X-Man #1

History

The title was conceived as the Age of Apocalypse stand-in for Cable, which was the ongoing Marvel series being published in Cable's slot at the time; since Cable himself could not exist in a world where Professor X died before founding the X-Men, writer Jeph Loeb and penciller Steve Skroce invented Nate Grey as the AoA universe's functional equivalent. What began as a four-issue miniseries was elevated to an ongoing series by reader demand — a decision almost without parallel among the AoA tie-in books, all of which ended when the event concluded. The issue was released with a cover date of March 1995 and an on-sale date of January 3, 1995, and was inked by a team of four (Kevin Conrad, Bud LaRosa, Mike Sellers, and Cam Smith), with colors by Michael Thomas and lettering by Richard Starkings.

Trivia · 8 facts

• First appearance and origin of Nate Grey (X-Man), created by writer Jeph Loeb and penciller Steve Skroce; on-sale January 3, 1995, cover-dated March 1995.
• Nate Grey is the Age of Apocalypse universe's (Earth-295) counterpart to Cable — genetically engineered by that reality's Mr. Sinister from the DNA of Cyclops and Jean Grey, making him a 'pure' psionic without the techno-organic virus that limits Cable's power.
• His given name, Nathaniel, is derived from Sinister's real name (Nathaniel Essex), and his surname Grey comes from his genetic mother Jean Grey.
• The issue directly replaced Cable in Marvel's publishing line-up for the duration of the Age of Apocalypse crossover event; it was the only one of the eight AoA replacement titles that continued as an ongoing series after the event ended.
• Issue story title is 'Breaking Away'; the GCD character manifest lists introductions for Nate Grey/X-Man as well as cameo appearances by Bishop, Magneto, and Domino (the AoA versions), with AoA Forge, Mastermind, Toad, Sauron, and Siryn (Sonique) also appearing.
• The series ran for 75 issues (March 1995–May 2001); after Loeb's initial arc, writing duties passed through John Ostrander and then Terry Kavanagh, who helmed the book for the majority of its run before Warren Ellis briefly revamped it as part of Marvel's 2000 Revolution initiative.
• X-Man #1–4 (the full AoA arc) have been reprinted in X-Men: The Complete Age of Apocalypse Epic Book 2 (2005) and in the X-Men: Age of Apocalypse Omnibus (2012).
• Nate Grey appeared as a hidden/unlockable character in the PSP version of the video game X-Men Legends II: Rise of Apocalypse, voiced by Quinton Flynn, and has appeared in the VS System and OverPower trading card games.

Full credits

Key issues in X-Man

Variants (2)