The first successful animated adaptation of Marvel’s band of mutants was “X-Men: The Animated Series,” a classic of early 1990s animation. The show debuted in 1992 and ran for 76 episodes over five seasons, making it Marvel’s longest-running television show. Despite being a pretty faithful translation of the comics and serving as many fans’ first introduction to the characters, due to its low production quality, it hasn’t aged as gracefully as one might imagine.
The show made it apparent that Xavier’s home was a school for mutant education, not merely a fun hangout spot for the X-Men between missions. Rather than X-heroes in their prime, the majority of the protagonists in Evolution are teenagers who have only recently discovered their mutant talents.
Only Storm, Professor X, and Wolverine held true to their comic book ages, while a few well-known mutants, including Cyclops and Jean Grey, were slightly older than the main cast, which featured Kitty Pryde, Nightcrawler, Rogue, and newcomer Spyke.
Despite the fact that they were all X-Men, they were no longer merely friends and colleagues, but instructors and mentors to the next generation of mutants. In this video, we’ll look at the 15 most memorable episodes from the animated series.
Nightcrawler Joins – Strategy X [Season 1 Episode 1]
The series’ first episode includes two plot lines that eventually converge. On the one side, we have the introduction of Nightcrawler to the X-Men, and on the other, we have Toad, a teenage mutant who goes down the wrong path. The episode revolves around Nightcrawler joining the X Men and moving into the mansion, exploring the surroundings and making new friends as he showcases his power of teleportation to Jean and Scott.
However, ominous things are brewing and we see a boy with toad-like mutant powers come into contact with Scott at their school. Toad can jump and he has a long tongue but he is also a wretched little creature who smells rather terrible according to Scott however, Scott saves him from being beaten up by bullies and blows up a propane tank with his own eyes by mistake instead.
Toad’s mutant abilities spark Xavier’s interest, and Cerebro picks up the mutant signature as well, so they decide to enlist him, but it turns out they aren’t the only ones who think so. Toad is summoned to the principal’s office, where she demands on joining the X-Men and infiltrating Xavier’s facility.
When Toad refuses to do so, she turns into a massive monster and silences him. Having virtually no choice, Toad decides to infiltrate the compound and tries to sneak in one night. But he was quickly spotted by Storm, I mean, what else did he expect trying to break into a compound filled with superhumans? He manages to escape but immediately runs into Nightcrawler and they get into a fight. Nightcrawler teleports them to the ‘danger room’ which was actually a training room and they are attacked by cannons and other weaponry.
Backup arrives in the form of Jean and Cyclops, who successfully rescue the two, although Toad declines Dr. Xavier’s invitation to join the X-Men. Nightcrawler has concerns about the X-men after this episode, but Cyclops calms him down, and he becomes a true member of the X-men. In the meanwhile, Toad runs into Wolverine on his way out but leaves unharmed.
It is when he reports back to the principal. It is now we realize that the principal was none other than Mystique who was working for Magneto, trying to place a spy inside the X-Men facility. The episode ends with ominous foreshadowing of Magneto’s evil plans.
A Young Woman with Strange Power – Rogue Recruit [Season 1 Episode 3]
Rogue, the hallmark X-Men character, is recruited in the next episode. Who doesn’t recall the current craze for white hair streaks? The story begins with Rogue at a high-school dance where she begins to dance with a boy, not knowing what her power could do to him.
The touch activates and as the boy touches her, he gets knocked out and falls into a comatose state. Seeing this, naturally, Rogue flees the building. We see her adoptive mother worriedly talk to someone on the phone, someone who is coming to take Rogue away, and it is not Dr Xavier.
In this episode, the X-Men, notably Wolverine, are putting the Xavier compound’s defences to the test. Dr. Xavier orders them to convene when their testing is completed since Cerebro’s system identifies Rogue and classifies her as a mutant who poses a threat to herself and anyone around her. On the other hand, we see Rogue frantically running around, not knowing what to do or where to go.
When Mystique comes on the scene, she reveals that she and Rogue’s adoptive mother, Irene, had been keeping her hidden for the past five years, planning to recruit her into Magneto’s crew when the time was perfect. She takes off in search of Rogue, eventually tracking her down and assaulting her as Wolverine.
