X-Men ’97 has what Master of the Universe is missing
The Verge argues that X-Men ’97 succeeds because Marvel kept the franchise alive, while Masters of the Universe lacks that same cultural momentum.
Intelligence analysis by GPT-5.4 Mini
The article compares two nostalgia-driven revivals and says the key difference is not just quality or fan service, but whether a franchise has stayed present in pop culture. X-Men ’97 benefits from years of ongoing X-Men material; Masters of the Universe has faded, and that makes its new movie harder to sell.
It is like two old toys. One stayed on the shelf where everyone could still see it, so people remembered it. The other was packed away for years, so even a shiny new version has a harder time getting noticed.
Analysis
The core comparison
The Verge frames X-Men ’97 and Masters of the Universe as two nostalgia projects built from different levels of cultural stamina. Both are aimed at people who loved these characters as kids, and both are loaded with callbacks for longtime fans. But the article says that nostalgia alone is not enough.
Why X-Men still works
According to the piece, Marvel has kept the X-Men visible through comics, TV, and other projects even when the films were uneven. That constant presence kept the property alive in the public imagination. As a result, X-Men ’97 can feel fresh even while drawing from older storylines and the 1990s animated series it continues.
The second season is described as splitting the team across time periods, with some mutants in ancient Egypt and others in the far future, while they all try to stop Apocalypse. The article notes that the show mixes elements from multiple comics runs, including The Adventures of Cyclops and Phoenix and Rise of Apocalypse, plus some more recent X-Men lore.
Why Masters of the Universe struggles
By contrast, the article argues that He-Man has not stayed central in popular culture. There have been newer animated series, but the franchise has largely faded from the mainstream. That makes the current live-action movie harder to support with broad audience interest.
The Verge points to the movie’s box office as evidence of that weakness: it has earned $54.4 million against a $200 million production budget. The article suggests Mattel may have learned the wrong lesson from Barbie, assuming that success with one toy-based story meant audiences wanted more toy movies in general. Instead, the article says, audiences need a reason to care about the world itself.
The broader lesson
The article’s larger point is that revivals succeed when studios preserve a franchise’s relevance over time, not when they simply dust off a name and hope nostalgia does the rest.
Key points
- The article compares X-Men ’97 and Masters of the Universe as nostalgia-driven reboots with very different levels of audience awareness.
- Marvel has kept the X-Men franchise alive through ongoing comics and TV, which helps the new show feel current.
- X-Men ’97 season 2 mixes story material from older comics and newer lore to expand the world.
- Masters of the Universe has weaker pop-culture momentum, and the new film is underperforming financially.
- The Verge says studios often learn the wrong lesson from a hit like Barbie and overgeneralize what audiences want.
If Marvel keeps X-Men visible across shows, comics, and films, the franchise can keep attracting both longtime fans and new viewers. The article suggests that this steady presence makes it easier for new projects like X-Men ’97 to feel exciting instead of stale.
The downside is that a famous name may still fail if the franchise has not stayed meaningful to a broad audience. The article says Masters of the Universe is already showing that problem at the box office, and Mattel has not yet shown signs of correcting course.
