X-Men ’97 “Rise of Apocalypse: Part 2” Review

Hey, hey, Geekly Gang! This post is our fourth post of the day. Fourth! That’s coconuts. We’ve watched the first four episodes of X-Men ’97 season 2 and have shared our thoughts on each episode. This post will only cover “Rise of Apocalypse: Part 2.” If you’re interested in reading what we had to say about the previous episode, “Rise of Apocalypse: Part 1,” check out that post here. Let’s get into the climax of Apocalypse’s story: “Rise of Apocalypse: Part 2.”

X-Men ’97 is officially the best X-Men adaptation. I don’t think it’s up for debate. Sure. One may like any number of the Fox X-Men movies. Logan may still be the greatest Wolverine story told on camera. The original X-Men: Animated Series also did a great job of bringing Marvel’s mutants to the small screen. But “Rise of Apocalypse: Part 2” is the moment X-Men ’97 leaves no doubt that it is the definitive X-Men adaptation, like the entire X-Men team. I held off saying this for a few episodes, but this entire season (and the one before it) does a great job of articulating each mutant’s desire and viewpoint of life. And that’s the crux of X-Men. Numerous mutants have similar goals, but they pursue those goals in different ways, causing friction.

By this point, Magneto has joined Xavier’s non-violent vision wholesale, but he remembers a time when he tried to solve conflicts with violence and can empathize with En Sabah Nur. Rogue, who has some amazing scenes in this episode, envisions a world where the Genosha attack (from Season 1) didn’t occur, and Remi (Gambit) won’t die, so her end goal of turning En Sabah Nur peaceful aligns with Magneto’s. And this is just one strand of the web X-Men ’97 weaves. Most characters have similar goals but different means or similar means but different goals. “Rise of Apocalypse: Part 2” is a master class in character development.

But wait, there’s more. Yes. I deliberately wanted to sound like a salesperson there. We’re entering spoiler territory here. You’ve been warned. X-Men ’97 also managed to throw in some fan service. The mid-credit scene shows Wolverine reuniting with Captain America and Black Widow, reimagining the classic Uncanny X-Men #268 cover. Wait! Comic books only cost a $1 in 1990. Ah! I wish that were still the case. Weapon X intrigue is sure to ensue. I can’t wait. Before then, “Rise of Apocalypse: Part 2” reveals who Rama-Tut really is. Kang. Yes! I knew this twist would come, and I’m glad X-Men ’97 stayed true to the source material. We haven’t seen much in the way of Marvel Animated Universe (MAU) shows crossing over, but there’s a chance Kang could return in a different MAU series. The Marvel Cinematic Universe failed to deliver on Kang’s promise. Fingers crossed that Kang will get a better adaptation. And there’s Candra.

Candra is the Egyptian woman Rama-Tut speaks to as he makes his escape to the future he’s molding in his image. Candra has ties to Gambit. When Rama-Tut says, “Fear not, your destiny starts today, for his power can only be challenged by a force that is external.” Ah. John de Lancie is a treasure. He’s going to make a great MAU Kang. Anyway, Candra is an External, an immortal subset of mutants. She becomes the God of Thieves, so a clear tie with Gambit. X-Men ’97 is pitch perfect.

The show continues in the footsteps of the original X-Men: Animated Series by not being afraid to sideline or kill fan-favorite characters. Alright, the next bit is a huge spoiler. If you haven’t yet watched “Rise of Apocalypse: Part 2,” you should skip to the next paragraph. Apocalypse atomizes Magneto. X-Men ’97 shows as much as it can, mostly through the horrified look on Charles’s face and the reflection in his eyes. Brilliant!

X-Men ’97 hasn’t spared viewers of classic and potentially gory details of the X-Men’s past. Last season, viewers were treated to Magneto stripping the adamantium from Wolverine’s skeleton. This show goes as far as it can with its visuals, while remaining true to the original X-Men: Animated Series. I can’t wait to see where the show goes next. I mentioned season two building up toward the Age of Apocalypse storyline. I had my doubts if X-Men ’97 would do the storyline justice. I no longer have those doubts. X-Men ’97 and Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man serve as excellent cornerstones of the Marvel Animated Universe. The MAU is on a roll.

