X-MEN 97 | It's Improving, But the Problems Aren't Going Away 

Conflicts being resolved way too quickly, and way too easily is sadly a very common occurrence in comic books now.

For years Madelyne was a character to give Scott a happy end in the comics. She was perfectly nice and not a mutant. Later, abandoned and with a baby, she is almost like the X-men when she stays with them, just without powers. Only then this whole story started and it had a very spectacular ending with her death. (But people don’t stay dead.) She was my brothers favorite character and I loved her too.

As far as Magneto living there, the X-Men are notorious for letting whoever crash on their couch for no reason. Magneto, Joseph, Hepzibah, Omega Sentinel, Captian Marvel, hell even Mystique, Lady Mastermindand Sabertooth more than once.

That's the thing about Time Travel the more you do it, the less the rules apply to you!

imagine if real jean went with logan and fake jean went with cyclops. creepy but satisfying

Cause they are throwing as much fights and member-berries at you as possible.

I loved Emma Frost for one reason. She knew Jean had her long standing triangle with Logan & Scott and it was like she showed up saying payback is a bitch and here I am. Loved Astonishing X-men

if the pacing in three Ep.3 bothers you, the pacing in 4 will enrage you. They literally go through Storm and Forge's entire relationship in 9 minutes.

Really glad they didn’t make Jean, Cyclops, or Madalyn’s just unlikable or ruthless monsters here. By the end of it, it’s circumstances that drive the story, not the characters going through character assassination, which actually makes the events that lead to cable even more tragic.

I really enjoyed the goblin queen episode. There were homages to a Nightmare on Elm Street sprinkled throughout.

Nice to see Thorias watching something enjoyable

Gambit not believing he’s good after everything is so heartbreaking! That line hits me so hard and I only just watched the show! I love heroes with less-than-noble pasts having self-doubt despite how much they prove themselves! I find them much more endearing than heroes who feel they’re worthless despite doing nothing but good their entire lives

The voice of Mr. Sinister is Chris Britton. He was the same voice who did Sinister before in the 90s series (although I agree he does sound a bit different here).

I really liked how they truncated it because it preserves Scott as a noble person who would feel sad about his wife and child. I do feel like where it got too rushed was Madelyne's character arc. I felt she went from hurt to villainess too fast BUT I loved seeing Jean remind Madelyne of how important her maternal love of Nathan was. I feel like that resolved things way better than it ever did in the comics. I feel like it is funny how Madelyne uses her full power and becomes unstoppable... when regular old Jean in the cartoon is memetically known for fainting or having powers that are nerfed. Logan immediately trying to take one of the Jeans when a second Jean came along was humorous to me. As was Beast being as indelicate as possible to Clone Jean. "You're the fake Jean." "N-no! That's not true, I'm the Real Jean Grey!" "Ha ha ha, observe the clone with clone denial!" Jesus Christ, Beast, you did not spare her feelings.

remember even in the original show when cyclops met his father and found out it was him he felt like he was abandoned by his father told him the truth and explained everything he was still angry but he was trying to get over it so having to go through that with his own son probably brought back a lot of bad memories and feelings

Regarding the Rogue / Magneto stuff, I think it's some of the writers back dooring in Rogue's OG backstory (which was also kinda under development even during the 90's) was her time being in the brotherhood of evil mutants back in the 80's when she was first introduced in the comics. Which meant that she used to work under Magneto in those comics. Now the 90's X Men TV show being a mash up between 80's Claremont but with 90\s Jim Lee art flair meant that this kinda stuff didn't get out there on the show originally other than the back story with Ms. Marvel permanently giving her super strength and flight. So I guess the former show runner thought "Well it's not like they didn't go into that, and we need another love shipping triangle stat!".

This is the kind of story that would have been the B plot for several episodes to build up the resolution in the original show.

