‘X-Men ’97’: What’s New & Updated in Continuation of Original Series?
Q&A
Any mention of the X-Men is sure to get a ‘90s kid humming that iconic theme song from the animated series under their breath. So when Marvel Studios announced X-Men ‘97, a direct continuation of the beloved original series, as their first official foray into the world of beloved characters such as Magneto and Wolverine, fans were elated. And rest assured, for those looking to ease into the show without watching all of the original seasons and reading the comics beforehand, it has electrifying animation, riveting storylines, and relevant themes to hook even the completely uninitiated.
Below, supervising director Jake Castorena tells us what to expect from the new season, with new characters, new visuals, potential team-ups, and much more!
We get started right off the bat with the introduction of Roberto DaCosta, a.k.a. Sunspot (voiced by Gui Agustini), in X-Men ‘97, and in the last season of the original series, I know that Cannonball popped up. Seeing as both characters are key parts of the New Mutants team, could fans expect that team-up?
Jake Castorena: [Laughs] All I can say to that is that we’ll just have to wait and see!
In that vein, could you talk about some of the new relationships we’ll see developing in this continuation of the original series?
Yeah, absolutely. Staying in tandem with Roberto DaCosta, a.k.a. Sunspot, getting to watch his and Jubilee’s [Holly Chou] relationship flourish… What I think the fans will enjoy is getting to watch the Jubilee P.O.V. we’ve got accustomed to from the original show through another character. Jubilee served as the access way for us [as] an audience to understand who was doing what, what the mutants were about, why they’re feared and hated, the Xavier school, and true to that, that’s what our Roberto represents. Getting to see Jubilee on the other side of that, I think, will have Jubilee fans very pleased at where we take our favorite mall babe this season.
And how would you say X-Men ‘97 is gearing itself towards both older, more established fans of the original series and new viewers that might not have gotten to tune in?
That’s been a goal from day one. It’s been ingrained in the script, written by [former head writer] Beau DeMayo, with Marvel Studios, [executive producer] Brad Winderbaum, [Vice President of Animation] Dana Vasquez-Eberhardt, so to have those solid stepping stones well before I even got into the show… They had already figured out what sandbox the show was gonna be in — where’s the relevance, where’s the ’90s feel, the modernization — well before I got on board. My job was to come in and figure out the visual style, while still staying in that sandbox. So the story, it’s sticking in tandem with how the original show never shied away from themes.
Marvel Animation
“Beauty and the Beast” [from Season 2 of the original series] is a prime example: When Beast [voiced by George Buza] was operating on a blind woman, they ended up falling in love, he cures her, the father comes in, and he’s like “No mutant’s gonna touch my daughter!” and it’s like, “Oh. Wow, that’s real.”
This show’s audience, the core audience, has grown up, we have gone through pandemics, 9/11, there’s just been a lot of things that we’ve gone through and we’ve seen, like the X-Men, the darker side of things. Also things are just more accessible these days, so there’s a world where the rose-colored lenses don’t quite work as they once did.
What I appreciate about our show is we’re not only scratching that nostalgia itch but it still also has something to say, while bringing all those characters we know and love back. Because at the end of the day, X-Men is and always has been an allegory for prejudice, and to not embrace that or to make a derivative of that, you change the dynamic of what the X-Men stand for; it becomes another superhero team. Those topics, those issues, those themes, are still as relevant today as they were in the ’90s. We’ve come so far, as a society and as a people, but we still have blindspots. We can still be better, we can still learn more, and to that point, it is real issues, so it’s about making it palatable to understand, “Oh, this is real stuff.”
Regarding the visual themes and you talking about not using nostalgia for nostalgia’s sake, the intro sequence in particular is definitely an updated version of the original theme sequence. I was wondering, with how people do have such an attachment to the original visuals, how did you find updating and honing those visuals for X-Men ‘97?
Yeah, that’s a great question. Shoutout to Larry Houston [storyboard artist and director on the original series], the OG man himself who storyboarded the original opening titles, so we brought him back to help direct and spearhead with our directors, Chase Conley and Emi Yonemura, to revive the opening titles again, because from day one, we knew we’re doing the main titles, we just have to. It’s the main titles and the theme song. If we don’t do that, it’s not X-Men, it’s not this X-Men show. So them with the team and me being able to supervise over that, they killed it with the main titles.
The cool part was that Larry Houston brought in his original storyboards that he did over 30 years ago. Before we even got to work, it was probably about an hour of all of us just, “Oh, my god, I’m touching this, this is cool” And then, finding out the original opening titles were a lot longer, it was supposed to be a lot longer, but because of broadcast… there were panels that Larry never got to use. And so, in doing that, I implore the audience to keep an eye out because some new artwork may potentially be coming about.
Regarding keeping the original voice cast but in different roles, how did the decision-making for those switches come about?
Honestly, stuff genuinely just kinda came about out of necessity. First and foremost, if we’re doing the X-Men show — this was a decision made well before me — we’re bringing the OG cast back. If we’re doing the OG show, we’re bringing the OG cast back. So, look, 30 years is 30 years, time is fickle, it gets us all. For those that are no longer with us, those are big shoes to fill, and we believe we are doing those characters justice with our new cast, and to even have the legacy cast give their blessing has been so awesome. Even to witness even some of them is like, “Oh, that’s so great!”
So to have that but then also, 30 years’ time, those who are still with us and can and want to and are able to do the voice, we brought them back. Those who are still with us who may not have that same vocal integrity, or maybe for whatever reason can’t, we still brought them back to keep them in the sandbox to play with us. It’s about the show and acknowledging the shoulders that we stand on that came before us, so that’s how those decisions came about.
X-Men ’97, Series Premiere, Wednesday, March 20, Disney+