Those are my thoughts on X-Men ’97 “Rise of Apocalypse: Part 2.” Let’s hear Season’s thoughts.

Season’s Take

Wow. Just wow. “Rise of Apocalypse: Part 2” is an emotionally mixed cliffhanger to leave on until next week. I loved “Rise of Apocalypse: Part 2.” En Sabah Nur becoming Apocalypse was inevitable. I know. I’m stating the obvious. I loved the way X-Men ’97 handled Apocalypse’s origin story. Brilliant.

I won’t rehash the details, but the pacing in “Rise of Apocalypse: Part 2” was amazing. It did a great job of picking up where “Rise of Apocalypse: Part 1” left off. If this is the definitive storyline of the MAU, that’s cool with me. I haven’t read the comic Rise of Apocalypse, but I’m unsure what kind of outcome I’m hoping for this storyline. I really want to see Kang again. He is pure evil personified.

Hey, hey! Kyra Kyle here again. Those are our thoughts on X-Men ’97: Rise of Apocalypse: Part 2.” What are your thoughts on “Rise of Apocalypse: Part 2?” Let us know in the comments. Thank you for reading, and wherever you are, I hope you’re having a great day.

X-Men ’97 “Rise of Apocalypse: Part 1” Review

Hey, hey, Geekly Gang! Kyra Kyle here again with a third post. We’re back for a third installment of X-Men ’97. This post will cover the third episode of X-Men ’97’s second season, “Rise of Apocalypse: Part 1.” If you’d like to see Geekly’s thoughts on X-Men ’97 season two’s previous episodes, you can find them here: “Days of Past Future” and “A Force to Be Reckoned With.” I’ll kick off this post with my thoughts on X-Men ’97 season two, “Rise of Apocalypse: Part 1.”

Kyra’s Take

Oh my! I can see why X-Men ’97 released three episodes during its opening event. Each episode showed what our three sets of intrepid mutants are up to since the end of season one. “Days of Past Future” took us to the future, where Cyclops and Jean Grey reunite with their son, Nathan (Cable). “A Force to Be Reckoned With” brought us back to the present day (the Nineties) and what’s occurred since the X-Men disappeared. But the third episode (“Rise of Apocalypse: Part 1”) delivers on season one’s cliffhanger. And it also ends with yet another cliffhanger, but we’ll get to that in a minute. When I saw X-Men ’97’s release schedule, I originally thought Marvel wanted to drop as many episodes before Spider-Man: Brand New Day’s release date. Spider-Man’s next cinematic installment could’ve played a factor, but X-Men ’97 made the right decision to release the first three episodes of season two. Anything less would’ve felt incomplete.

I’m sure some viewers waited for X-Men ’97 to show the goods, revealing Apocalypse’s origin, and X-Men ’97 sure does deliver. “Rise of Apocalypse” gets its story from the comic book mini-series of the same name. We’re going to Ancient Egypt. I like how Magneto tries to rewrite mutant history by guiding En Sabah Nur (Apocalypse’s original name) toward a path of peace. This continues the dynamic between Magneto and Charles Xavier from the previous season. The two have a tenuous truce. They may both want the same thing (peace between humans and mutants), but they have very different means to accomplish this goal. Classic.

X-Men ’97’s showrunners know their characters. I had my doubts when the show was first announced several years ago, but X-Men ’97 has exceeded my most optimistic expectations. The new series maintains everything the original X-Men: Animated Series built, while working toward something new and exciting. The show has built up characters like Cable and Jubilee. “Rise of Apocalypse: Part 1” does the same for Apocalypse. He was already one of the X-Men’s most impressive foes. X-Men ’97 season two looks to humanize him. And watching Magneto try and teach Apocalypse a path to non-violence showed how much he’s grown. His actions end the way one might think they would (he fails), but I love how Magneto tries to reach Apocalypse. He notices they aren’t that different.

I don’t want to get into too many spoilers with these posts. Needless to say, the X-Men attempt multiple times to find their way to their timeline and fail. Tensions rise. And we’re left with another cliffhanger. Since “Part 1” is included in the episode’s title, “Rise of Apocalypse: Part 1” sets up the following episode, which we’ll cover later today. I’ve been writing these reviews/reactions as soon as I finish one episode. I haven’t yet watched “Rise of Apocalypse: Part 2,” but X-Men ’97 has my full confidence. I love the direction the Marvel Animated Universe has taken. I’ve been more excited about X-Men ’97 and Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man’s second seasons than most of the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s offerings this year. I can’t wait to watch the next episode.