This episode really brought several hints of the beginning of character arcs like the whole Gambit vs Magneto thing(I hope Gambit is the cause of Magneto's downfall), Morfo against his insecurities and the whole situation with the Cyclops. Bringing back the issue of the X-men being broken little by little, perhaps it is possible for the team to disband in the middle of the season. Aside from references of the Apocalipse being a threat that will be in the show at some point.

One of the huge problems with Magneto is how he's being made to look like a chain-smoking granny

There's no way this is canon to the old show. Just a Disney non-canon what if. Glad you point it out.

Magneto goes evil again when prof X comes back. Blame Deadpool 2 for the messup with the time travel armband. Maybe there will be a directors cut later, where they flesh out the stories?

I love this show it’s so amazing

"surprisingly .... a lot of good stuff" Me being so surprised I nearly had a heart attack.

Love the channel man been watching you since 2020 keep it up 👌🏿

2:15 Have you met the Disney-approved writing teams? They don't know how to do things like subtext or difficult things like proper characterization and proper twists or turns. 9 out of 10 times, what you see is what you get with these invalid writers. Also, let's not forget their favorite fucking trope in the world: "Misunderstood Anti-Hero" which Magneto currently falls squarely into. Too many times with writers like this, I said the same as you, "That is obviously a bad guy!" but nope, just bad writing by the morally bankrupt.

I'm surprised Wolverine ain't suspecting Magneto going to betrayed them at some point.

There were two Jean Greys and Logan couldn't even get one both of them wanted Scott more.

Maybe Bishop learns that his future doesn't have what's needed and then Forge has to send Bishop and the baby further into the Future.

Honestly this thing of a villain suddenly turning good and everybody just falling in line is something that marvel does say too often. They did it with Wandavision and they did it with Tony Stark, making them both do stupid crap that hurt others and never truly owning up to it. Writers nowadays are afraid of the idea of responsibility and it shows in their work.

Another excellent new episode review, of X-Men: 97. Thorias. :)

Excellent analysis and review 🖖

Good catch on the Bishop's arm band. And Illyana's age as well. Your reviews are excellent because you seem to be the only person on RU-vid clocking these inconsistencies. (While still acknowledging the show is good) 👍

You know...now that i think about it.... Magneto really wasnt a villain much in the original series. He was a full villain in his introductive episodes. But after that, hes teamed up with the xmen more often than not. Season 1 - teams up with the X-men vs. MASTER MOLD in the finale. Season 2 - teamed up with the Professor and X-Men vs. SINISTER. Season 3 - magneto makes Asteroid M to give mutants somwwhwere separate byt safe. Then gets betrayed by Cortez. Then he teams up with rhe Xmen to undo the mess Cortez made. Season 4 - seemingly works for Apocalypse and teams up with the other villains. But it was a ruse so he could find out their strategy and stop them, all while teaming up with Charles & The X-Men.

I think why they're rushing through the stories is bc they don't know if they'll be getting another season.

Heads up for the next episode, Jubilee's original voice actress returns!

When I was a kid, I though Wolverine was cool. But his obsession with Jean is super pathetic. As an adult, I see him and think: Dude. She's married and not interested. Just stop, you goober. You're a grown man, not some lovesick tween.

Finding out you're Team Emma is surprising and pretty awesome.

I would say that magnetism is more powerful because it's specialized. It's like Jack of All Trades vs a specialist.

Last Stand had Magneto at Jean's mercy. It has been done.

Previously, on thorias unlimited.

Exactly, xmem 97 is a reimagining

Action wise maybe, but as long as Magneto looks like the actress from Misery in drag, it’s really hard to take this show seriously. One thing they’ve done almost perfectly is recreating the 90’s feel of the show. They’re doing that very well!

Sounds like nostalgia blindness.

wait... why didn't they just scan the 2 jean's gene to reveal which is the real jean based on their genes after all there are mutants has these kind of powers and plans to do the exact same thing? this isn't the first time for the x-men after all. not a similar case but consider such possibilities along the way.

5:56 Exactly!!!

Wish you a quick recovery.

Like the intro.

