Spoilers ahead for X-Men 97 season 2.
X-Men 97 is back, and for the most part, it’s an excellent continuation of the season that preceded it. The animation is still gorgeous, the performances remain solid, and the action sequences are a proper highlight. The classic villain Apocalypse is presented far better in X-Men 97 Season 2 than he was in the original series, finally coming off as a true threat worthy of multiple teams of Mutants. Still, while it’s very easy to sing the praises of the series since it was clearly worth the wait, fans of one character — Emma Frost — are hugely disappointed. If Insomniac Games plans to feature the White Queen, it’s going to have its work cut out for it, as even in the usually comic-accurate X-Men 97 she isn’t being done justice.
Obviously, there’s no telling which mutants Insomniac Games plans to highlight in its leaked X-Men game, outside of Wolverine and Jean Grey since they’ll be featured in the former’s solo game later this year. Still, many comic books fans would likely love to see Emma Frost get the adaptation she deserves. Her small appearances in the FOX-verse were a far cry from what they could have been, with Emma watered down like so many other characters that featured in those films. And though fans knew going in that Emma’s role in the show would be small, X-Men 97 seemingly keeping her as a generic villain remains frustrating. It’s long past time that Emma gets her due outside the comics, as she’s been a hero longer than she’s been a villain at this point, and Insomniac acknowledging as much would be amazing.
Marvel Rivals’ version of Emma has been fairly well received, but even then, some fans dislike her larger character model and base skin, as it differs noticeably from the character’s comic appearance and fashion sense.
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X-Men 97’s Mistakes With Emma Frost Are Impossible to Ignore
To give X-Men 97 the benefit of the doubt, perhaps the writers are trying to establish Emma Frost as an unsavory character prior to a redemption arc down the road where she becomes the leader and headmistress of Xavier’s school that she should be. After all, she was only a minor character in the classic animated series, likely because of the way she wields sensuality as a weapon, as this is a concept that clashes with a cartoon aimed at children. And at least her mature demeanor was captured in the new series, as she came home with two men for the night, shrugged off a fight instead of getting involved, and had plenty of attitude. Still, the key issue with X-Men 97’s portrayal of Emma is that she should already be on the path to heroism by this point, with the show seemingly giving her great plotlines from the X-Men comics to other characters. Naturally, fans on the character’s dedicated subreddit and other social media platforms are perturbed.
Who’s That Character?
Identify the silhouettes before time runs out.
Based on the promotional material for X-Men 97 season 2, fans already know that the heroes will don their leather New X-Men outfits from Grant Morrison’s standout run in the early 2000s. Their work on the series brought about stellar concepts like secondary mutations, the character of Cassandra Nova, and a very memorable arc with rebellious students at the academy. Plus, Emma was involved the entire way through, with new sides of the character shown in each passing issue. This run also introduced the relationship between Emma and Cyclops, which stuck for over a decade and is preferred by some fans over Scott and Jean.
Sure, X-Men 97 is seemingly going all in on Scott Summers and Jean Grey as a power couple, but that doesn’t mean Emma’s entire character needs to remain static. By now, Emma should have been shown using her diamond skin to survive the genocide on Genosha, reacting in horror to all the dead mutants around her. Instead, she’s seemingly shrugged off this moment, continuing to be a selfish character who only cares for herself. Worse, she seemingly helped imprison the Stepford Cuckoos during her deal with X-Factor in episode 2 — something that comic readers simply cannot believe. Yes, her relationship with these girls ended in tragedy in the books, but she genuinely loves them and tries to mentor them, with the failure inspiring her to be a better person. Emma still being selfish after Genosha is, quite frankly, a terrible misreading of her character, robbing fans of one of the best redemption arcs in comics.
X-Men ’97 Season 2 Has Already Cleared Its Biggest Hurdle
X-Men ’97 Season 2 had an impressive debut to follow, and the first three episodes suggest the show has already cleared its biggest obstacle.
It’s Up to Insomniac Games to Fix X-Men 97’s Mistakes and Do Emma Frost Justice
Emma Frost is supposed to be fighting for and alongside other mutants by this point in the X-Men’s lore, yet she’s still acting like her old self in the show. Unless she’s given a major redemption arc soon — the writers will need to share a new reason for Emma abandoning her old ways — it’s safe to say that she’ll be one of the few true flaws of the X-Men 97 series. And with it being unclear when or if the MCU will touch on Emma Frost, as the new X-Men team’s debut is still years away, Insomniac’s X-Men game is the last real chance to see this Mutant done justice in a different form of media.
Specifically, the game’s narrative needs to showcase the side of Emma that non-readers will be unaware of; how much she cares for other members of her race, how much pressure she’s under to present herself as perfect, and her openness when talking to characters she loves, like Scott Summers. Emma hasn’t been a shallow character for well over two decades now, yet adaptations continue to do her a disservice by making her seem that way. Insomniac Games can, and should, correct that trend, giving her standout moments of heroism and showcasing some clear acts of kindness.
