X-Men: The 20 best characters of the last decade

12. Young Jean Grey

The original X-Men were brought into the present when they were young. Beast needed his younger self to help him from dying due to his continuous mutation. He assumed he could send them right back. It didn’t happen and they found themselves stuck in the present.

This might have seemed like a silly concept on paper, but it ended up being a very entertaining one. More than that, their younger selves became even better characters. The best of them was undoubtedly Jean Grey.

Jean did something that she didn’t do in the past; since Cyclops was still hesitant to lead, she took the reins and did a terrific job.

During her time in the present, Jean helped her comrades during the Black Vortex series. She held her own when the Shi’ar tried to kill her for a crime she didn’t commit (yet). And she was crucial in helping defeat Mojo and his cast of flunkies. That’s all on top of becoming a stronger telekinetic and telepath.

It was nice seeing a young Jean Grey who wasn’t held back by any inhibitions. This Jean Grey helped save her team on multiple occasions. Without her, there would have been more than a few instances in which her friends would have died.

It’s a shame she had to go, but it was fun while it lasted.