X-Men #24
X-Men (Vol. 6) #24 (July 2023) serves as the formal curtain call for Krakoa's second democratically elected X-Men squad, marking the end of the second 'year' of Gerry Duggan's flagship Krakoan-era run just before the fateful 2023 Hellfire Gala — an event that would trigger the 'Fall of X' and permanently restructure the mutant status quo. The issue also delivers the first appearances of Pogg Ur-Pogg's offspring, the 'Pogglets,' expanding the mythology of one of the X of Swords breakout characters. As a narrative hinge point, it simultaneously closes out established character arcs — Jean Grey officially stepping back from the team, Sunfire departing for Otherworld — while seeding Destiny's ominous prophecies about the roster to come and the traitor lurking within it. It also marks the first time the main X-Men title formally directed readers to the X-Men Unlimited Infinity Comics as essential reading, acknowledging that Krakoan storytelling had genuinely expanded across formats.
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Writer Gerry Duggan and artist Joshua Cassara — the core creative team behind the second-year X-Men lineup — produced this issue as their swan song for the squad that had been elected at the 2022 Hellfire Gala. Colorist Frank Martin and letterer VC Clayton Cowles (whose work on the series had earned an Eisner nomination for Best Lettering) rounded out the main creative unit, with editor Jordan D. White overseeing the issue under editor-in-chief C.B. Cebulski. The issue carried a rich variant suite — covers by Mahmud Asrar (Hellfire Gala variant), Russell Dauterman (Trading Card variant), Elena Casagrande (Stormbreakers variant), and Mark Brooks (Corner Box and multiple SDCC exclusive variants) — reflecting the high promotional energy surrounding the last pre-Gala chapter of the Krakoan era.
Trivia · 8 facts
- Published July 5, 2023; written by Gerry Duggan, art by Joshua Cassara, colors by Frank Martin, letters by VC Clayton Cowles, edited by Jordan D. White.
- First appearances of Pogg Ur-Pogg's children, dubbed the 'Pogglets' — the mischievous offspring of the fan-favorite Arraki crocodilian swordsman introduced in X of Swords (2020).
- Final issue for the second Krakoan X-Men roster (elected at the 2022 Hellfire Gala) before the 'Fall of X' era begins in X-Men: Hellfire Gala #1 (2023).
- Features a prologue in which teen Cable (Kid Cable/Nathan Summers) attempts to time-slide back and prevent Orchis's plans, only to be intercepted by Omega Sentinel, Nimrod, and Dr. Stasis — accompanied by an in-universe memo from the Time Variance Authority referencing temporal disruptions around the third Hellfire Gala.
- Jean Grey officially announces she is stepping down from the X-Men team, while the issue drops hints — via Destiny's prophecies — about a traitor among the current squad and the shape of the next roster.
- Sunfire (Shiro Yoshida) departs the team to rescue Redroot from Otherworld, with his subsequent journey continued in X-Men Unlimited Infinity Comics #106 onward — the first time the flagship X-Men title explicitly pointed readers to its Infinity Comics companion as essential follow-up reading.
- Magik resolves the Pogg Ur-Pogg confrontation at Gameworld not through combat but by bribing the creature with a bag of Mysterium, the rare mutant metal.
- The issue shipped with an exceptionally large variant slate, including multiple San Diego Comic-Con 2023 exclusive covers by Mark Brooks (Dark Phoenix, Symbiote Phoenix, and White Phoenix themes) and a Vogue-style variant by Miguel Mercado exclusive to select retailers.