However, the X-men show up in the nick of time and Nightcrawler tries talking to her. He almost succeeds in convincing her but Shadowcat steps in and tries to pin her down, causing a tussle in which Nightcrawler is knocked out by Rogue. More members of the X-men team come and try to reign in rogue but she manages to get Storm’s power and, unable to control it, teleports away.
Dr. Xavier, with the help of Wolverine, discovers that someone else, specifically Mystique, was the reason they were unable to effectively recruit Rogue. Rogue enrolls at Bayville High School, where Mystique is the principal, and she and Magneto continue to work on their plans.
Wolverine’s Tortured origin – Grim Reminder [Season 1 Episode 11]
Wolverine’s beginnings have been shown in numerous films, but one of the best occurs in this episode, in which Wolverine’s terrible origins return to haunt him. In the Canadian wilderness, he sets out to find Weapon X. Not only does he come face to face with his archrival Sabretooth, but he also runs into the doctor who gave him his Adamantium skeleton.
The researcher still intends to use Wolverine to carry out Weapon X by brainwashing him with a microchip placed into Logan’s brain years ago. Shadowcat and Nightcrawler are the only ones who can save the day.
Wolverine has a nightmare about his stay in the facility where he was given the Adamantium injection at the start of the episode. When he awoke, he saw on the television that the Mount McKenna National Park in Canada had been closed for a few days owing to Bigfoot sightings. This seems to upset him immensely and he trashes his room to take out his anger. He then sets off to go to Canada to find out what was happening and if his nightmare had any correlation with what was happening.
Wolverine boarded the Blackbird plane without aware Shadowcat and Nightcrawler were on board, and when they try to approach him, he appears irritated and hostile, shutting himself in the cockpit to protect Kitty and Kurt. Kurt is also unable to teleport them back to Earth because they are far too high in the air for this to be done safely. They land in the mountains and we realize that Wolverine has had a chip in his body, controlling him all this while and finally, because Logan let down his guard, the chip brought him here.
Sabretooth goes out to bring Logan back, but they get into a fight, and Wolverine is eventually defeated and taken back to the facility when the scientist arrives there. Project Weapon X will be restarted, according to the scientist. The rest of the episode is one large action sequence as Wolverine and Sabretooth attack Kurt and Kitty while they try bringing Wolverine back to his senses. They try and succeed and, in the end, they defeat Sabretooth, blow up the facility and bring Logan back home, safely.
Brothers Reunited – The Cauldron: Part 1 & 2 [Season 1 Episode 12 & 13]
Cerebro discovers a new mutant in Hawaii who turns out to be Alex Summers, Scott’s presumed-dead brother, in the first episode of this storyline, and they set out to find him. Meanwhile, strange metal pods begin to sprout all over the place, engulfing mutants one by one. The X-Men are forced to fight the Brotherhood, which is the group of evil mutants, for a position in Magneto’s sanctuary in a race to get to Havok before Magneto can recruit him.
We watch Alex discover his abilities while surfing in the water when he comes face to face with a shark. With crimson beams pouring out of his palms, he successfully blasts the shark away. However, before the X-Men can make it to him, he is approached by Magneto who offers him a place to take sanctuary because he was special. This was all a plan to gather the strongest mutants he could find, to ultimately fight the X-Men. The rest of the episode shows Alex’s reunion with his brother Scott and altercations between Magneto and Xavier.
Finally, Magneto confronts Xavier and informs him that the X-Men are going to be put to the test in a “trial by fire.” The winner of the X-Men vs. Brotherhood battle will be awarded sanctuary on the asteroid M. Xavier’s attempts to persuade Magneto to change his mind are futile. This is the plot that then carries forward into the second episode, The Cauldron, Part 2.
Magneto stages a series of confrontations to see which mutants are “deserving” of joining him on Asteroid M, culminating in an epic combat between Wolverine and Sabretooth. The “winners” are kidnapped and given a place in Magneto’s Cauldron, where he pledges to use the abilities of the Cyttorak stone to greatly develop and increase their mutant talents to their maximum potential. Meanwhile, the “losers”, who were left behind in the mansion including a pissed-off Mystique, regroup and plan to pay Magneto a visit.
