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X-Men Reading Order – Part 1: The Silver Age & the Chris Claremont Era

Created by writer-editor Stan Lee and artist Jack Kirby, the first X-Men series was launched in September 1963. Since then, a lot happened and it can be overwhelming to try to make sense of it all. That said, each new era began as a new entry point in this vast universe. But first, if you’ve lived in a cave during the last decades, you may not know who are the X-Men.

They are led by Charles Xavier, also known as Professor X, the X-Men are mutants, people born with superhuman abilities activated by what is called the “X-Gene.” They have incredible powers that make them, for some, dangerous people. Even if the X-Men fight for a world in which mutants and humans can be equals, they have not succeeded yet.

They must face anti-mutant bigotry, and all the powers in the world can’t seem to solve that problem. All the powerful mutants don’t see the world like Xavier and his X-Men, they want to rage war against humans. As new threats from Earth and Space continue to emerge, and enemies keep coming back, the X-Men must persevere.

The Complete X-Men Comics Reading Order in Chronological Order

Our X-Men Reading Guide focuses on all the X-Men adventures and there are a lot! For this reason, we had to cut the guide into several parts. The first part focuses on X-Men stories from X-Men #1 (1963) to X-Men (1991) #1! Here is a list of X-Men series published during that era (most of them going beyond that period). click on the title of the series above for the issues available on Kindle & ComiXology!

  • X-Men Vol. 1: The main X-Men series launched in 1963, re-titled Uncanny X-Men from issue #142.
  • New Mutants Vol. 1: With the success of the X-Men during the eighties, the franchise expanded with this spin-off in 1983.
  • Alpha Flight Vol. 1: Also launched in 1983, this X-Men Spin-off focuses on the Canadian team created by writer/artist John Byrne.
  • X-Factor Vol. 1: Created by Bob Layton and Jackson Guice in 1986,  this spin-off from the X-Men franchise was a team formed by the five original X-Men.
  • Excalibur Vol. 1: Created by Chris Claremont and Alan Davis and launched in 1988, Excalibur is the British team, conceived as a way to combine elements of two Marvel properties: the X-Men and Captain Britain.
  • Dazzler Vol. 1: Published between 1981 and 1986, this is a Dazzler solo title that was produced in part to appeal to a female audience.
  • Wolverine Vol. 1: The breakout character had his first solo adventures in a limited series in 1982, which was followed by the Kitty Pryde And Wolverine miniseries (1984-1985) before another volume was launched!
  • Wolverine Vol. 2: Starting in 1988, Wolvie headlined his own ongoing series.
  • And other miniseries, limited series, and one-shots.

Some adventures set during this era have been published later:

  • X-Men: First Class (various volumes and titles): Created by Jeff Parker and Roger Cruz, this series and its several spin-offs follow the original team of X-Men. Published between 2006 and 2009
  • X-Men: The Hidden Years: Published between 1999 and 2001,  this John Byrne written series bridges the gap between the X-Men’s classic and the Claremont’s era.
  • X-Men Classic: From 1986 to 1990, Claremont wrote backup stories delving into and explaining the original stories.

Happy Readings!

X-Men Reading Order

Searching for an X-Men Omnibus? There is more than 50 omnibuses dedicated to the X-Men at this time of writing, including almost half of them covering the 1963-1991 time period. Find them all in one place! Follow our guide:

See Our Complete Guide to the X-Men Omnibuses Collection.

X-Men Reading Order

 

X-Men Comics Guide: The X-Menu

X-Men Reading Order

Last X-Men additions

As new releases and reprints of the X-Men are continually happening, you’ll find here the last additions to this reading order, the first part of our big guide dedicated to the X-Men! We hope it makes things a little bit easier.

