How did X-Men '97 creators modernise the reboot? Explored 

Marvel Studios launched a wave of nostalgia for fans this week as X-Men '97 finally premiered on Disney+. Continuing the storyline of the classic X-Men: The Animated Series, viewers were brought back to the golden era of morning cartoons as fans followed their favorite heroes on another journey after all these years.

While X-Men '97 maintained much of the nostalgic factor of X-Men: The Animated Series, it also modernized the show in a way that not many expected it to. While X-Men: The Animated Series was perfect for its time, '97 takes the best of what came before it and looks through it in a much more mature sense that modernizes the show in a way that works perfectly. It honors what came before, but also offers something exciting and new.

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X-Men '97 features more mature themes

The X-Men has always been an allegory for many marginalized groups. The entire concept of the team is to show how mutants are constantly shunned by humans, and it is a theme that is built into the core concept of who this group of superheroes are. While X-Men: The Animated Series did feature many of these themes, it never did so in as compelling a way.

X-Men '97 takes those themes of marginalization and explores them from a point of view that's very relevant to the current world. The second episode of the series, for instance, which just released this Wednesday, saw a capital insurrection with Magneto answering for his crimes against the United Nations, but being attacked by a group that is very much against the mutants.

Themes like race and bigotry are present front and center here, with the show treating its audience like adults to understand the message it's portraying. It certainly is a big leap from the Saturday morning cartoon vibe of the earlier show, that was aimed more towards children.

While the original animated series did explore the same themes, it never dived too deep within them and made real-world parallels like how X-Men '97 does. It was still very much a conservative take, compared to the current series' hard-hitting political discussion.

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X-Men '97 updated animation gives it a great new feel

While X-Men: The Animated Series was constrained by the limitations of its time, X-Men '97 doesn't face that issue. The previous animated show fully utilized 2D animation, which sometimes gave characters awkward proportions and created for some wonky animations. However, the new show doesn't face that issue.

X-Men '97 seamlessly blends its 2D animation with a 3D format, retaining a classic feel, but at the same time, it has a new essence that gives a fresh feeling. Action scenes are dynamic and more well-rounded, with every beat feeling harder, and the characters possess much more detail when expressing emotions.

The look surely is brilliant, and alongside that, the updated character designs are a great indicator of this too. The major standouts so far have been Magneto and Cyclops, both of whom get time to shine here.

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The intro has been updated for X-Men '97

To fit with the current storyline, parts of the X-Men '97 intro have been updated as well in many ways. It still has that classic theme that fans know and love with the character introductions, but characters like Magneto, Morph, and Bishop have been added in as well.

It's the perfect blend of nostalgia with a modern cut to it, and it certainly seems to be working so far. While viewers are just two episodes in so far, the show has already made a case for itself as an animated show to be on the lookout for.

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Readers can check out the first two episodes of the series, as they are currently streaming on Disney+.