Summary

• Mr. Sinister's character has evolved from a shadowy scientist to a loud and boisterous evil mastermind.
• His outrageous and extra behavior is showcased through his absurdly over-the-top actions and wild quotes.
• Mr. Sinister's excessive and flamboyant personality sets him apart as the X-Men's most extra villain.

Nathaniel Essex aka Mr. Sinister is one of the most prominent villains in the antithesis of everything the X-Men represent, as he’s a living perversion of mutation while the X-Men shine bright as mutant heroes. But more than anything else, Mr. Sinister is the X-Men’s most extra villain.

Mr. Sinister being considered ‘extra’ is truthfully a fairly new development for his character, as he was originally more of an evil mad scientist than anything else. Sinister was a slimy villain who lurked in the shadows, having others do his bidding (like the infamous X-Men event the Mutant Massacre), and secretly stealing DNA from those whose genes he wanted to use for his experiments. But then, House of X and Powers of X happened.

The House of X/Powers of X event didn’t just redefine the entirety of X-Men canon, but also Mr. Sinister himself. Essex went from being a shadowy scientist to a loud and boisterous evil mastermind, complete with absurdly over-the-top actions, ittedly incredible style, and - of course - absolutely wild quotes. Here are just 10 of those quotes that prove true how extra Mr. Sinister became in X-Men’s post-House of X/Powers of X world!

10 “We really can’t be bothered with the sad problems of sad people…”

Powers of X #4 by Jonathan Hickman and R.B. Silva

While this was technically said by a clone of Mr. Sinister, current X-Men fans know that there’s really no other kind of Mr. Sinister, as the original Nathaniel Essex made multiple clones of himself to test different avenues towards his version of ultimate power. Therefore, any clone of Mr. Sinister is as much Mr. Sinister as the original Mr. Sinister, including this Mr. Sinister, who said this absolutely outrageous statement totally unprompted.

Magneto and Professor X approach Bar Sinister seeking Essex’s help with the mutant resurrections that would eventually become commonplace on Krakoa. When they approached the door, the doorman greeted them with this line, saying that they had better not be there looking for a handout, not because Bar Sinister doesn’t have enough to give, but because, “we really can’t be bothered with the sad problems of sad people…”, which is just a level of sass coming from Mr. Sinister that was utterly uncalled-for in that situation.

9 “I. Love. That. Cape.”

Powers of X #4 by Jonathan Hickman and R.B. Silva

When Magneto and Charles finally made it inside Bar Sinister, the Essex who claimed to be in charge stopped them before they even spoke, looked at Magneto, and said “I. Love. That. Cape.”, hitting each word with emphasis to fully convey his iration for Magneto’s fashion sense. While Magneto and Professor X were there to talk to Mr. Sinister about a new mutant nation, Essex wanted to discuss Magneto’s cape - which is so extra it’s hilarious.

Of course - being Mr. Sinister - Essex quickly turned this lighthearted moment dark and violent, as he ordered his lesser clones to kill the clone that seemingly acted as his butler for not getting him a cape before he knew he wanted one. Which, in all honesty, is probably more extra than the quote itself.

8 “My mutant power is overthrowing tyrants and being absolutely fabulous.”

Powers of X #4 by Jonathan Hickman and R.B. Silva

After Charles and Erik finally get to the point of their visit, they say that they know Mr. Sinister has given himself the X-Gene, and is therefore a mutant, as opposed to simply being the mutate that was originally created by Apocalypse. Sinister vehemently denies this, saying that he played around with introducing the X-Gene, but that it never took. Then he got shot in the head, and the actual Mr. Sinister that’s in charge took center stage.

After shooting his non-mutant clone in the head, Mr. Sinister turns to Professor X and Magneto and says, “Psst! It’s me! The Sinister with the mutant gene. And if you must know, my mutant power is overthrowing tyrants and being absolutely fabulous.”. The ‘extra-ness’ in not just the quote, but the action of shooting his clone in the head before saying it, speaks for itself.

7 “Apocalypse is a blue man with a very bad temper.”

Fallen Angels #1 by Bryan Hill and Szymon Kudranski

While Mr. Sinister is speaking with Psylocke about a new villain that just hit the scene, Psylocke expresses her concerns over the threat level of this powerful enemy, saying that she fears a coming apocalypse. To that, Mr. Sinister snidely comments, “Apocalypse is a blue man with a very bad temper. And none of my concern”. This quote is more than just a snarky retort, but it is also a callback to Mr. Sinister’s origin, which speaks to how much he’s changed in the Krakoan Era.

Not only did Dawn of X turn Mr. Sinister from a shadowy scientist into an extra villain, but it also allowed him to grow beyond his desire to create a mutant strong enough to kill the man who created him, Apocalypse - and this quote confirms both.

6 “If I have to behave, everyone does!”

Hellions #1 by Zeb Wells and Stephen Segovia

During a meeting of the Quiet Council with the other leaders of the mutant nation, Mr. Sinister is sitting in judgment of a handful of mutants who have broken the laws of Krakoa. Despite all the heinous evil he’s been responsible for in the past, Mr. Sinister callously blurts out, “If I have to behave, everyone does!”, which he follows up by calling for all of them to be thrown into the Krakoan Pit.

