X-Men Is Finally Unleashing the Ultimate Form of a Founding Hero

Summary Rachel Summers plans to manifest the Phoenix on an undreamt-of scale using experiences from multiple realities.

Jean Grey is prepared for the Phoenix's return in X-Men Forever #2, changing everything the X-Men knew.

The new symbiosis between Jean Grey and the Phoenix grants incalculable power levels to fight against the Engima Dominion.

Warning: SPOILERS for Dead X-Men #4, Rise Of The Powers Of X #4, and X-Men Forever #2With countless powerhouses and Omega-level heroes at their disposal, the X-Men have long been some of Marvel Comics’ most powerful heroes. Icons like Storm or Magneto quite literally have the power to reshape the world if they so choose, but even their considerable might pales before the team’s most powerful hero – the Phoenix. But Jean Grey’s newest incarnation makes this an all-new Phoenix that fans have never seen before.

Dead X-Men #4 by Steve Foxe, David Baldeón, Bernard Chang, Vincenzo Carratù, Frank Martin, and VC’s Cory Petit establishes the plans of Rachel Summers to manifest the Phoenix on an undreamt-of scale. Her plan is to use the ambient experiences collected by Prodigy’s connection through the M’kraan Crystal to Moira X’s ten lifetimes – along with every living person in those realities.

Rachael aka Askani catalyzes a blueprint for the reborn Phoenix within Krakoa in X-Men Forever #2 by Kieron Gillen, Luca Maresca, Federico Blee, and VC’s Clayton Cowles as she prepares her mother, Jean Grey, for the entity’s return. But the ascension doesn’t stop there.

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The Phoenix’s Return Changes Everything

The X-Men Can’t Comprehend What They’ve Revived

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Running concurrently with X-Men Forever #2, Rise Of The Powers Of X #4 by Gillen, Cowles, R.B. Silva, and David Curiel continues the Phoenix’s resurrection rites as the Dead X-Men place Jean on a pyre within the White Hot Room – a pyre that can only be lit by Jean’s own flames as seen in X-Men Forever #2. The resurrection is successful, and Jean herself confirms the entity’s desire to fight for survival. But with this new level of power at its disposal, this Phoenix changes everything the X-Men knew. And that’s what mutants need when facing the Engima Dominion.

Jean Grey and the Phoenix have been intertwined for decades, but this new symbiosis is unlike anything that’s come before.

The Phoenix has always retained a unique place within Marvel Comics’ celestial hierarchy of power. Described as “fire and life incarnate,” it's always been thought that the entity’s power was limitless. But it’s clear that this new iteration dwarfs anything that the X-Men – or the fans – have seen before. With such power, it’s no wonder that the upcoming From The Ashes relaunch features a new ongoing Phoenix solo series by Stephanie Phillips and Alessandro Miracolo taking Jean to the farthest reaches of the cosmos. After all, with such celestial power, the X-Men icon can hardly stay put on Earth.

The Phoenix Is Too Big For Earth

Jean Grey’s Power Dwarfs The Cosmos

Jean Grey and the Phoenix have been intertwined for decades, but this new symbiosis is unlike anything that’s come before. Connected to every individual who ever lived, this new take on the iconic cosmic firebird has access to power levels that are incalculable in scale – meaning she’s just what the X-Men need to fight back against the Engima Dominion. And with the X-Men’s Krakoan dream burning around them, the Phoenix’s return from the ashes couldn’t come at a better time.