But I am quite happy that it happened.
There are spoilers for the first season of X-Men 1997 that are discussed in the following article.
The reintroduction of the X-Men animation that aired on Saturday mornings in the 1990s was something that I was quite thrilled about. Nevertheless, I was uncertain that Marvel, which is owned by Disney, would be able to recreate the essence of the original while simultaneously producing a contemporary show that older fans, who are now adults in their 30s and 40s, would be able to appreciate. And X-Men ’97 is a complete and utter play on our sentimentality, which makes the fact that it succeeds all the more peculiar. In addition, it is superior than the original in virtually every available way.
The X-Men, out of all the Marvel trinkets that need some care, have been argued to be the ones that required it the most. The run of ten episodes was able to pack in so many different storylines, cameos, comic sagas, villains, plot twists, and even deaths that it was often difficult to digest everything that was going on. However, I absolutely adored how relentless everything was. X-Men 1997 is a challenging film, particularly if you are already an ardent follower of the franchise.
Upon the initial debut of Marvel’s all-you-can-read comic book app, I immediately dove headfirst into the X-Men back catalog, particularly the stories written by Chris Claremont and Grant Morrison, two of my favorite authors. A significant number of my favorite characters and stories are featured in X-Men 1997. Jean Grey is revealed to be a clone, Magneto is placed on trial and begins a (brief?) redemption storyline, and the cartoon packed a comic narrative that had been going on for approximately a year, Inferno, into a single episode. A number of other storylines, such as Lifedeath, Fatal Attractions, Motendo, Operation: Zero Tolerance, and others, are either featured in their entirety or with some twists and turns.
In the fifth and most devastating episode of the first season, which is already in progress, the mutant nation of Genosha is utterly destroyed by a high-powered sentinel mothership… thing. This episode is without a doubt the most memorable of the entire first season. In the moments leading up to the attack, mutant adults, mutant children, and eventually even an X-man, Cable, the time-traveling son of Scott Summers and Jean’s clone, are all destroyed. To put an end to the assault, (see: Inferno, which was stated earlier) reappears. However, he is unsuccessful once more, and his mother passes away.
Magneto finds himself helpless as mutants are massacred, and he is compelled to relive the carnage that he endured when he was a child. At some point, Gambit makes the ultimate sacrifice by sacrificing himself and illuminating the entire robot with his mutant abilities. This occurs after Rogue rekindles her romantic feelings for Magento, undergoes a change of heart, and ultimately chooses to be with Gambit. Each episode is a lot, as I mentioned earlier.
Although I may be the only one who feels this way, I continue to favor the animation style and look of the older series. My opinion is that a cartoon can have a somewhat sloppy appearance; nonetheless, it’s possible that I’m merely 39 years old and not a Disney executive. It is also true that the majority of the action scenes are excellent. Finally, Cyclops is not beaten dirty and is given the opportunity to flourish in battles. Like the legendary fastball special, there are a number of fantastic combination assaults that are comparable to it.
There are points when the program has a tendency to feel a little too “anime” (and I am a huge fan of anime, don’t get mad at me!). The ludicrous magnitude of the fight has taken away a significant amount of my interest in it. It’s awesome that Bastian has wings made of metal in the last episode. Oh, absolutely, it is pretty great. On the other hand, didn’t one of his super sentinel underlings completely destroy the X-Men in the middle of your series? And was it necessary for the Phoenix to make a comeback (again!) in order for Jean to be able to save her son, who is in his 50s, from the future? Not likely at all.
What’s more, it’s the X-Men. Without this kind of lunacy, the X-Men would not be where they are today.
Also, I appreciated how much attention to detail was paid. On the other hand, Rogue went back to her green and white outfit, and Magneto wore the same black-and-white suit while he was on trial, much like in the original comic book. Storm went back to her original comic book dress. The film X-Men 1997 did not pass up the opportunity to include a few other Marvel characters as well. A few times, Captain America makes an appearance, and we see Spider-Man dressed in a suit that is not his usual one, together with Mary Jane Watson, witnessing the descent of Asteroid M. The Silver Samurai, who was featured in his own episode of the original series, watches as Tokyo’s might is diminished as a result of Magneto’s assault on the entire planet for the first time.
In other episodes, a vision of the future features a younger version of Polaris, Rachel Grey, and a number of other mutants who make brief appearances. When it comes to references, easter eggs, and surprises, the series is packed to the brim every single episode. Did you know that Bastian appears on screen in a brief and indirect manner during the horrible attack on Genosha? This occurs a significant amount of time before he is revealed to be the principal enemy of the X-Men? Certainly, he is. In this day and age of comments on Reddit, Discord, and YouTube, this show is definitely one that is ready to be debated and discussed.
In order for the film to be able to move forward, Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige put out the requirement that both the cast and the soundtrack must be brought back. I’m happy that it did, and I’m also happy that the theme tune is still played.