On Halloween in 1992, Fox Kids debuted the first episode of X-Men: The Animated Series, a cartoon adaptation of the best-selling comic book characters. The series would go on to run for five seasons and 76 episodes across six years. While never the critical darling that was the Batman animated series (which itself launched just a few weeks prior) and often plagued with animation and production issues, X-Men: The Animated Series was nevertheless beloved by a generation of fans, who appreciated its keen understanding of what makes the core cast and the concept of the X-Men so captivating and an ability to smartly adapt the often byzantine X-Men comic book stories in a way that both worked in the new medium but still stayed true to the heart of the stories.
I was eleven when the series debuted, and about six months into my burgeoning comic book/X-Men fandom. Seeing these characters I’d already grown to love depicted on my TV for the first time only further cemented my fandom. Between the comics, the trading cards, the action figures, and this series, the X-Men were deeply embedded in my life in a way that has never entirely gone away. The series is far from perfect — the animation never reaches the heights of the Caped Crusader’s contemporary show, Cyclops is entirely too square, Storm’s lengthy pronouncements every time she uses her powers gets old, fast — but there remains something charming in those rough edges, and there’s no denying the creators involved gave it their all and truly respected the source material, as well as the fans love of it.
To celebrate the series’ 30th anniversary, here is my ranking of its thirty best episodes. Note, I am ranking these based on episode, not story, so each chapter of a multi-part arc (which the series featured regularly) must be worthy of inclusion on its own to make the list! [Read more…] about X-Men: The Animated Series – The 30 Greatest Episodes For 30 Years
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, and the recently announced Night Fever. We talk about creator-owned comics with Sean Phillips, the developing Batman: Caped Crusader animated series, writing for comics vs Hollywood, and a lot more!
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