All The Mutants Morph Changes Into Throughout X-Men '97
One of the best things about the X-Men is the vast roster of characters that allow a myriad of people to see themselves as a member of the mutant superhero team. But if you were a kid who wanted to be all of the mutants, you may have gravitated towards Morph, the shapeshifter who could temporarily take on the appearance and superpowers of any other mutant out there. During my childhood years, there was many an argument about who would get the honor of pretending to be Morph on the playground.
Even though Morph (originally voiced by Ron Rubin) seemed to meet his maker in the first episode of the original "X-Men: The Animated Series," the character eventually returned from his presumed grave, albeit under the influence of the villain Mr. Sinister. Morph used his shapeshifting abilities to create chaos among the X-Men on many occasions, but thankfully, he was only acting on Mr. Sinister's behalf because of a forced split in his personality. Morph came back to the X-Men and became one of the good guys again, but he still struggled with the trauma of his death, scared of the Sentinels who sent him to his demise. He eventually overcame those fears and helped defeat the Sentinel-creating Master Mold, though he felt he wasn't quite ready for all the heroics.
At the end of the original run of "X-Men," Morph used his powers to help in a pivotal way: impersonating Professor X after he was shot by Henry Gyrich, imploring mutantkind not to seek revenge against humanity because of the act of one man. As "X-Men '97" picks up, he's back to being an integral part of the team (voiced by J.P. Karliak now), complete with plenty of shapeshifting, whether it's in the middle of a big action sequence or just to mess with his mutant buddies. As "X-Men '97" unfurls, we're going to keep track of all the mutants Morph changes into throughout the series. So let's start the checklist!
Episode 1 - To Me, My X-Men
In the first episode, Morph gets quite an entrance. As the X-Men are congregating in the kitchen, Professor X enters to offer a playful bit of advice to Cyclops while taking a bite of a beignet. But this is after we know Professor X is gone, and Cyclops isn't fooled, quickly saying, "Quit being a creep, Morph." Interestingly enough, the voice we hear as Professor X isn't J.P. Karliak. In fact, it's not even Cedric Smith, the original voice of Professor X from "X-Men: The Animated Series." Instead, it's Marvel's go-to voice impersonator Ross Marquand, who lent his voice to Red Skull in "Avengers: Endgame" and Ultron in Marvel's "What If...?" animated series.
In a similarly playful transformation, Morph turns into the pregnant Jean Grey to taunt Wolverine about his ongoing love triangle with the telekinetic mutant and Cyclops. However, this moment is key to Wolverine's perspective in this episode, because it reveals that he's already assumed that Jean and Cyclops are considering leaving the X-Men. Even though Morph is messing around, it actually serves the narrative in this instance.
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Morph's mutant abilities finally get to see some action in the climax of the first episode. When the mutants track down Bolivar Trask and his remaining contingent of Sentinels and a new Master Mold, their X-Jet gets blasted out of the sky. Morph suddenly turns into Angel, aka Warren Worthington III, in order to fly through the sky and snag Wolverine in the air to give him a safe landing — though he gives an annoyed grunt about the need to be rescued. Angel was one of the original members of the X-Men, but he left the team for unknown reasons. Angel once sought to be a non-mutant, but what seemed like a promising cure was a ruse that allowed Mystique to turn him into one of Apocalypse's Four Horsemen. The last time we saw Angel was in "End and Beginning" the fourth season finale which ended the four-part "Beyond Good and Evil" storyline.
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Finally, when Wolverine needs a quick boost to reach the head of the Master Mold, after having Gambit charge his claws with energy, Morph changes into Blob. The massive body of the bulging mutant lets Wolverine jump off his belly for the crushing blow. The last time we saw Blob was in the season 2 episode "A Rogue's Tale."
Episode 2 - Mutant Liberation Begins
The second episode is where Morph really gets to cut loose with a rapid trio of transformations. When the villain X-Cutioner is about to land a critical blow to Cyclops, Morph suddenly rushes in as Lady Deathstrike, her claws drawn for battle. The last time she appeared in the "X-Men" animated series was in the two-part episode "Out of the Past," which dealt with Wolverine's past and took us into the Morlock tunnels.
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When Lady Deathstrike is about to get blasted by X-Cutioner's miniaturized Sentinel blaster, Morph turns into the steel-clad mutant Colossus, who is nearly indestructible and takes the blasts easily. Colossus was once sought by the X-Men after they mistakenly believed he may have destroyed the X-Mansion (it was actually Juggernaut). The last time he worked with the X-Men was in taking on the Russian mutant weapon known as Omega Red.
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Finally, as Cyclops needs to make a getaway to be with Jean Grey as she gives birth to their son, Morph turns into Psylocke. However, rather than using her psychic knives, she comes in swinging with normal swords and acrobatics. Psylocke last appeared in "End and Beginning."
That's all for now, but we'll keep track of all of Morph's transformations as "X-Men '97" continues every week, so stay tuned. In the meantime, check out today's episode of the /Film Daily podcast, where we talk about the first couple episodes of the show and how it compares to its 1990s predecessor:
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