20 Essential Comic Issues You Must Read Before You Die

5. Giant-Size X-Men #1

Batman Man Who Laughs Cover Joker
Marvel Comics/Gil Kane

You'd be hard-pressed to find a more dynamic team debut than that of the X-Men. Heck, even the cover has them literally bursting onto the scene.

Sure, the team had existed before this issue, but they were distinctly second-string characters who nobody really cared about. Giant-Size X-Men introduced a new group of characters who would become the X-Men.

The issue manages to combine establishing moments for classic characters like Wolverine, Storm, Colossus and Nightcrawler (and Thunderbird, but who cares about him?) with pulse-pounding action as the team rescue their predecessors from the sentient island Krakoa.

It was a great strat for the team that would change the face of comics in the 80's.

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