Ahead of retailers having to lock in their orders this Monday for Exceptional X-Men #1 from Eve Ewing and Carmen Carnero, the third of the three flagship X-Men titles from the current “From the Ashes” relaunch, Marvel is revealing all of the covers for the first issue of the series, while also explaining why this book is so “exceptional.”

The other two “flagship” X-Men titles have their own niches, with Gail Simone and David Marquez’s Uncanny X-Men being closer to a traditional superhero series (protecting a world that hates and fears them), and Jed MacKay and Ryan Stegman’s X-Men being about proactively taking down major threats with a powerful strikeforce, so the niche for Exceptional X-Men is that it will spotlight the teaching side of the X-Men, as Kitty Pryde and Emma Frost will be forced to work together to teach three new young mutants to become superheroes. Marvel recently released more information about the three new mutants (Axo, Bronze and Melee), but now Marvel is sharing what Ewing thinks makes the book so exceptional.

Why are the Exceptional X-Men so “exceptional?”

When asked by Marvel in a press release as to what makes her new series so “exceptional,” Eve Ewing explains, “Well, those who know that I was a poet long before becoming a comics creator will appreciate that EXCEPTIONAL X-MEN, in a world full of X-adjectives, simply sounds really good. But right now, they are exceptional in that they don’t carry a lot of the same history on their shoulders as the main characters in our other titles. For better or worse, they have no ties to Krakoa or broader team politics or the previous era of mutantdom. They’re just a group of awkward kids in the Midwest trying to figure out their abilities, like generations of young mutants before them.”

In the press release, Marvel also noted that, “The series will introduce three all-new mutants who turn to Kitty and Emma for help with their emerging gifts: the metallic and whip-wielding Bronze, the emotion-stirring Axo, and the stealth-skilled fighter Melee! Under Kitty and Emma’s tutelage, they’ll learn not just how to survive—but to thrive! But Kitty and Emma haven’t always seen eye-to-eye, and they’ll also have lessons to teach each other, as they take up the call once more—for the children!”

Who are doing the covers for Exceptional X-Men #1?

The main cover for Exceptional X-Men #1 is by Carmen Carnero, who draws the interiors for the series, as well. There are also variant covers by both Joelle Jones and Elizabeth Torque, both featuring the entire new team (the Jonesi s a 1:25 variant). The artist Ejiwa “Edge” Ebenebe is doing a special foil variant cover spotlighting Emma Frost.

Rose Besch also did a spotlight variant on Kitty Pryde, while David Baldeón did the first of a series of variant covers spotlighting the new members of the team (starting with Bronze). The 1:50 variant is a “virgiin” variant of Baldeón’s cover, while the 1:100 is a virgin variant of the Besch cover. Scott Koblish continues his wraparound covers featuring ALL of the X-Men characters. There is also a special logo variant, plus, finally, there is a Godzilla variant cover by Leinil Francis Yu.

The first issue of Exceptional X-Men #1 is set to be released on September 4th.

Source: Marvel