The 1992 X-Men animated series debuted on October 31, 1992 on the Fox Network as part of the "Fox Kids" Saturday morning lineup. The plot was loosely adapted from famous storylines and events in the X-Men comics, such as the Dark Phoenix Saga, Days of Future Past, the Phalanx Covenant, and the Legacy Virus. The show features a team line-up similar to that of the early 1990s X-Men comic books: the line-up largely resembles that of Cyclops' Blue Team, established in the early issues of the second X-Men comic series.
The series' first 13 episodes were notable for being possibly the first time ever that an American animated series had a full season of episodes flow one into the next, creating a single continuing narrative, something the series producers fought heavily for. However, starting with season three, most episodes (except for multi-part stories) were shown in random order.
Each episode was assigned two different numbers internally. One is for Script Order, which indicates the number assigned by the production company. The other is for Production Order, which are the official episode numbers assigned by FOX Children's Network, indicating the order in which they received the episodes. These both vary from the order in which the series actually aired after season three. According to series writer Steven Melching, the Script Order is the "best guide in terms of overall series continuity, as this is how the stories were originally envisioned to flow together."[1]
The X-Men also appeared on Spider-Man in episodes "The Mutant Agenda" and "Mutants' Revenge". Storm later appeared in the three part episode "Secret Wars".
As of 2011, the X-Men animated show stands as the longest-running Marvel Comics based TV show, lasting for six years, with five seasons and a total of 76 episodes. The series was canceled after the episode "Graduation Day", which aired on September 20, 1997.[2]
The following list reflects the correct viewing order of the "X-Men: The Animated Series" episodes, according to the official site of Marvel.[3]
Contents |
The continuity within the first season of X-Men, according to Story Editor Eric Lewald:
"The first season order was thirteen episodes, which was standard for a network show. The Sentinel story wrapped up at the end of the season because the writers were not sure that there would be more than one season. Looking back at the previous Marvel animated adaptations, there was great fear that X-Men would fail. When the first season became a number one hit, the network ordered 39 more episodes."
| Script # | Title | Writer(s))[4] | Original Airdate[4] | Villain(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | "Night of the Sentinels (Part 1)" | Mark Edward Edens | October 31, 1992 | Sentinels |
| Jubilee is attacked by robots called Sentinels at a local mall but she is saved by Storm and Rogue, and taken to the X-Mansion for her safety. The X-Men discover that the group running the Mutant Registration Program intends to track and eliminate mutants. Later, the X-Men find the Sentinel base and infiltrate the base to destroy the files on mutants. The episode ends in a cliffhanger when Storm opens the door to a room where many armed soldiers are hiding, waiting to ambush the X-Men. | ||||
| 02 | "Night of the Sentinels (Part 2)" | Mark Edward Edens | November 7, 1992 | Henry Gyrich, Bolivar Trask, Sentinels |
| Wolverine smells the soldiers' gun oil and quickly closes the door before the soldiers fire. Storm sweeps the guards away with her wind power. After destroying the files on mutants, the X-Men escape to the Blackbird, but are stopped by the Sentinels. During the fight with the Sentinels, Morph is shot and presumed dead. While Beast gets blasted against the fence and gets electrocuted and captured, the rest retreat to the Blackbird on Cyclops’ command. Jubilee decides that it is best to stay at the X-Mansion. | ||||
| 03 | "Enter Magneto" | Jim Carlson & Terrence McDonnell | November 27, 1992 | Sabertooth, Magneto |
| After Beast's trial, Sabretooth demands that Beast be set free, prompting the guards to shoot and injure Sabretooth. Cyclops aids Sabretooth and brings him to the Mansions' infirmary. Later, Magneto attacks a military missile facility. As the X-Men arrive, Magneto is preparing to launch nuclear missiles in order to ensure a war between mutants and humans. Cyclops, Storm, and Wolverine face off with Magneto, but are unable to stop him. Later Storm uses her wind and lightning to cause the missiles to short-circuit, deactivating them and drop them into the water. Having prevented a nuclear war, the X-Men return home to the mansion having learned the full power of Magneto. | ||||
| 04 | "Deadly Reunions" | Don Glutt | January 23, 1993 | Sabertooth, Magneto |
| Magneto destroys a chemical plant in order to attract Professor X. Cyclops, Rogue, Storm, and Professor X proceed to the chemical plant, while Jubilee is left to guard Sabretooth. Professor X enters the chemical plant to confront Magneto. Just as Magneto appears to beat Professor X, Professor X telepathically forces Magneto to recall his younger years. Magneto retreats in panic. Back at the X-Mansion Sabretooth growls in disgust at the senator on television and Jubilee notices a problem with his wrist bindings. Jubilee loosens the restraints, and Sabretooth captures Jubilee, but Wolverine leaps from the shadows and attacks him. Their battle is interrupted with the return of Professor X and the other X-Men. This distraction provides Sabretooth an opportunity for escape, slashing deep wounds in Wolverine's chest. | ||||
