Tag Archives: x-men the animated series

November 19, 2025

Mondo 1/6 X-Men ’97 Wolverine – Limited Edition

By Joe
The best there is at what he does.

Back in 2021, Mondo unveiled for San Diego Comic Con a sixth scale Wolverine action figure based on the X-Men animated series from the 90s. It was a presale to coincide with the 30th anniversary of the show’s premiere and product went out in 2022 closer to that actual anniversary. At the time, Mondo wasn’t planning on doing more, but the response was so enthusiastic that their one-off turned into a whole line. To sculpt the next figure, Magneto, Mondo enlisted the work of Alex Brewer – a fast rising sculptor in the toy world. Alex would go on to knock it out of the park with Magneto which naturally lead to more work for Brewer. It’s basically been his style and vision that has come to define the line, and as it’s pivoted to include X-Men ’97 as well, the need for a Wolverine to fit in with the style of the rest of the line became more apparent.

Things have improved over at Mondo over the past few years.

Wolverine has the unique standing of being the first in the line and now the 9th. Well, technically this is the third attempt at the character as we did get Wolverine in his civilian attire, but that’s pretty different from his business look. When Mondo had that initial Wolverine sculpted, they weren’t planning on more which meant not much consideration was taken for scale. That Wolverine was nearly 11″ tall, and as the line went on it became pretty apparent that he was too tall. This new Wolverine not only allows for a chance for Brewer to do the character, but also to correct that scale issue. And Mondo has for this new one which stands at about 10.33″ to the top of his head putting him in that 5’3″ – 5’4″ range which feels fitting for Wolverine. Even though the box says X-Men ’97 on it, it’s still adorned with production art from the original series with new artwork by Dan Veesenmeyer that portrays the updated look. Tom Rozejowski, a name we see a lot with NECA products, handled the paint for Wolverine and Tommy Hodges also gets a sculptor credit. I’m thinking he may have done the base, but I don’t know for certain.

This is actually the third Logan in the line. The new, unmasked, portraits are actually different here and are more or less interchangeable.

Mondo has been trying to straddle the line between X-Men ’92 and X-Men ’97 with these more recent releases. This figure definitely has a more ’97 look to it. While the costume is the same, there are some telltale differences and it’s mostly in the body hair. The original series left Wolverine’s chin free of hair for the most part, save for perhaps some close-ups. The hair on his arms was usually done with lines across the shoulders and biceps. For ’97, he has some chin stubble and the hair on his arms is done with several short lines In addition, the angle of the mask fins is slightly steeper and they don’t stretch quite as high. Of course, that aspect of the ’92 series was hardly consistent, but it’s in comparison to the model sheets. The yellow of the costume is also just a little bit darker, a touch more gold, and the same is true of the blue parts. In comparing this figure with the original release, the cel-shading is also less prominent. We have primarily two shades of blue on the new figure compared with three on the original. The same is true of the belt, though the yellow on the old figure only utilized two shades, but there’s more of it. The black portions of the shirt are also sculpted in now. There’s no paint slop, but it doesn’t quite fill the entirety of the sculpted-out area. There is no shading on the flesh, and like the rest of the color palette, it’s a touch darker as well compared with the old figure.

He’s also much shorter compared with his foes.

I have mixed feelings on the updates and changes. I find the overall sculpt more suitable for Wolverine. Not only is he shorter, he’s stockier. The original is very leggy and the torso slightly slender. I think the portraits are an improvement as well even if they have a very ’97 style. There is an included ’92 masked portrait, but the only aspect of it that reads ’92 is the shape of the fins. The stubble is still present. I definitely prefer the more vibrant paint job of the original and the approach to the arm hair. The arm hair with the new release is missing something. The show tended to show his arm hair as always breaking his silhouette, regardless of how much of the arm is visible. That makes it hard to translate to 3D so Mondo just went with these dashes that almost look like a dot pattern. I think they would have been better served keeping the same approach as the first figure. The flesh tone also feels a touch too dark. It’s certainly not bad, I just wish he better fit the ’92 style since that’s how the line began. I’m still going to have this one replace the original on my shelf and that one will be returned to his bed box, but I’m definitely always going to see X-Men ’97 when I look at him as opposed to the original series.

If you have the NECA Flasher Gremlin then your Wolverine will have access to a tall frothy one as well.

Am I being unfair? After all, the box does indeed say X-Men ’97 so it’s not hiding what it’s trying to be, but the line is trying to placate both and is not shy about its intentions so I don’t think so, but I’ve said my piece. Not only is the sculpt redone to conform to Brewer’s style, but the articulation scheme Mondo utilizes has also changed since that first Wolverine release three years ago. This figure embodies those changes, some for the better, and some not so much. This is an aesthetics forward line, but Mondo has room for improvement and this Wolverine is proof of that. The joints are all the the same as Cyclops, the most recent release in the line: head, shoulders, double-jointed elbows, biceps, wrists, diaphragm, waist, hips, double-jointed knees, ankles. The original figure used a different style of double-jointed knees similar to what NECA used to make use of with a hinge above and below the knee. This allowed for some swivel at those joints, but it is a little odd looking, though perhaps only odd because we’re so used to the other style. It also used a swivel joint above the elbow in place of a bicep swivel that was ugly and persisted for quite a few releases. The range at all of the joints present is pretty typical, except for a few places that have become an issue recently.

“Hey Cyclops!”
“Next time I use these!”

If you saw my Egon Spengler review, you will note I had issues with that figure at the neck and hips. Mondo textures the ball joints for a more snug fit, but they may have went overboard. The ball joint inside the neck was stuck on that figure and the hips were pretty stuck too. Wolverine has the same issues. I had to use a lot of force to move the double ball peg in the neck, though the hips required a hot water bath. Out of the box, they just wouldn’t budge and I put more force into it than I probably should have. After the hot water bath they moved better. I applied some lubricating oil to the hips and neck and it didn’t appear that any had been applied by the factory, but once the figure cooled down it mostly went back to the way it was out of the box. In addition to that, the diaphragm joint remains useless. With a lot of effort, I can get the torso to rotate there a click to each side, which is hardly much to speak of. There’s no forward or back. Also of a nuisance, the red belt rubs off onto the abdomen very easily and the blue of the trunks will transfer to the thighs as well. I’ve been able to rub these instances off, but I worry if I let it sit that way then it would become more stubborn.

“Light me up, gumbo!”
“Hey cajun, next time someone tries to save your life have sense enough to let them do it.”

Wolverine is a bit tough to pose as a result, and it’s especially a bummer because he has a lot of stuff to be posed with. For heads, we get that ’92 inspired portrait I mentioned before as well as ’97 masked portraits featuring a neutral, growling, and yelling expression. If that’s not enough, he also has two unmasked portraits: neutral and a teeth gritting/growl. They’re both really similar to the portraits that came with the Logan figure which is kind of disappointing as it would have been nice to get different expressions to share between the two. That figure though was all the ’92 series while this one is updated for ’97. It’s not much of a difference, just stubble and a different approach to the shading. He also has a more pronounced single bang of hair and his ears are fully visible. With how subtle the difference is, it’s kind of shocking they bothered to sculpt new portraits, but they do look good.

“That hurts, Wolverine.”
“Grrr…!”

For hands, Wolverine is actually a touch light. We have fists, gripping, and his “Come here,” gesture from the cover of Wolverine #1. I’m surprised there are no relaxed hands or pointing hands, but I guess most are likely to keep the fists in place any way. Packaged behind the figure is the traditional Mondo figure stand though this one has the X logo painted on it. I only call this out because I sometimes leave these stands in the box since they’re not really needed, but if you want to find Wolverine’s claws you’ll need to remove it as they’re hidden behind it. Mondo provided 8 claws so you essentially get two extras. They’re just gray plastic and they’re the same as the ones that came with Logan. I wish they were white to better match the show, maybe with a touch of light blue, but this plastic may not take well to paint. They clip in easy enough though and they’re compatible with all of the hands in the box. You also get a set of charged claws as seen in the first episode of X-Men ’97. They’re done with translucent pink plastic and they clip into the backs of his hands in place of the claws. There’s also an included mask for draping over his neck when using an unmasked portrait, a similar accessory to what we saw with the Marvel Legends version of the same. Mondo also through in another picture of Scott and Jean from the episode “Captive Hearts,” only this time it’s an enamel pin instead of a picture frame accessory.

The limited edition Wolverine also comes with even more stuff like an entire second torso. Yeah, this is the first figure I’ve ever bought with a swappable torso as there’s a bare one since Wolverine always seems to get his shirt blown off in a big fight. To help sell the damage there’s a strip of the tattered remains of his shirt included made out of a soft plastic. You just place it over a shoulder to complete the look, or you can have him go completely shirtless which is a look from the show. To accommodate this change, the arms need to pop out easily and they do, which you will want to take advantage of when unwrapping the figure anyway as there are plastic bags over the arm pegs. The shoulder pads slot over the shoulder pegs and are conveniently stamped for left and right, should you get them confused. The torso separates easy as well. Unfortunately, the diaphragm joint on this torso works no better than the regular one. Lastly, Wolverine has some Sentinel parts as well including the remnants of a head that serves as a base and a chunk of a fallen robot with wires dangling from it. It has three claws holes to go over one of Wolverine’s hands to complete the look. The base has two, deep, indentations for Wolverine’s feet which gives him a secure base, though does limit things since his stance is left kind of boring. He can kind of crouch on it, but I can’t decide if that looks more dynamic or if it just makes Wolverine look like he needs to poop. The foot holes are designed for Wolverine, but I did find Gambit can fit in them as well. Cyclops and the original Wolverine have feet that are too big.

This is pretty cool, but I wish they worked in more foot-holes for different poses.

