To me, my X-Men fans! This sequel series to the beloved animated show from the 1990s is gratifying old and new audiences.
Upon its first two episodes simultaneously released, X-Men ‘97 received a perfect 100% score on Rotten Tomatoes from critics. This surpasses the highest-ranked Marvel movie, Black Panther (2018), which received a 96%.
Unique Features of the New Season
This new season is stacked full of classic superhero tropes, without being repetitive. Bright colours and that heavy metal theme that will be stuck in your head for weeks. It might also not matter having not seen the ’90s animated series beforehand. I haven’t myself but the new cartoon allows viewers to grasp the direction it wants to take.
It promises a run of ten episodes with all the familiar faces. The only excluded regular is mentor Professor Charles Xavier, who was dramatically killed off in the finale of the original show and his students are left to continue the fight for mutant rights.
This gives the new chapter a sturdy sense of pace as Xavier, despite his significance to the story, was the least interesting of the ensemble. The highlight of the original cartoon was to see the different personalities either in unison or butting heads whilst on missions and that is promised to take centre stage for these new adventures.
Character Highlights and Cast Returns
Much of the cast returns, including Cal Dodd (fan-favourite Wolverine), Lenore Zann (Rogue), George Buza (Beast) and Alison Sealy-Smith (Storm). It’s hard to believe that their original work was over thirty years ago as they slipped back into their roles like gloves. Ray Chase replaces Norm Spencer (who died in 2020) as Cyclops, the pragmatic team leader, and breathes distinct life into the character.
Advancements in Animation
X-Men ’97 alsoelevates its visual presentation with a sleeker animation style. While maintaining the tradition of hand-drawn animation, the series benefits from improved graphics and techniques from the modern world, resulting in more refined visuals.
The first five episodes are available on Disney+ now. Future X-citing episodes will be available every Tuesday.
