Mutant X (TV series)

Mutant X
Genre	Science fiction Action adventure
Created by	Avi Arad
Starring	Victoria Pratt Victor Webster Forbes March Lauren Lee Smith Karen Cliche John Shea
Country of origin	Canada United States
Language(s)	English
No. of seasons	3
No. of episodes	66 (List of episodes)
Production
Executive producer(s)	Avi Arad Jay Firestone Adam Haight Peter Mohan
Running time	44 minutes
Production company(s)	Fireworks Entertainment Tribune Entertainment Marvel Studios
Distributor	Marvel Entertainment CanWest Global Communications
Broadcast
Original channel	Syndicated
Original run	October 6, 2001 (2001-10-06) – May 17, 2004 (2004-05-17)

Mutant X is a science fiction television series that debuted on October 6, 2001. The show was created by Marvel Studios, and it centers around Mutant X, a team of "New Mutants" who possess extraordinary powers as a result of genetic engineering. The members of Mutant X were used as test subjects in a series of covert government experiments. The mission of Mutant X is to seek out and protect their fellow New Mutants. The series was filmed in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.

Even though the series had high ratings and was meant to be renewed for a fourth season, it was abruptly canceled in 2004 after the dismantling of Fireworks Entertainment, one of the show's production companies.^[1]

Cast and characters

Mutant X

• Adam Kane (John Shea) is the strategist and moral center of Mutant X. Chief biochemist of the scientific experiments that led to the creation of the New Mutants, Kane created Mutant X to atone for his mistakes. The group seeks to protect New Mutants and help them control their powers. Viewing the New Mutants as his responsibility, Kane is looking for treatments for their various conditions. To this end, Kane has stolen The Creator's database, which can be used to track other New Mutants. In the end of the series it is revealed that Adam is actually a clone of The Creator.

• Shalimar Fox (Victoria Pratt) is a recombination of human and animal DNA – a Feline Feral – giving her great strength, speed, leaping ability, agility, reflexes, glowing cat's eyes, and enhanced senses. Fox often confers with Adam, who had found her starving and frightened in a sleazy motel. After further mutation, she can feel incoming danger to herself like she has eyes at the back of her head. Like all Feline Ferals, Shalimar is extremely territorial and has heightened fear of fire and she is immune to the form of hypnosis.

• Jesse Kilmartin (Forbes March) can alter the density of his body at will. Kilmartin is the only known New Mutant to have surpassed his "expiration date." As a Molecular New Mutant, he can become intangible (though for no more than a minute, or risk not being able to reintegrate), or super-dense, making him nearly impervious to harm (though he can only maintain that form for as long as he can hold his breath). He also can manipulate gravity to some extent, and render other people or objects intangible or super-dense through physical contact by holding his breath for as long as he can.

• Brennan Mulwray (Victor Webster) is an Elemental Electrical with the ability to generate enough electricity from his body to power a small city. He can also shoot powerful electrical bolts from his palms which, if fired downward, are capable of launching him high into the air. His primary weakness is water. Before Adam Kane found Mulwray, he was a thief. Mason Eckhart captured him and used him to hunt down the other New Mutants. However, Mulwray escaped and managed to join Mutant X along with Emma DeLauro.

• Emma deLauro (Lauren Lee Smith) is a Tele-Empath who can communicate her feelings and emotions and receive the feelings and emotions of others. Her abilities allow her to manipulate the emotions of those around her. She has limited precognition, demonstrated in episode 3 of season 2 and she also has the ability to induce hallucinations into the minds of others by drawing their own emotions. During her time in the team, Emma developed her Psionic Blast which she uses an offensive weapon to knock her opponents unconscious, alter and erase memories, and killing them upon impact. She can also shoot strong and powerful Psionic Starbursts and Psionic Shockwaves. Her powers grew as season 2 progressed, allowing her to broadcast emotions at a greater distance, though she could not isolate targets when doing this. Before Adam Kane found her, DeLauro sold clothes at retail and used her control of emotions to become a successful businesswoman. Initially resistant to joining Mutant X, she eventually developed an attachment to Brennan Mulwray. DeLauro was killed in an explosion at Naxcon Corporation Industries (Nicholas Fox's company).

