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The Marvel Cinematic Universe capitalises on nostalgia. That’s no surprise to anybody. Thankfully, I’ve been spared this for most of my life, because I don’t really care about Marvel. I didn’t read the comics as a kid, and its movies are broadly mediocre enough that they only interest me because other people seem to care about them. I’m just not the target audience, and never have been.
But god damn it, I’ll be there for Avengers: Doomsday. I am seated. Amidst all the announcements about the massive cast, it’s been revealed that the cast of the X-Men movies are returning. No, not James McAvoy and Michael Fassbender, they’ve got the OGs. We’re talking about the original trilogy.
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Okay, I do care about Marvel a little bit, but only because of one specific thing. My parents, woefully, aren’t really big on films, so as a kid, we only had a few DVDs at home. Three of those were the original X-Men movies, which meant I watched them a lot. I was so into these movies (I resonated a lot with Rogue specifically, read into that how you will) that my dad later got me one of those official X-Men encyclopedias breaking down all the heroes and their histories, and I even collected old issues of the comics for a little bit.
All that is to say that I have nostalgia for one thing and one thing only, and that’s the original X-Men movies. Were they perfect? No, especially X-Men: The Last Stand. But the performances were wonderful, there was plenty of mutant power action, and it introduced audiences everywhere – myself included – to the incredibly political story of the X-Men.
Bringing Back The Classics
But Marvel isn’t just bringing back the X-Men in general, it’s bringing back the originals. That means Ian McKellen as Magneto, Patrick Stewart as Professor X, Alan Cumming as Nightcrawler, Rebecca Romijn as Mystique, Kelsey Grammar as Beast, and James Marsden as Cyclops.
The recent X-Men films have recast all these roles in an effort to portray younger versions of the characters – many of these films have also been box office bombs. Bringing back the original X-Men has the double whammy of being narratively consistent, considering the age said characters would be in the timeline, and also bringing back a cast that we haven’t seen in a long time and that, historically, performed the best financially. It’s a win-win for the studio and for fans like me.
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I haven’t cared about the MCU even a little bit up till now, but god damn it, they’ve got me. While some may tell you that they have no interest in seeing old men reprising characters from twenty years ago, I will be the first to stand up and say that yes, I want to see the old men.
McKellen and Stewart, in particular, are two of the most compelling actors of our times. While I’m absolutely sure their talent is going to be wasted on a Marvel movie, and their presences will almost definitely be diluted by the sheer number of other actors in the film… I’m probably still gonna be in the cinemas, pointing at the screen (and very possibly crying) the moment I see Magneto. Marvel, you sickos, you gambled on nostalgia and won again.
“}]] Alas, TheGamer’s biggest Marvel hater will be buying a ticket to Avengers: Doomsday. Read More