As a millennial who grew up watching cartoons on Saturday mornings with a bowl of cereal, the original X-Men series was a favorite. I loved watching Professor X and his band of mutants like Storm and Wolverine attempt to make this fictional world a more cohesive place to live. Prior to the debut of X-Men '97, I was incredibly excited by the idea of the show and even made mention of it in What to Watch's must-see TV spring shows.
So it's with much joy that I can declare the cartoon as the best "new" series I've seen this year, even with only the first two episodes premiering on Disney Plus. X-Men '97 is also getting love from critics. As of March 21, the series has a 100% on Rotten Tomatoes, literally a perfect score. The impressive feat means the series in its opening week is the best-reviewed project of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, besting Avengers: Endgame.
In a world that recently seems to be suffering from superhero fatigue, X-Men '97's blooming success is a bit of an anomaly.
Recent releases Madame Web and Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom have Rotten Tomatoes scores of 12% and 34%, respectively, while The Marvels and Blue Beetle fare better with scores of 62% and 78%, but ones that are below the best of the MCU and DC movies. But looking beyond just the scores, it's their box-office performances that lend credibility to the argument that superhero fatigue is indeed a thing.
The Marvels finished its theatrical run as the lowest-grossing film in the MCU, and Blue Beetle only earned an estimated $100 million at the box office. Put in perspective, The Dark Knight finished its American box-office run with $536 million.
With all that being said, X-Men ‘97 has a lot going for it. For starters, there are millions of people who are like me and grew up watching the original cartoon. So when the moment came along to see their childhood represented, they had to take it. And unlike some other remakes/continuations of superhero projects I could name, Marvel did a remarkable job at recapturing the essence of the original.
From the moment the show kicks off with the legendary theme song from the '90s, it hooks the inner kid in viewers. Then as episodes 1 and 2 play out, you're reminded of the richness and entertainment factor of the characters. Sure, over 25 years later some of the costumes and hairdos of the mutants are a little different (Gambit's hair and the maternity look of "Jean" stick out the most), but the heroes are still familiar. And without giving away any spoilers, I'll just say the growth of the mutants in their story arcs is incredible.
It's also worth pointing out that the series fits in the perfect pocket of being known while not overly done in recent years. Iron Man's release in 2008 kicked off almost 16 years' worth of Avengers content. That's multiple movies starring Iron Man, Thor Captain America and others. While I admittedly enjoyed nearly all these movies, for some, you can reach a point where you know certain characters a little too well, and aren't given an opportunity to miss them.
Then when Iron Man died and Steve Roger's Captain America gave up the shield, new Avengers were introduced in the MCU. The problem with that is those who aren't comics buffs were forced to learn about new heroes, and for some, that seemingly presented overload.
Marvel was releasing two to three new movies a year at one point, and then introducing ancillary heroes sprouting off their initial bunch of onscreen Avengers. That can become a lot for moviegoers who enjoy MCU films but aren't as familiar with the comics. Not to mention the expansion of more stories and characters on Disney Plus to keep track of.
To quote another famous movie, "There's no place like home," and X'Men '97 feels like home. The original series is where many people like me cut their teeth with Marvel. After spending nearly two decades in the realm of Avengers, who've been forced to ignore the world of X-Men thanks to issues of rights and ownership (though that is now over), it feels as if I'm going back to where it all started. Of course, Bryan Singer had a theatrical run with X-Men over at Fox and there were subsequent cartoons after the original X-Men series, but none of them resonated with me as strongly due to various issues.
X'Men '97 honestly just strikes all the right chords, and dare I say, so far, I actually like the new show better. It's appropriately taken the baton and is successfully running the course, accounting for what present times now rationalize as suitable for younger audiences. It's doing such a good job that I can only hope for great things when MCU releases its first X-Men-related franchise this July with Deadpool & Wolverine.
Now has X-Men '97 cured superhero fatigue in general? I can't say that. However, the nostalgia of the series has managed to lift it past fatigue and more to a stage of excitement and invigoration.
X-Men ‘97 is available to stream on Disney Plus with new episodes premiering on Wednesdays.