Tbf, in that story arc of the original series where Magneto teams up with Mr. Sinister and worls for Apocalypse, Magneto turned on them by the end of it and fought alongside the X-Men.

I'm not sure if you've seen the movie The Maltese Falcon, but when you talk about X-men 97, the scene " I enjoyed the drink as much as you did.." comes to mind.

internet shows should be long term.

That's the real of triangle

Perhaps they crammed so much in due to no season 2 guarantee at the time.

The Rogue/Magneto thing IS strange and weird... I agree...

Hey, at least these episodes are being released in order lol

Time exists so everything doesn't happen at once, right?

The big issue (apart from my dislike of the art style) I agree is the pacing. This would have so much more impact if the bulid to the turn took 2/3 episodes. Just letting it simmer under the surface for a bit. Then a full episode on the fallout and action. As is in 3 episodes we have dealt with the Sentinels, Magneto taking over and the goblin queen. I remember the build to the savage lands in the old series with several episodes of Charles and magneto surviving until the giant end of season climax. I think Netflix has ruined king series arc stoeyyelling

The Telekinesis Vs Magnetism thing has been addressed in the comics actually. Generally, except when the plot demands otherwise, Jean's TK is portrayed as much less potent than Magneto's magnetism. Magneto can levitate an entire bridge, but Jean can't lift anything near that heavy. At least that was how it was generally portrayed. Of course, jean's power and control depend largely on the writer at the time, and other fluctuating plot contrivances. But that's usually how it got addressed. Magneto's power is limited in application, but vastly more potent than Jean's TK.

This episode was so rushed to me. Why would she go crazy like that??? Because of a mind control thing on her head? It needed build up

So who else thinks that cyclops is gonna have X-man (that’s the name of the character) with real Jean.

AY UP THORIAS

Scott felt abandoned because Corsair didnt COME BACK and he could have✌🏾.

@Thorias Unlimited Gotta hand it to you. You have a grasp of the story and the nuts and bolts of how this stuff works.

I still can't believe DISNEY did this...

My only problem with the fight between Magneto and Goblin Queen is the fact that he only used the metal around to protect himself.... instead of that electric cage he would use every time in the og show

They are probably trying to get as much done as possible before it goes the way of 90% of shows these days, 1 season, cancelled. 2 seasons, cancelled. Loved X-men TAS as a kid but I havent given a crap about current shows and movies for a long time, closest thing I get to is watching people like you lol. I didnt find you until the Batgril times but I watched the past Supergirl shows you reviewed. Gotta tell you, doesnt exactly make me want to check them out personally.

This series was the perfect opportunity for "Executioner's Song" Another wasted opportunity via Disney Marvel.

I had a thought... You know how some of the... 'less talented' writers these days like to make villain seem sympathetic, even if they shouldn't be treated as such? Or so nothing to redeem themselves? Maybe that's what's going on with Magneto.

Goblin Queen without any goblins, and she just walks off at the end of the episode ? incredibly weak and short sighted

I was not impressed with the Trial of Magneto, but the Goblin Queen story was, although fast paced, pretty good. 7/10 And it's not the Audience the Showrunner didn't trust. It's DISNEY. They're notorious for killing cartoons after a couple of seasons. And now that they're doing 10 episode orders? Mr. Hellmen's only has one shot at this. I'm 'fine' with the Rogue/Mags thing because frankly, women want older men in real life. I'm NOT fine with it in this show, because this was not set up in the show. Stop taking things from the Comics and inserting them into '97 willy nilly.

Team Emma unite!!!

Maybe they can cure the baby if beast and Forge work together and they know they baby will arrive with Bishop in a few decades, so when Bishop arrive at his timeline there is a partial cure.

I love Magneto

So can someone enlighten me on why In the comics she had the names Madelyn proyr and goblin queen? Sorry about bad spelling

The show's not perfect but I'm enjoying it.

