I can’t count the number of times I’ve wept – yes, wept – while watching X-Men ’97. I don’t mean the cheesy sort of “weeping in joy at my childhood returning to life” kind of weeping – but the sort of weeping that comes from good writing, solid characterisation, and heart-wrenching plot twists. Even if you’re not an X-Men fan, even if you’re not a fan of animation, even if you’re not a fan of Marvel – the storytelling and characterisation is the gold standard to achieve for any television show. And that is what makes this show such a riveting watch.
Synopsis
X-Men ’97 is an animated superhero series that’s a continuation of X-Men: The Animated Series. It is a revival that serves as Season 6 and onwards of X-Men: The Animated Series. The first season sees the X-Men grappling with the loss of their leader and founder, with unlikely leadership changes and a devious new villain who will stop at nothing to wipe out mutantkind.
Directors: Chase Conley, Emi Yonemura, Jake Castorena
Writers: Beau DeMayo, Charley Feldman, Anthony Sellitti, JB Ballard
Voice cast:
- Ray Chase (Cyclops/Scott Summers)
- Jennifer Hale (Jean Grey, Goblin Queen/Madelyne Pryor)
- Alison Sealy-Smith (Storm/Ororo Munroe, the Adversary)
- Cal Dodd (Wolverine/Logan)
- J. P. Karliak (Morph, William Stryker)
- Lenore Zann (Rogue)
- George Buza (Beast/Dr. Henry “Hank” McCoy)
- A. J. LoCascio (Gambit/Remy LeBeau)
- Holly Chou (Jubilee/Jubilation Lee)
- Isaac Robinson-Smith (Lucas Bishop, Black Panther/T’Chaka)
- Matthew Waterson (Magneto/Erik “Magnus” Lehnsherr)
- Ross Marquand (Professor Charles Xavier, Doctor Doom, Apocalypse)
- Adrian Hough (Nightcrawler/Kurt Wagner)
Episodes: 10
Running time: 30-43 minutes
Magneto’s character arc is the single best thing in the series
Oh, Magneto (Matthew Waterson). Episode after episode, his character gets tested again and again. He’s a man trying to uphold his dead best friend’s legacy, a man who has his resolve and beliefs pushed to the limit, a man who’s had to watch the world crush his dreams and aspirations time and again. Seeing him struggle to overcome his old, violent programming in order to fulfill Charles Xavier’s (Ross Marquand) dream, especially when he takes over the X-Men – it breaks my heart to see someone fight so hard to do the right thing, when doing the right thing is the hardest thing possible.
And when it’s all revealed that this veneer hides a feeling of powerlessness, of fear – doesn’t it relate to us all? Aren’t all our struggles borne of such fear? For all his hatred and anger, Magneto harbours an incredible amount of love – for Professor X, for mutants, for his family. And when you realise that his anger and hatred are borne out of love and loss – it’s probably the most relatable, the most human part of X-Men ’97. For that, for the brilliant writing of Magneto – he’s officially become the best X-Man in the series. I know there’s no “best” X-Man, but if there was, it’d be Magneto.
Tight scripts and brilliant writing
The incredibly tight plotting and brilliant dialogue (or monologues) are something that I feel I can only dream of writing. Each scene is so carefully crafted to be paid off later in the episode, or sometimes even episodes later. Even what seems to be throwaway cameos eventually come back to become important plot points sometimes. Almost every character gets his or her moment in the spotlight, with so many quotable lines of dialogue that echo truths about life. And that’s what the core of X-Men ’97 is all about – that as different as they are as mutants, they’re still so human inside.
Creative and fluid fight scenes
The X-Men are mutants with powers as diverse as their personalities – so it would follow that their fighting styles would be just as varied. Virtually each X-Man gets to strut the full range of his or her powers, showing us possibilities that far outstrip the original series, surprising us with the sheer creativity of their powers are used. And with that, we also get amazing fight scenes that take full advantage of the animated medium to give us thrilling, marvellous battles.