X-Men Reading Order

X-Men Grand Design

Wants to become familiar with the X-Men without committing to read almost 30 years of history? Turn your attention towards Ed Piskor’s Grand Design that takes you ” from Professor X’s formation of the original team through the Second Genesis of the All-New, All-Different X-Men and the devastating Dark Phoenix Saga to 1980s epics such as Inferno that pushed mutantkind to the brink of X-tinction!”

  • X-Men: Grand Design Trilogy
    Collects X-Men: Grand Design (2017) #1-2, X-Men: Grand Design – Second Genesis (2018) #1-2, X-Men: Grand Design – X-Tinction (2019) #1-2.

Previously collected in three volumes:

X-Men Reading Order

X-Men: The Silver Age Reading Order (1963-70)

Founder of Xavier’s School for Gifted Youngsters, Professor X recruits mutants from around the world to teach them how to use their powers and coexist with humanity. The original five X-Men (Warren Worthington III/Angel, Hank McCoy/Beast, Scott Summers/Cyclops, Robert “Bobby” Drake/Iceman, and Jean Grey/Marvel Girl). These are their adventures.

Collected In the new Mighty Marvel Masterworks:

Or In the Epic Collection:

Or in Omnibus:

X-Men ended with issue #66, but that was not THE END. The mutants started to guest star in other series. X-Men #67 to #93 were reprint issues of those stories featuring the X-Men with new covers

  • X-Men Epic Collection: It’s Always Darkest Before the Dawn
    Collects X-Men (1963) #67-93, Annual (1970) #1-2; Amazing Adventures (1970) #11-17; Amazing Spider-Man (1963) #92; Incredible Hulk (1968) #150, #161, #172, #180-182; Marvel Team-Up (1972) #4, #23; Avengers (1963) #110-111; Captain America (1968) #172-175; Defenders (1972) #15-16; Giant-Size Fantastic Four (1974) #4).

Or the same issues, in the X-Men Masterworks editions:

X-Men Reading Order - X-Logo

Several series have been published throughout the years, telling stories taking place during the Silver Age such as:

From Jeff Parker and Roger Cruz, The X-Men: First Class (2006-2009) consists of new stories set during the period (If you intend to read them, we advice to do it mostly after issue #23)

With X-Men: The Hidden Years (1999-2001),  John Byrne bridges the gap between the X-Men’s classic and all-new, all-different eras!

The whole series is now available in  X-Men: The Hidden Years Omnibus.

X-Men Reading Order

The Chris Claremont X-Men Reading Order (1975-1991)

The most famous and the longest era in X-Men history: The Claremont Era. Hundreds of issues, new X-Series (New Mutants, X-Factor, Wolverine and Excalibur), the introduction of a lot of major antagonists, new characters (mutants or not), and more. In the end, 17 years for one big story that started with a relaunched in May 1975 with Giant-Size X-Men #1, not by Claremont, but by Len Wein and Dave Cockrum, that introduced fresh new X-Men including Wolverine, Nightcrawler, Storm, and Colossus. After that, there is a lot to expect with the Proteus storyline, the famous Phoenix Saga/Dark Phoenix Saga, and iconic stories like Days of Future Past.

Part. 1: From the Second Genesis to the Dark Phoenix Saga and Days of the Future Past

Wolverine LogoWant to know more about Wolverine’s life before he joined the X-Men?
Check out our article about the origins of Logan, then check out our Wolverine Comic Book List!

X-Men IconKitty Pryde made her first appearance in X-Men #129. See our Essential Kitty Pryde Reading List to explore the history’s character.
You know what? Emma Frost also made her debut in that #129 issue. We have also a Best Emma Frost Comic List!

Also, in the Masterworks collection:

X-Men Reading Order - X-Logo

In 1986, Marvel launched the Classic X-Men series reprinting what is called the “All-New, All-Different” era of X-Men, with original backup stories written by Claremont himself, delving into and explaining the original stories! All those backup stories have been collected in:

The whole series has also been collected in today’s out-of-print X-Men Classic Omnibus.