For the most part, this Wolverine redo is much like past releases in this line. It captures the likeness well and certainly comes with enough stuff to help justify the hefty price tag of $245. This one was also solicited before all of this tariff nonsense with has really jacked up the price on subsequent releases, but I’ll complain about that in reviews of figures actually impacted. This Wolverine does capture the look of X-Men ’97 very well, just at the cost of not capturing the original series as well. I like the extra torso and stuff, but I personally would have traded it for more ’92 accurate arms and heads. Mostly, I’d rather the figures seek to emulate the look of the original series and make the ’97 heads the one-off for those that want it that way. The articulation issues with the neck and hips are unfortunate and really something Mondo needs to correct. If they want to charge this kind of money for their products then the quality needs to be there. They’re pretty receptive to feedback, and I do plan on dropping them a line regarding it. If you don’t have the previous Wolverine then this one is worth getting if you’re collecting this line. And even if you do have it, I think it’s enough of an upgrade to consider. It does fit the style of the other figures better, but if you’re happy with that one then maybe you don’t feel this is necessary. The limited edition is sold out, but the standard version is still available. It’s slightly cheaper, but may come with tariff surcharges depending on where you buy it from.

The team is filling out.

We have plenty more from Mondo’s line of X-Men, including a couple of Wolverines at that:

Mondo X-Men TAS 1/6 Scale SDCC Exclusive Logan

Mondo has been absolutely killing it with its sixth scale line of action figures based on the now classic animated series X-Men. The company also really ramped up production in 2023 on the line by soliciting five new figures during the year. At over 200 bucks a pop, it was quite the hit to the…

Keep reading
by Joe

Mondo X-Men TAS Wolverine 1/6 Scale SDCC Exclusive Action Figure

When San Diego Comic Con was cancelled for 2021, many of the entities that would have sold exclusive merchandise at the event pivoted to web sales. And since the 2020 iteration of the famed event was also canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, many seemed to expect the same for 2021, or the massive delays…

Keep reading
by Joe

Mondo X-Men ’97 1/6 Scale Cyclops – Limited Edition

After putting a real hurting on my wallet in 2023, Mondo decided to take it easy in 2024 with its line of sixth scale action figures based on the animated series X-Men which ran from 1992-1997 on Fox Kids. Two figures ended up getting released this year, Rogue and now the leader of the X-Men…

Keep reading
by Joe

Leave a comment   |  tags: , , , , , , , , , , , | posted in Television, toys

December 27, 2024

Mondo X-Men ’97 1/6 Scale Cyclops – Limited Edition

By Joe
The leader of the X-Men has arrived.

After putting a real hurting on my wallet in 2023, Mondo decided to take it easy in 2024 with its line of sixth scale action figures based on the animated series X-Men which ran from 1992-1997 on Fox Kids. Two figures ended up getting released this year, Rogue and now the leader of the X-Men Cyclops. With Cyclops though we get a slight change because easily the biggest thing to happen to the X-Men in 2024 was the release of X-Men ’97. Well, some would argue for a movie staring a foul-mouthed merc and an old man as being the biggest business in the X world, but I’m going with the Disney+ series. Since the show turned out to be quite the hit, and because it’s a continuation of the original X-Men series, Mondo decided its figures could use a little rebranding which is why Cyclops is the first release to be billed as hailing from the new show. What does this mean for the figure itself? Not a whole lot.

Yeah, I know, this isn’t a fair comparison.

Cyclops still comes in the same style of window box with artwork from storyboard artist Dan Veesenmeyer. The difference between his release and the others is that the character model definitely resembles the look from X-Men ’97 and not the original show. That’s not a huge change as the costume is the same, but Cyclops has a slightly slimmer profile and the detail work is a dead ringer for the same in the new show. For the figure, there’s really no change and Mondo via its YouTube channel has basically admitted that the figures are going to hew closer to the original series. It’s just now they will be able to toss-in items and accessories pulled directly from the new show where it makes sense.

“To me, my X-Men!”

And we pretty much know this to be true because concept art for Cyclops was shown well before X-Men ’97 debuted. Here we have another sculpt by the awesome Alex Brewer with paint by Tomasz Rozejowski that really harkens back to 1992 and that original Fox series. Cyclops stands a full 12″ and is clad in his yellow and blue Jim Lee outfit which he wore almost exclusively in that show. Like prior figures in this line, there were two editions of Cyclops made available and I opted for the limited version which came with extra stuff which we’ll get to.

You may want to separate these two on your shelf.

The sculpt for Cyclops may not be complex, but it gets the job done. He’s well-muscled and proportioned with a portrait that evokes the original series. The details one would expect are in place like the segmented straps on the belt or the pouches and straps. There’s even a little extra detail where the chest strap attaches to the lower belt that I don’t remember seeing in the show. The hair and the visor are all appropriate and the placement of the thigh straps appears spot-on as well (they’re also floating and slightly annoying as a result). That doesn’t mean there isn’t room for some nitpicks. Cyclops was nicknamed Slim early on, but by the 90s he was a pretty massive dude. This figure depicts him as a big guy, but maybe not quite as big as he could be. The legs look fine and so do the arms, but the chest and abdomen strike me as a bit undersized. It’s almost like Mondo aimed to fit this Cyclops figure in-between the 92 and 97 version. It could also be for a different reason which ties into the extra stuff. This version of Cyclops has removable arms and an optional flight jacket part like the Logan figure. If he were any bigger he might look huge with the jacket. If so, I disagree with the approach as the jacketed look should be a secondary concern, but the feature also seems to play a role with his shoulders being set apart from the body. These are all things mostly noticeable when the figure is just standing straight up and down, pose him and it’s less an issue, but it’s an expensive figure so we have to nitpick where it’s warranted.

He scales well enough with the bad guys too.

What really offers no room for disappointment is the paint. Mondo just slays when it comes to that part of the presentation and Cyclops is no different. The base blue is the perfect royal blue and the lighter blue used to shade it and the blacks all make him pop. The yellow is the right shade with just a hint of red of in it to lessen that lemony look the Hasbro figure of the same has. The different shades of gold used to apply the cel-shading for the yellow looks great and everything is rich and full. There’s an impressive lack of paint slop and issues as well. With such an ambitious paint job some of that is expected, but I’m finding it hard to notice with this one. There’s a visible brush stroke on the chest strap, but apart from that I’m at a loss. This is some really impressive execution so Mondo better hang onto whatever factory put this one together.

Mondo decided it was important Cyclops be able to do stuff like this.

Cyclops comes with new branding, but he also comes with new articulation. Mondo tends to keep things basic with its figures as they prioritize aesthetics over function. And at this scale, I think that’s the right approach. However, there’s no denying that certain characters need to be able to hit certain poses and for Cyclops it’s being able to place a hand on the side of his visor to activate his optic blasts (even though we also see him do so without pressing a button in the show, but lets just go with it). In order to achieve that function, Mondo opted to incorporate double-jointed elbows into this one. And they work great, no problem hitting that pose and he can pretty much put his hand to his X communicator on his chest as well. And the aesthetics trade-off is nil, as far as I’m concerned. We’re all toy collectors and we’re used to double-jointed elbows. They look fine, better than the swivel joint used on Wolverine and Sabretooth that has some miscolored plastic, so I hope they do this more going forward.

This is a team that loves a good, brown, jacket.

Aside from that, the articulation is pretty much the same as other figures. The head is on a double-ball peg and the range is pretty nice. It is a little more gappy than past figures, but I’m guessing they prioritized plus range at the head given his unique skillset. The shoulders are the usual ball-hinges with a bicep swivel past that. Wrists are ball-hinged and they can be tight, but I didn’t experience any issues. The torso is where things get less impressive. Cyclops has the usual ball-jointed diaphragm and waist, but he also has that unique belt that goes around his chest. It’s connected to the belt at his waist so it’s going to get in the way. It has some play and will float when you manipulate the chest, but the range is okay, at best. Hips are ball-sockets with thigh swivels built in, but the rubber trunks will hinder the figure’s ability to kick forward and back. I can get him into one knee poses, but it’s awkward and one must be mindful of paint rub. Knees are double-jointed and the ankles hinge forward and back with an ankle rocker. The ankles are pretty tight, but I didn’t need to heat them up to get them working. Shoulders are really tight too, but again, no heat needed as I just went easy.

Multi-blast!
This is the big one.
It sags a little.

Cyclops has a ton of extra stuff to go through so let’s not waste any time. We’ll do the standard version accessories first which include a stoic head and a yelling head. Both feature interchangeable visors and come with a standard one by default. Getting the visors off and on is pretty painless, and both heads can use all of the visors. The extras are a visor with a lens flare and one with a slot in it for blast effects. And for blast effects we get two by default. The first is a pretty standard Cyclops blast. It’s 4″ long or so with a splash effect at the end. The easiest way to put it on is to slot it through the visor first, then plug it into the head. It can only go in one way so if it doesn’t fit just spin it around. The other blast effect is an arc with four short blasts. It strikes me as a very Marvel vs Capcom effect and it looks pretty cool. Both are done on translucent red plastic which feels appropriate for a Cyclops effect. They’re rigid so hopefully none arrived warp. I love the look of the blast, and the lens flare part is also pretty cool, so settling on a display is actually quite challenging with this guy. You’ll want to swap some stuff from time to time.

“I was raised by a cup of coffee.”

Cyclops also has an assortment of hands to make use of. By default, he comes with a set of fists which are always useful. In addition to that he has two clenching hands, two “finger bang” hands, a set of two-finger hands for his optic blasts, and a single right gripping hand. The gripping hand is for his cup of coffee which is included. This was seen a few times in the first season, most memorably for me in “Deadly Reunions,” and it’s a pink cup with sculpted steam wafting off of it. Even though Mondo included a gripping hand for it, I find the clenching hands work just as well to hold it. Swapping heads and visors is painless with this guy, but the hands are tough. The pegs going into the arms are ribbed when they probably don’t really need to be. The ball hinge also plugs into the hand and each hand is on its own, which is how Mondo always does it. Initially, I felt like the fists were more likely to come off at the hand and not where they’re supposed to in the forearm, so I heated the forearms of my figure with warm water. It’s made easier by the fact that the arms are designed to pop off. I was then able to get the hands out, but it was dicey. I’m reluctant to really jam any of the hands into his forearms as a result, though I haven’t had the same level of difficulty with the other hands.

