X-Men ’97: The Marvel Comics Fans Should Read To Prepare for Season 2

X-Men ’97 concluded its first season on Thursday with the release of its season finale, “Tolerance is Extinction – Part 3” (some SPOILERS for the episode will follow). X-Men ’97 Season 1 concluded on a surprising note, filled with Marvel Universe cameos and setting the stage for . What’s an X-Men fan to do while they wait for X-Men ’97 to return to Disney+ with new episodes? Read some X-Men comics, of course. The X-Men ’97 finale offered clear indications of where the show’s second season is headed, and the entire season provided some hints about where things may be going.

X-Men ’97 creator Beau DeMayo has been active on social media, assigning “homework” in the form of comics to read (and other things) to fans to prepare for coming story beats. Until he gets around to assigning some summer reading to bridge the gap between X-Men ’97 seasons, we’ve assembled a list of 10 comics that should cover all the bases of what might serve as inspiration for X-Men ’97. Readers can find our list of recommendations included below and then get reading.

While a few of these comics may be difficult to find in print, almost all are available digitally online, including on the Marvel Unlimited comics subscription service. X-Men ’97 Season 1 is streaming now on Disney+. 

The Rise of Apocalypse

X-Men ’97 Season 1’s final scenes suggest that X-Men ’97 Season 2 will focus heavily on the villain Apocalypse, past, present, and future. The past portion brings the X-Men back to Apocalypse’s origin as En Sabah Nur in ancient Egypt.

Marvel Comics previously told Apocalypse’s origin story in the four-issue miniseries The Rise of Apocalypse by Terry Kavanagh and Adam Pollina. The series tells of how En Sabah Nur’s tribe cast him out for his visible mutation, and how that child grew to embrace the “survival of the fittest” mentality that turned him into Apocalypse.

As a bonus, if you find the 2016 reprint of the series, it also includes other stories from Apocalypse’s early days. Those include his first encounter with Mister Sinister and a fight with Dracula.

The Blood of Apocalypse

X-Men ’97 Season 1’s finale heavily hints that Apocalypse is planning to resurrect Gambit, most likely as his new Horseman of Death. This story has occurred previously in the X-Men comics storyline “The Blood of Apocalypse” in 2006.

“The Blood of Apocalypse,” by Peter Milligan and Salvador Larroca, sees Apocalypse returning during the “Decimation,” the aftermath of M-Day, when the Scarlet Witch cast a spell that depowered all but approximately 200 of Earth’s mutants. Presenting himself as a messiah figure, Apocalypse recruits new horsemen from among the ranks of the depowered.

Gambit, emotionally vulnerable from both losing his powers and growing apart from Rogue, is among those who accept Apocalypse’s offer. Apocalypse transforms Gambit into a new Death, with black skin and white hair.

In the interest of fair warning, “The Blood of Apocalypse’ may be relevant to X-Men ’97 Season 2, but it’s not a well-regarded story among X-Men fans. The creatives working in the X-office seemed to feel the same way since, when Gambit next showed up a few issues later, he was back to his normal appearance (thanks to Mister Sinister) and the Death angle had been dropped.

The Adventures of Cyclops and Phoenix

While most of the X-Men were whisked away to ancient Egypt, Jean Grey and Cyclops went to the future, where they met Mother Askani of Clan Askani and their son, Nathan. This is another storyline plucked from the Marvel Comics canon.

The story of Jean and Cyclops going to the future to help raise Cable is told in the four-issue miniseries The Adventures of Cyclops and Phoenix by Scott Lobdell and Gene Ha, published by Marvel Comics in 1994. The series takes place shortly after Jean and Cyclops’ wedding.

In The Adventures of Cyclops and Phoenix, Mother Askani takes the honeymooners into the future. Possessing the bodies of two of the Clan Askani faithful, and taking on the names Slym and Redd, Cyclops and Jean spend 12 years in the future – a dystopian wasteland ruled by Apocalypse – raising Nathan without him ever knowing who they are. The series also finally explains the relationship between Cable and the identical mutant Stryfe, clarifying which is Nathan and which is a clone.

Marvel’s most recent reprint of this series is titled X-Men: Cyclops & Phoenix – Past & Future. The volume also collects The Further Adventures of Cyclops and Phoenix.

The Twelve

“The Twelve” is another polarizing X-Men storyline, but it’s a major one for Apocalypse, which earns it a place on this list. The story sees Apocalypse capturing “The Twelve,” a mysterious group of mutants whose hidden identities were a dangling plotline for many years of X-Men comics. Once assembled, Apocalypse would use their combined powers to ascend to godhood.

While the X-Men ’97 finale does not specifically hint at “The Twelve,” this is one major Apocalypse storyline that could play out in X-Men ’97. This is also the story that resolves Wolverine’s loss of his adamantium, one more reason this could be inspiring X-Men ’97 Season 2. Marvel collects the story in volumes titled X-Men vs. Apocalypse.

Age of Apocalypse

“Age of Apocalypse” is another storyline not specifically referenced by the X-Men ’97 Season 1 finale. However, it is enough of a definitive X-Men and Apocalypse storyline to deserve a place on this list. Also, it involves time travel, giving it some connection to the events of “Tolerance is Extinction – Part 3.”

