Unresolved Issues: X-Men’s Comeback Fails to...

31 years ago, X-Men: The Animated Series introduced a character that has reappeared in X-Men ’97, and with her comes the same distracting problem.

Warning! This episode contains spoilers for X-Men ’97 episode 5.

X-Men ’97 is a continuation of X-Men: The Animated Series that has been 31 years in the making – but Marvel still hasn’t fixed one very distracting problem. The show is the first X-Men product from Marvel Studios since the studio acquired Fox (and its rights to Marvel’s mutants by extension). So far, the studio has proved that the beloved property is in very safe hands, as praise continues to pour in for its efforts. X-Men ’97 episode 5, in particular, has had a significant impact on viewers.

X-Men ’97 Episode 5, entitled “Remember It,” focused on the newly recognized mutant nation of Genosha, gathering numerous recognizable and beloved characters in one place to disastrous results. Among them were several iconic X-Men characters making their X-Men ’97 debut, including Emma Frost and Sebastian Shaw. Non-mutant characters also made an appearance, including Val Cooper (who has appeared two more times in the series) and Moira MacTaggert. Though her role was particularly small in the episode, MacTaggert’s presence was particularly distracting before the chaos for one reason.

X-Men 97 Hasn’t Fixed Moira MacTaggert’s Distracting Accent

Moira MacTaggert is one of Marvel’s few Scottish characters, which can be a hard-to-miss fact about her character throughout her animated tenure. In the comics, her longstanding involvement with the X-Men began with her romance with Charles Xavier during their time at Oxford University, though they are simply old friends in the animated series. This is what leads Moira to voice her support for Magneto’s appointment as the leader of Genosha, stating that he must take up the mantle in Charles’ absence.

Though her lines are few, the Scottish accent is one of the scene’s most distracting moments. Fittingly, this is a continuation of MacTaggert’s appearances in X-Men: The Animated Series, where she featured far more heavily. The accent may serve its purpose to a non-Scot, but her pronunciation of words like “Charles” (which she says unsurprisingly frequently) makes it quite obvious that her voice actor does not hail from the country.

Moira MacTaggert was portrayed by Rose Byrne in her live-action cinematic appearances, an Australian accent who forewent a Scottish accent in favor of an American one.

Who Voices Moira MacTaggert In X-Men ’97

Martha Marion voices Moira MacTaggert in X-Men ’97 as well as Emma Frost, with whom MacTaggert shares her scene. Marion is one of the new cast members to join X-Men ’97, but she has lent her voice to many other projects over the years, including video games like Star Wars: Battlefront and God of War. Her talent is evident in the lines delivered by Emma Frost, whose haughtiness pits her briefly against MacTaggert as she questions why a human sits on the Genoshan council – the fate of both in the wake of the cataclysmic conclusion, however, remains to be seen.

Before Marion joined the X-Men ’97 cast, Moira MacTaggert was voiced by Lally Cadeau. Cadeau is a Canadian actor who featured as MacTaggert in 19 episodes of X-Men: The Animated Series, mostly in Season 1. Unfortunately, Cadeau established the trend continued by Marion that has seen MacTaggert’s accent be a particular sticking point for the character. It already appears that MacTaggert may have a much smaller role in X-Men ’97 than she did in X-Men: The Animated Series, however.