Tag Archives: nathan summers

July 6, 2026

X-Men ’97 – “Days of Past Future”

By Joe
Original premiere date July 1, 2026.

At last, X-Men ’97 has made its return to airwaves with not one, not two, but three episodes for the premiere which means there’s a lot to talk about. Truthfully, too much for one post which is why we need to keep things to one episode per entry as is the style of the time. It’s been a long two years since the first season ended with the X-Men scattered through time. When that episode ended, it was tough to know just where everyone landed, but with the first episode of season two that is at least resolved along with a whole bunch of other things. And structurally, the three episode premiere makes sense because each episode is going to take place at a different point in time and focus on a different group of mutants with the very first taking place in the far off future of 3960 where we know Cyclops (Ray Chase) and Jean (Jennifer Hale) wound up, but will soon learn it’s also where Storm(Alison Sealy-Smith), Wolverine (Cal Dodd), and Morph(JP Karliak) landed as well.

As we basically knew going into this one based on how season one ended, season two is going to focus on Apocalypse (Ross Marquand) as the big antagonist of the season. At least, that’s the setup and I suppose he could be dispatched before the season ends, but it sure feels like he’s going to have a presence throughout. When the show begins with that fantastic intro, we find Forge (Gil Birmingham) and Bishop (Isaac Robinson-Smith) taking stock of where the X-Men are. Forge has utilized his mutant powers of invention to create a crude version of the time portal seen in the very first season of X-Men and through that they have been able to pinpoint where everyone wound up. Because Forge’s love interest, Storm, resides in 3960 he draws the task of traveling to the future to bring back the X-Men there while Bishop will be tasked to heading to ancient Egypt to retrieve the rest.

Expect Apocalypse to have a presence throughout this season.

In 3960, we’re properly introduced to Nathan Summers (Michael Johnston) and Mother Askani (Gates McFadden). Askani leads a tribe of individuals who are resisting Apocalypse in this future. There, the immortal mutant has pretty much taken over and successfully enslaved much of the world. The Atlantic ocean is dried up and his fortress looms large. Cyclops and Jean have been training Nathan who does not know that they’re his parents for a few months while the other X-Men are just along for the ride. When Forge arrives, he finds a Wolverine sans his adamantium skeleton who is forced to tangle with Apocalypse’s robotic Dark Riders with bone claws that shatter upon impact, but soon regrow thanks to his mutant healing ability. Because the episode is heavy on the Summers family dynamic, we don’t get any insight on how Wolverine has been coping with that very traumatic moment from the penultimate episode of season one and Morph is mostly there for a little window dressing. Forge has the unenviable task of convincing the Summers family to separate and return to the present despite getting this unexpected opportunity at a life with their son.

The main focus of the episode is on the Summers family.

As such, the episode is heavy on the soapy elements X-Men is known for. Cyclops distrusts Mother Askani who declines to reveal her origins, though the episode is not shy at hinting at it. She feels Nathan is destined to take down Apocalypse and that takes precedent over the whims of his long lost parents who are struggling with the idea that their kid needs to go on without them. We also learn just why the X-Men are where they are, and even though there’s a lot of drama there’s also no shortage of action in this opening episode. It also leads directly into the second episode as we briefly touch base with Cable in 1997, one of the few heroes from season one not sent through time, and even see the origin of a second season of X-Men character.

Claws of bone have limited effectiveness against machines.

“Days of Past Future” is written by Brad Ford Sullivan, Anthony Sellitti, and JB Ballard which does call into question if anything former showrunner Beau DeMayo had planned for this one made it in. Since he will be receiving writing credits in future episodes (and is an executive producer on the series still), I suspect that isn’t the case and the larger picture he had for the show is still intact. Whether that’s a good or bad thing is not something I can say, but since he oversaw the excellent first season I can only assume it’s good despite how his time on the show came to an end. The visuals in the show have only improved, if anything, with bright, vibrant, colors even in this dystopian future dominating the palette. I especially love the little touches like how Wolverine can be seen wincing in pain every time his claws snap and the way this show really makes Storm’s powers resemble those of an actual goddess. The soundtrack by The Newton Brothers, which borrows heavily from the original series score, is thumping and there’s a great use of Cable’s old theme as well when Nathan enters a scene. If I have anything to criticize it’s that the episode resolves itself rather quickly. It’s not necessarily unexpected as we can’t have a big showdown with Apocalypse right out of the gate, but it did bring the episode to a bit of a screeching halt. It’s not unsatisfying as the character interactions work especially well, but perhaps felt a bit too neat and tidy.

Young Nathan will be forced to grapple with his own destiny.