• Lexa Pierce (Karen Cliche) was the first member of the original Mutant X. As a Chromatic Molecular, she can bend light to make herself and anyone she is touching invisible. In addition, she can shoot laser beams from her fingertips to wound or kill her enemies and blinding light flashes with her hands to temporarily blind her foes. Pierce cannot stay invisible for long before reverting back to normal. Even in her invisible state, she is visible to infra-red light or Feral Vision. She is also a skilled martial artist.

Recurring cast

• Tom McCamus as Mason Eckhart (Seasons 1–3)
• Andrew Gillies as Dr. Kenneth Harrison (Seasons 1 and 3)
• Michael Easton as Gabriel Ashlocke (Seasons 1 and 2)
• George Buza as Lexa's Dominion Contact (Season 3)

Episodes

Main article: List of Mutant X episodes

Backstory

Several years ago a company called Genomex carried out a series of illegal and immoral experiments on human subjects, forever altering the DNA of any children they might have, to make them mutations from the norm. Now many of those children have grown up, and it has become increasingly difficult for the rest of the world to ignore the New Mutants in their midst. Genomex, under the direction of Mason Eckhart, one of the original scientists, seeks to exploit its creations. Others seek to protect them. A New Mutant Underground has sprung up, and one of the most prominent cells in that organization is Mutant X, a team of powerful New Mutants led by Adam Kane, head chief biogeneticist of The Genomex scientists who participated in the experiments which have altered the world forever.

New Mutant Classifications

New Mutants are categorized into four different groups, depending on their abilities: Elementals, Ferals, Moleculars, and Psionics.

• Elementals are New Mutants with the ability to channel, project, and control different types of energies through their bodies. Different types of Elementals include:
  • Electricals, who can absorb and channel electricity;
  • Thermals, who can absorb and control fire or cold;
  • Sonics, who can control sound waves;
  • Magnetics, who can control magnetic fields;
  • Aquaticals, who can control water;
  • Aerials, who can control air waves;
  • Chemicals, who can project chemical substances, such as acid or toxin, from their bodies;
  • Botanicals, who can control and manipulate plants;
  • Meteorologicals, who can control the weather;
  • and Geologicals, who can control earth; this subclass is extremely rare.
• Ferals are New Mutants with a combination of animal and human DNA, allowing them to use the abilities of the animal DNA within them. Different types of Ferals include:
  • Feline, who possess cat, tiger, lion, puma, leopard, lynx, cougar, or cheetah DNA;
  • Ursines, who possess bear DNA;
  • Canines, who possess dog, wolf, coyote, jackal, or fox DNA;
  • Reptuses, who possess lizard, snake, alligator, crocodile, or turtle DNA;
  • Porcines, who possess pig, boar, or hog DNA;
  • Bovines, who possess cattle, buffalo, bison, or yak DNA;
  • Cervines, who possess deer DNA;
  • Amphibians, who possess frog, toad, salamander, or newt DNA;
  • Piscis, who possess fish DNA;
  • Insectums, who possess insect or arachnid DNA; this subclass is extremely rare;
  • and Aves, who possess bird DNA.
• Moleculars are New Mutants who manipulate their body structure and molecular density in various ways. Some Moleculars possess more than one ability. Moleculars' abilities include:
  • Intangibility, the ability to pass through solid objects;
  • Imperviousness, the ability to increase their mass so they are invulnerable to projectile weapons;
  • Invisibility, the ability to project an aura that renders them invisible.
  • Propulsive, the ability to move at high speeds;
  • Gravitative, the ability to manipulate gravity;
  • Chromatic, the ability to change colour, light, and shades like a chameleon;
  • Stasis Suspension, the ability to slow down time;
  • Sturdiness, the ability to increase one's strength;
  • Replication, the ability to duplicate solid objects;
  • Elasticity, the ability to change their shape or size;
  • Multiplication, the ability to transform into any human forms and creatures; this subclass is extremely rare.
  • Teleportation, the ability to teleport anywhere they desire;
  • and Regeneration, the ability to heal and repair tissues and limbs.
• Psionics are New Mutants who have heightened mental abilities. Different types of Psionics include:
  • Telepaths, who can read and alter other people's thoughts;
  • Telekinetics, who can move solid objects with their minds;
  • Tele-Empaths, who can feel and, to various degrees, manipulate the emotions of others;
  • Tele-Cybers, who can mentally connect with machines and control them;
  • Precognitives, who are able to receive visions;
  • Illusionists, who can create and project illusions to other people;
  • Astrals, who can project their consciousness elsewhere;
  • Remote Viewers, who an know what's going in a certain area;
  • Postcognitives, who are able receive visions from the past;
  • Intells, who have advanced intelligent quotients;
  • Synapses, who can amplify people's brainwaves so that they're smart;
  • Gatekeepers, who can open up portals;
  • Psychometrics, who can see auras of objects;
  • Absorbers, who can absorb anything into their minds;
  • Omniscients, who can know anything;
  • Intuitives, who know how things work;
  • Soulites, who manipulate souls; this subclass extremely rare.
  • Pain Synthesizers, who can project pain into others;
  • and Multi-Dimensionals, who can create dimensions.

