X-Men 97 continues to prove why these characters and storylines are some of the greatest in the entire comic book genre. The series welcomed back many original cast members but also introduced some new ones. JP Karliak, one of those amazing people, is the voice of Morph, a mutant not only with a unique skill set but one that also continues the X-Men's legacy of showing positive representation of all people to the world.
INTERVIEW: JP Karliak On X-Men 97
Returning to the team after a healing journey, following his kidnapping by Mr. Sinister, Morph is reconnecting with his fellow mutants, trading jokes, sharing beers, and of course kicking Sentinel butt. JP Karliak has taken over Morph for the new series and is doing an incredible job. Side note: can we all agree the laugh is a million times better now? Not only is JP killing it but Morph is also finally getting the respect they deserve. As a longtime fan, revisiting the series I could just tell Morph had more potential, both in combat and for comedic purposes. Thankfully, the team behind X-Men 97 also felt that way. JP Karliak sat down to share about the show, his castmates, and how he relates to Morph. Plus he was also rocked by Episode 5 so we had to put that out there because now we all need therapy!
Relating to Morph
JP: I did identify with the character as soon as I read the script, I mean, it just popped off the page as somebody that had a great sense of humor, that had a very traumatic backstory, but pushed through it with humor. It was just somebody that really resonated with me. On a very concrete level, Morph is non binary, I identify as genderqueer. But also because Morph is somebody that has experienced so much trauma and [pushes] through it with humor. That is something that I definitely identify with and I think a lot of queer people do. I think that's very much a part of our stories. I think being in a crew of outsiders feeling a little bit like the outsider […] there is sometimes that feeling I think resonates with people, queer or otherwise, of feeling like somebody who's the odd person out [on] the team.
And I think all of that lends itself to those really human connections…even though Morph is the gray skinned non binary mutant that he is, there's so much to connect with, there's so much that resonates with anybody. For me, it is of paramount importance that a queer kid or a queer person would watch that show and feel uplifted to see a positive representation of a queer superhero. In a way, it's also important to me that a cis or, hetero human watches this and feels some human connection to this character, even though they have an identity that they don't personally identify with, or they don't understand, or it's new to them, or might feel alien in a way. It's nice to have people have that sort of nice bond with a character that identifies that way.
Connecting with the original cast
JP: We met at the premiere, I had never met any of them before, most of us hadn't. Lenore, she is a blast. I love Lenore Zann, love, love love. She is just, I mean, talk about a woman who has lived so many lives. She's been Rogue, she's also been a Canadian MP, has lived this whole political life, and is now coming back to her life in X-Men. She's fascinating. And just so much fun to be around, what a great sense of humor, so that's been a blast. What little I've chatted with Alison Sealy-Smith, what a love, such an Earth Mother, I adore her. Cal has been lovely for the couple minutes that I saw him at the premiere, but I'm excited to get to know them better. I think the newer cast, we have such a close bond, we've had a text chain going since the announcements. Even this morning, we were all just like, Oh my God, have you watched yet?
Wishlist for Morph's Future in X-Men 97
JP: I love Morph's dynamic with Wolverine. I actually would love to see their friendship explored more. We've all seen [that] people have said “oh the shower scene!” I'm like, hold your roll, guys. I think there's some beauty in celebrating a queer straight friendship. It doesn't have to be the queer person pining after the straight person. I don't know if you need that. So I'd love to see that more. But I would love to see Morph maybe have a romantic interest of his own. Who? I don't know, but that would be great. I'd love to see him just beat the crap out of Mr. Sinister, just a full on melee. I don't know if that's gonna happen, but it'd be fun. Is any of that going to happen? I don't know. But I hope so.
Playing Morph in the live action X-Men films
JP: I've done a smidgen of live action in my day. Honestly, the reason that I haven't pursued live action isn't because I didn't enjoy it. It was actually kind of fun. It more had to do with that I found myself getting just so narrowly typecast in a way that voiceover never did. And yes, I'm playing a non binary character now that feels very near and dear to my heart and I love that but I'm also able to play a whole bunch of other things. But, getting to play a role that didn't feel like a caricature but felt like something just so close to my heart? Oh my god yeah! In a minute!
Watch The JP Karliak X-Men 97 Interview
About X-Men 97
27 years after X-Men: The Animated Series ended, X-Men 97 picks up right where it left off. Picking up some months after Professor X’s death, Cyclops (Ray Chase) has become the default leader in Charles' absence. But the world still doesn't trust the mutants, so the team must face organizations bent on destroying them as well as dealing with the unexpected return of Magneto (Matthew Waterson).
X-Men 97 delivers in every sense of the word. As a fan of X-Men: The Animated Series, it was everything I could have hoped for. From the animation style and music, to the storylines, voice performances, and excitement, this is nostalgia done right. Following the format of the original, each episode is self-contained yet also a cliffhanger for the story at large. By staying true to those methods, it captures that feeling that made us tune in every Saturday morning, action figures in hand, anxious to know what happens next. My only complaint is that they are releasing these at 3am ET time instead of on Saturday morning. To me, my X-Men, this is the story we have been waiting on for 27 years.
X-Men 97 episodes 1-5 are now streaming on Disney+.
*this interview has been edited for clarity and length.
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