Comparison of X-Men Animated Series from X-Men Evolution

[francesca]

Can anyone here tell me the difference of the two..

Thanks

[Silverstar]

I could type out all the differences between X-Men and X-Men: Evolution, but I won't.

Just Google or Wiki both shows. You'll get all the info you need.

[Blackstar]

Originally Posted by francesca

Can anyone here tell me the difference of the two..

Thanks

You're on the internet. Use it.

[BigEclipse]

X-Men: The Animated Series is more closely rooted to the Marvel Comic with both character design and plot. (Some stories were near direct translations from classic X-Men books.)

X-Men: Evolution was a different take on the concpt, as they pulled elements from both the comics and movies, as well as adding some new ideas. Basically, it took the X-Men back to when they were kids, as the main team, withe the exception of Wolverine, Storm and teh Beast were all High School students. Though it skewed towards a younger audience, it did contain stories of a darker tone and despite not adapting stories straight from the comics, had epic, season-long story arcs that were quite enjoyable.

[Kagetsu]

I never could get into X-Men Series. I'd started with X-Evo so the animation of the series seemed so 80's cheap and the stories weren't as character driven. I never could get used to the older characters with all the extra hair and big boobs. I also liked that X-Evo had civie clothes and the more subdued black uniforms. The story lines evolved so much better and I liked how some mutants would shift allegiance from time to time and were dealing with problems with family and social pressures beyond being mutant. Tabitha (BoomBoom) was especially good there. And then there was Kitty and Rogue's voice actors as an added treat.

Originally Posted by BigEclipse

as they pulled elements from both the comics and movies, as well as adding some new ideas.

I believe X-Evo was made before the live action movies. X23 was an unique added character. I'm considering the comics just to see more of her story.

[Silverstar]

I'm just the opposite: I preferred the Fox show (though the animation wasn't always so hot, and Wolverine got way too much play on the show), and I never much cared for Evolution. XME's animation was better, admittedly, but I didn't care for the concept: IMO, X-Men should never try to be Dawson's Creek. I didn't enjoy high school teenybopper plots and premises even when I was a teenager in high school, so that aspect of XME never appealed to me. Too much "Who's crushing on who?" crap, not enough mutant action (at least not until seasons 3 and 4, and by then it was too little, too late for me).

Not only was XME's premise nutty, and not only did they pretty much take a huge dump all over the comic book canonity (even more so than the Fox series did), but I didn't agree with much of the casting. Why Spyke? If they just wanted to have an African-American X-teen, why didn't they just make Storm a teenager for the show? And I would've rather seen a teenage Beast instead of Nightcrawler, whom I've never been a big fan of, especially on that series; Kurt was too goofy and annoying for my tastes. Plus that Goth version of Rogue got on my ever-loving nerves. Without the Ms. Marvel powers, Rogue just isn't cool, IMHO.

If we really had to have an alternate universe quasi-prequel series with teenage X-Men, I would have rather seen a show about the first missions of the original five X-Men (Cyclops, Marvel Girl, Iceman, Beast and Angel), but that's just me.

[Mr. Mxyzptlk]

Evo's not perfect, but I find it blows away the Fox show in every possible way. The Fox show, as far as I'm concerned, was a mess. The devotion to following the comics just made it impossible to get into the show; there was always a myriad of random characters popping up and every time I'd tune in it'd be part 4 of a 6 part storyline or something. The characters were all bland, uninteresting, and not worth caring about in the least. That's not to mention the animation. Overall, the Fox show just wasn't good at all, if you ask me.

Evo, while definitely an inconsistent show, was far more focused and grounded in reality, while still being able to pull off excellent action scenes. It had a great sense of continuity, and the characters, while some were unnecessary and not worth any concern (Spyke being a primary example). Then of course there's the superior animation, music, etc. etc. Evolution is just so much the superior show in almost every way.

[BigEclipse]

Originally Posted by Mr. Mxyzptlk

Evo's not perfect, but I find it blows away the Fox show in every possible way. The Fox show, as far as I'm concerned, was a mess. The devotion to following the comics just made it impossible to get into the show; there was always a myriad of random characters popping up and every time I'd tune in it'd be part 4 of a 6 part storyline or something. The characters were all bland, uninteresting, and not worth caring about in the least. That's not to mention the animation. Overall, the Fox show just wasn't good at all, if you ask me.

