To me, my X-Men: Why the Marvel premiere I'm most excited for is a cartoon.

A still from X-Men '97 episode 1

Before I start, I should make something clear. There have been some great X-Men movies over the years. X-Men 2 (or X2), and X-Men: Days of Future Past are both superb movies that capture a lot of what Marvel’s mutants are all about. And then we have Logan, Marvel Studios’ The Dark Knight; a film that stands up to ‘serious’ movies and in many cases leaves them for dust. But, if you ask this X-Men fan what has captured the spirit, themes and characters of the comics the best, there is only one answer: X-Men ‘97.

Now, it’s also true that Marvel Studios are releasing several properties this year that I am excited about: the return of Tom Holland as Spider-Man, the hope that series 2 of Daredevil: Born Again will keep what worked from the first season and expunge what didn’t (I liked the bank episode by the way), the primal fury that is Jon Bernthal as Frank Castle, and yes of course Avengers: Doomsday. But still, X-Men ‘97 cannot come quickly enough.

One of the ultimate weaknesses of 20th Century Fox’s X-Men movies from the early 21st century was their heavy focus on Logan/Wolverine over and above the rest of the team. Now, that’s completely understandable in many ways: Wolverine is an undeniably cool character and Hugh Jackman made the role his own. But, the X-Men are a team, and giving one character the lion’s share of the spotlight obviously sidelines the other characters. Cyclops was one of the biggest casualties of this approach but he wasn’t alone. There was something of an attempt to widen the perspective in X-Men: The Last Stand but it was a wasted opportunity seeing as the film itself was pretty weak.

When Fox decided to reboot the franchise in 2011 with X-Men: First Class they focused more on the relationship dynamics between Charles Xavier, Erik Lensherr and Raven Darkholme, and it undoubtedly worked. But even with this new-look X-Men, Jackman’s Logan appeared, with cameos in First Class and Apocalypse and he was once again front and centre in Days of Future Past. And again, the franchise died. But then along came the cartoon series.

X-Men ‘97 blew me away when I was finally able to watch the episodes. Linking it to the first X-Men animated series in style and storylines was a lovely touch, but that wouldn’t have counted for much at all if the characterisation, storytelling and the action weren’t up to standard. Thankfully, they all were. Let’s take a look at it through each of these lenses, but please be warned: if you haven’t seen the show yet, stop reading now. Here be Spoilers!

The Characters

Remember how I mentioned that there were plenty of X-Men fans who were disappointed at how the Fox movies sidelined Cyclops, one of the first generation and a linchpin of so many of the comic storylines? Well, ‘97 did no such thing. Scott Summers is one of the first X-Men we are introduced to, along with Ororo Munroe, Storm. Wolverine only appears part-way through the first episode, but he’s spot-on as well. Grouchy, quick-tempered, sardonic and dangerous.

Then there’s Rogue, and the love triangle that develops between her, Gambit and Magneto. She’s great, her dialogue with both Remy and Erik strikes a lovely emotional balance, especially in episode 5 (more on that later). As far as Magneto is concerned, the movies often did him justice, helped by some wonderful performances from Sir Ian McKellen and Michael Fassbender, but here he is also very well drawn (pun intended). His conflict between not wanting to let down his oldest friend while also feeling drawn to his old, more confrontational ways, is very well portrayed, and some of his dialogue is just wonderful (for example, in episode 2, Mutant Liberation Begins, Magneto gets the line “I am trying to be better. Please, do not make me let you down”). 

But, and I freely admit this is one of the reasons I love this show as much as I do, they give my favourite character enough time with the audience to really breathe and grow and let us see him as he should be. Kurt Wagner, aka Nightcrawler, first appears in episode 5 and then not only does he continue in the series, he is given his own ident card in the opening credits. They give the teleporting elf just the right blend of carefree humour and heartfelt depth, with his faith presented as an anchor for him, but not one he seeks to impose on others. 

Nightcrawler, Rogue, Magneto and Cyclops were just some of the characters X-Men '97 got right.

So that’s a quick run through how they approach some of the key characters. Now let’s move on to the next area.

The Stories

I think the easiest thing to do here is to simply list some of the comic storylines that the X-Men ‘97 writers included in their first series. We have The Goblin Queen with the appearance of Madeline Pryor, Lifedeath where Storm is stripped of her powers, The X-Cutioner’s Song, Fatal Attractions complete with Professor X launching a devastating psychic attack on Magneto in retaliation for ripping the adamantium out of Wolverine’s skeleton (yes, we’re getting bone claws in series 2), and Operation: Zero Tolerance with Bastion and the Prime Sentinels. Oh and there’s also MojoWorld.

And then there’s Remember It, the fifth episode of the series and one of those moments when a cartoon can make you cry. Not only does Rogue believe she’s lost Magneto (not really but we don’t know that yet), she absolutely loses Gambit when he is killed destroying a wild sentinel that has been unleashed on the mutant nation of Genosha. The Genoshan genocide first appeared in New X-Men by Grant Morrison in the storyline E is for Extinction, and it is devastating when it happens on screen.

A comparison of panels from E is for Extinction from New X-Men and Remember It, episode 5 of X-Men '97

Here is possibly the one criticism I can level at the series – it tries to fit too much in. But, at the same time, it’s an episodic cartoon based on a comic series, and each story line is generally given sufficient time to develop properly. So, on to the final section.

The Action

Like I said, I’m discussing a cartoon series based on a comic book series here, so there should be plenty of action, and there is. Not only that, but in many instances, the action is ‘jump up and punch the air’ levels of good. Whether that’s Cyclops making his own way to the ground or Storm, Wolverine and Gambit taking out Sentinels in episode 1, Gambit’s sacrifice in episode 5, or my favourite, Wolverine and Nightcrawler taking on the Prime Sentinels in episode 8, the animators have created sequences that are kinetic, exciting, that tell a story and drag you along with them, breathlessly.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yz_Fe1qGhqs

Unlike so many of today’s blockbusters, where the big action sequences take place in some open featureless void (looking at you, The Flash), the nature of this show means that the animation team have been able to create bright, colourful visuals throughout. The palette of the show has shifted with the episodes, characters and storylines but it’s always looked sumptuous.

One final point before I leave you, and this one is on season 2. With the post-credit scene from the season 1 finale, plus the establishment of where (and when) the various teams of X-Men have ended up at the end of the series, it is clear that the writers are aiming to right one of the greatest wrongs of the Fox-era movies with the new series. 

Here’s to an excellent Apocalypse!