Generation X is back as part of Marvel’s RessurXion event revitalizing the X-Men and Inhumans titles, but a lot has changed since the first series ended 16 years ago. The Xavier Institute For Higher Learning has been destroyed, renamed, relocated, and destroyed again (and again and again), and the old students are now the teachers of a new generation of mutants. Generation X alum Jubilee is at the center of the new series by writer Christina Strain, artist Amilcar Pinna, and colorist Felipe Sobreiro, which has her returning to the school after her stint working with Patsy “Hellcat” Walker. She’s overwhelmed and insecure about stepping into a mentor role, but as someone with lots of experience with the X-Men, she’s very qualified to help a new class of students discover their potential.
Strain started her comics career as a colorist for books like Runaways and Spider-Man Loves Mary Jane, but she stepped away from coloring to pursue writing, working on webcomics before eventually making the jump to Hollywood. She’s currently a writer for Syfy’s The Magicians, and that show’s balance of spectacular fantasy and emotional character development makes her a great fit for writing a new X-Men series. This exclusive preview of next week’s Generation X #1 gives readers a strong impression of Jubilee’s internal conflict as she gets ready for the first day of school, and she gets some words of encouragement from her old Generation X colleague Chamber to help her get her mind right before she sees her new students.
Amilcar Pinna’s artwork gets sharper with each new project, and the detail he packs into these preview pages makes the Xavier Institute For Mutant Education And Outreach and its Central Park location come to life. Sobreiro’s delicate rendering adds dimension to the inks, and the bright, creamy colors give the visuals a warm, inviting appearance. Also included in this preview are the unlettered pages previously released by Marvel, which showcase this book’s student cast and the chaos that inevitably breaks out when young mutants congregate. The action is crisp and energetic, and it gives a sense of how exciting it is to be a new student at a school where anything can happen.