'Reign of X' Brings New X-Men Series

Marvel.com: The latest era in writer Jonathan Hickman’s revolutionary transformation of the X-Men universe is now underway, bringing with it exciting new titles like:

• Children of the Atom by Vita Ayala and Bernard Chang – on sale now;
• Way of X by Si Spurrier and Bob Quinn – on sale April 21; and
• X-Corp by Tini Howard and Alberto Foche – on sale May 12.

And after June’s highly-anticipated franchise-spanning Hellfire Gala, fans can expect even more surprises, including a trio of brand-new series:

• X-Men by Gerry Duggan and Pepe Larraz – on sale July 2021;
• Classified (allegedly The Trial) by Leah Williams and Valerio Schiti – on sale August 2021; and
• Classified by Jonathan Hickman and TBD.

Excalibur #20 Art

Excalibur #20 Spoilers

Spoilers: Then: Doncaster, England – Alice McAllister was a rebellious teenage girl who gave her mother a hard time and grew up with suicidal thoughts. At 16, her mutant powers manifested, detaching her psionic self from her physical body forever. She became Malice.

Now: Krakoa – Captain Britain appears before the Quiet Council of Krakoa and is informed about the Hellfire Gala and Saturnyne’s unwillingness to help Krakoa. The Council encourages Betsy to mend fences with Saturnyne.

As the Councilmembers leave, Emma approaches Betsy and says she knows about Malice. Betsy replies that Malice hasn’t broken any laws yet and wishes to handle the situation by herself. It turns out that Malice had possessed earlier. Malice attempts to attack Betsy but is knocked out by Kwannon, who was watching Betsy’s back. Kwannon’s psychic knife seems to be stuck in Emma’s throat and Malice traps herself in the psychic blade. Charles Xavier returns and warns both Betsy and Kwannon that Malice’s attack has escalated from a personal matter into a security threat. Xavier wants to throw Malice into the pit, but Betsy and Kwannon ask him to let them reason with her.

At the Braddock Lighthouse, Rogue and Jubilee help Betsy go through her old wardrobe looking for the perfect dress for the Gala. Rogue notices Betsy seems happier. Kwannon visits the Lighthouse to discuss Malice, and Betsy realizes none of her dresses fit right because they were tailor-made for Kwannon’s body. Betsy offers her dresses to Kwannon, who replies they’re not her taste and think they are a symbol of a time better left behind. As a result, Betsy and Kwannon decide to burn the old dresses by the shore.

Betsy asks for the help of Kwannon, Rogue and Jubilee to deal with Malice. While she and Kwannon decide to astral project into the psychic blade, Rogue and Jubilee are to watch their physical bodies back in the beach. Betsy and Kwannon’s astral forms find themselves in a nightclub in England, which both Betsy and Malice used to frequent back in the day. Betsy finds Malice and tries to reason with her and encourages her to give herself a second chance in Krakoa. Malice is full of angsty and still has suicidal thoughts and lashes out against Betsy, tainting her about her loss in Otherworld. Betsy has conquered her demons and is not affect by Malice’s words. Malice attempts to possess Kwannon in the physical world. As it seems fruitless to argue with her, Betsy destroys Malice’s choker which kills the entity.

Afterwards, Malice is reborn with her own body through the Resurrection Protocols. Xavier says she is still afflicted and angry. While Xavier wants her to pay for her actions against Krakoa, Emma Frost intervenes and suggests she is given a second chance. Betsy and Kwannon agree with Emma. Xavier is overruled and accepts to forgive Malice. Betsy tells her it’s a fresh start. It will still hurt, but it’s her own.

Excalibur #20 Preview

Excalibur #20

Writer: Tini Howard

Art by: Marcus To

Cover by: Mahmud Asrar

The Story:

The Phantom Menace!

An invisible threat is loose on the island of Krakoa – unseen, unheard, undetectable by any... except Excalibur.

