After months of anticipation, the first two episodes of X-Men ’97 have finally seen release. Picking up just moments after X-Men: The Animated Series, X-Men ’97 features much of the same cast, creating a seamless transition for those who watched the original series on Saturday mornings nearly 30 years ago. While the show has always featured its fair share of mutants, the premiere episode wastes no time in introducing some more favorites. Light spoilers for X-Men ’97’s premiere, “To Me, My X-Men,” are up ahead! Proceed with caution if you’ve yet to see the first episode in the relaunch.
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The first plot of the series shows with the X-Men saving a young mutant from the Friends of Humanity, a well-known mutant hate group within the larger Marvel canon. Longtime fans of the X-Men will notice Roberto’s not any regular character, he’s the fan-favorite mutant known as Sunspot.
Who is Sunspot?
Born Roberto da Costa, Sunspot is a Brazilian mutant capable of harnessing and using solar power; sometimes this allows to create an Iron Fist-like effect around his entire body while other times, it transforms the character into a look that most closely resembles—you guessed it—an actual sunpot.
The character first joined the Marvel stable in the first appearance of The New Mutants, though he’s grown substantially beyond that. During later storylines, da Costa has amassed sizable wealth, allowing him to purchase AIM (Advanced Idea Mechanics) and use it for his own good. He’s also fought crime under the moniker of Citizen V while leading the USAvengers.
The character has appeared twice in live-action: in X-Men: Days of Future Past, he was played by the late Adan Canto, while Henry Played the character in 20th Century’s The New Mutants.
New episodes of X-Men ’97 debut on Wednesdays exclusively on Disney+. If you haven’t signed up for Disney+ yet, you can try it out here.
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