Wolverine and the X-Men
Vol. 5: Revelations
Vol. 6: Final Crisis Trilogy
Featuring the voices of Steve Blum, Jennifer Hale, Tom Kane
Release Date: May 4/August 17, 2010

Wolverine and the X-Men: Revelations and The Final Crisis Trilogy wraps up the popular Nickelodeon series from Craig Kyle and Greg Johnson (creators of X-Men: Evolution). After a surprise attack on the Xavier School, The X-Men team is left in pieces. Professor X, the team’s leader and mentor is in a coma and Jean Grey is presumed dead, sending Cyclops into a tailspin. With the team unofficially disbanded, it is up to Wolverine to pick up the pieces and bring the team back together.

These two DVDs tie up all the plot threads left dangling from the series, answering all the important burning questions. Who really attacked the X-Men? Will Professor X finally escape the future and return to his body in the past? Is Jean Grey alive? Does Wolverine have a chance to save the Earth from an apocalyptic future, where all man and mutant kind are exterminated? All these questions are addressed and more, plus there are more mutant appearances than you can shake a stick at. Everyone from Magneto, Gambit, and Scarlet Witch to the Hellfire Club are all present, along Cyclops, Storm, and everyone’s favorite Canuck, Wolverine.

While I was not a fan of the series initially, I have since grown quite fond of the cartoon. Yes, the cartoon doesn’t really follow any storyline present in the movie or comic versions of the super team, but I think that is why the show is as entertaining as it is. Without the shackles of over 50 years of continuity holding it back, both Kyle and Johnson were able to create stories that felt very familiar to the hardcore X-fan but were also different and simplistic enough that the casual fan could also enjoy. I might not have been a supporter of all their story points, from the reasoning behind why Wolverine, a perpetual loner, would even consider leading a team, to the cliffhanger ending of the series, the Wolverine and the X-Men never failed to entertain me.

The only downside to these last few episodes is the hurried feel to it. Because Marvel and fine folks at Nick could not reach a deal for a second season, the series had to end prematurely. This means storylines that had a set start and end date had to be wrapped up right away. Most of the endings do make sense but because of the quick pace it needed to maintain, it all seemed a little forced. I wished that the show had just a couple of more episodes to give the series a proper, drawn out ending. Regardless, the creators do have one hell of a final twist at the very end of the show that gives viewers an idea of just where the series could have gone if given another season.

Wolverine and the X-Men was not the best incarnation of the mutants, but you would be hard pressed to find another series that delivered stories that appealed to X-Men fans but young and old. X does truly mark the spot.