In Stores: April 7, 2021

Excalibur #20 Advance Preview

Excalibur #19 Art

Excalibur #19 Spoilers

Spoilers: After days of meditation, the sorceress Betsy Braddock of Earth-13054 manages to trap Betsy’s consciousness in an oil lamp. The Captain Britain Corps gather and head to Starlight Citadel to ask Saturnyne to restore Betsy-616. The Corps explain that after the duel Betsy had nowhere to return to and was left in a sort of limbo bouncing from one reality to another. Saturnyne refuses to let them take Betsy’s spirit through the Citadel’s doorway to Earth-616. The Corps decide to take matters into their own hands and hand over the oil lamp to Excalibur through the Avalon gate.

Once Kwannon incapacitates the fake “Betsy”, Excalibur places her in a table to perform a ritual to bind Betsy’s soul to the body. After many failed attempts, Excalibur worries that Emma will close the gateways to Otherworld for good. Kwannon deduces that it’s Betsy herself sabotaging the spell. Kwannon breaks the oil lamp and Betsy’s spirit flees to the Otherworld. Kwannon volunteers to go after Betsy. Kwannon says Betsy lost part of herself she didn’t even miss until she realized it was gone and displays the butterfly on her hand.

Kwannon heads to Avalon and follows Betsy’s powerful psychic trail to an elf village where Betsy’s spirit is hiding in a well. Kwannon says Betsy drives people away by building walls and won’t give up until she finds her. Betsy appears before her and asks Kwannon to leave. Kwannon says the terrible things between them have been done to them and there’s nothing they can’t do. It isn’t to be solved; it merely is. Kwannon asks Betsy to come with her, but Betsy reveals she feels defeated and a failure. Kwannon says Betsy’s pain is destroying herself and other and offers to take her home within her own body. Kwannon comforts her and reveals that Betsy won, that the Captain Britain Corps reformed and that she’s the nexus of all of them. Kwannon and Betsy team up sharing one body and return to Avalon. Betsy’s spirit returns to her body and coughs up Malice’s collar! Malice flees and attempts to possess Rogue; however, Rogue resists the possession. Without anywhere to go, Malice flees to the gateway to Krakoa. Malice is now on the loose in Krakoa and she could be anyone.

Excalibur #19 Preview

Excalibur #19

Writer: Tini Howard

Art by: Marcus To

Cover by: Mahmud Asrar

The Story:

Poisoned by her own venom!

She didn’t mean anything by it...but what’s a girl without a body supposed to do?

In Stores:

March 24, 2021

X-Solicits for June 2021

	Excalibur #21 Written by: Tini Howard Art by: Marcus To Cover by: Mahmud Asrar Rictor Hates Parties. Even the nice ones. And with Captain Britain’s return to a changed world, this one is looking to be not so nice. Excalibur’s Earth-shattering Hellfire Gala issue will change Krakoan diplomacy forever.
	Hellions #12 Written by: Zeb Wells Art & Cover by: Stephen Segovia Who Invited the Hellions to the Hellfire Gala? Who thought it was a good idea to invite the antisocial Hellions to the fanciest bash of the year? Oh, no one? They weren’t invited but they showed up anyway? Yeah, that sounds about right.
	Marauders #21 Written by: Gerry Duggan & Chris Claremont Art by: Matteo Lolli & John Bolton  Welcome to The Hellfire Gala! The Hellfire Trading Company has put together the biggest event of the season – the very first Hellfire Gala! Everyone will be there – all your favorite mutants, their closest allies…even their worst enemies – for a night of dinner, drinks, diplomacy and deceit. Fireworks to follow. Plus: From the archives, a classic X-Men tale with our very first look at a Hellfire Gala by Chris Claremont and John Bolton!
	X-Force #20 Written by: Benjamin Percy Art & Cover by: Joshua Cassara Invite-Only to the Hellfire Gala! It’s party time, but somebody’s got to work it. And when invited guests (and a few crashers) prove to be planted antagonistic agents, X-Force will need to get their hands dirty and keep this all under wraps…before anyone catches wind!
	X-Men #21 Written by: Jonathan Hickman Art by: Russell Dauterman, Nick Dragotta, Sara Pichelli & Lucas Werneck Cover by: Leinil Francis Yu The Heroes of Krakoa Debut! It’s a changing if the guard as the first X-Men team of Krakoa debuts! One era ends as a new one begins, and the handoff happens here.
	New Mutants #19 Written by: Vita Ayala Art by: Alex Lins Cover by: Martin Simmonds And I’ll Cry If I Want To… The Hellfire Gala is here, and the New Mutants have the chance to take a break from training the youth of Krakoa – an opportunity to get dressed up and get down. But not everyone is on their best behavior…and someone has vanished without a trace.
	Planet-Size X-Men #1 Written by: Gerry Duggan Art & Cover by: Pepe Larraz Variant Cover by: Pepe Larraz They Came to Slay! The Hellfire Gala rages on, but bigger things are afoot a world away. Make no mistake – this is an X-Men book drawn by superstar artist Pepe Larraz. It is absolutely the most important issue of the month.
	X-Corp #2 Written by: Tini Howard Art by: Alberto Foche Cover by: David Aja A Shark in the Water! After X-Corp’s shocking debut, they’ve got fences to mend, hands to shake and most importantly – a board to staff. With Dr. Jamie Madrox’s top-class dupes staffing the Hellfire Gala, CXOs Monet and Angel must stalk the dance floor and hope they don’t get preyed on themselves.
	S.W.O.R.D. #6 Written by: Al Ewing Art & Cover by: Valerio Schiti This is What Comes Next. On Earth, the Hellfire Gala is in full swing. But on S.W.O.R.D. Station One, a very different guest list comes together…as Abigail Brand finally unveils her plans for Mysterium – and the future of human and mutantkind.
	Way of X #3 Written by: Si Spurrier Art by: Bob Quinn Cover by: Giuseppe Camuncoli Make More Mutants. It’s the Hellfire Gala hangover. Nightcrawler tries to root out the evil working to destroy Krakoa by investigating all its laws, starting with… **Sexy Saxophone Solo**
	Wolverine #13 Written by: Benjamin Percy Art by: Scot Eaton Cover by: Adam Kubert Hellfire Compromised! Can Wolverine and X-Force keep the peace or is the gala doomed?
	X-Factor #10 Written by: Leah Williams Art by: David Baldeón Cover by: Ivan Shavrin The Last Dance! At the Hellfire Gala, secrets will be revealed! vengeance will be had. And someone’s number is up. You’ll never guess whose.

Betsy Braddock dons Alexander McQueen-inspired Outfit for the Hellfire Gala

EW: Never doubt superheroes' ability to party. It's now been a couple years since the X-Men set up an independent mutant nation-state on the island of Krakoa, and later this year they'll be celebrating with a party way too cool for humans. The Hellfire Gala, which as its name suggests is basically like a Marvel version of the real-life Met Gala, is set to take place this June across multiple books in the X-Men line as well as the special-sized one-shot issue Planet-Sized X-Men. In order to conceive cool new designs for the X-Men's high fashion, Marvel tapped another superstar artist: Russell Dauterman.

"My general thought was that the Gala aesthetic should be high-fashion X-Men costumes (mutant clothes), not high-fashion human clothes," Dauterman said. "So I looked at a lot of fashion reference, but tried to think, 'What would the X-costume version of this be?' The looks reference and take inspiration from couture by Alexander McQueen, Iris van Herpen, Balmain, Moschino, Givenchy, Versace, Gaultier, Gucci, and more.  I also drew from the characters' past costumes."

Captain Britain - Betsy Braddock has been many things over the years. Now she wields the sword of Captain Britain, but hasn't forgotten her past. "I mixed in aspects of Betsy’s classic costumes, bringing that armored princess energy to her Captain Britain look," Dauterman says. "[Excalibur writer] Tini Howard suggested Alexander McQueen as a reference, which was a big influence in the design."