Over the course of five months I blogged about my favorite cartoon as a kid:  X-Men.  I gave an episode synopsis/review for every episode (well, I cheated a bit by looking at them by plot, so 4-parters weren’t split out by episode as I went through it all) which was a lot of fun for me.  For some, it necessitated a re-watching of the episode which would lead to me watching episodes I didn’t necessarily need to see again, but wanted to.  And with every episode available on DVD, it was really easy.

These DVD covers are pretty awesome.

I was a first day purchaser for each DVD as they were released by Buena Vista.  The DVD’s had some nice, original, box art but the actual content was bare bones.  That is to say, there really wasn’t anything other than the episodes themselves (in broadcast order).  It was disappointing, as even some of the VHS tapes from the ’90’s at least had some roundtable discussions with the creators of the characters and show, but in the end a minor flaw.  I was so happy to finally have the show I adored as a kid on DVD and at the ready whenever I wished to see it that any short-comings could be overlooked.  And much to my satisfaction, the program has aged well.  Sure it may not look and animate as well as modern cartoons but the content and characters are watchable even at an adult age.  That’s something not every cartoon from my youth can claim (I’m looking at you, Mario).

So as a way to put a nice bow on everything, I figured I would list my favorite episodes.  As with my individual reviews, I’ll go by plot so, for example, “Out of the Past” would be considered as one episode, even though it’s two parts.  I’ll draw a line at the four and five part story arches, of which there were 3.  And while those are entertaining, none of them would crack my list anyways as their wide scope is some-what of a hindrance.  Though I suppose if I liked an individual episode enough I would have included it, but I really didn’t.

I figured a top 10 would be too easy, so I settled on doing a top five which proved really difficult.  Ultimately, my criteria was equal parts enjoyment and importance to the series as a whole.  As a result, through no conscious effort on my part, all five episodes ended up coming from the first two seasons.  I’m slightly uncomfortable with that because it makes it seem like the final three seasons aren’t that good, but they are!  There were some tough final omissions and I would be remiss if I didn’t list these honorable mentions:

• “Cold Comfort” – a personal favorite of mine due to Iceman’s inclusion, it also gave us a nice look at the original X-Men.  My toughest omission.
• “Days of Future Past” – a fun time travel story that smartly adapted the classic story for the television show.  Some nice intrigue with the Gambit character.
• “Courage” – I love Morph, so this another personal favorite.  It didn’t have the impact it probably should have had though, making it actually an easier omission than expected.
• “Bloodlines” – Nightcrawler, the Friends of Humanity, and some soap opera family drama.  Great episode.
• “Graduation Day” – this one goes without saying, it’s the final episode so it carries much importance.  However, it felt hastily thrown together and could have been a lot better.

Remember when you could only get "X-Men" on VHS one episode at a time?

Till Death Do Us Part – A very important episode that sets up the events for all of season 2.  Morph is reintroduced and when it happened it had impact.  Even though he had only been “dead” for a season it felt like a shock to see him back and as a bad guy.  Mr. Sinister also made his true debut for the series and lived up to his name.  Most importantly though, the Friends of Humanity were introduced serving as a real world enemy for the X-Men and one they couldn’t simply face head-on.  The FOH bring the civil rights aspect of the show into the forefront, and when the writers are working with that mind-set, the show is at its best!

A Rogue’s Tale – Perhaps unexpected if you didn’t read my original synopsis, but a great origin story for Rogue and another episode with emotional weight.  Sometimes it feels like the girls of the team get overlooked, but getting a glimpse of the tragic parts of Rogue’s past were revealing and extremely well done.  As a viewer, we empathize with the Ms. Marvel character but at the same time with Rogue as well, blurring the line between hero and villain.  The fact that the episode doesn’t really have a nice, happy ending, just adds to the experience.

I wonder what he would look like if he shaved?

Beauty and the Beast – I considered making this number 1, but couldn’t for what will soon be obvious reasons when I get to number 1.  This episode though represents everything that is great about the X-Men.  Here we have Beast, a mutant who has some neat abilities and can do things normal men cannot, but it comes at the cost of his physical appearance.  Before this episode, we didn’t know Beast that well but from what we did know it seemed like he didn’t let his appearance get him down.  Here we see him vulnerable as his mutant heritage threatens the safety of the woman he loves.  We see the ugliness of humanity both through the FOH and Carly’s father, who can’t even acknowledge Beast as a person even though he gifted his daughter with sight.  The drama is handled exceptionally well for a kid’s show, and the ending always affects me.  If I had to pick just one episode to show someone new to the X-Men what the show is all about, I’d probably go with this one.

