This article contains heavy spoilers for X-Men ’97 Episode 5.
X-Men ’97 has put into motion one of the most devastating storylines in X-Men history. E for Extinction was one of the most critically acclaimed runs of the X-Men, under the penmanship of Grant Morrison, who was brought over to Marvel thanks to his high-profile work with DC to revitalize the X-Men comics in the early 2000s.
Episode 5 of X-Men ’97 saw the inciting incident of the storyline, massacring the population of Genosha with the ‘Godzilla’ sentinel as the nation works towards being admitted into the UN. Heavily leaning in on its TV-14 rating, the series is ready to bleed its protagonists and slay as many mutants as it wants to tell a compelling story.
The Original Story featured Cassandra Nova as the main antagonist of the X-Men
Cassandra Nova is the evil twin of Charles Xavier who was hellbent on destroying his life in every way possible. If Nova is indeed behind the attack on Genosha and is shaping up to be the antagonist of the season, the point of interest shifts toward the fact that the character is also slated to be the main antagonist in the MCU’s upcoming feature-length debut of the mutants with Deadpool & Wolverine.
However, the way that the show is progressing towards more human antagonists, unless the show is directly tied up with the MCU, it is unlikely that Cassandra Nova would be the antagonist of the show. Perhaps this could be Trask’s doing, finishing off what he started via some henchmen that he has on the outside.
The fact that Cable appeared from the future to warn the X-Men points towards something more akin to Days of Future Past, which had been adapted by X-Men: The Animated Series during its original run. Writer and creator of the show Beau DeMayo compared the attack on Genosha to tragedies like 9/11 and the Tulsa Massacre:
My plan was the first half of the season is the OG audiences pre-9/11 days, rife with nostalgia and comfort. Then 9/11 — like Tulsa and other mass tragedies — turned the world upside down and reminded us the whole world unsafe…
— Beau DeMayo (@BeauDemayo) April 10, 2024
It is possible that the attack on Genosha is simply an extension of the battle that we saw at the beginning of the season between the X-Men and the Sentinels, which could spiral into an all-out war between Human and Mutant factions. We already know, thanks to a teaser released by Marvel, that Captain America will be making an appearance in the story, which could lead to an Avengers vs. X-Men-type scenario.
If there is a war, who could lead the mutant faction?
For all reasons and purposes, it is possible that Magneto is dead for good in X-Men ’97. However, if the former mutant rebel has survived, it would mean that Magneto will wage a war against humanity unlike anything it has seen. However, there are some other potential leaders of an all-out Mutant Rebellion.
Cyclops has found himself radicalized multiple times, even leading Beast to get his past self to the future so that he may confront himself. Emma Frost famously develops her secondary mutation after the fall of Genosha, joining the X-Men and eventually developing a more radical faction.
While it is hard to believe that Magneto might actually be dead, the leadership of the X-Men would not fall to Cyclops, who would be carrying forward Magneto’s mission rather than Professor X’s. Another faction could rally towards the chosen mutant queen of Genosha, Rogue, who, having lost both Magneto and Gambit, could be on a war path against the humans who could have caused the attack.
X-Men ’97 can be streamed on Disney+.
