Uncanny X-Men #13

History

Kieron Gillen had been building toward Avengers vs. X-Men since Uncanny X-Men Vol. 2 launched in January 2012 as part of the X-Men: Regenesis initiative following the Schism split, with his stated goal from the outset being to organically set up the conflict between Cyclops' Utopia faction and the Avengers. Issues #11–13 form the series' AvX tie-in arc, with #13 — penciled by Billy Tan rather than series regular Greg Land — arriving on June 6, 2012, mid-event. Gillen later acknowledged that the entire 20-issue volume was shaped by the external scaffolding of Fear Itself, Schism, and AvX, yet critics at the time noted that his Uncanny scripts retained a distinct identity even while tethered to the crossover machinery.

Trivia · 8 facts

• Written by Kieron Gillen; pencils by Billy Tan; inks by Cam Smith and Craig Yeung; colors by Guru-eFX; lettering by Joe Caramagna; editors Jordan D. White, Daniel Ketchum, and Nick Lowe.
• Published June 6, 2012 (August 2012 cover date) as part of the Avengers vs. X-Men event — the final chapter of Gillen's three-issue AvX tie-in arc (#11–13) within Uncanny X-Men Vol. 2.
• The issue culminates in the Extinction Team members (Cyclops, Emma Frost, Namor, Colossus/Magik, and Illyana Rasputina) becoming the Phoenix Five after absorbing the Phoenix Force on the Moon.
• Unit, the imprisoned alien AI, is the issue's moral and narrative engine: he reveals to the Five Lights that Hope Summers functions as a Phoenix Messiah who requires five acolytes, and admits he deliberately withheld this from Hope to observe the outcome of an incomplete Phoenix bonding.
• The Five Lights — Transonic (Laurie Tromette), Velocidad (Gabriel Cohuelo), Primal (Teon Macik), and Pixie (Megan Gwynn) — appear prominently; all four had debuted earlier in the Vol. 1 run (Transonic and Velocidad in Uncanny X-Men #526, Primal slightly later), making this issue a significant later appearance consolidating their roles in the Phoenix mythology.
• The issue depicts Dr. Nemesis as having been injured in combat with Black Widow, and Storm, Magneto, and Psylocke are shown stranded at the 'X-Diaspora' unable to reach the Moon because Magik is elsewhere and Pixie is with the Lights — a logistical detail that grounds the cosmic action in character-level constraint.
• The cover art is by Adam Kubert and Morry Hollowell, distinct from the interior art team.
• The issue is collected in Uncanny X-Men Vol. 3 (trade paperback, collecting issues #11–14) and in the omnibus Uncanny X-Men by Kieron Gillen: The Complete Collection Vol. 2, which also includes AvX: Consequences #1–5.

Cast · 27 characters

Full credits

Key issues in Uncanny X-Men

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#1 Key event — Scott Summers

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#1 Key event — Scott Summers

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#1 Key event — Scott Summers

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#6 1st appearance — Hijack

Variants (1)