It's the return of our favorite mutants who use their uncanny gifts to protect a world that hates and fears them, in the Disney+ TV series "X-Men `97!"
This "new" series pretty much picks up months after the fifth season of the "X-Men Animated" series back in 1997,
complete with the bright and stylized animation, comic-accurate colorful costumes, a PG interpretation of classic X-Men storylines, most of the original voice cast returning... and that theme music!
In other words, everything beloved about the original, but updated: the animation is still bold but flows better with less jerky movements, the voicework is still over-the-top — like Storm (Alison Sealy-Smith) still dramatically announcing her every move! — while sounding clearer and better mixed with music and effects than ever before.
Uncanny comics are still plumbed for ideas but streamlined for 30-minute episodes that connect via long-running arcs for both plotlines and characters. This is sure to please old fans while creating new ones.
So much so that usually grumpy Metacritic gives it an 82% and fans rate it a 7 out of 10... and me an " A - " for a return to form for Marvel which has been struggling lately with its cinematic universe while its animated stuff takes off. It's got me watching all five earlier seasons to not only catch up on where the X-Men have been but to appreciate where it's going now that our merry mutants will return to the big screen eventually since the rights are back in Marvel's control.
Excelsior!
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" X-Men '97 "
TV Series
2024–
TV-PG
Genres: Animation, Action, Adventure, Awesomeness
RICH'S RATING: A -
