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Summary

• X-Men '97 successfully highlighted important characters from Marvel Comics, adding depth and complexity.
• The series showcased a tragic yet endearing backstory for Cable, elevating his importance and emotional impact.
• Wolverine took a backseat in X-Men '97 to allow other characters to shine, providing room for new dynamics and interactions.

Marvel Studios showed the world it knows what to do with the mutants, as X-Men '97 saw several characters shine bright — some for the first time outside the comics. Following Deadpool & Wolverine's release, Marvel now has two major X-Men-related hits this year, one in the Marvel Cinematic Universe and one not. The animated X-Men '97 is the first major project for the team since the end of Fox's X-Men movies, and with X-Men '97 seasons 2 and 3 confirmed, fans of the series are in for a long ride.
X-Men '97 did a great job of making many important X-Men characters from Marvel Comics matter, something that Fox's X-Men films had not been able to do for multiple mutants. The animated series made its characters complex, with questions of morality increasing with every episode until X-Men '97 season 1's ending. Here are the 10 best characters in X-Men '97 season 1.
Related Every X-Men '97 Episode Ranked Worst To Best While it is safe to say that some X-Men "97 episodes rank better than others, one thing is for certain: the whole series was a Marvel masterclass.
1 10 Charles Xavier The Founder Of The X-Men Close Charles Xavier ranks the lowest on the list due to how much screen time he had in the season. For most of X-Men '97 season 1, Professor X was either believed to be dead or away from his X-Men. As Charles normally takes a lot of the spotlight for himself in X-Men stories, the move was interesting, as it led to more members of the team getting their time to shine.
Ultimately, when Charles Xavier appeared, the character was used effectively. It was interesting to see how Charles cared for Lilandra and tried to unite his new position among the Shi'ar with his dedication to the X-Men. However, the moment he felt a major disturbance in the universe through his powers, Xavier left everything to go to his X-Men. Charles showed immense power and was part of some of X-Men '97 season 1's most interesting conversations with Magneto and Rogue.
Related X-Men '97 Reveals How Magneto Discovered Xavier's Will (Linking in a Surprise Villain) X-Men "97 reveals exactly how Magneto got ahold of Xavier"s will, and the villains involved implies a larger scheme was at play behind the scenes.
1 9 Cable A Key Character In Season 1 Close Cable's story in X-Men '97 is quite tragic. The Marvel Studios series decided to focus on the character's backstory, starting with a young Nathaniel Summers being kidnapped by Mister Sinister. The villain poisoned the baby with the Techno-Organic Virus. As there was no cure in the present, Nathan had to be sent to the future with Bishop to give the boy a chance to survive. That meant he would grow up without Cyclops and Madelyne Pryor, his parents.
That tragic backstory endeared the character, who usually appears with a hardened exterior that does not invite much emotion, to audiences. When Nathan returned, now as Cable, the heartbreak only continued. Cable had been trying desperately to save his mother and Genosha from being slaughtered, but the timeline kept sending him back. Cable's losing fight and later attempt to build a relationship with Cyclops, as well as meeting Jean Grey, made him one of the focal points of X-Men '97's most emotional stories.
Related X-Men '97 Revealed The Perfect Way To Make Josh Brolin's Cable Even Better 6 Years After His Last Appearance X-Men ’97’s treatment of Cable was fantastic and provided a roadmap to making Josh Brolin’s Cable even better six years after his Marvel debut.
8 Wolverine The Most Popular X-Men Member Close It is a surprise that Wolverine ends up ranking so low on the list, as the character has become the most popular member of the X-Men outside the comics. That is due to Hugh Jackman's long tenure in the role, with his latest turn as Logan, Deadpool & Wolverine, projected to comfortably pass the $1 billion mark worldwide. As for X-Men '97, Wolverine was not really one of the characters the show focused on the most.
That was a premeditated choice by showrunner Beau DeMayo, who wanted to give other X-Men members their time to shine after Wolverine had taken the spotlight in all of Fox's X-Men movies. Still, Logan had some interesting scenes in the season, sparing no effort to help his friends the moment they needed him. Wolverine also had a very mature moment after Jean Grey kissed him, as well as some of the show's best action sequences.
Related Deadpool & Wolverine Gives The MCU The Best Possible Answer To Recasting Hugh Jackman Deadpool & Wolverine introduces to the MCU the perfect answer to who should replace Hugh Jackman as the new Wolverine, and I"m excited about it.
8 7 Bastion The Season's Villain Was Intense Close While Mister Sinister was initially believed to be the main villain of X-Men '97 season 1, it was slowly revealed that Bastion was behind everything. The character was a menacing foe for the X-Men, with a tragic origin of his own. Despite the team's efforts to make him see things clearly, Bastion's plan to incite a war between mutants and humans showed that the villain was never really going to back down.
Bastion even mocked Cyclops for trying to convince Bastion to escape Asteroid M with the X-Men before it exploded, showing he had no problem with the genocide committed in Genosha. Bastion weaponized humans, including his own mother, which upped the stakes for the final stretch of the season. Finally, Theo James voiced Bastion, turning in an utterly evil but delightful performance that gave the villain an electric presence.
Related 2024's X-Men Success Proves A Major Lesson The MCU Can't Ignore About Villains X-Men ’97 was an absolute triumph, demonstrating precisely how the MCU should make its X-Men movie – especially regarding its potential villain.
2 6 Storm The Hero Was On A Journey Of Her Own Close Storm had easily one of the season's most nuanced storylines. After getting shot by the X-Cutioner with the inhibitor gun early in the season, Storm loses her powers for a good chunk of X-Men '97's runtime. Before that, the animated series had shown the full scope of Ororo Munroe's weather-related powers, making quick work of several Sentries, which classified her as an Omega-Level Mutant.
Losing her powers meant a major loss for the X-Men, who were down a powerhouse, but an even greater loss for Storm. It was interesting to see the character go on a journey of self-discovery, as Storm's powers were not just special abilities she used to fight villains but an extension of her very being, and without them, she felt lost. Storm's relationship with Forge, who she fell for but later discovered created the weapon that took her powers, was complex. Storm getting her powers back and helping the X-Men crowned her journey beautifully.
Related 10 Superpowers Storm Still Hasn't Used After 6 X-Men Movie Appearances Storm is one of the most powerful mutants in the Marvel universe, yet some of her impressive powers never made it into the live-action X-Men movies.
5 Jean Grey/Madelyne Pryor The Duo Moved The Season's Plot Forward Close Jean Grey and Madelyne Pryor appear in the same entry because it is impossible to talk about one of the characters' journeys without mentioning the other. X-Men '97 season 1 established early on that Mister Sinister had created a Jean Grey clone, Madelyne Pryor, who was the mother of Cyclops' child. The animated series never really revealed when Jean was swapped for Madelyne, which means many moments in X-Men: The Animated Series could have featured the Goblin Queen instead of Jean.
Both characters had a crucial role to play in the season, with their peculiar situation leading to some exciting, classic X-Men drama. Sadly, Madelyne Pryor would be one of the first deaths in the Genosha massacre, at least meeting Cable, her now grown-up son, before dying. Jean Grey continued to play a major role in the series, showing the full scope of her powers and exploring her connections with Cyclops and others after her return, which led to intriguing conversations and reveals.
Related X-Men: The Animated Series Revealed When Jean Grey Was Replaced 29 Years Ago According To Marvel Theory An exciting X-Men "97 theory points to the likely moment in the original X-Men series when Mister Sinister might have replaced Jean Grey.
4 Rogue A Surprise Standout Close Rogue is one of the most surprising characters in X-Men '97. The show brought forth the best version of the character outside the comics, a trend that starts to repeat itself from this entry onward. If there is a member of the main X-Men team that really dealt with questions of morality this season, it was Rogue. Her past with Magneto and how it informed her present was the source of shocking moments.
Rogue's relationships with Gambit and Magneto were two major aspects of the season. Despite it being interesting to see how both characters complemented different sides of Rogue, Anna Marie was a great character in her own right. Rogue exposed Charles Xavier's flaws, fought for what she felt was right no matter what side that put her on, stood up to Captain America, and was part of the season's saddest moment with a tour de force performance from actress Lenore Zann.
Related X-Men '97 Star Is More Than Ready For Rogue's Journey In Season 2 X-Men "97 star Lenore Zann discusses Rogue after Gambit"s death, the important lessons X-Men "97 can teach a new generation, and season 2.
1 3 Cyclops X-Men '97 Redeemed The Hero Close X-Men '97's first episode did more for Cyclops than any single live-action Fox X-Men movie ever did. It was established from the get-go that fans were in for a comic book-accurate version of Scott Summers, with Cyclops firmly in the role of the X-Men's field leader. Cyclops was a major player throughout the season, with his Madelyne Pryor/Jean Grey arc informing many of the season's events.
X-Men '97 also got Cyclops' optic blasts right, not making them heat beams. That led to some of the most creative fighting scenes the X-Men have seen in animation or live-action, with the show doing wonders to make Cyclops cool again to a non-comic book audience. Cyclops meeting Cable and building a relationship with his son was quite emotional, and his "farewell" message alongside Jean to Cable left not a dry eye in the audience.
Related 10 Perfect Casting Choices For The MCU's Cyclops After X-Men '97 Showed The Marvel Hero's Potential After X-Men "97 revitalized Cyclops" image, some actors could turn him into one of the MCU"s most popular heroes, making up for Fox"s X-Men movies.
2 Gambit His Name Will Be Remembered Close Channing Tatum finally managed to play Gambit in Deadpool & Wolverine after his solo movie spent years in development hell before being ultimately canceled. The MCU movie continues the best year for Gambit outside the comics, which has led to fans dubbing 2024 "The Year of Gambit." That description is accurate, as A.J. LoCascio's Remy LeBeau was one of X-Men '97's most important characters. Gambit's personality was every bit as delightful as it is in the comics, with the character having several fun and action-packed scenes early on in the season.
The only negative aspect of Gambit's role in X-Men '97 was that it was cut short. Gambit was season 1's biggest death, with the mutant having an epic send-off that showed how powerful Gambit could be as he sacrificed himself to take out the tri-headed Sentinel. After a heartbreaking conversation with Rogue about her not being able to touch him, she finally did, but Gambit was dead, and the series' saddest moment showed the giant impact he had.
2:52 Related Channing Tatum's Unmade Gambit Movie Explained Channing Tatum was cast as Gambit a decade ago, but the actor"s solo movie as the X-Men character never got off the ground due to a major reason.
1 1 Magneto Season 1's Best Character Close X-Men '97 showed that Magneto is much more than just a villain. Trying to honor Charles Xavier's memory and will, Magneto was tasked with leading the X-Men. That plot led to many conflicts as the team and the world dealt with the villain attempting to show that he was reformed. Magneto's thoughts on the morality of his actions and the humans' created a complex world for the series, which helped make it more adult than X-Men: The Animated Series.
Magneto had an incredible arc, slowly being led back to his thoughts that humans and mutants could not co-exist due to humans' actions, as well as those of Bastion. X-Men '97 presented a multi-layered Magneto that kept viewers on their toes with his immense power and rage due to the Genosha massacre. Magneto stands as X-Men '97's best character because he had the perfect mix of impactful character moments, thought-provoking dialogue, and thrilling action scenes.
X-Men '97 4.0 Where to Watch stream rent buy Not available
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*Availability in US X-Men '97 is the direct continuation of the popular 1990s animated series X-Men: The Animated Series. Taking up where the third season left off, Marvel's revival brings back famous mutants such as Wolverine, Storm, Rogue, Gambit, Cyclops, Beast, Magneto, and Nightcrawler, who fight villains like Mr. Sinister, the Sentinels, and the Hellfire Club.
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