X-Men ‘97 earned the highest honor Rotten Tomatoes (RT) has to give.
Marvel Studios’ newest animated show, X-Men ‘97, recently hit Disney+. The continuation of the beloved ‘90s Saturday morning cartoon, X-Men: The Animated Series, has more than impressed longtime fans with its compelling storytelling and slick animation style.
X-Men '97 Scores Big on Rotten Tomatoes
X-Men ‘97 has hit the jackpot on the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes by earning a perfect score of 100%. This is the highest percentage on the Tomatometer that a Marvel Studios production has ever achieved, making history.
A full list of the other best-reviewed Marvel Studios series and movies on Rotten Tomatoes can be found below:
- Ms. Marvel - 98%
- Black Panther - 96%
- Iron Man - 94%
- Avengers: Endgame - 94%
- The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special - 94%
- Thor: Ragnarok - 93%
- Spider-Man: No Way Home - 93%
- Guardians of the Galaxy - 92%
- Spider-Man: Homecoming - 92%
- WandaVision - 92%
- Hawkeye - 92%
- The Avengers - 91%
- Captain America: Civil War - 91%
- Spider-Man: Far From Home - 91%
- Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings - 91%
- What If...? Season 1 - 91%
- Captain America: The Winter Soldier - 90%
Still, Marvel has garnered some low Rotten Tomatoes scores in recent years. The MCU’s bottom three are Secret Invasion (53%), Eternals (47%), and Phase 5 opener Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania (46%).
A Word on Rotten Tomatoes Scores
Although X-Men ‘97 has made history on Rotten Tomatoes for Marvel, and such an accomplishment should not be discounted, there seems to exist an inherent issue with the Rotten Tomatoes platform itself.
Too often, movies and shows will live and die by their Tomatometer reading. Occasionally, a perfectly enjoyable film will find itself in the dregs of a low RT score, which can have a direct impact on its earning potential. And if the movie in question is a franchise flick that doesn’t turn a profit, fans can wave bye-bye to any sequels.
Moviegoing is a subjective experience by nature. Audience members would remember to see a film for themselves and form their own opinions rather than leaping headfirst onto the bandwagon of a flawed review system.
This pertains to the world of Marvel as well. There‘s a sizable contingent of the MCU fanbase who loved Eternals and Quantumania. Still, it’s likely that some individuals took a quick glance at Rotten Tomatoes, saw that those movies were labeled “Rotten,” and wrote them off without even watching.
The fun of watching movies is neutralized when one lets someone else make their opinions for them.
For X-Men ‘97, though, the animated streaming program is turning heads. The series is a respectful follow-up to the cartoon that put Marvel’s Merry Mutants on the mainstream map in the ‘90s.
X-Men ‘97 is engaging with visuals that make it clear that a ton of love went into its making.
The characters are pitch-perfect compared to their Clinton-era counterparts. What’s more, as has always been the case with the X-Men, the show stands to highlight the real-life hatred and bigotry that marginalized groups deal with, all through the super-powered Marvel lens.
The emphasis on which that spotlight is shone in X-Men ‘97 has won it some brownie points with those who feel left out and behind.
All these factors and many more contribute to X-Men ‘97’s status as a newfound critical darling, and one can only hope that the rest of the season keeps up the momentum.
Marvel Animation’s X-Men ‘97 can be streamed exclusively on Disney+. The next episode arrives on Wednesday, March 27.
Read More About X-Men ‘97 on The Direct:
X-Men '97 Cast: 23 Main Actors & Characters Confirmed for Disney+ Sequel Series
X-Men '97: Magneto's Backstory & Origin In Original Animated Series, Explained
X-Men '97 Powers Guide: All 12 Heroes' Abilities Confirmed by Marvel Studios
X-Men '97: Here's How Professor X Died In Original Animated Series
