Giant-Size X-Men #1 is a special issue of theX-Mencomic book series, published byMarvel Comics in 1975. It was written byLen Wein and illustrated byDave Cockrum.Chris Claremont contributed to the plot, having conceived the idea ofPolaris using her powers to propelKrakoa into space, but went uncredited. Though not a regular issue, it contained the first new X-Men story in five years, titled "Second Genesis." The issue serves as a link between the original X-Men and a new team. Chronologically it is placed afterX-Men #66 and beforeX-Men #94. The 68-page book was published with a May 1975 cover date and distributed to newsstands in February of that year. The issue has been cited as a start point of thebronze age of comics, and is notable for expanding the membership of the X-Men from beyond the white American cast to one of a more international flavor, an attempt to attract more readers from outside the US,^[1] even if some characters were portrayed somewhat stereotypically.^{[2][3][4][5][6]}

TheX-Men title stopped producing new stories after #66 in March 1970. From December 1970 through April 1975, Marvel reprinted many of the older X-Men issues as #67–93. Following the May publication ofGiant-Size X-Men #1, Marvel began again publishing new issues ofX-Men with #94 in August 1975.^[7]

The comic also collects reprints fromX-Men #43, #47 and #57.^[8]

The story opensin medias res, withProfessor X recruiting a new team of X-Men, to rescue the original X-Men (Marvel Girl,Iceman andAngel, plus X-Men recruitsHavok andPolaris), who had disappeared on a mission to the island ofKrakoa, with only their leaderCyclops escaping. The new team consists ofSunfire andBanshee, who had been introduced in earlierX-Men comics;Wolverine, who had made his first appearance inThe Incredible Hulk #181 (Oct. 1974); and the newly createdStorm,Nightcrawler,Colossus, andThunderbird. These members are gathered from all over the world, and Professor X uses his telepathic powers to teach them all English so that they can communicate with each other.

The team soon learns that Krakoa is not just an island, but a giant mutant as well. Despite personality clashes among the individual members, as well as a fatality, the new team succeeds in rescuing the old X-Men and destroying the entity by shooting it into outer space with Polaris' power. The issue ends by posing the question of the future of a 13-member X-Men team.

The later storyline"Deadly Genesis" offers aret-con of this story, which tells how Professor X had initially recruited a different team before the events in this issue.

• Story, edits —Len Wein
• Pencils, cover inks —Dave Cockrum
• Cover pencils —Gil Kane
• Inks — Dave Cockrum & Peter Iro
• Letters —John Costanza
• Colors —Glynis Wein

The "Second Genesis" story was reprinted inClassic X-Men #1 in September 1986, with substantial editing to reduce its length, and a new backup story by Claremont andJohn Bolton bridging the gap between this and the following issue,Uncanny X-Men #94.

Marvel published a second issue ofGiant-Size X-Men later in 1975. This November issue had no new material, instead featuring reprints of stories fromX-Men #57, #58, and #59, written byRoy Thomas and illustrated byNeal Adams.^[9]

In 2005, Marvel published two newGiant Size X-Men issues to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the original. Issue #3 in July contained a story written byJoss Whedon and illustrated byNeal Adams. The issue also reprinted several older X-Men team-ups: the group's appearance inFantastic Four #28, an Avengers guest appearance inX-Men #9 and a story featuring Spider-Man inX-Men #35.^[10] In November,Chris Claremont penned a story for issue #4, with artwork by Neal Adams. It also reprinted material related to the death ofThunderbird fromX-Men #94-95,Classic X-Men #3 andUncanny X-Men #193.^[11]

The series has also been collected into a hardcover paperback titledGiant-Size X-Men: 40th Anniversary Edition. The hardcover collectsGiant-Size X-Men #1, 3-4;Classic X-Men #1;X-Men Origins: Colossus;X-Men Origins: Wolverine;X-Men: Deadly Genesis #1-6;What If? (1989) #9, #23; and material fromX-Men Gold #1. The second Giant-Sized issue was likely omitted, due to it being reprints ofX-Men #57-59. The 440-page paperback was released June 2015.ISBN 978-0-7851-9777-5)

FiveGiant-Size X-Men one-shots, all written byJonathan Hickman, were released as part of Marvel's 2019Dawn of X relaunch of itsX-Men books between February and September 2020. The first,Giant Size X-Men:Jean Grey andEmma Frost, was drawn byRussell Dauterman and colored byMatt Wilson.^[12] The second,Giant-Size X-Men:Nightcrawler, was drawn byAlan Davis and colored by Carlos Lopez.^[13] The third,Giant-Size X-Men:Magneto, was drawn by Ramon Perez and colored by David Curiel.^[14] The fourth,Giant-Size X-Men:Fantomex, was drawn and colored by Rod Reis.^[15] The fifth,Giant-Size X-Men:Storm, was drawn by Dauterman and colored by Wilson.^[16] A trade paperback collecting the five comics was published in December 2020.^[17]

In 2022, a sixth KrakoanGiant-Size X-Men one-shot,Giant-Size X-Men:Thunderbird, was published as a part of theDestiny of X event. The issue was co-written bySteve Orlando andNyla Rose and drawn byDavid Cutler.^[22]

To commemorate the 50th anniversary of the firstGiant-Size X-Men issue, it was announced that five one-shots written by writing duoCollin Kelly and Jackson Lanzing and illustrated byAdam Kubert, C.F. Villa and Francesco Manna, was released between May and August 2025. The event involvesMs. Marvel being pulled byLegion in a battle across time, where she encountered the X-Men during their most iconic moments in history and alternate timelines, including the "Second Genesis" and "The Dark Phoenix Saga" storylines and theAge of Apocalypse and "House of M" continuities. The event began withGiant-Size X-Men #1 and be followed byGiant-Size Dark Phoenix Saga #1,Giant-Size Age of Apocalypse #1,Giant-Size House of M #1 andGiant-Size X-Men #2. In addition, each issue features a back-upRevelations story.^[23][24]

• Comics by Len Wein
• Defunct American comics
• X-Men titles
• 1975 comics debuts
• Individual issues of comic series

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