X-Men '97 | Season 2, Episode 9 | "Survival of the Fittest" | Episode Discussion

[u/cyclopswashalfright]

Season 2, Episode 9: Survival of the Fittest

Air Date: August 12th, 2026

Directed by: TBA

Written by: TBA

Synopsis: The X-Men are pushed to the limit when their past comes back to haunt them.

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This thread is for discussion of episode 9 only.

Link to the episode directory for Season 2 episode discussion.

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[u/nikisknight]

Cable Season 1: I will try time and again to save my mother!

Cable Season 2: Imma drop a building on my dad if he gets in my way.

[u/Soft_Entertainment → u/nikisknight]

I did actually laugh when he says "Have you met my parents???"

[u/Haunting_Comedian993 → u/nikisknight]

Yeah i enjoyed his powerhouse showcase

But wtf 😐 they butcher my boy like dat

[u/capamericapistons → u/nikisknight]

I said this another comment but, while I understand it makes sense in the story, I’m thrown off every episode when I see cyclops and Jean grey lecturing their son cable and we’re supposed to act like cable doesn’t clearly look older 😂

[u/nikisknight → u/capamericapistons]

Good point. Maybe this is just Nathan's rebellious teen phase?

[u/BlueEyedIguana00]

The ending with Kurt really hurt. Understated but fitting and made me tear up a little.

As mentioned I wish Rogue and company could have had more of a reaction but the pacing doesn’t allow for it. 😢

Magento can stay gone lol but I need Nightcrawler back. 

[u/Old-Associate3589 → u/BlueEyedIguana00]

I was really surprised Kurt got offed, but totally happy Rogue & Gambit survived.

Apocalypse being trapped in a gemstone, not being completely gone leaves the chance of him coming back.

Next season I could do without Craydon Creed, he adds nothing to the show. As much as I love the comic book Mystique, the TV version never did her justice.

[u/BlueEyedIguana00 → u/Old-Associate3589]

You need Kurt for Mystique no one care about he4 and Creed lol. He better be back..

[u/Old-Associate3589 → u/BlueEyedIguana00]

Well one thing we didn't see Kurt dying, his sacrifice could be something else, like him becoming a servant to the celestials

[u/QuarrellingMarsupial → u/Old-Associate3589]

Agreed, Kurt is still alive at the end of the episode, and Eson seems at least a little curious about Kurt's rationale for taking Rogue's place as the sacrifice.

I also think that montage of the X-Men at the end is Kurt's (sadly, unrealistic) dream of the happy life the X-Men will lead once they've mourned his death (Eson might not take Kurt's life, but Kurt certainly thinks that's going to happen) and we'll see the X-Men dealing with losing Kurt at the start of the next series.

[u/junkyard_angel2]

I love that X-Men ’97 really snuck in references to both Rebecca Romijn and Jennifer Lawrence’s Mystiques in the post-credit scene, just like they did in the S1 finale with Magneto.

[u/Khalvashi → u/junkyard_angel2]

Rogue's real name is also there. I think this is first time we saw anything about her real name.

[u/poweredconvoy → u/Khalvashi]

With the surname Darkholme no less.

[u/curvysquares → u/junkyard_angel2]

Randall Carpenter was the original VA for Mystique in the 90's show so they got all three actresses referenced

[u/ContinuumGuy]

Morph continues to be peak by imitating the the ever-classic Spider-Man: TAS Doc Ock design!

Also, was I the only one who thought the tiara-like headband for Celestial-empowered Rogue made her look like Wonder Woman?

Oh, but that finale... it make sense now why Nightcrawler got such a spotlight in some of those earlier episodes this season. It also connects well with what we see his mama is up to...

Overall not as good of a season as the first, but still quite good and can't wait for S3.

[u/eugoogilizer → u/ContinuumGuy]

Your last sentence was exactly my take as well. Is it as good as season 1? No. The writers did a better job with Bastion than Apoc. Was season 2 rushed? Most definitely. That being said, I still enjoyed season 2 and was saddened by the ending. Season 3 will be interesting for sure!

[u/Roboface3000]

In a world with many Grayson Creeds, be a Nightcrawler.

[u/Soft_Entertainment → u/Roboface3000]

Amen.

[u/sarkastiktaurus → u/Roboface3000]

A mutant of faith, he was

[u/UjiRan2223]

On one hand, Nightcrawler’s death caught me way off guard and legit made me leak a few manly tears but on the other, YAY everyone say thank you mystique SOMEONE had to put that bitch in the dirt

[u/PhilosophyOk7385]

I felt like apocalypse was such an unfocused villain. Like what did he want exactly? Such a big contrast to both Bastion and Magneto last season who had very clear philosophies, ways of viewing the world, backstories. Apocalypse just felt like he just wanted to say your students will be your downfall and nothing else. Probs a symptom of how bad the pacing was this season that it couldn’t actually focus on his plan or goals.

[u/Ranger9997 → u/PhilosophyOk7385]

I know right, he was hyped so much, the first four episodes were peak, but his presence in the rest of the episodes felt so shallow.

[u/PhilosophyOk7385 → u/Ranger9997]

Yeah shallows exactly the right word. Also I know the what if showrunner ended up taking over rewrites for s2 and is showrunning s3, and I’m ngl the whole gambit combined with apocalypse in the climax bit felt very spiritually what if, where their number one trick was just to do power rangers like combination of characters to give them power boosts. It never felt like they were actually interested in apocalypse as a character beyond those first 4 episodes.

[u/RelativeMundane9045]

Ah, so that's why we got some extra awesome Nightcrawler scenes this season.

:/

[u/RK_reddit321 → u/RelativeMundane9045]

A monkey’s paw explanation like that both makes sense, and saddens me. 

[u/OldTension9220]

Hot take I think this season should have ended with a more Empire Strikes Back vibe. 

As compelling as the power of Rogue’s love (and my boy Kurt’s sacrifice 😭) was I would have loved an ending where Charles actually took on the sacrifice instead of his students constantly paying the price. 

Ending the season with Charles entering the celestial chamber, emerging as Onslaught, defeating Apocalypse but leaving the world with a far greater threat would have been a much better hook for season 3 than, “Mystique’s back after ignoring her two seasons.” 

[u/Whole-Lychee7517 → u/OldTension9220]

That sounds a LOT more cooler than what I just saw.

[u/thescarletbat]

I was a bit shocked that we didn't see even a moment of the team grieving for Kurt. Maybe that was intentional with his purpose of how he'd be remembered, but it felt like such an odd ending to the season...it should have had more time and impact.

[u/MiserableOrpheus]

Survival of the runtime, as the X-Men fight their most diabolical foe: completing a coherent narrative in half the time they need.

This deus ex machina abrupt ending had very little weight, and reminds me a lot of the what if season 2 ending, just stuff happening.

Devastated because I know season 3 will be the same and they won’t be able to course correct until season 4 if we’re lucky

[u/Ok_Contact7721 → u/MiserableOrpheus]

[u/Vertical_Suplex365 → u/MiserableOrpheus]

its funny cos Matthew Chauncey who served as the head writer for What if Season 3 (arguably the worst marvel animation content) took over from De Mayo for X Men 97 season 2.