As a return to the world of X-Men ’97, “Days of Past Future” works exceptionally well. I love the callbacks and the minor tweaks to the opening title. This is a show that is rich in lore for longtime viewers of the show and readers of the comic books from which the show draws inspiration from. And in this case, we’re talking about The Adventures of Cyclops and Phoenix which was written by Scott Lodbell who probably should have received a credit on the episode. It’s a good setup for the next several episodes and the season to come and if it had arrived all by itself I would have absolutely been frothing for more, but since it didn’t I got to go right into the second episode which might be even better.

Previously…on X-Men ’97:

X-Men ’97 – “Tolerance is Extinction – Part 3”

Today, X-Men ’97 dropped the curtain on its first season and what a way to bring it to an end. Last week’s episode was a roller coaster of emotions for me. I couldn’t go into much detail of my review of “Tolerance is Extinction – Part 2” without wading into spoiler territory, so allow me…

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by Joe

X-Men ’97 – “Tolerance is Extinction – Part 2”

Magneto was right. That was the realization many characters seemed to share at the end of last week’s episode of X-Men ’97. As we roll into the penultimate episode of the show’s first season, a lot is on the line and the show is drawing inspiration from several different sources related to the X-Men over…

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by Joe

X-Men ’97 – “Tolerance is Extinction – Part 1”

Ever since the episode list was released for X-Men ’97 I’ve been looking forward to what reads like an epic, three-part, season finale. In truth, given that X-Men ’97 is a serialized show you could basically call every episode “X-Men ’97 Season 1 Part 1” and so on, but the titles do add a dramatic…

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by Joe

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November 30, 2025

Marvel Legends X-Men ’97 Cable

By Joe
Say “Hello,” to the Wild Man of Borneo.

Today we finish our look at wave 3 of X-Men ’97 Marvel Legends action figures and I think I saved the best for last. Cable was one of the non-members of the X-Men to play a pretty substantial role in the original animated series. He showed up in multiple episodes in both the first and second season and was a key player in what was to be the show’s big finale, “Beyond Good and Evil.” It wasn’t a surprise to see him return in X-Men ’97 where he once again was a soldier displaced by time, only this time the show actually showed interest in explaining just who the heck this guy is.

They fed him well in the future.

In the episode “Time Fugitives – Part 2,” there’s basically a blink and you miss it moment where Jean Grey mentally probes the mind of Cable. We see images of Cyclops and Jean when she does, but the show doesn’t bother addressing that at any future moment leaving most of the characters in the dark, save for Jean, apparently. Obviously, if you’re a fan of the comics then you probably knew all that, but he must have been a pretty confusing character for those who were only exposed to the X-Men via the cartoon. In X-Men ’97, we finally find out that Cable is the son of Cyclops and Jean from the future. Only there’s a twist as Cable is actually the son of Cyclops and the clone of Jean, who decided to adopt the alias Madelyne Prior. Cable plays a large role in the back-half of the first season and appears to be set to play a big role in the upcoming season. Might we finally see him form X-Force? I kept waiting for him to do that in the old show so it would be long overdue if he does.

I suspect we’ll see something like this in season two. Only Apocalypse will be much taller.

This depiction of Cable is his traditional look. It mostly conforms to what we saw in the ’92 series as well as the first chunk of X-Men ’97. By the finale, Cable (like everyone else) gets a costume change meaning X-Men ’97 is perhaps the most action figure friendly show we’ve ever had. We’ve already seen one of those finale outfits via Jubilee in this wave while others have been reserved for some two-packs that I didn’t pick up. I’m most interested in figures that fit in with my ’92 display and this Cable accomplishes that.

Cable, like Morph, is an all new sculpt. Initially, I thought he might share some parts with the Bishop from the first wave, but if he does I can’t find them. He’s pretty tall as well standing a little over 7″ making him the tallest in the line thus far. His sculpt is pretty intricate with lots of straps, pouches, and other assorted details pulled from the show. He has that animated look to him via a lot of flat colors, but there’s also a slight touch of realism to the face like Hasbro knew comic collectors would want to add this Cable to their display. Cable has a pretty distinct face in the show and it’s not quite captured here. It’s almost like it’s halfway between the ’92 version of the character and the ’97 one.

This is the “little gun.”

