X-Men ’97 has finally made its debut and the initial reactions to the new series are overwhelmingly positive. The animated show – a sequel/continuation of X-Men: The Animated Series – arrived on Disney+ this week and wowed audiences old and new.
For those who are yet to check it out, the series is set in 1997 and picks up shortly after the events of the original show. The series brings back popular X-Men characters such as Cyclops, Wolverine, and Storm, to fight for survival in a world that hates and fears them.
Those who have already checked out the first episode will know it offers an excellent mix of action, adventure, and storytelling. The opening instalment, titled ‘To Me, My X-Men‘, sets up the premise of X-Men ’97, whilst also filling in a few details about who the X-Men are.
Long-time X-Men fans will also be aware of a few in-jokes and references in X-Men ’97, which link back to X-Men: The Animated Series. But did you spot all of the in-jokes and references in Episode One?
Well, don’t worry if you didn’t, because I will fill you in on all the details you may have missed. Below is a guide to what you should have spotted in X-Men ’97: ‘To Me, My X-Men’.
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The title tweaks
First up, are a couple of updates to the opening titles. While the titles follow a similar format to the original series, and include a re-working of the theme tune used in X-Men: The Animated Series, the new opening credits have had a tweak.
One of the most notable tweaks is the inclusion of Bishop and Morph to the team roster. Neither Morph nor Bishop were originally included in the credits in X-Men: The Animated Series, as both characters only appeared in the show on a semi-regular basis.
Morph was introduced in episode one of X-Men: The Animated Series, but was ‘killed off’ in episode two. He was later resurrected from season two onward, but this wasn’t enough to get him in the credits.
As for Bishop, his appearances in X-Men: The Animated Series were sporadic, and certainly not enough to win him credit status. This is something which has been readdressed for X-Men ’97.
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Morph’s ‘sinister’ past
Sticking with the credits, the new titles for X-Men ’97 include a new sequence in which Morph appears to be terrorised by an unseen force, which it is suggested is Mr. Sinister. This sequence in the opening credits is a reference to Sinister’s manipulation of Morph in X-Men: The Animated Series.
In the original show, Mr. Sinister found Morph’s body after he was supposedly killed by Sentinels. Sinister then revived Morph, but not before twisting his mind and temporarily turning him evil.
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A queen and a lady
Still on the credits and one other important change comes right at the end of the credits, when heroes and villains appear on screen locked in battle. Those with a keen eye will have noticed the group shot of villains has been updated from the group shot in the X-Men: The Animated Series credits.
In the original show, Thunderbird and an unidentified mutant (often mistakenly referred to as Gargoyle) appeared in the credits, to essentially fill in a gap. These characters have now been replaced in the credits for X-Men ’97 with the White Queen and Lady Deathstroke – two characters who appeared in X-Men: The Animated Series.
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A death in the family
Onto the episode now, and ‘To Me, My X-Men‘ opens with a discussion about the death of Charles Xavier. This is a plot point which links back to the final episode of X-Men: The Animated Series, which saw an assassination attempt made on Xavier’s life.
In the episode ‘Graduation Day‘, Xavier is attacked and mortally wounded. The episode didn’t actually kill him off, but it was heavily suggested he was in desperate need for medical attention beyond the capabilities of anyone on Earth.
In the story, Xavier is taken away into space, by Lilandra of the Shi’ar, where it is hoped he can be healed. At the end of X-Men: The Animated Series Xavier’s fate is essentially left open-ended.
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Power down
Next up, the mutant power dampener collars utilised in ‘To Me, My X-Men‘ are not a new invention for this series – they were used multiple times in X-Men: The Animated Series. The collars most notably appeared in the season one episode, ‘Slave Island‘, where they were used to shut off the abilities of a group of mutants, including Storm, Gambit, and Jubilee.
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No friend of mine
Another hold over from X-Men: The Animated Series comes in the shape of the Friends of Humanity who appear in ‘To Me, My X-Men‘. This rag-tag group of humans appeared in the original show, debuting in the season two episode ‘Till Death Do Us Part – Part One‘, before returning at other points in the series.
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Hate is all around
A little observation for this next one – and I’ll point you towards the Friends of Humanity’s base of operations: an abandoned building called ‘Hip Skate Party’. However, some of the lettering is missing from the sign, spelling out the words ‘H ATE PARTY’ – a nod to the hate-filled Friends of Humanity who dwell inside.
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A rescue
A plot point towards the beginning of ‘To Me, My X-Men‘ is the introduction and rescue of Roberto da Costa (aka Sunspot). This introduction and rescue is a nod to Jubilee’s introduction in the first episode of X-Men: The Animated Series.
Both shows open with a mutant being saved by the X-Men. In X-Men: The Animated Series, Jubilee is rescued from the Sentinels, while in X-Men ’97, Roberto is rescued from the Friends of Humanity.
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A call-back
During the rescue of Roberto da Costa, the Friends of Humanity temporarily appear to incapacitate Cyclops, leading him to fake a surrender. He then says: “No, don’t, I surrender’, before surprising them and shouting out the word ‘Not!”
The use of ‘Not’ in his sentence is a reference to a previous encounter with the Sentinels in X-Men: The Animated Series, where Cyclops uses the same phrase in the episode ‘Night of the Sentinels – Part Two‘.
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Mutant or man?
Another observation: The Daily Bugle newspaper, which can be seen blowing in the wind includes the caption ‘Is Spider-Man a mutant?. This is a reference to a storyline in ’90s show, Spider-Man: The Animated Series, in which Peter Parker began to mutate.
