Television series

X-Men '97

Name: X-Men '97
Genre: Action, Science Fiction
Released: 2024
Cast: Cal Dodd, George Buza, Ray Chase, Jennifer Hale, Alison Sealy-Smith

X-Men '97 resurrects the beloved 1990s animated series with the original voice cast intact, picking up where it left off with gorgeously hand-drawn animation and the same mixture of superhero action, soap-opera melodrama, and genuine emotional weight. It's for anyone who loved the original show, but also newcomers who want to see what great animated storytelling looks like when it's not afraid to break your heart.

TVMaze rating

4.1

Should you watch it?

Watch it if you grew up on the 1990s X-Men cartoon or love team ensembles where loyalty, grudges and moral arguments carry as much weight as the punches.

Skip it if you want a self-contained story with a quick payoff, since this is serialised, leans on long-running character history, and its action can feel busy and repetitive.

What it asks of you: Nineteen half-hour episodes across two seasons, so it wants a steady commitment rather than a single sitting, and it stays earnest and emotionally direct throughout.

Not sure? Find tonight's pick in a minute.

If you liked this

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But It's a 30-year-old show, and while it has held up astonishingly well, the animation style will feel distinctly retro if you're used to modern rendering.

Castlevania: Nocturne2023

Stunning hand-drawn animation married to genuinely complex character work and a serialized story with real stakes. It proves the format can handle both spectacle and quiet, devastating humanity.

But It's darker and grittier than X-Men '97, with graphic violence and sexual content that might feel like a tonal shift if you're coming from the superhero space.

Superman: The Animated Series1996

From the same creative stable, equally definitive: it captures what makes its hero tick without ever feeling like it's explaining him to you. Pure, confident storytelling.

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Not sure tonight? Get a pick in a minute, starting from X-Men '97

The wildcard

Something you would not have found on your own.

Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood2009

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Justice League Unlimited2004

An ensemble superhero show that actually manages its sprawling cast, giving nearly everyone a moment to shine. It's confident enough to spend entire episodes on B-listers and still make you care.

But It relies on a lot of DC lore, so newcomers might feel lost on character histories and relationships; it's not designed to bring you in from scratch.

Daria1997

Serialized character growth wrapped in comedy: Daria watches people change in front of her, and so do we. It's proof that a show can be smart, funny, and emotionally coherent without constant action.

But It's a high school comedy, which might feel tonally distant if you're watching X-Men '97 for the stakes and spectacle rather than the character work underneath.

Arcane: League of Legends2021

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But The first three episodes are gorgeously slow; if you're hunting for action, you'll have to be patient before the momentum builds.

Midnight Run1988

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But It's 1980s action cinema, which means it moves on different rhythms than modern TV. Looser, less serialized, more interested in hanging out with its characters than plot momentum.

Revolutionary Girl Utena1997

Both shows use ensemble storytelling and the animation form itself to interrogate heroism and sacrifice; both understand that the real story isn't the battles but the question of what it costs to protect people who might never acknowledge you did it.

A magical-girl anime that weaponizes its own format: hand-drawn, visually inventive, increasingly surreal as it interrogates what it means to be a hero and who benefits from your sacrifice. It's strange, beautiful, and refuses easy answers.

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