‘X-Men ‘97’ Episode Five Recap: “Remember It”

*Warning: the following article contains spoilers for episode five of X-Men ‘97*

After briefly exploring Genosha in Motendo, X-Men ‘97 fully returns to their world in their fifth episode, Remember It, which is arguably the series’ most emotionally charged (and romantic) episode to date. Genosha is finally recognized within the United Nations (after the events of the second episode), which leads Magneto (Matthew Waterson), Rogue (Lenore Zann), and Gambit (A.J. LoCascio) to travel to the country to discuss with the Genoshan council. 

They quickly want to make Magneto their leader, with Magnus proposing Rogue be his Queen, as they rule over the Mutant council and lead their people to safety and peace. But Rogue is conflicted about the past love she shared with Magneto, with a flashback that beautifully explains their connection. Due to her powers, Rogue can’t touch anyone without feeling massive amounts of pain, but Magneto’s electromagnetism allows a physical (and, yes, sexual) connection between the two. 

Rogue ultimately tells Gambit about her past fling with Magneto, which breaks his heart, but proposes he remains friends with Rogue, as she ultimately needs to decide whether to rule Genosha with Magneto or remain with the X-Men. After the two share an impassioned dance, she decides it would be best to remain with her friends, who are currently being interviewed by a reporter who attempts to humanize them. However, Scott Summers (Ray Chase) tells her that the X-Men will always be different, and it’s why they will continue to protect humans from otherworldly threats. 

Conflicted by Nathan’s trip into the future, Scott communicates with Madelyne Pryor (Jennifer Hale), which causes deep betrayal for Jean Grey, who can’t understand why Scott won’t communicate with her. Of course, Madelyne is the mother of Scott’s child, but the distant relationship between Jean and Scott is something he willingly won’t overcome (meanwhile, Jean grows fonder of Wolverine, which could be problematic for Scott as the series progresses). 

Pryor has moved to Genosha and begins to fall ill during a celebration in which we briefly, and I mean blink-and-you’ll-miss-it your television needs to be set at the right brightness type of situation, see The Watcher (Jeffrey Wright) observing how the story will play out. If you didn’t think for a second this wouldn’t be connected to the larger Marvel universe, think again (otherwise, why is Kevin Feige directly overseeing this series were it not, in some capacity, connected to the Marvel multiverse?). 

Of course, I’m not expecting Deadpool or a major Marvel character to show up (though Doctor Strange and Captain America did cameo in the original series), but it’s cool to see how intricate (and fun) the connection to the larger Marvel universe can be just by including one character in a small instance. I don’t expect the showrunners to do anything with The Watcher, at least in this season, but seeing his presence (in how he “oversees” all) makes this show all the more tantalizing. 

At that party, Pryor’s nose begins to bleed as she sees a vision from the future, where Cable (Chris Potter) tells her to turn off the music. In that moment, Pryor realizes that it is Nathan who made it into the future but quickly teleports back as an army of sentinels moves in and attacks Genosha. Controlled by a large, MechaGodzilla-lite MasterMold (Eric Bauza), the attack is intense and relentless, as many Mutants die instantly. But Rogue, Magneto, and Gambit won’t go down without a fight, which is fully realized in the most exhilarating and emotionally cogent way possible. 

A harrowing cut to Magneto’s past as he relives his dark childhood in the Holocaust gives him the emotional power needed to fight off the sentinels but at the cost of his life. As Rogue angrily attempts to attack MasterMold, Gambit pushes her off the battlefield and sacrifices himself. Before dying, he says, “The name’s Gambit, mon ami. Remember it,” showcasing how he will always have the last laugh. We don’t know what happens next, as the remaining X-Men watch the attack on television, but one thing’s for sure, the team will never be the same. 

With Xavier (Ross Marquand) and Magneto now dead (though we did not see a body with the latter), how will the X-Men pick up the pieces? And who will lead the pack now that the team is fully divided due to Scott’s inability to communicate with not only Jean but his key team members? We won’t know what happens to them next week, as we’re going back to Lifedeath, but X-Men ‘97 has certainly been the most exciting television series of the year so far, and one that will be remember as one of Marvel Studios’ greatest achievements post-Endgame. Here’s hoping the momentum continues next week. 

The fifth episode of X-Men ’97 is now available on Disney+.