MCU used to be a franchise that fans loved because of its catchy dialogues, amazing CGI and VFX, memorable characters, and so much more. But ever since the end of Marvel’s Phase 3, it seems the quality of the superhero franchise has kept on diminishing leading to its first big flop in years, The Marvels.
And so as Marvel gears up to revive its falling universe, there must have been several strategic decisions made as was with Daredevil: Born Again. Even with Marvel’s animated series X-Men ’97, the studios had already decided upon one decision early on that could potentially save the MCU show.
MCU’s One Strategic Decision Could Save X-Men ’97
MCU content in the last few years has been criticized on several fronts by its huge fanbase. From lack of quality writing to diminishing CGI quality despite a huge budget, fans are happy with the turn the superhero franchise has taken ever since Phase 4 began (see Reddit).
In the midst of all these criticism and challenges, MCU has been trying to get back to what made it so popular, by honoring the existing characters and their history. And for the upcoming animated TV series, X-Men ’97, the studio has taken more or less the same approach.
A continuation of the highly popular animated 1990s series, X-Men: The Animated Series, the series will not only honor the source material but the studio also hopes it will fill in those blind spots and remain as relatable (via The Hindustan Times).
But perhaps the greatest strategic decision Marvel Studios has made is bringing back much of the original cast, as supervising producer and head director Jack Castorena revealed to MovieFone,
“… That was one of those decisions that was just kind of already made. Once they knew they were going to make the show, it’s kind of a no-brainer. If you want to make a continuation, you must get the cast to continue.”
Bringing back much of the original cast could potentially be a saving grace for X-Men ’97, especially when MCU is being heavily criticized for its project’s subsequently decreasing quality (see The Verge).
X-Men ’97 Is All About Honoring The Original Animated Series
The MCU has had plenty of problems plaguing it (see Variety) and as per the recent interviews of Marvel executives the franchise seems to be going back to its roots to solve these problems. While conversing with The Hollywood Reporter, Marvel’s Head of Streaming Brad Winderbaum revealed how the studio has been trying to honor the existing legacy of the many Marvel shows and characters.
“The creative challenge of this show is in not just reviving, but emulating and honoring a show that was made 30 years ago. So, using all of our creative strength through this amazing array of artists and animators — and even the voice talent and the music and everyone that has touched the show — our guiding principle is trying to emulate our memory of it.”
Stated Winderbaum while talking about X-Men ’97. However, honoring the legacy does not mean the upcoming show would not be relevant in contemporary times. Instead, Marvel Studio wants to balance the needs of today’s audience while staying true to the original theme (via Emmanuel “E-Man” Noisette)
By staying true to the source material, and making strategic decisions like bringing back the original cast, Marvel Studios is giving fans hope for the future of the MCU. But only time will tell if such efforts will truly pay off.
X-Men ’97 is streaming on Disney+.
