X-Men '97 Officially Kills Off An X-Man as the US Declares War on Mutantkind

This article contains spoilers for X-Men ’97 Season 2’s finale. X-Men ’97 Season 2’s finale sets the X-Men on a collision course with Apocalypse after the final defeat of Apocalypse. The latest X-Men adventure uses time travel in the best possible way, bringing past, present, and future into head-on collision. Apocalypse resurrected Gambit as the Horseman of Death, but the so-called “first mutant” then claimed Remy LeBeau as his host. Naturally, this left the X-Men and their allies deeply divided over how best to deal with the threat of Apocalypse.

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Cable represents the future; a world where Apocalypse has conquered much of the planet. Since childhood, he’s been raised to believe it is his destiny to kill En Sabah Nur. In contrast, the X-Men dig deep into a past where they believed Apocalypse could be saved; they head to the Celestial vessel known as Ship, where Apocalypse was transformed by the power of a Celestial named Eson. But as so many different philosophies collide, all over the fate of one man, the repercussions could be massive; as Havok himself warns, X-Factor has effectively declared war on mutantkind.

Why Eson Gives Rogue the Power to Save Gambit

One of a group of Celestials known as Gardeners, Eson is the origin of Apocalypse’s “survival of the fittest” mantra. “All creation must crash against the eternal shore,” he told En Sabah Nur as he empowered him. “In order to thrive and grow.” In other words, Eson believed Apocalypse serves an essential function in that he forces – and accelerates – evolution. Despite that, he’s willing to agree to different terms with Rogue; he will temporarily grant her the power to save Gambit, if she is willing to sacrifice her life for his. She must prove she believes him worthy of such a heavy price.

I have to concede, the philosophy is a little incoherent here. Still, Eson grants Rogue a boon and transforms her, enhancing her powers so she’ll be able to extract Apocalypse’s essence from Gambit. This gives Rogue a new look, one that seems heavily influenced by the Eternals, other super-powered beings created by the Celestials (but largely forgotten in the MCU after Eternals‘ poor box office performance). It also seems to finally give her control over her powers, and she and the restored Gambit share what she believes to be a last kiss.

Why Nightcrawler Sacrifices Himself for Rogue

But the X-Men’s Nightcralwer adds a complication to Eson’s bargain. Aware nobody enters Eson’s realm and returns unchanged, he guesses at the sacrifice Rogue has made. Rather than leave her to it, he steps through the portal and offers himself in Rogue’s place. He do so out of love for the woman he considers his sister, wanting her to live a happy life with the man she loves. As a Catholic, Kurt believes sacrifice has transformational power, and that his death will bring about so much good. When challenged by Eson, he simply explains that this is a matter of faith.

We don’t actually see Nightcrawler die; rather, it’s possible he has been transformed into something else, something much more cosmic. That said, whether he’s alive or not, X-Men ’97 Season 2’s finale seems absolutely confident of one thing; he is gone, never to be seen again. Eson has agreed to bargain a life for a life, Nightcrawler for Gambit, and this iconic X-Man has signed up to that deal. X-Men comics often treat death as a revolving door, but X-Men ’97 insists that death can only be undone through death.

X-Factor Declared War on the Mutant Race

The X-Men’s Eson plan was a desperate gamble, of course, and not everybody believed it was possible to save Gambit from Apocalypse. X-Force and X-Factor strike a Faustian pact of their own to work together, attacking X-Corp as they attempt to get to Gambit. Val Cooper insists the two teams are only attacking Charles Xavier, but Havok understands the world’s mutants will see attacking the X-Men as a declaration of war on mutantkind. It’s worth noting X-Factor wouldn’t have a chance without X-Force as backup.

More concerning, though, is the fact Val Cooper and X-Factor are allied with a next generation of Sentinels. These have human pilots, to be sure, but it’s shocking to see the United States kick off another Sentinel program given the genocide on Genosha. It’s a sign of rising anti-mutant sentiment across the United States, even under the pro-mutant President Kelly. What’s more, it quickly becomes clear things are about to take a turn for the worse.

X-Men ’97 Season 2’s Post-Credits Give Nightcrawler a Darker Legacy

Back in episode 7, X-Men ’97 Season revealed the show was set against the backdrop of a presidential election. One of the candidates was Graydon Creed, the son of Sabretooth and Mystique who founded the hate group known as the Friends of Humanity; Exodus and the Acolytes briefly put Creed on trial for crimes against mutantkind, but Nightcrawler argued for Creed to be spared. It all ended with Creed gunning Exodus down, and Nightcrawler stranding him in the Arctic. Now, Season 2’s post-credits scene reveals Graydon Creed has become President of the United States.

This makes sense of a first look at X-Men ’97 Season 3, where footage was shown at SDCC. This revealed a new generation of Sentinels patrolling the streets, now painted in the red, white, and blue. Members of Mystique’s Brotherhood of Mutants were show fighting back against them, but Mystique was suspiciously absent. The post-credits scene reveals why, as Mystique assassinates Val Cooper to take her place and infiltrate the U.S. government. In the comics, she ultimately assassinated her son, Graydon, so we’re clearly headed in a very dark direction indeed.

Nightcrawler may have sacrificed his life, but X-Men ’97 Season 2’s post-credits suggest we’ll be exploring the consequences of his choices. On the one hand, Gambit and Rogue are both alive; on the other, Graydon Creed is about to make life a misery for mutants. Season 3 will go full circle, exploring Nightcrawler’s legacy, as humanity and mutantkind are drawn into full-on conflict in the United States.