X-Men Evolution is a Marvel animated series produced by Fox Kids that ran from 2000-2003, making it the third longest-running Marvel animated series at the time. The show ran for four seasons with 52 episodes total, and concluded the series with a peak into the future that many comic fans are familiar with. There were rumors of a season 5, but it was never made for unclear reasons. Perhaps with Marvel’s latest success they will bring this show back as well! In this review we’ll discuss the series both as a whole and by season, with discussions on characters and other cool/fun things about the show.

Unlike most of the movies and other shows, this show focuses on the X-Men when they were still in high school, learning to navigate their powers and hide who they were. The team itself shifts throughout the show, as new members join and others leave, but Wolverine, Storm, and Professor X are present the entire time. All of the content from the show is based on various comic book runs, and the creators made an effort to include clear representations of everyone’s abilities and personalities. Though the show was targeted for kids, the message of the X-Men remains strong as they represent every group out there who has been judged, mistreated, and worse simply because they are ‘different.’ Since the main characters were teenagers, it may have related better to that audience and helped them feel less alone.

There were no glaring plot issues, as the stories followed the comics and kept relationships (both romantic and family) the same. It was a well-written show that is enjoyable for any fan, with some fun references to the early 2000’s that anyone who grew up during that time would get a kick out of. They did soften Wolverine since he was aimed more as a mentor than a loner, but his personality traits and defensiveness was still strong in his character. The stories that dove into his past were interesting, and the connection between him and Captain America is one many fans love. I would have liked to see the series continued, but it did feel as though it concluded well with the story closing the chapter and moving on. 

Let’s break down each season now.

Season 1: We kick off the series by introducing key characters and some villains for audiences to learn about. Both teams, the Brotherhood and the X-Men, are recruiting mutants while hiding who they really are from society, and we see that Magneto is really behind the scenes running the Brotherhood. Since many of the characters were being introduced, background was provided fairly quickly with expansions of their stories as the series progressed. Some of the character designs were peculiar, for example Sabertooth was a lot smaller then he should be, but overall it’s clear who is who for fans. This season does a great job setting up the series and larger storylines. It has 13 episodes. 

Season 2: This season throws a lot of new characters at the audience and dives deeper into the conflicts between the X-Men and the brotherhood. It also develops key character relationships, such as Scott and Jean. Scarlet Witch was introduced as well, and though she is extremely strong, I found her character design to be an extremely odd choice that didn’t fit the character well. Though trying to maintain secrecy, mutants are exposed to the world in the end thanks to a plot from Magneto, who wants to start a war. In the end, the team learns that Xavier is missing and mutants have to go into hiding as the world has quickly turned against them. This season had 17 episodes.

Season 3: After being exposed, going into hiding, finding Xavier, and going back to the mansion, the team now has to navigate the world as outcasts and learns who their real friends are. While they are allowed to continue at school, many of their achievements and abilities are brought into question by Principal Kelly, a famous mutant hater from the comics. More characters are introduced in this season, such as the Morlocks and X-23, and the classic villain Apocalypse is revived despite everyone’s best attempts. Apocalypse is a well-known X-Men villain, but a villain who cannot be defeated fully does not make for a good story. During his introduction, his power is clearly shown with no indication of weakness or how they will take him down. In the previous show, X-Men the Animated Series, he was a villain who always came back and became more of a tedious storyline than a good one. Ending on a cliff-hanger, this season had 13 episodes.

Season 4: Aiming to conclude the main storylines, this season only had 9 episodes that mainly focused on the aftermath of Apocalypse’s revival and the plan to defeat him. A few new characters are introduced, but not focused on beyond this, and the team is at odds as Rogue begins to make decisions that cause rifts between her and everyone else. As the Apocalypse storyline comes to head, Xavier, Storm, Magneto, and Mystique are transformed into his four horsemen and the X-Men must recruit other mutants to help bring a stop to his evil plan. In the end, they are able to stop his plan and trap him in his tomb forever, defeated but unfortunately able to return. This does lead into the conclusion of the series, where Xavier speaks to his X-Men and shares the visions he saw of the future to come, that would have been seasons 5 and on. While this conclusion did leave the possibility for more, I viewed it as a focus of the story we don’t see much when they’re younger with recognition of the main adult storylines fans know well. This worked better for the focus on the show, but it would not be a bad thing to keep it going! The conclusion showed:

• Anti-mutants protests
• Magneto as a member of the X-Men
• The Phoenix Force storyline (pictured below)
• The future X-Men team (pictured below)
• The Brotherhood as the Freedom Force for S.H.I.E.L.D. (pictured below)
• Nimrod
• A final photo of the X-Men team (post banner)

Overall, this was a really fun show to watch that highlights these characters when they’re younger. Though some character designs were peculiar, the stories matched the comics and almost all the characters introduced got to show off their abilities. It is worth a watch and is available on Disney Plus. 

Thanks for reading! If you liked this post and want to see more of what I’ve written, check out my full blog here or follow my social media for updates! Bluesky & Instagram & Pintrest