The “Legion Quest” storyline sets up the “Age of Apocalypse” saga. In that story, Professor X’s powerful but mentally unstable son Legion travels back in time to murder Magneto before he can begin causing problems for Xavier. However, Professor X steps in to save his friend and dies instead.

This rewrites the Marvel timeline to one where Professor X isn’t around to form the X-Men. Instead, Magento creates the team, but not in time to prevent Apocalypse’s rise to power. As the story begins, Apocalypse rules North America and has enacted his “survival of the fittest” mentality as policy. Mutants rule and oppress humanity, while Magneto and his X-Men operate as a resistance opposed to Apocalypse’s tyranny.

“Age of Apocalypse” is easily one of the most memorable X-Men stories ever, totally reimagining the X-Men’s universe and transforming its familiar characters. It’s a story worth checking out regardless of whether you’re prepping for X-Men ’97 Season 2.

The Muir Island Saga

X-Men ’97 viewers know that the X-Men survived the disappearance of Asteroid M and are scattered throughout time. However, those living in that universe believe the X-Men are dead. After months of searching, Forge is ready to form a new X-Men team.

A similar situation arose late in the legendary X-Men run of writer Chris Claremont. The “Fall of the Mutants” event led the world to believe that the X-Men had perished. Then, in “The Muir Island Saga,” new threats arose from villains like the Reavers and the Shadow King. An ad hoc team of replacement X-Men formed, and Forge was among them.

The details aren’t exactly as in X-Men ’97, but they’re close enough. This is especially true since the story involves some of the characters who would later form the new X-Factor (Forge’s old team in the X-Men ’97 universe, who appeared as an Easter egg earlier in the show), which is a series making a comeback in Marvel upcoming “X-Men: From the Ashes” relaunch.

The Muir Island Saga isn’t currently in print. For those who seek it outside of Marvel Unlimited, the 2018 volume X-Men Legion: Shadow King Rising is the most comprehensive collection, while the more recent X-Men Epic Collection: Mutant Genesis includes the core of that event, plus the story of how Jean and Cyclops sent Nathan to the future (which, in the comics, involves Apocalypse), and the first issues of the X-Men relaunch that followed, which introduced the X-Men’s iconic Blue and Gold Teams.

Onslaught

X-Men ’97 Season 1 largely adapted the 1993 X-Men crossover event “Fatal Attractions,” which celebrated the team’s 30th anniversary. The event would also set the stage for another major X-Men crossover event, called “Onslaught,” and it’s possible that .

In the Marvel Comics universe, Professor X’s mindwipe leaves Magneto comatose. However, something was left behind in Professor X’s mind.

Over years of comics, this fragment of Magneto’s psyche attached to Professor X’s grows and eventually emerges, calling itself Onsaught. The villain is a powerful psychic entity born of Professor X and Magneto’s combined personas and powers.

Onslaught proves such a threat that other heroes from around the Marvel Universe, including the Avengers and the Fantastic Four, get drawn into the conflict. X-Men ’97 Season 2 may have more involvement from the wider Marvel Universe. Adapting “Onslaught” is one way to justify that convergence of heroes.

Avengers vs. X-Men

Between the existence of Operation Zero Tolerance, Captain America’s unhelpfulness in dealing with Rogue earlier in the season, and the Avengers’ failure to stop the United States government from enacting the Magneto Protocols in the X-Men ’97 Season 1 finale, there’s good reason for the X-Men to be less than happy with establishment institutions and Earth’s Mightiest Heroes who serve at their pleasure. At least one of the show’s stars thinks the tension could come to a head in .

That would mean something akin to 2012’s Avengers vs. X-Men event, which isn’t the first time that the X-Men and the Avengers have gone head-to-head, but it is the biggest and best known. Written and drawn by a murderous row of Marvel’s top-tier creators of the era, the plot of Avengers vs. X-Men sees the two teams coming to blows over how to handle the return of the Phoenix. It’s not subtle, but if you’re looking for something bombastic in the style of a Hollywood blockbuster, this is that comic.

Second Coming

X-Men villains tend not to stay gone for long. Bastion may be defeated in X-Men ’97 for now, but who’s to say he won’t be back in the future?

That situation arose in the 2010 X-Men crossover event “Second Coming,” the conclusion to a trilogy of events that also included “Messiah Complex” and “Messiah War.” The story involves Cable returning to the present day with his adopted daughter, Hope Summers, the so-called mutant messiah.

Bastion and a council of the X-Men’s deadliest human villains become aware of their return and immediately pursue Cable and the child. It’s up to the X-Men to come to Cable’s aid.

“Second Coming” capped off a great era for X-Men comics, and the team doesn’t get through it without some significant sacrifice. If you didn’t think Bastion was a top-tier X-Men foe before, “Second Coming” will change your mind.

Great Expectations

X-Men ’97 may have wrapped its first season, but the X-Men ’97 comic book is only halfway done. The comic, from writer Steve Foxe and artist Salva Espin, is a prequel to  and has already filled in some blanks in the series’ backstory.

There are still two more issues of X-Men ’97 to go, with X-Men ’97 #3 arriving on May 22nd. For the trade-waiters out there, the collected edition of the miniseries, X-Men ’97: Great Expectations, should hit stores in November.