Sorry I’m so late to the party. So much I wanna say about this show.
For starters, it’s so damn refreshing to have something fun to be excited about again. I haven’t cracked open an X-men comic in YEARS (well anything new I mean) and from what I do follow of them, it sounds like the X-men have become hateful mutant supremacists. Villains essentially. When this show was announced I was psyched, that excitement gave way to fear and cynicism, the initial trailer looked AMAZING (the Gambit Wolverine tag team was the highlight of the trailer), then I heard all the concerns it was going be WOKE and a bait and switch, etc., there was the controversy of removing Rogue’s ass, etc. All this to say I wasn’t sure what to expect.
Having seen the first two episodes I was loving it. I rewatched a few times to make sure it wasn’t nostalgia clouding my judgment, but, no, I think this show is solid. So far. It could still go south, quick. But, I have a lot I like, some I love, some I hate, and I can live with that.
For starters…the creators of the show clearly do love the X-men. All the tiny Easter eggs throughout confirm this for me.The basketball uniforms, the specialized intro clips (like Rogue kissing Gambit), recapturing iconic moments from the original series without it feeling forced…I mean they made Cyclops say “NOT!”, and it worked. That takes some true effort. It could have been quite cringe, but they’re making feel like it COULD be 1997, without it feeling false OR cringy. That said there is some bias from the creators coming through. The senate riot was a little too on the nose meant to invoke Jan 6th, and The FOH were seemingly all white with Storm and Bishop busting it up, until Cyclops showed up, takes out everyone with optic blasts, save the one black member, who he beats the s*** out of physically. I dunno who approved that. Morph using “they/them/their” pronouns in his closing rotating bio doesn’t feel 90’s to me, but again if that’s as bad as it gets, I don’t care. Magento’s speech was bad ass and walked a careful line to be relatable, sympathetic, yet villainous/menacing, and without interjecting too much modern day bias. Again, that took consideration, and I appreciate it.
I feel the showrunners clearly like Gambit. He is drawn/displayed as cool in EVERY shot he’s in. Again, that’s deliberate. As an artist, I noticed that right away. From his casual body stance in the blackbird, to the updated/bad ass staff shot backflip in the intro, his lower V abs needlessly displayed (eye candy for the ladies), his suave at the club, him instinctively nodding when Logan gave a hint- they’ve gone out of there way to present him as cool as possible, when he’s NOT in action. And when he is? His action moments, along with Rogue’s, are the highlight. He’s presented as he should be…dynamic, fast, clever, etc. Flipping, spinning, slinging the staff, and his powers being visually exciting. His tag-teams have also been great, from using Bishop as a shield/absorbant to also enhance him, to the Wolverine ally-oop that helped bring down Mastermold like it was nothing. He’s been the standout, with what is best described as less being more. And little subtle things like Cyclops comparing him to Wolverine are cues to help him “get over” with younger fans who are either ignorant of Gambit, or, have only seen him represented as a boring background simp in recent decades, Rogue’s useless, neutered husband.
And yes, Remy is clearly a support character only in the show. And I’m fine with that. As long as when he’s on screen, he’s represented well, and bad ass. Often times, as I said, less is more, and the support character who has less screen time, but always leaves you with the memorable lines or bad ass moments, leaving you craving more, they’re the breakout characters. And I know Gambit’s already well established, but this WILL catapult him back into relevancy imo, if it continues. The look, voice, and presentation are all spot on, and if this show is meant to be a primer for a live action MCU X-men (and I think it IS, possibly even being counted as continuity), that bodes well for us Gambit fans. I share everyone here’s thoughts that Romy is endgame, and that is something I know we’re mixed on, but I feel the smart executives know that (especially if live action is coming) a cool, well received Gambit/Rogue relationship will help pull in female viewers/fans. No one, save smug, talentless modern day writers, likes a weak, whipped Remy. A bad ass Gambit is a very marketable character, appeals to young men, and women alike. I think it’s not lost on the powers to be that when the X-men were in their money making juggernaut (no pun) heyday, Gambit was very nearly as marketable as Wolverine, and as he’s never been displayed in live action (No, don’t remind me, that was NOT Gambit) to be compared against, say, whomever will be following up Hugh Jackman will be as Wolverine, it offers a blank slate for the MCU folks to work with.