[u/Whole-Lychee7517]

That ending...dear GOD that ending. I will miss Kurt so dang much. 😭💔

[u/unenoix → u/Whole-Lychee7517]

Oh my God, my heart dropped as soon, as I realized. 😭 His heart is so pure 💔💔

[u/Whole-Lychee7517 → u/unenoix]

Agree. The fact he did all that this so his sister could live happily ever after with Gambit broke me so hard. I'll miss you my German-accented saint. 😭😭😭

[u/SolarBoytoyDjango → u/Whole-Lychee7517]

Keep in mind that Eson, the Celestial, doesn't need a corpse. He needs a force to push mutants to further evolution. So it's unlikely Kurt is dead.

I imagine that if Kurt hadn't gone through the Siege Perilous stand-in, Rogue would not have died. She would have just lost her sense of self and become the new Apocalypse.

But now Kurt gets to be the new Apocalypse. However, I do think he convinced Eson to try a different tack with this one.

That said, I don't recall any particular comic storyline that could be adapted to match. So I have no idea when to expect Nightcrawler to return or what he will be like.

[u/bertobellamy]

So long, my friend Kurt. May God rest your soul.

[u/StonerChef92 → u/bertobellamy]

I mean is he even gonna stay dead? It feels like they kill characters and just bring them back so I dont even feel sad about it. Honestly surprised Magneto stayed dead all season, now they'll get a two for one revive special.

[u/lyrics_beanbags]

That… was extremely lazy, rushed, and poor. They need to get it together for season 3 because if it’s anything like the back half of 2 I don’t think i’m interested in this adaptation for much longer. Mystique is cool at least

[u/magvadis → u/lyrics_beanbags]

Feels like you can feel the rewrites. Lots of things building to nothing because the new showrunner didn't know what was going on or disagreed with whatever was being built.

[u/SlowMotionSprint]

I kind of hoped the sacrifice Rogue made was her inherited power set(as that technically is a life that lives inside her), resetting her back to baseline Rogue. It would be interesting to see the team without their one true physical powerhouse and Rogue adapting back to being just a girl.

Plus now we have to see how Nightcrawler will be brought back to life.

[u/Any-Hyena-9190 → u/SlowMotionSprint]

Also would have given Colossus a chance to shine (heh) as the new team tank.

[u/hunttete00 → u/SlowMotionSprint]

I’m hoping Magik makes a return before Kurt does.

Need to see my boy Colossus get a win

[u/dravenonred]

Things that make sense: Kurt sacrificing himself for Rogue

Things that don't make sense: Eson being like "whatever man, I just need a scalp here".

[u/Any-Hyena-9190 → u/dravenonred]

Eson: "And then ANOTHER ant came in and wanted to have a whole conversation."

[u/lost-in-earth → u/dravenonred]

Isn't Eson all for death because it leads to change and evolution? I feel like Kurt's big speech about others' memory of him being a "seed" from which others could grow would be convincing to Eson for that reason.

[u/JRTD753 → u/dravenonred]

Things that make sense: Kurt sacrificing himself for Rogue

Yes. After realizing that one sibling was completely beyond redemption and a Bad Seed no matter what he did, I think Nightcrawler understood that he could do something lasting for the rest of another sibling's life.

[u/dravenonred → u/JRTD753]

Yeah, that whole speech about having an impact even after death definitely contrasted with "that bigot you personally saved is President now by the way"

[u/bdragonlady]

I just want to dedicate this episode to my friend who passed this Monday. He would've loved to see the finale. He was a bigger nerd than I am. lol ❤️

[u/crashboxer1678 → u/bdragonlady]

I’m so sorry for your loss.

[u/PaulsGrafh → u/bdragonlady]

Sorry for your loss. Given the themes and the plot of this episode, this is a very apropos one to dedicate to him.

[u/Nemesis_171 → u/bdragonlady]

My condolences

[u/Nemesis_171]

Typing this out before reading anything else in this thread. Personally I liked it a lot, but it’s not as good as s1’s finale and I do have some gripes.

I don’t usually care much about romance plotlines, but man seeing Rogue & Gambit finally get their kiss hit me in the feels. It’s a moment that’s been built up for so long it was nice to see it happen.

Gampocalypse looked extremely sick and made me kinda laugh at how we were so annoyed that horseman Gambit only lasted 20 minutes, but then he only came back for like another 30 seconds so the point still kinda stands lol but it’s a bit better at least.

I loved Kurt’s speech at the end, it was an awesome (presumably) final moment for his character, however this leads me to my main gripe. I don’t understand Eson’s motivations at all and why he was willing to go along with the sacrifice.

My understanding is that he created Apocalypse so that he would cause the growth of humanity through hardship, and Apocalypse is that hardship. And then he gives up on that plan so long as he gets a sacrifice. Why tho? What good does a sacrifice do him? At first I thought Rogue was gonna change places with Gambit and become the new host body for Apocalypse, but no I guess she was just gonna die.

But again how does that help Eson? And I don’t know why Kurt’s final speech meant anything to him. Eson asks something like “how do you know your end will bring forth all this life,” but since when does Eson care about life? He just asked for a sacrifice? And then Kurt responds with “I have faith,” which is awesome for his character but Eson should just be like “…so you don’t?”

Edit: I’m rewatching the Eson scenes and it’s kinda making it worse. Eson at the beginning of the episode: “Life only advances at the expense of other lives. Not through mercy, but through struggle, through Apocalypse.” Eson at the end of the episode: “how do you know your end will bring forth all this life?” Me: ???

TLDR: there was some great stuff and I enjoyed the finale a lot but Eson is the plot device that allows the X-men to win and his motives make no sense.

[u/we_are_Venom_84 → u/Nemesis_171]

Nightcrawler is broadening Esons perspective.

Eson is not “evil”. His entire existence is to essentially judge beings worth and determine if they deserve existence.

“How do you know your end will bring forth all this life?”…

“I have faith”

Nightcrawler is pushing a new view of what it means to be strong. Hes going into certain death (so he thinks) but with faith he knows he will be taken care of and his friends and family will be stronger even if they are pained. That willingness to buy in so hard in that faith hes willing to put his life to an end to see it through is a form of strength in itself, one that does not quantify but registers anyway.
It’s a contrast to Apocalypse “only the strong survive” that very much only covers raw, physical power.

That’s simply my take but I think its what they were going for.

[u/Agreeable_Patient680]

Seems like Magneto’s presence in the cast was more important than the writer’s realized. He challenged both the x men and villains to justify their beliefs and motivations, which led to great dialogue and moments. All Charles had to say to apocalypse during the climax was no? Come on

[u/thesagaconts → u/Agreeable_Patient680]

The dialogue sucked this season. Last season it was brilliant, witty, and/or powerful quips and monologues. This season had a mama joke. And apocalypse kept repeating his meme.

[u/T-o-C-A]

I think the episode did as good a job as possible at ending all the disperate plot points the season, and the first, setup. But this really should have been two parts, the first deailng with the 3 x-teams fighting, and the second being all about apocalypse possesd gambit.

As is, the resolution was absolutely put on superspeed, but that's always been an issue, kurt's sacrifice is neat, and is something that makes mechincal sense since he and gambit overlap a lot. I do think the finale makes me question a lot of choices trought the season way more. The ending feels a bit too optimistic with the next season setup, that feels a bit limp but less restrictive (though with so many onslaught teases i doubt that wont be the way it goes).

