Growing up in the ’90s was truly a blessing for a few reasons: no social media, no smartphones, no streaming, and kick-ass cartoons like X-Men. Don’t get me wrong—I’m not complaining. It’s just that I struggle with the idea that I am getting old, as seen through the lends of pop culture.

I do enjoy seeing the titles of my youth return because I personally feel that pop culture today is so muddy and fleeting that nothing will stick. So, thinking about the glory days of pop culture is a gift for folks like me who struggle to identify with the chalky slop of modern popular culture—Marvel’s Echo, anybody?

When the trailer for X-Men ’97 dropped, I did nothing about it. However, I decided to watch it today, and I’m happy that I did so because it released a lot of faded memories from my childhood. When the original X-Men show came out, I was in the foster care system. I remember playing as Wolverine with whoever I was with. I remembered getting the Gambit action figure (the last gift my mom bought me), and I remember playing the X-Men video game with my brother. I also remember everything being brighter than it is now. This is something that I never appreciated until recently. Anyways, all wonderful memories, thanks to the wonderful comic book adaptation.

I don’t have much to say about the actual continuation of the show. I just wanted to share the wonderful memories it brought me. And I hope the new show resonates with the youth of today, so we can avoid getting more subpar Marvel shows.

Ya’ know what I mean, bub?