WATCH ECCC: X-Men creators roundtable

The X-Men almost always have their backs against the wall, but on the third day of ECCC 2019, three creators came together to celebrate Marvel's mutants in a roundtable discussion. Artist Todd Nauck was joined on stage by the writing team of Lonnie Nadler and Zac Thompson, the duo behind the current Age of X-Man event that's running through June.

According to Nadler and Thompson, Age of X-Men shows an alternate world where the X-Men "win." However, there's an undercurrent of darkness beneath the surface of this mutant utopia.

"That's what the whole series is about," said Nadler. "We did a lot of research, going back to read some of the best X-Men events of the past. A lot of them deal with these dark dystopias, so we wanted to pay homage to that, but also do something new that people hadn't seen before. The X-Men are revered, and the entire world is mutants. They are no longer fighting for their rights, because everything is perfect. But nothing is ever quite perfect, so there's this underlying darkness beneath everything that slowly comes up as the series continues."

Nauck pointed out that he came to the panel in a casual cosplay of Rogue's classic costume from the '80s and also called the genderbent version "Brogue." Additionally, Nauck spoke about the influence that the first X-Men appearances on Spider-Man and His Amazing Friends had on his mutant fandom.

There are many other details to unpack from this extended panel. Be sure to watch the entire video to get them all!