Also, the First Class adventures continue, this time with Uncanny X-Men: First Class (2009), set after X-Men #110.

This period is also collected in Uncanny X-Men Omnibus Vol. 1 and Uncanny X-Men Omnibus Vol. 2. Marvel also put out there an Omni for those interested in owning only the The Dark Phoenix Saga.

 Kitty Pryde in Uncanny X Men #155

Part. 2: The Brood Saga, The Road to the New Mutants

X-Men IconWhile introduced in Giant-Size X-Men #1, Illyana Rasputin’s story took a turn in The Uncanny X-Men #160, when she is taken to limbo. Consult our Magik Reading Guide to follow her to learn about her following comic appearances!

This part has been collected in Epic Collection:

Or you can go with the Marvel Masterworks editions:

Also, X-Men: Starjammers by Dave Cockrum collects Uncanny X-Men (1981) #107-108, 154-158, 161-167; X-Men: Spotlight on Starjammers #1-2.

Part. 3: Madelyne Pryor, The Morlocks, and the Summers Family

The New Mutants is a group of fictional teenage mutant superheroes-in-training. It’s not easy to jump around from a series to the next with collected editions. That said, the connections between The New Mutants and Uncanny X-Men are not important. The two series can be read separately for the most part. For more information about The New Mutants, go to the dedicated reading order.

This is when the first major Marvel event crossover happened. Fascinated by the presence of superheroes on Earth, The Beyonder chooses a group of both heroes and supervillains and teleports characters against their will to “Battleworld,” a planet in a distant galaxy. More precisely, Secret Wars takes place after Uncanny X-Men #180 and before New Mutants #15.

The first one was a big event, why not produce a second similar event? So, here comes Secret Wars II. This one takes place after New Mutants #29. It’s not really straightforward.

The original X-Men are back, but as you may have guessed, they are not taking charge of the Uncanny X-Men. Instead, you can follow their adventures in X-Factor (see reading order).

The adventures of X-Men in Omnibus format continue with the end of the Uncanny X-Men Omnibus Vol. 2, then Vol. 3, Vol. 4, and Vol. 5. The world of mutants are also expanding with New Mutants Omnibus, Volume 1 and Wolverine Omnibus Vol. 1.

Part. 4: The Mutant Massacre

The Mutant Massacre is a crossover storyline that mostly involved the X-Men and X-Factor, but also the New Mutants; Thor, Power Pack; and Daredevil.

  • X-Men Milestones: Mutant Massacre
    Collects The New Mutants #46; Uncanny X-Men #210–213; X-Factor #9–11; Thor #373–374; Power Pack #27.

    • The event goes as follows: Uncanny X-Men #210, X-Factor #9, UXM #211, XF #10, New Mutants #46, Thor #373-374, Power Pack #27, XF #11, UXM #212-213.

See also Marvel Masterworks: The Uncanny X-Men Vol. 14
Collects Uncanny X-Men (1981) #210-219, Annual (1970) #10; New Mutants Annual (1984) #2; Fantastic Four vs X-Men (1987) #1-4.

See also Marvel Masterworks: The Uncanny X-Men Vol. 15
Collects Uncanny X-Men (1981) #220-231, X-Men Annual (1970) #11, X-Men Vs. Avengers #1-4 And Material From Best Of Marvel Comics.

 Also in New Mutants Epic Collection: Sudden Death
Collects New Mutants (1983) #55-70, New Mutants Annual (1984) #4.

The previous issues are also collected in X-Men: Mutant Massacre Omnibus, X-Men: Fall of the Mutants Omnibus or New Mutants Omnibus, Volume 2.

Part. 5: The Inferno

Not one, but two new X-series joined the ranks of the X-family collection. First, The Wolverine starts his very own solo series. Then, Excalibur is born when Captain Britain, the metamorphic Meggan band together with former X-Men Nightcrawler and Kitty Pryde when Gatecrasher and her Technet are sent to capture Rachel “Phoenix” Summers. For more information, go to the Excalibur Reading Order.