| 05 | "Captive Hearts" | Robert N. Skir & Marty Isenberg | January 30, 1993 | Morlocks |
| A group of mutants called Morlocks capture Jean and Cyclops when they go out. The Morlocks' leader Callisto kidnapped Cyclops so that he would rule the Morlocks beside her. Jean uses her telepathic powers and tells the Professor that they have been captured. Wolverine, Gambit, Rogue, and Storm go to search for them. When the X-Men find Jean and Cyclops, Storm challenges Callisto for leadership of the Morlocks to save Cyclops and Jean. Callisto has no choice but to accept the challenge. After a brief fight, Storm defeats Callisto and becomes the new Morlocks' leader, but having saved Jean and Cyclops, she makes Callisto the leader in her absence. | ||||
| 06 | "Cold Vengeance" | Michael Edens | February 6, 1993 | Sabretooth |
| Wolverine flees to Canada to seek solitude in the Canadian wilderness. He finds peace among a group of Baffin Island Inuit, only to discover Sabretooth has been stalking him and has taken the people of the village captive, and plans to kill them all. Wolverine is able to defeat Sabertooth and rescue the villagers. Back at the X-Mansion, Gambit tells the X-Men he heard the people at Genosha welcome mutants and he wants the team to vacation there. Professor Xavier sends Storm, Gambit, and Jubilee to Genosha as tourists. While in Genosha, Storm, Gambit and Jubilee are attacked and captured by a Sentinel. | ||||
| 07 | "Slave Island" | Mark Edward Edens | February 13, 1993 | Sentinel, Master Mold, Henry Gyrich, Bolivar Trask |
| Gambit, Storm, Jubilee and a host of other mutants are made to work as slaves in Genosha in order to complete a dam which will power a Sentinel factory. Special collars on mutants' necks prevent them from using their powers, but Gambit manages to escape. During his escape, Gambit finds Cable who is looking for the one responsible for enslaving the mutants. Cable gives Gambit a key to unlock his collar before attacking the Sentinel factory. Meanwhile, Gambit frees the other Mutants. The Mutants begin fighting with the guards and Sentinels before fleeing. Storm uses her powers to bring down the dam, causing a flood to destroy the entire Sentinel factory. The X-Men then return home to a destroyed X-Mansion. | ||||
| 08 | "The Unstoppable Juggernaut" | Julianne Klemm | March 6, 1993 | Juggernaut |
| After the X-Men find the X-Mansion destroyed, Wolverine goes looking for the suspect, followed by Storm, Rogue and Jubilee. Later Jubilee find a mutant made out of pure steel. Thinking he is the one responsible for trashing the school, Jubilee goes after him, but Wolverine says he was not the one who destroyed the mansion because he smelled different. Jubilee and Wolverine find Juggernaut robbing a bank and try to apprehend him, but Juggernaut is too strong. Soon the other X-Men arrive at the scene. Jean explains that she cannot mentally attack Juggernaut as long as his helmet is on. Cyclops thinks they can defeat him, as long as they work as a team. The plan works, thanks to the combined attacks of the X-Men and the strength of Colossus. Rogue tries to use her power to hurt Juggernaut but only manages to absorb some of his powers, as Juggernaut has almost infinite strength(no known upper-limit) thus getting massive jolt in return but in process reading his thoughts revealing why he destroyed the mansion: Xavier is his half brother and he wanted to take revenge because his parents treated Xavier better than him. Wolverine releases his helmet and Jean wipes his mind clean. At end of the episode the X-Men start rebuilding the Mansion. | ||||
| 09 | "The Cure" | Mark Edward Edens | February 20, 1993 | Apocalypse, Mystique, Pyro, Avalanche |
| A doctor at the Muir Island Mutant Research Center claims to have found a cure for the mutant gene. Rogue travels to the island seeking the "cure". Rogue visits Dr. Adler and tells him how she is considering the treatment. Dr. Adler sends her on her way and Apocalypse appears. Dr. Adler reverts to Mystique and they discuss Rogue's powers. Later Cable attacks Dr. Adler but the X-Men defeat them, and Rogue changes her mind about the treatment and leaves. Near the end, Warren (Angel) comes for the treatment and goes into Dr. Adler's lab. Later, Mystique finds Apocalypse and tells him of Warren, and he replies that he is planning on destroying the world. | ||||
| 10 | "Come the Apocalypse" | Michael Edens | February 27, 1993 | Apocalypse, Mystique |
| The immortal mutant Apocalypse turns mutants who journeyed to Muir Island seeking the fictitious cure into the Horsemen – Famine, Pestilence, War, and Death. The Horsemen start destroying everything across the planet. The X-Men arrive and battle the Horsemen. Rogue eventually grabs Archangel and absorbs his memory, sucking Apocalypse's power out of him. Archangel, appalled at what he has become, blasts the other Horsemen away. Apocalypse flees in a spaceship, and the diversion allows the other Horsemen to escape also. | ||||
