20 X-Men we want to see in The Gifted season 2

Photo Credit: Marvel

19. Dust  

Sooraya Qadir is actually one of the few mutants who would be surprising absences if The Gifted didn’t include her in season two. The series introduced the mutant hate group, The Purifiers, last year and left off with the plot thread of someone high up who helped Otto von Strucker, known as Madeline Risman.

In the comics, Matthew Risman is the cruel leader of the hate group and he was quite a few run-ins with Dust that leave him scarred but vengeful. With the current social issues going on in the world, there’s a powerful message to be seen of a violent man who is desperate to hurt a young girl.

However, Sooraya isn’t as defenseless as people always assume. Born in Afghanistan, she was kidnapped by a slave-trading ring where she used her powers to attack her captors. While it separates her from her mother, she does get to meet the X-Men who immediately include her. Yet, her time on the team is rocky because many people are uncomfortable or don’t understand her decision to continue wearing hijab.

Dust never waivers in support of her culture or religion, and it’s refreshing to see a character value her roots so much. In The Gifted she could be portrayed as a girl on the run from Purifiers who the Mutant Underground eventually take under their wing. Her ability to turn herself into a burst of sand that she can control would definitely come in hand against Polaris since there’s no metal that could hurt her in that form.