Evo, while definitely an inconsistent show, was far more focused and grounded in reality, while still being able to pull off excellent action scenes. It had a great sense of continuity, and the characters, while some were unnecessary and not worth any concern (Spyke being a primary example). Then of course there's the superior animation, music, etc. etc. Evolution is just so much the superior show in almost every way.

Agreed. Evo was the closest any Marvel animated series ever got to producing a show close to the DCAU. Boyd Kirkland could have been the Bruce Timm of Marvel.

[Wonderwall]

Originally Posted by BigEclipse

Agreed. Evo was the closest any Marvel animated series ever got to producing a show close to the DCAU. Boyd Kirkland could have been the Bruce Timm of Marvel.

Isn't Boyd doing the next X Men cartoon as well? Maybe he still could be.

[Caswin]

Originally Posted by Mr. Mxyzptlk

and every time I'd tune in it'd be part 4 of a 6 part storyline or something.

Ever watch one of those things from the beginning, though?

[Mr. Mxyzptlk]

I can't say I have, mainly because I wasn't a loyal viewer in the first place so I'd have to have watched every airing to catch a full arc in order. Despite the quality of the story arcs themselves, I'd still count it against a series that it can't strike a decent balance between half-hour shows and multi-parters. I mean, looking over the episode guide, the series had 12 2-parters, 2 4-parters, and a 5-parter. That's roughly half the show and I'd say it's a bit of overboard. The whole directly-from-comics-to-screen without any sense of unique adaptation made the series pretty much unwatchable to me.

[Memphis Bleek]

Originally Posted by Mr. Mxyzptlk

Evo's not perfect, but I find it blows away the Fox show in every possible way. The Fox show, as far as I'm concerned, was a mess. The devotion to following the comics just made it impossible to get into the show; there was always a myriad of random characters popping up and every time I'd tune in it'd be part 4 of a 6 part storyline or something. The characters were all bland, uninteresting, and not worth caring about in the least. That's not to mention the animation. Overall, the Fox show just wasn't good at all, if you ask me.

I was able to follow the the plot of X-Men: TAS, and I didn't start reading the comics until '95. Despite its flaws, I prefer it over evolution. My biggest problem was the Kids WB animation style. If all the bumpers and intros were stripped away, all the shows would appear to be one series on a continuous loop.

[Kagetsu]

Originally Posted by Silverstar

but I didn't agree with much of the casting. Why Spyke? If they just wanted to have an African-American X-teen, why didn't they just make Storm a teenager for the show?

They need Spyke and Storm as they were. They had to choose a few to be older and wiser and Storm was really too powerful to have her mutation evolve throughout the series and she also would have been difficult to write as a hothead that would eventually turn her back on Xavier

And I would've rather seen a teenage Beast instead of Nightcrawler, whom I've never been a big fan of, especially on that series; Kurt was too goofy and annoying for my tastes. Plus that Goth version of Rogue got on my ever-loving nerves. Without the Ms. Marvel powers, Rogue just isn't cool, IMHO.

She killed the Marvel girl didn't she? Not really something that can transfer to animated shows.

Rogue's goth look and her line, "My power is your power and I can take more than one", put her at the top of my favs. Night crawler was also a fav, though the holowatch seemed a bit too far forward tech for the shows time line. I don't think Beast would have balanced Scott's stiffness. Which brings up the idea, 'was Beast as laid back in the originals'? That really conflicted with his mutation, but balanced against Wolverine's training ideal.

Originally Posted by Mr. Mxyzptlk

the characters, while some were unnecessary and not worth any concern (Spyke being a primary example).

Spyke was there to fill the "skate boarder" and be the anti-authority one that chose not be part of the group. He wasn't a favorite, but except for BoomBoom, he was the only one that fit that story arc. I really would have preferred Tabitha, did actually, as her story mirrored Devon's except that she was always moving away from evil, just couldn't quite be good.