| 11 | "Days of Future Past (Part 1)" | Julia Jane Lewald | March 13, 1993 | Nimrod, Sentinels |
| A mutant named Bishop travels through time from 2055 AD to the present in order to stop a member of the X-Men from assassinating someone. When he comes to the present he can not remember who the assassin is. Later he turns to the X-Men for help. The episode ends on a cliffhanger ending where it's revealed that Gambit is the suspect. | ||||
| 12 | "Days of Future Past (Part 2)" | Robert N. Skir & Marty Isenberg | March 20, 1993 | Mystique, The Blob, Pyro, Avalanche |
| As Bishop shoots Gambit, the X-Men stop him. Later they go to Washington, where the Brotherhood of Mutants plan to assassinate Senator Robert Kelly. Mystique poses as Gambit and tries to kill Kelly, but the real Gambit saves the Senator. Then Bishop goes back to his time. Later, when Professor X goes to see Senator Kelly, he finds that Magneto has kidnapped the Senator leading to another cliffhanger ending. | ||||
| 13 | "The Final Decision" | Robert N. Skir & Marty Isenberg | March 27, 1993 | Magneto, Sentinels, Master Mold, Bolivar Trask, Henry Gyrich |
| Magneto brings Senator Kelly to a sunken ship to kill him, so that mutants and humans would go to war. Sentinels attack Magneto and take Senator Kelly. When the X-Men finally find where Magneto is, the Sentinels are already gone with the senator. The Sentinels take Senator Kelly to Master Mold. Master Mold wants to replace all the world leaders' brains with computers, so that Sentinels could control the world. The X-Men go to the Sentinels' base and save the Senator. Kelly realizes that some Mutants can be good. Cyclops and Jean become engaged. And there is a hint that we will soon meet a character named Sinister. We see a quick clip of Ghost Rider and Gambit's former love interest Bella Donna in this episode for the first time as one of the characters seen in Gambit's mind when Prof. Xavier tries to locate information on Henry Gyrich, one of the men who heads the Sentinel production project. | ||||
The second season saw a parallel narrative featuring Magneto and Professor X lost in the Savage Land interwoven throughout. Many of the stories dealt with the X-Men dealing with the professor's absence, as well as increasing the backstory of many of the X-Men, particularly Rogue and Wolverine.
| Script # | Title | Writer(s)[5] | Original Airdate[5] | Villain(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 14 | "Till Death Do Us Part (Part 1)" | Mark Edward Edens | October 23, 1993 | Mister Sinister, Morph, Graydon Creed |
| As Jean Grey and Cyclops attempt to tie the knot, Mister Sinister uses a brainwashed Morph to lay traps to destroy the X-Men one by one. Meanwhile, Graydon Creed begins exterminating all mutants. | ||||
| 15 | "Till Death Do Us Part (Part 2)" | Michael Edens | October 30, 1993 | Mister Sinister, Morph, Graydon Creed |
| Mister Sinister and his Nasty Boys kidnap Cyclops and Jean Grey, while the X-Men battle Morph at the mansion. Later the X-Men arrive to Sinister's island and fight the Nasty Boys in order to free Cyclops and Jean. | ||||
| 16 | "Whatever It Takes" | Julia Jane Lewald | November 6, 1993 | Shadow King, Morph |
| The Shadow King lures Storm home to Mt. Kilimanjaro by 'possessing' her young spiritual son Mjnari, so Rogue and Storm travel to Africa to stop the Shadow King. After a brief fight, Mjnari lures Shadow King back into the Astral Plane and the Shadow King is once again trapped there. | ||||
| 17 | "Red Dawn" | Francis Moss & Ted Pedersen | November 13, 1993 | Omega Red |
| Omega Red, the ultimate living weapon, is resuscitated by three corrupt generals who want to reclaim and rule the crumbling old Soviet empire. Colossus goes to the X-Men for help to save his country and its fragile freedom from these forces of tyranny. Later the X-Men find Omega Red, and fight him, but they are unable to stop him. In the end, the X-Men — with the help of Darkstar and Colossus — defeat him with a trick. Instead of fighting him, Storm uses her powers to freeze him. Omega Red falls back into his cryogenic sleep, and Russia is saved. | ||||
| 18 | "Repo Man" | Len Wein | November 20, 1993 | Vindicator, Alpha Flight |
| Vindicator and Alpha Flight capture Wolverine. They demand to know the secret of his adamantium skeleton. As Vindicator runs tests on Wolverine, he goes too far and subjects Wolverine to a great deal of pain. At this point, the members of Alpha Flight decide that enough is enough and decide to free Wolverine. Alpha Flight defeats the battle droid guards, allowing Wolverine, hungry for revenge, to defeat Vindicator. After this, Wolverine sheathes his claws and warns his former comrades to not seek him again. | ||||
| 19 | "X-Ternally Yours" | Julianne Klemm | December 4, 1993 | Bella Donna, X-Ternal |
