X-Men: Krakoa's Quiet Council, Explained

Krakoa is the Quiet Council’s world, and the rest of mutantkind is just living in it. Ever since the mutant nation was founded, the Quiet Council has brought 12 leaders together to govern Krakoa and steer it toward a better future. But in the SINS OF SINISTER timeline, Mister Sinister corrupted the Quiet Council by transforming its members into warped reflections of himself, which allowed him to take over the world.

Now, in Kieron Gillen and Paco Medina's IMMORAL X-MEN (2023) #1, Sinister’s Quiet Council has reshaped the mutant-controlled future he built. Let’s take a look back at how Krakoa’s original Quiet Council came together, which mutant leaders joined the group, and how it charted a new future for mutants before Sinister set the SINS OF SINISTER timeline into motion.

HOW DID THE QUIET COUNCIL FORM?

Shortly after Professor X revealed Krakoa’s existence to the world in HOUSE OF X (2019) #6 by Jonathan Hickman, Pepe Larraz, Marte Gracia, David Curiel, and VC's Clayton Cowles, the Quiet Council of Krakoa assembled for the first time. The Quiet Council brings 12 voting members together to govern the mutant nation, establish and interpret its laws, and determine its official policies on a broad range of topics. 

Like much of Krakoa, the Quiet Council was designed by Charles Xavier and Magneto, with Moira MacTaggert acting as their silent partner. With the mutant ability to be reborn with knowledge of her previous lives, Moira used her memories of how mutant nations failed in other timelines to guide the development of Krakoa and keep it from repeating the mistakes of her past. 

Unlike previous attempts to create a sustainable mutant nation, Krakoa invested heavily in developing and exporting medicine to the human world in exchange for official recognition on the international stage. To facilitate all of this economic activity, Xavier and Magneto invited Emma Frost to join the Quiet Council, along with her fellow Hellfire Club associate Sebastian Shaw. As part of her agreement to join, Frost also reserved the right to recruit a Quiet Council member of her choosing in POWERS OF X (2019) #5 by Jonathan Hickman, R.B. Silva, and Marte Gracia. Krakoa also offered citizenship and amnesty to all of the world’s mutants, which set the stage for Apocalypse to take his place among Krakoan leadership after promising to obey Krakoan law.

With several X-Men, Hellfire Club members, and reformed villains serving on it, the Council draws members from a wide swath of mutants, most of whom were either recruited by Xavier and Magneto or made deals with them to join. The Council itself is divided into four tables, each with its own ostensible purpose.

WHO IS ON THE QUIET COUNCIL?

Initially, Xavier and Magneto joined Apocalypse on the Autumn table, where the influential mutant leaders oversee mutant-human relations. At the Spring table, Emma Frost and Sebastian Shaw represent the Hellfire Trading Company, which oversees the official and illicit distribution of Krakoan medicine, as well as the island’s other imports and exports. At Frost’s request, Kate Pryde also joined this table, where she oversees the Marauders’ efforts to rescue mutants who cannot freely travel to Krakoa. 

The Winter table includes Mister Sinister, Exodus, and Mystique, who collectively represent the most radical and amoral factions of mutantkind. Xavier and Magneto believed these mutants could create problems for Krakoa, and they unofficially put them on the Council to keep them under close watch. To balance out their influence, Storm, Nightcrawler, and Jean Grey made up the initial members of the Summer table, which gathers X-Men veterans to represent Krakoa’s most fair-minded and just mutants. 

The living island of Krakoa and its translator Cypher have non-voting adjunct seats in the Quiet Council, where they represent the interests of the island itself. The Council also works closely with the Great Captains of Krakoa, a group of four battle-tested mutants who oversee the defense of Krakoa and have the authority to take charge in a crisis.

The Quiet Council has also gone through a handful of membership changes since its inception. At the end of X OF SWORDS, Apocalypse left both Krakoa and the Quiet Council to join his ancient family in the Amenth dimension. As a result, the precognitive mutant Destiny took over his seat on the Council, shortly after her wife Mystique secretly resurrected her. 

