‘X-Men ‘97’ continues to flesh out plot lines from ‘X-Men: The Animated Series’ while providing satisfying, world-building cameos.
Editor’s Note: The following contains spoilers for X-Men ’97 Episode 7.
The Big Picture
-
X-Men ’97’s
Easter eggs showcase a depth rarely seen in Marvel adaptations, rewarding committed fans with recognizable nods and plot development. - Cameos from characters like The Thieves Guild and Quicksilver add emotional weight to the Genoshan storyline, setting the stage for intense future conflicts.
- The series delves into dark themes, introducing menacing characters like Bastion and Nimrod to challenge the X-Men in ways that test their resolve and unity.
We’re entering the latter half of X-Men ’97‘s freshman season, and fans are becoming more and more shocked not only by its mature plot elements, but also the astounding number of Easter eggs featured in each episode. Created by Beau DeMayo, this Disney+ series has showcased a level of depth few Marvel adaptations are able to accomplish, drawing from the immense world of the franchise’s comics to spotlight different parts of this legendary team only the most committed fans would recognize. A continuation of X-Men: The Animated Series, created by Eric Lewald, Sidney Iwanter, and Mark Edens, the show makes a continuous effort to highlight different plot threads from that original series and push them further, seeing these lingering questions finally reach fruition — the good ones, and the utterly devastating ones.
This episode showcased more of the heart-wrenching repercussions from one of this universe’s most horrific attacks, using its many references to stress the impact this event has on our titular team and the surrounding society. It’s a riveting story filled with numerous callbacks, so let’s take a moment to break those down and find out where they may lead as the season gets down to its last three episodes.
X-Men ’97
A band of mutants use their uncanny gifts to protect a world that hates and fears them; they’re challenged like never before, forced to face a dangerous and unexpected new future.
- Cast
- Jennifer Hale , Cal Dodd , Chris Potter , Catherine Disher , Adrian Hough , Ray Chase , Lenore Zann
- Number of Episodes
- 10
- Streaming Service(s)
- Disney+
- Release Date
- March 20, 2024
- Seasons
- 2
‘X-Men ’97’ Episode 7 “Bright Eyes” Contains ‘X-Men: The Animated Series’ Cameos
While there are countless ways X-Men ’97 has paid tribute to the wealth of history that came before it, there’s been one form of callback that has thrilled viewers to no end: cameos. Each episode has showcased mutants from across the franchise’s numerous comic lines, making the series as expansive as the original stories it stems from. This episode was no exception, starting off with the fallen X-Men Gambit’s (A.J. LoCascio) funeral, with his mourning teammates joined by some people from his past — members from his previous affiliation, “The Thieves Guild,” including friends Pierre, Bella Donna, and even his brother Bobby LeBeau, all of whom appeared in the original series.
This isn’t the only deeply saddening mutant cameo, as the team goes to assist with the recovery efforts of a decimated Genosha and fans see survivors like Amelia Voght (Donna Jay Fulks) and Strong Guy (Adrian Hough) mourning those lost, like Callisto and Leech, these morlocks making a cameo in a memorial photo. Finally, Emma Frost (Martha Marion) is the last survivor rescued from the rubble, her latent mutant ability of converting her skin to pure diamond manifesting and the entire scene unfolding in an adaptation of how she was the last living person found in the comic counterpart to this story “E for Extinction.”
Characters Seen in the MCU Make Their Way Into ‘X-Men ’97’
Mutants aren’t the only ones who receive special Easter egg cameos in this episode. Rogue (Lenore Zann) travels the country searching for Henry Peter Gyrich (Todd Haberkorn) and Bolivar Trask (Gavin Hammon), trying to track down those who brought about the Genoshan massacre and eventually coming into conflict with the United States government. Namely, she easily destroys a government site overseen by General Thaddeus “Thunderbolt” Ross (Michael Patrick McGill), a powerful figure in the comics who leads the anti-hero team “The Thunderbolts” that will be making their live-action appearance later this year.
He’s not the cameo fans of the live-action MCU will recognize; the one and only Captain America (Josh Keaton) appears, his and Rogue’s terse interaction reflecting the tenuous relationships the X-Men and the Avengers hold in the comics, as mutantkind often critiques how often this militaristic team chooses public perception over defending them from bigotry. Different iterations of “The Uncanny Avengers” comic-book team (a squad that mixes X-Men and Avengers members) have seen this pair collaborate on multiple occasions, so hopefully, the initial conflict clears the way for an eventual team-up between the two in the series.
Bastion and Nimrod Want To End the X-Men
Rogue’s commitment to uncovering the truth behind the Genoshan massacre — and going to some dark places to do so — is a refreshing storyline in X-Men ’97, the series shirking live-action Marvel’s typical insistence of keeping crime-fighting “above-the-book” and showing the lengths a hero will go to when avenging their people. It’s this fight for vengeance that grants the show some terrifying appearances; as Rogue absorbs Gyrich’s life energy to get his memories of Trask’s location, audiences see a flash of a robotic face: Nimrod, the future sentinel. This nigh-invincible robot has plagued comic pages for decades, traveling back from an alternate future to try and exterminate as many members of the mutant species as he can find. The X-Men squared off against him and survived in the original series, though this reappearance is sure to be much more lethal as he is the harbinger of another appearance, the electronic, mutant-hating Bastion (Theo James).
Bastion’s existence in the series lends to one of the comics’ most frightening storylines, which was also referenced in the shady bunker full of mutant-killing tech Rogue found: OZT, aka “Operation: Zero Tolerance.” Written stories have Bastion being a human-shaped fusion of the sentinel-creating Master Mold and Nimrod, who begins hunting down the X-Men using intimate knowledge of each one’s weaknesses. It’s unclear if this is the same backstory the series will use in referencing this major character, but based on his murderous introduction, it’s clear they’ll be preserving his chilling ability to turn normal humans into “living” sentinels like audiences saw Bolivar Trask become at the end of the episode.
This transformation allowed for another fun cameo as Morph (JP Karliak) turned into the superfast hero Quicksilver to fight the hybrid, though any joy at this familiar face was killed as audiences saw just how easily this terrifying innovation took out these immensely powerful mutants. Bastion’s entire existence in the show is a chilling Easter egg in itself, calling back to one of the team’s most harrowing fights and emphasizing just how deadly humanity’s hatred of mutants truly is.
‘X-Men ‘97’ Proves Animated Revivals Rock When They Grow Up With Their Audience
If you’ve been paying attention, you already know what we’re talking about.
Rogue and Nightcrawler’s Familial Relationship Is Acknowledged
If there’s one thing X-Men ’97 has become known for, it’s the endless stream of jaw-dropping Easter eggs it seamlessly blends into its story of mutants fighting for peace in a world dead set on terrorizing them at every turn. This episode featured many references to different characters and storylines from the comics and original series, each one furthering the devastation of the Genoshan massacre and foreshadowing the horrors its central team still has yet to fight. It’s a distressing future, though there’s one final Easter egg that emphasizes the show’s thematic core.
As Nightcrawler (Adrian Hough) tries to help Rogue recover emotionally from the loss of her two loves, she makes a comment about the pair being adopted siblings, reminding (and potentially introducing) audiences of the fact that these two are brother and sister. The scene shows a deep love between them and a commitment to fight for one another, no matter what horrific evil robots or jealous humans they encounter. X-Men ’97, above all else, is a story of community and relying on one another no matter how petrifying the odds may be — and with this Easter egg, the show makes clear that it’s this group’s love for one another and their people that makes them the ultimate heroes that they are.
X-Men ’97 is available to stream on Disney+ in the U.S.
This article was originally published on collider.com