Sometimes it gets cold out there.

That’s all the stuff that comes with the standard, $220, version. The $240 limited edition has a few more things including the aforementioned jacket. Swapping the arms isn’t too bad and the jacket arms come with bare fists. The fists are actually the exact same as the standard fists just painted flesh colored. They are removable, though I haven’t bothered since they’re in there pretty good. He sometimes wore gloves with the jacket in the show so the other hands work with this look as well. The arms are also double-jointed at the elbows just like the standard ones so there’s no loss of articulation in swapping them. I think he looks great with the jacket and it’s a tough call on how to display him. Right now, I’ve gone without, but I’ll be changing it from time to time for sure. Oh, and I had to try because this look is so close to Morph, but the Morph heads don’t fit. The opening is way too small, which is probably good so that I’m not tempted to attempt a very expensive custom.

The big blast needs a little help.
“Take that, hairball!”

Cyclops would wear the jacket in the field plenty, but sometimes also to look more casual. To that end he has an uncowled head. It looks great and his eyes are painted red, which makes sense. Maybe some would have preferred brown eyes for the few times he was depowered in the show, but many won’t display him like that because he also has his shades. They’re black with the red lenses that have some white shading on them which looks nice. They’re a little brittle feeling, but have held up fine so far. They slot into his temples and look great when in place. He also has yet another visor that’s been removed so he can either hold it or stick it around his neck or something. It’s a nice touch. I will say, this head is the most X-Men ’97 looking part of the package, which could be intentional. This version also comes with another effect part that is one, massive, blast that’s almost 8″ long. It has a large splash effect at the end and it looks cool, but it’s heavy. There’s some drooping with this one so I’m reluctant to leave it in place for long stretches of time. It probably works best in tandem with an enemy getting blasted so there’s some added support for it.

Probably not going to be the preferred look for most collectors.
This head can make use of the blasts though.

Oh, but we’re not done! Mondo likes to toss in a goofy accessory with all of these special editions. We had the elf Jubilee portrait, Gambit as Mystique, and the Morph heads. With Cyclops, it’s a Sentinel head styled to resemble Cyclops. This is taken from the episode “Till Death Do Us Part – Part One” where Wolverine is battling Cyclops robots in the Danger Room. It looks the part and is pretty ridiculous when placed on the head of the figure, but it’s there if you want it. And Mondo went the extra mile and also included a swappable visor piece so he too can make use of the blast effects. It’s a little tighter a fit than the other visor, but it works. I’ll never use it, but it’s funny. Maybe it can be used as a head of a fallen Sentinel with Wolverine or something? Lastly, there’s also the usual Mondo stand. I don’t use them so I didn’t even take it out of the plastic. I wish they’d put an X emblem on it like the Logan one, but it’s fine.

“How do I turn these darn things off?!”

Ultimately, this is another home run by Mondo. Cyclops is a much needed addition to the roster of characters and he turned out pretty great. Did I have issues? Yeah, because nothing is perfect. I’d have liked to see a little more beef in the torso, but that is basically the end of my complaints. I do think the hands could have been made to swap easier and the hands are a longstanding issue with the line (though it’s been better, Magneto was rough). I get why things are tight though because these are big, solid, figures and loose joints would kill them. This figure poses reasonably well and the swappable effect parts and heads are all a ton of fun. This is probably the figure that is the most fun to pick a display, though Gambit and Jubilee are pretty great at that too.

It’s the Blast Squad!

Cyclops is definitely the last figure from this line to see release in 2024, but on-deck is another Wolverine. Alex Brewer has sculpted all of the figures in the line since the original Wolverine so Mondo wanted to get his take on the character and the looks we’ve had are promising. There’s also a retro Cyclops coming based on his look in the season finale of X-Men ’97. I have not gone for the variants in this line and I didn’t go in for that one either. We should also start seeing the first figures from the Spider-Man ’94 line very soon. I don’t plan on going all-in with that one, but expect at least a couple reviews of that line. Beyond that, we don’t know what’s next, but it sure seems like this line is going strong. If I had to guess, I’d say Storm will follow Wolverine, but I hope we get all of the core cast from the ’92 series. Even though it gets harder and harder to find room each time one arrives.

If you liked this review, then check out more from Mondo’s X-Men line:

Mondo X-Men TAS 1/6 Scale Rogue – Limited Edition

The conclusion of X-Men ’97’s first season has left behind a void. For 9 consecutive Wednesdays, we had something awesome to get up for. Now the long wait for a second season has begun, but here to help fill the void while we wait is Mondo. Mondo has been dishing out some very impressive sixth…

Keep reading
by Joe

Mondo X-Men TAS 1/6 Scale SDCC Exclusive Logan

Mondo has been absolutely killing it with its sixth scale line of action figures based on the now classic animated series X-Men. The company also really ramped up production in 2023 on the line by soliciting five new figures during the year. At over 200 bucks a pop, it was quite the hit to the…

Keep reading
by Joe

Mondo X-Men TAS 1/6 Scale Gambit

It is my belief that when it comes to X-Men, the animated series which debuted in 1992, the breakout star of the show was Gambit. Wolverine was the closest thing we had to a household name going into the show and was the de-facto pick for favorite character of many. And while the whole roster…

Keep reading
by Joe

Leave a comment   |  tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | posted in Comics, Television, toys

June 10, 2024

Mondo X-Men TAS 1/6 Scale Rogue – Limited Edition

By Joe
Rogue is here to add a little drama to your shelf.

The conclusion of X-Men ’97‘s first season has left behind a void. For 9 consecutive Wednesdays, we had something awesome to get up for. Now the long wait for a second season has begun, but here to help fill the void while we wait is Mondo. Mondo has been dishing out some very impressive sixth scale action figures based on X-Men, the ’92 version. I’ve been waiting since that show debuted for action figures dedicated to that show that match the quality and accuracy that I want from a figure line. I probably wouldn’t have selected this scale for such a line, but basically everything else has been great. And now here to bolster the ranks of the X-Men is the best female member of the team: Rogue.

The only surprise with the packaging is that they didn’t use the storyboard from the Apocalypse episode. You know the image I’m thinking of.

X-Men was my formal introduction to the character Rogue. I had seen her on the cover of comics, but always in her 80s look. When the cartoon debuted I only knew the two characters were the same because of her unique hair color. Rogue, despite looking like a super model, is the muscle of the team. She can knock a Sentinel’s head clear off with a punch and look good while doing it, but like all good characters her powers come with a price. And for her, it’s that she can’t touch another living person without sucking the life from them. This allows her to steal other powers from her fellow mutants which is pretty cool, but not being able to physically touch or kiss another human is a trade-off she often wrestles with. Her inability to touch makes her one of the most empathetic members of the team and someone that’s easy to sympathize with. Despite that personal torment, she is often able to maintain an upbeat personality, can dish out puns with the best of them, and doesn’t mind getting her hands dirty when the situation calls for such.

There’s a lot to like about this figure, but I don’t think they quite nailed it with this default portrait.

Rogue from Mondo is a lot like the other figures released so far. She’s designed and sculpted by Alex Brewer and comes in a box featuring original artwork by storyboard artist for the show Dan Veesenmeyer. Tom Rozejowski handled the paint master and the rest of the packaging is adorned with recreations of original storyboards from the show from the episode “Till Death Do Us Part.” Original series showrunner and writers Eric Lewald and Julia Lewald provide the character bio which is situated on the inner flap of the box. Behind that is a window box showcasing Rogue and her array of accessories. This version of the figure is the limited variant which sold out much faster than any other limited edition to come before it in this line. Is that the popularity of Rogue or did she get an X-Men ’97 aided boost since anticipation was building to a fever pitch when she went up for sale?

That’s more like it!

Per Mondo, Rogue stands at approximately 11.75″ and I’m willing to take them at their word. She’s taller than Wolverine and Jubilee, but shorter than Gambit, Magneto, and the rest. That seems suitable and she seems much closer to true sixth scale than some of the other characters. She is wearing her show accurate yellow and green bodysuit with olive drab coat. She sports a variation on thigh-high boots in the show and Mondo’s approach for that was to make the green straps at the top of the boot as well as the yellow cuff separate, floating, pieces. Perhaps going this route made the figure easier to paint? Or maybe it was to allow these legs to be repurposed for a Storm down the road? Either way, the moving parts on a figure with so much paint are a little worrisome, but they can be seated in such a way that they’ll seldom move. Just do be careful when positioning them to not create a paint rub situation.

And if you want to get cheeky.

The head on the figure has received some criticism and it’s not unwarranted. The default portrait is basically a neutral expression. Rogue’s face has always been tough to duplicate in plastic for some reason. I think it’s because the female characters tend to not have hard facial features so there’s not a lot to key-in on. For the figure, Rogue features a very glammed-up look. Her eyes are narrow with long lashes and her lips are full and pouty. The paint is applied well as are the eyes (Mondo sent out a warning before the figure shipped that some heads featured poor eye placement. If your figure looks off just email their customer service and they’ll replace it), but it doesn’t really resemble Rogue. More like an artist’s interpretation of what a more sultry Rogue might look like. Or Rogue if she were in a Barbie line.

It might not be show accurate, but this power absorption hand is pretty neat.
Sorry Logan, not this time.

Thankfully, we have other, better, heads to choose from and the limited edition has far more than the standard. The alternate head for the standard edition is an angry expression and this works just fine. The right eye on mine features a dot of skin tone, but otherwise looks great. I think a lot of people will go with this for their display, whether they bought the limited edition or standard. If you did grab the limited version then you have some harder decisions to make. First up is the winking smile. The smile is very wide so this head doesn’t quite resemble the character from the show, but damn if it isn’t cute. I really like this one, though it does make me wish we had a non-winking smile portrait as well. Or perhaps a more subtle smile.

This is just fantastic.