Morph and Wolverine’s relationship
I’m calling it here – I liked their relationship very much. I liked that we finally get to see a softer side of Wolverine (Cal Dodd) that isn’t dependent on him trying to protect the fairer sex. As to whether Morph (J. P. Karliak) has more than platonic feelings for Wolverine – well, isn’t that all part of the tension of the series? Morph’s words to Wolverine in the final episode were so telling, so ambiguous, and in a way – so touching. Whether or not it’s platonic or romantic, there’s no doubting that Morph loves Wolverine. And if Magneto can love Professor X, why not this?
Series treats the audience intelligently
Many a time, I saw how the series could have taken a simplified approach to a story or character that would have been the safe route to go. If you’ve worked in the industry, you’ll no doubt have had to dumb down things for the sake of possible audience members who may not have the intelligence to process what you’ve written. But X-Men ’97 never shies away from difficult stories or complicated characters. It treats the audience like they’re intelligent, like they’ll understand, like they’re fans – and as a result, we get a richer story and a more enjoyable show in the process.
The range of cameos remind us of all the other 90’s Marvel animated series
The original X-Men: The Animated Series would occasionally show cameos of other Marvel characters, but it was Spider-Man: The Animated Series that saw the title character teaming up with many other Marvel superheroes. Spider-Man teamed up with the X-Men, the Fantastic Four (which had a two-season TV series then), and Iron Man (who also had a two-season TV series). In the absence of those other 90’s series, X-Men ’97‘s numerous cameos of other, non-mutant superheroes fills the void (if only partially), by reminding us that the X-Men live in a greater, shared universe. As for all the other mutants who didn’t have a starring role in the series – we’ve had so many cameos of them, whether they be Morph’s transformations or the actual character. It’s like living in the 90’s again.
Inconsistent power levels
As with many superhero shows (especially animated ones), the power levels of the characters can be wildly inconsistent, even within an episode itself. Sometimes it’s explained away, but sometimes it remains a puzzling discrepancy within the episode. This is especially so when it comes to strength and durability – a character can be knocked into a coma by one sucker punch, but tank multiple, arguably stronger hits in a later episode. Nevertheless, these power levels serve the story, so there’s a narrative purpose to them. However, in a show which pays so much close attention to detail, this is one odd oversight that can be noticeable.
Many deus ex machinas used
Many times, the X-Men find themselves in yet another hopeless situation where death is imminent. That’s when a character displays a heretofore unseen power that outclasses every other character’s attempts to resolve the situation – even when those other characters are generally more powerful than said character. This happens relatively frequently – and while it makes for great drama, it also raises questions later on. This is related to the inconsistent power levels mentioned earlier, but on a grander scale.
Show us what a good series can be like when unfettered from the 22 min/44 min format
Not having to adhere to the half-hour (22 min) or one hour (44 min) format has done wonders for X-Men ’97. Freed from such constraints, each episode can be as long or as short as it needs to be to tell a proper story – rather than having to stretch a thin story or compress a complex story to fit the timing. Most other streaming series have already shaken off the yoke of that broadcast TV format, but it’s all the more obvious when comparing X-Men ’97 to X-Men: The Animated Series.
The best part? Even though the first season of X-Men ’97 only has 10 episodes, compared to the 13 of X-Men: The Animated Series‘ first season, there’s more total running time for the 10 episodes compared to an old 13-episode season. The winner is clearly the audience, who get more X-Men to watch.
Conclusion
Admittedly, X-Men ’97 has the benefit of a legacy of the 76-episode X-Men: The Animated Series to draw upon, allowing it to tell more sophisticated stories with well-defined characters that audiences are already familiar with. But that’s only one part of the equation. The part is absolutely amazing storytelling, as well as great visuals and creativity to complement the plot.
I have to admit – I don’t think I’ve ever tuned in to a show, week in, week out, as loyally as I have to X-Men ’97. Towards the end, it wasn’t just Wednesdays that I’d watch the series on – it would be Wednesdays, 3.05pm (because it’s released at 3pm) that would have me racing to find a screen to watch it on (sometimes, that screen would be my phone). For a show to bring someone like me, who loathes appointment viewing and the enslavement of my attention like that, to tune in loyally like it was a Saturday morning cartoon all over again… that’s no mean feat.
X-Men ’97 isn’t just the best series to watch on Disney+, it’s also one of the best series to watch – period.
Score: 9.5/10
X-Men ’97 is available on Disney+.
This is an original article on marcusgohmarcusgoh.com.
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