Please Marvel, Give This Forgotten X-Men Team an Animated Series

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Along with the Fantastic Four, the Uncanny X-Men are about to become a big part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. That’s more or less been assumed since Disney completed its high-profile purchase of 20th Century Fox in 2019, and the success of 2024’s Deadpool & Wolverine virtually guarantees it. Considering the sheer size of the MCU, and the feeling that figures like Iron Man and Steve Rogers won’t be returning to the scene, the X-Men have more than enough interesting characters to fill any number of projects the mega-franchise sees fit.

One particular X-Group has been too easily overlooked in the past, but may have a strong place in such a future. Generation X, a reboot of the traditional notion of students at Xavier’s school, enjoyed a successful run in the 1990s, complete with a TV movie to call its own. As the X-Men get ready to join the MCU in earnest, they make excellent candidates for an animated series or similar fare.

Generation X Arrived in the X-Friendly 90s

The Spin-Off Comic Took the X-Men Back to Their Roots

Generation X premiered amid the explosion of new X-Men titles in the mid-1990s, receiving an informal introduction during the Phalanx Covenant crossover story before launching their own line. Generation X #1 (Scott Lobdell, Chris Bachalo, Mark Buckingham, Steve Buccellato, and Electric Crayon), focused on a new wave of students at Xavier’s school, led by Jubilee and serving under the tutelage of Banshee and Emma Frost. They attended Frost’s former school in Massachusetts, now a branch of Xavier’s Academy, which provided them with a setting of their own to explore.

Their ranks included a number of new figures, and with the X-Men lines expanding rapidly, a return to the X-Men’s teenage high-school roots was a no-brainer. The line thrived in part by tapping into the same energy as the early X-Men comics, when the original team truly were students first and heroes second. Generation X gave a then-contemporary spin on the idea, as well as showing how young mutants grappled with the sudden onset of their powers. In between their training and classes, they had plenty of time to take on a solid array of villains, including classic X-Men baddies like The Juggernaut and Omega Red.

The line lasted for about 7 years, finally coming to an end with Generation X #75 (Brian Wood, Ron Lim, Sandu Florea, Randy Elliot, VLM, Richard Starkings, and Comicraft). After killing her homicidal sister Adrienne, Emma Frost loses the trust of her students, and the team disbands. They remained that way for over fifteen years, until the line was rebooted in 2017, this time with Jubilee going from student to instructor. That lasted about a year before closing with 2018’s Generation X #87 (Christina Strain, Amilcar Pinna, Felipe Sobreiro, and Clayton Cowles).

In between, Generation X managed to put a distinctive stamp on Marvel’s Merry Mutants. Many of its members showcased unusual or less-than-useful powers, such as Skin’s ability to control his epidermis, or chamber, whose torso and lower jaw were fully consumed by energy. The initial run of the comics showcased Emma Frost’s challenging transition from villain to hero, on top of providing a terrific showcase for the often-neglected Jubilee. The two of them moved on to other X-Men projects without much difficulty, since both are staples of the team, but they were never quite as prominent as they were in the pages of Generation X.

Generation X Has Struggled With Big-Screen Adaptations

Even Jubilee Is an Afterthought in X-Men Movies

When it comes to TV and movie adaptations, Generation X is in a curious state. Its characters have appeared in various X-Men films, but in a notoriously limited capacity. Emma Frost, for instance, has largely been relegated to henchman status in the live-action X-Men movies, though she’s more prominent in animated series like Wolverine and the X-Men. Jubilee occupies a similar niche in the X-Men films, present but never center stage, and while she’s a big part of the action in the seminal X-Men: The Animated Series, her appearances have been limited elsewhere. Banshee fits the same mold, as the character isn’t exactly invisible, but is rarely prominent, and the other members of Generation X have all but disappeared.

The big exception to the rule is the Generation X made-for-TV movie released in 1996. Generation X was intended as a calling card for a possible series. It also marked one of Marvel’s first serious attempts to break into television since the days of Lou Ferrigno’s Incredible Hulk. As such, it had a fairly large budget, and while some characters (such as Chamber) couldn’t be realized with effects at the time, the producers consulted with team creator Scott Lobdell to create appropriate replacements. Matt Frewer was cast as the villain, an original creation named Russell Tersh, and the plot made a genuine effort to convey the X-Men’s world with mutants oppressed by the government.

Unfortunately, the Generation X movie failed to find an audience and debuted with low Nielsen ratings, which led to the cancellation of future entries. It’s a pity because it’s better than its forgotten reputation suggests, and while it stumbles a few times, casting a non-Asian actor for Jubilee, for instance, it reflects a good deal of enthusiasm for the material. Marvel took some key lessons from it going into the big-screen X-Men movies, and the results were all the better for it. Today it remains a forgotten afterthought, spaced in the vacuum between the end of X-Men: The Animated Series and the beginning of the live-action movies.

Generation X Would Be Perfect As An Animated Series

An X-Men ‘97 Spin-Off Feels Just Right

Anything is possible, and with the MCU hungry for new material, Generation X could still find its way into the mega-franchise. Considering the number of X-Men ahead of them in line, however, and with at least a few more years of waiting regardless, such a prospect feels unlikely. One or two members may show up, depending on how the MCU chooses to proceed. Xavier’s School and its status remain a big question mark, but well-established characters are likely to be front and center either way.

Animation, however, provides a much stronger option, not only because of its comparatively low budget, but because it allows for the kinds of ongoing storytelling suited to students at Xavier’s. Marvel has already explored that idea with Your Friendly NeighborhoodSpider-Man, depicting Peter Parker’s high school years in an alternate version of the MCU, and a follow-up centered around similarly aged mutants in training feels like a natural fit. The show’s status as a variation of the MCU opens the door for Generation X to enter some version of the franchise without being bound to bigger projects.

In addition, the success of X-Men ’97 has opened the door for further adaptations of the same era. Generation X would make an excellent spin-off, with an aesthetic that closely matches the animated series, and an opportunity to expand on one of Marvel’s biggest successes in recent years. With Jubilee playing a prominent role in X-Men ’97, a hypothetical Generation X series would have an instantly identifiable protagonist.

This format would allow the X-Men animated universe to further expand, while providing a showcase for terrific characters who don’t stand much of a chance of receiving more than cursory attention elsewhere. Perhaps most importantly, it would open that storyline to a new generation of characters, since X-Men ’97 is tied to a specific cast.

The X-Men remain vital parts of Marvel, and with the MCU preparing for big changes, their arrival in that saga may just be a matter of time. Generation X is an unjustly overlooked part of their history and has great potential for the kind of animated series that Marvel has thrived on for decades. With a combination of new and classic characters, and roots in some of Marvel’s most vaunted traditions, it has yet to find a version outside the comics that truly reflects what it’s all about. As the MCU moves forward towards a mutant-centric future, leaving them out of the mix would be a colossal shame.

“}]] Generation X arrived during the explosion of X-Men titles in the 1990s. It didn’t last, but the concept and heroes would make a great animated series.  Read More