I didn't realise so I'd like to know, where were Rouge and Magneto while goblin queen attacked?? They didn't were at the danger room because Gambit and the rest just came out of there when the attack started...

i got a pair of jeans on right now

9:59 again I haven’t seen season 4 and 5 of the original yet. Do they explore the thieves vs assassin’s story.

I'm a bit disappointed in X-Men 97. It doesn't have the same vibe as the original series in my opinion. Similar enough I suppose but something feels off. Everything gets resolved too fast except for the Magneto storyline which they are slowly developing. I agree the Magneto/Rogue/Gambit love triangle is kind of terrible, unless they resolve it by showing that Gambit was paranoid and while Magneto has feelings for Rogue she feels that he is too old and she still cares about her relationship with Remy. For people wanting to justify it based off comic book history, then let me ask, how come X-Men '97 doesn't go into how Mr. Sinister and Gambit knew each other, Gambit limiting his powers through surgery and doing a favor for Sinister in return? So odd of all the Gambit stories they could have gone with they are doing kind of a mix of the Age of Apocalypse story where he left the X-Men, & the Gambit vs. Joseph story. Doesn't do justice to Gambit. Other than Cyclops and Jubilee the show has not done much to boost the preexisting characters. Even with Morph, he may have more presence, but I don't necessarily feel he is a better character for it.

Following the cman tas he can. He absorbed gambits exploding card.

I think someone mentioned specialisation verses a general ability for goblin queen versus magneto. Also he is an omega level mutant right? So he shouldn't be getting wrecked so easily?

There could be a malfunction on his time band and get blasted to 3999. not the first time something like that happened.

We both team Emma my dude.

Jean Grey would never beat Magneto. Magneto's powers are unlimited, while Jean's telekinesis is completely reliant upon her mental fortitude. In the OG X-Men animated series, Jean would constantly struggle to utilize her powers. As the Phoenix, her powers were virtually unlimited--but as Jean, she was not extremely strong. Her telepathy was inferior to Xavier's and her telekinesis would constantly fail her. This new Jean (who has been, mostly, just the Goblin Queen) compete with Morph for feeling the most different from the original series. Bishop feels different as well, primarily because the original series had Bishop as an insufferable douche for nearly every appearance. With the real Jean back, I wonder how they'll present her. While Hale does a fine job as Jean, the voice is very, very different. She doesn't feel like the Jean we all knew at all.

The name Madelyn wasn't completely out of left field, they made her childhood friend's name Madelyn it was a quick easy to miss touch in a throw away line.

Is anyone outside of the access media and RU-vid critics talking about this show? Has this show moved the needle for normies? I mean, after that brouhaha about the showrunner died down, it faded in the background.

That was kind of an odd Sailor Moon power up pose real Jean did.

7:53 I’m team storm

maybe goblin queen is a nod to Labyrinth. keep it real Thorias. thanks

Great episode, but they are skipping some stuff to move the pacing faster.

Wait... a Disney Marvel show from current day that has not only a red head... but an attractive redhead AND HAS CLEAVAGE????? Or is the pic photoshopped? ???

So is Cable Madylin's baby or Jean Grey in 97?

Man, Scott can have Emma, they deserve each other.

That is not a new voice for Sinister. It is the same actor but he has aged and it shows in his performance. You can't blame Chris Pitton for getting old. Besides, I like his voice. His performance sounds even more Sinister (pun intended).

Doesn't look like anyone else mentioned it so I guess I'll have to say it. What the hell is going on between morph and wolverine??

They’ll gaslight gambit

I love the use of intercut clips….that was the one thing missing from your otherwise great reviews.

Maybe I'm too dumb to understand it but how can Magneto use electromagnetism to effectively shut off Rogue's powers? Is he somehow manipulating her DNA by affecting the X-Gene? If that's the case, then does that mean he can deactivate the abilities of every mutant or metahuman he comes across? I never thought it made sense in the comics but maybe I'm just missing something.

I don't think he's up to something

episode 3 still was my favourite, but it shows how rushed it is... and then comes episode 4, with 1 and a half stories... damn

Goblin queen can get it. My god she's awesome