About thirty years after the original X-Men: The Animated Series ended, X-Men ‘97 premiered exclusively on Disney+ on March 20. Fans of the original series were worried that this show would be a wannabe-nostalgic cash grab for Marvel to cash in on. However, everything is the exact opposite of what people feared. The series has seen love and support from new and old fans.
X-Men ‘97 is not a reboot of the original series, but rather a continuation created by Beau De Mayo. Previous works of De Mayo’s include The Witcher: Knightmare of the Wolf, Moon Knight, and Star Trek: Strange New Worlds. The show is currently sitting at an amazing score of 98% on Rotten Tomatoes with a 9/10 IMDb rating and I couldn’t agree anymore. So far, the first five episodes have hooked me and I feel that I need to see the story finish.
The main voice cast consists of new and returning voice actors. Two actors, Ray Chase (Cyclops), and Matthew Waterson (Magneto), stand out to me. I think Ray Chase has done a phenomenal job voice-acting Cyclops. The dry humor and sarcasm are something that really works for him as a character and add to his leader-ish personality.
Matthew Waterson makes Magneto a very likable character for someone who was previously a villain. I always love it when Magneto has his moments of monologue, his words can send chills down your spine or leave you inspired.
As someone with little experience with any X-Men media besides a few FOX movies, the show does an amazing job explaining the character’s relationships with each other. Within the first 10 minutes, I already understood how the original show ended: Charles Xavier, the previous X-Men mentor, died and the team must face challenges without him.
The first episode immediately jumps into the plot with a recurring mutant hate organization, the Friends of Humanity, kidnapping a young mutant named Roberto Da Costa. After some dialogue, an amazing action scene commences with X-Men members, Cyclops, Bishop, and Storm taking down the villains. I can’t think of a better way the show could have started. I loved the way Cyclops used his eye beams not just for attacking the enemies, but also for defensive maneuvering. Storm and Bishop had their moments in this fight but Cyclops takes the cake in this episode. As the episode progresses, more X-Men are introduced and we as an audience get a taste of the team dynamic with an unpredictable return from Magneto.
X-Men ‘97 introduces multiple enemies throughout all five episodes, however, episode three introduces the big bad villain who will be the biggest challenge for the X-Men; Mr. Sinister. In the original animated series, Mr. Sinister is introduced as a crazy genetic scientist from the Victorian era who has managed to make himself practically immortal by altering his own D.N.A.
Using other mutants’ genetics, he has been able to acquire the abilities of telepathy, telekinesis, superhuman traits, and powerful concussive blasts. He believes that through Cyclops D.N.A., he can create the ultimate mutant and so far, he has shown his capabilities to get what he wants.
It is easy to tell that the animation team really put their heart and soul into the series. The art is absolutely stunning with a mix of 3D and 2D animation that can offer mind-blowing visuals. Looking at the original show, I can tell that the animators tried sticking to the characters’ old designs, and it definitely paid off.
The writers of X-Men ‘97 took their time building these characters and created deep bonds with them and the audience in a matter of five episodes. The direction the series was been going has been shaken up multiple times and it hasn’t gotten old. Episode five’s plot twist demonstrates this by going from happy and vibrant to dark and gritty. I honestly cannot predict what will happen next.
Overall, everything about this show has been great and I can not wait to see how everything will lead to the conclusion. I strongly suggest watching this show before the series ends and spoilers become common knowledge. Episodes are released weekly every Wednesday on Disney+. The series is currently scheduled for ten episodes and possibly another season.
