X-Men ’97 Season 2: Episodes 8 & 9: Wait, That’s It?

X-Men 97 Season 2 did not know what to do with Apocalypse. The first four episodes revolved around the X-Men encountering Apocalypse at two distinct time periods: the height of his reign in 3960 AD, and his rise to power in 3000 BC. In the former, Apocalypse won: the world is in ruins, but he remains the sole sovereign over the Earth. In the latter, Apocalypse is merely En Sabah Nur: the first mutant conquers ancient Egypt, executing a time-displaced Magneto. The show spends the first four episodes building up Apocalypse as this looming, great threat that the X-Men are no match for.

Apocalypse’s master plan was to possess Gambit. He gets defeated in one episode.

All of the hype, all of the build-up, and it concludes in under two episodes. Episodes 8 and 9 heavily focus on the romance between Rogue and Gambit, with Rogue having nightmares about Gambit’s return in episode 8. Rogue’s relentless pursuit of Gambit ultimately proves fruitful, as the X-Men are able to subdue the possessed Cajun and temporarily block Apocalypse from his psyche. Episode 9 involves X-Force and X-Factor teaming up to kill Gambit while the X-Men defend him in their new X-Corp tower. Rogue gives herself to the Eternals to gain the power to defeat Apocalypse and save Gambit, coming at a great sacrifice. However, the episodes feel very underwhelming. Gambit is successfully captured by the X-Men within one episode. He died in the previous season, and the X-Men encounter, defeat, and resurrect their fallen comrade within thirty minutes. Despite being the primary antagonist of the entire season, Apocalypse only appears in his final form within the last half of episode 9, only to be defeated by Rogue within a few minutes. The story arc is so rushed that it leaves no impact. Compared to the three-episode conclusion of the first season, the conclusion of season two feels like a mid-season storyline.

The two episodes do have some genuinely incredible moments, particularly involving Nightcrawler. In episode 8, Nightcrawler, under the control of Gambit, fights off the X-Men in a beautifully animated scene: the blue elf subdues each member of the team with ease in a tense yet stunning battle. But it’s episode 9 where Nightcrawler solidifies himself. In order to save Gambit from Apocalypse’s grasp, Rogue must sacrifice her life. Nightcrawler completes her sacrifice, giving his life to spare hers. What follows is a picture-perfect ending to the show, with flashes of the X-Men living a “happily-ever-after,” narrated by Nightcrawler. Adrian Hough, the voice actor for the character, delivers the performance of a lifetime in this scene. Even though he knows he will die, Nightcrawler sounds happy. Hough’s delivery is that of acceptance and optimism: a love for a life he will not see.

Perhaps in a vacuum, this is a satisfactory ending to X-Men 97. However, media does not exist in a vacuum, and X-Men 97 itself does not position itself that way either. X-Men 97 is a sequel to the original show, X-Men: The Animated Series. In Season 4 of the original show, there was a four-episode storyline called Beyond Good and Evil, running from episodes 8-11. Across these episodes, Apocalypse discovers the Axis of Time, which oversees the flow of all time. Discovering the connection between the mind and time, Apocalypse gathers psychics from across the universe to gain control over the entire flow of time. It’s perhaps the greatest battle this incarnation of the X-Men has fought, as the fate of the entire timeline is at stake.

X-Men 97, being a sequel show with a greater budget and a more mature rating, should be able to either increase the physical stakes or increase the emotional stakes in comparison to Apocalypse’s greatest plan. Unfortunately, the show completely fails at the former and only mildly succeeds at the latter.

Furthermore, many of the show’s emotional plot threads are completely disregarded. Episode 5 of this season culminates with Morph feeling sorry for Wolverine; Logan views himself as an animal, and Morph practically agrees. They don’t interact for the following two episodes. But in the final episode, Morph and Wolverine team up to defeat Psylocke and Cable as if nothing happened. They act like best friends as if Wolverine didn’t betray Morph’s trust only four episodes prior. Colossus returns to the X-Mansion in episode 7, but he neglects to help his comrades in the finale. Episode 4 has Apocalypse kill Magneto right in front of Charles. Charles even spends the first part of episode 6 reliving this traumatic memory. Yet, it’s Rogue, who has no real emotional connection to Apocalypse himself, who defeats Magneto’s murderer? Furthermore, the show never really acknowledges that Rogue chose Magneto over Gambit right before Gambit was killed. Gambit shows no resentment, and Rogue shows no remorse. It’s completely glossed over that Gambit’s last interaction with the love of his life was rejection. So many threads were left unwoven by the finale that it’s inconclusive.