Russell Dauterman's X-Men '97 comic variant cover showcases the new team

X-Men '97 is one of Marvel Studios' most anticipated upcoming animated projects by fans, and to celebrate that occasion, Marvel Comics is officially releasing a prelude comic to the series. Marvel Comics brought in artist Russel Dauterman to do a page for one of the variant covers, which featured the first glimpse at the new squad that would be in the series.

According to the variant cover, it looks like the X-Men '97 mutant team will consist of Wolverine, Cyclops, Jean Grey, Jubilee, Bishop, Beast, Rogue, Storm, and Gambit. It also is the first that those versions of the character have reunited since the series ended.

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X-Men '97 prelude comic shows what the characters have been up to since the show

Steve Foxe has written the X-Men '97 prelude comic with art done by Salva Espin. The story itself has been crafted with the help of those who have worked on the upcoming show. The plot aims to tell what Wolverine, Jean Grey, Rogue, Cyclops, and more have been up to since the original series ended back in the day.

According to Marvel, the comic will set up interesting character drama, dynamics, and "shocking developments" that will serve as an introduction to the upcoming animated show. Alongside this, Russell Dauterman also revealed how the variant comic cover came about and the story itself is quite sweet.

Dauterman revealed that he had made fan art similar to the comic cover he did years ago and that it would later catch Marvel's attention. So, he went ahead and decided to update the art and turn it into a wraparound comic cover.

Here's what he said according to Marvel:

"X-Men: The Animated Series was everything to me as a kid, and sparked my love of the X-Men and comics—I wouldn’t be a comic book artist without it! This piece is based on an X-Men: The Animated Series fan art I did a decade ago—the fan art that got me hired at Marvel! Now, it’s completely redone as an official cover to celebrate the new show. Absolutely thrilled to do this piece, and can’t wait for ’97!"

With that statement, it surely looks like Dauterman is just as hyped as the fans of the show and can't wait for it to come out.

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When does X-Men '97 release?

Marvel Studios' X-Men '97 is set to be a continuation of the X-Men: The Animated Series that originally aired from 1992 to 1997. The series will see all the original voice actors from that series return and will present a new kind of X-Men story that will honor the original show. However, there currently is no release date for it.

Earlier, the series was originally set to premiere back in 2023, but then reports later emerged that the series will be coming out in 2024. Marvel Studios has also planned for X-Men '97 to have multiple seasons which means that they aim to tell a much grander story as well. Whenever the show does indeed come out, it will stream exclusively on Disney+.