X-Men Annual #14

Name: X-Men Annual #14
Brand: Marvel

Jun 1990 · Marvel · 2.00 USD; 2.50 CAD

“You Must Remember This”

About this Issue

X-Men Annual #14 is the concluding chapter of 'Days of Future Present,' the 1990 summer crossover that served as a direct sequel to the seminal 'Days of Future Past' storyline, drawing together the X-Men, X-Factor, the New Mutants, and the Fantastic Four into a single, sprawling narrative arc spread across four annuals. The issue carries additional historical weight as the first published appearance of Gambit — a Cajun thief who would become one of the most popular X-Men of the 1990s — even though a production scheduling error caused the annual to hit stands weeks before Uncanny X-Men #266, the issue that was written and intended to introduce him. Beyond the Gambit controversy, the issue delivers major character beats: Jean Grey meets her future daughter Rachel Summers (Phoenix) for the first time, Ahab makes his debut as a recurring future-villain, and Wolverine delivers a thematic lecture to Franklin Richards and Rachel on the moral responsibility that comes with godlike power — a speech that encapsulates the core ethical argument of Chris Claremont's entire X-Men run.

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writer Chris Claremont · artist Arthur Adams · inker Dan Green · inker Bob Wiacek · inker Al Milgrom · inker Art Thibert · colorist Brad Vancata · letterer Tom Orzechowski · letterer Kevin Cunningham · letterer Tomoko Saito · inker Steve Mancuse · cover Art Adams Art Adams

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History

Written by Chris Claremont and edited by Bob Harras, the issue's lead story features pencils and inks by Art Adams, whose detail-dense, expressive style was already closely associated with the X-titles through earlier annuals and limited series. The back-up story, 'The Fundamental Things,' was drawn by Mark Heike. The issue was published in mid-June 1990 — the Grand Comics Database places its on-sale window between June 4 and June 18, 1990 — with a cover date of July 1990; because no month appeared in the indicia, this early release date went largely unnoticed by collectors for years, fueling the long-running debate over Gambit's 'true' first appearance. The crossover's writing credits were shared across its four component annuals by Claremont, Walt Simonson, and Louise Simonson, with X-Men Annual #14 representing Claremont's contribution as the finale.

Trivia · 7 facts

Fourth and final chapter of the 'Days of Future Present' crossover (1990), which ran through Fantastic Four Annual #23, New Mutants Annual #6, X-Factor Annual #5, and X-Men Annual #14 — a sequel to the classic 'Days of Future Past.'
First appearance of Ahab (Roderick Campbell), the future mutant-hunter and Master of the Hounds, who transforms Cyclops and the Invisible Woman into Hounds over the course of the story.
Jean Grey meets Rachel Summers (her future daughter from the 'Days of Future Past' timeline) for the first time within this storyline; Cyclops and Jean also refuse to accept Rachel's parentage, adding emotional complexity to both families.
Written by Chris Claremont; lead story pencilled and inked by Art Adams (with additional inks by Dan Green, Bob Wiacek, Al Milgrom, Art Thibert, and Steve Moncuse); back-up story 'The Fundamental Things' pencilled by Mark Heike; cover by Art Adams.
The issue contains a back-up story set in Madripoor where Wolverine — accompanied by Psylocke and Jubilee — lectures the omnipotent adult Franklin Richards and Rachel Summers on the X-Men's philosophy of using great power responsibly; Franklin ultimately restores baby Nathan Christopher Summers after having erased him earlier in the crossover.
The issue includes a one-page pin-up by Kevin Nowlan (featuring Wolverine, Colossus, Havok, and Longshot) and an alternate/unused cover by Michael Golden.
The story has been collected multiple times, including in the 1991 'X-Men: Days of Future Present' trade paperback, the 2014 oversized hardcover 'X-Men: Days of Future Past' (ISBN 978-0785184423), the 'Fantastic Four Epic Collection' Vol. 20 (2014), and the 'New Mutants Epic Collection' Vol. 7 (2020).