When Jean Grey left the Quiet Council to help Cyclops reform the X-Men as a Manhattan-based Super Hero team during INFERNO (2021), Colossus took her place on the Quiet Council. After spearheading the effort to colonize Mars for mutants and turn it into the planet Arakko, Magneto also retired from the Quiet Council. 

After considerable deliberation, Hope Summers took over Magneto’s seat on the Council’s Autumn table so that she could represent the interests of the Five, the mutants involved in Krakoa’s resurrection process, beginning in IMMORTAL X-MEN (2022) #1 by Kieron Gillen, Lucas Werneck, David Curiel, and VC's Clayton Cowles.

WHAT HAS THE QUIET COUNCIL DONE?

During its first official meeting in HOUSE OF X (2019) #6, the Quiet Council of Krakoa established the three laws that govern the nation: do not harm humans, respect the sacred land of Krakoa itself, and make more mutants. After being judged by the Quiet Council, any mutant found guilty of breaking those laws is to be sent to the Pit of Exile, where they will be held perpetually in a stasis deep within the island. At their first meeting, the Quiet Council found Sabretooth guilty of killing humans and made an example of him by throwing him into the Pit. 

From their chambers in Krakoa’s Grove, the Quiet Council meets regularly to vote on policy, discuss problems, and receive information about the state of Krakoa or potential threats. The Quiet Council also officially sanctioned several groups, like the intelligence-gathering operation X-Force, the mutant investigations task force X-Factor, and the Hellions, a team of potentially dangerous and problem-causing mutants overseen by Mister Sinister.

THE QUIET COUNCIL IN CRISIS

After the events of X OF SWORDS brought Arakko and its millions of mutants to the Earth, the Quiet Council voted to approve Magneto’s plans to terraform Mars and transform it into the mutant-held planet Arakko. With this vote, the Quiet Council changed the cosmic order of the Marvel Universe by giving the Arakki a permanent home on Arakko, while establishing the planet as the capitol of the Solar System.

After Mystique resurrected Destiny against Moira’s wishes, Magneto and Xavier revealed their relationship with MacTaggart to Emma Frost. Mystique subsequently attacked and depowered Moira, so MacTaggart went on the run and started working against Krakoa. Although Moira’s role in Krakoa’s founding is still hidden from mutantkind as a whole, the rest of the Council learned about her involvement in INFERNO (2022) #4 by Jonathan Hickman, Valerio Schiti, Stefano Caselli, David Curiel, and VC's Joe Sabino.

Shortly after the secret of mutant resurrection went public, the Eternals launched an attack on Krakoa in A.X.E.: JUDGMENT DAY (2022) #1 by Kieron Gillen, Valerio Schiti, Marte Gracia, and VC's Clayton Cowles. As this crisis led to the creation of a destructive artificial Celestial called the Progenitor, members of the Quiet Council fought alongside the Eternals and Avengers. 

As part of his plans to evolve into a godlike being, Mister Sinister cloned Moira and used her timeline-resetting power to manipulate events to his liking. After killing several Quiet Council members, Sinister took control of Xavier, Emma Frost, Hope Summers, and Exodus by implanting his personality in them during the resurrection process in IMMORTAL X-MEN (2022) #10 by Kieron Gillen, Lucas Werneck, David Curiel, and VC's Clayton Cowles. 

Since then, Sinister has expanded his control over the Quiet Council and used it to take over the world. Now, Sinister’s grasp over the Quiet Council is starting to slip, and the Quiet Council’s members have revealed their own plans for Sinister’s future in IMMORAL X-MEN (2023) #1 by Kieron Gillen, Paco Medina, Walden Wong, Victor Olazaba, Jay David Ramos, Chris Sotomayor, and VC's Clayton Cowles.

Don't miss the Quiet Council's latest machinations in IMMORAL X-MEN #1, on sale now!

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