So that’s my top 5.  Feel free to agree or disagree, I won’t argue as there are many worthy episodes.  I didn’t even list one of the enjoyable Wolverine-centered episodes or any of the clever time traveling ones.  This is such a fun show, if I ever have kids I hope they take to it else I’ll be really bummed.

And lastly, if you haven’t heard Powerglove’s cover of the X-Men theme, where have you been the last year?!

September of 1997 brought with it the final episode of X-Men, the animated series that first began airing on Fox Saturday mornings on Halloween of 1992.  Shows aimed primarily at kids often last only a season or two, but X-Men made it for 5 years and 76 episodes and to this day is still the longest running television show based off a Marvel Comics property.  While the show wasn’t able to maintain the momentum it generated in the first two seasons, it was largely a quality program for its entire run.  Here, in September of 2011, my series overview will come to an end with the final 4 episodes.  It was a lot of fun reliving my favorite show as a kid and if you wish to do so as well all of the episodes are available on DVD.  The DVD’s themselves are fairly unspectacular but all of the episodes are there and that’s what matters most.  I’ll probably make one more post on this subject to serve as a wrap-up, but this ends the individual episode examinations.

Old Soldiers

Uncanny X-Men #268 probably served as inspiration for this episode.

Now here’s an interesting idea for an episode of X-Men that also gives us a cameo from a classic Marvel character and further adds to the Wolverine mythos.  “Old Soldiers” is a flashback episode triggered when Wolverine visits the grave of someone who must have been important to him at some point in his life, but we’re kept in the dark for now.  The flashback details an outing Wolverine had during World War II where he was joined by none other than Captain America.  Wolverine and Cap are sent to rescue a scientist from the dreaded Red Skull.  We get to see the two break into the compound, confront the Skull and his goons, and escape in a thrilling fashion.

Captain America is depicted well and the writers give him some personality so he’s not some stale Superman clone.  They even go so far as to have Wolverine make fun of him for wearing his ridiculous costume but Cap has a good response illustrating that he’s more than a soldier, he’s a symbol.  The Nazi stuff is predictably toned down but not hidden entirely, which is nice.  Wolverine doesn’t yet have his claws, but the writers give him some slide-on ones that were supposed to help him and Cap scale a wall.  It’s kind of a cop-out and I wish they hadn’t bothered, plus they don’t look like they’d be very helpful for wall climbing.

Cap and Red Skull; it wouldn't have bothered me to see more of them.

There’s a nice little twist ending as well, that I won’t spoil here.  This episode was probably inspired by Uncanny X-Men #268, though sadly, they weren’t able to work Black Widow into the story.  The animation works pretty well, though I do dislike how wild Wolverine’s hair looks in the present time portion of the episode.  All in all, a cool one-shot and sadly the last of the Wolverine episodes.  As overexposed as Wolverine is, his solo episodes are very good and rarely disappoint.

Hidden Agendas

This episode contains another first-time cameo, this time it’s the mutant Cannonball from both the New Mutants and X-Force.  Unfortunately, it’s one of the least memorable.

Rogue and Gambit's new look.

Rogue travels to the south to meet a young coal miner who was recently exposed as a mutant to his small town.  Rogue presents herself as a teacher (borrowing Gambit’s last name) in an attempt to reach out to the young Sam Guthrie.  Surprisingly, Sam does not encounter much hostility from the locals but soon some government agents show up and start meddling around.  The resulting scenes are so predictable they’re dull, and in the end Sam ends up staying right where he is.

The episode is notable for the debut of Gambit’s new voice actor, whom I don’t particularly care for too much.  I also don’t like how Rogue looks with this new animation style as she seems to have more of a toon quality than most.  It proves distracting and undermines the episode’s serious plot.

Descent

Here’s an interesting episode I never thought we’d see, and perhaps the best of season 5.  “Descent” is another flashback episode though we’re not really certain who’s flashback it is until its close.  It takes place in old London and focuses on two characters, Dr. James Xavier and Dr. Nathaniel Essex.

Dr. Essex is brewing something sinister.

Obviously, Xavier is a descendent of the Charles Xavier we know.  Comic book readers will know who Essex is through name, but most television only viewers will easily figure out that he’s in some way related to the villain Mr. Sinister.  Xavier and Essex are rivals who both approach the work of Charles Darwin differently.  Xavier believes genetic mutation is random while Essex believes it can be influenced by science.  Essex takes the same view that Magneto will, which is that mutated humans are the next step in human evolution and thus destined to be superior.