| Gambit is forced to return to his southern roots by an ancient tithe, an old family feud and the kidnapping of his brother, Bobby. Bella Donna of the Assassin's Guild uses the kidnapping to lure Gambit into her clutches and force him into completing the aborted marriage. Upon trading Bobby and the tithe for Gambit, Bella gives the Thieves a fake tithe, ensuring their destruction at the hands of the X-Ternal. Fortunately for Gambit, the rest of the X-Men follow him back to the bayou; with Gambit's help they successfully confront the Assassins at the designated place and time and expose their deception. When the X-Ternal comes, Jean Grey forces a telepathic link with the X-Ternal, forcing her to see the truth. Realizing that she has been duped, the X-Ternal takes away Bella's powers, and the X-Men return home. | ||||
| 20 | "Time Fugitives (Part 1)" | Michael Edens | December 11, 1993 | Graydon Creed, Apocalypse |
| "Time Fugitives" begins in New York City, in 3999 AD. Here Time is changing itself. Cable uses his time device and sees that Bishop traveled from 2055 AD to the present to stop a plague, which Apocalypse started. Because he stopped the virus from being created, the antibodies that protected mutants from further plagues were never created. | ||||
| 21 | "Time Fugitives (Part 2)" | Elliot S. Maggin | December 18, 1993 | Apocalypse |
| Cable comes to the present to stop Bishop and save his own future world. After a battle with Bishop and the X-Men he flees. When he checks out the X-Men's biography, he sees that he can use Wolverine's healing power to create the antibodies needed to preserve his future. So, with Wolverine's help, Cable saves both his and Bishop's time line. | ||||
| 22 | "A Rogue's Tale" | Robert N. Skir & Marty Isenberg | January 8, 1994 | Mystique, Mister Sinister, Pyro, Avalanche, The Blob, Ms. Marvel |
| Mystique, Rogue's foster mother, forces her to revisit her own past. Rogue's overpowering flashbacks drive her from the X-Men and into the waiting arms of Ms. Marvel, Rogue's first enemy. Her mind is trapped in Rogue's body because Rogue had absorbed her entire mind. On a psychic plane, the vengeful Ms. Marvel and an apologetic Rogue battle it out. Jean Grey uses Cerebro and goes inside Rogue's mind in an attempt to free Rogue from her torment. | ||||
| 23 | "Beauty & the Beast" | Stephanie Mathison | January 15, 1994 | Graydon Creed, Sabretooth |
| Against all odds, Dr. McCoy (Beast) falls in love with Carly, a blind patient of his. Carly's father is a rampant mutant hater until the Friends of Humanity thugs kidnap Carly. Wolverine infiltrates the Friends of Humanity headquarters and meets their leader, Graydon Creed and reveals to the Friends of Humanity that Creed is related to Sabertooth. | ||||
| 24 | "Mojovision" | Brooks Wachtel | February 5, 1994 | Mojo, Sauron |
| An alien, Mojo, kidnaps and casts the X-Men as his latest all-galaxy television hit. They are cast in a gladiator-type series where they confront enemies till one side is destroyed, but Longshot betrays Mojo and frees the X-Men. The X-Men destroy Mojo's studio and they are sent back to Earth. Meanwhile, Xavier and Magneto witness Sauron kidnapping Shanna in the Savage Land. | ||||
| 25 | "Reunion (Part 1)" | Len Wein | February 12, 1994 | Mister Sinister, Sauron |
| A captured Xavier and Magneto are the bait as Mister Sinister lures the other X-Men to his fortress in the Savage Land. After capturing the team, Sinister plans to use their genetic material to update Magneto's lowly band of "Mutates" to create his own army of unstoppable mutants. | ||||
| 26 | "Reunion (Part 2)" | Michael Edens | February 19, 1994 | Mister Sinister, Sauron |
|
Upon touchdown in the Savage Land, the X-Men's mutant powers have been neutralized by Sinister's machines and they are immediately captured by the Nasty Boys and Mutates. Wolverine escapes and teams up with native Ka-Zar. The two travel to the citadel in an attempt to defeat Sinister and free the X-Men and Shanna, Ka-Zar's beloved. Note: Gambit tells Rogue that he loves her. And they kiss just before one of the Nasty Boys grabs Rogue. |
||||
After the "Phoenix Saga," episodes were aired in a more random sequence. Also, due to animation problems with a few episodes, several would not appear until the fourth or even fifth season.
| Script # | Title | Writer(s)[6] | Original Airdate[6] | Villain(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 27 | "Out of the Past (Part 1)" | Michael Edens | July 29, 1994 | Yuriko, Reavers |
| Wolverine's former love, a Japanese woman named Yuriko, lures Wolverine into the Morlocks' tunnels with Gambit and Jubilee tailing behind Wolverine. She hopes to make a stunning alien discovery with Wolverine's help. They discover a ship, and Wolverine opens it. | ||||
| 28 | "Out of the Past (Part 2)" | Len Wein | August 5, 1994 | Yuriko, M'Kraan Spirit Drinker |
| Yuriko's alien discovery — a Shi'ar vessel — turns out to be a prison cell containing a voracious, gaseous prisoner, the Spirit Drinker (a possible reference to the id monster from the 1956 Sci-Fi classic, Forbidden Planet). It immediately sucks life out of Jubilee, Yuriko and her cohorts, the Reavers. After arriving with reinforcements, Professor X goes to the ship and learns more about what is going on while the rest of the team work towards preventing the Spirit Drinker from reaching the surface. Soon at the subway tunnel, Wolverine discovers that electricity makes the alien explode and Gambit throws his metal staff on the railroad track to serve as a conductor on harnessing electricity to defeat the alien. | ||||