As is the case with most of the wave, there isn’t a lot of paint to be found on Cable. It’s mostly reserved for his face which looks good. Hasbro elected not to go with a glowing eye which is fine. The X-emblem is painted onto the collar as well as the red lines on his suspenders (I guess that’s what they are). Perhaps the best paintwork and nicest little detail is the dark blue piping on his chest and abdomen. A lot of the other colored parts are just plastic. The green straps are bands of plastic and they even run under the chest which is an odd look. The arm band on his left arm is plastic as are the thigh straps. The dark gray on his shoulders pads is paint as are the yellow rectangles on the boots, but they’re not that clean. There’s no slop, but they don’t quite reach the edges of the piece. He looks pretty good, all things considered. Obviously, more paint is best, but this muted color palette works better in plastic than some of the brighter offerings. The only aspect of the presentation that bothers me is the left arm. For that, we get Hasbro’s swirly, twirly, silver plastic. It would look so much better if it had a painted finish and since it’s such a small area it’s disappointing that they didn’t go that extra mile, but not surprising.

And this is the Big Gun.

Cable further blows the budget by having some unique accessories as well. I could be wrong, but I don’t think even his hands are recycled, but I also don’t buy every Marvel Legend release that comes out. He has a trigger hand for each arm plus a right fist and a wide, gripping, left hand. That one is intended to support his big, freakin’, gun. It’s a big hunk of plastic with some nice, sculpted, detail and a little bit of red paint. He also has more of a sidearm which too has that futuristic look to it and a little bit of red paint detail. Both guns can utilize a blast effect and Hasbro so kindly provided two. They’re yellow with some red at the base giving it a nice transition. These are recycled from many releases, but they work just fine here and they’re nice to have.

It too has its own blast effect.

The one area that may leave collectors disappointed with this Cable is the articulation. Big guys don’t always articulate the best, but Hasbro made some curious choices here. He does have a double ball peg at the head and a single joint at the base of the neck. Maybe Hasbro is finally figuring these joints out because his range there is terrific. It goes south pretty fast from there though as the arms feature your basic, Marvel Legends, articulation with no butterfly joint. That’s not the problem though, what is are these shoulder pads. Hasbro made no effort to work them into the articulation. Like Emma Frost’s cape, you just have to deal with it. Only in this case, you can’t remove them if you so desire. Cable can raise his arms out to the side, but he can only raise them out front so far. The shoulder pads are a softer material, but not soft enough to just get out of the way. It makes it hard for Cable to hold either gun out straight. For the big one, he has to hold it across his chest while the smaller one is always going to be pointed out at an angle.

“The name’s Cable, Apocalypse, remember it!” “I shall not forget this IMPUDENCE!”

It’s a shame, because the rest of the articulation is solid. He has a ball-jointed diaphragm that provides some forward and back, tilt, and rotation. The straps don’t get in the way because they’re separate pieces between the chest and the abdomen. There is a waist twist and it’s basically hidden by the belt. The legs are pretty standard with the thigh swivels hidden behind the straps on his legs and the only other shortcoming really is the lack of a boot swivel. You don’t really need it, but since he has such big boots that are clearly a separate piece why not have it there anyway?

Is the poor articulation at the shoulders a deal-breaker? For me, no. I like the look of this Cable and it’s a character I’ve wanted to add to the collection for a long time so I’m mostly content. The sculpt and the accessories are great by Marvel Legends standards and I can finagle the figure into a pose that suits me. More than the shoulder range, I think I’m more disappointed by the lack of weapon storage.. All them pouches, but not a single holster for either gun. I know in the show he wore the big gun on his back most of the time, but I don’t know if he actually had a holster like Bishop or if it just attached via cartoon magic. I couldn’t spy one in any of the screenshots I looked at, but Hasbro could have at least given us a peg hole or something. At any rate, Cable is the standout of X-Men ’97 wave three. If you like the show and you’re collecting the figures, then you probably already have him. If you’re someone more into the comic-based figures then I’d still give this one a look. If Cable is missing from your display I think this one works just fine as more of a classic Cable, but that’s just me.

For more action figure reviews from X-Men ’97 look no further:

Marvel Legends X-Men ’97 Logan

I knew who the X-Men were when the show premiered in 1992, but I didn’t know much about them. That show really was the proper introduction to the franchise for me and one thing I couldn’t wrap my head around as a kid was that these were heroes who didn’t really have a secret identity.…

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by Joe

Marvel Legends X-Men ’97 Morph

I’m always going to have a soft spot for Morph. It was rare to see a character killed off in a children’s show, but that was the fate of old Morph who didn’t make it out of the show’s second episode. I wouldn’t call it traumatizing, but there was definitely a haunted quality to that…

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by Joe

Marvel Legends X-Men ’97 Emma Frost

If you have seen the first season of X-Men ’97 then you may be wondering why Emma Frost, aka the White Queen, is receiving an action figure in the show’s companion toy line. She didn’t play a big role in the show having a speaking role in just one episode and then what amounted to…

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by Joe

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