The rest of the episode is an epic combat and action sequence in which the losers battle the people on the ship and the X-Men finally subdue the Brotherhood, putting an end to Magneto’s aspirations to create superhuman mutants to take over the world.
Evil African Shaman – African Storm [Season 2 Episode 8]
Storm, one of the X-most men’s powerful members, is the focus of this episode. As an evil African shaman comes to the institute with the intention of acquiring Storm’s weather-controlling skills and using them to take over Africa, the story follows her. Storm also must decide whether or not to send Evan back to his parents.
Storm hears reoccurring whispers and feels paranoid in this episode, but she puts it down to concern over new recruit Evan’s development and report. She also has nightmares about shadows and whispers, which predict the arrival of the demonic African Shaman, who seeks to control Africa through the use of rain and storm. Storm has another episode of the ghastly nightmares the next day in the bathroom, when she notices a skull in the steam on the mirror. Jean and Xavier are waiting outside for Storm as she exits the bathroom and they see the smashed mirror.
The institute is engulfed in a heavy fog and mist. Storm was outdoors on her balcony that night, reminiscing about her days as an African Goddess, when she heard rustling and glanced down to find her balcony covered in snakes. She raises herself into the air, trying to relax herself; while up there, she notices Spyke speeding away on his skateboard. She races down to catch him, but bumps into one of her old tribesmen, Nerombo.
He tries to tell her that the Hungan is on her tail, but she ignores him in her search for Evan. Storm runs past Evan as he jumps over the Institute barrier, followed by several other tribesmen. She uses lightning to scare them away, but they hit her with a dart and she passes out. Evan then hurries into the Professor’s office to inform him that Storm has been taken.
The Hungans then lock Storm in a small box, breaking her “will.” He utilises his abilities and a strange sceptre to keep her under his control. After tracking Storm down to a boat, the Hungan forces her to attack the X-Men. However, Spyke uses his abilities to shatter the crystal atop the Hungan’s sceptre, restoring Storm’s will. She forms a tiny tornado to engulf the Hungan. Storm suddenly passes out and starts to tumble to the ground, but Spyke catches her while the other tribesmen vanish into the mist. The episode ends with Evan remaining in the Xavier institute.
A device to create the super-soldier – Operation: Rebirth [Season 2 Episode 14]
This episode is fantastic because it pulls the Avengers and the X-Men together, and it all happens when Nick Fury himself appears. According to Nick Fury, Magneto has stolen a device that was formerly used to create the super-soldier Captain America. The gadget was called ‘Rebirth’ and it had made Captain America the superhero he turned out to be and thus held immense power.
Wolverine isn’t convinced by Nick Fury because he recalls the technology being destroyed. There was also a backup, according to Fury. It’s unclear who took it, but there were magnetic pulses that bent metal, according to SHIELD. Logan, of course, recognises that it is the work of Magneto right away. Logan then relays this information to Xavier who tries to help him in finding Magneto using Cerebro, but fails. Help arrives in the form of Rogue who believes that Magneto is hiding out in a base in the Sahara Desert and Wolverine, Rogue, and Nightcrawler set out to retrieve the device that caused such a raucous.
Meanwhile, Logan is having memories of his time with Captain America during WWII. We learn that Captain America and Wolverine destroyed the device to save others from suffering because the cellular breakdown it induced during the process of creating a super-soldier was incredibly painful and humans seldom survived it.
When the crew gets to the base, they discover that Magneto intended to use the gadget on himself to prolong his life, claiming that he would die if he didn’t. Because the technology has no negative effect on mutants, he is able to use it on himself and regain his youth. Despite this, Wolverine still manages to destroy the device so that it can never be used again.
Logan pays a solo visit to Captain America at the end of the episode. Cap is imprisoned in a cryogenic chamber, waiting for them to figure out how to undo Rebirth’s effects. Fury enters and tells him it’s time to leave and that he should remember that he was never there.
Team To Face Magneto And His Acolytes – Day of Reckoning – Part 1 & 2
Bolivar Trask, an anti-mutant agitator, kidnaps Wolverine and confronts him with his latest invention, the Sentinels, in this two-part episode. Meanwhile, the X-Men are hard at work in the danger room, preparing to meet Magneto, who has vanished without a trace but is certain to return.