Our next portrait is pulled directly from the show. In the episode “Deadly Reunions,” Cyclops gets knocked unconscious and stops breathing momentarily. Rogue, in an effort to save him, gives him mouth-to-mouth (C.P.R. back then called for this) and it works, but it also causes Rogue to absorb his powers. Rogue’s eyes start blasting red energy until Cyclops is able to instruct her to just shut her eyes. The included portrait is a screaming Rogue with those lasers streaking from her eyes. They’re done with translucent, red, plastic and it looks awesome. In some ways, I think this head most looks like Rogue from the show, probably because we can’t see her eyes and she looks kind of angry. The last head in the box is a bit of a gimmick one as it’s Rogue from X-Men: Evolution. Like the fairy Jubilee or unmasked Sabretooth, this head doesn’t work with the body since that Rogue had a very different look. It’s more of a fun inclusion. It looks fine, but I do think they should have added a touch of shading to the brim of her nose since that was something always present in the show.

I guess this one is for the younger fans.

That’s a whole bunch of looks for Rogue and one, if not more, are sure to please those who pick this one up. Also included are a whole bunch of hands. Rogue comes packaged with open hands, but she also has a set of fists, a right trigger hand, a left gripping hand, a more casual gripping right hand, and a bare left hand. When the left hand is removed, the yellow cuff is a separate piece which slides off to sell the look of her going ungloved. There’s also a removed glove accessory which slips into the casual gripping hand quite well. I do wish we got two bare hands since she did grab enemies with both hands at times, but one is better than none. If you want her to look like she is actually draining someone’s energy, she has yet another open left hand, but this one is encircled in translucent blue plastic. I don’t think her power absorption abilities were ever depicted like this in the show, her hand usually just glowed white and the light sometimes traveled up her arm, but I can’t deny that this hand looks pretty cool. Another included effect part of sorts is a gripping right hand that’s crushing a small gun. I don’t recall this gun or scene, I remember her crushing Bishop’s armband, but it’s an effective accessory at showing her strength.

This thing is all kinds of rad.
And the base works pretty damn well as a stand too.

The last major accessory included in the limited edition version is a base. Rogue is the first figure to get a base and Mondo stated they felt it was important to include something that hinted at her power. To do that, Mondo decided a decimated Sentinel head made the most sense. It’s well sculpted and really well painted and resembles a Sentinel from the show. There are two foot indentations, one towards the front and one towards the back, that the figure slides into rather effortlessly. It does a pretty good job of holding Rogue up too, though she has tumbled to the side on me once already. It’s not super heavy, so the figure took the base with it in falling over. I’ve resituated the figure on the base amongst my other figures in the line and hopefully she holds true. She also comes with a standard Mondo stand and I could potentially use that in conjunction with the base for added stability. One of the stands from a past release (Magneto?) that I have also has worked well to hold her off the ground just a little bit. That particular one has a very strong, telescoping, arm to it and can support the figure’s weight while some of the others feel too loose. I’m sure there will be folks in search of a proper flight stand for this figure and if I come across any that work I’ll be sure to update this.

Magneto has something to show you, Rogue.
A little X-Men ’97 preview, I suppose.

The visual aesthetics are what this line goes for, but this is an action figure so it does articulate. Rogue moves about as well as the rest of the line, and in some respects, perhaps a bit better. The head, shoulders, elbows, and wrists are all standard for the line. We’re talking a double ball peg at the head, single-hinges and swivels at the elbow, ball-jointed wrists, and ball-hinged shoulders. The head is limited by her big hair, but they did a decent job of sculpting out some room so the head can turn a bit and tilt. The shoulders and elbows are the most limiting. She can’t bring her arms across her chest or her hands to her face and it’s just something you’ll have to work around. Rogue does not have a waist twist, but does have a ball-jointed diaphragm. Mondo used a curved cut for it and I’m a tad surprised they didn’t try to conceal the cut under her bust or perhaps along the rib cage. It at least works well enough as a rotation point and it allows for a little forward and back. The hips are big ‘ole ball sockets and have probably the best range of any joint on the figure. They’re almost loose and I’m curious if they’ll get to the point where I do consider them loose, but for now they hold their pose fine. The knees are double-jointed and work okay while the ankles feature a hinge and an ankle rocker.

“Hey Remy, you got any plans tonight?!”
“I didn’t know you could read minds, ‘cherie.”

Since Rogue does wear high heels, she is a bit of a challenge to stand. It’s not as bad as I was expecting though. If you’re just looking to place her in a vanilla pose, she’ll stand okay. It might take a bit of adjusting, but it’s do-able. If you want her to do anything more dynamic then you’re better off with a stand. Even lunging positions are a challenge because she’s so top heavy, and I’m not talking about her chest. That hair adds a lot of weight, but since she doesn’t feature a trench coat or a cape, the Mondo stands actually can help out with this figure when normally I consider it useless. And if you have the limited version then you also have the base to rely on.

Cyclops and Jean kind of dominate the conversation, but this was the couple I was always rooting for.

Rogue is perhaps not a perfect, 1:1, encapsulation of the character model from the show, but she’s still a damn fine addition to the Mondo roster. The paint on this release is incredible. Not in the sense that it’s perfect and free from blemishes, but in that it just pops and really nails the cel-shading from the show. Yeah, you will likely find a dab of paint here and there where it shouldn’t be or even a slight smudge, but that’s the nature of hand-painted items. On the whole, the figure looks terrific and I’m very happy with the limited edition. With the Sabretooth figure, I wasn’t sure if the limited version was really worth it, but I feel completely different about this one. I love the base and the extra heads are probably the best heads in the box. The articulation may not be on par with figures in the 1:12 scale, but I haven’t had any real challenges in finding a display pose and I doubt many will.

We’re about halfway through the main roster and Cyclops is soon to be on deck.

Unfortunately, if you do want this version of the figure with extra stuff then you’ll have to score it secondhand. As I mentioned earlier, it sold out surprisingly fast leaving just the standard version as an option. Mondo sold out of the standard version as well, but has another preorder open right now on their website for $210. Other retailers may have open preorders as well that could be fulfilled sooner than Mondo’s estimate of September 2024. Even if I could only get the standard version, I’d consider it well worth it. She has the angry portrait and comes with all of the same hands as the limited edition version so you’re just missing out on the three extra heads and base. Rogue is an essential character for any X-Men display and she will certainly look good in your collection.

Now, nobody fall!

Interested in seeing more from Mondo’s X-Men line of sixth scale action figures:

Mondo X-Men TAS 1/6 Scale Gambit

It is my belief that when it comes to X-Men, the animated series which debuted in 1992, the breakout star of the show was Gambit. Wolverine was the closest thing we had to a household name going into the show and was the de-facto pick for favorite character of many. And while the whole roster…

Keep reading
by Joe

Mondo X-Men TAS 1/6 Scale SDCC Exclusive Logan

Mondo has been absolutely killing it with its sixth scale line of action figures based on the now classic animated series X-Men. The company also really ramped up production in 2023 on the line by soliciting five new figures during the year. At over 200 bucks a pop, it was quite the hit to the…

Keep reading
by Joe

Mondo X-Men TAS 1/6 Scale Magneto

If you showed a random individual this blog and asked them what my favorite cartoon was as a kid I’m guessing they would go with Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. And they wouldn’t be wrong as that was my favorite for a time, but come 1992 I was starting to drift away from that show. Batman:…

Keep reading
by Joe

Leave a comment   |  tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , | posted in Television, toys

March 21, 2024

X-Men ’97 – “To Me, My X-Men”

By Joe

It used to be that when a show got cancelled that was it. It simply ceased to exist as a new product. If there were enough episodes it could last in syndication on both broadcast and cable for a good while, but rarely was it accessible to the point where a fan could have the entire series at their disposal. Some shows received VHS releases, but often they were sparse. Then home media became more affordable. DVDs were both cheaper to manufacture than VHS and could store more information. We started to see full season releases for shows, both active and cancelled. In some cases, the home media market was so great that previously dead programs were able to come back. Now we’ve entered the streaming age where massive entertainment companies are seeking to profit off of their libraries. Those profits have been a bit hard to come by though so these archives need to be supplemented with original programming. Some of that original programming is entirely original or at least only touched by an existing intellectual property (think The Mandalorian) and then some is either a reboot or continuation of an older show.

X-Men ’97 is a continuation of the now classic X-Men animated series that aired as part of the Fox Kids Network from 1992-1997. The original X-Men cartoon was a massive success and turned Wolverine and Gambit into household names. It attracted eyeballs in the millions, sold a bunch of toys, and made lifelong comic book fans out of a generation. For me personally it quickly became my favorite show on television and I was hooked for the show’s entire run. It put Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles in the rearview mirror as this was something mature, something that more respected my intelligence, and gave me more to chew on. I still adored playing with my X-Men toys and sporting X-Men t-shirts so it’s not like it turned me into an adult overnight or anything, but it was something I genuinely loved in the moment and I still have a ton of admiration for. Having that show continue from where it left off in 1997 was something that didn’t even seem worth dreaming about as that’s how unlikely I felt it would be. Perhaps Disney, who has yet to fully introduce Marvel’s mutants into its vast Marvel Cinematic Universe, wanted to give folks a little primer on what the X-Men were all about? Whatever the reasoning, I am positively giddy like a kid once again that my favorite superheroes are back in an all new television series.

The intro is basically a shot-for-shot remake of the original.

X-Men ’97 was announced in November of 2021. At the time, my assumption was the series was being ticketed to launch in the fall of 2022 to mark the original show’s 30th anniversary. That obviously didn’t happen and the show was slated for 2023, but then slipped to March 2024. For the revival, Marvel selected Beau DeMayo (Moon Knight, The Witcher) to be the head writer with Jake Castorena as the supervising director. From the old show, Eric and Julia Lewald were brought in as consultants along with Larry Houston. Much of the original cast was returned including Cal Dodd as Wolverine, Alison-Sealy Smith as Storm, George Buza as Beast, and Lenore Zann as Rogue. Father Time unfortunately necessitated recasts for both Cyclops (now Ray Chase) and Magneto (now Matthew Waterson). Other voice actors, like Chris Potter (original voice of Gambit) and Catherine Disher (original voice of Jean Grey) were brought back for other roles rather than their existing ones. Such a choice is puzzling, unless we’re talking about a unique case such as Alyson Court who no longer wished to voice Jubilee since she felt the role should go to an actual Asian-American.

