Disney’s revival of “X-Men: The Animated Series,” was surprising and possibly welcome, publishing new episodes of that show under the title “X-Men ’97.” Like most Disney Plus original content, it will air weekly episodes, with the first two released on Wednesday.
Some ’90s kids have an intimate relationship with this show and if you’re in that demographic, this is probably a great victory for you. My relationship with it is a little more passive. I was born in 1995, so I didn’t watch its original run (1992-97) when it aired on TV. But I did watch its reruns, though I admit I haven’t seen the full show from start to finish, which is the case with a lot of shows before the streaming era. If you wanted to watch a whole show then, you either had to get the VHS (later DVD) set or be lucky enough to catch them all when they were broadcast. This led to me watching a lot of shows out of order.
“X-Men ’97” picks up right where TAS left off, with Professor Charles Xavier apparently assassinated by Henry Peter Gyrich (Todd Haberkorn), who helped push the Sentinel (anti-mutant robotos) through the U.S. government. Xavier has been dead for about a year, leaving Scott Summers “Cyclops” (Ray Chase) in charge of the X-Men.
Scott is contemplating leaving the group, as he is expecting a child with Jean Gray (Jennifer Hale), a psychic who, along with Scott, is a member of Charles’ original X-Men. Scott has also gotten on everyone’s nerves, chiefly Wolverine (Cal Dodd).
Episode 1 spends a lot of time with young mutant Roberta da Costa (Gui Augustini), whom they save from Sentinel tech being used by a Neo-Nazi like anti-mutant terrorist group. This leads them to question Gyrich, which leads them to the Sentinels’ creator, Bolivar Trask (Galvin Hammon), whom they easily defeat.
Episode 2 is where things get interesting, as it’s revealed that, in his will, Xavier left everything — including his mansion, fortune and the X-Men — to his best friend and greatest enemy, Erik Lehnsherr “Magneto” (Matthew Waterson), who has turned over a new leaf. After Charles’ death, the world has become more tolerant to mutants, and the death of his friend has convinced him to carry on his legacy and vision for the world.
That’s great and all, but Magneto has committed a litany of crimes against humanity. Magento has previously been driven by a philosophy that mutants and humans cannot coexist, which made him an interesting villain. Before he can lead the X-Men, he needs to gain their trust as well as the world’s, and to do that he agrees to go on trial before the United Nations.
However, the anti-mutant groups plan to overrun the proceedings in order to zap him with a gun that would take away his powers. They almost succeeded by causing an insurrection very close to the events that happened on Jan. 6, 2021, at the U.S. Capitol, but ultimately fail in part because Magneto saved them.
They do, however, manage to take away the powers of Ororo Monroe “Storm” (Alison Sealy-Smith), which prompts Magneto to accuse the UN of orchestrating the attack. However, in a shocking moment of character development, Magneto does not give into hate and uses the moment to cement his resolve that he will follow Charles’ dream, earning himself a pardon.
This series goes pretty hard right out the gate, though at times it can be awkward and clunky. It excels in moments of high-octane action but struggles to capture the charm of TAS during its slower moments, where its awkward flash animated style is more noticeable. Because the show is emulating an older style of animation with a cheaper, modern approach, the show looks like a parody of TAS, rather than a continuation.
With that being said, its themes and story are as strong and pertinent as ever to the current moment, with its redemption arc for Magneto and its subsequent depiction of an insurrection stealing the show. This show is pure ’90s-inspired insanity and I’m here for it.
“X-Men ’97” Episodes 1-2 get a 9/10
InReview 
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