| 29 | "Phoenix Saga (Part 1): Sacrifice" | Michael Edens | September 5, 1994 | Erik the Red |
| An emissary of the alien race the Shi'ar, Erik the Red takes over the Eagle One space station. Professor Xavier has been suffering from troubling visions and loss of control over his powers since the X-Men's encounter with the Spirit Drinker. Aware of something occurring in space, he sends the X-Men go to the space station to stop Erik the Red from killing the astronauts. While returning, they collide with an energy wave. Jean Grey, realizing she is the only one who stands a chance, knocks Cyclops out to prevent him from stopping her, absorbs the pilot's training telepathically and telekinetically pilots the shuttle while the others sit in a chamber that shields them from the radiation, sacrificing herself. When her shields begin to fail, she cries for help and the Phoenix Force answers her psychic call. | ||||
| 30 | "Phoenix Saga (Part 2): The Dark Shroud" | Mark Edward Edens | September 6, 1994 | Juggernaut, Black Tom Cassidy |
| The space shuttle crash-lands in Jamaica Bay. Though the other X-Men are unscathed, Jean Grey's fate is unknown, until she flies into the air, displaying powers and a new costume she has never used before, and proclaims herself "The Phoenix" before collapsing, suffering from confusion, memory loss, and vast new powers. Meanwhile, Xavier goes to Muir Island to recuperate after his mind is attacked and a psychic projection of his dark side attacks the X-Men; an alien named Lilandra Neramani has come to seek Xavier's help, but Juggernaut and Black Tom Cassidy kidnap her. | ||||
| 31 | "Phoenix Saga (Part 3): Cry of the Banshee" | Michael Edens | September 7, 1994 | Juggernaut, Black Tom Cassidy, Gladiator |
| The X-Men and Banshee go to save Lilandra. Jean Grey continues to exhibit inexplicable symptoms. Lilandra explains that her brother, the Emperor of the Shi'ar, has gone insane and power-hungry, and seeks to control the M'Kraan Crystal, an object whose power threatens to destroy every universe in existence. Here they are met by Gladiator, the leader of D'Ken's guard, and cannot defeat him. Jean transforms fully into Phoenix and easily defeats Gladiator before declaring herself the Child of Light, Guardian of the M'Kraan Crystal and of creation. | ||||
| 32 | "Phoenix Saga (Part 4): The Starjammers" | Mark Edward Edens | September 8, 1994 | Starjammers, D'Ken |
| Phoenix transports all the X-Men to Lilandra's ship, where she has hidden the M'Kraan Crystal. A group of space pirates called the Starjammers attack and steal the M'Kraan Crystal from the X-Men. Phoenix reads the leader, Corsair's mind, and discovers he is Cyclops' long-lost father. The Starjammers want to trade the Crystal to D'Ken, so that they will get close enough to kill him, but they are double-crossed. Despite Phoenix's best efforts, D'Ken unleashes the Crystal's power and sucks himself, the X-Men and the Starjammers inside. | ||||
| 33 | "Phoenix Saga (Part 5): Child of Light" | Mark Edward Edens | September 9, 1994 | D'Ken |
| D'Ken gets pulled into the Crystal, and becomes one with the universe inside it. Phoenix explains that the Crystal will suck all of existence inside of itself and create a new, lifeless universe to replace the one that was destroyed. On Earth, Storm and other heroes try to restore order as life starts to collapse. D'Ken, seemingly limitless in power, easily fights off the X-Men until Phoenix restores herself to power and helps the others escape. Realizing what she must do, she takes the opportunity to kiss Cyclops goodbye, tell the X-Men she loves them, and telling them that the heart of life is love. Sealing the Crystal, she traps D'Ken inside and once more sacrifices her life by taking the Crystal and soaring into the heart of the Sun. | ||||
| 34 | "No Mutant Is an Island[a]" | Sandy Scesny | September 21, 1996 | Kilgrave |
| Cyclops, still in mourning after Phoenix's death, quits the X-Men and returns to the orphanage he grew up in and encounters his friend Sarah. She tells him that a wealthy man has decided to adopt all the mutant children, especially Rusty; his true intentions are to make them his army to kill all humans in order to create a world where mutants are accepted. Cyclops must stop him and save the mutant children. Cyclops returns to the mansion, and is stunned to hear that Professor Xavier's powers have found Phoenix alive and well and returned to Earth. | ||||
| 35 | "Obsession" | Adam Gilad | September 24, 1994 | Apocalypse |
| Archangel has become obsessed with destroying Apocalypse, who he blames for ruining his life. Beast finds an alternative to defeating Apocalypse. The X-Men trap Apocalypse in a force field, create a pod around it, and jettison it into the space; they then return to the X-Mansion. | ||||
| 36 | "Longshot[a]" | Steven Melching & David McDermott | October 5, 1996 | Mojo |
| Longshot, rebel from another world, tumbles into this world with no memory. It turns out that Longshot is on the run from Mojo, a maniacal inter-dimensional TV executive. Mojo uses Jubilee as a 'prize' to lure Longshot and the X-Men into a deadly contest which Mojo broadcasts 'live' to raise ratings. The X-Men eventually defeat Mojo. | ||||
| 37 | "Cold Comfort" | Len Uhley | February 4, 1995 | Iceman, X-Factor |