The action sequences are where this show will really be able to separate itself from its predecessor.

The show did premiere under a bit of a dark cloud. It was announced that credited series creator Beau DeMayo was fired the week of the show’s sneak preview and a little more than a week out from the Disney+ premiere. As the days went by, the head of animation at Marvel Studios, Brad Winderbaum, revealed some snippets of what was going on. It doesn’t sound like anyone was upset with the quality of the work DeMayo was turning in, and we’ve only heard rumors that he was “difficult” to work with. The term difficult in such a situation can be a loaded one. How many women and people of color have heard that excuse because certain individuals don’t respond well to confrontation from minorities? DeMayo, a gay, black, adopted man was someone who really identified with what the X-Men stood for and removing that voice from the show is certainly a risky move if the show is deemed a success. Winderbaum doesn’t get into specifics on the situation, but does try to frame it as a parting of ways between the showrunner and Marvel.

The group is probably more reflective of the foes to come than the group from the original.

Based on my viewing of the show’s first episode, “To Me, My X-Men,” it would appear that DeMayo’s exit indeed has little to do with the quality of the show. This first episode is the show getting its feet wet. It’s a way to reintroduce these familiar faces in a fun way that does harken back to the original series. It opens with a new version of the classic intro. The song is remixed slightly and all of the character introductions have been recreated and new characters have been added. It still ends with Professor Xavier and Magneto clashing together, though the villains side has been updated with what are probably better, more reflective choices (so long, Gremlin) given who the X-Men typically clash with.

The mutant who will come to be known as Sunspot is basically the Jubilee of this series, only his official joining of the X-Men will have to wait for a later day.

Similar to the premiere episode of the original series, X-Men ’97 includes a plot in its episode about bringing a new mutant into the fold and makes the Sentinels the big threat. Even though the show is longer now (it’s listed at 34 minutes, the actual episode is closer to 28), the episode still moves at a snappy pace. We find the team dealing with the aftermath of the professor’s passing. Cyclops is now the leader and is perhaps a little too forceful with his approach which rubs some members of the team the wrong way (namely, Wolverine). The Friends of Humanity are up to no good and have even repurposed some Sentinel tech into weapons of their own that basically resemble Mega Man’s Mega Buster. Roberto Da Costa (Gui Augustini), a wealthy teen who has been abducted by the FOH, is the one in the Jubilee role this time around, though his trek through the mansion is quite brief. The show appears confident that its audience is going to be pretty familiar with these characters and a more robust introduction was not needed.

The Friends of Humanity are back and they’re packing heat.

Other elements of the premiere include the addition of Valerie Cooper (Catherine Disher, the original voice of Jean Grey) as a government liaison for Cyclops and his team. DeMayo, when he was doing press for the show, described Cooper as the thesis for the show so it will be interesting to see how she’s utilized going forward. There’s also the plotline of Jean being pregnant and what that means for her and Cyclops’ future. The first episode ends with a pretty seismic change to the status quo, though if you saw the trailer it won’t come as a surprise and it’s likely the end you expected. Even so, I’ll save talk of that for episode two.

Wolverine still isn’t allowed to smoke, but looks like he’s now allowed to drink.

The first episode is a great reintroduction for the X-Men and really seems to setup what we’re looking at. It also establishes the look of the series. I’ve been a little wary about that going in, but after one episode I will say my fears were unfounded. This show looks as good as it can in 2024. It’s digitally hand-drawn by Studio MIR which is the right approach given that celluloid animation just isn’t done anymore. Stylistically, there will be folks who prefer the look of the old show, but objectively speaking this one animates much better. That is on full display during the action sequences which are far more fun and inventive. This feels like a show directed by people who as kids wondered just how far the super powers on display here could be pushed. Storm, considered an Omega level mutant in the comics and now show, really gets to show off what she can do to such a scale that I worry if the writers can keep her consistent.

I should have expected this, but I didn’t.

The episode includes closing credits done in the same style as the original show’s first season with a character model spinning in place and a brief descriptor of their powers below. Before it can cycle through all of the characters though, it cuts to a static image of the mansion for the rest of the credits. Was this a nod to how the first season’s ending credits would never get to Jubilee? That always drove me nuts as a kid. If it is in reference to that it’s a bit of clever humor, though I’d rather just see all of the characters get spotlighted. And that’s the one failing, if you will, of this episode is that most of the characters don’t get to do a whole lot. That’s going to happen with such a large cast, one that has even been increased since we last saw this group in action. I would imagine we’ll get spotlight episodes to come while also maintaining a serialized approach. Yes, what network executives hated for their broadcast channels in 1992 is the preferred method of story-telling in 2024. The only other disappointment for me was no in memoriam for the people we’ve lost since the original show went dark. It would have been nice to at least see a tribute to original Cyclops voice actor Norm Spencer and the original voice of Magneto, David Hemblen.

Storm is allowed to cut loose in this one, but will she be allowed to do so in every episode?

X-Men ’97 in its debut episode manages to strike the right balance between new and nostalgic. The fan service hits right and its reserved for parts of the show where fan service is appropriate. It also establishes a tone for the show which is in-line with the serious, dramatic, original series though it’s also apparent that this one will be allowed to be a little more grown-up (Wolverine and Morph are shown enjoying a couple of cold ones). That makes sense since the target audience is the kids of 1992, but it also likely won’t want to alienate the kids of the kids of ’92. It also left me wanting more which was good since this was a two episode premiere. I’ll get to that episode in another post, but the main takeaway for me is our beloved X-Men have been placed in good hands and I can’t wait to see what happens next.

Get on the X-Men ’97 hype train with these posts:

X-Men: The Art and Making of the Animated Series

A few years ago, I talked about my love of X-Men, the animated series, via a book review of Previously…on X-Men by Eric Lewald. That book chronicled the development of the 92 animated series that helped propel the Fox Kids Network to the top of the Saturday morning leaderboards through notes from the author and…

Keep reading
by Joe

Mondo X-Men TAS 1/6 Scale SDCC Exclusive Logan

Mondo has been absolutely killing it with its sixth scale line of action figures based on the now classic animated series X-Men. The company also really ramped up production in 2023 on the line by soliciting five new figures during the year. At over 200 bucks a pop, it was quite the hit to the…

Keep reading
by Joe

Previously on X-Men: The Making of an Animated Series

A lot of cartoons made an impact on me as a child. My first love was The Real Ghostbusters. Its goofy cast of characters and excitement were plenty of fun and there were interesting toys to supplement the series with, which was pretty much the goal of all cartoons in the 80s. The Teenage Mutant…

Keep reading
by Joe

Leave a comment   |  tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | posted in Comics, Television

November 20, 2023

X-Men: The Animated Series – The Adaptations

By Joe
I can’t seem to get enough X-Men merch based on the 90s cartoon series.

Halloween 1992 was when things really changed for the X-Men. A high-selling comic book was about to blow open and enter the mainstream with a hit new Saturday morning cartoon series. Spearheaded by Eric Lewald for Saban Entertainment, X-Men would become the highest rated children’s program on the Fox Network and the overall highest rated children’s program in 1993. At least, until a little show called Mighty Morphin Power Rangers came along. Even following that, the show remained a hit for the network and it’s likely that without the success of the cartoon we never would have had the film series that followed.

When Fox agreed to bring the spandex-clad mutants to network television it did so with Saban and Graz Entertainment who had their own ideas for the show. Lewald was the showrunner who oversaw a team of writers that crafted the inaugural season, most of whom were unfamiliar with the comic from which their characters were taken from. As a result, the first season was largely unique. It was not pulled from the comics with the exception of the “Days of Future Past” arc. Sure, the characters largely acted and behaved like their comic book counterparts, but the plots and character history were pretty much all new. I don’t think this necessarily played a huge role in what followed, but if the new show wasn’t just copying and pasting what the comic books had done then it made sense for a comic companion to tag along. Enter X-Men Adventures, a comic book adaptation of the animated series. Writer Ralph Macchio (no, not that Ralph Macchio) was handed the teleplays for the first season and was paired with varying teams of artists to bring the show to the pages. The first issue arrived in November 1993 and would run until March 1996 concluding with the “Dark Phoenix” arc. After that, the book split away from the cartoon series rather than adapt what was dubbed Season 4 and beyond, but up to that point, it had largely remained in lockstep with the show.

The two covers available for this collection.

As a kid, I didn’t bother with X-Men Adventures despite my love for the cartoon. In my mind, it felt redundant. Why buy a comic version of something I already saw on TV when I could get a comic book that told a whole, new, story? Now that I’m older and fond of reminiscing on things I enjoyed as a child, I’m more curious about something like X-Men Adventures. Surely, the comic would present opportunities to frame things differently. How would it handle something like the death of Morph? Would the characterizations be the same? Would some characters assume more of a spotlight or less of one? I probably could have answered such questions with relative ease and not much of an expense. Being a 90s comic, X-Men Adventures isn’t terribly hard to come by secondhand, especially if you’re one who is unconcerned with condition.

Rather than scour the back issues at a local comic shop, I turned to a new publication: X-Men: The Animated Series – The Adaptations. That mouthful of a title was released earlier this year. It’s a hardcover collection of X-Men Adventures totaling the first 41 issues, or said another way, all of the issues that mirrored the show. It’s a heavy, meaty, tome that’s nearly 1,000 pages with most of them devoted to the old issues. The paper is a nice white, though it has some transparency and isn’t as thick as it could be. The main cover illustration is the same as the very first issue of X-Men Adventures by Steve Lightle. The version I have is the variant cover which depicts Wolverine battling Sabretooth in the War Room and it’s done by Kerry Gammill and Greg Adams. The collection is expensive with an MSRP of $125. That was too rich for me so I played the waiting game eventually scoring one for less than $60 off of eBay. This one had bent corners that likely had been damaged during the shipping process. The eBay listing also had a typo in the title which may have helped to keep it on the site long enough for me to notice. Either way, I was willing to accept some cosmetic damage in exchange for a price that was more than half off. Now several weeks later, I’ve read this thing cover to cover and am ready to share my thoughts.

