A Note to X-Men Fans

I've had a lot of people on twitter this week calling me a monster. Even more than usual. For which I would sincerely like to say "thank you."

The angry words have all been in response to the ending of WOLVERINE AND THE X-MEN #18, which features something terrible happening to one of our characters. Never before have I been so excited to have so many people telling me to go to hell. Believe it or not, I actually found it all rather endearing. Because it means you care.

As WOLVERINE AND THE X-MEN prepares to begin its second year, I just wanted to take a minute to say how grateful I am to everyone out there who has embraced the series. The story of the Jean Grey School for Higher Learning obviously has a different sort of setting and tone than any X-Men book we've seen in a while. But I've been thrilled and overwhelmed by the response.

This is exactly the sort of comic I want to be writing right now. So thank you for allowing me to continue to do so.

WOLVERINE AND THE X-MEN has always been about change. About school and parenthood. About growing up. About family, both the good and the bad kind. And as with any sort of family drama, there will occasionally be upheaval. That's where we're at right now. As we enter the second year of the series, we'll see the cast of the book shaken up a bit. We'll see new mutants, both good and bad. New teachers. New villains. New romances. New rivalries. But also the continuation of all those character arcs already set in motion, from Quentin to Iceman, from Idie to Husk, from Krakoa and the Bamfs to the all-new Hellfire Club. Nothing that is happening now is by accident. It's all part of the overall story. And it's all leading somewhere. I hope you'll stick with us for the journey.

So thanks again for all the hate mail. I truly appreciate it. Thanks for caring so much about a new character. In the newest and most oddball of X-Men books.

As always, thanks for reading.