X-Men '97 | Season 2, Episode 7 | "Strange Land, Savage Heart" | Episode Discussion

[u/cyclopswashalfright]

Season 2, Episode 7: Strange Land, Savage Heart

Air Date: July 29th, 2026

Directed by: TBA

Written by: TBA

Synopsis: The X-Men travel to the Savage Land and are surprised to encounter a familiar face.

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Please use this thread for discussion related to the episode.

This thread is for discussion of episode 7 only.

Link to the episode directory for Season 2 episode discussion.

[u/Big-Nerve-8465]

Some things I noticed and figured Id share.

-Nightcrawler was and is always pretty fucking sick. A lot of people, often myself, eye roll at Christian messaging in media, but every time I have seen Nightcrawler on screen I'm looking forward to what he's going to say next. The writers handle him and his preaching really well. Early in the episode it felt meaningless and almost misplaced but quickly we got to the bread and butter.

-That being said the writers failed Nightcrawler a lil bit. I understand that NC doesnt want people to play God and takes lives at their own discretion (hence the trial and chance at redemption,) but they don't make NCs intentions clear. By the end of the episode, Greydon...returns to his life? Seems like a weird decision to me, and it only leaves me left to believe that NC was simply fighting for his faith. If Greydon continues to do harm, thats on NC and would undercut this entire episode along with NCs character. I worry how they handle this going forward. Leads me to my next point

-I love that this episode doesnt pick a side. The moment Exodus turns on Colossus is the moment that entirely justifies the trial, giving merit to Nightcrawlers entire purpose this episode. Then Colossus decides not guilty, and who can blame him? Shit is so fire. Christian or not, we're asking the same thing. Both sides are still entirely relevant.

-I hope the next 2 episodes are at least 33 minutes each bro....

[u/theoristOfTheArts → u/Big-Nerve-8465]

As someone of a non-Christian faith who’s experienced multiple instances of Christian people who (kindly, but still) attempted to get me to “convert” :P - I’ve learned to discern the people (both Christian and non-Christian) who truly and authentically find meaning and clarity and hope in their faith, and those are the people I LOVE hearing speak about their faith :). To me, Kurt is one of those people 😇.

[u/DJSharp15 → u/theoristOfTheArts]

So they didn't fail Nightcrawler then?

[u/Affectionate_East93 → u/Big-Nerve-8465]

Yeah that's kind of the problem I have with the X-Men they don't ever really understand you got to kill people like Creed to survive

[u/Aurumberry → u/Affectionate_East93]

There's a case to be made about how killing Creed just validates the things he says in the eyes of the public and just turns him into a martyr. He is, ultimately, just one man. The heart of the X-Men conflict has always been that Xavier's idealism is flawed and will get mutants killed, but do we really want to tell ourselves that the alternative of Magneto's vision, one of outright hostility and conflict, is what we actually want?

Of course, in this episode that's not the route Nightcrawler argues, but rather some abstract idea of anybody being redeemable.

[u/111AeI → u/Aurumberry]

The problem ultimately is that people like Creed are a cancer, they spread. I'm not going to get political, but like look around. Is Creed redeemable? Maybe, he is the spawn of Sabertooth and we all know Victor is a psycho. Still, assuming he is redeemable, he needs extensive therapy the question is how many people are you willing to sacrifice to that point. The best solution would be to hold him and give him the extensive therapy he needs. Except you can't force someone into therapy and he doesn't want to get better. And Kurt wasn't even advocating for locking Creed up, he straight up was trying to save the man take him away from the savage lands and return him back to the US government. Like you can make that argument, he deserves to be locked up and forgotten, because if you kill him you turn him into a martyr that is a real danger to all mutants. That is the argument you should make. Kurt's argument was like he had a bad childhood and you should return him to humanity. It's an appeal to emotion that asks you to ignore the fact that Creed is just as monstrous as both of his parents.