This storyline – which ran throughout season two of the Spider-Man series – included a two-part crossover with X-Men: The Animated Series. In the episodes ‘Mutant Agenda‘ (S2 E4) and ‘Mutants’ Revenge‘ (S2 E5), Spidey goes to the X-Men for help when he believes he is mutating into a man-spider.
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Hot stuff
Yet another observation: Gambit is shown to cook in ‘To Me, My X-Men‘. This is a reference to Gambit’s culinary skills, as seen in the Christmas-themed X-Men: The Animated Series episode, ‘Have Yourself a Morlock Little X-Mas‘.
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Back to the past
Over to Beast’s lab, and the furry blue mutant is seen working on Bishop’s time travel bracelet in ‘To Me, My X-Men‘. This bracelet is far more important than it may appear in the episode.
In X-Men: The Animated Series, the time-travelling Bishop had to wear the bracelet at all times in order to remain in the ’90s. With the bracelet now broken, this may explain why he hasn’t returned to the future.
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Balls!
‘To Me, My X-Men’ features a short sequence in the X-Men’s training room, the Danger Room. During this sequence, Jubilee questions Roberto about his powers and makes a comment about a mutant ability to shoot gold balls from his body.
This is a reference to the lesser-known mutant ‘Fabio Medina’ aka Goldballs – a superhuman with the ability to project high-speed gold balls!
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The original team
Although Xavier is absent from the X-Mansion in X-Men ’97, the X-Men still speak of him and one scene includes Cyclops and Jean Grey looking at an old photograph of Xavier with the original five X-Men. Amongst this collection of heroes is Angel.
Fans of X-Men: The Animated Series will know that Angel wasn’t one of the original X-Men and was instead introduced in the season one episode, ‘The Cure‘. So is Angel’s inclusion here a mistake? Actually, no.
The original series previously established that there was a winged mutant in the original X-Men line-up, alongside Cyclops, Jean, Iceman, and the Beast. The show simply didn’t make it clear who this winged mutant was.
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Listen up
A new addition to X-Men ’97 is the X-Men’s government liaison, Dr. Val Cooper. sharp-eared fans may have spotted this already, but Val is voiced by Catherine Disher – the voice actress who voiced Jean Grey in X-Men: The Animated Series.
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Master destruction
During the discussion with Val, there is a mention to the X-Men previously destroying the villainous Sentinel, Master Mould, which is another nod to X-Men: The Animated Series. Master Mould was destroyed or damaged on a few occasions in the original show, including in the episodes ‘Slave Island‘, ‘The Final Decision‘, and ‘Courage’.
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Taking leave
At one point in ‘To Me, My X-Men‘, Cyclops and Jean discuss the possibility of leaving the X-Men – which is of course noted as being a big thing. But fans of the original show will know Cyclops previously quit the team in the episode, ‘No Mutant is an Island‘, following the apparent death of Jean Grey.
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Foreshadowing
As well as the Friends of Humanity, and the Sentinels, a couple of classic villains from X-Men: The Animated Series reappear in ‘To Me, My X-Men‘. One is Bolivar Trask, the creator of the Sentinels, and the other is Henry Peter Gyrich.
When Gyrich appears in the episode, he utters the phrase: ‘Tolerance is extinction’. This phrase is here to foreshadow the final three episodes of season one of X-Men ’97, which are titled ‘Tolerance Is Extinction – Parts One, Two, and Three‘.
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A rogue comment?
Towards the end of ‘To Me, My X-Men‘ the X-Men set off on a mission to destroy Master Mould. On their way, they are attacked by Sentinels, the Blackbird jet is destroyed, and the X-Men are left to fall from the sky.
During the fall, Rogue grabs hold of Beast and Bishop to ensure they have a safe landing. She then utters the line: “Another catch the X-Men day’.
This line is a reference to the X-Men: The Animated Series episode, ‘The Dark Phoenix‘, where Rogue has to catch team members on a couple of occasions and says: “What is this? Catch the X-Men day!”
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Kicking up a storm
During the battle against the Sentinels, Storm is described as an Omega Level Threat, and audiences get to see her unleash her powers. But this isn’t the first time Storm is shown to be a powerful mutant – her amazing abilities are shown a number of times in the original show, and are a focus of the X-Men: The Animated Series two part story, ‘Storm Front‘.
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Familiar faces
Another observation: In ‘To Me, My X-Men‘, Morph transforms into three different characters: Xavier, Angel, and Blob. All three characters previously appeared in X-Men: The Animated Series, although Morph is only ever seen to interact with Xavier and never met Angel or Blob.
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Welcome to the X-Men
As ‘To Me, My X-Men‘ draws to a close, Jubilee and Roberto are back at the X-Mansion having a discussion about Roberto’s potential place on the team. This whole sequence is a nod to the ‘Night of the Sentinels – Part One‘ from X-Men: The Animated Series, when Storm has a similar conversation with Jubilee.
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From enemy to friend
And finally, ‘To Me, My X-Men‘ concludes with Magneto being announced as the new leader of the X-Men. Magneto’s position as ally shouldn’t be a major surprise as he teamed up with the X-Men multiple times in X-Men: The Animated Series, including in the episodes ‘The Final Decision‘, ‘Reunion – Parts One and Two‘, and ‘Beyond Good and Evil – Part Four‘.
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