X-Men ’97 might be the first X-Men project from Marvel Studios that we’ve been waiting for, but it’s a project with a long legacy behind it. The show is a direct continuation of the beloved X-Men: The Animated Series and picks up right where that left of.
And that’s no mean feat considering that X: TAS ended way back in, well, 1997. That means that those who dive into the two-part series premiere unprepared may be left looking for some much-needed context over certain developments and character inclusions. It should be stressed that you can watch X-Men ’97 without dipping into the original series first, but it will definitely increase your enjoyment if you decide to recap X: TAS, at least a little, on Disney Plus before you watch the new show.
Case in point, the opening episode, “To Me, My X-Men,” sees the titular mutant super-team assemble to battle Master Mold. As a villain yet to appear in the live-action movies, it’s understandable if you need a reminder on who Master Mold is. Look no further.
Master Mold is a returning villain from X-Men: The Animated Series
In the premiere, the X-Men discover new Sentinel robots are up to their old tricks hunting down mutants again, which leads them to believe Bolivar Trask, their creator, has built a new Master Mold factory somewhere. It’s noted that the team destroyed his original factory years ago. Trask has gone missing, however, ever since his robots attempted to swap Senator Robert Kelly’s brain with a robot computer (as happened on X: TAS).
Thanks to a psychic vision from Jean Grey, Cyclops, Wolverine and the others track Trask down to the Sahara desert where the twisted scientist has indeed created a new Master Mold, which he sets on the X-Men. Not fun for them, but fun for us as we get to witness an epic fight sequence in which the heroes show off their powers and work together to destroy the giant Sentinel. They finally destroy the new Master Mold when Gambit charges up Wolverine’s claws with his psionic energy and Logan launches himself at the robot and takes his head off.
X-Men ’97 actually does a great job of giving the viewer all the salient info on what Master Mold is and his history. Master Mold’s construction was the looming threat of the first season of X: TAS, before the X-Men battled him in the season finale. He was destroyed but his head later returned in “Courage,” in which he attempted to upload his consciousness into Charles Xavier’s brain but Morph seemed to shut him down once and for all. ’97‘s Master Mold appears to be a different model.
Master Mold was one of the team’s original foes in the comics, dating back to 1965’s The X-Men #15 from Stan Lee and Jack Kirby. In short, Master Mold is a sentient supercomputer in the shape of a colossal Sentinel who is able to create regular Sentinel drones at will. As AI tend to do in the Marvel universe, he has a habit of defying his original programming and deciding that all humanity needs to be annihilated, causing Trask to reluctantly team up with the X-Men to stop him.
In the X: TAS “Days of Future Past” storyline, Master Mold ruled over the world in a dystopian timeline after subjugating humanity and locking mutants in concentration camps. Jean’s vision referenced that possible future, so although Master Mold appears destroyed, something tells us he may return before the season is out.