By being so quick to exile these mutants, it’s as if Mr. Sinister is rubbing the evil of his own past in the faces of everyone around him, knowing that they can’t do anything about it. Sinister is in a position to judge others, knowing that his past cannot be used against him, and this quote puts on full display a power trip that’s just as extra as he is.

5 “Everyone relax! Unclench please! Eyes over here! I’ve had an idea! Yaaaaay!!!”

Hellions #1 by Zeb Wells and Stephen Segovia

As if to purposely give everyone on the Quiet Council whiplash, Mr. Sinister realizes that he doesn’t want to simply absentmindedly throw these mutant criminals into the Krakoan Pit, as he’s found a use for them to fulfill his own wants and desires. This is the moment Mr. Sinister becomes the leader of the new team of Hellions, and the way he announces it is absurdly extra.

Mr. Sinister shouts at the top of his lungs, telling everyone to relax, that he’s had an idea, and they should be celebrating his genius, saying also that he ‘knows everyone on the Council secretly looks up to him’. Essentially, Sinister just takes up way too much of everyone’s time with his own excessive behavior. And the worst part? He does it just because it’s fun.

4 “An assault on Sinister is an assault on the Council! An assault on the Council is an assault on Krakoa!”

Hellions #18 by Zeb Wells and Stephen Segovia

When the Hellions’ usefulness to Mr. Sinister ran its course, he once again called for all of them to be thrown into the Pit. However, Sinister took things a step beyond simply calling for their imprisonment, as he took some personal jabs at Psylocke as well, to which she responded with physical violence - violence the other council didn’t immediately stop. At that point, Sinister became enraged, screaming about how - given his position as a council member - an assault on him was an assault on the entire nation, which is an absolutely absurd assertion.

This moment highlights how extra Mr. Sinister really is, and it’s only made better by the Quiet Council’s decision to literally put a muzzle on him to allow these proceedings to continue more smoothly. Indeed, even his fellow council thought Mr. Sinister was being a bit much.

3 “To me, my me’s.”

Sins of Sinister #1 by Kieron Gillen, Lucas Werneck, Geoffrey Shaw, Marco Checchetto, Juan José Ryp, David Baldeón, Travel Foreman, Carlos Gómez, Federico Vicentini, David Lopez, Joshua Cassara, and Stefano Caselli

When Mr. Sinister found a way to effectively hijack Moira MacTaggert’s powers of reincarnation/universe-resetting, he - naturally - used them for his own gain. Essex littered countless timelines with alternate versions of himself, some of whom were brought to life through the mutant resurrection protocol that he gained complete control over. And these weren’t just regular Sinister clones, either - not like the ones fans saw at Bar Sinister in Powers of X - these were classic characters who were imbued with pieces of Sinister’s essence, and that included the X-Men.

The opening page of this comic shows Mr. Sinister greeting a new crop of Sinister-imbued X-Men who had just been created through mutant resurrection, saying, “To me, my me’s” in a manner that perfectly mocked how Charles Xavier welcomed his X-Men back to life at the start of House of X. The parody was pretty on-the-nose, even for someone like Mr. Sinister, and the whole thing was decidedly extra.

2 “Gloat.”

Sins of Sinister #1 by Kieron Gillen, Lucas Werneck, Geoffrey Shaw, Marco Checchetto, Juan José Ryp, David Baldeón, Travel Foreman, Carlos Gómez, Federico Vicentini, David Lopez, Joshua Cassara, and Stefano Caselli

This is the final point of Mr. Sinister’s transcribed plan for becoming an extradimensional being existing outside of space and time: “Gloat”. In the Sins of Sinister event (which kicked off in this issue), Mr. Sinister lays out exactly how he's going to conquer the universe and transcend to ‘Dominion’ status. The plan consisted of the aforementioned ‘Moira Engine’ and hijacked mutant resurrection protocol to take over the Earth, become something greater than a god, and then - finally - “Gloat”.

This quote makes it seem like the only reason Mr. Sinister wants to reach godhood is simply to gloat about doing so. Not because it would ensure his existence throughout all of time, not because it would be a feat of scientific genius the likes of which no mortal has ever achieved, but to “Gloat”.

1 “I’m not even a crumb between the teeth of god!”

Sins of Sinister: Dominion #1 by Kieron Gillen, Paco Medina, and Lucas Werneck

When Sinister discovered that he wouldn’t achieve the Dominion Status he craved due to the fact that another ‘him’ (that also isn’t him) seemingly already did, he was cast into the Krakoan Pit by the Quiet Council for his countless crimes across multiple timelines. As he is being pulled into the Pit, Sinister screams about how he is nothing compared to the threat that’s out there, the threat that he says has already won.

This issue marked Mr. Sinister’s ultimate defeat, the lowest point in his life where he had nothing left to fight for, and wished only to convey the unfathomable level of hopelessness that surged through his entire being. And even then, he decided to scream something as dramatic as, “I’m not even a crumb between the teeth of god!”, which may have been true, but that doesn’t mean it wasn’t extra. That’s why this is one of the 10 quotes in Mr. Sinister’s more recent history that proves Nathaniel Essex is X-Men’s most extra villain.