mean, you've struck gold.

With the right director/story, it could be a cultural phenomenon, and you could even have her address climate change or ecological devastation and corporate greed if you need a "message", but this would be one most people can get behind. Add in some Dora Milaje fight sequences or some other Wakandan references and you've got 2 billion in the bank, easy. 40 years ago this couldn't happen. Today it could. And once you have that kind of pop cultural breakthrough, Marvel would have no option but to get her a decent book. Like Wanda was never really that big of a character in the comics, but in the films, on her D+ show, she really connected with the masses. And now Marvel gave her her own comic(that's decent, but baby steps...).

[Doom'nGloom]

More I think about it Ororo seems to be the victim of two problematic views in comics which are unfortunately still prevalent among some people today

1) Female characters don't sell
2) Minority characters don't sell

These might at least be partial reasons as to why Marvel didn't invest in Storm as a solo act. Funnily enough the same views also apply to Kamala. I guess popularity in comics doesn't matter much nowadays since they are no longer the trendsetters but instead follow those defined by the movies. If Storm scores huge among the movie going audience when X-men arrives to the MCU then the comics surely follow suit.

[Triniking1234]

They switched out storm for Carol and that never worked. Storm was their most licensed and popular woman for decades with no fan fare just organic progression. She earned that spot. But due to politics and Ike's anti mutant policy we got stuck with a failed carol.

They never developed Storm enough to hold a solo franchise. Their only options for a solo super heroine at Mavrel were She-Hulk, MC2 Spider-Girl and Carol.

[Jackraow21]

I think Cable's time is over. The 90's were the era of big guns, a million pouches, hyper-macho, Terminator 2 time traveler vibes. Would it be impossible to have successful Cable projects catered to the older Cable fanbase? Of course not(Ewing's recent oneshot was fantastic!). But could Cable capture the hearts and minds of the current younger generation? Very questionable. I mean, look at Bable. They literally turned Cable into a kid to try to make him work recently, and while perhaps some did enjoy that version, I don't think it really resonated at a wide degree.

Totally disagree, but I’m sure you figured I would. Ha. It’s cool. But I’d say the success of films like Fast & Furious, Expendables, Extraction and John Wick — just to name a few — show that there’s still an appetite for high octane “macho” action vibes in entertainment. I could point to a number of examples in video games, or even the Deadpool movies too; as well as dozens of shows. I think it’s more a matter of how they package him and reinvent him for modern audiences, and yes I’m one of those who agree that turning him into a tamer version of Kid Omega wasn’t it! Lol.

The only angle I see OG Cable using to be relevant again in this day and age is the transhumanist/AI angle, which might could work, but to do so would be a poison pill, and I wouldn't like Nate to be that.

Now you’re thinking! Because he is indeed half machine. So that’s an angle they could take to make him resonate more with modern audiences. They also need to streamline him some, in the way Casey and Ladronn did for example back in the 90s. His status quo aesthetic is dated. With big shoulder pads, bigger guns and voluminous pouches. I concede that.

But I certainly don’t think his day is done, rather these writers just don’t know how to write for the audience I mentioned above anymore. So they continue to go back to Rob frickin’ Liefeld for that. *eyeroll*

[Ra-El]

I think, any of the classic X-Men (Cyclops, Gambit, Storm, Jean, etc) can carry a solo comic, they probably won't be pulling Wolverine numbers, much less Spider-Man numbers, but they would most likely sell as well as Ms.Marvel, Captain Marvel, Doctor Strange or even Black Panther.

The reason they don't have solos, is probably more a matter of the creative side of things. As a lot of people said here, a lot of readers see the X-Men as team books, and is likely the creators see them in the same light. I believe they are more interested in seeing how the x-characters interact with each other than in what they are with other marvel characters or alone.

When it come to outside media, the MCU have proven that comic book popularity/sales is not necessary for a character to became mainstream.

[Force de Phenix]

She literally beat wonder woman in a popularity contest but please go on. She was the most popular woman in Marvel during the 80's and 90's. That's not an exaggeration, it's just a fact you don't like

I bet she did. I still think it's an exaggeration, but I'll give you the benefit of the doubt even without any evidence besides a poll from the 90's. My argument is more that Marvel never really tried to make a female equivalent to Spider-Man, Hulk, and Captain America, and today Iron Man (until Captain Marvel). If Storm had been as popular as people make her out to be, she would've had solos and been featured in movies and even comics. If they had made her Black Panther and separated her from the X-Men, she could've doubled dipped like Wolverine, but the writers never pushed her. Which goes back to why the X-Men have only been working as a team and hardly ever independent.

[marhawkman]

I bet she did. I still think it's an exaggeration, but I'll give you the benefit of the doubt even without any evidence besides a poll from the 90's. My argument is more that Marvel never really tried to make a female equivalent to Spider-Man, Hulk, and Captain America, and today Iron Man (until Captain Marvel). If Storm had been as popular as people make her out to be, she would've had solos and been featured in movies and even comics. If they had made her Black Panther and separated her from the X-Men, she could've doubled dipped like Wolverine, but the writers never pushed her. Which goes back to why the X-Men have only been working as a team and hardly ever independent.

Well, other than wolverine, when do X-Men not have teams? It's just a franchise that, like Avengers and Fantastic Four... usually has a team.