[Fred le mallrat]

	Citation:
	This April, the X-Men are getting “sidekicks” in the form of Children of the Atom – a new team of teen mutants with ties to some classic X-Men characters, debuting in a new ongoing series. Written by Vita Ayala with art from Bernard Chang, Children of the Atom #1 introduces a new cast of characters who, judging by the R.B. Silva-drawn covers seen here, have similar powers or connections to Cyclops, Angel, Nightcrawler, Marvel Girl, Gambit, and possibly more – the exact full line-up hasn’t been revealed. “The initial seed of the idea actually came from [Editor] Chris Robinson: What if the X-Men had sidekicks?” Ayala explained in the series announcement. “My take on it became, what would actual kids from our current time be like, if they were X-Men sidekicks? What would Gen Z X-Men be like?” Credit: Marvel Comics Credit: Marvel Comics “I have never known a world without mutants and the X-Men, and to be able to create characters that would become part of the canon is wild. I love them very much. Bernard, Chris and I have worked so hard on them, and I was practically itching to let them out into the world so others could love them too,” Ayala continued. "What makes the new cast special to me is that they are reflective of a lot of people I know who look up to what the X-Men stand for, and have taken it upon themselves to further those ideals. These kids are exactly the kids who, in real life, have posters of Storm and Wolverine in their rooms, who grew up seeing them as heroes and want to live up to that.” Children of the Atom #1 is due out in April.