This one isn’t going to shy away from Morph’s death.

X-Men Adventures volume 1, which is thought of as the first season, spanned 15 issues which is longer than the show’s 13 episode first season. As such, the first season of books is more expansive than that season and also more expansive when compared with the seasons that followed. My guess would be that with the show being new, and being tinkered with practically right up until air date, there was a lot less that was nailed down and thus there was more room for Macchio’s own interpretation. It’s also interesting that the characterizations of the book’s characters are far more reliant on their comic history. This is seen most with Magneto who is very much a villain in these books as opposed to a friendly rival. He’s not going to team-up with these X-Men to take down the Sentinels and he’s far more willing to inflict pain upon them as well. The costumes for the characters also all mirror the comics. Jean is more yellow and blue with long hair, Apocalypse isn’t purple, and Sabretooth doesn’t have the massive physique of his animated counterpart. Fights, like Wolverine vs Sabretooth, can be more violent with actual blood spilled and our boy Wolverine is also free to smoke cigars and drink beer.

By far, the thing I was most interested in seeing was how the books handled the death of Morph. In the show, his death is essentially offscreen, though the characters deal with it in a pretty realistic manner. It wasn’t some Saturday morning “zapped to another dimension” sort of end for old Morph. In the books, it’s foreshadowed with a rather grizzly depiction of Morph with half of his face burned off. I’m not sure the character needed to have these visions, but it was an interesting way to go about it. When the time comes for him to actually die, it’s handled in a far more personal manner with Beast cradling Morph in his arms as he draws his dying breath. Of course, the character would be brought back in Season Two which was never the plan at the time. It does muddy things a bit since his death was so final in the books. Did the Mutant Control people haul Beast away and just leave Morph’s corpse behind for Sinister to come along and swipe? Apparently so, because no other explanation is offered.

Wolverine is allowed to fight like, well, Wolverine!

Morph’s death was one area where the books could go into more detail and be a bit more showy than the cartoon. It’s also pretty unique as the rest of the issues largely unfold in a more expedited fashion after the first season. The first 15 issues are far more dense and interesting as a result, while the rest are still enjoyable, but missing that extra component. Some stories, like the Omega Red confrontation or Wolverine’s parlay with Alpha Flight, end far too abruptly to feel satisfying. If you didn’t like how the X-Men defeated Omega Red in the show, then you really won’t like it here. And since comics always seem to operate with the idea that any issue could be someone’s first, there’s a lot of needless exposition from characters explaining their thoughts, motivations, powers, etc. too plainly. It feels demeaning to the reader and like a dumbing down of the material at times, something the show seems careful to avoid.

The other aspect of these stories that threw me the most was just the changing art styles. These books never seemed to have a single vision for very long when it came to the art. Andrew Wildman was the penciler for the first six issues. He had a slightly more realistic style than some, but it’s not bad. Chris Batista then takes over for two issues and he has a more streamlined approach which actually might suit the animated look a bit better, though I think I still prefer Wildman. Wildman would return for the 9th issue and hang around through issue 13 and then back again for the final issue of the first season. In between is an issue by Nick Napalitano. All three pencilers for that first season complement each other well, but later seasons have more divergent takes, some of which I like and some of which I don’t. By the end, Ben Herrera was handling a lot of the load and I’m just not into his style. It’s very reflective of what the 90s comics were producing at the time, and even then, it wasn’t a style I enjoyed. My least favorite issues were the ones done by Hector Collazo. He seemed to take to heart that this comic was an adaptation of a cartoon because his style could best be described as toony. I’d enjoy it on a Looney Tunes or Animaniacs book, but not an X-Men one.

The art style isn’t consistent for all 40+ issues so readers are likely to enjoy some more than others.

Reading through this book basically gave me what I was looking for: familiar stories told through a different lens. The only downside for me was how the second and third seasons were more streamlined with less room for freelancing, if you will. The first season was by far the most enjoyable part of the book, though I am curious about the issues not included. Following the third season, Macchio basically was allowed to continue writing stories for this version of the X-Men, but ones that didn’t follow the show. Those works are collected in another trade paperback that I should probably give some thought to acquiring. If you’re someone like me curious about what another interpretation of the beloved show could look like, this isn’t a bad experience. I don’t think it’s worth the asking price so I’d recommend getting it used or on sale. The actual quality of the book is pretty nice, though there are the occasional page that came out slightly blurry from the printer. It seems to be an issue that becomes more frequent further into the book. It may also be something that’s not consistent from copy to copy. Either way, it’s a tough ask at full price. A lot of places have it marked down to around 80 dollars, which is still a lot, but better than $125. I’m not sure I’d even recommend it at that price, but definitely consider a look if you ever find it closer to 50 bucks.

Interested in living in the world of X-Men as established by the animated series?

Previously on X-Men: The Making of an Animated Series

A lot of cartoons made an impact on me as a child. My first love was The Real Ghostbusters. Its goofy cast of characters and excitement were plenty of fun and there were interesting toys to supplement the series with, which was pretty much the goal of all cartoons in the 80s. The Teenage Mutant…

Keep reading
by Joe

X-Men: The Art and Making of the Animated Series

A few years ago, I talked about my love of X-Men, the animated series, via a book review of Previously…on X-Men by Eric Lewald. That book chronicled the development of the 92 animated series that helped propel the Fox Kids Network to the top of the Saturday morning leaderboards through notes from the author and…

Keep reading
by Joe

Dec. 18 – X-Men – “Have Yourself a Morlock Little X-Mas”

Today, The Christmas Spot temporarily alters it’s name to The X-Mas Spot. As a sort-of celebration for the animated series X-Men turning 30 this past Halloween we’re going to look at the show’s lone holiday special – “Have Yourself a Morlock Little X-Mas.” The show X-Men was a pretty serious affair as far as kid…

Keep reading
by Joe

Leave a comment   |  tags: , , , , , | posted in Comics

December 18, 2022

Dec. 18 – X-Men – “Have Yourself a Morlock Little X-Mas”

By Joe
Original air date December 23, 1995.

Today, The Christmas Spot temporarily alters it’s name to The X-Mas Spot. As a sort-of celebration for the animated series X-Men turning 30 this past Halloween we’re going to look at the show’s lone holiday special – “Have Yourself a Morlock Little X-Mas.” The show X-Men was a pretty serious affair as far as kid shows go. It wasn’t very jokey or gimmicky and it technically didn’t even have a tie-in toy line. Sure, ToyBiz had an X-Men line of figures, but it was technically a tie-in with the comic book. The show undoubtedly influenced the line, there was a Morph figure after all, but the point is this wasn’t a show that went for the cheap hits so when a Christmas special was announced during the holiday season of 1995 I was pretty damn surprised.

Why does a show like X-Men then feature a holiday special? As is the answer to most things that seem unexplainable from afar when it comes to television – it was the network. Fox wanted a Christmas special from the show so it delivered one. It’s not a fan favorite and writer/showrunner Eric Lewald basically admits they made it intentionally campy to reflect other cheesy Christmas episodes of popular shows. They even got in a “Not on Christmas!” line into it. The episode is what it is, a shoe-horned concept into a show that probably shouldn’t feature such an episode, but perhaps there is still some value here. Besides, who doesn’t want to spend Christmas with Wolverine?

This is the story of Jubilee’s first X-Mas with the X-Men, which means it probably shouldn’t be assumed that we’ve been watching their lives unfold in a linear fashion or else they’ve had one hell of a year.

The episode begins at the home of the X-Men. Cyclops (Norm Spencer), Rogue (Lenore Zann), and Jubilee (Alyson Court) are decorating a massive tree in the mansion’s foyer. As they do, they’re joyously singing “Deck the Halls” and Cyclops sounds particularly awful, but seemingly intentionally so as he calls attention to his bad singing and suggests the other two carry on without him. Brooding off by the fireplace is old Wolverine (Cal Dodd) who predictably wants nothing to do with the holiday festivities despite the insistence of Jubilee for him to do so. It’s her first Christmas with the X-Men, which would seem all of the events up until now that have occurred in the show have taken place within a year, and she seems a little hurt that Wolverine won’t participate, but Rogue is here to reassure her and even lifts her up to the top of the tree to put the star in place.

Gambit is apparently impervious to boiling water.

Off in the kitchen, Jean (Catherine Disher) is preparing a Christmas dinner, but she has to contend with Gambit (Chris Potter). Despite her being the appointed chef, Gambit is sporting an apron and togue and appears to view himself on equal footing here. He rudely inquires what she’s preparing and Jean angrily retorts “It’s called food, Gambit. Normal, Christmas food.” Gambit, being from Louisiana and a connoisseur of cajun cuisine, seems to disagree strongly with whatever is boiling in a pot. When he goes for some seasoning, Jean uses her telekinetic powers to keep the spice on the counter despite how hard Gambit pulls on it. She also adds “The day that I need your help in the kitchen is the day that I stop cooking!” It’s a fine line, but Wolverine just used a similar one on Jubilee (“The day that I sing “Jingle Bells” is the day pigs fly”) so it’s a little redundant. She releases her psychic hold on the seasoning sending Gambit tumbling into the stove. He falls on his rear and the pot of water that was boiling lands on him, but seemingly does no harm. Jean gets a little laugh out of this while Gambit still insists she knows nothing about cooking a proper Christmas dinner.

