April 28, 2009

My X-Menapalooza continues on as I venture father into the world of the X-Men with the second installment of the original animated TV series that releases at the same time as the first volume. If you read my previous review then you’ll know that I am a huge fan of the series. Having spent countless hours in front of the TV on a Saturday morning has ingrained those memories in my mind for the rest of my life. So enjoy whilst I review the Marvel Comic Book Collection: X-Men, Volume 2 (2-Disc) DVD set.

This second volume starts off where the previous one left oft and gives us fans 16 more episodes to wrap our overjoyed minds around. Starting this DVD set is the episode “Red Dawn” where three corrupt generals release Omega Red so that they can use him to take back the countries that have fallen out of Mother Russia’s hands. Only Omega Red has other plans.

Among my favorite episodes is entitled “A Rogue’s Tale” where Mystique, Rogue’s foster mother, forces her to relive her old unwanted past and drives her away from the X-Men, Where she is sent into the arms of someone for her past. Can Rogue break free of that which tortures her? This particular episode features the Rogue and Ms. Marvel events from the comics.

But the true gem of Volume 2 is “The Phoenix Saga” which spans across 5 episodes. This is one of the most well known sagas in the X-Men/ Marvel universe. It is even worked it two of the 3 live action X-Men films. For those of you who don’t know about it, the X-Men go to outer space to stop Erik the Red, Events ensue in this five part and Jean Grey is possessed by the Phoenix an ultra power being. It is then up to The X-Men and the help of Phoenix to stop the M'Kraan Crystal from falling in the hands of D’Ken.

Filmmaking: 8
The Marvel Comic Book Collection: X-Men, Volume 2 (2-Disc) DVD set brings back all the memories and the cool factor that I remember. I was a big fan of the show when I was younger and nothing has changed that. The carefully picked material that was chosen from the actual comic books is what made this show so good.

Visuals: 9
The X-Men TV series was done in a time when Widescreen just wasn’t an option so you’ll be watching all the action in 1.33:1 full screen ratio. The show has aged well and has transferred well to DVD. I remember when you could get these episodes on VHS so having them in DVD form is so much cooler. The colors are just as I remember them and show no loss of quality at all.

Sound: 8
The sounds of the episodes are quite good and are presented in Dolby Digital Surround Sound with French and Spanish Language tracks available. The voice acting for the X-Men is still amazing after all these years. They picked an excellent cast and it shows.

Value: 7
The Marvel Comic Book Collection: X-Men, Volume 2 (2-Disc) set features 16 episode of the one and only X-men TV series from the 1990s. There are no special features to be had in this DVD set so the value section does take a hit. But on the plus side this first volume retails for around $16-18 dollars at most stores so you can have this set for pretty much a dollar an episode give or take. Not to shabby and it’s a must buy for any fan of the X-Men.

Overall: 8.5
Overall, The Marvel Comic Book Collection: X-Men, Volume 2 (2-Disc) set is entertaining and fun to watch. I’ve been waiting for them to start releasing this series for a long time and at long last I’m getting my wish. In small Volume sized packages mind you but still its awesome to see them again. The action is good, the voice actors are the best and I wouldn’t have the X-Men any other way. I highly recommend picking up this DVD as soon as possible. You won’t regret it.