Marvel Comics properties seem to be more popular than ever, with the Marvel Cinematic Universe bringing fans a whole slew of new content year after year.
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But for some, the quintessential versions of many Marvel characters are found in the various animated series that have been made over the years.
While many of the shows have faded into obscurity, there are quite a few that have stood the test of time, and could very easily have many more stories to tell. DC Comics fans have already seen this happen, with the cult hit animated series Young Justice set to finally earn a third season on DC’s new streaming service.
So which Marvel shows do we wish could have the same fate? Click through to find out.
Spectacular Spider-Man
As it stands now, there is already a Spider-Man webseries in production, with plans for it to air on Disney XD later this year.
But considering the wide scope of stories that the Spider-Verse has to offer, who’s to say another beloved animated series couldn’t exist concurrently, through a different platform?
The Spectacular Spider-Man aired for two seasons between 2008 and 2010, and accumulated quite a fan following in the years since. The series followed Peter Parker (Josh Keaton) throughout high school, with each arc of episodes being themed around a certain school subject. Other members of the show’s cast included Lacey Chabert, Daran Norris, and Clancy Brown.
While the first season was initially aired on The CW (who has since turned their focus to DC-related programming), it’s sophomore season did find a home on Disney XD. While a third season was planned, a legal battle between Disney and Sony caused it to fall through.
But some fans have hoped that the series could find yet another home – in the streaming platform Netflix. The #SpecSpidey4Netflix has accumulated quite a few tweets, with fans campaigning both for the original seasons to be uploaded to the streaming platform, as well as for the content giant to create a third season of the series.
All these years later, there’s certainly no reason for it not to happen. While Marvel and Sony’s recent partnership has had some awkward moments, the two companies appear to be on much better footing than they were in 2010. This means that the two could easily extend their partnership into bringing back Spectacular Spider-Man.
If next month’s Spider-Man: Homecoming – which appears to be influenced by the animated series – becomes a smash hit, reviving the series would be a perfect way for the two to create more Spidey content in between films.
The Avengers: Earths Mightiest Heroes
Unlike Spectacular Spider-Man, The Avengers: Earth’s Mightiest Heroes has already found its way to Netflix. But for many fans, the two seasons the popular series earned just weren’t enough.
The first season of Earth’s Mightiest Heroes followed the original Avengers lineup of Hulk, Thor, Wasp, Giant Man, and Iron Man. Characters such as Captain America, Hawkeye, Black Panther, and Ms. Marvel later joined the roster over the series’ run.
Yes, the current Avengers series, Avengers Assemble, boasts an even bigger lineup of characters. But many have argued that Earth’s Mightiest Heroes captures the original tone and style of the world famous team, providing something different from what’s seen in the MCU, while still boasting a wide array of its most popular characters.
A #BringBackAEMH hashtag has been floating around since 2012, when word of the series’ cancellation first hit the airwaves. Many had hoped the series would get a chance to fully adapt Civil War, as parts of the second season were hinting at.
With the success of Captain America: Civil War (which also is available to stream on Netflix), there’s certainly an audience that would be willing to watch the animated adaptation as well. With Netflix’s wide array of content capabilities – ranging from a full series to essentially a television movie – Earth’s Mightiest Heroes could easily get that ending.
Wolverine and the X-Men
The animated series that actually preceded Earth’s Mightiest Heroes was none other than 2009’s Wolverine and the X-Men.
While rather short lived – earning only one, twenty-six episode season – Wolverine and the X-Men established itself as a profound member of the Marvel animated series pantheon.
The series followed the titular group, which is brought back together by Logan/Wolverine (Steve Blum) in the wake of an oncoming war.
Wolverine and the X-Men premiered to one of the Nicktoons Network’s highest ratings in history, with 3.5 million viewers. The series was praised in the weeks since for its perfect blend of humor and action, as well as its addressing of serious topics.
A second season for Wolverine and the X-Men was in the works for a long time, even predating the release date of the first season. Teaser images for the sophomore season were even shown, with characters such as Cable, Colossus, Deadpool, and Magik expected to appear in the series. But, as with Spectacular Spider-Man, the plans fell through, thanks to both financial and legal woes between Disney and Fox.
With that much work already in place for the eight-episode second season – even down to the episode titles being announced – there’s no reason for the show not to get its second chance now.
Seeing as Fox is trying to further grow their X-Men universe, thanks to upcoming live action films such as X-Men: Dark Phoenix and New Mutants, providing fans with a fresh look at the beloved animated series would help their cause. And with many of the season two characters having recently appeared in live-action X-Men films, a lot of hype would be created around their animated portrayals as well.
While the series might not necessarily end up on a streaming platform, Fox certainly has outlets to place it on. With FX’s smash-hit Legion and the upcoming The Gifted helping build up the X-Men television game, there’s plenty of reason to place Wolverine and the X-Men among it.
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