Seeing that the X-Men and the New Mutants aren’t as strong as he would like them to be, Xavier forces them and members of the Brotherhood join forces, led by Mystique to confront Magneto, who has summoned his Acolytes to cause mayhem in order to start an all-out war between mankind and mutants.
When Storm and Xavier leave, Mystique takes over the mansion, and the New Mutants must battle with the mansion’s own defences as it begins to self-destruct. Wolverine, on the other side, is a test subject for the Sentinel, but he is discovered by Jean using Cerebro, and they proceed to save him. The story carries on in the next episode.
This is when we see that Mystique’s appearance was a clear warning sign, and it turns out that the whole thing was a set-up, as Magneto appears and begins tearing the facility apart. It’s action after action, and the structure even blows up with all the New Mutants inside. The X-Men and Brotherhood teams arrive to stop Magneto and find themselves facing his Acolytes, who he intends to use to announce the existence of mutants to the world, but a startling twist reveals that nothing was as it seemed.
Scott rants at Dr. Xavier after the New Mutants emerge from the debris, only to discover that it was Mystique all along, and the episode finishes with her warning that things will become much worse.
The aftermath – Day of Recovery [Season 3 Episode 1]
The remaining X-Men and members of the Brotherhood deal with the aftermath from the mutants’ exposure in this episode, and proceed to Area 51 to rescue their hostages. As Cyclops traps the crafty Mystique in Area 51 to compel her into divulging Professor X’s location, the squads split off. The X-Men are now alone in a world that has turned its back on them.
The X-Men are being discovered, and several of them have been named and broadcast on television news networks. We can also notice the widespread fear and hysteria around mutants. All mutants are being tracked down and the White House has issued a public statement urging people not to jump to any conclusions. In such a circumstance, Ray leads the New Mutants into the sewers, where he claims to know of a safe haven for them.
The remainder of the mutants, including the X-Men and the Brotherhood, go on missions to save their compatriots who have been kidnapped by the military as a result of Magneto’s disclosure of mutants to the rest of the world. When they arrive in Area 51, Wolverine is interrogated by military personnel inside, while the others are held in clear plastic cells nearby. The Blob is the last of the green stasis goo to be cut free.
Inside the base, the others disperse at the same time. Bobby and Kitty proceed to the alarms to deactivate them. Mystique forgets to turn off the motion detectors when she is distracted. Iceman carves a route through the wires, but Bobby twirls the cutter around his fingers and drops it by accident. Regardless, the security system activates.
Troops appear out of nowhere. Mystique tells Jean, Cyclopes, and Avalanche to stay still while she searches for the inmates with Nightcrawler. When the alarms go off, the officer who is questioning Logan exits to investigate what’s going on, and Spyke is able to poke a spike into Logan’s restraint and free him during the pandemonium. Everyone gets free quickly after that and they round up and contain all of the troops.
The episode concludes with all of the X-Men reuniting and reflecting on the loss of Charles Xavier and their beloved institute, as well as dealing with a world that now knows about them and despises them.
New Leader – The Stuff of Heroes [Season 3 Episode 2]
This episode takes place during a period when troops are crawling all over the wreckage of the Institute. There are news reporters present, and anti-mutant propaganda is broadcast on the news. So while Storm and Beast attempt to quell the anti-mutant mob in front of the Senate, the remaining X-Men must confront Juggernaut, who has been released by Mystique and is threatening to destroy a dam.
The White House is convening a congressional hearing on the “Mutant Danger,” following Magneto’s disclosure of the mutants, and Ororo and Hank attend to speak on their behalf. All of the younger mutants and X-Men have hunkered down underground, watching the hearing on a small TV because coming out would mean being recognized and assaulted. Unfortunately, Logan and Rogue, who were fleeing from the military, lead them right to the hiding spot but all of them manage to escape successfully.
In the midst of all of this mayhem, Juggernaut breaks free and begins destroying everything in his path. As police cars pursue Juggernaut, a news van follows them. They arrive at a pile of damaged cars and watch as Juggernaut makes his way towards the massive dam. The news coverage of the Juggernauts rampage is brought up again at the hearing. The mutants are all monsters, according to the speaker, as Juggernaut destroys a tank.