Those are my thoughts on X-Men ’97 “Rise of Apocalypse: Part 1.” Let’s see what Season thinks.

Season’s Take

As soon as En Sabah Nur said, “He was not fit to live,” I shouted, “You are not worthy.” I really hope En Sabah Nur says that in “Rise of Apocalypse: Part 2.” He has to finish the quote. It’s a requirement. Side note: Apocalypse looks good with long, wavy hair. He should bring that back.

I appreciated the tender moments between Magnus and Charles in “Rise of Apocalypse: Part 1.” Magnus wanting to try things Charles’ way was endearing. Something tells me it won’t last when they inevitably part ways, but I hope we get to see more of these moments in X-Men ’97. “Rise of Apocalypse: Part 1” was very human.

Hey, hey! Kyra Kyle here again. Those were our thoughts on X-Men ’97: “Rise of Apocalypse: Part 1.” What are yours? Let us know in the comments. Thank you for reading, and wherever you are, I hope you’re having a great day.

X-Men ’97 Season 2 “A Force to Be Reckoned With” Review

Hey, hey, Geekly Gang! This is our second of four planned posts today. Four posts in one day? Yikes! X-Men ’97 graced us with three episodes last week–we’re still catching up on those episodes–and a fourth episode dropped this week. If you want to read our review of the previous episode, “Days of Past Future,” you can check that out here. In this post, we’ll only discuss the events of “A Force to Be Reckoned With.” I’ll kick things off with my thoughts.

Kyra’s Take

“A Force to Be Reckoned With” may have done the near impossible. It made Jubilee cool. Seriously. Her breakout scene, near the end of the episode, catapulted her into one of X-Men ’97 season two’s better characters. And that’s saying something. But I’m getting ahead of myself. X-Men ’97: A Force to Be Reckoned With” didn’t need as much setup as the previous episode. The episode’s title originates from X-Force, which is famously Cable’s team from the Nineties, and how they fight for mutant freedom against X-Factor, a government-sanctioned team of mutants. The power struggle between these two teams is comic book accurate and excellent.

Neither team embodies the X-Men. X-Factor is a government lapdog; they’re an extension of the mutant registration program. And Cable assembled X-Force to take down Apocalypse by any means necessary. He doesn’t care as much about human-mutant relations and mutant freedom, and this gets me back to Jubilee. She joins Cable’s side of the aisle because it’s closer to the X-Men’s ideals.

When she has a chance, Jubilee frees mutant children held captive by X-Factor. I want to take a moment and take note of the volume of various lesser-known mutants held captive in X-Factor’s helicarrier and/or shown during “A Force to Be Reckoned With.” Here are a few: M, Mark, Kid Omega, Chamber, Penance, and the Stepford Cuckoos. The Stepford Cuckoos may be the best example of how callous X-Factor treats these mutants. Each one of the Stepford Cuckoos has a power dampener around their necks, and X-Factor still placed one of the triplet sisters in a different cell. Sure. The Stepford Cuckoos use their powers as a trio, but they have power dampeners. Separating them was cruel.

Through her act of freeing the captive mutants, Jubilee did the most to live up to Charles Xavier’s example. She reminded the rest of X-Force what they’re fighting for. Cable’s mission to take down Apocalypse is a noble one, but he often gets blinded by this goal. Again, all of this is mostly comic book accurate. The original X-Men: Animated Series made sure to stay as close to the source material as possible, and X-Men ’97 continues that tradition.

There’s little else to discuss with “A Force to Be Reckoned With.” This episode feels tighter than “Days of Past Future,” not that the previous episode meandered too much. I just wanted to note “A Force to Be Reckoned With’s” great pacing. Maybe that’s the trick with making Jubilee cool. Leave the audience wanting more. The original X-Men: Animated Series used Jubilee as a surrogate, so Jubes showed up in most scenes. We physically see less of Jubilee during “A Force to Be Reckoned With,” but the episode does a lot to show her true character. And shout out to Polaris and Havok. I love Jubilee’s snide remark of Havok being “Knock-Off Cyclops.” LOL

Those are my thoughts on X-Men ’97 “A Force to Be Reckoned With.” Let’s see what Season has to say.