The episode appropriately illustrates the descent of Nathaniel Essex from public ridicule to outright scorn.  Essex is soon discovered to be experimenting on his own wife and a mob is organized to confront him and chase him out of town.  This basically forces Essex to begin experimenting on himself which ultimately leads to the birth of Sinister.

This is just a bad ass picture of a Victorian Sinister, one that needed inclusion in this post.

This episode is just a great character study and gives the audience insight into how Sinister’s philosophies were born.  Seeing Sinister get rejected by Darwin is also a fun visual and giving a more personal rivalry to the Sinister/Xavier conflict is also welcome, as before this episode the two characters really didn’t encounter one another much.  I suspect for kid viewers this one may have been a little dull but I consider it one of the most underrated episodes for the series.  A true hidden gem.

Graduation Day

And here we are, the final episode.  Unlike most shows, X-Men gets a proper series finale and does provide some sense of closure.

The basic plot of the episode reintroduces the conflict that got it all started; mutants and humans, Magneto and Xavier.  Old pal Henry Gyrich returns at the beginning (minus his trademark glasses and with a new hair color) as a speaker at a hearing on mutant rights and he springs an attack on an ill Charles Xavier that outs Xavier as a mutant (I never knew the public was kept in the dark this whole time, I suspect I’m not the only one).  The resulting attack combined with Xavier’s health lands Charles on his death bed.  The general mutant population is outraged, and war seems inevitable.

Jean finally gets to rock the yellow and blue.

The X-Men are left to deal with the resulting upswing in conflict, while Magneto lurks on the periphery.  Morph gets to make a return and poses as Xavier on television (the animation for his morphing power is terrible, by the way) in an attempt to quiet the masses.  Meanwhile, Cyclops, Jean, and Wolverine head off to find Magneto and hope to quiet his rebellion.  Mutants have amassed around some cave Magneto is apparently living in, lead by Sunfire.  They are patiently awaiting direction from their leader who has yet to show himself.  The X-Men sneak in a rear entrance they uncover and confront Magneto after he destroys the blackbird.  Magneto, foolishly believing the X-Men were that easy to take out, is taken unawares but soon gains the upper hand.  When Jean springs the news on him that Xavier is dying he is stunned, and thus begins his monologue.  Magneto is understandably torn.  He loves Xavier as a brother despite their rivalry, and yet now is his chance to realize his own dream.  Suddenly, Jean realizes Magneto could help save Charles, and Magneto reluctantly agrees to accompany them back to the mansion.

Magneto’s powers somehow are able to amplify Xavier’s and he is able to awaken momentarily.  This grants us a final scene where Charles is able to go around the room and individually acknowledge and say goodbye to each member of the X-Men from his bed, including Morph and Magneto.  Some of it is genuinely touching, particularly his good bye to Cyclops, but once complete it looks like Xavier’s time is up.  Then out of no where, Lilandra teleports in and slaps some device on Xavier’s forehead.  She lets the X-Men know that the technology of the Shi’Ar can save their beloved professor, but in order to do so she must take him away and is unsure if he’ll ever be able to return.  Thus the episode comes to a close with Xavier imparting words of encouragement telepathically.  As the screen fades we’re left with a final group shot and many questions.  Is Morph finally back on the team?  Is this what is needed to get Magneto to finally marry himself to Xavier’s cause?

Obviously, these questions are never to be answered as the show is brought to a nice conclusion.  If I have one complaint about this episode it’s that the pacing is off.  Everything moves far too quickly due to time constraints.  I would propose that this episode should have at least been a two-parter, if not more, with Magneto’s army being bigger and more impressive.  It also could have served to get more cameos into the mix as mutants are forced to choose sides.  The lesser episodes of season 5 could have been scrapped to accommodate this, but sadly the writers didn’t have the foresight to do this.

Nonetheless, “Graduation Day” is a fitting farewell to our mutant heroes and one that is all too bittersweet.  Some of the more narrative heavy episodes of season 5 and the renewed human-mutant conflict of the final episode illustrate that this show still had legs, if placed in the proper hands.  Still, it was a good run and a faithful portrayal of the X-Men that has been equaled by no other movie or television series since.

So long X-Men, and thanks for the memories.

The X-Men are gone...oh wait! You mean they're not?!

