X-Men Officially Debuts New Costume For Iconic 90s Hero, His Best Of All Time

Published Sep 5, 2026, 6:30 PM EDT Robert Wood is a writer and editor based out of Cheshire, England. He is the author of 'The False Elephant: and 99 Other Unreasonably Short Stories' - 100 stories, each told in exactly 100 words. Rob got into comics via Bendis' Ultimate Spider-Man and the UK anthology 'The Mighty World of Marvel,' which was running Frank Miller's Daredevil, Classic Hulk and Contest of Champions II. Prior to journalism, he worked in copywriting and copyedited for Oxford University Press. He is on X as @PinchTwigs and Instagram as roobwoodjourno. Sign in to your ScreenRant account An X-Men hero who debuted in the '90s just introduced his best costume of all time, as Marvel reveals a streamlined red and black redesign. Here's everything you need to know. Marvel just launched new series Tomb of Apocalypse, following Wolverine and Jubilee as they explore a hidden facility packed with the iconic villain's secrets. However, the series also appears to be something of a love letter to '90s X-Men lore, especially its final page... While Jubilee and Wolverine represent the X-Men in their mission to rid Apocalypse's tomb of a group of Hydra-backed raiders, the villain has sent his own agents to offer some deadly back-up... X-Force's Shatterstar Reveals New Costume In the recent Tomb of Apocalypse #1 - from Ashley Allen, Domenico Carbone, Fernando Sifuentes and Joe Sabino - Apocalypse dispatches Shatterstar and Rictor to work alongside Jubilee and Wolverine, trusting the former X-Force members to enforce his will on Earth. Shatterstar appears in a fantastic new costume - a black top and chaps with white pants, a red cloak and cowl, and his signature swords. Introduced in 1991 and created by Fabian Nicieza and Rob Liefeld, Shatterstar is a gladiatorial slave from Mojoworld who escaped to Earth and became an ally of the X-Men. He was depicted by Lewis Tan in 2018's Deadpool 2 and 2024's Deadpool & Wolverine. Typical of '90s characters, most of Shatterstar's costumes have suffered from overdesign. His 2018 solo series streamlined his original costume, but this new look is even more cohesive, emphasizing the character's nature as a ninja badass while creating a clean silhouette and color harmony. Why Is Shatterstar Working for Apocalypse? In recent comics, Apocalypse admitted that his 'Survival of the Fittest' philosophy had failed mutantkind, and went into retirement on Mars, replaced by his successor Revelation (aka Doug Ramsey.) The villain is reluctant to return to Earth to protect his 'tomb,' but warns Jubilee that if she can't expel the invaders, he'll do so with extreme prejudice. Shatterstar isn't traditionally an ally of Apocalypse, but his longtime romantic partner and ally Rictor is, having studied magic under Apocalypse during the Krakoan Era. It appears this is why Shatterstar is willing to work as Apocalypse's enforcer, though the summary for issue #3 reveals the duo have a different agenda to Jubilee and Wolverine: MORE HORROR AWAITS IN THE TOMB! JUBILEE and WOLVERINE of the X-MEN have survived in APOCALYPSE's tomb of secrets...so far! At odds with RICTOR and SHATTERSTAR, who have other, secret aims for delving into the ancient one's base, these mutants have only just begun to discover what lies within - and exactly how much danger they're in! After all... whenever Apocalypse appears, his HORSEMEN are sure to follow! Bio-engineered as a near-perfect warrior, Shatterstar has an enhanced physiology and mind, with the ability to learn new skills at an incredible rate. He's also able to channel sonic blasts through his swords and cut X-shaped teleportation portals in thin air, though both abilities quickly exhaust him. Shatterstar Is Unrecognizable from Where He Started While Shatterstar is still visually similar to his debut, everything else about him has changed. Shatterstar began life as an alien gladiator who had zero familiarity with Earth customs and almost no emotions, living only for conflict. Later stories have humanized Shatterstar, introducing a romance with Rictor and a more adventurous identity, with side characters including the canine antihero Pug-Smasher. These details have been criticized by co-creator Liefeld, who in late-2000s posts from now-deactivated social media accounts expressed a desire to "fix" these changes and render Shatterstar an asexual gladiator once again. Liefeld has yet to introduce his desired changes (and is unlikely to do so, having declared his retirement from Marvel), but did introduce a similar female gladiator named 'Shatterstorm' in 2023's Deadpool: Badder Blood, with a characterization similar to Shatterstar's early stories. Since his debut in 1991, Shatterstar has gone from an emotionless gladiator to a fully fleshed-out part of X-Force and X-Men lore, now rocking his greatest costume yet as a badass agent of Apocalypse. Tomb of Apocalypse #1 is available now from Marvel Comics. Movie(s) X-Men (2000), X2, X-Men: The Last Stand (2006), X-Men Origins: Wolverine (2009), X-Men: First Class (2011), The Wolverine (2013), X-Men: Days of Future Past (2014), Deadpool (2016), X-Men: Apocalypse (2016), Logan (2017), Deadpool 2 (2018), Dark Phoenix (2019), The New Mutants, Deadpool & Wolverine (2024) First Film X-Men (2000) TV Show(s) X-Men: Pryde of the X-Men, X-Men (1992), X-Men: Evolution (2000), Wolverine and the X-Men (2008), Marvel Anime: Wolverine, Marvel Anime: X-Men, Legion (2017), The Gifted (2017), X-Men '97 (2024) Character(s) Professor X, Cyclops, Iceman, Beast, Angel, Phoenix, Wolverine, Gambit, Rogue, Storm, Jubilee, Morph, Nightcrawler, Havok, Banshee, Colossus, Magneto, Psylocke, Juggernaut, Cable, X-23 Video Game(s) X-Men: Children of the Atom (1994), Marvel Super Heroes (1995), X-Men vs. Street Fighter (1996), Marvel Super Heroes vs. Street Fighter (1997), Marvel vs. Capcom (1998), X-Men: Mutant Academy (2000), Marvel vs. Capcom 2: New Age of Heroes (2000), X-Men: Mutant Academy 2 (2001), X-Men: Next Dimension (2002), Marvel vs. Capcom 3: Fate of Two Worlds (2011), Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3 (2011), X-Men Legends (2005), X-Men Legends 2: Rise of Apocalypse (2005), X2: Wolverine's Revenge (2003), X-Men (1993), X-Men 2: Clone Wars (1995), X-Men: Mutant Apocalypse (1994) Comic Release Date 213035,212968 The X-Men franchise, created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby, centers on mutants with extraordinary abilities. Led by the powerful telepath Professor Charles Xavier, they battle discrimination and villainous mutants threatening humanity. The series explores themes of diversity and acceptance through a blend of action, drama, and complex characters, spanning comics, animated series, and blockbuster films.