In the lab, Beast (George Buza) is suspended from the ceiling mixing something in a beaker. It turns from red to green while Beast recites a poem by a “Sir Walter” that sounds festive enough. I only know the poem’s author because when Beasts tastes his “goo” he declares it worthy of the poem though he’s sure to point out this concoction is non-alcoholic (wouldn’t want the kids to think otherwise). We then cut to Professor X (Cedric Smith) and Storm (Alison Sealy-Smith) watching the goings on via the security monitors. It’s a bit creepy, but I guess someone is always watching these things for security reasons. Xavier notes that Storm seems a little blue and she remarks that seeing Jubilee makes her reflect on her own childhood. She grew up poor on the streets of Cairo, in case you were wondering as they don’t have time to discuss it further since alarms start blaring. Xavier thinks they’re under attack and Storm gets the first very, sweaty, Christmas special line “Could we be under attack – on Christmas Eve?!”

Beast is always so festive.

Cyclops receives a transmission about the alarm via his usual belt insignia. The “X” on everyone’s belts in this show were like two-way radios. The funny thing here is that Cyclops is not wearing his field uniform so rather than pressing a button on his chest he’s just touching his shirt. The X-Men race to the alarm’s origin which turns out to be Beast’s lab. They bust in only to find Beast in the process of shutting down the alarm. He’s covered in a red sauce and when Cyclops asks if he’s okay he indicates that he is, but his cranberry glaze is not. Wolverine is the last to arrive and he’s disappointed they weren’t under attack. He decides he’s had enough of this Christmas stuff and indicates he intends to go somewhere else for a bit. Jubilee then asks him if he’ll go shopping with her and Storm and Wolverine is right to point out how terrible shopping on Christmas Eve sounds. He makes a lame joke about having better luck fighting Sabretooth, but Jubilee does the whole “Please? For me?” and Wolverine responds with “Turn it off, kid.”

I’m going to have to agree with Wolverine here, the mall on Christmas Eve is something to be avoided.

Despite all of that, Wolverine does indeed accompany Jubilee and Storm to the mall against his better judgement. We see them walking around a department store and Jubilee’s face is hidden by the amount of boxes in her arms. She’s trying to talk to both Storm and Wolverine, but can’t see, and Wolverine kindly removes the top box so she can do so. She thanks him for coming and he gives her a “Don’t mention it,” but also reiterates his desire to leave. Jubilee is pretty amped up for Christmas, but also worried she’s not doing it right as she reminds us again that she’s never had a Christmas with a family before. Storm is reassuring, and as the trio makes their way out Wolverine is accosted by a sales woman pitching cologne. She sprays it in Wolverine’s face and informs him it’s sure to make women act like animals (rather risqué for a kid’s show), but Wolverine informs her he’s about to turn into an animal before Storm intercedes.

I feel like we’re missing a conversation here: How did Jubilee convince Wolverine to go ice skating?

Storm gestures towards freedom and encourages Wolverine to make a break for it. He does looking almost feral in the process. We then shift to an outdoor scene and the crew is doing some ice skating presumably at Rockefeller Center. Storm is watching from a bench as Jubilee and Wolverine skate. Jubilee tries to get Wolverine to cheer up and encourages him to have fun, but he just tells her she wouldn’t want to know what he finds fun. He then hears some sirens and goes on alert, but since Jubilee doesn’t have a super sense of hearing she dismisses him at first until Storm hears them as well.

Ape (left) can basically turn himself or his limbs into whatever he can come up with, but often his imagination seems to be lacking.

An ambulance comes crashing onto the ice and we soon see it’s being driven by Morlocks. Ape (Ross Petty) and Annalee (Kay Tremblay) emerge from the ambulance and start taking supplies from it. Wolverine comes skating up ready for a fight and calls their actions low by their standards. He grabs Ape, who had transformed his hands into paddles that look like duck feet to carry supplies. I feel like he could have morphed them into something far more useful. Anyway, Wolverine is ready for a fight, but Storm arrives and brings a blizzard with her to conceal their actions. Annalee informs her that they’re taking supplies to help Leech, a juvenile Morlock who is apparently very sick. They didn’t know what to do as they already tried a hospital, but they couldn’t care for the mutant boy. She takes this opportunity to also remind Storm that she is the leader of the Morlocks, something established way back in season one of the show, and that she’s never around when they need her. Storm agrees to help them and she uses her powers to thwart the approaching police and to provide cover for their escape. Wolverine indicates he’s not helping sewer rats, while Jubilee is worried about her presents. Storm tells the child to leave them, but she scoops them up anyway before following.

Callisto (left) and Storm have to set aside their differences for poor Leech who is afflicted with a severe case of plot sickness.

We then see the group walking through ankle deep water in the sewer. It would seem Wolverine decided to join them after all while Jubilee is worried that they’re supposed to be home in an hour for Christmas dinner. When they arrive at Leech, Callisto (Susan Roman) is there to “welcome” them. She gives Storm a bunch of sass for not being around when they need her which gets Wolverine riled up, but Storm tells him to back off as she seemingly accepts the criticism. She does inform Callisto that they can settle their differences later, for right now Leech needs their full attention. As for the child, he’s laying on a table under a blanket apparently unconscious. Storm, citing Wolverine’s experience with field medicine, instructs him to prep the child as she wants to take him to Beast. Wolverine walks over and checks the kid’s pulse and just says, “Uh oh…”

I think this is Marianna’s only appearance in the show.

Seated against the wall, Jubilee watches with concern on her face. She soon hears something behind her and it turns out to be a small, Morlock, girl who bares a strong resemblance to Leech. Jubilee greets the little, green, girl who then emerges from the shadows to come sit with Jubilee. Meanwhile, Callisto is frustrated that Wolverine isn’t preparing Leech for transport and grabs Storm insisting she order him to do something. Storm fights back until Wolverine shouts “Shut up!” at both of them. He then delivers the bad news that Leech isn’t going anywhere. His pulse is dropping too fast and there’s no way he would survive the trip back to the mansion. This leaves Jubilee to get another sweaty Christmas special line in of, “No, he can’t! Not today! It’s Christmas Eve!” as she hugs the small girl and we pan to a tiny, Morlock, Christmas tree that basically looks like Charlie Brown’s tree, only the lone ornament is broken.

Wolverine apparently has some PTSD in his past related to trying to heal people with his own blood.

As the adults discuss what to do, it’s Jubilee who says “Please Wolverine! You’re so good at healing yourself, can’t you help Leech?” Storm seems to like this train of thought and inquires with Wolverine about a blood transfusion. He refuses, while the others persist. Storm thinks it’s because Wolverine hates the Morlocks, but he shouts back at her “Don’t you think I want to help the kid?!” He then explains he’s tried it before and it didn’t work. It was a group of 20 individuals and the last one to die was a kid younger than Leech. Still, when Storm initially asked he said “Maybe” to it working and Wolverine explains it did work once and the large group was the second time he attempted the feat. He doesn’t know why it worked once, but not again, and seems reluctant to try it here.

It turns out, Wolverine isn’t racist, he just doesn’t want to see another kid die!

Storm doesn’t really care and asks Ape if he acquired a transfusion kit from the ambulance. He just looks at her in confusion and she tells him to never mind. She finds what she’s looking for amongst the supplies and informs the others that she’ll contact the mansion to have Rogue fly Beast to them. As she does she hands the transfusion kit to Wolverine and tells him he knows what he must do. He angrily responds “You don’t know what you’re asking,” and she snaps back, “I am asking you to show the courage needed to save a child’s life!” “He wouldn’t be dyin’ if you looked after these people!” Woo! There’s some dramatic stuff right here! Wolverine’s words appear to cut Storm deep which calms her down.

The moment Ape has waited his whole life for!

Storm concedes Wolverine’s point, but then calmly tells him that even if the odds are one in a thousand, he needs to try. She tops it off with a “Ask yourself, if he were your child, would you refuse?” Wolverine just looks at the kit in his hands and the scene cuts back to Storm’s face, but it’s clearly just a single cel that they’re holding on and it looks pretty goofy. I wonder if the episode came in short and they had to find cheap ways to extend it? It cuts back to Wolverine who just silently shakes his head indicating that he wouldn’t refuse if the situation was different. Storm just says, “Good,” then tells Ape that Wolverine needs a flat surface beside Leech to lie on. You would think this is a command to get a table or something, but no. Ape walks over and turns himself into a table for Wolverine to lie one! Were they planning to eat Christmas dinner off of the guy too?

All right, I need to know more about larva guy over here. Does he do anything or does he just look like that worm that creates Slurm?

Over by the wall, the little Morlock girl asks Jubilee if Leech will be okay? Jubilee responds with a question of her own and in the process we find out the little girl’s name is Marianna (her voice is uncredited, but it’s presumably from the main cast). She asks her if she believes in miracles, but Marianna has no idea what a miracle is. Jubilee tries to sniff back some tears and holds the girl close telling her “Maybe in a little while, we’ll see.”

Good thing Cyclops is here to use his powers to make sure the stalk of celery Jean threw at Gambit didn’t connect. This is the most danger anyone on the X-Men is put into during this episode. Well, Storm and Jubilee are probably in danger of catching something walking around in a sewer.

At the snowy mansion, Jean and Gambit continue their kitchen feud. Gambit apparently did something to the ham and Jean is not happy. She demands Gambit’s removal from her kitchen and in the process refers to him as a swamp rat. Cyclops thinks they’re both acting like children, but before things can get any worse, Professor X enters to inform them of the emergency in the Morlock tunnels. Lucky for him, Rogue already ditched the holiday attire and is in her normal X-Men uniform and ready for action.

This is basically Charlie Brown’s tree, only it’s one that doesn’t magically become full and beautiful once decorated.

Back in the sewers, the transfusion has begun and the rest can only look on while Wolverine urges Leech to pull through. Marianna is still rather cheerful and asks Jubilee if Leech is better yet. She wants to show Jubilee their Christmas tree and takes her over to the pathetic, little, tree which is using a tin can as a tree stand. She’s proud of it though since Leech found it and Jubilee calls it the most beautiful tree she’s ever seen. Marianna then takes Jubilee to their Christmas feast and wants Jubilee to partake. It’s some kind of stew and probably smells awful. Marianna assures Jubilee she can have some of hers as she really wants Jubilee to share the experience. Storm them enters and Jubilee asks about Leech, but it’s too soon to tell. She then asks Storm how the Morlocks can go on having so little and she gets a little dose of Christmas wisdom. Storm tells her they have each other and that’s all they need to feel loved. She tops it off with another one, “As long as you are part of a caring family, every day is Christmas!”