Season 5 was never meant to be.  The creative staff for X-Men felt the writing was on the wall and the series would not be renewed after season 4’s completion, so the four-part “Beyond Good and Evil” was meant to give the series a truly memorable farewell.  Unexpectedly, Fox decided to order more episodes, and while I’m sure the people who worked on the show were delighted, this did pose some problems.  AKOM, the studio that handled the animation for almost all of the episodes, would not be able to fulfill the order placed by Fox, and thus episode 70 (“Storm Front Part 2”) would be their last episode for the series.  Philippine Animation would handle the final six remaining episodes and do so with a distinctly different style.  The animation is probably an improvement over much of AKOM’s work as it’s more fluid, but the style is more of a toon quality.  In some ways, it resembles the artwork being put out by Marvel during the Onslaught Saga but with far less detail.  I personally am not too fond of the look, but one bonus was getting Jean depicted in her actual comic book attire yellow and blue.

The lack of planning for a fifth season also shows in the writing quality.  Outside of the first two story arches, most of the episodes are stand-alone but do tie into some older plot threads.  The season does have a feel to it of the writers taking chances or just exploring aspects of the series that interested them such as the Sinister origin story and the Wolverine/Captain America team-up.  As such, some of the episodes are interesting and some miss the mark.  There’s probably more of a “love it hate it” opinion for the following episodes more than ones prior, but there are a couple of hidden gems.

The Phalanx Covenant (Parts 1 and 2)

"The Phalanx Covenant" was a major story-line in the comics that spanned all of the 'X' books.

Probably the only tie-in episodes of season 5 that tied in with the current comic book plot-line, though in a much truncated form.  “The Phalanx Covenant” introduces the Phalanx organism to the animated universe.  It begins innocently enough with the X-Men capturing a rampaging Sabretooth (old animation was mined from the very first episode of X-Men for parts of this, perhaps illustrating the time constraints this season was placed under) and bringing him back to the mansion.  In a piece of deja vu, Wolverine can’t help himself and seals himself away in Sabretooth’s cell for some fun, and because he senses something different about his old foe.

Wolverine and the rest of the X-Men soon learn that Sabretooth is possessed by some sort of techno-organic life-form that soon corrupts the entire mansion.  Only Beast is able to escape as he makes buddies with a piece of this alien known as Warlock.  Warlock explains to Beast that he is part of the Phalanx, a life-form that exists as part organic and part computer.  A virus has infiltrated the global conscience that links all of the Phalanx together and has corrupted it.  Warlock has separated himself but he is the only one, and his life-mate was not so lucky.

Warlock and Beast make for an interesting duo.

Warlock, as some of you are probably aware, is an old comic book character from the New Mutants books where he was an ally of the X-Men’s youngest division.  His portrayal here is pretty faithful, as he and Beast find themselves on the run and in search of any aid they can find.  This two-parter ends up playing out as a fun little team-up and cameo-fest.  X-Factor makes a brief appearance as Beast seeks out the aid of Forge while a distress call from Mr. Sinister brings our heroes an unlikely ally.  The final piece of the puzzle is the master of magnetism himself, Magneto (with original voice actor and a cool beard!), who reluctantly leaves his Antarctic fortress where he apparently has been brooding since his most recent failure.  Magneto would love to watch the fall of humanity, but since his son Quicksilver needs saving he gets off his high-horse and helps out.

They find Magneto’s force field very effective, and assault the citadel created by the Phalanx to serve as their nexus.  There they find the leader of this attack, Cameron Hodge (remember him?!), and the captured members of X-Men and X-Factor.  With their combined effort, the Phalanx and is thwarted and Warlock is reunited with his life-mate.  A fairly fun plot is concluded, one that placed the after-thought Beast in a leading role for a change, and included some unlikely allies.  Sadly, this is the last good multi-episode plot for the series.

Storm Front (Parts 1 and 2)

Arkon, and his stupid hat.

This would be last two-part storyline for the show, and it’s a dud.  As I mentioned in the lead in, I suspect the writers wanted to take the opportunity afforded by a fifth season to look at some forgotten or untouched upon aspects of the show.  Storm would represent just that.  Pretty much ever since the conclusion of season 2, Storm has been a minor character.  If I took the time to tally her appearances it wouldn’t shock me if I found her to be the most under-represented member of the X-Men for seasons 3 and 4.  Unfortunately for her, I suspect that might be because her episodes were among the least interesting.  Outside of “One Man’s Worth,” the episodes featuring her as a major player include “Whatever It Takes” and the two-part “Savage Land, Savage/Strange Heart.”

