Marvel is inching closer to its own version of the iconic Civil War, but this time with the X-Men. A new mutant registration legislation divides two key X-Men teams—led by Cyclops and Rogue—threatening the safety and integration of the mutant community into human society after the destruction of their sanctuary, Krakoa.
In X-Factor #5—written by Mark Russell with art by Bob Quinn—the Marvel universe explores a new chapter in the eternal struggle of mutants for freedom. The United States government, responding to threats from a mutant-led terrorist group, X-Term, has enlisted the help of X-Factor. However, the extremist group is gaining traction among America’s mutant population.
The freshly revealed “Mutant Surveillance Act” aims to encourage cooperation among mutants, distinguishing between the “good” and the “bad.” However, the act is more than just a means of control—it’s a dangerous method for tracking and controlling mutants, many of whom are hated across the country. Requiring individuals to publicly disclose their mutant status puts their lives at risk.
The original X-Factor, formed in response to the 1984 Mutant Registration Act (MRA), secretly operated as a liberationist group to save wrongfully imprisoned mutants. Now, the modern X-Factor may be forced to make similar choices. The new act threatens to divide mutantkind just as the original MRA divided Marvel’s mightiest heroes and villains.
The “Mutant Surveillance Act” could potentially lead to a similar fate as the original MRA, which led to a global Sentinel takeover in the Days of Future Past timeline. As the future of Earth-616 looks increasingly uncertain, the possibility of a mutant civil war looms large, especially with X-Factor’s leader, Havoc, disagreeing with the proposed legislation.
