The first X-Men ‘97 trailer is a return to the days of mutant supremacy

Marvel’s larger X-Men brand has evolved a lot during the almost 30 years since X-Men: The Animated Series went off the air, but the first trailer for Disney Plus’ new X-Men ‘97 show from executive producer Beau DeMayo will take you right back to the good old days when mutants reigned supreme.

Picking up right after the events of X-Men: The Animated Series’ finale, X-Men ‘97 is set to continue the stories of all the mutants Charles Xavier left behind when he departed Earth to journey to the Shi’ar homeworld. In the new trailer, it’s clear that all of Xavier’s former students are still reeling from the loss of their beloved mentor, but even after all the times mutants have saved the world, humanity still hates their kind and is dead set on wiping the X-gene off the face of the Earth. 

It isn’t obvious from the trailer what sorts of new treats Cyclops (Ray Chase), Jean Grey (Jennifer Hale), Rogue (Lenore Zann), Beast (George Buza), Jubilee (Holly Chou), Storm (Alison Sealy-Smith), Wolverine (Cal Dodd), and Gambit (A.J. LoCascio) will face.

But shots of Magneto (Matthew Waterson) standing in front of the UN building make it seem as if world leaders may have a new plan about how to deal with mutant terrorism (which likely involves the deployment of new Sentinels). Other details like brief glimpses of a pregnant Jean and an issue of the Daily Bugle featuring newer mutants like Dust point to X-Men ‘97 digging into comics plots the original ’90s cartoon never quite got to. The biggest takeaway from the trailer, though, is that when X-Men ‘97 hits Disney Plus on March 20th, we’re all going to be humming that theme song.