[Silverstar]

Originally Posted by Kagetsu

They need Spyke and Storm as they were. They had to choose a few to be older and wiser and Storm was really too powerful to have her mutation evolve throughout the series and she also would have been difficult to write as a hothead that would eventually turn her back on Xavier.

Respectfully, I must disagree. They had Xavier for a wise, older mentor; they never needed more than Charles in the original comics, so why should this series have been any different? I think it would've been possible to portray Storm as a teenager, developing powers and all; the only issue there would have been that it would've gone against her back story of being raised as a goddess in Africa, but since they already screwed with Ororo's origins by giving her a sister and a nephew when she's supposed to be an orphan, I don't see how they could've done any more damage. And who says they had to portray her as a hothead? Storm's always been about control. Just because Ororo would be filling the 'black kid' role that Spyke had doesn't mean the she would just be Ororo in Evan's shoes. Portraying Storm as an impetuous skateboard kid would have been totally out-of-character for Ororo. I didn't mean that at all.

Originally Posted by Kagetsu

She killed the Marvel girl didn't she? Not really something that can transfer to animated shows.

Rogue's goth look and her line, "My power is your power and I can take more than one", put her at the top of my favs. Night crawler was also a fav, though the holowatch seemed a bit too far forward tech for the shows time line. I don't think Beast would have balanced Scott's stiffness. Which brings up the idea, 'was Beast as laid back in the originals'? That really conflicted with his mutation, but balanced against Wolverine's training ideal.

Ms. Marvel, not Marvel Girl. Marvel Girl was Jean's original code name. And Rogue didn't kill her; she absorbed her powers and memories 'permanently' while Rogue was a member of the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants, putting Carol Danvers (Ms. Marvel) in a coma. And I know many people are going to disagree with me on this, but I've never been impressed with Rogue's mutant power. The power stealing is all right, but it's only effective if a) her victim has powers and b) she's able to get close enough to touch them. In order for Rogue to be effective, she needs some other overt power besides just "I touch you and knock you out and take your powers if you happen to have them." Case in point: look how lame Rogue was in the live-action movies. IMO, the Ms. Marvel plot would have been a great way to bring Rogue into the show; she starts out as Mystique's minion, she absorbs Ms. Marvel's abilities and runs away, memory lost and running amok; X-Men find her and try to restore her memory and fix the damage done to her. That to me would have been infinitely more entertaining than 'anti-social Goth girl who sneers at Jean and is secretly crushing on Scott.' Though I admit that I have something of a bias against Goth characters in general; I feel they've been done way too much of kids' shows, and with a few notable exceptions, there are only a few interesting things you can do with them.

As for the Beast/Nightcrawler debate, I guess I'm just a product of my time and age; I've always been a Beast fan and I never liked Nightcrawler that much. Probably because Beast came first, I always viewed Nightcrawler as a Beast wannabe. As for his 'not being able to balance Scott's stiffness', they seemed to do an OK job of that on the Fox series. Beast has always had a sense of humor and fun to counterbalance the ultra-seriousness of Cyclops. I don't know, I just never fully clicked with the Evo version of Beast. He wasn't as intellectual as the Hank in the comics, and something about his Evo design was just...off to me. Plus, his Evo origin was lame, IMO. Also, I'm not sure what you mean about the holowatch being "too far forward tech for the shows' time line"; the series was set in the present, or at least 20 minutes in the future, like the X comics. XME wasn't a prequel to X-Men; it was more of an alternate universe. The shows' tech level was fine.

Originally Posted by Kagetsu

Spyke was there to fill the "skate boarder" and be the anti-authority one that chose not be part of the group. He wasn't a favorite, but except for BoomBoom, he was the only one that fit that story arc. I really would have preferred Tabitha, did actually, as her story mirrored Devon's except that she was always moving away from evil, just couldn't quite be good.

Actually, the role of the maverick was originally going to go to Iceman, but they opted to make it Spyke, an OC who was basically a revamped version of an old Morlock from one single comic story who died in that same issue, for racial balance. All race issues aside, I would have preferred if they had chosen Bobby Drake. I didn't have anything totally against Evan (though he wasn't a favorite of mine), but my main problem with him wasn't that he was an OC, it's that he had one of the lamest mutant powers on record. Shooting bony spikes from his body? Who though that was a good idea?

