The sun has set on the first Krakoan age. The characters and books have moved on to a new status quo, but many of us weren’t yet ready to say goodbye to the stories of the past five years, and to the era that began this redesign project.
The Hellfire Gala quickly became a font of fandom inspiration, with outpourings of art of the incredible looks characters wore, and fan art of everyone’s favorites. The galas were always a special time to be on X-spaces online, but the 2023 Hellfire Gala was famously a disaster for mutants, and we never got a 2024 Hellfire Gala as a conclusion or palate cleanser from the harrowing Fall of X books.
To that end, and as our own fond farewell to Krakoa, we bring you live to the green carpet for our very own 2024 Hellfire Gala! Please take in the majestic looks and marvel at the skill and craftsmanship and passion on display. Each artist picked a character that meant something special to them, or who they felt deserved a great new look, and dressed them up one more time. Follow these artists and designers to see the rest of their work and for even more looks they created. (One look sometimes just isn’t enough, as Emma Frost would let you know).
Enjoy, have a glass of Champagne, take in the night and dance with that mutant whose eye you caught across the dance floor.
It’s not a dream if it’s real.
Anthony Ruiz
@Thwwip_Stickers on Instagram, Threads and TikTok
Chamber
Being a ’90s kid, Generation X was my X-team. They had the right combination of cool ’90s edge, teen angst and body horror. So for this Gala challenge, I had to honor the body horror element with my fave Sad Boy Chamber.
For Chamber, I wanted to make a cool and fashionable containment piece for his neck so he could really dress to the nines but not hide his psionic fire. I wanted to feature his powers in his look and have a fully fleshed out (hehe) look, not just a slightly fancy uniform.
Léa Dupic
Cable
I just really love Cable’s ridiculous ’90s design, all shoulder pads, metal bits and projected machismo. I went in a military chic direction, with a tattered asymmetrical brown skirt, while trying to stick to a very rectangular silhouette. To be honest, I don’t really think Nate’s the sort of guy to indulge in haute couture, and it’s probably not the sort of statement he’d make at the gala, but as always, it’s super fun to play dress-up with those characters!
Haydn
Hellion
I chose Hellion for one simple reason: He never got an official outfit. I knew right away that I wanted to do something with multiple floating hands, helping and adorning the outfit as though he has his own personal entourage.
Lily Haverly
daisyrose2313 on twitter, daisyrose1319 on Instagram
Rogue
While I wanted this look to be formal, I also wanted it to SCREAM “Southern Belle.” I wanted to keep my design elegant, while making it something Rogue would want to wear. Of course, this means covering most of her skin to keep other partygoers safe, but using a dark mesh material to still allow her to cut a little loose!
Seye Sanyaolu
seye_art on Twitter, seye_art on Instagram
Oya
I chose Oya because she’s a fave, primarily because she’s a fellow Nigerian and I got into her story when I properly started reading X-comics during the (first) Krakoan age.
I put Oya in a Bob Mackie x Seye original look. I didn’t have as much time as I would’ve loved with a prompt like this and the ref did a lot of the heavy lifting but I like how it turned out. Idie as a Mackie doll? I’m into it!
Isaiah Cox
isaiahbeenlost on Twitter
Scarlet Witch
When making my design for Wanda, I immediately thought about Solange’s 2018 Met Gala look. This sculptural Iris Van Herpen gown with the statement piece of a durag is a mix of high fashion and cultural touches, which is what I wanted to do with Wanda. I decided on giving her a dikhlo as a nod to her Romani heritage as well as to mirror her iconic wimple. And if you look closely, they’re decorated with some colorful Wundagore Everbloom blossoms to give a nice floral pattern that a lot of dikhlos I’ve looked at have. Ever since the first Hellfire Gala, I’ve been absolutely OBSESSED with the concept of heroes incorporating their powers into their garments, so I gave her a train and bracelets made of her hex rings, being inspired by the structural dresses by designer Pierre Cardin; funky opera-length gloves for the drama and an extended neckline dress referencing her classic costume.
