More than a decade after X-Men: The Last Stand bungled its version of Chris Claremont’s “The Dark Phoenix Saga,” the reboot film series is finally going to do it right (fingers crossed) in Dark Phoenix, hitting theaters on February 14. There’s a new trailer that the internet doesn’t seem to like, but I’ll be damned if I’m not happy about the X-Men looking like they just stepped off of Grant Morrison’s New X-Men.
In the trailer for Dark Phoenix, a grand power hidden within Jean Grey (Sophie Turner) begins to surface, and somehow it’s all Charles Xavier’s (James McAvoy) fault. In X-Men comic book lore, the “Phoenix Force” is a powerful, cosmic energy that can inhabit hosts (mostly mutants) and imbue them with incredible powers. Throughout X-Men history, the Phoenix Force has been closely associated with Jean Grey. In 2016’s X-Men: Apocalypse, the reboot trilogy’s Jean Grey first revealed her Phoenix Force powers in the climactic battle.
It’s a big deal that the X-Men films are finally adapting Claremont’s “Dark Phoenix Saga,” instead of just lifting its most general elements (as seen in 2006’s The Last Stand). “Dark Phoenix” is a revered storyline that continues to define X-Men mythology even today. But while that’s all fine, I’m preoccupied with the new leather costumes the X-Men are outfitted.
When you think of "X-Men," the trailer for 'Dark Phoenix' is pretty much it.
Stylistically and aesthetically, these new costumes bear a strong resemblance to the Frank Quietly designs seen in New X-Men, the X-Men series penned by Grant Morrison that remodeled the X-Men for the 21st century. Next to the flight suits in 2011’s X-Men: First Class, these are the most “accurate” X-Men costumes ever put to screen.
Cover of 'New X-Men' Vol. 1 trade paperback, illustrated by Frank Quietly.
There are still differences, of course. And ironically, Quietly’s designs were meant to make the X-Men look modern, like the first X-Men film, and less “superhero-y” by outfitting them in biker leather instead of superhero spandex. But given that the films never really made the X-Men look like X-Men at all, these new costumes are the closest to the yellow spandex Hugh Jackman refused to wear.
Whether or not Dark Phoenix is a good movie, it’s a good sign that the X-Men finally look like X-Men.
Dark Phoenix hits theaters on February 14, 2019.