When the X-Men learn of Juugernaut’s rampage, they decide to put an end to it. When the X-Men arrive at the dam, they face Juggernaut. The person who is the most effective in the fight against Juggernaut happens to be Rogue, as she drains him of much of his power, allowing the rest of the X-Men to capture him and subdue him. This entire incident gets covered by the news vans.
After watching the full X-Men vs. Juggernaut combat, the speaker is taken aback and shouts, “What did they do?” back at the hearings. Ororo assures them that they’ve done their homework and put their skills to good use.
Because Rogue drained Juggernaut of much of his power, she also discovered Dr. Xavier’s location, and the episode ends with the President giving a speech in which he declares that the X-Men have been exonerated of all charges and that Bolivar Trask, the true perpetrator of the Sentinel debacle, has been imprisoned. He claims that mutants should no longer be prosecuted and that everyone should be more accepting of them.
Lose control – Self Possessed [Season 3 Episode 8]
In this action-packed episode, Rogue witnesses her ardent crush, Cyclops, dating Jean Grey, which sends her into a tailspin. She isn’t herself, and she continues seeing flashes of her other mutant friends’ powers when she touches them. Once she reaches school, she is consoled by her British friend Risty who tells her that because of the mutant crisis, her parents had called her back to London. Risty doesn’t quite understand Rogue’s powers or problems and instead suggests that they go to a concert.
Rogue runs across everyone she was hoping to avoid during the concert, including Jean and Cyclops. Rogue’s emotions become increasingly out of control as the scenario worsens. Risty is right there with Rogue but when she accidently touches and absorbs everything from her at a performance, she discovers that Risty was indeed Mystique in disguise all along.
Rogue’s alter-egos from within, who had absorbed Mystique’s power in the past, use the shape-shifting ability she learned from Mystique to break free from Rogue’s inner self, fighting to reclaim control of her body and mind. Rogue’s underlying multiple personality disorder also breaks out and she loses her sanity, believing that everyone hates her.
She transforms into Sabretooth and causes havoc at the concert in her delusion. The X-Men must step in to save a friend and colleague who possesses all of their mutant abilities but is on the verge of exhaustion.
After a lot of fighting with all the young X-Men, Dr Xavier and Logan finally show up and are able to calm her down but not before she morphs into all of the other X-Men and finally passes out in Logan’s arms. Logan asks Xavier if she’ll be okay, and Xavier, looking distressed, answers he doesn’t know. Logan drags Rogue to the van as the other X Men approach. Mystique stands sadly on a rooftop high above.
Rogue is knocked out in the hospital, and Logan sits by her bedside, as Xavier watches from beyond the glass doors. Scott approaches and inquires about Logan’s whereabouts; Xavier assures him that he hasn’t abandoned her. He claims that she is weak as a result of having her personas forced out of her, and that dealing with the reality about Risty and Mystique will be her greatest difficulty. Rogue wakes up, squeezing his hand and smiles through tears as he clutches her hand.
Wolverine’s Clone – X23 [Season 3 Episode 10]
A mystery female assassin with adamantium claws breaks into a S.H.I.E.L.D. facility and finds and downloads X-Men files, but she’s specifically hunting for Wolverine. Logan is suspected of the break-in and is transported to a facility by Nick Fury. The DNA of the intruder matched the DNA of Wolverine which led to Nick Fury suspecting him. There he is introduced to a scientist called Deborah Risman who says that the break in was done by an agent of her organisation called X-23 who had betrayed them.
Meanwhile, after fleeing the facility, X-23 attacks the X-Mansion, knocking out the X-Men one by one. The assassin is Wolverine’s clone, “X-23,” who was made by Dr. Deborah Risman and raised without affection to be a living weapon exploited by HYDRA, and she intends to kill him because she blames him for her miserable existence. Wolverine and X-23 face off in a fight that Wolverine is determined to lose.
