I thought I'd start a new thread on this topic since the "Death of X" announcement thread has grown considerably. If the mods still think this should be rolled into that thread, I understand. But for this topic, I want to shift the focus away from the event itself and speculation surrounding it. Instead, I want to focus on what the ideal ending would be for X-men fans.

First and foremost, we know the ending for "Death of X" isn't going to be ideal for any X-men fans. That's a given. Marvel isn't going to let "Death of X" end well for mutants, X-men, Cyclops, or any fans surrounding them because that undermines the larger narrative they've been telling since Secret Wars. I don't think that's something they're going to do at this point. They need to keep things bleak and dire for mutants, just like they did with M-Day. That way, the inevitable resolution is more powerful.

Ignoring the inevitable dismay that "Death of X" is sure to bring, I want to open the discussion up to what sort of ending that X-men fans would be okay with. It doesn't just have to relate to Cyclops' death. Looking at this event, based on what we know about it thus far, what would be the best possible ending? What would be the most satisfying way that X-men could end up in their current situation? I know that context sort of limits things. We've seen in Extraordinary X-men, All-New X-men, and Uncanny X-men how bleak and angry all the characters are. There aren't a lot of good ways they could've ended up like this. But I do think there are some that are more palatable than others.

Here's an example:

For me, personally, I think the ideal ending for "Death of X" doesn't involve Cyclops going full evil or the Inhumans being completely apathetic. I think the ideal ending involves Cyclops making a sacrifice that he knows is going to ruin his reputation and make everyone hate him, but he does it anyways because the alternative would be worse. In that sacrifice, he states outright that for Charles Xavier's dream to be reborn, it first has to die. It costs him his life, but it also allows him to reunite with Jean Grey in the White Hot Room, who says she's been waiting for him. That moment would nicely symbolize the death and rebirth of a dream that is so core to the X-men.

Now I don't believe for a second this will happen. I've already made my prediction for this event clear in other threads and I stand by it. I predict Marvel will have Cyclops go completely evil and try to commit genocide on the Inhumans in order to stop the T-mists. No mind control. No Void influence. Nothing. Marvel needs Cyclops to go completely evil so that his O5 counterpart has a greater challenge to overcome. This gives them a chance to completely warp a character in ways they could never get away with. As we've seen with Spider-Man, Marvel will jump at any chance to do something like this because they understand on some levels that it generates the kind of outrage and attention they need from their customer base. The ideal ending I just described would not generate enough. It may be satisfying to some fans, but it simply won't light up the message boards in the same way that an evil, genocidal Cyclops will.

I can even imagine that at some point in this mini, adult Cyclops will confront his younger self or O5 Jean and basically turn on them. He'll basically say to hell with them. They keep trying to change a future that he's fighting for. They're willing to sacrifice all the good moments he's had in addition to all the bad moments. I think that'll push him over the edge. That'll probably put O5 Jean, his younger self, and even his former teammates in tears. It's a moment that I think would be a complete gut punch to X-men fans everywhere and that's exactly the point. That's what Death of X has to be, which is why we're not going to get an ending that'll leave anybody feeling hopeful.

But I digress. I've shared my ideal ending for "Death of X." What about you? If you could end "Death of X" in a certain way, how would you go about it? What sort of moments would it include? What sort of scenes would it have? Discuss.