Yesterday, the final issue of Avengers vs. X-Men hit comic stands, and despite some rocky parts along the way in Bendis’ epic; the finale was immensely satisfying and has lasting effects for the Marvel Universe. Following the death of Professor X in the previous issue, they had to wrap everything up in this issue and deal with Dark Phoenix Cyclops once and for all. While the way they did it (the Scarlet Witch reset button) was a bit stupid, the result of that button being pressed does change the Marvel Universe in some really big ways and retcons one crossover that’s always bugged me.

In House of M, Scarlet Witch’s mental breakdown made mutants an endangered species. Following that crossover, the X-books became boring and annoying to me. There was just too much Cyclops crying that they’re on the brink of extinction, and after nearly a decade of that I simply couldn’t bother paying much attention to the books that I read obsessively twenty years ago. But in AvX, with Phoenix destroying Earth through Cyclops, Bendis used the Scarlet Witch reset button to eliminate Phoenix. Completely. Forever. The threat of Phoenix is no longer hanging over the X-Men books.

The side effect of her eliminating Pheonix shows mutants restored. They are no longer endangered. Billions of mutants fill the planet, and the X-book are restored to their post-House of M status in the Marvel U. Part of this sees Magneto and Emma Frost hunted as villains once again, and as someone who grew up with Emma Frost part of Hellfire Club; I could never get used to her as a “good” mutant. So that’s another change I’m really happy about.

Obviously, the other major change comes with Marvel itself who launches their Marvel Now! with Uncanny Avengers, which is a new book about a new Avengers team comprised of both mutants and Avengers.

It’s still soon after the finale, but looking back at AvX it’s so much better than Fear Itself and will likely be seen as a crossover whose lasting effects were generally well accepted by comic readers.