X-Men

Grew up with this cartoon as well as Spiderman and Batman and looking back how lucky were we to have such brilliant adaptations? All the favourite characters are here, both good and evil, including Rogue, Wolverine, Storm, Jean Grey, Charles Xavier and Cyclops appearing in the majority of episodes while there are many other characters coming and going through-out including Magneto, Apocolypse, Juggernaut, Mystique and so many more. Suffice to say, if you have a favourite X-Men character the chances are they'll show up here. The episodes themselves all intertwine with each other, with storylines including time-travel, the fight for mutant rights, the Morlocks and even relationships between the X-Men and their foe's taking many episodes to come to a resolution which shows a level of intelligence that is quite rare in the television cartoon field. Any X-Men fan will be gripped from the start. The animation is wonderful, the battles quirky and fast-paced and the voice acting is also top-notch. The whole show is quality and hasn't really aged much.

I was in my early teens when I first saw this cartoon version of 'X-Men' on television and it was what ignited my long-standing interest in the Marvel universe. If there was ever a lesson to be learnt about what it is to produce a faithful, involving adaptation (be it from a comic or a book) this show was the perfect example as it managed to successfully transfer the characters and plots from page to screen without dumbing down or altering things for the sake of making them 'cooler'.

The cartoon focused mainly on 'X-Men' favourites including Cyclops, Jean, Wolverine, Gambit, Rogue, Storm, Beast, Jubilee and, of course, Xavier. But there were also episodes involving characters in supporting roles such as Archangel, Bishop, Nightcrawler and Cable. In terms of villains, all the usual suspects of like Magneto, Sinister, Mystique and Apocalypse turn up at some point. Unlike the recent films, aimed at pleasing teenagers and casual cinema-goers, this series was more intent on depicting the characters properly so there is the same interactions as seen in the comics including the Scott/Jean/Wolverine triangle, the love/hate relationship between Gambit and Rogue and the sibling bond that Storm and Gambit share. It also wonderfully portrays Wolverine's darkly sarcastic side, which brings humour to the show.

While the films (and the childish 'X-Men: Evolutions') show the X-Men having rather calm, settled lives on the whole, this series gave a darker view of the universe, showing the team striving to do good in a world where much of humanity loathed mutants and saw them as the threat. It also tackled story arcs, like Onslaught, Dark Phoenix, Days of Future's End and Angel's transformation into Archangel, that appeared in the comic-verse in a way that retained the essence of the stories.

This was certainly one of the best cartoons to come out of the Nineties and still holds appeal to me even now that I'm an adult. In fact, I think a few of the time-travelling episodes would probably be a bit too complex for the usual eight- to twelve-year-old demography who watch Fox Kids. I'd highly recommend this to fans of the comics and those who enjoyed the films but felt they were too flat and want to see something that preserves the spirit of the comics.

Story: People known as mutants born with a superpower disability must try to persuade the humans that they are peaceful while they battle other mutants.

Production: Perfect

Main intelligence: 5. Humans are dumb because they are okay with the Fantastic 4 but are not okay with mutants.

Highlight: The story, battles, characters, this show did not have any limits. It was non-stop X-mening.

Should you watch this show?: Yes. If you like superheroes, the best animation, non-yokeness, non-cringefest then this is the show for you. It's the perfect show. If you are a fan of X-men and Mutants, there are plenty in this show to interact with. Almost every story from the comics were covered in this show.

Sadly, the shows that followed this perfect iCON was a step-down.

This was an exciting and great show. It featured good story lines, great character development, and good animation. This show is definitely better than the movie because it takes it's time to tell us a good story. Also it was quite faithful to the comics.

The X-Men Animated Series was great, hands down. Sure, it wasn't the comic -- and yes, the X-Men lineup stayed the same through all six seasons... but it handelled very well. In some ways I wish the comic could have been more concise like the Animated Series was. Some guest characters (Dazzler, my favourite X-Man, for one) weren't portrayed very well, especially in the explenation of their mutant powers, but it was very cool to see it all piece together.

The X-Men had it's share of continuity problems, however. In season 1, for example, everything was loosely played off of the comics. For instance, the X-Men did NOT know Warren Worthington III (Angel/Archangel). Later on through the series, however, Angel is shown as an original X-Man. Iceman was also later guest-starred as an original X-Man, and Polaris was shown as a former X-Man as well. Other than that, though, the team is set as Wolverine, Rogue, Gambit, Cyclops, Storm, Jean Grey, Jubilee, Beast and Professor X. Some great storylines were the Phoenix Saga, Dark Phoenix Saga and the Phalenx Covenant.

Just about any X-Man you can think of was cameoed as well. Except for Shadowcat that is. Nightcrawler, Dazzler, Colossus, Havok, Wolfsbane, Cannonball, Longshot, and Rictor all stand fresh in my mind. It was truly a great series -- and it was very sad to see it cancelled, as it brought something more substantial to television -- a dream, a goal. Not talking sponges like you see on Nickelodeon. This was and will continue to be one of the greatest cartoons that graced Saturday-morning television.