Season’s Take

I can’t believe I was actually rooting for Jubilee. Outside of being cool and sticking to her guns, her cheeky moments were cute, too. The scene of her jumping off the roof was iconic.

I appreciated the lack of exposition in “A Force to Be Reckoned With.” “Days of Past Future” was good and had a lot of emotionally charged moments, but there was a lot of repetition with Jean Grey’s and Cyclops’ dialogue. Their feelings about leaving Nathan behind were sad, but they lost some impact each time they expressed themselves. The emotional moments in “A Force to Be Reckoned With” combine punchy dialogue with action. It feels like each moment doesn’t linger.

Also, kudos to the alternate intro. X-Force ’97 has a nice ring.

Hey, hey! Kyra Kyle again. Those are our thoughts on X-Men ’97: “A Force to Be Reckoned With.” What are yours? Let us know in the comments. Thank you for reading, and wherever you are, I hope you’re having a great day.

X-Men ’97 “Days of Past Future” Review

Happy Saturday, Geekly Gang! Kyra Kyle here. X-Men ’97 returned with the first few episodes of season two last week. We didn’t cover the animated series when it first launched because we were in the middle of writing our Supergirl review. We’ve had time to watch each of these episodes. I may be joined by Season in this post. Woo hoo! I can’t wait to talk about X-Men ’97 Season Two’s first few episodes. We’ll be releasing separate posts for each of the released episodes (four in total), so let’s begin with “Days of Past Future.”

Kyra’s Take

Geekly hadn’t returned when X-Men ’97’s first season originally aired, so I may take a quick moment to discuss the series as a whole. X-Men ’97 is a joy. I love how they brought back most of the cast and the creative team behind the scenes of the original Nineties X-Men Animated Series. This show mainlines Nineties nostalgia. With the exception of a few modifications, like a new voice actor for Rogue, who took some getting used to, X-Men ’97 captured the original’s charm. X-Men’s animation hadn’t aged the best, and while X-Men ’97 updated the animation style, it kept most of the visuals intact. Fantastic.

I also liked how X-Men ’97’s first season picked up right where the original X-Men Animated Series ended. This makes X-Men ’97 a continuation of the original. This is not a reboot. Sort of. And I liked how the showrunners decided to incorporate characters who were introduced (in the comics) during the original show’s run. Mild spoiler ahead. The first season’s main villain, Bastion, wouldn’t have been in the original X-Men Animated Series run because he was too new a character. Still, he fits into the animated series because the X-Men comic book was wildly popular in the early to mid-Nineties. Say what you will about X-Men #1’s role in the comic book collection market’s collapse, but X-Men had the it factor. Including characters and story arcs from the Nineties run of X-Men is a great choice.

Okay. Now, let’s talk about “Days of Past Future.” X-Men ’97 picks up immediately where the first season concludes. Apocalypse returns. Yay! X-Men ’97 continues to include characters from that Nineties run of X-Men comics. Brilliant! We’re going to go into more minor spoilers for “Days of Past Future.” You’ve been warned. Mother Askani (1993-1994) has a deceptive name. She’s actually Rachel Summers, Jean Grey and Cyclops’s daughter, from a different timeline. In fact, she is able to manipulate the timestream, so X-Men ’97’s reveal that Mother Askani was the one who sent the two X-Men teams into the past and future to stop Apocalypse makes sense with the original comic book. The show takes liberties. This isn’t a one-to-one, but I like Mother Askani’s inclusion.

Mother Askani harkens to a 1994 mini-series (The Adventures of Cyclops and Phoenix), where Jean and Cyclops bond with a young Nathan Summers (Cable). Even better, the tail end of X-Men ’97 season one foreshadowed that Jean and Cyclops’s relationship with their son would be explored. X-Men ’97 kept its promise in “Days of Past Future.” I can’t say enough great things about this series. I squeed. I did, and we get another season of episodes after this one airs. Yay!

