’90s kids in the Los Angeles area may want to make sure to be present at the Los Angeles Comic Con on October 12 this year. Five cast members of the ’90s ‘X-Men’ cartoon (commonly referred to as ‘X-Men: The Animated Series’, although it was never actually called that in the credits) which aired on FOX Kids on Saturday mornings will be reuniting for the first time! The cast members present will be among the most prominent, Chris Britton/Mr. Sinister, George Buza/Beast, Cal Dodd/Wolverine, Chris Potter/Gambit, and Lenore Zann/Rogue.
But if the creators of the animated series have their way, the animated X-Men will be charging back to the screen in new adventures under Disney’s ownership. Speaking to The Hollywood Reporter, artist Larry Houston said:
“The one thing we’d like to do more than anything else is to continue where we left off.”
It appears that Houston and other creators are preparing a pitch to present to Disney in hopes of reviving the series. This wouldn’t be a reboot. They would keep the same aesthetic of the cartoon, which was a simplified variation of the artwork by Jim Lee in the comics of the time. But Houston has low expectations, hoping to simply get the chance to produce one season in the old style.
In addition to Beast, Wolverine, Gambit, and Rogue, the series featured Cyclops, Jean Grey, Jubilee, Storm, and Professor X as the main characters, while many others guest-starred. Mr. Sinister was just one of the many villains, who also included Apocalypse, the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants, the Inner Circle (you can’t say “Hellfire” on a cartoon), Juggernaut, Magneto, and the Sentinels.
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‘X-Men’ ran for five seasons, from 1992-97. It was among FOX Kids’ highest rated shows. There were 76 episodes total, and while the earliest were only based on the comics, the show eventually began directly adapting stories from the books, including the ‘Dark Phoenix Saga’. The show was supposed to end after 65 episodes, but because it was still going strong, additional episodes were ordered, but there was a decrease in animation quality and some characters were redesigned, like Jubilee.
Keep in mind, Houston only plans to make a pitch. There’s no guarantee that Disney will spring for it… yet. However, when the time comes for Disney and Marvel Studios to reinvent the X-Men for the big screen, it’s a given that a new animated series will be created as a tie-in.
The last time the ‘X-Men’ appeared in an animated series was in 2009’s ‘Wolverine and the X-Men’ which aired on Nickelodeon for one season.
Would you like to see a revival of the classic ‘X-Men’ animated series?
