Pryde Of The X-Men - The Lost X-Men Cartoon

The original X-men cartoon that you could buy as a one-off feature in the late eighties. I got it special at my comic book store as part of a promotion for the regular customers who had our own 'hold files'

This was back in those early days when some comics could ONLY be bought at the comic book store. It also became a retailer that also sold action figures, t-shirts, posters and higher end graphic novel or trade paperbacks. When you had a personal connection with the owner, you had a connection to comics or toys that you were searching for. Before the Internet, that was my main source of information about the collectible I so coveted.

There is a great store in Calgary in Kensington that I can shop in for hours. I got my 12 inch Aquaman from the Justice League (the one with the hook hand) for ten bucks once. The box was just a little bashed us and the kid there fixed it for me with crazy glue before I left the store.

They also displayed fantastic resin models that people had made and painted to be sold in the store by consignment. I looked at that Invisible Man many times. I regret not picking him up when I had the chance.

 

The title is a pun on the name of Kitty Pryde, the youngest X-Man. The series for which this episode was intended to launch never materialized; Marvel Productions would have to go back to the drawing board for 1992’s X-Men. Funding for this pilot actually came from the budget for RoboCop: The Animated Series. Instead of making a 13th episode of RoboCop, Marvel Productions decided to use their funding to have Toei Animation produce the animation for this pilot. The pilot itself is most specifically influenced by issues #129-139 of Uncanny X-Men.

 

For the first time I saw my favorites, Wolverine, Nightcrawler and Colossus with new fan favorite Kitty Pryde. Some of the voices were offputting but the mutants using their powers was spot on and fun to see in action.

 

 

Shortly after this pilot was delivered, Marvel started having financial issues (New World Pictures, who purchased the Marvel Entertainment Group or MEG from Cadence Industries in 1986, sold MEG in January 1989 to the Andrews Group) and stopped work on just about everything but Muppet Babies. This pilot effectively marked the end of the Marvel animated universe created by DePatie-Freleng Enterprises/Marvel Productions, which began with Fantastic Four (1978) and continued with Spider-Woman (1979), Spider-Man (1981), Spider-Man and His Amazing Friends (1981) and The Incredible Hulk (1982). The X-Men themselves, had previously guest starred in several episodes of Spider-Man and His Amazing Friends, although that particular series isn't necessarily in the same continuity as "Pryde of the X-Men".

 

I also have the graphic novel that used stills from the cartoon to produce a comic book story taken directly from the animation cells. It was oversized like a thin coffee table book. And at least with the book you don't have to hear Wolverine's atrocious Australian accent...though ironically an Australian actor made the live action Wolvering and iconic character.