Most of “Days of Past Future” focuses on the X-Men team sent into the future. I’m reviewing these episodes as I watch them, so there may be a few things I don’t notice in one episode that will become more important in the next. I love the direction X-Men ’97 is taking Cyclops, Jean Grey, and Cable (Nathan). X-Men ’97 has done a lot with fleshing out Cable’s backstory. The original X-Men Animated Series showed Cable as a random guy trying to save his future. Heck, Deadpool 2 portrayed Nathan Summers in a similar light. I liked both depictions of Cable. But X-Men ’97 has given Cable depth.

Supposition time: X-Men ’97 season two will build toward the classic X-Men Event, Age of Apocalypse. Sure, X-Men ’97 season two is borrowing elements from Age of Apocalypse, but I believe the animated series will fully embrace Age of Apocalypse with its following season. The post-apocalyptic world where Mother Askani exists paved the way for Age of Apocalypse. Fans and the writers enjoyed a world in the distant future without the X-Men and controlled by Apocalypse, so they wanted a world with the X-Men and controlled by Apocalypse (Age of Apocalypse). We’re only getting a taste of Age of Apocalypse this season. We’ll have to wait until the tail end of season two or next season to meet Sugar Man.

Those are my thoughts on X-Men ’97 “Days of Past Future.” Let’s see what Season thinks.

Season’s Take

I’m also watching these episodes one at a time before reviewing them, so we’ll see what I pick up on in future episodes. I’m a sucker for familial relationships being explored, and “Days of Past Future” did that more than I thought it would. A lot of characters were featured in “Days of Past Future,” but they each got adequate screen time. Actually, it’s more like each character was given plenty of depth despite the episode only being thirty-three minutes. I’ve never read Age of Apocalypse, so I’m unfamiliar with the plot. I know. I need to up my comic book game.

I’m excited to see where X-Men ’97 takes us next. I’m a huge fan of Rogue, so any chance I get to see her in action is amazing. I’m not the biggest fan of her voice in X-Men ’97, though. Girl, cough. Or, like, clear your throat.

Hey, hey! Kyra Kyle again. Those are our thoughts on X-Men ’97: Days of Past Future.” Feel free to share yours in the comments. Thank you for reading, and wherever you are, I hope you’re having a great day.

Whatcha Watching, Geekly? June 2026

Happy Wednesday, Geekly Gang! Kyra Kyle here, and today, our writers share what they’ve been watching over the past month. Feel free to share what you’ve been watching, too, because we’re all part of the Geekly Gang. I’ll get things started with what I’ve been watching over the past month.

Kyra’s Movies

I finally got around to watching Fahrenheit 451 (2018). It’s been some time since I read the Bradbury novel (of the same name), but I could tell HBO’s Fahrenheit 451 took a lot of liberties. Updates, if you will. I don’t believe the eye drops and augmented reality social media were part of the original. I’m okay with the additions, but it did bother me that Fahrenheit 451 didn’t elaborate on what happens to people after they got booted from augmented reality social media.

I may have missed something. I got that erasing someone’s data (from their fingertips) severed them from the rest of humanity (through the augmented reality social media or ARSM), but I couldn’t see why that was a bad thing. Did people get food through the ARSM? Did the ARSM pay them? Fahrenheit 451’s world-building was a little shaky. But the acting was stellar. Michael Shannon and Michael B. Jordan–hey, two Michaels–gave brilliant performances. They did so well in the roles that they made me forget all those pesky world questions.

Fahrenheit 451 clocks in at just over an hour and a half. I appreciate the shorter runtime. Too many films insist on more than two hours. The short runtime and the performance of the Michaels make Fahrenheit 451 a fun watch. I’d still recommend reading the original novel. It’s a short read. Heck, I may reread it so I can see all the liberties the movie took.

Crazy Rich Asians was another random movie I watched this past month. Typically, I don’t watch romantic comedies; I read them. And Crazy Rich Asians was first a novel. I may need to pick up Kevin Kwan’s novel and add it to my never-ending to be read pile. Actors make acting choices, and actors in romantic comedies can make some poor choices–or they can’t act. That’s why I tend to read romantic comedies. Let me fill in the blanks for myself. Case in point, the romantic lead in Crazy Rich Asians is not the best actor, and one or two actors make some questionable choices.

