X-MEN Episode Twenty-Four - February 5, 1994

Mojovision
Written by Brooks Wachtel

Summary:  Looking for new television stars, Mojo sets his sights on the X-Men.  He teleports the team to his dimension and forces them to compete in his hi-tech gladiator games.  Mojo’s former star, Longshot, turns against Mojo and frees the X-Men.  The X-Men destroy Mojo's studio and return to Earth.  Mojo changes his focus and spies on a jungle setting, the Savage Land.  There, Xavier and Magneto witness Sauron kidnapping Shanna the She-Devil.

Continuity Notes:  

• This episode marks the animated debuts of Mojo, Spiral, Major Domo, Longshot, Sauron, and Shanna the She-Devil.  One of Longshot’s make-up artists also resembles Dazzler, although she is later introduced as a separate character with no connection to Mojo, and a different hair color.
• Cameos that appear during the Mojoworld scenes include aliens that somewhat resemble the Brood, the Punisher, Psylocke, and the Super-Adaptoid.

Saban Quality:  Rogue is not with the X-Men when they’re kidnapped by Spiral in the episode’s opening, yet she suddenly appears when they arrive in Mojoworld.

Review:  Mojo stories have spotty track record in the comics, and it’s arguable that they only truly work when they’re used to parody the comic book industry.  Introducing Mojo into the cartoon removes virtually any chance that the character is going to be used to mock Marvel’s relentless commercialization of the X-Men franchise; in fact, the only parody here is a tame knock off of Miami Vice, years after the show had been cancelled anyway.  If Mojo isn’t going to be used for satire, his only real purpose is to set up various fight scenes.  And fight scenes are not this show’s forte.  If you’re a fan of the comics, spotting the various Easter Eggs can be fun, but those dull, clunky action sequences just drag on and on.  And it’s one thing to simply read Mojo’s dialogue in the comics; having to hear an actor actually give voice to this intentionally annoying character just grates.  I don’t know how exactly Mojo should sound in a cartoon, but I would rather he not sound like a weak Gilbert Gottfried impression.


Credit to http://marvel.toonzone.net/xmen/ for the screencaps.