“Storm Front” does nothing to change that.  In this two-parter, Storm encounters a strange visitor from another world who claims he came seeking Storm’s help.  His name is Arkon and his world is plagued by a relentless storm and he needs the help of someone like Storm to put a stop to it.  Storm agrees and leaves a token behind for the X-Men to find.  Soon Wolverine, Cyclops, Beast, and Jubilee are in pursuit and find themselves on Arkon’s strange world.  Storm is successful in quieting the skies, and in a moment of revelry Arkon asks her to rule this world at by his side.  Storm agrees, much to the shock of the other X-Men.

Before long they realize that Arkon is a ruthless dictator.  His country still uses slaves and it’s up to the members of the X-Men on his world to clue Storm in.  Of course, she refuses to believe it at first but eventually comes around.  There’s a big confrontation, Arkon gets emasculated, and the X-Men return home after seemingly freeing the slaves on Arkon’s world.  Storm goes into hiding until the final episode of the series (not literally, of course) and thus, AKOM’s work is finished.

The Fifth Horseman 

Our introduction to what the series will look like for the remainder of its days comes to us in the form of “The Fifth Horseman.”  This episode stars Beast and Jubilee on a field trip of sorts to South America.  Already the new visual style is pretty striking as beast is less furry looking and Jubilee finally looks Chinese, how about that?

I neglected to mention in the write-up that Beast gets transformed in this episode and looks pretty crazy.

The episode is a bit bland, but it does tie into some older ones.  Jubilee soon finds herself the target of a group of mutants who want to kidnap her for some purpose.  One of the mutants is a mutated Caliban, a former morlock.  Jubilee acts like she knows him, even though I’m fairly certain Caliban was never shown in any previous episodes but the writers try to trick the audience into thinking we know who this guys is.  It is soon revealed that Caliban and his cronies are working for some crazed cult leader trying to resurrect a god.  That cult leader turns out to be Fabian Cortez, last seen floating through space on a ship piloted by Apocalypse.  That god he wants to resurrect?  You guessed it, Apocalypse!

Apocalypse was last seen being banished by the world’s telepaths to the Astral Plane, where he supposedly would remain for all eternity.  Apparently they lied, as there is a way for Apocalypse to escape, he just needs a host body and hence why Cortez wants Jubilee.  Like most villains, he underestimates his foes (and allies) as Beast is able to crash the party and even lure Caliban back over to the side of good (though in doing so he loses his cool new powers).  At the episode’s conclusion, Apocalypse frees himself from the Astral Plane by taking over the body of Cortez.  Like Jean, Apocalypse finally gets depicted in his comic accurate colors of black and blue (instead of that hideous pink and blue scheme AKOM had went with).  Unfortunately, the writers never get to explore Apocalypse further and this remains as his final appearance.  It at least ties in with that discussion Cable and Apocalypse (and later Beast) had regarding good vs evil, as evil can never truly be destroyed.

Jubilee’s Fairytale Theater

What’s worse than a Storm episode?  A Jubilee one.  Well, perhaps that isn’t entirely true as “Night of the Sentinels” could be considered a Jubilee episode and that two-parter is among the best for the series.  This one though is among the worst.  I’ve thrown out candidates along the way for worst episode of the series, and this one just might be it.  It’s definitely top 3, at the very least.

For those curious about what Wolverine would look like as a troll, you get your wish.

The plot for this episode is borrowed from a comic book story, only replace Jubilee with Kitty Pryde and change out some of the X-Men.  Jubilee is leading a group of students on a tour of the caverns under the mansion when a cave in occurs.  In order to keep the students occupied and their minds unaware of the danger they’re in, Jubilee spins a tale of medieval fantasy that places her in the starring role.  Several X-Men make cameos in her story including Wolverine as a troll and Magneto as the ultimate villain.  I suppose some might find it cute or think it’s unique approach to story-telling is refreshing, but I find it boring and stupid.  The portrayals of the X-Men in fantasy attire is only amusing for so long and just can’t sustain an entire episode.  That and since Jubilee is supposed to be making the story up as she goes, the plot is forced to be rather simple and relies on fantasy clichés.  One note worth mentioning, this episode marks the debut for Gambit’s new voice actor, Tony Daniels.  While he certainly sounds the part of a scoundrel, it’s no comparison with the original VA, Chris Potter, and a clear down-grade.