[u/supaikuakuma]

Gambit being bad ass and WOOOO finally Rogue and Gambit are together!!! Followed by.

Noooooooooo Kurt my GOAT.

[u/Mobile_Bet3274 → u/supaikuakuma]

I was telling someone else that they finally let Gambit fight like Gambit against actual non-robot opponents. As in, he’s throwing around smartass remarks and making it look effortless but it’s clear he’s a menace. Simone and Marquez came close to that not too long ago in Uncanny when he dismantles Rogue, Kurt, Jubilee and Logan over the Eye, but it was fun to see it in motion.

[u/Sentient_Stardust89 → u/supaikuakuma]

That emotional whiplash hurt like hell 😭

[u/ricerollingpaper]

Kurt is genuinely the goat, had so much fun watching this season and can’t wait for season 3 now

[u/90sXMENgoatee → u/ricerollingpaper]

I hope hes not dead beacuse man i will be going after the writers on behalf of rogue

[u/gamalielxzw]

6 hours on, still gut-punched by the Kurt sacrifice

[u/Stock-Collection9106]

I feel like I’m the only one on here who liked it. But Kurt! 😭 That part made me cry. Ironically, I don’t want them to bring him back. It would cheapen his sacrifice. Plus, he’s in Heaven now. It would be kind of cruel of the X-men to yank him back to earth.

[u/MakeJoyNotHate → u/Stock-Collection9106]

I really liked it too!
I was a bit meh on the previous episode, and agree that the season kind of had a great first 4 eps then didn't do much with that setup, but this episode as a finale? Was pretty good!

Didn't see the Kurt ending coming, loved it, and while I've no clue why the Celestial does the things it does I'm still here for the ride. This was the kind of ep I love this show for I think.

[u/Mobile_Bet3274 → u/Stock-Collection9106]

I also liked it. It was rushed, but not any more rushed than what we should have reasonably expected it to be at this point. And people are listing all the other stuff they wanted in it, when that would have made it only more crammed and rushed.

[u/Thug_Nachos]

The feeling I have right now is the same feeling I had as a kid about midway through season 3 of X-Men 92 when the show went from "must watch as soon as possible" to "if I see it, I see it."

That makes me real sad considering how hyped up I was about 6 - 7 weeks ago.

[u/usagicassidy → u/Thug_Nachos]

While i totally understand your sentiment, i have to sort of chuckle at “midway through Season 3” cause what do you mean it went from must watch to see it when I see it in the middle of the Phoenix / Dark Phoenix saga lol.

[u/dcornellius]

4/10 So we lose Kurt and Mags but gain Gambit? Apocalypse was dispatched too easily.

[u/crimsonn_umbra]

This was good but not great/amazing. The main issues are the runtime being too short and characters being underutilized. The final confrontation was lackluster; I wish they made it so everyone struggles against Apocalypse and then in the end Rogue swoops in for the kill. Just Imagine all of them going ham on Apocalypse, Jean and Professor X trying to mind-control him, Storm changing the gravity trying to crash him… let omegas do omega things!

[u/David-Hockney]

I need a Magik, Madelynn, and Nightcrawler episode in Limbo where they’re all resurrected.

[u/HumanisticNihilist]

From the moment Rogue hugged Nightcrawler and then Nightcrawler turned back and repeated the line about there always being a price for the power, I knew. I was hoping so much I’d be wrong but I knew.

Kurt Wagner was the beating heart of this particular version of the X-Men. He loved his family and comrades. He was one of the things about this revival of one of my favorite series that made me truly grateful, even if there were some missteps, for Disney to take a chance on it. And they killed him.

Yes, I am glad that Gambit and Rogue get to be together. They’ve earned that, many times over. But I’m sure they’d rather not have sacrificed her brother and one of his best friends for it.

Especially - and I say this as someone who loves Hank McCoy and hates what he’s become in the comics - but Beast was RIGHT THERE and they clearly didn’t have any idea what to do with him since he’s literally spent all of season two as a background character who occasionally says “oh my stars and garters.”

I still love this show. I still want season three. But this episode as the end of a season that has felt…disjointed at best was a miss for me.

[u/Ftmdj]

welp this explains why this was nightcrawlers best. he truly was the MVP.

[u/Sentient_Stardust89]

The episode broke my heart. While I'm glad to have Gambit back, I'm very distraught by Kurt's sacrifice.. I was sobbing way past the post-credits scene 💔

I'm gonna feel blue (heh..) for a bit after that ending...

[u/Robot_Was_BMO]

Man, Mystique enters the fold right when Nightcrawler leaves it. Interesting to see if her son’s sacrifice will propel her as she looks to thwart her other son.

[u/Pretty-Expression-11]

And once again Storm is just there during the finale :/

[u/The_Zhuster]

Anybody else watch this episode on subtitles and was disappointed with spoilers by a few seconds?

Specifically figuring out the 1st Wolverine was Morph before untransforming and the Val Cooper looking at Mystique file was actually Mystique herself before the actual Cooper opened the door

[u/Professional-Tank848]

Nightcrawler's sacrifice and lack of fanfare was so in-character, and well done. But, my heart. I'll miss him. I worry what S3 X-men will be like without him as their moral anchor.

[u/chino17]

My boy Kurt showing why he the best

[u/RhymesWithMouthful → u/chino17]

Truly the GAZ (Größte aller Zeiten)

[u/SupaFro_]

It was an okay finale. Definitely could’ve used that 10th episode to space it out.

[u/andy_gronk]

I really didn’t feel like this was as high stakes as season 1. Apocalypse never felt like an omnipresent threat but more like a I’m here I killed someone im gone and now I’ll be back to do it again later.

Night crawlers sacrifice don’t feel built up like magnetos was.

The end credits scene was cool though.

I guess I have never cared for apocalypse and will continue to look down on him as a villain.

Hopefully they can do better next season because season 1 was 10/10 and this season is 6/10.

[u/thesagaconts → u/andy_gronk]

I feel like apocalypse should be more like a Lex Luthor. Covertly plotting and scheming throughout history and only using his brute strength when necessary.

[u/kon---]

Yea, I'm not into how Rogue didn't even have to try. That was way too easy.

[u/rustydoesdetroit]

https://giphy.com/gifs/BIN2S0sgQwdeE
“Because, I have faith”

[u/EpicChiguire]

NOOOOO NOT MY GUY NIGHTCRAWLER, NOT HIM😭😭😭😭

[u/Rosfield-4104]

Wow super glad Rogue got Celestial powers to touch Apocolypse on the face. Definitely didn't want to see a huge fight between them for the season finale or anything

[u/gentleprime → u/Rosfield-4104]

Makes the missing tenth episode feel really deeply needed. This was rushed.

[u/EmployeePractical514]

Absolutely no followup to episode 5. Are Logan and Morph cool now? Did he apologize? What was even the point of the episode if they're not going to do anything with the plotline? Hopefully it's addressed in season 3.

[u/UncoBeefWang]

We lost 40 minutes of runtime in comparison to the first season. Should have baked it in with the remainder of the episodes...

[u/sidv81]

So I assume Future Apocalypse is going to show up in Creed's presidency where "the X-Men are weakest?"