|
Former X-Man Bobby 'Iceman' Drake is caught breaking into a top-secret government installation. The X-Men free him and take him to Xavier, who is sad that his former favorite pupil apparently has gone bad. Iceman broke in because his house was trashed and Lorna Dane was kidnapped. Later, he again breaks into the compound and the X-Men follow. When they get there it turns out that the government installation was a training ground for the X-Factor. Lorna Dane faked her kidnapping to join the X-Factor and start a new life. Continuity Note: Although Havok was never seen again during the series, and thus it was not further addressed, Cyclops' and Havok's are immune to each others' powers, indicating that their sibling relationship from the comics is a part of this version's back story as well. |
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| 38 | "Savage Land, Strange Heart (Part 1)" | Robert N. Skir & Marty Isenberg | September 10, 1994 | Sauron, Zaladane, Garokk |
| Sauron kidnaps Storm to the Savage Land in order to feed from her mutant energy. Separated from the rest of the X-Men, Storm is encouraged by Sauron to free her inner tempest of energy, awakening Garokk. Phoenix continues to be absent from the team as Xavier and Moira McTaggert study the bond between Jean Grey and the Phoenix on Muir Island. | ||||
| 39 | "Savage Land, Strange Heart (Part 2)" | Robert N. Skir & Marty Isenberg | September 17, 1994 | Sauron, Zaladane, Garokk |
| Garokk fuses with the island's volcano and the surging planetary force below it. Realizing his mistake, Sauron absorbs Garokk's energy and becomes as strong as Garokk. Sauron defeats Garokk. Storm regains control over her vast powers and the X-Men return home. | ||||
| 40 | "The Dark Phoenix Saga (Part 1): Dazzled" | Jan Strnad | November 12, 1994 | Phoenix, Mastermind, Inner Circle Club |
| The Phoenix continues to inhabit Jean's body. Jean is beginning to lose control, and the Phoenix begins to brazenly take over at will. When the Inner Circle Club learn of the Phoenix's power, they use Jason Wyngarde to create a new history in the mind of the confused Jean/Phoenix. Wyngarde creates a passionate romance between himself and her. When the X-Men come to rescue Jean, they find her fighting alongside Wyngarde. | ||||
| 41 | "The Dark Phoenix Saga (Part 2): The Inner Circle" | Steven Levi | November 12, 1994 | Inner Circle Club, Phoenix |
| As Professor X and Emma Frost battle for psychic control of Jean, the Inner Circle members quarrel over how to dispose of their prisoners, the X-Men. When Mastermind tries to force Phoenix to kill Cyclops, she finally breaks free of the psychic controls on her, leaving the X-Men to fight for themselves. When Mastermind finds her on the roof, Phoenix reveals that he foolishly unleashed her dark side, and she allows him to see the universe through her eyes -- the eyes of a god. Mastermind's mind collapses and Phoenix unleashes her powers on New York City, declaring that the Dark Phoenix has been born. | ||||
| 42 | "The Dark Phoenix Saga (Part 3): The Dark Phoenix" | Larry Parr | November 19, 1994 | Phoenix, Lilandra |
| When the X-Men confront the Phoenix and ask it to give up Jean's body, Dark Phoenix vows to destroy the team, defeating them easily. To re-energize, she flies up through the D'Bari Star System, passing a very surprised Shi'ar Star Cruiser crew. As they watch in horror, she feeds upon and destroys an entire star system. Jean Grey, now completely part of the Phoenix, returns to her childhood home, overwhelmed by too much emotion and too much power. The X-Men try to fight her, and Cyclops tries to reason with her, but Professor Xavier is forced to fight Dark Phoenix on the astral plane. Though he seems to win, he reveals the only reason he won was that the part of Jean Grey's mind that was still normal sealed the Phoenix away. Lilandra, now Empress of the Shi'ar, arrives to announce that the Phoenix must be destroyed. | ||||
| 43 | "The Dark Phoenix Saga (Part 4): The Fate of the Phoenix" | Brooks Wachtel | November 26, 1994 | Lilandra, Phoenix |
| In the Shi'ar court, Lilandra reveals Phoenix's destruction of the D'Bari solar system and declared that Phoenix has transformed into the Destroyer of legend and must die. Xavier reads Lilandra's mind and challenges her guard to the Duel of Honor that Lilandra cannot refuse for Jean Grey's life. The X-Men argue about whether defending the Phoenix is worth defending Jean. Lilandra and Xavier argue bitterly. On the Moon, the X-Men and the Imperial Guard fight. When the X-Men are defeated and Jean Grey can no longer maintain psychic control, the Phoenix breaks free and the X-Men are forced to fight her again. When Jean realizes that it is up to her, she uses Phoenix's powers to use the Shi'ar's weapons to kill herself. The Phoenix, now released, is brought back to its senses by Jean's sacrifice and uses its powers to take a piece of life from all of the X-Men to renew the fire of Jean's soul. Jean Grey is brought back to life, and the Phoenix disappears into the stars. | ||||
| 44 | "Orphan's End" | Doug Booth | February 25, 1995 | Shi'Ar |