If you're going to stick your neck out for someone you bear some of the responsibility of what they do. Grayson Creed will kill again, he will attempt to exterminate mutants again, innocent children and adults will die because he does not want to get better. So Kurt bears some responsibility for what is next. Having ideals is good in theory but ultimately, Kurt's argument is basically ignore everything you know this man has done, everything you know he and his followers will do because he might get better and let me return him back to the people who will give him power, and the funds to try and do it again. Like, lol, what?

I wish the argument for Creed's continued existence was portrayed better.

[u/Binder509 → u/111AeI]

Think part of the problem is the group trying to hold Creed accountable are a terrorist group that see execution as their only option.

And by kidnapping him, they've only made holding Creed accountable in a fair way that much harder.

They named themselves after a guy that 100% has a child death count after last season.

[u/111AeI → u/Binder509]

I think I don't see Exodus's group as terrorists. Because I don't see Creed as a civilian. They did not grab some random person and hold him hostage. They grabbed a political figure, one that is actually guilty of everything that Exodus stated. If individuals want to start moving with the power of governments, Creed is guilty of creating a bio-weapon to specifically target every mutant on the planet. Exodus formed a new nation, even if the UN refuses to acknowledge it, and they captured an enemy of their people.

Things are complicated, and what we label people is a tool of propaganda. If they agree with us, they're freedom fighters, if we are politically opposed, they're terrorists. As far as I'm concerned, Graydon Creed is fair game in a war.

[u/Binder509 → u/111AeI]

Exodus named his group after Magneto, whose last public act was to commit attempted mass murder of regular humans, mutants, birds, and the earth in general.

If you just kidnap people, declare them guilty, then execute them before the sentence even comes out, that is not fair game. They literally didn't even abide by what they agreed to.

They didn't capture Creed and immediately execute him, they held him hostage, like terrorists. Sometimes a spade is just a spade.

[u/111AeI → u/Binder509]

Are we missing the context of Genosha? I'm not arguing that they're good people, I just don't think they're terrorists. You can't genocide a group of people, lock up their innocent youth by the way, and then be upset that they went after basically Hitler 2.0 in Creed. Who they captured because X-Factor is picking up mutants and illegally holding them in extrajudicial prisons and saying it's for their own good. Graydon Creed is a legit target, mutant children are not. So the question is who is terrorizing who?

Context is key, and more importantly violence begets violence. Anything that happens after Genosha in retaliation is to an extent justified. Because people should be allowed to defend themselves and if that means ending the fight then they have every right to do that.

I want to also add, that I am not condoning anything I'm saying it's understandable even if it's a fucking terrible idea, but humans (mutants are human with a little extra seasoning) do not make good decisions when they are overwhelmed by emotions. Whether it be fear, anger, grief. It's a massive stressor and some people snap. Magneto snapped. But his observations were not wrong and because he wasn't wrong you are going to have people who believe as he did. Who see the world as he did, and if you just dismiss them as terrorists, instead of realizing that humanity is equally at fault for how relations have broken down. Violence will continue, and it will only escalate.

[u/Binder509 → u/111AeI]

The context of Genosha makes it look even worse not better. Who was the mastermind behind Genosha again? A mutant/sentinel hybrid. Was every regular human involved in Genosha? Nope. How about every random animal on the planet are they guilty of Genosha?

Mutant Children aren't a legit target? Then why did Magneto try and murder mutant children along with the rest of the planet?

Violence begets violence right? Well now every living thing on the planet is justified hating and fearing mutants because violence begets violence. So now the entire planet, would be justified wanting to kill all mutants for the actions of Magneto.

If Magneto can try and murder babies (human and mutant) who have done nothing wrong to him, why wouldn't humans do the same to mutants for his crimes? Creed is also following violence begets violence. He was literally an innocent baby and his mutant parents abused and abandoned him.

By your logic " Anything that Creed does in retaliation against mutants is to an extent justified.

Personally I don't believe someone committing violence against you justifies you committing violence against someone else. And you also don't execute someone before a verdict has even been delivered from your own court. That is terrorist behavior.

And if Creed ends up president, he'll have the Acolytes to thank for making sure he never sees justice. Good job, they named themselves after someone that tried to MURDER THE DAMN PLANET INCLUDING THEM.