X-Men ’97 Season 2 Finale Review: Apocalypse Resurfaces, Rogue Makes the Ultimate Sacrifice
Updated: Aug 13
The X-Men ’97 Season 2 finale picks up with Cable completely ready to kill Apocalypse, and unfortunately for Gambit, the only way Cable believes he can do it is by killing him too. Rogue is not about to let that happen. After everything she has already been through with Gambit, she is determined to find another way to save him. Rogue, Nightcrawler, and Beast return to the ship looking for answers on how they can stop Apocalypse, and Rogue eventually makes the choice to go all in.
Valerie shows up to the X-Men determined to take Gambit by force. Charles makes it clear that the X-Men aren't backing down. Havok has some initial pushback because this is mutant against mutant. Valerie doesn't care and sends out the Sentinels. At the same time, Rogue is with a Celestial, and Charles can't reach her wherever she is. She has the jewel taken from the External, and Rogue is literally fighting against the impossible. The power is tearing her body apart, but she refuses to give up on Gambit. That eventually leads Rogue to make the ultimate sacrifice her life for his. Rogue gets upgraded, and Kurt immediately realizes what she has done.
While Rogue is fighting to save Gambit, the rest of the X-Men are dealing with battles of their own. Morph and Wolverine team up against Psylocke and Archangel, and Morph turning into the 90s version of Doc Ock was absolutely hilarious. Scott and Jean take on Cable, while Jubilee is in the sky fighting Havok. Lorna and Bishop take on Multiple Man and Siren and are completely outnumbered, but Gambit shows up just in time.
Of course, Cable plays dirty. He removes Scott's visor, and Scott's optic blast nearly levels the entire building. Cable then takes out Gambit, and everybody is left standing there in shock. But while everyone is focused on what just happened, this big dummy accidentally releases Apocalypse. And man, the design of Gambit and Apocalypse combined is AMAZING! They took two iconic characters and somehow made that combination look even more terrifying.
Apocalypse is incredibly powerful, and he immediately takes control of the X-Men. Then comes one of the biggest lines of the finale: “The ones you care for, will be your undoing.” That's the lesson Apocalypse wants Charles to learn. He wants Charles to believe that his connection to the X-Men and the people he loves is ultimately his weakness. But Charles isn't going for it.
Just when it looks like Apocalypse has completely won, Rogue shows up! With one touch, she neutralizes him, turns him into a jewel, and gives it to Cable. And finally, after all the waiting, heartbreak, and everything that has happened between them, Rogue and Gambit finally get their long-awaited kiss and reunion. YES! That moment was absolutely earned.
Rogue lets Gambit know that saving him required a sacrifice, and that's when we find out the truth. It was Kurt. He decided to complete the sacrifice for his sister. That revelation honestly made the ending even more emotional because Kurt has become such an important part of Rogue's life. Their relationship has been one of my favorite parts of this season, so seeing him make that kind of sacrifice for her hit hard.
And then, because apparently this finale wasn't already giving us enough. MYSTIQUE IS BACK!!! She is posing as Valerie Cooper, the question is, was that mystique the entire season?!? I mean, COME ON!
Overall, I thought the X-Men ’97 Season 2 finale was absolutely insane. The action was ridiculous, the character moments worked, the animation looked incredible, and the payoff for Rogue and Gambit was exactly what fans have been waiting for. My only real complaint is that I wish some of this momentum had started earlier. The final few episodes were moving at a crazy pace, and there were so many huge storylines happening that I sometimes wished the show had given certain moments a little more time to breathe.
But when it comes to the finale itself, they absolutely went for it. Gambit and Rogue finally reunited, Apocalypse was defeated, Cable's plan completely backfired, Kurt made the ultimate sacrifice, the X-Men fought each other, fought Sentinels, fought Apocalypse, and somehow survived it all.
And now Mystique is back. WHAT ARE WE SUPPOSED TO DO WITH THAT?!
This is exactly why I love X-Men ’97. It understands these characters, respects the history of the original series, but isn't afraid to take things in a different direction. Season 2 has been a wild ride, and this finale gave us the kind of chaos, emotion, and fan service I wanted from the end of the season.
Now I just need Season 3 to hurry up because I have WAY too many questions!
What did you think?
Loved it
Hated it
So/So
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