The Avengers, as beloved and popular with childhood audiences as ever, were given a substantial revamp for this particular series; changes which didn't necessarily please the adult members of the audience. Back in the late 1990s when this series was produced, not many American animation houses had yet adopted the myriad Japanese cartoon tropes that we are so used to seeing today. Nowadays, anime-style transformation/power-up/costume-change sequences are second nature, as are superheroes with 'super deformed' musculature and gaudy uniforms, but at the time, adult viewers found these new additions quite jarring.
However, having seen my young nephews clearly enjoying this cartoon, I have 'taken a leaf from their book' and reflected upon the show, focusing on the more positive and child-friendly aspects of the series.
POSSIBLE SPOILERS AHEAD.
Although set in New York, this cartoon is loosely based on the Marvel comic entitled 'Avengers West Coast'. The team roster includes founding Avengers Ant-Man and the Wasp alongside long-term members Scarlet Witch and the Vision, newer members Tigra and Falcon, plus best friends Wonder Man and Hawkeye, the latter seen in the recent film 'Avengers Assemble'. Fellow film characters and founding members Captain America and Iron Man make guest-appearances in one episode each, as does Sub-Mariner himself, Prince Namor.
Although the costume changes weren't popular with everyone, we really enjoyed team-leader Ant-Man's new suit which featured a miniature rocket-ship worn as a backpack; when Ant-Man shrunk, he could go aboard the backpack and fly it on missions! It too could shrink and be flown around the body, much like the vessel in the film 'Fantastic Voyage', seen during my own childhood.
The music on the series is quite stirring, I feel. The credits say it was composed by 'Suki' Levy, but considering its powerful feel, I think that maybe it was successful musician Shuki Levy who wrote it, 'Suki' being a spelling mistake I suppose.
The stories, as you'd expect, are very child-friendly, but the relationships between the characters are subtle enough for adults to enjoy. In this series, Ant-Man and the Wasp's marriage is portrayed as a very strong one with lots of teamwork, there's a bit of a love triangle between Wonder Man, Scarlet Witch, and the Vision, and when Captain America shows up, there's a bit of friction between he and the team's leader, Ant-Man.
All in all, I feel it's a shame that the loose ends concerning Wonder Man's ailments, and the evil alien gang, the Zodiac, were never resolved before the series was cancelled. I know it's a long-shot, but perhaps these loose threads will resurface in the new cartoon, 'The Avengers; Earth's Mightiest Heroes', or maybe in one of the forthcoming Avengers films.