We knew we had arrived when our series got the full-parody treatment in both Mad and Cracked humor magazine late in 1994. When I was growing up in the ’60s, Mad was our favorite monthly bit of irreverence (I think my buddy Free Barbour’s older brother John had a subscription). But the larger point is the same: to be the subject of a parody aimed at a nationwide audience, you had to be known by a nationwide audience. X-MEN:TAS, after two years on the air, was now a vibrant, central part of world popular culture. Our characters mattered enough to enough viewers that Mad and Cracked bet that readers would enjoy seeing them made fun of. (I’ve posted a Cracked image because it was the magazine cover and was in color.) There are many ways to gauge the impact of your work. Having your characters re-imagined as a team of laxative-taking super heroes is high among them.