The animation of the show is something highly controversial that has fans split. I both love and dislike it. At times it can make things smoother and cooler, and at other times, it’s clunky and jumpy. Yes, I miss Rogue’s big bubble butt, but, she’s not androgynous as people have claimed. I suppose each boob need not be outlined and shaded in every shot the way it was in the 90s. The coloring is amazing, and Gambit’s powers really look great here. f***ing Sinister was legit horror inducing in Wednesday’s episode.
The show is clearly marketed to those of us who grew up with it, people between 35-50. I didn’t think they’d have the stones to go full Goblin-Queen for example. I remember being a wee lad and really, really, really being interested in Madelyn Pryor for some reason despite Claremont’s stories being over my head at the time/that age, and having no previous interest in jean Grey. I couldn’t figure out why I was so captivated by her….or why my voice started sounding funny and I’ll be in my bunk. The club grinding, the same sex kissing, the threat from Magneto to skull stomp a guy, and the body horror of Episode 3, this show is actually rather mature. The 90’s show was made for kids but was mature enough adults could enjoy it. This one feels aimed at adults but just toned down enough kids can watch it. And to that, it does make me worry slightly that I have been hoodwinked and Gambit might die…to make way for Magik or Hope or Quinten Quire or whatever the new characters the “writers” today prefer to use/feature. As bad as the MCU has been the last 5 years, I could easily see them doing something just that stupid. But, I am uncharacteristically leaning optimistic for now. The show also breaks the 90’s cartoons core canon, while adhering to it loosely. They clearly don’t expect, even fans of it, to remember everything, just the beats/highlights, and even then, mostly from season 1 and 2. And to be fair…that’s smart. Did you remember Iceman and Angel weren’t founding members in the X-men 92 cartoon? Does it matter? No.
My biggest gripe with the show thus far has been Morph. And NO, not because he’s bisexual now. He’s presented as smug, and creepy. His use of his powers to torment Cyclops or Wolverine or even seduce Logan have been off-putting. His powers otherwise serve as little more than cameo opportunities (Angel, Xavier, Psylocke, Colossus, Magic, Sabretooth, Spiral, etc), but my BIGGEST gripe? How did X-Cutioner get the drop on Gambit (at least he was shot in the back, kind of protecting his image/bad assery) AND beast, outthink/outclass Bishop and beat the ever loving s*** out of Cyclops hand t hand, but, Morph stalemates him!?!? Seriously?!? I get you gotta give the guy something to do, but he’s easily the weakest of all those aforementioned, and it would have been a great opportunity to show Gambit’s skill (or Bishops) holding him off. And since when does his powers include making functional blades or titanium skin?? And even if he can, how does he have the skill to USE them? Annoying. There are other gripes…lack of Gambit fighting prowess in episode 3, some voice actors needlessly being changed (Jean, Jubilee), subtle dog whistles, the theme song being changed, no Rogue cake, and Gambit’s cards lacking stopping power vs Sentinels. But, those are all fairly minor. Except Rogue’s duke being MIA. Weird now that I think about it they’d remove it when showing M.P’s cleavage. But still Rogue’s been a stand out thus far. Hearing her, Beast, Wolverine and Storm’s voices again….ahh, it was like coming home.
Anyway I have so much more to say, but carpel tunnel is setting in. Overall, I’d rate the show a 8.5/10 thus far, with small segments being 10/10.
Also, it’s good to see you all again after so long, and for us to have something exciting and current and hopefully GOOD to talk about.