 

  • X-Men: Inferno Prologue
    Collects X-Factor #27-32, Annual #3; Uncanny X-Men #228-238, Annual #12; New Mutants #62-70, Annual #4; material from Marvel Age Annual #4, Marvel Fanfare #40
  • Excalibur Epic Collection: The Sword Is Drawn
    Collects Captain Britain #1-2; Excalibur #1-11, Special Edition, Mojo Mayhem and material from Mighty World of Marvel #7, 14-15; Marvel Comics Presents #31-38. At that point, only read the first five issues of Excalibur, 6-7 are part of the Inferno crossover (also collected in X-Men: inferno Omnibus). Once Inferno ended, you can read the rest.
The Excalibur team in Marvel Comics Presents #38

Want to know more about Captain Britain, Marvel UK’s Superhero?
Follow our Comic Book Guide dedicated to the character!

The Inferno era is also collected in X-Men by Chris Claremont and Jim Lee Omnibus Vol. 1, X-Men: Inferno Prologue Omnibus, X-Men: inferno Omnibus, Excalibur Omnibus vol. 1 and Wolverine Omnibus Vol. 2.

Part. 6: X-tinction Agenda

X-Men IconRemy LeBeau, the charming and charismatic master thief of New Orleans, is introduced in Uncanny X-Men #266.
If you want to focus on his history, check out our Gambit Reading Order!

Part. 7: Muir Island Saga/Mutant Genesis

The Muir Island Saga is the end of Claremont’s original run.

The Claremont era comes to an end in Omnibus with X-Men By Chris Claremont & Jim Lee Omnibus Vol. 2

X-Men Reading Order

Next! The X-Men adventures continue in…

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6 thoughts on “X-Men Reading Order – Part 1: The Silver Age & the Chris Claremont Era”

  1. Eman
    Reply

    This guide is just fantastic but I noticed that it’s ‘ missing comics like weapon X, first class, origins, magneto testament etc, etc… how can I know when to read those?

    1. Fabien
      Reply

      It’s kind of the difficulty with the X-Men books, they go in all directions. If they are not in the guide, chances are they are origin stories published later. The classic Weapon X from Barry Windsor-Smith is a story taking place before Wolverine became an X-Men, X-Men First Class is retroactively set around the end of “Marvel Masterworks: The Uncanny X-Men Vol. 2.” If I remember correctly (need to check), the Wolverine: First Class are more around the event in Marvel Masterworks: The Uncanny X-Men Vol. 5. Wolverine: Origins can be read later, they are collected with the Daniel Way collection set after House of M. I’ve got a Wolverine Reading Order in the tube, it will be published soon.
      As for Magneto Testament is again an origin story, you can read it when you want.
      It’s the same with most of the origin stories, they don’t impact the overall storylines, they revisit the past, and can add some bits, but mostly work as standalone.

  4. Author
    Reply

    Hey Fabien

    I really wanted to ask you a question. Can I read X-Men from 1-100 then only focus on reading the X-Men events like Mutant Massacre, Inferno & more, then read the full mordern X-Men stories and not miss out on the soul and essentials of X-Men? Please give me tips if you can, thanks.

    1. Carole
      Reply

      Hey Author,

      I’m pretty sure Fabien would agree… For the X-Men, the tip is always the same: read Chris Claremont. This is the most defining run in the history of X-Men. You don’t need the Silver Age. You need Claremont.

      1. Fabien
        Reply

        X-Men from #1 to #66, then we jump to Giant-Size X-Men #1 and Claremont took over with #94 as 67 to 93 were reprints. But #100 is not a point to stop. In fact, it’s just the beginning. It goes on for 16 years. That said, yes, follow Claremont that’s the only way to not get lost as he wrote the main stories, from one storyline to the others.

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