DVD releases

ADV Films released all three seasons on DVD in Region 1 in 2004 and 2005, but they are currently out of print. In late 2008, a complete series collection was scheduled to be released by ADV Films, but it was later cancelled.^[2]

In 2010, Alliance Home Entertainment re-released each season on DVD in Canada.

Season	Episodes	Release date
Season 1	22	August 31, 2010[3]
Season 2	22	September 28, 2010[4]
Season 3	22	October 26, 2010[5]

Comic book tie-in

In May 2002, Marvel Comics released a tie-in comic called Mutant X: Origin which chronicled the early life of Adam Kane. In the story Adam and a friend Paul did research of the DNA of the mustard plan in college which drew the attention of the U.S. government, who offered them the Genomex company to work on a cure to genetic diseases. During this story Eckhart is exposed to radiation which leads to his vulnerability to diseases.

Lawsuits

In 2001, 20th Century Fox sued Marvel, Tribute Entertainment and Fireworks Entertainment for breach of their licensing agreement and false advertisement. Fox stated it had exclusive rights from Marvel to develop the X-Men property, and anything similar was an infringement. Fox claimed that Mutant X was too similar to X-Men, and Mutant X was being advertised as an "X-Men replacement."^[6]

Marvel counter-sued Fox, saying that the two were dissimilar and asking the courts to allow Mutant X production to go forward. Production was allowed, as long as X-Men material was not used in the promotion of Mutant X. Apparently, the title "Mutant X" itself was deemed too close to "X-Men" to be effectively leveraged.

In 2003, Fox and Marvel resolved their differences in a confidential settlement of their suits. Meanwhile, Fox continued to pursue their case against Tribune and Fireworks. Tribune sued Marvel for fraud and breach of contract, claiming Marvel encouraged Tribune to connect Mutant X to the X-Men, misrepresented what they were getting in their license, and caused millions in losses due to the need to alter story lines and characters to ensure the mandated distance between Mutant X and X-Men, as well as fighting Fox's litigation.^[7]

References

1. ^ "Mutant X, Andromeda Cancelled". IGN.com. April 26, 2004. http://movies.ign.com/articles/509/509036p1.html. Retrieved April 7, 2010. 
2. ^ "DVD Release Canceled for Mutant X - The Complete Collection". TVShowsOnDVD.com. September 6, 2008. http://www.tvshowsondvd.com/news/Mutant-X-DVDs-Canceled/10477. Retrieved April 7, 2010. 
3. ^ "Mutant X - Season 1 (Canada)". TVShowsOnDVD.com. June 30, 2010. http://www.tvshowsondvd.com/releases/Mutant-X-Season-1/10175. Retrieved June 30, 2010. 
4. ^ "Mutant X - Season 2 (Canada)". TVShowsOnDVD.com. July 15, 2010. http://www.tvshowsondvd.com/releases/Mutant-X-Season-2/10238. Retrieved July 15 30, 2010. 
5. ^ "Mutant X - Season 3 (Canada)". TVShowsOnDVD.com. August 19, 2010. http://www.tvshowsondvd.com/releases/Mutant-X-Season-3/10364. Retrieved August 19, 2010. 
6. ^ "277 F3d 253 Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation v. Marvel Enterprises Inc Tribune Entertainment Company Fireworks Communications Inc Fireworks Television Inc". Open Jurist. October 10, 2001. http://openjurist.org/277/f3d/253/twentieth-v-marvel. Retrieved February 21, 2010. 
7. ^ "Mutant X Suit Settled". ICv2.com. March 4, 2003. http://www.icv2.com/articles/news/2435.html. Retrieved April 7, 2010. 

External links

• Mutant X at the Internet Movie Database
• Mutant X at TV.com