Warning: Spoilers for Uncanny X-Men #8!The X-Men franchise loves establishing new complications in the story of Marvel’s merry mutants, and now Marvel has done it again with the introduction of the Avians, a strange new type of mutants. The Avians are shrouded in mystery, but what’s known about them so far promises that they’re a force to be reckoned with.

Uncanny X-Men #8 by Gail Simone and Javier Garrón has introduced a new twist to the mutant mythos, revealing the existence of the Avians, a group of five super-powerful mutant telepaths.

The issue features a battle between Professor X and the new bald telepath Scurvy, who reveals that both he and Xavier are Avians. According to him, so was Harvey, the now-deceased terminally ill child telepath seen throughout this series. Add on the mysterious "Prisoner X" - assumed until recently to be Xavier but now said to be "the last Avian" - and that’s four of the five.

The X-Men's Newest Subspecies of Mutants are the Telepathic "Avians"

Uncanny X-Men #8 by Gail Simone, Javier Garrón, Matt Wilson, and Clayton Cowles

Apart from apparently being all bald, there are only a few details connecting these seemingly disparate mutants. All five have a measure of telepathy but seem to exhibit their powers differently. Harvey could see the future, while Scurvy can manipulate emotions. Meanwhile, Xavier is a standard telepath, but a powerful one. The other element that connects the five is that, according to Scurvy, they’re all dying of inoperable brain tumors, meaning that Professor X could be the next mutant on the chopping block.

There’s still so much that readers don’t know about the Avians. It's possible that they're a one-time occurrence, but there could also be a lineage of powerful telepaths that fans have yet to understand. Many will be wondering if Scurvy knows about the Avians and what his connection to Prisoner X and Harvey is. The meaning of the Avian codename is also a mystery, leading to the natural question of whether these mutants are descended from birds - or whether they just have very fragile skeletons. It’s an odd name for a subspecies, especially one that’s come out of the blue like this. Hopefully the coming answers are satisfying.

Will This X-Men Twist Fare Better Than Previous Attempts to Redefine Mutants?

Are the Avians More Than Just a Bird-Brained Idea?

This new revelation is far from the first time that Marvel has tried to subdivide mutants into sub-groups. The most infamous example is the Lupines, a group from the abandoned retcon that suggested that Wolverine, Sabretooth, and other feral, animalistic mutants were actually "lupines," mutants descended from literal wolves. It’s hard to be anything but cynical about this newest revelation given the standard of quality we’ve seen in previous attempts. Maybe this newest X-Men twist can buck the trend and become a true part of the franchise that fans are willing to embrace with open arms - but it’s a tall order.

Uncanny X-Men #8 is available now from Marvel Comics.