Before there was Heroes, there was an even awesomer group of outcast superheroes standing in for the plight of the minority: the X-Men. Maybe I'm not really one to judge, because I've never actually seen a single episode of Heroes, but come on! The X-Men battled their way into my heart - nay, our hearts - long before some of the Heroes cast were even born, and no other unwitting superheroes have yet to take their place.
The series was aired for about five years, from 1992 until 1997, and it remains one of the most highly regarded animated comic book adaptations ever, and for good reason, too: the storylines are as fascinating for kids as they are for adults, and I'm speaking from experience, having been a huge fan of the show as a kid, and rediscovering my love for it now as an adult. Or semi-adult, at least.
The animation is incredibly proficient for its time, which sounds a little ridiculous considering the fact that it first came out in 1992. Not that long ago, right? But considering the sweeping advancements that have been made in the medium since then it's a pretty flattering observation. That said, the fight scenes are a lot less seamless than I remember, but it's been many years since I last watched the series, so I guess they deserve a little slack.
Besides my faulty childhood memories I don't really have grounds to complain. Well, I guess that's not really true, because plot-wise these episodes are very Jubilee/Jean Grey/Cyclops/Storm-heavy, when we all know that the best X-Men (and subsequently, the ones deserving the most screen time) are Gambit, Rogue, and Wolverine. They are somewhat heavily involved in a lot of episodes, but rarely as part of a central storyline.
If anything, re-watching this series again has made the pitfalls of the filmic adaptations much more obvious and apparent. To get back to the character of Rogue, what exactly happened to make the writers of the films think it would be a good idea to turn her from a strong, kick-ass Southern belle to a blubbering teenager? And to then entrust that role to Anna Paquin, of all people? She is so far from the Rogue I know and love that's it's almost depressing to think that there may be fans out there who are only familiar with the wimpier, whinier Rogue of the X-Men movies. And to completely deprive movie-Rogue of two thirds of the powers that cartoon-Rogue possessed? Cartoon-Rogue flies and destroys Sentinels with her super strength while movie-Rogue bitches and moans and cries into Iceman's shoulder about how she's really sad that she can't hold hands with him. All that, and then they go and completely leave Gambit out of the whole equation. Blasphemy. (And yes, I know they finally put Gambit in the new Wolverine movie but I haven't seen it yet so I am leaving it out of this, er, in-depth analysis.) And the more I got into the series again, the more I realized how many awesome characters they passed on for the movies: Morph, Cable, hell, even the Morlocks. And in favor of who...Angel? So he has wings, big deal. Can he make inanimate objects combustible? I didn't think so. And yet he gets to be a character in X3. Seriously, the dogmatic movie fans are really missing out.
DVD Bonus Features
Unfortunately, the DVD's special features are sorely lacking, namely in that there aren't any; though the discs do boast a couple of Dolby Digital Surround Sound and French and Spanish language tracks and subtitles for the international fans. It stands well enough on its own, but a couple of commentary tracks might have been a nice addition. Still, the series is truly an amazing feat for the medium, and it comes highly recommended to fans of cartoons, comic books, movies, and comic book movies, as well as everything in between.
"X-Men: Volume 1" is on sale April 28, 2009 and is rated PG. Animation, Comic Book, Sci-Fi. Directed by N/A. Written by Mark Edward Edens, Jim Carlson, Terrence McDonnell, Don Glutt, Robert N. Skir, Marty Isenberg, Michael Edens, Julianne Klemm, Julia Jane Lewald. Starring Alison Seasly Smith, Cathal J Dodd, Catherine Disher, Cedric Smith, Norm Spencer.
