Professor X Assembles a New Team of Heroes (And They Aren’t the X-Men)

Professor X may no longer be with the X-Men, but it doesn’t mean he’s not without heroes. Charles Xavier and Lilandra Neramani left Earth in the conclusion of the X-Men event X-Manhunt, in order to save their daughter, Xandra, the empress of the Shi’ar Empire. These events tie into Imperial, a four-part event series that is reshaping Marvel’s cosmic landscape. The first issue of Imperial revealed that someone is assassinating galactic leaders, which means Xandra is a potential target. Of course, Professor X and Lilandra aren’t going to sit by and let that happen, so it’s time for Charles Xavier to assemble a new team for the job.

Marvel announced a new pair of Imperial War one-shots: Imperial War: Exiles and Imperial War: Nova Centurion. The one-shot we’re focusing on here is Imperial War: Exiles by writer Steve Foxe (Dark X-Men) and artist Francesco Manna (Giant-Size House of M). It will follow up on Professor X’s departure from Earth as the X-Men’s founder assembles a new team of heroes to protect his daughter, the recently deposed Empress Xandra. Other announced one-shots include Imperial War: She-Hulk and Imperial War: Black Panther.

“Mutantkind has looked to the stars since the 1970s, so there was no way we could leave the X-crew out of the Imperial master plan,” Foxe shared. “Watching Jonathan build this intergalactic conspiracy was its own storytelling masterclass, and he built launch pads for all of us to tell some of the biggest stories possible on this new cosmic stage.”

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Regarding the team’s roster, Foxe explained, “This is a crew of Exiles in the truest sense of the word—a ragtag band of royals, aliens, scoundrels, robots, and furballs thrust together under dire circumstances. And at the heart of it all is a family we’ve never really seen together in one place: Charles Xavier, Lilandra Neramani, and their daughter, Xandra. But make no mistake—this is a breakneck space-chase story first and foremost, and Francesco Manna is knocking it out of the galaxy. Which is good, because if these Exiles slow down for too long…they’ll be exterminated!”

The roster of Exiles wasn’t revealed, but the name brings back memories of the multiverse-traveling team of the early 2000s. The Exiles had a revolving roster that was typically headlined by Blink, one of the survivors of the X-Men’s Age of Apocalypse timeline.

IMPERIAL WAR: EXILES #1

• Written by STEVE FOXE & JONATHAN HICKMAN
• Art by FRANCESCO MANNA
• Cover by FRANCESCO MORTARINO
• On Sale 9/3
• A coup at home has imperiled Shi’ar Majestrix Xandra, tearing her from the throne in IMPERIAL WAR: EXILES. Her only hope for survival lies in a mismatched group of renegades led by her father, Professor Charles Xavier, and her resurrected mother, Lilandra! But when faced with the awesome power of the Shi’ar Imperial Guard, the only way to survive…is to run!

Imperial War: Exiles #1 goes on sale Wednesday, September 3rd. Let us know your thoughts on the one-shot and Imperial overall in the comments below!