The First X-Men #[nn]

A young, clawed Wolverine leads a scrappy band of early mutants charging forward on this Neal Adams-drawn trade paperback collection — behind him stand a white-haired woman, a powerfully built silver-haired man, and several other determined figures, all pursued by massive mechanical robots bearing down from above. Writers Neal Adams and Christos Gage team up to explore the untold story of mutantkind's earliest days in "Children of the Atom," and Adams's kinetic linework gives the whole cover a raw, urgent energy that fits the era perfectly. If you've ever wondered what the mutant world looked like before Charles Xavier assembled his famous students, this 2013 Marvel collection makes a compelling case for picking it up.