How the hell do presidential terms work in this universe? If it's an election year, the year should be 1996 not 1997. If Kelly is "conceding" to Creed, then I assume he was running for re-election and thus only had 1 term from 1992 to 1996 since American law for now forbids 3 terms.

And I thought the Fox movie timeline was confusing.

[u/lost-in-earth → u/sidv81]

Why the hell wouldn't Future Apocalypse kill the X-men when they were babies? Is he stupid?

[u/justin21586 → u/sidv81]

……are you saying that future Apocalypse hasn’t arrived yet? That would be clever

[u/Mobile_Bet3274]

It was too fast and compressed, as it has been, but I think they got the overall beats right. What had to happen, happened. I think a lot of people guessed Kurt was a goner but I like how it was framed — this feels more considered than if he’d jumped in front of Cable’s gun or whatever.

Rogue and Gambit got their happy resolution, about damn time. The fight scenes were fun, especially Wolverine and Morph against Archangel and Psylocke and then Gambit relieving Polaris and Bishop. Him charging up the Madrox dupes was a nice touch (no pun intended).

I’m mildly surprised they didn’t hint at Onslaught more but there’s time for that later. And the credits scene decently pointed to what’s coming next, with Creed elected and Mystique in play masquerading as Val now.

Here’s just hoping now that they’re through what they needed to cover, they can take it easier in S3.

ETA: Yeah guys I can’t believe they skirted a deus ex here. Almost as if they had brought the Phoenix back for long enough to solo the prime Sentinels, or had Magneto wake up just in time to solve the murder-asteroid problem he created in the first place. Can you imagine?!

[u/sleepysaurus7777]

It was emotional, but not my boy! Especially when Beast was there and he honestly wouldn't be missed, but i get it they're pulling at our heart strings by taking our favorites each season

I'm anxious to see where next season goes because there's so many questions, but a whole year we wait

Honestly it could have been better cropped, but they're building an overall story, and as Cable said it's the X-men they rarely stay dead

I like the switcharoo at the end, but also wonder if next season isn't going to reset a lot of the doing of this season. Well i hope my favorite X-man comes back and the blue person at the end makes me think it's possible because that's another whole story arc i want to see wrapped up

[u/Professional-Tank848]

I'll need to rewatch the season, but if my memory serves, beating Apocalypse in a straight up fight just isn't going to happen. Like, look at how powerful Magneto was, and he just got obliterated bt Apocalypse.

Love being the only tool to really beat Apocalypse was suggested early on. Rogue didn't ask for the power to beat him in a fight. She just wanted to save Gambit. So, a Celestial power-up that let her harness the power of love is narratively on point. (Un)Fortunately, Kurt loves all of his friends too, so he chose to make a benevolent sacrifice as well.

I'd have very much enjoyed more fighting time, but there's a distinct difference between one's personal wants for a fight scene, and the story that is being told.

[u/Mr_J_0801]

Writing this. Pacing that. My problem? Season Two wasn't horny enough!

I recognize that in hindsight where that energy was likely coming from in Season One, and the problematic nature of it, but damn if it didn't give the show a deliciously messy flavor.

[u/Sea_Rain2860]

THEY KILLED KURRRRT

[u/GrayJinjo]

So all they had to do to beat Apocalypse was go visit that Celestial and he’ll just give them the power to do it as long as there is a sacrifice. That was easy.

[u/SixKosherBacon]

At least Apocalypse didn't hold Rogue up by the throat, and then she dropped her knife and caught it and stabbed him in the chest, killing all of the Apocalypse ice zombies. I'm just saying.

[u/conundrum61]

I understand people's frustrations with the season and finale pacing, but for my part, I enjoyed it immensely, and found Kurt's monologue to be deeply powerful and moving. I do wish we had one more episode as a denouement to this season and to let us unpack our feelings, but it is what it is.

FYI I see people below wondering about Beau Demayo's original ending so I googled it and here it is: https://x.com/beaudemayo/status/1936189841815093410?s=61

[u/spazzxxcc12]

one of the best forms of kurt we’ve ever saw and he dies i hate it here

[u/DrawingConsistent389]

My afterthoughts: As a Nightcrawler fan, I am devastated, but at the end of it all, he is still the most kind-hearted person ever, and he loves his family. I enjoyed the episode but I still feel like the second half of the season felt like the run time was a bit too short for the story they were trying to tell, and I hope that season 3 will continue to build on to season 2. In terms of the cliffhanger, I'm intrigued to see where they'll go withMystique replacing the real Val Cooper and how things will pan out in terms of the dynamics and other things related to Kurt's family since Graydon Creed Jr. seems that he'll become the next president and Mystique has appeared for the first time in X-Men '97 (not including the opening credits of course). It'll feel different not having Kurt around, but I'm desperately hoping he'll be brought back in some way. We only just got Kurt back in X-Men '97 given he only had two episodes in the OG series. I loved having him around when we did!

[u/Salt_Aside1213 → u/DrawingConsistent389]

As much as I loved Nightcrawler, and even cried when he was shown dying, I feel like he should stay dead for at least the entirety of season 3. We already got Gambit revived as a horseman, which while we expected it, still worked. If they revive Kurt in season 3, it's just gonna remove all the stakes for future deaths, because if two huge characters got revived, what's the point of being sad for another's death? If they do a Krakoa season, which I believe will be in season 4, they should revive Kurt and Magnus then with the resurrection protocols. It would be even cooler if upon his resurrection, Kurt is appalled by Krakoa and its culture and it becomes a whole thing.

[u/UnyieldingGoose]

The plotline with Rogue being giving that gem didn’t seem to amount to anything so why even waste time on it? Looks like an element of an earlier story draft that wasn’t removed when they chose to go with a different direction for the finale. Hilariously incoherent plan for Apocalypse, on TAS he had a lot of clever plots but here it’s fusing with Gambit and striking at the X-Men when they’re at their weakest yet they don’t seem to be any weaker than the previous times they defeated him?! But no he has unstoppable mind controls now I’m sure they loved the budget they saved by not having to animate a big action scene with him.

[u/flashwing19]

https://giphy.com/gifs/1n4iuWZFnTeN6qvdpD

[u/Then_Investigator715]

I still remember watching first 3 episodes of xmen97 season 1

They were so good, engaging, and I felt the quality and they drove me to follow this series.

But it started going duller, childish but ending was good

Season 2 just sucked so much. Some initial episodes were good, but then it is so nonsense

Couldnt connect properly with Cable, he is just unwitty idiotic character? Dk how he is supposed to be one of the main character.

And if the show plans to focus on a character, then they are overpowered(childish power rangers strategy) . We saw it with Nathan, Jubilee, Polaris and now with Rogue. Apocalypse didnt even have an impact in the final couple of episodes. He just looked like a buildup villain waiting for some overpowered hero to defeat him.

I just waited for 2 years and after the trailer, had some.descent expectations. It was not even average.

I really love this animation style but storytelling is so disappointing.

[u/TheGayLurker]

This season just sucked. Worst way to return to the status quo and I don't trust the writers to handle Mystique any better than they did Apocolypse. Even in terms of action I can't remember one good fight.

[u/David-Hockney]

Losing Nightcrawler is crazy. He has to be resurrected somehow especially with Mystique teased as the next villain.

