Wake up, Marvel fandom, the MCU is back. It’s been a relatively slow start to 2024 for the cinematic universe, but like Tiamut rising out of the Earth’s core, the franchise is waking back up again as we head into the spring.
For its first outing since Echo dropped in January, Marvel Studios is returning with perhaps its most unlikely Disney Plus series yet, albeit one that is highly anticipated. X-Men ’97 is the very first Marvel production not set in the MCU as instead it’s a continuation of the beloved X-Men: The Animated Series. With many of the same voice cast in tow, ’97 picks up right where the original show left off and promises to be such a forceful hit of nostalgia it’ll be like Juggernaut has punched us in the face.
For those eager to return to the X-Mansion to reunite with these characters for the first time in almost 30 years (hands up who else feels old?), here’s all you need to know about X-Men ’97‘s release schedule.
X-Men ’97 episode titles and release schedule, explained
Marvel experimented with its release pattern for its last two TV series, with What If…? season 2 dropping new episodes daily over Christmas and Echo premiering its whole series in one go. For X-Men ’97, however, it’s returning to the classic status quo of releasing new episodes weekly. With a 10-part first season, the good news is that we’ll getting guaranteed Marvel content for the next couple of months.
X-Men ’97 premieres on March 20, with an extra special two-part opener. Episodes will then arrive one by one over the next few weeks until the season concludes with an epic three-part storyline set to wrap up on May 15. Marvel Studios announced the full release schedule and episode titles in the best way possible, with a mock-up of an old-timey TV Guide cover.
The full episode title list and release schedule is as follows:
- “To Me, My X-Men/Mutant Liberation Begins” – March 20
- “Fire Made Flesh” – March 27
- “Motendo/Lifedeath: Part 1” – April 3
- “Remember It” – April 10
- “Lifedeath: Part 2” – April 17
- “Bright Eyes” – April 24
- “Tolerance is Extinction: Part 1” – May 1
- “Tolerance is Extinction: Part 2” – May 8
- “Tolerance is Extinction: Part 3” – May 15
So what can we glean about the season’s upcoming storylines from these titles? Well, the “Lifedeath” two-parter shares a name with a 1984 comics storyline of the same name, so expect it to be a Storm-centric arc that features a love story between her and Forge. Meanwhile, “Fire Made Flesh” has to be a Pyro episode and “Tolerance is Extinction” is believed to center around a new villain, the mutant-hating vigilante The X-Cutioner. The best news, though? This isn’t even it as a second season has already been confirmed to be in the works. What with Deadpool & Wolverine coming this July, there’s never been a better time to be an X-Men fan!
