It’s easy to forget that in addition to unifying a world that hates and fears them, the X-Men’s primary mission is to educate young mutants as they grow into their powers. Here are some of the most unique students that have walked the halls of Xavier’s Institute, all ‘blessed’ with entirely strange abilities.
Angelo Espinosa had severe growing pains in his native Los Angeles – so severe that he turned gray and grew an extra person’s worth of skin. Under Emma Frost and Banshee’s tutelage with Generation X, Skin learned how to stretch his extra folds to change his form, becoming a shapeshifter in his own, slightly disgusting, right.
Jonothon "Jono" Starsmore is the host of pure, psionic energy which lives in his chest as a ‘chamber’. Upon mutating, half of his face was destroyed, which led him to keep even his fellow Gen X-ers at arms-length. Jono communicates telepathically, and his offhandedness and sense of mystery has led to relationships with Husk and even a pop star.
From a sewer-dwelling Morlock to an X-woman, Marrow has come a long way since her first brush with surface-folk in Cable (1993) #15. Here, she protects Iceman and Cecilia Reyes from murderous Sentinels – earning her the opportunity to train with the X-Men. Marrow is plated in bony protrusions and can even pull bones from her frame and wield them as weapons.
One of the weirdest X-Men ever, Maggot’s claim to fame are his two slugs, Eany and Meany, who permanently live in his digestive track and extract themselves through the gut. Through the nourishment of his parasites, Maggot doubles in size and strength while transforming his skin blue.
Barnell Bohusk, “Beak”, felt like a freak amongst freaks at Xavier’s. The young bird boy became a standout character in Grant Morrison’s New X-Men run – he was hapless, harmless, and had not yet mastered flight. After losing his powers on M-Day, the indefatigable Beak adapted into the hero Blackwing, using a powered suit to fly.
Angel first appeared in New X-Men (2001) #118, where she lands in hot water after being kidnapped by Sublime’s U-Men. Like Beak, she too is an anthropomorphic mash-up, a mix between a girl and a fly. After the two hit it off, Angel and Beak become teen parents to a gaggle of insectoid-bird babies. Prior to M-Day, she could fly and spew acid.
Martha Johansson is a floating sentient brain in a jar. Another standout from Morrison’s New X-Men, No-Girl was the result of a cruel experiment by mutant parts dealer John Sublime. She’s a psychic highjacker, capable of controlling one’s thoughts and actions.
No-Girl’s closest friend and confidante. Ernst has the appearance of an older woman and the grizzled personality to boot. She’s a young girl whose mutant powers appear to be rapid aging along with superhuman strength.
Ruth Aldine’s mutation is perplexing and tragic. Since she was young, Blindfold has hid her obvious mutation from the public (she was born without eye sockets). Her premonitions of the future are scarily accurate, although often delivered through scrambled speech. Read her history and first brush with boyfriend Legion.
A gelatinous blob of paraffin, Robert “Glob” Herman is transparent, leaving his organ systems and skeleton completely exposed. He’s not fun to eat with, but he is highly flammable, capable of becoming a walking fireball of angst.
First there were five, now there are three. The ever-spooky Stepford Cuckoos are the clones of Emma Frost – together they are a triplet hive mind of untapped, psychic power. The surviving sisters were once hosts to the Phoenix force – check out their possession in this mini-series!
lara Dos Santos is just your average were-shark. A native of Brazil, lara is an adept swimmer and surfer, so her transition into Shark-Girl was a natural fit. She is capable of hybridizing her shark self while retaining human consciousness.
Eye-Boy can always see you coming. Eye-Boy perceives your slightest change in mood. Eye-Boy can sense your deepest fears because he is covered in…eyes. Check out eager-to-please Eye-Boy in a traumatic mission to Mojo World! And see him in the pages of Generation X (2017) as a member of Jubilee’s team!