This week Marvel released an animated ad for Krakoa in a style reminiscent of Into the Spider-Verse: “Visit Krakoa | A Paradise for Mutants.” The cartoon’s aesthetic is fresh and the overall video is incredibly entertaining. Marvel has an opportunity now to apply this animated style to the Krakoan age of the X-Men and draw in a whole new audience.
Developed by Noah Sterling and Lucy Animation Studio (under the direction of Silvia Prietov), the animated clip runs for a brief one minute, 47 seconds but covers a vast sample of all that is Krakoa. Lucy Animation Studio’s first venture with Marvel was a brief animation featuring Man-Thing ala 1950s B flicks. Marvel has created something which encapsulates a sprawling new world for its mutant characters. Seeing it in a unique animated style bolsters hope that Marvel considers Krakoa the long-term future locale of its mutant population. The style is reflective of the comic-book inspired Into the Spider-Verse. The bright colors and the use of Ben-Day dots recalls the Spider-Verse aesthetic. The fluidity of the character’s movements against the shifting backgrounds also feels very much akin to the movement of Miles Morales on the silver screen.
The Krakoan age started when writer Jonathan Hickman was handed the reins of the entire slate of X-Men titles. Returning to one of their earliest adventures, the mutant living island of Krakoa has accepted all mutants and under the rule of the Quiet Council, the mutants have founded their own nation. In two concurrent series, House of X and Powers of X, Hickman rebooted the mutant world and revamped all the various relationships and connections even bringing arch-villains like Apocalypse into the fray as an ally.
The video starts with the classic X-Men summons ("Calling all mutants") intended for all mutants and frames its message to those on the outside of society, persecuted, and rejected. The voiceover approaches Krakoa as a vacation destination but the imagery quickly dissolves that—Krakoa is only for mutants. "Old enemies have come together for the good of all mutants, like Professor Charles Xavier and Magneto." Scanning across the various locales of Krakoa, we see the Green Lagoon’s social space, the Quarry and its constant combat, and finally the highly guarded Arbor Magna, where the resurrection protocols take place. Key mutants are highlighted including Kate Pryde and her Marauders. Forebodingly, the video emphasizes Mr. Sinister and his constant scheming: “Mr. Sinister is even a member and he hasn’t manipulated any of our DNA, that we know of.” Although everyone is welcome, not everybody has changed—the old villains are still up to their old tricks.
The video purports to be educational and yet maintains a humorous approach throughout: even Blob’s homesteading efforts are mucked up through his mutant characteristics. We’re reminded that being a mutant means that the basic aspects of being a human are still out of reach here. It’s funny and yet ominous—Krakoa is not an absolute paradise for everyone. However, of all the places on Earth (and now, Mars), it’s the place to be for all mutants. The final tagline is: "Krakoa. The Best Place To be a Mutant."
X-Men ‘98 is returning as a Disney+ series. However, there’s room for more than one X-Men animated film—as Star Wars has shown us, there’s always an audience for stories done well within an ever-expanding universe. The Krakoan age of the mutants deserves its animated debut. The quickest step was to make a series of shorts like this based on the Krakoan storylines. On Disney+, these would be great primers to draw in new readers to the X-Men stories. The mythos of X-Men has radically changed from what many understand it to be if their only exposure was the 90’s cartoon or the recent slate of films.
The comments on the video highlight the fan desire for more of this content. Fans want more Krakoa and they want Krakoa in more than just the medium of comics.
The promotional caption exclaims: “What is Krakoa? Learn more about the best place to be a mutant before you start reading the #XMen comics of the Krakoan age.” Marvel could expand on this animated trailer with a series of shorts or even longer episodes and bring in a whole new audience. Krakoa isn’t widely known outside of the current comics-reading audience. Marvel has a great opportunity to capture new readers with more of this amazing cartoon.