They fight, and she overhears him say that he was unaware of the project and that he, too, had been exploited, and that he understands her feelings because he is the closest thing she has to a family. She breaks down and begins to cry. Logan pauses before attempting to console her and they hear helicopters at that point. Logan tells X-23 to seek safety and that he’ll take care of the rest. When the chopper lands, Fury exits and informs Logan that she will have to accompany him. Logan tells him she’s had enough and refuses to be taken by Fury. As Logan assists her in escaping, Fury has to back off and depart.
The X-Men and Acolytes team up – Dark Horizon: Part 1 & 2 [Season 3 Episode 11 & 12]
The story of Mesmero attempting to resurrect the first mutant, Apocalypse, is told in the two episodes we’ll discuss tonight. Rogue is possessed by Mesmero in the first episode and is used as a weapon to absorb the mutant abilities of every member of the X-Men, Brotherhood, and Acolytes.
We watch as she cunningly and stealthily gathers all their powers and mutant abilities one by one. She causes chaos in the house of The Brotherhood as she drains all their powers. In this manner, she keeps getting into altercations with mutants and zapping up their powers before they can realize what exactly is going on.
In order for Mesmero to awaken Apocalypse, Rogue must submit all of her stolen talents to him, thus the three parties reluctantly collaborate. Things go horribly wrong on the day of Jean and Scott’s graduation. Magneto and the Acolytes along with the Brotherhood enter the grounds, Xavier and the X-Men also make their way to the scene as Rogue is captured by Magneto as repercussions for stealing his mutant powers. Xavier however realises that she is being mind controlled and explains the situation to Magneto.
Rogue breaks out in the pandemonium, and all mutants, regardless of their allegiances, assist in the search for Rogue, particularly Wolverine, Sabretooth, and Gambit. When they realise Mesmero’s hidden aim was to resurrect Apocalypse, another crew heads to the Great Sphinx.
The X-Men, Brotherhood, and Acolytes are still fighting Mesmero in the following episode. The heroes and villains track down Apocalypse in Egypt, only to confront him face to face and fail to prevent him from rising again. They discover his origin story that he was a mutant infant with grey skin who was abandoned in the desert and rescued by a tribe of robbers. Its commander recognised the child’s abilities and adopted him, naming him ‘En Sabah Nur,’ or ‘The First One.’
He grew into an unstoppable fighter. The Pharaoh of Egypt, Rama-Tut perceived the warrior as a threat to the throne and ordered him to be killed. The tribe was wiped out by the Pharaoh’s army, but En Sabah Nur survived, vowed vengeance, and adopted the name Apocalypse.
The awakening of the world’s first mutant put humanity in severe jeopardy at the end of the episode.
In the wake of Apocalypse – Impact [Season 4 Episode 1]
A jungle-covered Mayan pyramid takes on a technical look after Apocalypse awakens, and a dark impenetrable force field envelops it, even down into the ground beneath it. Because his transport spacecraft lands on it and alters it, we realise what’s going on. In the episode, the government there grants the X-Men access to study the base. Magneto, on the other hand, attacks it as a kind of vengeance.
Magneto and The Acolytes continue their unsuccessful search for information about Apocalypse beneath the Egyptian sphinx. Xavier, on the other hand, is searching at The Institute with Cerebro. However, no one has been able to locate any evidence of the Apocalypse. After discussing Apocalypse’s objectives, Charles Xavier and Beast determine they need to learn more about the Eye of Ages.
Soon after, some archaeologists locate the Tomb of Apocalypse in Mexico, and the X-Men go on a fact-finding expedition to the same location. The pyramid’s defences, on the other hand, are so formidable that any attempt to gather information actually explodes up in their faces. But we all know that once the X-Men know about something, Magneto is never far behind and he comes hurtling towards the pyramid in one of his spheres and uses anything he can to try and break the sphere, which is exactly what Xavier had warned against.
Finally, Apocalypse emerges from the pyramid and throws Magneto around before returning within after the threat has been neutralised, leaving the X-Men stunned. They realise that they can’t do much in the face of such overwhelming strength, and that Apocalypse will have to come on its own schedule.
Nightcrawler was also attempting to resuscitate his mother Mystique, who was still imprisoned as stone, much to Rogue’s chagrin in this episode. When Kurt discovers that only Rogue can liberate Mystique by absorbing the stone mutation she has been confined in, he tries to persuade her to help him. However, Rogue denies and instead pushes Mystique off the cliff, causing her to shatter, destroying Nightcrawler’s dreams of getting his mother back.