What Scarlet Witch meant to me during this era is a tried-and-true redemption story. She willingly sacrificed herself to gain the wisdom to create the Waiting Room so any and every mutant’s backup could be found. She’s had many attempts to redeem herself for the Decimation, but this felt like a definitive redemption story that allows her and us fans to finally move past that trying time. I love Wanda. I love her fierceness, I love her humility, I love her care for others. She’s been the heart of my own list of favorite superheroes, so it’s beyond relieving to know that she’s done this tremendous act for her adoptive brethren!
Rake
Legion
Krakoa may be gone for now, but The Altar remains on Arakko.
One of things I enjoyed about Legion’s showing on Krakoa was the way that, in his astral space he was colorful, resplendent and more alive than we had ever seen him in his corporeal form. I wanted to draw him in this fashion, as a holistic, otherworldly being. The myth of Orpheus and Eurydice also influenced the way that I look at his relationship with his girlfriend, Blindfold, and his own presentation. So with this in mind I wanted to put him in billowing diaphanous fabrics but with a down-to-Earth, relaxed feel reflecting his improved mental state.
Joe Pryde
Joeprydecosplay on Twitter, Joeprydecosplay on Instagram
Kate Pryde
Kitty’s design went through several iterations and rough drafts. I wanted to steer clear of the pirate aesthetic from the Krakoan era Hellfire Galas and have the look harken to some of the many costumes from her past. Sheer fabric used for the puffy-sleeved body suit and cuffed stockings pay homage to her powers. And I wanted her curly hair to be on full display. Mugler and Off White were big inspirations for this fit.
SSTArtwork
sstartwork on Twitter, Instagram, TikTok, Cara and Tumblr
Selene
For Selene, I leaned into her core colors, which are black and red. My main inspiration came from the red lining of her cape from the Krakoa era, and her general demeanor, which is powerful and dominating, so I thought a latex dominatrix look with facekini suited her down to the ground. In any cutouts, bridging the latex panels is wine-red lace, and to carry the weight of her enormous cape are two psychic vampire subordinates, in matching suits and expressionless masks, which Selene has her dark magic connected to bullhorns in the nose.
I truly hope we get more Selene stories in the future; she’s badass!
David Hughes
0ddeity on Twitter, 0ddeity on Instagram
Polaris
For Lorna, I was inspired by her time as Pestilence. I took inspiration for the armor from medieval knights, Mugler’s robot suit and Christian Dior’s fall 2006 collection. I wanted the idea to be that in the armor she has a more timid stance, with a more confident stance in the reveal. The idea was that she’d “explode” the armor at the gala and reform it into an X with her magnetic powers and that her “plume” would fall around her face. Wanted to show how her confidence and sense of self had grown but harken to her older, purple costumes.
Dia Falconer
unteletoonz on Twitter, unteletoonz on Instagram
Wolverine (Laura Kinney)
For Laura’s Hellfire Gala design, I drew inspiration from a lot of different grunge runway looks. When standing idle, the bottoms are meant to look like a skirt, but I wanted her to be able to have a full range of movement, hence the pants. The whole look is meant to be a bit of a nod to her goth days.
I actually only properly got into X-Men during the last few years, so the Krakoa era is the only era I’ve been able to experience in real time so far. It’s definitely a little sad to see that era come to an end, but I’m excited to see what’s coming next, too. I really didn’t expect to become such a big fan of Laura Kinney when getting into comics, but she quickly became one of my faves. Maybe I just like short people. #solidarity
Joshua Bruckner
Joshua Bruckner is a lifelong artist, X-Men fan and scientist, in that order. He lives in Massachusetts and spends his free time reading comics, redesigning X-Men, drawing comics and arguing about X-Men. Follow him at @joshington_bear on most social media.