[BCVM22]

Originally Posted by Silverstar

but they opted to make it Spyke, an OC who was basically a revamped version of an old Morlock from one single comic story who died in that same issue, for racial balance. All race issues aside, I would have preferred if they had chosen Bobby Drake. I didn't have anything totally against Evan (though he wasn't a favorite of mine), but my main problem with him wasn't that he was an OC, it's that he had one of the lamest mutant powers on record. Shooting bony spikes from his body? Who though that was a good idea?

More accurately, Spyke was essentially a male version of another Morlock character called Marrow, who had largely the same set of powers but was female. The bone spikes and plates on his face after his exposure to the chemical in the sports drink were a harkening back to some of Marrow's earlier appearances.

[Spider-Man]

I think it is pretty easy to distinguish between the two and right away when both shows start you know what they are about. X-Men: TAS has The X-Men facing off against Sentinels and a couple of their teammates getting captured or killed. As for X-Men: Evolution it starts off at a High School Football game/Pep Rally. You know exactly what both of these series are about thanks to the first episode though X-Men: Evoluton does evolve as the series progresses.

[Aizen]

I gotta say that i think the evolution was pretty good but it was not as good as X men the animated series.

[BigEclipse]

I tend to lean more towards Evo because the series did get better as time went by to the point it could actually stand toe-to-toe with the DCAU shows at the time. My problem with X:TAS is that after season three, it was pretty much crap. Personally, I like the multi-episode format and marked out when there was an actual 5 part episode in season three. (I used to love those old G.I. Joe and Disney Afternoon 5 parters when I was a kid and it gave the series a nostalgic feel.) The characters in X:TAS never changed, and neither did the roster. I was so angry that they would introduce characters like Archangel, Bishop and Psylocke, but never add them to the team. Not only did the team in Evo expand over the years, but the New Mutants were also brought in.

[Silverstar]

The New Mutants didn't add anything significant to the show, though. They were only tossed in there to be seen in the backgrounds, so it wouldn't look like there were only six kids enrolled at the Institute. With the possible exceptions of Amara (Magma), Tabitha (Boom-Boom) and Bobby (Iceman), they were basically just fodder characters, like all of the mutant kids at the Xavier school in the live-action movies. I personally don't consider the addition of the New Mutants to be an innovation since they were really only there to fill up the numbers.

And the Evo team roster didn't really expand either. They added a new core character every couple of episodes during the first season, but after that, it was basically just Cyclops, Jean, Rogue, Shadowcat, Nightcrawler and Spyke throughout the rest of the series, with Xavier, Storm and Wolverine as teachers/mentors and the odd guest star from time to time. OK, they added Beast in season 2, but he never developed into anything major.

[BigEclipse]

I wouldn't go as far as to call the New Mutant "fodder". Many of them brought something to the series be it comic relief, conflict or series progression. Boom Boom, aside, Berzerker had a key role in many episodes and actually introduced the series to Calisto and the Morlocks. Bobby actually ended up joining the core team, and Multiple (Man) was always good for a few laughs.

The point I was trying to make, and I guess not so well, was that Evo used the X-Universe a bit better than X:TAS. And any addition to the team is good. When X:TAS introduced a new "semi" X-Men (Colossus, Bishop, Angel/Archangel, Psylocke, Nightcrawler, Ice Man) it was like the producers were dangling a carrot in front of us.

Don't get me wrong, I loved X:TAS. But as an X-Men fan before the start of the series, I had such high hopes. For the first few seasons, many of my hopes were realized, but after the series just lost direction. I went from never missing an episode and recording the series, to just catching it when I had the chance.

Evo was the exact opposite. I lost interest fast, and stopped watching mid-way through the first season. It wasn't until CN aired the series nightly that I picked it back up that I began to fall in love with it to the point I wouldn't miss an episode until the series finale. I just hope that the new series takes all the good parts from both series to give the X-Men the animated treatment they deserve.