This installment of my X-Men animated series over view is both part 2 of season 4 and the last entry for season 4.  All of my other season entries have been in groups of 3 but season 4 was much shorter.  Season 5 is even shorter as the X-Men series heads toward the end.  Again, episodes are listed in production order, not broadcast order.

Bloodlines

The events of this episode borrow heavily from X-Men Unlimited Volume 4 from 1993.

Nightcrawler makes his second and final appearance on the show with this episode.  This episode explores Nightcrawler’s mysterious past and how it correlates with other X-Men notables.  The events of the episode take place on Halloween, though to call it a Halloween episode would probably be inaccurate.  The holiday just serves as a fun visual gag to bring Nightcrawler back into the fold.

Not only does this episode mark the return of Nightcrawler, but it also brings back the Friends of Humanity, and more specifically, that mutant-hating bigot Graydon Creed.  The last time we saw Creed he was busy getting humiliated by Wolverine and the X-Men when they exposed his dirty little secret to his FoH buddies.  That secret being that Creed’s father is none other than Victor Creed (listed as Graydon Creed Senior in the tv show), also known as the mutant Sabretooth!  The high council of the FoH question whether or not Creed is fit to resume his duties with the organization in light of his origin so they give him a task: purge the Creed family name of all trace of mutant blood.

If nothing else, they make for an interesting family portrait.

This apparently will prove even trickier than taking out Sabretooth.  Nightcrawler comes seeking the X-Men’s aid when he receives a chilling letter that the Friends of Humanity are holding his birth mother captive.  We get the usual “Why do you care since she abandoned you?” questions so that Nightcrawler can remind us that he always takes the high road and preaches forgiveness.  When Rogue, Wolverine, and Jubilee run off to find the blue devil’s mother they find none other than Mystique.  This of course leads Nightcrawler and Rogue to the revelation that they’re kind of like siblings given that Mystique once adopted Rogue.  Apparently, Mystique and Sabretooth did the horizontal monster mash (thanks Fry!) back in the day which gave the world Graydon Creed.  It’s not revealed who exactly Nightcrawler’s father is though we get a flashback from Mystique explaining how Nightcrawler came to be that shows him.  Apparently he was just some ugly rich guy.

Creed is basically a maniac who, despite Nightcrawler’s best efforts, cannot be reasoned with.  Mystique is depicted as a cold, and ruthless person as well, but she gets a moment of redemption after a touching scene with her blue baby boy.  The episode ends with Nightcrawler in a bit of a melancholy place, while the FoH, following Creed’s failure to eradicate his mutant lineage, dump him off on daddy’s door step.  Nightcrawler ends up going 2 for 2 as far as quality episodes go.  This one also ended up getting pushed to season 5 for the initial broadcast.  I believe it was done just to break up the Nightcrawler episodes further.

Weapon X, Lies, & Videotape

Wolverine in his cool spy gear squares off against Omega Red in a flashback.

Another Wolverine episode, but the first one in awhile.  This episode was originally aired in prime time as part of season 3.  During the 90’s Wolverine’s origins were ever evolving in the comic books and a frequent topic for plot lines and fan conversations.  This one deals with the concept of false memories.  For awhile we had seen glimpses of Wolverine’s past, in both television and the comics, particularly of when he received his adamantium skeleton and claws.  This episode deals with the possibility of those memories, and more, being implants as part of the Weapon X project.

The episode begins with Wolverine being taunted by memories from his past.  We finally get a reason for his hatred towards Sabretooth as well.  Apparently Wolverine was in love with a Native American named Silver Fox, and apparently just to tick Wolverine off, Sabretooth “killed” her.  I put “killed” in quotations because the episode never actually states that (for obvious reasons) but it seems implied.  Wolverine takes off to go uncover the mysteries of these nightmares and Beast takes off after him.

Maverick makes his second appearance (first speaking one) while Silver Fox her first.

Wolverine’s visions take him to the Weapon X facility located somewhere in Canada where he finds Sabretooth waiting for him amongst the ruins of the lab.  The two immediately start to go at it, before Beast steps in as mediator.  They soon realize they were both lead there by their own visions and a mysterious letter.  They’re soon encountered by Silver Fox and Maverick, with Wolverine looking pretty shocked to see Silver Fox alive and well.  We’re treated to numerous flashbacks such as the four of them working together to take down Omega Red.  The lab contains set pieces which correspond with the false memories the four share and a video recording of Dr. Cornelius confirms the existence of false memories.

