In 1992, an animated X-Men series aired with the hopes of reaching the Marvel loving community. This show ran on Fox Kids for five seasons from 1992-1997 and received positive reviews for Saturday morning cartoons. At the end of the first series, Professor X, who was the leader of the X-Men, was killed and therefore led to the show being canceled.
Twenty seven years later, Disney decided to revive the series on their streaming platform, Disney+ with “X-Men ‘97” which was released on March 20, 2024. A band of mutants use their uncanny gifts to protect a world that hates and fears them; they’re challenged like never before, forced to face a dangerous and unexpected new future.
The show included some of the original characters like Cyclopes, Rouge, Magneto, Wolverine and Beast. A new recruit came with the name of Roberto, also known as Sunspot, and has the power to channel large amounts of solar energy. While trying to save the world, the X-Men are faced with the challenge of saving their team and all mutants.
It is nice to see Disney picking up the series for a revival, but like many revivals of other iconic TV shows or movies, they are not as good as the original series. The plot was changed heavily from the original series to include the deaths of many of the major characters from the episodes that have premiered.
The show felt a bit rushed, and we found it hard to get attached to certain characters due to little screen time or no character development. The next time Marvel decides to revive an old show, they should consider the viewers who were watching it at the time, and make it similar to the older show to appease the demographic.
At the time this article was written, episodes 1-5 were only available.
The Torch rates “X-Men 97” 4.5/5
