There’s a reason X-Men has resonated around the world for decades.

I spoke with Eric and Julia Lewald, the creative forces behind the original X-Men: The Animated Series and part of the team that helped bring that legacy into X-Men ’97, about what made these characters work from the very beginning.

At its core, it’s always been a human story told through mutants: a found family who feels different, feels threatened and is sometimes told that who they are is wrong — but still chooses to help.

Eric and Julia also gave credit where it all began, with Stan Lee and Jack Kirby creating a world that gave them an incredible foundation to build from.

And seeing fans geek out over Eric and Julia all day at Multicon was a pretty great reminder of just how much the stories they helped tell still mean to people 30+ years later.

-CJ