October 31, 1992. It’s not a hyperbole to say that was the day my life changed. X-Men: The Animated Series debuted on Fox Kids, and the minute I tuned in, it began a lifetime of obsession and passion with the Marvel Universe and comic book superheroes that has persisted into my adult years.

To this day, Cyclops, Storm, Gambit, Rogue, Wolverine, and the whole team are inherently a part of who I am. So to not only see the story continue with X-Men ’97, but also to speak with one of the masterminds behind the series, Head Director and Supervising Producer, Jake Castorena, is simply the true fulfillment of a dream over 30 years in the making!

It’s very natural to be skeptical when one hears the news that something special from your childhood is being “rebooted.” Cynical times where quick cash grabs are being opted by all major studios have conditioned us to assume the worst. But that’s absolutely not the case for X-Men ’97!

Having seen the first three episodes recently, I can honestly say that I have never in recent years had the opportunity to see a direct continuation of something so meaningful to me done in such a reverent, loving, and gorgeous manner. X-Men ’97 is more than just a successor to X-Men: The Animated Series — it IS X-Men: The Animated Series. Faithful. Action packed. And completely awe inspiring. And that is thanks to the hard work of Castorena and the hard working animators at Marvel Animation.

We recently had the opportunity to speak with Castorena about the astonishing work he and his uncanny crew have done on the show, and — well — I couldn’t resist unleashing a bit of fandom in the process. See what I mean here:

I’m incredibly glad that we are guaranteed to be getting more. Because if wealth was measured in smiles, the stupidly gleeful look on my face watching the opening credits for each episode of X-Men ’97 would literally make me the richest person on the face of Planet Earth (or Asteroid M). Thank you Jake and Marvel Animation for this amazing gift!

The first two episodes of X-Men ’97 hit Disney+ on Wednesday, March 20, with a new episode dropping every Wednesday after that.