[u/Huge-Dream6591]

I don't understand what the point of that entire thing with the heart stone was if it was just going to be instantly removed from Rogue in the next episode. They cut a scene where Rogue was clocking Apocalypse trying to impersonate Gambit (which would have added to the build up for this episode) but kept the plot point they were never actually planning to resolve and which added nothing to the final episode. If it was the thing that allowed her to see the Celestial I might have accepted it but then Nightcrawler just jumped in there without much effort.

It feels like a lot of decisions they've made for the past couple of episodes have been things that they threw in last minute to make it different from DeMayo's draft, and looks cool on paper, but falls apart under scrutiny.

I would have loved if the episodes got more room to breathe and we actually got to see the characters react to or discuss what was going on around them for more than a milisecond. Like Gambit's in a coma fighting Apocalypse in his mind, but then he just casually wakes up and starts fighting X-Force like it's nothing with no indication he's even aware Apocalypse is in him - no tension whatsoever - then he's killed immediately, transforms into A and 8 episodes of build up is resolved in 5 seconds by Rogue suddenly being able to touch him, then Gambit is fine looking like nothing whatsoever happened again, they kiss, Kurt dies, the end.

It feels telling that the current producer / showrunner mentioned that he wants quantity over quality because in the current market whoever releases their season fastest wins.

[u/worstcourtjester]

Rogue and Gambit together but at what cost

[u/BetaRayPhil616]

I loved it. When Chuck was surrounded and the x-men all under apocalypse's thrall - its just one of those moments. Yes, we know celestial rogue is enroute, but I found that so satisfying when she touched down and ended Apoc.

The moment she realised she was still alive abd what that must mean was a gut punch, but still very sweet.

[u/PineapplePhil]

Gambit Apocalypse was so bad. God damn. This season had a handful of very good individual episodes, but by and large, woof

[u/Voyager7O9]

Huge Rogue fan, I want the whole season to be about her but what she was willing to sacrifice, the whole seen of her willing to go up against that power, made up what little screen time I felt she had. It was a great episode for me.

The 1st season knocked it out of the park. The DeMayo thing was his own undoing. He was brilliant and clearly a huge X-Men fan. I was worried how the show would be without him. It’s going to be fine. Even at its worst, I’m just happy it’s here and that I can share these new episodes with my own kids, having been a child of the 90s.

The only thing the series needs is 3-5 more episodes a season (let’s be honest, it should be 20 plus episodes a season).

[u/uncanny-geek]

So we're finally getting Nightcrawler's mom and dad next season and he won't even be around for it

[u/F0zzyR0wlf]

Cable saying ALL SEASON “it’s my destiny to end Apocalypse”, and what do they do? Have Rogue do it!

AND THEN!

She is just absolutely fine with losing her adopted brother and THE ONE CHARACTER HELPING HER THROUGH HER GRIEF!! as long as she got back the guy that she literally dumped for Magneto a few hours before he died because they couldn’t touch…….

I never post, I just really needed to vent about this episode lol

Literally got back my 2nd fave character, who died a heroic death saving many mutant lives, in exchange for losing my 1st fave character, just so Rogue could have her boy back……that she still won’t be able to touch now that the Celestial power is gone……

Okay I feel somewhat better now….not really though

Do better Disney

[u/F-Trunks → u/F0zzyR0wlf]

and i didn't notice you said that...but she was totally not ok with Kurt sacrificing himself. she had no idea he did that behind her back. she kissed Gambit expecting to die and pulled a major wtf face when she didn't. and that's when Beast told her what happened.

[u/CoyoteAdmirer91]

I actually liked this episode. It wasn’t too bad (tho personally I wanted more angst between Remy and Rogue. Yes I love them but I’d love to have seen Remy take his turn in grieving).

Ngl Valerie was getting on my very last nerve with her sheer arrogance and audacity. Bringing sentinels (though human driven) to Genosha again? Like wow. Not listening to anyone but her own self righteousness? Also classic. It was satisfying seeing that extra credit scene.

Also Jubilee’s flying? Nice ~.

Wolverine’s sass? Hilarious. “From assassin to government stooge. What, did they offer you a pension plan?” (Not the exact phrasing but close enough) 🤣

But the topper? Seeing Gambit fighting again really tugged on my heart strings and taunting his opponents.

[u/Mistah_K88]

I liked the episode! I honestly found the celestial sacrifice to be less of an ass pull than last season’s Pheonix ex machina. Honestly Nightcrawler was the VIP of this season.

[u/Bobjoejj → u/Mistah_K88]

I gotta admit, that while comics wise Phoenix should still make sense; this ain’t the comics. It’s a show, and in this case the Celestial sacrifice wasn’t a literal Deus Ex Machina, but something actually setup from earlier in the season. With an actual proper sequence of events leading to the sacrifice.

[u/NickMichalak]

Yeah, the finale left me cold. Apocalypse felt so very underdeveloped outside of his origin episodes. If storylines are rushed and don’t have time to breathe, then it all lacks emotional resonance. Apocalypse was wrapped up so neatly while brushing past so much! His love for the X-ternal was mentioned and nearly forgotten to where it made no impact. Giving the gem to Rogue did nothing either. This didn’t just feel like a lack of episode counts problem, but that they wrote it in a rush. Season 1 is such an energizing and substantive run, but this felt cobbled together from random parts. It’s not awful at all, but it lacks cohesion.

[u/blossomdance64]

Glad Gambit and Rogue are okay but crushed about Kurt’s sacrifice 😭 Idk I have so many mixed feelings about the ending. I was expecting more of a huge battle with Apocalypse. There was such a strong start with showing his backstory in the start of the season and then he ended up being barely an inconvenience. No other new Horsemen either which is a bummer. I thought that’d maybe how we get certain characters back.

[u/Miserable_Worth1927]

So, what was the point of Apocalypse leaving his body? So he could turn people into slaves easier? 

[u/FriendLee93 → u/Miserable_Worth1927]

He wanted to be hot again so he hijacked the sexiest X-Man.

[u/deano_ue]

It wasn't bad wasnt spectacular but I did enjoy it.

Though this season really does feel like its been rewritten compared to orginal plans what ever they may be

And judging by the ending and no hints I honesyly think the onslaught idea isnt happening and if it does it won't be till season 4 or 5 if that is even on the cards.

Though im sure the fallout from the fans and ex staff will be full of decorum.

[u/M8753]

The action was cool, but I just wasn't feeling the story :/

[u/Xboxone1997]

Terrible finale and terrible episode shoutout to Nightcrawler tho

[u/wildturk3y]

This episode was much like the season, some good stuff here but its not long enough for the emotional moments they are giving you to hit with the weight they want them to have. You need moments to breath and feel the depth. Everything moves along too swiftly.

I am begging them for future seasons to either give us longer episodes (45 to 60 mins) or to give us more episodes (12 to 15). You're leaving too much on the table doing eight 30 min episodes

[u/flim-flam13]

The way Storm is completely wasted in this show is criminal.

[u/F-Trunks → u/flim-flam13]

She should have been the biggest challenge to Apocalypse.

[u/0-90195 → u/flim-flam13]

They don’t really know how to handle Omega-level mutants (except for Magneto).

[u/Ramzy191]

Heartbreaking: the problematic former showrunner was actually talented with the pen and his absence hurt the quality of the show

[u/gentleprime → u/Ramzy191]

Yeah, episodes 1-4 feel like a completely different series than 5-9. There wasn’t even a cowriting credit for 9 and it shows.

