X-Men ’97 Returns with New Release Ahead of Season 2 (With New Look at Gambit)

Marvel has officially announced a new prelude to X-Men ’97 Season 2. X-citement is building for this year’s X-Men ’97 Season 2, which will continue the hit animated show. Easily one of the best TV revivals of the 2020s, the show returned to the classic animated series in style. X-Men ’97‘s season finale was clear setup, ending with the X-Men scattered through time and hints that Apocalypse was about to resurrect Gambit as his new Horseman of Death.

Marvel Comics has officially announced a five-issue prelude reuniting writer Steve Foxe and artist Salva Espin. This will bridge the gap between X-Men ’97 seasons 1 and 2, exploring plot threads and introducing new characters (and teams) ahead of the show. “I feel exceptionally grateful that Salva Espin, Matt Milla, and I get to tell more stories fleshing out the world of X-Men ‘97!” Foxe shared in a press release. “Everyone who watched Season One knows the team left us one heck of an era-spanning cliffhanger, and our prequel for Season Two doesn’t take any cheats or shortcuts around that wild status quo.”

Marvel has released two official covers for the prelude, one by cover artist Todd Nauck and a variant by Jhony Caballero. This second is sure to raise eyebrows, because it also serves as a reminder of the X-Man who died – and who everyone expects to return. Here are the covers, followed by the official synopsis.

“Extinction-day has come and gone, and your favorite X-Men are lost in time! Spinning out of Marvel Animation’s X-Men ’97 series, follow the X-Men left behind in a world that hunts and hates mutantkind! Can they survive? And just where – or when – are the X-Men now?! No X-Men ‘97 fan can miss this one!”

X-Men ’97 Season 2’s Prelude Comic Will Be Essential Reading

2026 promises to be a great year for the Marvel Cinematic Universe (or, rather, the entire multiverse). In live-action, we’ve got the eagerly-anticipated Daredevil: Born Again Season 2, as well as Spider-Man: Brand New Day and Avengers: Doomsday. But X-Men fans will undoubtedly be much more excited about X-Men ’97 Season 2, simply because it brings back some of the most iconic X-Men of all time. Season 2 is expected to riff on classic stories such as the “Age of Apocalypse,” one of the most loved events of the ’90s, albeit with a modern riff.

Nauck’s main cover works well to set the status quo. It’s heavily adapted from a famous cover associated with the “Days of Future Past” story, which revealed a future timeline in which the X-Men were dead; the clear implication is that the surviving mutants are mourning the X-Men, believing them lost. The story is a twist on that, however, given this time round the X-Men are actually the ones doing the time-traveling.

The real excitement, of course, will lie in learning which characters and teams are going to have their moment in the sun. The classic X-Men: The Animated Series introduced many different groups, up to and including an incarnation of X-Factor, and it wouldn’t be a surprise to see all of them return in Season 2. The prelude, on sale June 3, will be vital setup.

What do you think? Leave a comment below and join the conversation now in the ComicBook Forum!

7 Reasons Wolverine Works Best on a Team Rather Than as a Solo Hero