‘X-Men ‘97’ Review — This Might Be the Best Marvel Series Ever
Image via Disney+
Twenty-seven years ago, the beloved X-Men: The Animated Series came to an end, but it never truly faded from the public consciousness—despite existing in an era where binging it meant hoping to catch reruns of all seventy-six episodes over consecutive weeknights.
In a move that surprised 90s kids everywhere, back in 2021, Marvel announced that X-Men: The Animated Series would be returning as X-Men ‘97. Now that the first two episodes are streaming on Disney+ and Episode 3 has already been screened, it’s safe to say that X-Men ‘97 might be the best series Marvel has ever put out. At least in the new era of Marvel storytelling. Even more exciting is the fact that this is Marvel’s first X-Men project since they reclaimed the rights to the mutants, beating out Deadpool and Wolverine by a few months.
X-Men ‘97 picks up roughly a year after The Animated Series ended, following the “death” of Professor X. In his absence, the X-Men are struggling, both as a group and as mutants. Prejudice against mutants has reached a new fever pitch, as organizations like the Friends of Humanity spread dangerous and dehumanizing rhetoric about mutants. With Professor X gone, Scott (voiced by Ray Chase) has stepped up to lead the X-Men, though his focus is split between the group and his wife, Dr. Jean Gray (voiced by Jennifer Hale), and their unborn child, which sees him begin to consider leaving the X-Men altogether.
But his unofficial plans to leave the group come to a screeching halt when Magneto (voiced by Matthew Waterson) shows up at Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters, claiming to be the rightful heir to all that Xavier left behind in his will. This version of Magneto is a far cry from any version we’ve seen on screen before and somehow more compelling than nearly every version of him on the page too. The storytelling X-Men ‘97 offers to him in just the first three episodes paints him as a deeply nuanced and morally grey anti-hero—not a villain—just as he should be.
‘X-Men ‘97’ Delivers Romances in Unexpected Ways
Image via Disney+
X-Men: The Animated Series never shied away from exploring more mature avenues of storytelling. For a lot of kids in the 90s, X-Men was the source of their first animated crushes and their first brush with shipping characters. For instance, X-Men: The Animated Series is the reason why I am a lifelong fan of Gambit and Rogue’s sugar-sweet romance, which is why it’s so surprising that I am a-ok with the unexpected love triangle X-Men ‘97 serves up.
Rogue (voiced by Lenore Zann) and Gambit (voiced by AJ LoCascio) are very much involved with each other when X-Men ‘97 begins, but things get really interesting for this pairing once Magneto is on the scene. The Magneto-Rogue-Gambit love triangle was wholly unexpected, but after getting one look at Magneto’s flowing white Witcher hair and devilish charms, who can blame Rogue for rekindling an old flame? She can have her sweet-talking Cajun and her power-hungry bad boy Magneto. Okay?
Beyond this delicious love triangle, X-Men ‘97 also dances around a handful of other fan-favorite ships. While Jean and Scott are happily married and expecting their first child together, the series doesn’t forget that Logan (voiced by Cal Dodd) has always had a thing for Jean. Our beloved short king delivers a healthy dose of pining, though it’s unclear if it will amount to anything—particularly considering Jean’s condition. While love triangles, or rather unrequited love triangles, seem to be all the rage in the series, hormones are raging all over the place, too.
X-Men ‘97 lives up to the expectations laid out by the original series, which was from a bygone era where cartoons aimed at children could be a little weird and a little horny for the benefit of their parents who were watching them. While the new series is very much a PG-rated series, there are still plenty of snarky comments and innuendos thrown in for the millennials reliving their childhood. The children watching won’t bat an eye at Gambit’s slutty little crop top or Morph’s voyeurism, but we will. And it’s so refreshing.
‘X-Men ‘97’ Has a Lot of Potential
From the first three episodes, it’s clear that X-Men ‘97 has some very big plans in store for everyone’s favorite mutants. Episode 3, in particular, takes the series in an absolutely insane direction that has me very excited about where things are headed. In addition to the core fan-favorite slate of X-Men characters, including Storm (voiced by Alison Sealy-Smith), the first handful of episodes does a great job of introducing audiences to less familiar characters like Jubilee (voiced by Holly Chou), Morph (voiced by JP Karliak), and Sunspot (voiced by Gui Agustini).
The series continues with the more episodic feeling that The Animated Series perfected while threading in an overarching plot that is poised to deliver some insane storytelling. It’s unbelievably exciting to have the X-Men back on our screens and at their very best with X-Men ‘97. The sky is the limit for this series—which is good, considering some of these characters can actually fly.
Final Verdict: A+
The first two episodes of X-Men ‘97 are streaming now on Disney+. Check out the epic trailer below:
