"X-Men" (1992)TV series 1992-1997

Writers:

Seasons:

1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5

Release Date:

31 October 1992 (USA)

Genre:

Animation | Action | Sci-Fi | Thriller

Plot:

A team of mutant superheroes fight for justice and human acceptance in the Marvel Comics universe.

Plot Keywords:

High School | Speed | Super Power | Marvel Comics | Scotland

Cast

Cathal J. Dodd	...	Logan / ... (65 episodes, 1992-1997)
Cedric Smith	...	Professor Charles Xavier / ... (51 episodes, 1992-1997)
Norm Spencer	...	Cyclops / ... (51 episodes, 1992-1997)
Lenore Zann	...	Rogue (46 episodes, 1992-1997)
George Buza	...	Beast / ... (44 episodes, 1992-1997)
Alison Sealy-Smith	...	Storm / ... (43 episodes, 1992-1997)
Catherine Disher	...	Jean Grey / ... (43 episodes, 1992-1997)
Alyson Court	...	Jubilee / ... (39 episodes, 1992-1997)
Chris Potter	...	Gambit / ... (35 episodes, 1992-1996)

Runtime:

30 min | USA:30 min (76 episodes)

Country:

USA | Canada

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Certification:

Singapore:PG | USA:TV-Y7 | Argentina:Atp

Company:

Genesis Entertainment

Trivia:

Northstar/Jean-Paul Beaubier and Sunfire/Shiro Yashida were two of the mutant captives in Genosha (episode 1.07 "Slave Island").

Goofs:

Continuity: In "Reunion", Professor X's gloves disappear for one shot when he is chained to the wall.

Quotes:

Cable: [transports into phone booth] Time to reach out and touch someone!

Movie Connections:

Referenced in The Bad Boys of Saturday Night Live (1998) (TV)

Soundtrack:

X-Men Main Theme

A great animated series, a tribute to the comics

It was this animated series that got me into the world of the-Men and other Marvel comics, which are far superior, but that is not to say this cartoon wasn't good, for it was. What we have here is the four core X-Men - Cyclops, Wolverine, Jean Grey and Storm - along with popular characters from the comics - Rogue, Beast and Gambit - and Jubilee for the teens and Professor X as the basis for the series. Many mutants and other X-related characters make appearances through the series, some more often than others, and to varying degrees of likeness to their comic counterparts, (and Morph who was created specifically for the series). The X-Men are portrayed well to their comic-counterparts, with the exception of Jean Grey. Although it was this series that got me into X-Men, and made Jean my favourite character, in this series she was somewhat wasted, not used to her full potential. She was shown less-powerful than the others, when in the comics, she is one of the most powerful mutants in existence (even without the Phoenix Force). However Jean did get a few good stories, notably the ongoing Sinister stories, her and Wolverine's love subplot and the Phoenix and Dark Phoenix Sagas.

But I digress. The villains were cool and in keeping with their comic counterparts, it would have been nice to see ones like Apocalypse and the Brotherhood more often. In terms of supporting characters, Bishop, Cable, Moira MacTaggert, Banshee, Arachangel, Forge and Colossus showed up a few times, but we could have seen more of Iceman, Darkstar, Polaris, Alpha Flight, Sunfire and Nightcrawler.

A lot of the stories were taken directly from the comics and adapted for this series (like the Dark Phoenix Saga, Phalanx Covenant and Days of Future Past) others were taken from ongoing comic stories and changed into single or multiple episodes for this series, like the Savage Land and the Sentinels.

There was some ongoing narrative, but it is also possible to watch episodes out of order, they were generally self contained (with the exception of multiple part episodes). It's cool to actually hear the X-Men speak and the costumes look cool on TV too. A great watch, most of the time.

8 out of 10 for the whole animated series.