Episode #33 - Mainstream
Original Airdate September 28th, 2002

The X-Men return to Bayville High as the school contemplates whether or not to let them return on a full time basis. Can The X-Men avoid using thier powers for an entire day? Not if Duncan and The Brotherhood have anything to say about it!

Credits
Story By: Greg Johnson
Written By: Michael Merton
Directed By: Frank Paur
Music Composed By: William Anderson
Guest Starring: Vincent Gale as Duncan, Moneca Stori as Amanda and Michael Adamthwaite as Colossus.

Review: After 4 blissful episodes free of Bayville High, The X-Kids return to school. Generally, I hated The X-Men going to school. Now, I�m not one of those X-Men purists, who believe that the kids should�ve been educated in the institute; no I hate the school because most of the time, it was a waste of time, serving only as a place where all the mutants, good and bad, could congregate.

Personally, I think the school was a wasted opportunity. I think the kids constantly keeping secrets of their double lives (as mutants) could�ve been great fun. It�s probably what I like most about Spider-Man, my favourite fictional character. Constantly hiding who he is from those around him, and having to deal with the consequences his double life effects not only him, but those around him. I think this is why I like the MTV animated series more than most, as this was one of the major focal points. There�s a line in the trailer for that show�s DVD that goes as follows;

�Most people spend their entire lives trying to figure out who they are. But for me, it�s about keeping it a secret.�

Had the students of Bayville tried something like this, I think the show could�ve been a hell of a lot more interesting than it actually was. I don�t know if this was a creative decision or the WB wanted kids to relate to the characters, but alas, having the X-Men at school was a major pain to the series and greatly dragged it down for the first two seasons. Now though, this very episode deals with in a different light, as the rest of the students are now fully aware that the students at Xavier Institute are mutants. With their sweet new civilian designs in tow, the X-Men finally face the persecution that I�d personally been waiting for since the opening seconds of Unexpected Changes.

The annoyance of the WB�s romantic rules once again leaves us with an interesting romance that literally fizzled out as Scott and Taryn�s literally ends on her giving him a dirty look. Like that, she is never seen or mentioned again. I understand the point of why they broke up like this, but still can�t help but feel disappointed. Jean�s relationship with Duncan also ended here, but that was given more of a resolution. It also served as big plot of this episode. Whilst the pairing of Duncan and The Brotherhood was more than a little odd, the main point was to show that Principal Kelly was fully against mutants. I thought Kelly was good in the role of Principal; especially considering how wasted Mystique was in the role. Having a human threat in school worked much better than someone who helped like to boss about the then useless Brotherhood.

Speaking of The Brotherhood, I loved them barging into school, now loving the fact that everyone was afraid of them. They�ll never find the acceptance they all want, and to them, being feared is the next best thing. I couldn�t help but chuckle more than once at Lance�s �You looking at me? Did I do something funny?� line. One of the best Brotherhood scenes throughout the series, without a doubt.

I thought Jean�s speech at the end was very well done. With them now being accepted back into school, it gave an optimistic feel following on from a string of very dark episodes. A well done episode, even if the majority of it did take place in school.