| Cyclops discovers that Corsair may be his father. Corsair is on the run from Shi'Ar authorities, who demand that Cyclops turn him over to them. It later comes to light that the Shi'Ar police officers are corrupt and are attempting to kill a witness under Corsair's protection. The X-Men defeat the corrupt Shi'Ar officers. Cyclops invites Corsair to stay for a while, hoping to clear things up, and Corsair accepts. | ||||
| 45 | "Love in Vain" | Martha Moran | February 10, 1996 | Family |
| In a New Mexico desert, Wolverine witnesses the crash of a spaceship carrying horrific, alien bug-like creatures—the Family—which overwhelm him. Rogue reunites with her first boyfriend, Cody, who ends up being a part of the Family's plot to have Rogue become their new leader. The X-Men defeat the Family. | ||||
| 46 | "The Juggernaut Returns[b]" | Julianne Klemm | May 6, 1995 | Juggernaut |
| Juggernaut's life is at risk when someone else uncovers the Ruby of Cyttorak and claims the powers of Juggernaut for himself, wanting to pick up girls. Cyclops and Wolverine find the new Juggernaut and intervene. He drops the Ruby and Wolverine and Cyclops escape with it. Professor X gives the Ruby back to his step-brother, restoring the original Juggernaut. He throws the Ruby into space and leaves the X-Men without a fight. | ||||
| 47 | "A Deal with the Devil[a]" | Eric Lewald | September 14, 1996 | Omega Red |
| Omega Red, the destruction machine from the former Soviet Union and a sworn enemy of Wolverine, is thawed and sent two miles beneath the ocean to salvage a disabled, toxic nuclear submarine threatening to break up near Hawaii. His only condition: Wolverine and Storm go down with him as insurance. Once in the sub, Omega Red reveals his plan to use the missile to cause destruction. Rogue destroys the sub, rendering it unable to launch its warheads. The submarine sinks deeper into the ocean, leaving Omega Red trapped inside. | ||||
| 48 | "Sanctuary (Part 1)" | Steven Melching & David McDermott | October 21, 1995 | Magneto, Fabian Cortez |
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Weary of battling for mutant supremacy, Magneto offers to transport all mutants to an orbiting asteroid named Asteroid M where they can live peaceful and human-free lives; however, Fabian Cortez tricks Magneto into an escape pod and launches him into space. When the X-Men arrive to investigate Magneto's intentions, Cortez blames Magneto's disappearance on them and accuses them of assassinating Magneto. When the X-Men try to escape, Gambit sacrifices himself and the other X-Men escape. Continuity Notes: A flashback scene in this episode shows Jean, Scott, Hank, Bobby and Warren training in the danger room in old style uniforms (except Jean, who wears her current outfit until the ending of the flashback). This contradicts the show's continuity, in which Angel does not meet the X-Men until midway through the first season. It also disagrees with statements made during the Dark Phoenix saga, which identifies the outfit Jean wears during the Aranin-Halar trial as her original uniform. |
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| 49 | "Sanctuary (Part 2)" | Jeff Saylor | October 28, 1995 | Fabian Cortez, Apocalypse |
| As Magneto plummets helplessly to Earth, Fabian Cortez assumes control of Asteroid M and sends hundreds of missiles towards Earth. Meanwhile, Rogue goes to help the X-Men and tries to find a missing Gambit. Magneto frees himself and returns in time to destroy both the missiles and Asteroid M. Everyone escapes before the asteroid is destroyed and they all return home (Gambit included!) Meanwhile, Cortez is rescued from the descending asteroid by Deathbird... and Apocalypse! | ||||
| 50 | "Xavier Remembers" | Stephanie Mathison | April 27, 1996 | Shadow King |
| When Professor X suffers a slight concussion, his powerful psychic mind is suddenly open to manipulation. The Shadow King takes advantage of this and takes possession of Xavier, leaving his mind trapped on the Astral Plane. Jean Grey again traps Shadow King on the Astral Plane, and Professor X regains control of his body. | ||||
| 51 | "Courage" | Michael Edens & Sandy Scesny | September 23, 1995 | Master Mold, Sentinels, Henry Gyrich, Bolivar Trask |
| The day Morph rejoins the X-Men, terrorists attack a top-secret, high-tech weapons factory; the alert interrupts his homecoming party. Morph and Wolverine investigate and discover that the Sentinels are back. Morph hesitates to fight the Sentinels and has a flashback of getting shot by a Sentinel. Eventually, he overcomes his fear and defeats them, but he leaves the X-Men in the end, saying he's not ready yet. | ||||
| 52 | "Secrets, Not Long Buried" | Mark Onspaugh | February 17, 1996 | Children of the Shadow |
| When Cyclops flies solo to a tiny, western, desert community to see an old friend, his plane is blasted out of the sky. Injured and unable to use his powers, he struggles into town, only to discover his friend is missing and the town is caught in the grips of a militant, mutant-only, anti-human hate group: the Children of the Shadow. The Children of the Shadow hunt him down. When his powers return, Cyclops gets help from some mutants and defeats them. | ||||
Some of the Season 4 episodes were aired during Season 3 to compensate for episodes in that season being pushed back.
