DNX Story Guide
DNX
You picked up DNX #1 and immediately noticed something strange. Beast is white. And somehow, there's another Beast running around too.
Yeah. We should probably explain that.
Quick Catch-Up
You do not need to read years of X-Men comics before jumping into DNX.
Here's the important part:
There are currently two versions of Hank McCoy — Beast in the story.
The familiar blue Beast is fighting alongside the X-Men.
The other Hank?
That's where things get complicated.
During the Krakoa era, Hank McCoy became increasingly ruthless in the name of protecting mutantkind. That path eventually took him far from the heroic X-Man his friends once knew.
Now an older, more dangerous version of Hank has emerged as the Chairman, leader of the mysterious organization known as 3K.
And yes:
But the color change isn't the real problem.
Cyclops and the Chairman both experienced a possible future known as the Age of Revelation.
They came back with two very different ideas about what should happen next.
Two Visions of the Future
At the center of that conflict is the X-Virus. While the X-Men attempt to stop the future they witnessed, the Chairman begins moving forward with a plan to unleash the X-Virus in a major population area.
And that's where DNX begins.
The Really Short Version
Want the Full Story?
If you're thinking:
“Hold on…how did Beast become the bad guy?”
Oh, there's a story there.
Keep going.
How Did Beast Get Here?
We'll trace the major moments that transformed Hank McCoy from one of the X-Men's most recognizable heroes into the man behind 3K.
Shop DNXHow Did Beast Get Here?
Hank McCoy wasn't always the man behind 3K. For most of his history, Beast was one of the X-Men's most recognizable heroes. So what happened?
The Heroic Beast
Hank McCoy began as one of the original X-Men and spent years as a scientist, Avenger, teacher, and trusted member of the mutant community.
Krakoa Changes Everything
When mutants established the island nation of Krakoa, Beast became a leader of X-Force, essentially serving as part of Krakoa's intelligence and security operation.
Hank became obsessed with protecting Krakoa at any cost.
The Line Keeps Moving
Protecting mutantkind gradually became Hank's justification for increasingly brutal decisions. He created secret prisons, experimented on prisoners, manipulated Wolverine, and crossed lines his teammates could no longer ignore.
Beast didn't suddenly wake up evil. His fall happened one compromise at a time.
X-Force Turns Against Him
Eventually, Hank's own teammates stopped seeing him as their commander and started seeing him as the threat.
X-Force moved against Beast, leading to a final confrontation over everything he had done in the name of protecting Krakoa.
Beast Returns...But Not Quite the Same Beast
In the final fight against Hank, X-Force brought another Beast into the picture: a version of Hank restored from an earlier point in his life, before his Krakoan fall.
This is the familiar blue Beast who now fights alongside the X-Men.
The Chairman
The original Hank's story wasn't over.
An older version of Hank emerged as the Chairman, leader of 3K — carrying forward the darker path Beast began walking during the Krakoa era.
Now the X-Men aren't just fighting another villain.
They're fighting what Hank McCoy became.
DNX Turns Beast Against Himself
The blue Beast now has to confront a living version of the path he could still become. That makes the conflict with the Chairman more than another X-Men battle — it's a fight over Hank McCoy's identity, legacy, and future.
Who's Who in DNX?
You don't need to memorize every mutant in the Marvel Universe. These are the people and groups you need to know going in.
Cyclops
Scott Summers is leading the X-Men into the DNX conflict. Like the Chairman, Cyclops experienced the possible future known as the Age of Revelation.
But Cyclops came back determined to make sure that future never happens.
Hank McCoy — Blue Beast
This is the Beast currently fighting alongside the X-Men: a restored version of Hank from an earlier point in his life, before the darkest years of his Krakoa-era transformation.
Now he's faced with something uniquely terrifying: a living version of what he himself could become.
Hank McCoy — White Beast
The Chairman is an older, more ruthless Hank McCoy and the leader of 3K.
He also experienced the Age of Revelation future — but instead of trying to prevent it, he returned believing that its power could be controlled and used.
3K
3K is a radical organization devoted to creating more mutants — regardless of the cost.
Under the Chairman's leadership, the group sees mutant evolution as something that can be engineered, accelerated, and weaponized.
The Fantastic Four
The X-Men turn to Reed Richards and the Fantastic Four for help as the X-Virus crisis begins to escalate.
Their involvement expands DNX beyond a mutant conflict and brings some of Marvel's greatest scientific minds directly into the fight.
Remember It This Way
DNX Reading Order
Good news: you don't need to read every X-Men comic ever published. Pick the path that works for you.
Just Want to Read DNX?
Start here. These issues give you the immediate setup without sending you down a giant continuity rabbit hole.
Meet the Chairman and discover the terrifying truth behind his connection to Beast.
3K closes in on a working version of the X-Virus and turns its attention toward Magneto.
The event begins. The X-Men and 3K collide over the X-Virus, and the Fantastic Four are pulled into the crisis.
The issue gives readers enough context to follow the main conflict. The two X-Men prologues simply make the setup richer.
Go Deeper: Age of Revelation
The X-Virus didn't begin with DNX.
If you want to understand the future Cyclops and the Chairman are reacting to, read the Age of Revelation storyline before the DNX prologues.
It's completely optional — but it gives much more context to why the X-Men are so desperate to stop this future from becoming real.
Keep Reading From Here
DNX continues across the main event series with tie-ins in X-Men and Fantastic Four.
This Story Guide will continue to be updated as new DNX chapters are released.
Where Do I Go Next?
Once you've started DNX, here's what to look for next. We'll keep updating this guide as new chapters are released.
Continue with X-Men #37
The DNX conflict continues as the X-Men battle 3K while Kid Omega faces Cassandra Nova in a psychic confrontation.
September 30, 2026
The X-Men and 3K clash above Philadelphia while the Fantastic Four help fight to save Magneto.
The Fantastic Four enter the DNX story in a tie-in that puts the team in a dangerous and disorienting new situation.
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