X-Men: The Animated Series (1992-1997)

X-Men: The Animated Series

• Today, I finished this incredibly fun and relevant series, though a few hours later, I learned that Sir Patrick Stewart passed away at 86. Unfortunately, it was darkly fitting, seeing as the last episode of the series involves Professor X’s “death”. I just want to say that Sir Patrick will be sorely missed, and his mark on the Marvel universe, as well as cinema and the theater, is profound and will not be forgotten. Rest in peace, you wonderful human. Onto the review. I’ve been prepping for Doomsday, and I needed to watch this before doing X-Men ‘97, so here I am. I had a blast with this show, and found it very addicting. Despite its vibrant silliness, I couldn’t help but get completely invested, and there were some episodes that were very deep and beautiful. Then, you have other episodes that are wonderfully goofy and just a complete laugh, but in the best way possible. I also want to touch on the point I made about this show being relevant. Obviously, we don’t live in a world with superheroes, but growing up as a “mutant” heavily reflects the queer experience, and I felt very seen while watching this. It’s all about trying to survive being an outcast, and being the best person you can with the abilities you have. I just love the X-Men so much, man. I wish Iceman would’ve been in more than one episode, seeing as he’s my favorite, but the familiar faces like Wolverine, Gambit, Professor X, and others, were very nice to see. I can’t imagine being a kid watching this in the 90’s. That  would’ve been so awesome. The animation is super simple but has tons of detail, with great suits and colorful visuals, making this show a very warm and bright universe. The voice cast was pretty solid, and they help make each character their own person, and no one blends in with the others. Lastly, the music was….very 90s for sure. It sounds like every other 80s/90s show ever, but it absolutely works, and the main theme is iconic. Recently, I’ve been humming it to myself a lot, without even realizing I’m doing it. Overall, this show is honestly revelational, and one of the better superhero shows out there. It’s fun, exciting, adventurous, and deeply relatable to us queers. I would recommend it to all superhero fans. This show is officially Berry Approved, so go watch it now!