There is one superhero Marvel Animation was right to recast for X-Men ’97. For the most part, the update of the classic animated series from the 1990s has tried to bring back the original series’ cast whenever possible. However, this trend was broken regarding one popular member of the X-Men from the comics, whose role in the cartoon was much more limited.
The character in question is Elizabeth “Betsy” Braddock, aka Psylocke. Betsy appeared in four episodes of X-Men: The Animated Series. However, she only had a speaking role in two of those episodes. It was here that she was voiced by Tasha Simms. However, Psylocke is now being voiced by Torchwood star Naoko Mori in X-Men ’97.
It is unknown if Tasha Simms was approached about portraying Psylocke again in X-Men ’97. However, it seems unlikely, despite Marvel Studios‘ efforts to bring back as many of the original voice actors as possible. This is because Simms mostly works in film now, and has not done any voice work since 1999’s Spider-Man Unlimited. Regardless, there are several reasons why Naoko Mori is a better choice for the role today. Chief among these are the complicated heritage of Psylocke in the comics, which the original animated series did not touch upon.
How the X-Men ’97 recast supports the series’ story
Betsy Braddock was originally introduced in 1976 as Captain Britain’s younger twin sister. She spent nearly a decade as a supporting character in his comics and briefly served as Captain Britain herself. She later found greater fame when her psychic Mutant powers awakened and she joined the X-Men as Psylocke in 1986. However, she would not take on her most famous form until 1989.
While suffering from amnesia, Psylocke was abducted by a high-ranking member of The Hand clan of ninjas. He hoped to use Braddock’s psychic powers to heal his lover, a psychic assassin named Kwannon. Instead, the two women swapped bodies, though this was corrected in 2019. Since then, Kwannon has used the Psylocke name and Braddock has once again become Captain Britain.
The original X-Men animated series did not touch upon this, beyond Psylocke making reference to a brother who fought to protect Mutants. More, the voice that Tasha Simms gave Psylocke did not have a noticeable accent. Her performance was not bad, but the voice was that of a generic action heroine with no definitive nationality.
By contrast, the Psylocke of X-Men ’97 voiced by Naoko Mori has a distinctly British clip to her voice. Some may argue this doesn’t make sense, given Braddock is using Kwannon’s vocal cords. However, accents remaining the same between swapped bodies is an animation convention.
Additionally, it makes sense that Braddock (who was already suffering from identity issues) would try to adopt her original voice as much as possible. In any case, it makes the new Psylocke voice more distinctive and memorable. And having her voiced by an actress who has both Japanese and British ancestry takes the curse off of it.
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