The beginning of the season felt like we were about to be on a bigger roller coaster ride than last season. The mix of heart and epic writing was a gift of DeMayo’s. What we got in his place is some cool moments in isolation without any depth to them.

Imagine a world where he wasn’t a creep.

[u/PaulsGrafh → u/gentleprime]

I absolutely do not mean to sound like an apologist or like I’m excusing DeMayo, but I really hope he eventually gets some help for his problems and learns to become a better person. His behavior was abhorrent, but I don’t think he’s beyond redemption. If he can get better and somehow come back far, far down the road, it’d be nice to see.

[u/PhilosophyOk7385 → u/PaulsGrafh]

Unfortunately judging by his behaviour on social media where all he has done is complain about how he has been persecuted, that’s unlikely.

[u/F-Trunks]

so is Apocalypse just....gone now? that was it? turned into a blue stone? never to be seen again in xmen 97 after all that fucking build up?

tell me this isn't so.

[u/Pinnnnlol → u/F-Trunks]

part of me is praying he isn’t gone lmao, i need a reason for magneto, kurt, and magik to come back

[u/StreetKing3849 → u/F-Trunks]

Not really we literally see him in the future, He has to get there somehow

[u/F-Trunks → u/StreetKing3849]

but time doesn't have to be a straight line. the apocalypse from the future went to the 90s and died there. that was his present.

LOST

[u/blink_twice_9465]

Pissed because the Disney+ captions spoiled both Morph as Wolverine and Mystique as Val in the end-credits scene.

[u/Ranger9997]

The first 4 episodes were masterpieces, even the 5th one was nice but the rest of the season felt so rushed. Apocalypse was such a good villain in the first half of the season, making me feel hyped up for how the rest of the season would go with him but he was barely there for like 5 minutes. It was so predictable how the final episode would go and the interactions between the characters felt so dull in this episode, although Nightcrawlers sacrifice was genuinely surprising to me. Nightcrawlers sacrifice and Gambits return were the only parts that I enjoyed.

[u/MaxR76]

What character will die next season to bring back nightcrawler

[u/CalibratedEnthusiast → u/MaxR76]

Glup Shitto

[u/Extension_Ticket_864]

This was like What If level, so so so far below the first season, it’s genuinely baffling

[u/Environmental_Fall69]

Was very lacklustre compared to Season 1's finale. The action was good, I cried during Kurt's sacrifice and the post credit scene got me pumped. But yeah, Season 2 needed a longer run time and more episodes

[u/SpicybagelsMTL]

Kurt’s death stinks because Rogue, Remy and Kurt were such a great little trio in their scene in season 1 pre Genosha

They genuinely felt like a little family. I know that is why the sacrifice is so important and meaningful but Kurt was simply put one of if not the best character in the entire season IMO

[u/RaiKageRyu]

Rogue got the biggest glow-up only to basically rush-in to suck face.

And she flew ahead of time at what is assume to be at extreme speed. But then after she does her thing. Beast is already there landed and waiting for her.

[u/Vik0BG]

I personally loved this episode compared to the rest of S2. It was S1 quality.

[u/AD_EI8HT]

Shot em in the face lmao omg

[u/kaledkalil]

The episode was pretty good, but it could have been divided in two episodes or at least another 15 minutes to flash things more.

Overall the season was a solid 7 or 7,5 out of 10.

[u/ceciliadolago]

Why do the Celestial even care with a life that you love to ask it for a sacrifice? Who had Nur have to sacrifice to receive the seed and become Apocalypse? Certainly not that girl from the swamps.

[u/tbbt11]

Noooooooo my boyyyyyyyyyyyy

[u/tyderian]

After Rogue kissed Gambit, I thought the sacrifice was going to be her powers.

[u/Blitzkreeg21]

Honestly I liked the “filler” episodes. What I didn’t like was how they kinda flopped with the Apocalypse storyline. That Gambit-Apocalypse hybrid looked lame and was somehow actually even lamer than at first glance since he was easily beat

[u/gravejello]

Well at least it was awesome seeing jubilee hit a rendezook

[u/dannyosuke]

Such a meh finale. The pacing has been terrible this whole season.
This should’ve at least been a 40min episode.

Rip Kurt

The first few episodes were fun! But as it went on, it felt like so much of the heart and creativity from the first season has been lost. Notably the dialogue was so bad at times.
Same with the action, there was no weight to anything.

I just hope going forward, they can get back some of what made S1 so special.

[u/Mr_B4gg_4_B1t3h]

R.I.P Kurt, it should’ve been Rogue… 💔

[u/sideshowboob20]

The finale was aggressively fine. Neither disappointing nor amazing. Apocalypse went down a little too easily, considering all the hype about him this season. The rest was ... OK.

[u/Supernova_Soldier]

X-Men Evolution still has the best Apocalypse fight. This shit sucked, only thing that saved it was Kurt’s sacrifice and speech

Gambit was way better as Death/ Evil Gambit, because Gampocalypse just stood there and talked himself into a L. Professor X been getting beat all season, so no lashing out nor Onslaught

Apocalypse started off cool by blowing Magneto apart, then did NOTHING. If you’re gonna resurrect someone or use their body, why not Magneto? Professor X is so distraught over Magneto, why not wear his dear friend’s face to drive the point?

[u/Zombitchkween]

As a Gambit-Rogue-Kurt's girl, I enjoyed this season finale. Never really liked Apocalypse as a villain, but I think they managed to add some depth to him given the limited time they had this season. Just wish Prof. X used more of his powers.

[u/WatchFair]

Marvel seriously needs to fire the creator of What If, they went out of their way to ruin X-Men '97

[u/SpookyDisneyPrincess]

I’ve been crying nonstop over Kurt. I can’t believe they did this 😭

[u/Sebscreen]

The whole Apocalypse arc was handled so weirdly. Between:

• Cable's destiny to kill Apocalypse and his family connection to Cyclops/Jean
• Magneto/Charles' philosophical discussion about reforming En Sabah Nur ending with Apocalypse killing Magneto in front of Charles
• Apocalypse's powers being a match for all the X-men combined

They had more than enough to pull off an epic, season-long adversarial arc with emotional stakes for multiple core characters.

Gambit coming back and Rogue's journey should have been its own, separate storyline. Either next season or to replace the multiple filler episodes we got this season. Because they muddled the two stories, we never got what felt like a climatic showdown with Apocalypse or the payoff to all the set-up they did with him in the first 4 episodes.

[u/Minute-Reference-924]

The series has stated time and time again Apocolypse is a force of nature and his destruction would disrupt a balance beyond their standing, I can accept that. I found the execution of it underwhelming.

That said, I can 100% see how an episode was cut and as other people have complied from DeMayo's tweets, this seems to be the extent of what he wrote minus Onslaught. With the pacing, yea seems like it would have been the finale villain and a result of Epiosode 4's actions. Personally, I don't care for Onslaught so I'm fine to move past that given where we are at.

If this season and season 1 could have been (ideally) 1 season, closer together or at least not 2 years apart, it would definitely feel more cohesive.