Beast, I don’t think you’re using that properly.

Over by Leech, Callisto is growing impatient and Wolverine has had enough. He angrily rises from his “table” and rips the IV out of his arm defiantly shouting “I told you it wouldn’t work!” Storm tries to calm him down, but before she can Rogue and Beast arrive. Wolverine tells Beast he’s got to work fast and the blue one heads for the patient. For some reason, Leech is now fully clothed and not under a blanket and apparently the animation budget wasn’t high enough to have Beast check the kid’s vitals in a logical manner so he just starts running a stethoscope over the kid’s jacket. As he does so, he explains that Wolverine’s powers are not something that modern, medical, science understands and he doesn’t know what the end result will be.

This kid probably just thinks Jubilee cries all the time at this point.

As Callisto uselessly demands that Beast “Do something,” he continues to examine the child while Wolverine can’t bare to watch. Leech’s eyes soon flutter though, and we get a shot from his point of view as he focuses on Beast. He lets out a cry of surprise which causes Beast to laugh as he notes he doesn’t have the most reassuring of faces. This whole time, Leech has been depicted with yellow eyes and I have to assume it was an error since we see he has eyelids for his waking up shot. Or, it’s not an error and they just decided to give him eyelids for that one shot to make it more obvious that he was waking up. Jubilee is sobbing with Marianna in her arms and tells the girl that Leech is okay and she just matter-of-factly responds with “Of course he is!”

Leech is all better and seemingly over his fear of Beast. Hooray!

Storm then demands Callisto hand over the ceremonial scepter of power. She’s reluctant to, but Storm asserts her authority as leader of the Morlocks and offers no explanation. She then forces the woman to kneel before her, which she probably enjoys humiliating her one last time before announcing she’s transferring her title as leader back to Callisto. Callisto says nothing but rises and takes the scepter. Wolverine then strolls over to break the ice and asks what a guy’s gotta do to get some orange juice and a cookie around here? Leech (John Stocker), who is seated in the large arm of Beast, then announces he’s hungry too which produces a laugh out of Beast who then prescribes food for the patient. Wolverine then thanks Leech “for making it,” while Storm offers her apologies to Wolverine for not treating him with the same compassion he showed Leech, adding that she should have known better than to question his heart.

She’s just handing over a few gifts, Storm, let’s not turn this into something bigger than it really is.

Callisto announces that all X-Men are welcomed to join them for Christmas dinner, though adding they don’t have much to offer. Jubilee then announces that most of the presents she’s been dragging along contain food and offers those. Storm double-checks that she’s all right with doing so since it meant a lot to her to give these gifts out back at the mansion, but she’s totally cool with it because she learned her important, Christmas, lesson. She then encourages the kids, Leech and Marianna, to help her open them.

All right, I have some questions. Number one, which member of the X-Men was in-line to get a toy plane for Christmas?!

Jubilee then gets the customary “You have done something noble,” from Storm acknowledging her Christmas lesson, even though her act of nobility is just giving stuff away. She lives in a freakin’ mansion, for crying out loud. She gives Wolverine a hug as she says “I learned from the best,” and he gives her a reassuring pat on the back and a “You’re a good kid.” Beast then summarizes the events of today by reminding us this wasn’t the Christmas Jubilee had envisioned, but it will be a memorable one. Rogue gets to have a little chuckle here adding “So will a couple of cooks I know.”

Jean is enjoying this. I’m surprised they can’t still eat some of the dinner since there’s still 4 of them there, but Jean probably refuses and I’m guessing Cyclops is in the doghouse if he partakes in Gambit’s meal. Xavier is wise to stay out of it as well.

We cut back to the mansion where Jean has seemingly ceded control of the kitchen to Gambit who has prepared what he feels is a flawless Christmas dinner. Word comes down that the others are having Christmas dinner with the Morlocks, and Gambit does not take the news well that the whole crew won’t be getting together for Christmas dinner. Jean gets to suggest that they can heat it up tomorrow which just irritates the cook further. Gambit retorts in the third person with “Gambit does not make TV dinners!”

Oh no! He’s melting!

By the fire, we see Xavier taking a phone call from Jubilee who is concerned that he’d feel hurt that they’re not spending Christmas together. Xavier assures her that’s not the case, and while their presence will be missed, he’s proud of their actions today. He even refers to her action as a “generous sacrifice,” which seems to be quite the exaggeration here! He tacks on a whole thing about how she’s giving him the best gift of all by acting like a true X-Man in recognizing that she is where she’s needed most. We pan outside the mansion to the giant tree out front where the camera holds and the message “Merry Christmas from all the X-Men” appears to announce that this one is over.

Wolverine wished me a merry Christmas, you guys!

In the intro, I mentioned how out of place it felt for a show like X-Men to do a Christmas special. Now that it’s over, I don’t feel any different, but I do have to commend the show for just going for it. It’s a very dramatic show with a lot of heavy-handed line readings and this episode is no different. Except that this one gets to play with the overly dramatic Christmas special motif we’ve seen in other shows. It almost feels like an episode of Full House as a result, only with mutants, and it takes place mostly in a sewer. It has all of the usual holiday staples though in that we have a character excited for Christmas and the pageantry that accompanies it. Jubilee isn’t portrayed as a selfish child, but she is consumed by the act of Christmas and not its message, but it comes from a healthy place as she reminds us more than once she’s never really had a traditional, Christmas, experience. And she’s forced to adjust on the fly to her first Christmas with a family changing its setting, and even some of its participants.

Wolverine’s heart grew three sizes that day…

We also get the tried and true “some kid is sick at Christmas and needs a Christmas miracle to survive” via the Leech plot. Wolverine, who naturally functions as a Christmas antagonist of sorts, is brought into the story that way and it makes sense that the show would want to involve its most popular character in the plot. It finds a role for him, and we get the added drama of Wolverine being sort of racist against the Morlocks, but forced to save one. That angle isn’t really played up though. Wolverine just assumes the worst of the group, and he’s not entirely unjustified in doing so based on their prior interactions, and also gets in some cheap insults before they come upon Leech. It’s enough for Storm to assume the worst though and adds to the drama. Her and Wolverine’s argument is definitely the height of the special as far as the drama is concerned and the line readings from Sealy-Smith and Dodd are very much over-the-top, but in an earnest way.

Fans of the show probably weren’t asking to spend Christmas with the Morlocks, but the fact that they’re a poor family does lend itself well to a Christmas story.

And then, of course, we get the comedic B plot at the mansion involving Jean and Gambit. I feel like we actually could have used one more scene between the two as clearly Jean just gave up on preparing her idea of Christmas dinner at some point to let Gambit go full steam ahead with his oyster loaf and other foods. It’s fine and we actually get to see a different side of Jean in these scenes, who is normally rather buttoned-up and, frankly, boring. It also allows the whole team to get some presence in this one which is probably an important thing since Christmas is traditionally about family and it’s not like the show was planning on ever doing another Christmas episode.

At least we get to see how the X-Men decorate for Christmas. And they certainly go big.

As an episode of X-Men, this one is a bit of a failure. It’s plot feels out of place and the corny Christmas lines stand out far too much. It also doesn’t get to redeem itself with any special production values. The Christmas décor looks fine, and some of the characters are in outfits we’re not accustomed to seeing, but that’s about it. As a Christmas special though, it’s not that bad. Admittedly, there’s a ton of terrible Christmas specials out there so the bar isn’t exactly high. The messaging in this one is fairly simple and it really doesn’t beat you over the head with it since it’s largely contained to the show’s final minute. Xavier lays it on a bit thick right before the credits roll, but that’s hardly unusual for a Christmas special. It gets bonus points for having actual stakes, and while Leech is basically afflicted with “plot sickness,” the miraculous capabilities of Wolverine’s healing powers mean he could have legitimately been sick with something awful and Wolverine’s powers are just that good. There’s no Santa or anything like that, but it does have a human mutant story at its heart so that helps give it a solid foundation. Plus, it features the X-Men and you don’t get that too often in a Christmas story.

“Have Yourself a Morlock Little Christmas” gets a tepid recommendation from me. I suppose you have to be a fan of X-Men to get the most out of it, but at the same time, hardcore fans are possibly more likely to have a strong negative reaction to this one since it feels a bit silly to see the characters in this setting. This one is basically searching for the overlap on the Venn diagram of X-Men fans and fans of corny Christmas fair. At the end of the day, it’s only 23 minutes so you’re not sacrificing much to give it a look. And it’s fairly easy to find since the whole show is streaming on Disney+. It’s also available on DVD if physical media is still your thing. At worst, maybe you’ll be inspired to try some new dishes at your own Christmas dinner?

Can’t wait until tomorrow for more Christmas? Check out what we had to say on this day last year and beyond:

Dec. 18 – The Legend of Prince Valiant – “Peace on Earth”

The early 90s saw an influx of cartoons produced solely with the intent to sell to cable networks. Previously, most cartoons were packaged from film or created for broadcast networks which would get the first run on major network affiliates and then gradually migrate to smaller stations. With cable becoming more affordable, it was fast…

Keep reading
by Joe

Dec. 18 – Dumb and Dumber – “Santa Klutz”

After doing write-ups for the two cartoons inspired by Jim Carrey films from 1994, you must have figured I’d do the third today! Just as Carrey stormed the cinematic gates with Ace Ventura: Pet Detective, The Mask, and Dumb and Dumber in ’94, the television world followed suit in ’95 with an animated series based…

Keep reading
by Joe

Dec. 18 – Little Dracula – “The Bite Before Christmas”

There was a huge demand for cartoons in the early 90s. Cable was expanding and needed content for all ages while a new broadcast network was also making noise. That network was Fox, and after scoring primetime hits with Married…with Children and The Simpsons, the network started to look at other areas where it could…

Keep reading
by Joe

1 Comment   |  tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , | posted in christmas, Television