Wolverine receiving his greatest upgrade is no longer in the cards after a surprising Marvel Studios decision. X-Men '97 is full of shocking moments. Just recently, in Season 2, Episode 4, "Rise of Apocalypse – Part 2," En Sabah Nur went from motivated freedom fighter to bloodthirsty monster, killing an important member of the titular team to prove he meant business.
As wild as Season 2 has been, though, it has nothing on the first outing, which dropped jaw-dropping moment after jaw-dropping moment. There was the shocking attack on Genosha that left countless mutants dead. And who could forget Madelyne Pryor revealing herself as a clone of Jean Grey? However, the scene that had fans running to social media to give their thoughts more than any other came in Episode 9, "Tolerance is Extinction - Part 2."
Having had enough of humanity's disdain toward mutants, Magneto shut down the power grid and built a fortress in the sky, Asteroid M. Of course, the X-Men weren't about to allow him to enact his horrible plan for Earth, so they suited up and took the fight to their greatest villain. Wolverine didn't think twice about stabbing Magneto when the opportunity presented itself. But the Master of Magnetism didn't go down easily, ripping the adamantium off of Wolverine's skeleton and leaving the hero worse for wear.
With all the time-travel shenanigans going on early in Season 2, there was no time for X-Men '97 to address the fact that Logan had to fight with one claw tied behind his back. Episode 5, "Weapon X, Lies, and DVDs," focuses on him in the present and links him up with his old Weapon X pals. They all head to the organization's new headquarters, only to find it overrun by the Brood.
The aliens prove themselves to be a serious threat to the mutant gang, even briefly indoctrinating Logan into their hive mind. The only way Morph and Co. can get him back to normal is by having him go through the adamantium fusion process again. Wolverine doesn't have any trouble surviving and immediately throws himself back into the action by fighting Omega Red.
While it's nice to have Wolverine whole again, it's hard to move past the fact that Marvel Studios missed a great opportunity to make him even more formidable. Back in the actual '90s, when the hero lost his adamantium in the comics, Apocalypse offered to give it back. All Wolverine had to do was fight his rival Sabretooth and stop him from becoming more powerful.
Wolverine won the battle, and Apocalypse rewarded him by restoring his adamantium skeleton and making him one of his four Horsemen, Death. In a matter of moments, Logan became more powerful than ever before and even wielded a sword. The upgrade didn't last forever, as the X-Men helped him break free of Apocalypse's control. But Death kicked plenty of butts and took more than a few names.
Since Wolverine got his adamantium back in "Weapon X, Lies, and DVDs," he won't need to go to Apocalypse for help later in the season. And the Death role is seemingly already filled anyway, with all signs pointing to Gambit becoming one of the four Horsemen. Just because one door is closed doesn't mean they all are, though.
Marvel Studios Could Make Wolverine One Of Apocalypse's Horsemen At A Later Point
Despite X-Men '97 hogging all the headlines right now, Marvel Studios has a full-blown reboot of the team on the way. Jake Schreier is currently searching for the actors who will bring his heroes and villains to life and usher in the Mutant Saga. The X-Men having a whole saga to themselves means they're going to have to bring their A-game.
If X-Men '97 has proven anything in Season 2, it's that Apocalypse is a villain worth bringing to the big screen, as he's an unstoppable force of evil. When his time does come in live-action, it's only fair that he gets his hands on the new Wolverine, at least for a while. It's just too juicy a partnership to pass over.
