Top Ten X-Men Characters

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The X-Men franchise is my favorite superhero movie series and one of the biggest reasons lies in its characters. It is populated with many highly likable and some even unforgettable characters. The franchise actually has too many characters and some do not get their proper due, but most are really well developed and essential to the plot. Plus the actors playing them were mostly terrific. So without further ado, here are ten best X-men characters in my opinion.

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10. Beast

At first Beast was a bit boring to me, but he grew on me eventually as once again the actor carried the role to greater heights. Nicholas Hoult is very sympathetic in this role, but also genuinely funny at times and thanks to his shy and reserved personality, he reminded me of myself and thus I liked him all the more. Plus his conflict was quite emotional.

9. Cyclops

Cyclops is probably one of the funniest characters on this list as it was quite amusing watching his rivalry with Wolverine over their shared love for Jean Grey. He isn’t the best developed and he should have had a bigger role later on, but his power is very cool and James Marsden is charismatic in the role.

8. Quicksilver

Of course Quicksilver had to be on this list. He was very good in ‘Apocalypse‘, but of course his shining moment came in ‘Days of Future Past’ where he had the most memorable and inventive sequence ever in the franchise. A hilarious and simply fun personality, he successfully managed to enlighten the mood in the usually more serious films such as these.

7. X-23

This girl is one of the craziest X-Men characters of them all and one of the most memorable and interesting. She is brutal, animalistic and totally unhinged, yet she develops a deep connection with Logan himself and their scenes together are so heartwarming. Logan is truly such a great film and Laura is certainly one of the standouts when it comes to it and the best new X-Men character. I wish to see much more from her in the future.

6. Jean Grey

As the most powerful person on the entire team, Jean Grey had to be included here and even though she was never utilized as well as she deserved, it was still entertaining watching her at the height of her powers, particularly in ‘X2’ and ‘Apocalypse’. Her Phoenix form brought many of the best action sequences in the franchise.

5. Wolverine

I get that Logan would usually populate higher slots on most of the other lists, but in my opinion there are four better characters than him. But still you can’t deny his presence. Even though he was overused, he was the best in minor roles when he was quite funny. Hugh Jackman is naturally fantastic playing his role and he heightened what could have easily been a boring and ridiculous part. His defining and best moment of course came in amazing ‘Logan’ where he was moving even.

4. Mystique

I really like Mystique. None of the two actresses played the role satisfyingly, at least not in my opinion, but the character herself is awesome. In the first trilogy, she was just a villain. But in the later entries, she was much more fascinating in her conflicting nature and loyalty toward both Charles and Erik. She is one of the most complex and well developed X-Men characters for sure.

3. Deadpool

Deadpool is terrific, there is no denying that. He only has one movie so far, but he made such a huge impact that he had to take the third spot on my list. Ryan Reynolds is so admirable and passionate in the role and he is a character who is consistently hilarious and fun from the beginning to the end of the flick. He is such a great personality who made fun of the many genre clichés beautifully and is one of the funniest movie characters in recent memory.

2. Magneto

Ian McKellen was superb as Magneto, but the younger version played by Michael Fassbender is my favorite. Menacing and immensely powerful, but also conflicting, complex and ultimately good at heart, he is a very interesting character in every film he appeared in and watching his relationship with Charles unfold was a tremendously rewarding, emotional experience. A superbly developed character for sure and watching him in action was a lot of fun too.

1. Professor X

Everything I said above applies here as well. Patrick Stewart is terrific, but again the younger version with James McAvoy is the more memorable and complex one. Watching his road from inexperienced and fearful to calm and powerful was superbly crafted and dramatic. He is the type of wise person who is surely familiar by now, but he is better than most as we’ve seen him progress and had a lot of difficulties overcome. His relationship with Erik is complex, but his relationship with Mystique is just as well established. Whether alone or interacting with others, he is the rare good guy and hero who is actually a great, memorable character which is why he topped my list.