We get to see the four, and Beast, work together to take out some robot guards that were supposedly created to retrieve the “samples” from the Weapon X project.  In the end, little is settled as Wolverine remains convinced his love affair with Fox was real, while she remains unsure.  They all go their separate ways and Wolverine is left with some measure of peace.  This episode proves to be a fun collection of mystery and conspiracy theories with some convincing action tossed in as well.  There is one piece of animation I always found confusing where Sabretooth removes his glove to work a palm scanning device, showing the flesh tone of his hand is the same as his arm, making me wonder where Sabretooth’s skin ends and his costume begins.  I regret that I couldn’t find a screen capture of what I’m talking about.

Lotus and the Steel

The Silver Samurai makes his lone appearance of the series in this episode.

It’s probably a good thing that “Weapon X…” was moved up to season 3 because if these two episodes had aired back-to-back it might have been Wolverine overkill.  This episode indirectly deals with the fall out of the Proteus episodes, specifically with how Wolverine was getting along following his shake-up at the hands of the out of control mutant.  The episode begins with Wolverine and Xavier having a sort-of therapy session where Wolverine expresses that he feels empty inside.  This leads to Wolverine leaving the X-Men and heading for Japan to seek his purpose.  Jubilee, unable to accept this decision, takes off after him.  The set-up, in a way, is reminiscient of Wolverine #75 which dealt with the fall out of Wolverine losing his adamantium skeleton and also leaving the X-Men.

As usual, trouble seems to find Wolverine and in Japan he finds anything but peace.  He arrives at his old hang out (some rural village, apparently not Madripoor) and finds out the locals are being bullied by a local Japanese mafia lead by the Silver Samurai.  The Samurai’s gang is extorting the locals for protection money, when they don’t pay his followers ransack the place.  Wolverine initially doesn’t want to get involved but of course he has to.  This leads to a showdown between Wolverine and the Samurai where Wolverine uncharacteristically outsmarts him to take him out.  The villagers thank him, and he and Jubilee head home.

The episode is very similar to the first season episode “Cold Vengeance,” just change the setting and switch out the villain.  For that reason, it lacks any real impact as it’s nothing we haven’t seen before.  Not a bad episode, just not memorable.

Have Yourself A Morlock Little X-Mas

For years the writers resisted the urge to do a holiday tie-in episode, but here in season 4 we get our first and only one.  Perhaps the writers felt emboldened after doing the Nightcrawler episodes with their religious tie-ins that a Christmas episode felt appropriate.

In this episode, Jubilee's quest for the perfect X-Mas!

The basic plot is kind of traditional holiday special crap.  Jubilee wants to have the perfect Christmas as this is her first with the X-Men (nevermind that the show has been on for years at this point, but whatever) so she’s making a big deal out of everything.  Jean is charged with preparing Christmas dinner, but has to deal with a meddling Gambit who’s cajun roots demand the food contain a certain amount of spice leading to a series of slapstick routines.  Wolverine, of course, is in full-on Scrooge mode and somehow gets suckered into shopping with Jubilee and Storm on Christmas Eve.

At the mall, their seemingly perfect day is interrupted by the Morlocks when they spot them hi-jacking an ambulance.  Wolverine gives chase into the Morlock tunnels where they find a very sick Leech.  When someone mentions the possibility that Leech may die, Jubilee utters the ever predictable “Not on Christmas Eve!” line that must appear in every holiday special (it’s mandated by the FCC, I swear).

Beast arrives on the scene to care for Leech, but nothing he has can cure him, so they turn to Wolverine.  They theorize that a blood transfusion from Wolverine could bestow special healing properties on Leech and possibly cure him of whatever it is that ails him.  Wolverine is reluctant, apparently he tried this before and it didn’t work, but relents in the end.  The transfusion works, and everyone is happy and crying.  Jubilee also abandons her hope for a perfect Christmas with her new family by sharing all of her presents that she purchased with the less fortunate Morlocks and in doing so learns the necessary valuable lesson (also mandated by the FCC).

The episode is really the same old holiday trappings found in a hundred other like episodes, just with an X-Men lens to see it through.  It’s kind of crappy, but admittedly is a guilty pleasure for me.  I can’t watch it without getting a little lump in my throat and I suppose that’s all these episodes ever set out to accomplish.

Beyond Good and Evil (Parts 1 through 4)

“Beyond Good and Evil” was meant to be the big arch to send the X-Men out on.  Nearly every significant villain and hero makes an appearance during this four part story and we even get the requisite Magneto redemption angle once more.  And to top it off it’s another time travel story and the writers seem to always nail these kind of stories.

