X-Men 97
X-Men 97 is an American animated television series created for Disney+ based on the Marvel Comics superhero team the X-Men. It is a revival of X-Men: The Animated Series which ran from 1992–1997.
The show continues the story of the X-Men, who face new challenges following the loss of their leader, Professor X as they strive to create a world that’s safe for all…
The Good
It’s the X-men… this was the childhood show I grew up on and watching it brought back some nostalgia from the 90s when life, was oh so much simpler.
The team tasked with reviving this series understood the assignment, they knew the fan base who grew up watching X-Men was older now but they also wanted to reach a new generation of audience and so its themes are for the mature oriented, with complex themes on life, death, love and equality.
The show plugs some plot holes left in the comics and the old series continuity and trying to bridge some of the missing pieces as well as pack it with Easter Eggs to keep die hard fans occupied.
The voice casting included some of the original cast which gave the characters a sense of continuity and authenticity from the X-Men of old..
The action sequences are jam-packed with set pieces that would rival any high budget animation production and key characters get to shine in the spotlight or rather go out in a blaze of glory — no spoiler intended.
The Bad
The show is rather fast paced blitzing through the source material at a lightning speed that one can feel overwhelmed and even lose track of what’s going on… Save for the astute comic book fans regular viewers might miss out on some of the connections and easter eggs dropped by the animated show… I know I had to look for episode breakdown scripts to fully make sense of each episode.
Using the same voice actors for some characters as the original also a created a slight disconnect where some characters now sounded older than their screen age…
While the animated show has a sense of predictability to it, following age old rivalries, they tried to balance it out and shock the viewers by following the Game Of Thrones theme were –All Men Must Die– and no character is safe from death, in almost every other episode key characters that you would not expect to be defeated, are snuffed out like that Thanos *Snap*
Yeah there’s a lot of death in the show and its painful to reconnect with old favourite characters only for them to meet their end in ways you wont see coming…. And the storyline doesn’t even conclude, ending on a cliffhanger that signals a second season…. To Be Continued
The Ugly
At its core the show is supposed to show us how we can live together with people who are different from us, but instead it stays reinforcing the stereotype that there can never be peaceful co-existence, just violence, and zero tolerance, regardless of the few that dream of balance….
X-men 97 leaves a haunting question on whether we can all get along…. The show might be about mutants but applied to real life the differences between us could be skills, languages, ethnicity, race and religious beliefs…. Can we really all get along?
Final Thoughts
X-Men 97 is an animated series that takes viewers back to the nostalgic 90s area with its 2D style animation, rejuvenating something of old with a well scripted and intriguing revival. Some changes will grate on your sensibilities while others make sense and offer a sense of completion…..
Did you watch or read the original X-Men Series?. Have you watched the new series? Thoughts?
Becoming The Muse 
Your thoughts.. if you will?