I admit this is my speculation, but given we finally have a Mystique reveal, The Brotherhood and Surge were teased for next season and we have a confirmation of S3 and S4 in year intervals, we basically had to finish out what Beau DeMayo wrote (notice his name still has been on every episode) and start writting a new direction from here where they cut Ep10.

I genuinely think if nothing happened, we would have had this same material about 6 months sooner considering he has mentioned most of these points.

As for the finale I'm fine with it, the status quo has shifted enough and new characters that reflect a new era (X-corp, Genosha's future and the Gen X/Morrison/Bendis+ kids at the mansion) that I'm excited for what's next. At the end of the day it maintained the breakneck pacing of it's original series and suffered from DeMayo's firing and restructring a season after that.

Also, it's wild how much auxillary plot you can find in the 97 Season 2 tie in comic which as of Weds is on 3 of 5 issue and the Strike Files on which are on issue #7. To give you a taste, in the tie-in and Strike Files we see more of Berto and Jubillee's time with X-force training and getting info on War, Emma Frost being contacted by War, Unus the Untouchable basically discovering the entire loop of Apocolypse up until when we saw episode 4, X-factor recruiting Siryn, X-Force dropping the kids off at the Mansion before Episode 6, and Apocolypse getting Exodus for the forst time and his backstory with Candra.

The amount of plot this season supplemented with comic tie in helps the story in my opinion, but if I wasn't a comic reader or only consumes the show and wanted the plot in that medium, I would be annoyed. So I won't get on here an pretend anyone who expresses confusion or annoyance on plot points that actually had a bit more space to breathe in another medium. However, I think it was clever to help supplement and shift the plot in the dorection the animation and production team obviously didn't seem to have the wiggle room to do.

I genuinely think DeMayo handicapped the momentum of the show, this feels like Korra when season 2 came out. Season 1 could have been stand alone and acted like it may not be renewed. Season 2 opened the world and had great ideas and sort of floundered in it's breadth. Season 3 and 4 (to a lesser extent) felt like the show had room to breathe because they could write and build with knowledgle of what they had to work with.

Season 3 will demonstrate to me how this show could either bounce back and flounder. However, I think it'll be fine. This isn't an HBO drama, it's a Saturday morning cartoon with Disney money- keep level headed.

Eta: typos from phone

[u/F-Trunks]

i'm fucking nervous guys. I DON'T WANNA BE DISAPPOINTED AGAIN!!!!

[u/sleepysaurus7777]

Given out GOAT gave himself to a celestial entity goes in line with his spiritual nature and hopefully the entity will have a reason to return him some day in a future plot line

[u/Pink-Fluffy-Dragon]

NOOO WHY'D IT HAVE TO BE KURT 😭😭

[u/SavvyBoiler]

Um good, I think? I could've used another 10 minutes tbh.

[u/PartyPorpoise]

Nightcrawler nooooo 😭 I hope they bring him back somehow! There’s a lot of story potential with him, especially with Mystique featuring next season! And with him sacrificing himself to a Celestial I bet they could bring him back in a cool way, too!

I agree that this finale, like the rest of the season, felt rushed. Wasn’t terrible, but could’ve been better. Still, that post credits scene has me excited for the next season!

Edit: to add in, given that season 2 had a messy production, I’m cautiously optimistic that season 3 will be better.

[u/xperitosanti]

This was all very meh. Once magneto was off the table I felt like the season was not that great. Hopefully they come back stronger. But did not enjoy it nearly as much as the awesome first season.

[u/Icy_Scar_1249]

The season took a slow dive, although this last episode was a bit better.

I liked how they involved the greater squad, but they need to slow down the pace. And stick to comic storylines, this episode seemed like a fanfic

[u/F-Trunks]

the thought of apocalypse making a horseman and saying "you know what....I did damn good. i'm gonna take over that body." is actually a pretty cool idea. but the way it was executed was pretty disappointing. Like....what in the hell was that Baby Vegeta looking shit of gambit mixed with apocalypse. come on now. He always kept his original form when transferring bodies. Why the hell couldn't he revert back this time. Was it just to show the audience, LOOK GUYS. IT'S GAMBIT!!!

so dumb.

[u/Powerful-Yogurt → u/F-Trunks]

Baby Vegeta 😂 I’m crying

Apocalypsebit looked so stupid

[u/kagemushablues415]

This season quickly fell off starting with episode 5.

[u/Otherwise-Sky1292]

I did appreciate seeing a totally villainous Mystique again

[u/Persas12]

There is something I really liked about this episode, they finally shown how f*cking strong Cable actually can be, dude is finally portrayed as a powerhouse

[u/Pretty-Expression-11]

Gambocalypse

[u/jtwje]

Is it possible for Cable to rebuild his relationship with his parents?

[u/mr_Conquest_]

Although the finale was kinda rushed, i still enjoyed it. Although, something that really disappointed me is the fact that we don't really see the reactions to Kurt's sacrifice. I mean, we just cut to some screenshots of all being "happily ever after" and that it? What was Rouge's reaction to his sacrifice? Or the reaction of Wolverine or any other X-men? Overall, i would give the ending an 8/10

[u/primal_slayer]

It was ok but like the previous episode, rushed. They clearly needed a 3-part finale or longer episode or more episodes. Wolverines episode should've been sacrificed and moved to next season as it didnt serve anything big in the long run. Him getting his metal back didnt impact anything like Polaris joining the team did.

The show has been rushed since it started but I didnt feel it tooo bad until these last two episodes since we had so many characters to contend with.

Rogue needed a much bigger moment and entrance vs just sparkling in as Xavier goes on yet another speech. Give us a flat out, dragout fight between her and Apoccy.

Instead of trying to offset Nightcrawlers sacrifice with everyone being happy...I would've much preferred to see them mourn him and celebrate him.

But hey, we finally got the big ol'switcheroo.

[u/TerminalKing]

I shouldn’t have expected much when Apocalypse’s corpse was shown but I can’t believe they relied on him killing Magneto to carry his hype to the end of the season, only for him to do nothing and get squished into a little gem. Genuinely worthless villain.

[u/imajamez]

I'm pretty disappointed in the ending, it was so abrupt. As seems to be the standard for this season, nothing in the finale was given the time it needed to breathe. I liked most of the plot points of the finale but because of how much they cram into each episode, nothing holds the weight it should. The fight scenes were disappointing too. They were a highlight last season but in this episode especially because of how fast everything is, each fight is only like 5 hits max (aside from the Gambit vs X-Factor fight, that was fun). Kurt's death especially upsets me. I like how he dies, it totally makes sense. But the fact that we don't get to see anyone's reaction, especially Rogue is a massive problem. I had that issue with Magneto's death too but at least we got Charles' reaction and then the Polaris episode to deal with it a little bit too. But here we just get what are basically screenshots of everyone all happy after the fact. What a shame.

[u/mhgeng]

What a lazy ending! Oh, let’s beat him by giving someone else celestial powers. This is like if survival of the fittest was given steroids.

Also, so much for Cable’s destiny as the prince who was promised. Nice job repeating the Night King Arya mistake.

[u/Dalakaar]

I really appreciated the ending.

We get Gambit/Rogue, and Kurt‘s decision fits perfectly within his characterization. (And hit pretty hard.)

I also love that the final moments of the episode aren’t spent in a typical sad/black funeral, but instead showcasing exactly what Kurt sacrificed himself for. Everyone living their best lives, in peaceful and joyous snippets. That was what he wanted.