Jean apparently not as happy to see Sinister as he is to see her.

The basic plot revolves around the god-like mutant Apocalypse.  In the year 3999, Cable and his followers attempt to destroy Apocalypse once and for all.  When Cable and Apocalypse find themselves isolated, Cable hurls the “e” word in Apocalypse’s direction, claiming because he’s evil he can never win, to which he responds rather poetically with “I am not evil, I simple am!”  Despite the confidence of that statement, Apocalypse begins to ponder his existence and even shows sadness to view himself as part of some scale where one side can never truly triumph over the other, “What a cruel joke,” he remarks.  I didn’t do the scene justice, but it’s pretty cool to watch Apocalypse and Cable face-off in a philosophical way as opposed to a physical way.  The scene ends with Apocalypse stealing Cable’s time-traveling computer crystal-thing and vanishes.  At the same time, well not really, Bishop and Shard are shown trying to return to their future world but Bishop gets hung up in the portal and soon finds himself in a strange universe populated by light bridges that all lead to some central hub.  An annoying, yet seemingly omniscient, custodian shows up to let him know he’s outside of time and the two get set to watching the events unfolding in the present.

In the present, Cyclops and Jean are giving this whole wedding thing another go.  As you may recall, the first time they wed it was Morph who administered the vows and not an ordained priest which wasn’t good enough.  This one appears to go smoothly but just as the happy couple is leaving for their honeymoon the Nasty Boys show up.  The X-Men give chase and are able to recover Cyclops but when Wolverine can’t smell any trace of their assailants they realize something’s up.  Back at the mansion, Sinister attacks and is preparing to abduct Xavier.  The X-Men are able to arrive just in time to interrupt his taunting about Jean floating through time and prevent the kidnapping.

The X-Men are able to uncover bits of Sinister’s plan when Shard suddenly arrives on the scene, unaware that it’s actually Apocalypse’s, as psychic mutants begin disappearing.  They set their sights on the mutant Psylocke, who’s busy robbing the wealthy Warren Worthington III, and encounter Mystique and Sabretooth.  With Archangel’s help, the X-Men seemingly have things in control until Magneto shows up.  Not all is lost, as they’re able to take Sabretooth back to the mansion where Wolverine locks himself in a cell with Sabretooth and beats the information out of him.  Around that time, Cable shows up after commandeering a government time machine and shares his plan to take out Apocalypse at the source by destroying the chamber that grants him eternal life.

The X-Men and Cable head off to ancient Egypt but find themselves lured into a trap.  They tangle with some machinations of Apocalypse’s four horsemen before finding an ancient Apocalypse asleep in his chamber.  The Apocalypse they find turns out to be Mystique in disguise, and Apocalypse arrives on the scene to capture the king, as he puts it, with the king being Charles Xavier.

Even when captured, Wolverine likes to run his mouth.

As Apocalypse makes off with Xavier, Wolverine slips in behind him to find himself at the Axis of Time.  By now, Apocalypse, in true villain fashion, has let everyone in on his plans to destroy time by assembling the most powerful psychics in the universe.  It’s not explained particularly well but whatever, it’s more fun to buy into the threat.  On the Axis, Magneto realizes his dream to have his wife restored to life will not be realized by Apocalypse and rebels, with Mystique’s help.  Wolverine is freed by Magneto and soon Cable and Bishop arrive.  The psychics find themselves free of Apocalypse’s control, and using their combined might, banish him to the astral plane seemingly ending his threat to existence.

The arc ends with everyone going their separate ways, though Archangel’s ultimate fate is sort of left unresolved.  When he came onto the scene, Shard referred to him as “destined to join the X-Men” and it almost seemed like maybe the writers intended for him to be a full-fledged member by episode’s end.  Considering they intended for this to be the series finale, it meant they really didn’t have to wrap that up.  Sadly, future episodes seemed to disprove this notion despite the cool group shot towards the end that showed Archangel among the X-Men.

Had this been the finale it would have been a pretty cool way for the series to go out.  While the plan hatched by Apocalypse seems to only make sense in the minds of the show’s writing staff, it was still cool to see all of the major villains make cameos.  There’s even a little snippet of a scene with Lilandra and Gladiator having to face the menace of Apocalypse and they at least did a good job of making him look like a universal threat.  Magneto’s original voice actor, sadly, was unable to voice the character here but his replacement proved competent.  While not the best of the multi-part story-lines served up by this show, it’s definitely one of the more fun ones and a high point for season 4.