Logan & X-23 Team Up – Target X [Season 4 Episode 3]
This entertaining episode is a throwback for our favorite Wolverine. He is kidnapped and wakes up in a holding cell at the start of this episode. He manages to release himself and rips a hole in the wall. He’s actually on a freight plane, as it turns out. Guards barge into the room and eject him off the plane. Logan plummets thousands of miles back to Earth in one of the funniest moments to be featured on the series. Omega Red and Gauntlet are dropped off in the jungle by the plane.
He finds his female clone, X-23, who rescues him from his captors, and she informs him that she is on a mission to assassinate the person who created her: Madame Hydra. They begin collaborating to combat Hydra and destroy Hydra’s headquarters. However, they are not quite successful because they are caught and taken to Madam Hydra’s base where she reveals to Logan that X-23 will be turned into the perfect weapon after her memory is wiped.
Gauntlet, on the other hand, makes a mistake and forgets to neutralize X-23, allowing her and Logan to flee and turn the tables on Madame Hydra. X-23 blows up the entire ship, killing both Madam Hydra and Gauntlet in the process. S.H.I.E.L.D. arrests the remaining members of Hydra and Wolverine returns while X-23 goes away, free to live her life.
Back at the facility, Cyclops and Jean Grey work to teach the New Mutants how to harness their mutant abilities in even more advanced ways. The entire procedure is a shambles. Imagine that you have discovered you have superpowers, would you rein them in or would you want to use it ALL the time? Yep. And that is exactly what Scott and Jean struggle with before they finally get all the new mutants to calm down and give one hell of a demonstration.
With her telekinesis, Jean levitates everyone to the ceiling. Scott shoots an optic blast at the ceiling, but it misses Bobby by a whisker. It reflects from the walls and ceiling, narrowly missing the new mutants by an inch, before crashing down and slicing an apple in half on Bobby’s desk. This stuns them and they all settle down to learn.
Apocalypse awakens on Earth – Ascension: Part 1 & 2
The final narrative we’ll discuss today will make for a fantastic episode. The plot revolves around what occurs when Apocalypse’s full nature wakes throughout the course of two equally action-packed episodes. He wants all humans with the dormant X-gene to be transformed into mutants. In the first episode, Magneto, Professor X, Storm, and Mystique are transformed into his Four Horsemen, and a network of energy pyramids are also built around the planet to stage his scheme.
When a new Sphere appears in Egypt, Professor X wants to communicate with Apocalypse, so he brings Storm with him. The rest of the party stands by while Apocalypse uses Cerebro technology to telepathically communicate his plan to awaken the dormant X-gene in all humans, a process that will kill the majority of ‘regular’ humans.
Apocalypse is enraged when Xavier tells him that this isn’t necessary. Storm rushes to his aid, but instead of saving him, sends them both away, just as Magneto did. The X-Men are embarrassed, and Nick Fury soon joins them, announcing the resumption of The Sentinel Program.
Three sentinels serve as decoys for Apocalypse at the Sphynx, while more sentinels employ their superior technology to disable the three spheres. The sentinels are defeated, but Apocalypse enlists the support of Magneto in Mexico, Storm in China, Xavier in Egypt, and Mystique in the Sphynx to protect them. The X-Men are divided into four squads to combat the Four Horsemen of Apocalypse all around the planet, while Rogue is assigned to a ‘special assignment.’
The second episode continues the series’ tradition of incredible action sequences. The X-Men, The Brotherhood, S.H.I.E.L.D., The Acolytes, Angel, Spyke, Havok, and the New Mutants team up to save humanity from Apocalypse’s plans. By adopting Leech’s power/ability-canalization ability, Rogue overcomes Apocalypse at the final moment. While Apocalypse is still within, she stops the pyramids’ energy and seals his case. Wolverine assists by sending him back in time.
Finally, while under Apocalypse’s influence, Xavier tells everyone who helped stop the calamity about his visions of the future. This is the series’ final episode, and it ends on a high note.
If you’re a fan of the X-Men, you’ll want to watch this animated series!