When Cyclops 'died' by merging with Apocalypse at the end of the Twelve storyline, his passing provoked a huge outpouring of stories from the grieving fans. This was one of the best, in my opinion, dealing with Warren Worthington's complex relationship with one of his oldest friends.

Colossus had been having a lousy time in the x-books all the way through the nineties, and was all too often bashed in fanfiction as well. Then his death was used a gratuitous plot device. Not everyone had forgotten about the man he used to be, though ... or, rather, the many men.

Doug Ramsey died. Warlock died. Then a thing that wasn't Doug or Warlock came back and got its own book. Brian Doyle is probably Cypher's biggest fan, and his take on a spare moment during that short-lived title is gently humorous and touching.

This story manages to deal with not one but two wasteful ends, in an appropriately poetic fashion. Anything more would give the game away. It's all about ... balance.

Due to the odd nature of the x-books, there's one group of characters who die all the time - Mr. Sinister's Marauders. Rossi explores how the cosmos deals with this conundrum in this nice little crossover.

Henry McCoy loses a bet, drinks a bottle of wine, and muses.