Of course, Michelle Yeoh was amazing. The look she and the romantic woman lead’s mother share is perfect. Years were conveyed in a thirty-second stare. Awkwafina was in rare form. I don’t tend to like her in most movies; she’s funny in Crazy Rich Asians. Ken Jeong is the perfect choice to play Awkwafina’s father. I love most of that family. I could do with a little less of Awkwafina’s creepy little brother. Stand-up comedians Jimmy O. Yang and Ronny Chieng partially round out this massive cast. I love Yang and Chieng’s stand-up routines, and they don’t disappoint.

I didn’t expect to like Crazy Rich Asians as much as I did. The movie showcases Singapore, another city just made my bucket list. The set pieces look phenomenal. Constance Wu (the romantic woman lead) did a stellar job, as did most of the cast. But the romantic man lead torpedoed some of his scenes. I didn’t care for the ending because he was deeply unlikable. And I wanted to see a happily ever after. Who doesn’t in a rom-com? Still, I recommend Crazy Rich Asians. Just try to block the male lead from your mind.

Kyra’s Shows

If you’ve been following Geekly for a while, you’ll know I’m a sucker for true crime. Netflix’s Should I Marry a Murderer? stands out from many of the streaming giant’s other offerings: empathy. Should I Marry a Murderer? presents its subject, Caroline Muirhead, in a way that we see why she makes certain choices. She fell in love with a man who turned out to be a murderer. She doesn’t cooperate with the police and makes some questionable decisions. Muirhead admits that her choices may not have been great, but they did have internal logic.

If you’re ever wondering “why did X stay or return,” you may want to give Should I Marry a Murderer? a watch. Muirhead explains her position well. She gets the viewer on her side, and just when that happens, the documentary throws in one of the authorities who call her foolish or state they would’ve helped her. Only, we see how the authorities didn’t help. Should I Marry a Murderer? shows how a police department can fail a witness. This is a cautionary tale. It may even give you pause with judging others because we don’t know what led them to make their decisions.

Originally, I watched Should I Marry a Murderer? while working on a project (a board game design), but I rewatched the show, giving it more attention on the subsequent view. Few shows like this offer empathy. I found myself agreeing with a witness who refused to immediately go to the police. Should I Marry a Murderer? reminds us that we live in a world of gray.

I also watched the recently released Spider-Noir. I won’t go into too much detail. Geekly has a full review of the series. In short, Spider-Noir is better than it has any right to be. I didn’t anticipate Spider-Noir, but that works in its favor. The biggest debate I’ve seen about Spider-Noir is which version is best, Authentic Black & White or True Hue (color), and after I reviewed the show, Marvel released its definitive way to experience the series. You split the two versions.

Marvel suggests watching episodes 1-3 in Black & White, Episodes 4 and 5 in True Hue, Episode 6 in Black & White, and Episodes 7 and 8 in True Hue. Essentially, Marvel says the first three episodes should be in Black & White because Ben Reilly isn’t in the best headspace, stuck in the past. Episodes 4, 5, 7, and 8 are more Reilly’s present (color), while Episode 6 is a flashback (so, Black & White). It’s an interesting concept. I may just try out this method of watching Spider-Noir. No matter how you watch the show, it’s fun.

That’s all I have for what I’ve been watching this past month. Let’s check in with Season.

Season’s Show

I’ve been feeling anime recently, and My Roommate Is a Cat stood out to me on Crunchyroll. I have two cats, so that’s part of the reason. Tee hee! Anyway, My Roommate Is a Cat isn’t something I normally watch. I tend to watch action/adventure or romance, not slice of life, which is the category My Roommate Is a Cat falls under.

My Roommate Is a Cat follows Subaru Mikazuki, a twenty-three-year-old introvert novelist who sucks at dealing with people. He’s also kind of a jerk to the few people who are close to him. He feeds a stray cat (whom he later names “Haru”) and takes her in. Subaru studies Haru’s behavior for a novel he’s writing, learning how she shows affection for him and bettering himself in the process. The show features both Subaru’s perspective for most of each episode and Haru’s for the last five-ish minutes of each episode. Haru’s perspective is goofy since she doesn’t understand why her dumb human won’t feed himself. She has to do everything.

Hey, hey! Kyra Kyle here again. That’s all our writers have for what they’ve been watching this past month. Let us know what you’ve been watching, Geekly Gang. Thank you for reading, and wherever you are, I hope you’re having a great day.