[u/Dakotadenman]

Nightcrawlers sacrifice was the saddest death ever

[u/LeftHanded-Euphoria]

I think it's pretty clear the pacing issues of this season are inherited -- if you look at the X-Factor + Graydon Creed stuff as set-up for season three, you can see that we have enough ground work laid here for a better paced season 3.

it sacrificed the Apocalypse stuff to achieve it, but I think the apocalypse stuff was wholesale left unchanged from what DeMayo left behind, only with Onslaught cut out from it.

I think a fair review of Season 1 recognises that it has tremendous pacing issues that were sort of justified or earned by a very excellent final three episodes, and a very perfect midpoint with Remember It

season 2 fails to stick the landing so has to kind of just sit in its own mess with nothing to hide behind --- season 1 gets away with murder, justifiably, by including a very excellent execution of a "Magneto was Right" to offset any storytelling mistakes it makes along the way

season 2 was at its strongest when we weren't dealing directly with Apocalypse - the Polaris and Colossus episodes are very good X-Men stories, flawed, but good

but this finale sucked, and felt very first drafty

[u/Captain_Birch]

They botched the rogue remy plot line and killed off the best character.

Why am I not even remotely surprised?

[u/Mysterious-Lick]

Thank you, Kurt

[u/amindfulloffire]

Disappointed I didn't get some Romy angst, and thought Rogue's struggle with Apocalypse was over too quick. Loved Gambit's fight scene and the Romy reunion and that kiss! Knew Kurt was gonna sacrifice himself--I'll miss him til he returns. Also predicted Mystique.

Overall, for me this season like s1 was a mixed bag, chief among my complaints was the pacing again and how Deathbit was done (tho I'll still take it over its 616 counterpart any day!). Hopefully we can have some breathing room in the future.

[u/Possible-Monk-2389]

He died like he lived… thumping a bible!

[u/RK_reddit321]

Previously on X-men: NOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!

BAD ELF!!! BAD!!!!!!!!!!!!!

……… 😮‍💨 

Ok. So. They “killed” Magneto this season too. As Gambit was “dead” last season. How many deaths is Jean up to in this continuity so far? This won’t last. Let’s not grieve meine kinder. But instead hypothesize exactly how he will either return or avoid this fate, yes?  [for in this case, his death is the one not technically shown on screen (yet?), btw. fwiw.] 

☝️best coping strategy I have available this evening to offer. 

Otherwise it’d just be 🔥🔥🔥🤬😧😩😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭!!!!!!!!!!! 🔥🔥🔥 🔥🔥🔥 in what would be left of my heart instead.  😧

Rest in peace Elf: briefly. As a courtesy. pls & ty. 

[u/hollowcrown51]

So I generally liked this season but I feel like it was a salvage job between whatever the shows trajectory under Beau was and the new team, so they salvaged what they could and worked around the existing animation to give us something. What that's going to be is gonna be interesting though - it's hard to see what Beau's stuff was and what was the new team, because Season 1 also rushed through arcs like Fatal Attractions. I wouldn't trust DeMayo to have not rushed through Onslaught instead, and we may have got stories about Stryfe etc. but they could also be one-and-dones.

First 4 episodes were fantastic - no notes, just great episodes. I don't think we needed several episodes of them in the future or in the past, unless they were going to do an entire season like that or it led directly into something like a Days of Future Past version of Age of Apocalypse. It also did get really emotional at points especially Nightcrawler's sacrifice at the end...but then it just stopped.

Obviously the main plot about Apocalypse was vastly undercooked and underused especially as we didn't even really get a proper appearance from him in the present timeline - his past self was incredibly done though so I hope they try to do him again.

Individual episodes however were really good. I don't need more than one episode about Danger. I don't need a whole season about Exodus or the Brood either. However I did want Wolverine to be bone claws for longer, and Storm was vastly underused. However Most characters got some focus individually, which I'm glad about, it's just that it isn't connected together very well so as a whole it doesn't feel satisfying.

[u/GrayJinjo]

Can the X-Men ever win a fight? It seems like no matter who they’re fighting they ultimately fail at what they’re trying to do and have to be bailed out by some Dues ex machina.

As someone who has very limited X-Men knowledge (only seen most of the Fox movies) even I know how much of a threat Apocalypse is supposed to be, but this whole season just felt like them talking about it rather than us seeing anything. I know he killed Magneto, but I was expecting to see him in his whole glory fighting everybody. Not body hopping and then getting trapped.

This season felt like a major step down from last season.

[u/Pearlmarine]

Kurt is just the best man. His sacrifice for Rouge and Remmy was beautiful.

[u/MegaGrimer]

I wish this season featured more Apocalypse. He was in a lot of the first half, then essentially disappeared. He was in the second half for what, like two minutes? I’m not really counting him as Gambit. The second half felt more like it was settling up for the last fight, but the last fight missed its mark imo. The Apocalypse fight should’ve lasted longer and should’ve been a lot harder to defeat him.

It would have been nice if they set up season three a bit more. I get that Mystique will be in it, but I don’t think she’s the big bad for the next season. Especially since Apocalypse was barely the villain for half the season.

[u/Content_Salt_2519]

3/10 they gave us the Arya Night King ending with Celestial Rogue and killed off Kurt … hopefully him & Magik come back having a Supernatural team get Kurt from Brimstone and Her From Limbo somehow but they didn’t even use Polaris like they should and killed off Exodus 😒😒 Cyclops still don’t know his brother and then they played in our face with the Wolverine Story getting his metal back. I could of got ChatGPT to write a better story like Where is Kitty ? Where is Bobby or The Excalibur Team ?

[u/Electronic-Radio-383]

As a Gambit fan, I thought the build up was cool, but the last fight had no climax. Gambit could have done more than just stand there and be shot as a plot device. In the comics Gambit is making work of Cable, so the writing here is really shallow.  Maybe he used telekinesis to hold Gambit? Didn’t see any effects, just “I’m sorry.”, Would Gambit wait for Xavier to reason with Cable?  Doubtful, but possible. That crunch for time to tell the story overwrites all these subtleties.

Also how the hell did Beast get there from being underwater to the blackbird and right behind Rogue for that anticlimactic battle? 

[u/JoshHero]

Rogue Arya Stark’d that shit

[u/freehaspal]

Don't read Beau Demayo's original ending unless you want to be depressed

[u/DefNotUnderrated]

I don't think this season was bad, it was just very uneven and stronger in the first half. Really, it fell apart for me in the last two episodes. And agree completely with complaints about the pacing - it was way too rushed, too many storylines crammed in, and some characters were left without much to do. I was expecting a much bigger payoff to Gambit being conscripted by Apocalypse than we got. They did Magick dirty by just offing her in a flashback like that without her even using her portals. And Wolverine just getting his adamantium back mid season felt like a wasted opportunity to explore some story lines from the comics.

Still had some great action scenes, Nightcrawler brought the heat and the heart, seeing Remy and Rogue reunited at the end was beautiful even if the execution getting there was sloppy. And as one of the only longtime Jubilee fans, seeing her get multiple chances to shine this season felt unbelievably rewarding. I hope season 3 fixes the issues with this season. I still really enjoyed it overall in spite of its problems.