There’s a fairly significant time gap separating the events of the original X-Men: The Animated Series and X-Men ‘97. From minor costume changes like Storm’s mohawk to the reveal that Jean Grey is pregnant, a lot has changed for the team during those missing months. Marvel’s X-Men ‘97 prequel comic seeks to flesh out that lost period, acting as a bridge between the two shows and adding new context to the big developments in the Disney+ show. It even gives us a new variation on the beloved “Sad Wolverine” meme.
With X-Men ‘97 in stores now, we’re here to break down the biggest reveals and how they tie into the animated series. Read on to learn more, but beware of full spoilers for X-Men ‘97 #1 and the first three episodes of the animated series!
The X-Men Rescue Dazzler
While issue #1 opens with a brief Danger Room training sequence that pits the team against a digital Magneto, the main antagonist here is the Friends of Humanity. Even months before the first episode of the animated series, these anti-mutant terrorists are busy stirring up trouble. Their target in this issue is none other than Dazzler, who’s using her newfound stardom to headline a benefit concert dedicated to the memory of Professor X.
Dazzler is kidnapped by the Friends of Humanity, but Cyclops and his team are quickly able to track them down and launch a rescue mission. Dazzler wastes no time in flirting with Cyclops and reminding him of their previous encounter during the original animated series. Cyclops handles the flirtation about as well as you’d expect.
The real significance of this rescue mission comes when the FOH members are rounded up by a United Nations strike force led by Valerie Cooper. Val plays an important role in the X-Men ‘97 animated series, and it’s here that we see the origins of her working relationship with Cyclops.
We also learn that one of her agents is none other than Carl Denti, who becomes the masked vigilante The X-Cutioner in Episode 2. In this earlier time period, Denti is working as a mole within the UN ranks and helping his fellow mutant haters evade legal justice. At some point during the course of the comic, we’ll probably see Denti blow his cover and pivot to becoming the full-time leader of the Friends of Humanity.
The Origin of Storm’s Mohawk
X-Men ‘97 gives Storm a slight visual overhaul, replacing her traditional long, flowing locks with a more ‘80s-inspired punk rock mohawk. It’s an appropriate visual change in light of the dark turn her story takes in the animated series, where we see her lose her powers in Episode 2 and fall into a deep pit of despair.
But it turns out the mohawk has a more innocent origin story. Storm starts out this issue with her classic hairdo, but then decides to give herself a makeover before attending Dazzler’s benefit concert. As she tells Jubilee, Storm simply wants to blend in with the youth culture at the concert.
Why Bishop Is Stranded In the Past
X-Men ‘97 features a new team recruit, with Bishop having quietly become a semi-permanent member at some point after the series finale of X-Men: The Animated Series. Episode 3 alludes to the fact that Bishop has become stranded in the past due to a malfunctioning time band, and the comic digs a bit deeper into that temporal conundrum.
Even months before the events of the new animated series, Beast is shown feverishly working on repairing Bishop’s broken time band. Beast consults with fellow experts like Dr. Moira MacTaggert, though even Moira seems to have little idea how to help the marooned Bishop. Bishop himself is left with no choice but to have a little fun at Dazzler’s concert. Too bad fun is a concept with which he’s completely unfamiliar.
Mister Sinister and the Marauders
It’s pretty much an unwritten rule of superhero comics that no public event can be held without being interrupted by supervillains at some point, and that rule holds true for Dazzler’s concert. No sooner does she take the stage than she’s attacked by the Nasty Boys. These dastardly agents of Mister Sinister are none too thrilled about the idea of people promoting peaceful coexistence between humans and mutants.
Luckily for the crowd, the X-Men are on hand to fend off the Nasty Boys, and these villains don’t put up much of a fight before being chased off. The Nasty Boys return to Sinister’s facility, where he scolds them for wasting their time. Sinister can sense the changing tide of human sentiment toward mutants, and he recognizes that the old methods are no longer going to work. He’s more interested in his newest discovery - that Jean Grey is pregnant.
Sinister then reveals that he’s ready to cut ties with the Nasty Boys in favor of a newer, deadlier team of mutant villains. Cue the Marauders, a group that includes Wolverine’s nemesis Sabretooth, Blockbuster, Arclight and Prism.
This could be a very significant development for the X-Men ‘97 universe. In the classic X-Men comics, the Marauders are perhaps best known for instigating the Mutant Massacre, an event where they slaughtered the Morlocks in the sewers beneath New York. Could the X-Men ‘97 comic or animated series be building toward an adaptation of the Mutant Massacre? It’s a storyline that could never have been done on the more family-friendly X-Men: The Animated Series, but these days, all bets are off.
Jean Grey’s Pregnancy Reveal
At the start of the X-Men ‘97 animated series, Jean Grey is very visibly pregnant and winds up giving birth in Episode 2. That’s followed by the surprise reveal that “Jean” is actually a clone named Madelyne Pryor. The comic shows us the beginnings of that storyline, as Jean/Madelyne has just recently discovered she’s pregnant.
Jean spends the entire issue trying to break the news to her husband. Cyclops, true to form, is too busy training and obsessing over his responsibilities as team leader to pay much attention to Jean. Jean finally manages to communicate the good news to Scott at the end of the issue, which leads to what is sure to become another meme-worthy Wolverine moment:
Thanks to the animated series, we already know that this plot twist won’t culminate in a happy ending for either Cyclops or Jean. Jean is still blissfully unaware that she’s a clone, and neither suspects that their unborn child will wind up being kidnapped by Sinister, infected with a techno-organic virus and whisked away into the future by Bishop. The mutant soap opera is strong with X-Men ‘97.
For more on the animated series, read about our biggest burning questions after Episode 3 and find out how you watch X-Men '97.
Jesse is a mild-mannered staff writer for IGN. Allow him to lend a machete to your intellectual thicket by following @jschedeen on Twitter.
