"Marvel, MY Universe": Academy-X
Everyone dreams of writing the for Marvel or being behind the creative direction of the Marvel Universe. Here I present my ideas if I were ever lucky enough to be in charge of Marvel. This entry showcases what every X-franchise should have: a title based on educating and nurturing the next generation of mutants. This is - Academy-X.
If it ain't broke, don't fix it. What has always made the X-Men concept unique has been the idea of education; it started with the Original Five, continued with the New Mutants and Generation X and most recently culminated with the New X-Men/Academy X/Generation Hope titles. While it's been fun watching the X-Men be a paramilitary organisation and building what is essentially a sovereign mutant nation, it's lost it's "heart" which is having a title that is purely dedicated to the next generation of mutant kids and educating them in their powers. That's what I love about Wolverine & the X-Men title by Jason Aaron - it's injected the "heart" and fun back into the X-franchise and shows that the idea of education and the school should always be inherent to the concept of The X-Men.
So here's my school-title in my Marvel universe. With mutant numbers regrowing and the X-Men no longer concerned with survival, the X-Men can dedicate much of its resources to providing a safe haven for young mutants and teaching them how to control their powers for the betterment of society at large. Based at the Jean Grey School for Higher Learning, Wolverine has stepped down as headmaster and has handed over the headmaster position back to the only man he knows can do the job right: Professor X.
Professor X is accompanied with a new faculty and staff, many being former students themselves. But are the faculty up to the task of guiding and nurturing these young mutant minds, especially as this generation of young mutants faced and experienced such a terrible chapter in mutant history - near extinction? They became child soldiers; they saw friends die; committed acts that keep them up at night. They've been traumatised. So can they even go back to being "kids" again and reclaim their youth? This is the task the X-faculty face and for the sake of the future, they better be prepared to help tomorrow's mutants. Class is in session!
