Disney+'s X-Men '97 animated show nabs prelude comic before series launch

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If you can't wait until X-Men '97 to hit Disney+ to get your classic X-Men fix, here's some good news. Starting next month, Marvel will be publishing an "official prelude comic series" to the highly anticipated animated show that's debuting on Disney+ this year.

This X-Men '97 prelude will take the form of a four-issue miniseries published under the title of X-Men '97 (like the show), and will be written by Steve Foxe with art from Salva Espín and a main cover from Todd Nauck. For now, you can check out the full wraparound variant cover (with its vintage vibes) from Russell Dauterman below.

About the cover (which was adapted from a piece of Dauterman's X-Men fan art), Dauterman shared in a statement, "X-Men: The Animated Series was everything to me as a kid, and sparked my love of the X-Men and comics—I wouldn’t be a comic book artist without it! This piece is based on an X-Men: The Animated Series fan art I did a decade ago — the fan art that got me hired at Marvel! Now, it’s completely redone as an official cover to celebrate the new show. Absolutely thrilled to do this piece, and can’t wait for ’97!"

The first issue of this X-Men prelude comic will hit comic shops on March 27, presumably before the series has its debut on the Disney streamer, athough there has been no official announcement on release date for the show yet.

X-Men: The Animated Series manga is returning in 2024 remastered and with a deluxe edition!