I’ll wholeheartedly admit I was skeptical when X-Men ’97 was first announced. I didn’t think it was going to be a good idea, and I felt it wasn’t needed because the Animated Series was wrapped up well. The “death” of Charles Xavier was handled and dealt with. I didn’t think anything could top the love I had for Animated Series. How wrong I was.
Just in the first episode alone of the now-released catch-up show I fell in love with my mutants once again. Almost everyone is voiced by the same person and if they aren’t, you’ll have fun guessing just who is doing the new voice because all characters sound eerily the same as they once did.
The character development is great. I love seeing the redemption of Cyclops, a character I once described in the annals of Gaming Insurrection’s Strip Talk as an ass. The Phoenix Saga – which is widely known as my least favorite X-Men arc – is done with care and truthfully shows a different tone in how Scott handled the situation. I was never a fan of how Cyclops abandoned Madelyn Pryor when he realized she was a clone of the real Jean Grey, and this fixes it for me. Gasp, horror of horrors, I might enjoy Phoenix Saga now.
The production values also slap, and I love how the new voice of Scott says the iconic line: “To me, my X-Men.” We needed that as long-time fans. We needed the reassurance that everything is right in the world of the X-Men after some disappointing movies and lack of movement in the MCU. The latter has changed with the newest Deadpool film, but this is the direct product that we’ve been waiting for. Because don’t forget: We’ve been waiting for this for nearly five years. It wasn’t just announced yesterday; X-Men ’97 was discussed years ago, so it’s nice to see the payoff.
We rock with the House of X so much that we’re looking forward to season 2 already. And with the announced and hotly anticipated Marvel vs. Capcom Collection milling about, it’s turning out to be a banner year for the merry band of mutants that I fell in love with more than 30 years ago.
Lyndsey Beatty is editor-in-chief of Gaming Insurrection. She can be reached by email at lyndseyb@gaminginsurrection.com