This week sees the release of a new Giant-Size X-Men #1, which will set Ms. Marvel, Kamala Khan, on a time-travel adventure through key points in X-Men history, starting with the dawn of the All-New, All-Different X-Men of 1975.
Time travel is a Tuesday for some X-Men. And so we consulted Battle of the Atom’s Big Ol’ List — an official ranking of more than 1,000 of the best X-Men stories — to find the 10 best stories involving time travel. (Most of them involve Cable, which shouldn’t surprise anyone given the amount of time traveling he does.)
Don’t see your favorite X-Men time-travel story here? Keep in mind that despite ranking 1,000+ X-stories, we haven’t ranked ’em all. It’s also important to remember that we are X-perts, so as Zack says, “There is no room for arguments, and no room for disagreement.”
Uncanny X-Men #141-142, ‘Days of Future Past’
(Current ranking: 4)
The story that started all the time-travel shenanigans for our mutants has Kitty Pryde’s future consciousness beamed back into her teenage body so she can warn against the pending assassination of Sen. Robert Kelly. A story so classic it has multiple comic book sequels, an arc on X-Men: The Animated Series and even a movie that replaced Kitty with Wolverine because no one in Hollywood understands that Wolverine is not the main character of the X-Men. Because it’s been reprinted so many times, folks may forget that this was only two issues long and also served as John Byrne’s swan song (he exited Uncanny after #143) after being angry with Claremont about a log.
‘Messiah Complex’
(Current ranking: 17)
“Messiah Complex” may not seem entirely time-travel-y, until you remember it involves Forge sending multiple dupes of Madrox the Multiple Man into future timelines to scope out the consequences of Hope’s birth, Bishop going infanticidal to prevent the future he believes will occur and Cable escaping with Hope into the timestream. And those are just some of the pieces of this epic crossover that moves with speed and excitement over 13 issues. While there’s a little bit of whiplash in art styles, the quality never relents, and neither does the action, making “Messiah Complex” one of the consistently best X-crossovers ever put to page.
Cable #155-159, ‘Past Fears’
(Current ranking: 55)
This is one of Zack’s personal faves, and it’s easy to see why. The talented Lonnie Nadler and Zac Thompson team up with artist German Peralta (with covers by Daniel Warren Johnson!) to take Cable on a trip through his history, where he spends time with ’90s X-Force, Evil Bishop, X-Man, Hope and even “Slym and Redd,” all while running from Metus, the future friend he accidentally infected with the techno-organic virus. Great moments abound as the creative trio demonstrate their deep understanding of Cable and his lore.
All-New X-Men #1-5, ‘Yesterday’s X-Men’
(Current ranking: 56)
You want bold? How about Brian Michael Bendis with superstar Stuart Immonen bringing the original five X-Men into the present? What could have been a hackneyed nostalgia grab started one of the all-time great runs as Bendis builds on Beast’s continued psychotic behavior in contrast to the “revolutionary” Scott Summers. The Silver Age characters all have more depth and feeling than they ever did in the ’60s as they react to and interact with the people they’ve become in the present. Plus the book is just freakin’ gorgeous thanks to Immonen and inker Wade Von Grawbadger’s incredible visual storytelling and the always talented Marte Gracia’s eye-popping color work. This and its counterpart, Uncanny X-Men Vol. 3, were what got me back into X-Men after a long hiatus.
Cable Vol. 2 #7-10, ‘Waiting for the End of the World’
(Current ranking: 112)
Those waiting after “Messiah Complex” to figure out what happened to Cable and the “messiah baby” didn’t have to wait long, as Duane Swierczynski and Ariel Olivetti drove them far into the future to escape Bishop. While the X-Men try to contain Lucas-with-the-lid-off, Cable is busy fighting off cockroach soldiers (seriously!). This arc really doubles down on the genocidal version of Bishop, which may or may not qualify as full character assassination, and Olivetti may or may not actually know how to illustrate a small child, but this arc delivers sci-fi action and drama in spades.
The Further Adventures of Cyclops & Phoenix
(Current ranking: 125)
When folks ask me why I like this one, I say, “Dude, Apocalypse looks like a ding-dang giant ancient Egyptian Transformer! What’s not to love?” Or I say, “Do you like Mister Sinister? Great! Do not sleep on this miniseries!” Or I might say, “Hey, are you familiar with the superior artwork of the late, great John Paul Leon? Take a look!” Can you tell I like this one?
‘Messiah War’
(Current ranking: 139)
There’s a huge missed opportunity here to have called this one “Age of Stryfe,” but I get the desire to continue the “Messiah” branding. X-Force travels into the future to help Cable and Hope, only to encounter said “Age” and have to brawl their way home. Craig Kyle, Christopher Yost and Duane Swierczynski provide the solid action writing while Ariel Olivetti and Clayton Crain make a complementary art pairing as the story bounces between Cable and X-Force. Will our heroes make it out alive? Will Kiden from NYX? Gotta read it to find out.
‘Second Coming’
(Current ranking: 147)
Maybe you recall “Second Coming” as the story where Cable and Hope finally return to present-day San Francisco and fight with the X-Men on the Golden Gate Bridge against Bastion. What you may have forgotten is the part where Bastion opens a time portal for a legion of Nimrods to invade and destroy Utopia. Cyclops does his Cyclops thing and sends his only son and the rest of X-Force into the future to stop the Nimrod invasion on what very well could be a suicide mission. Even without the tie-in one-shots, “Second Coming” is one of the longer X-crossovers, clocking in at a whopping 17 issues. It’s a line-wide, epic endeavor. Not all the art works for me, but it’s still tremendous and cohesive storytelling.
The Adventures of Cyclops and Phoenix
(Current ranking: 193)
You know how it is: One minute you’re chilling on a beach on your honeymoon, the next you’ve been bodyswapped into the future to reconnect and raise your time-lost son and ensure the last vestige of Apocalypse falls. For anyone left hanging after X-Factor “Endgame” and looking for a concrete backstory of Cable’s (and Stryfe’s) youngest days, Adventures solidified the canon for one of X-Men’s most popular mysterious characters. Your mileage may vary depending on how much you like or dislike Gene Ha’s distinctive and hyper-detailed artwork, but there’s no denying this book tells an essential chapter in the Summers family history.
Cable: Blood & Metal
(Current ranking: 221)
Fabian Nicieza knows what readers want: They want heroes eating heroes. Wait, that sounds wrong. Heroes eating subs. Nope. Why don’t we just call it a hoagie? What I’m trying to say is that Kane eats a really big sandwich in this two-issue banger about Cable’s days with the Six Pack, how Nathan discovered he shared a face with Stryfe, and a prologue to the then-upcoming “X-Cutioner’s Song.” And folks, it’s not just the sandwich that’s big. ’90s John Romita Jr. is here to make sure the shoulder pads are big and the guns are even bigger. This might as well be made in Minecraft because everything is a rectangle, and it absolutely rules.
Adam Reck is the cartoonist behind Bish & Jubez as well as the co-host of Battle Of The Atom. Follow him @adamreck.bsky.social.