| Script # | Title | Writer(s)[7] | Original Airdate[7] | Villain(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 53 | "Nightcrawler[b]" | Len Uhley | May 13, 1995 | Mystique, Brother Reinhardt |
| Gambit, Rogue, and Wolverine take a ski trip in Germany. While Gambit and Rogue seem to be enjoying themselves, Wolverine is restless, and longs for some action. When he hears reports of a demon hiding in a local monastery, his investigation reveals not a demon, but a mutant, Nightcrawler, whose devilish appearance is in stark contrast to his peaceful and deeply philosophical nature. Later the townsfolk attack and burn the monastery. The X-Men convince the townsfolk not to fear what they do not understand, Wolverine, too, learns something about the nature of faith. | ||||
| 54 | "One Man's Worth (Part 1)" | Richard Mueller | September 9, 1995 | Master Mold, Bantam, Trevor Fitzroy, Nimrod |
| Trevor Fitzroy and Bantam travel back in time to 1959 and kill Professor X as Master Mold ordered them. This creates an alternate present time-line, where a human-mutant war has destroyed everything. Bishop and Shard arrive in 'alternate present,' where humans battle violently against 'The Leader' Magneto, and his followers who include husband and wife Wolverine and Storm. Bishop and Shard recruit Wolverine and Storm to help stop Fitzroy, but they fail. | ||||
| 55 | "One Man's Worth (Part 2)" | Gary Greenfield | September 16, 1995 | Master Mold, Bantam, Trevor Fitzroy, Nimrod |
| Failing to stop the assassination of Xavier, Bishop, Shard, Storm and Wolverine travel forward to the future, a future changed so much that Forge's time travel machine has never been tested, and Forge has no idea who these four time travelers are. After they convince Forge, they go back a few minutes before Xavier died and save him. Everything reverts to normal. | ||||
| 56 | "Proteus (Part 1)" | Bruce Reid Schaefer | September 30, 1995 | Proteus |
| Moira MacTaggert is trying to help her son Kevin (Proteus), but when he escapes from Muir Island she calls on the X-Men for help. Proteus who has never been off the island is wreaking havoc while trying to find his father. | ||||
| 57 | "Proteus (Part 2)" | Luanne Crocker | October 7, 1995 | Proteus |
| When Proteus discovers that his deadbeat dad is a prominent politician, he storms the Union Hall right in the middle of his dad's campaign speech on 'family values.' Proteus tells his father that he is his son, his father denies it and runs off in horror, crying for help. Angered at his father's reaction, Proteus creates havoc, but Professor X later calms him down, and he stops the rampage. Then he goes back to Muir Island with Moira MacTaggert. | ||||
| 58 | "Family Ties" | Marley Clark | May 4, 1996 | Magneto, High Evolutionary |
| Shortly after Magneto breaks into the X-Mansion, High Evolutionary and his New Men capture him, Quicksilver, Beast, Wolverine and Scarlet Witch, to do experiments on them. He also reveals that Magneto is Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch's father. The other X-Men later defeat High Evolutionary and His New Men, and save the captured mutants. During this episode, High Evolutionary transformed Wolverine into a werewolf. | ||||
| 59 | "Bloodlines" | Len Uhley | October 26, 1996 | Graydon Creed, Mystique, Sabretooth |
| Nightcrawler gets a mysterious message. He is informed that his birth mother (whom he never knew) is in trouble. He turns to the X-Men for assistance. Jubilee is baffled that Nightcrawler wants to help the mother who abandoned him. Nightcrawler admits there has been pain, but his faith in God has helped him overcome her rejection. The plot thickens when one of the team members recognizes Nightcrawler's mother's voice. | ||||
| 60 | "Lotus and the Steel" | Ted Pedersen & Francis Moss | February 3, 1996 | Silver Samurai |
| Wolverine, losing control, quits the X-Men and returns to the rural Japan of his younger days, in an effort to find himself. He works peacefully with a former spiritual teacher, the monk Oku, to build a temple. But the neighboring village is about to be attacked by bandits, led by the merciless Silver Samurai, unless payment is made. Some of the villagers want to resist, and ask Wolverine for help. Wolverine is torn. This is just the sort of thing he had wanted to leave behind. Wolverine bests the Samurai in single combat by taking advantage of Samurai's habit of teleporting in behind him: Wolverine anticipates the move and disables the teleportation device, humiliating Samurai. | ||||
| 61 | "Weapon X, Lies, & Videotape[b]" | David McDermott & Steven Melching | June 11, 1995 | Sabretooth |
| A cryptic postcard unleashes a flood of maddening and painful memories in Wolverine that threaten to drive him insane. To keep his mind from being torn apart, Wolverine and Beast travel to the one location that may hold the answers to his hidden past: the ruins of the top-secret Weapon X lab where Wolverine's bones were laced with adamantium. There he encounters other former 'test subjects'—Sabretooth, Maverick and Silver Fox—who are suffering similar mental breakdowns. Later they find out that many of their memories were implanted, and their true memories are destroyed with the lab. | ||||
| 62 | "Have Yourself a Morlock Little X-Mas" | Eric Lewald & Larry Parr | December 23, 1995 | N/A |
| As all of the X-Men prepare for a festive Christmas, foster child Jubilee is thrilled. She, Storm, and grouchy humbug Wolverine go last-minute shopping in Manhattan, only to be caught in a life-or-death crisis involving Leech, the littlest Morlock. Leech needs blood transfusion, so Wolverine's blood is given and then Leech gets better. Additionally Storm agrees to give back to Callisto her title as the Morlock's official leader. | ||||
| 63 | "Beyond Good and Evil (Part 1): The End of Time" | Steve Cuden | November 4, 1995 | Apocalypse, Mister Sinister |
| In 3999 Apocalypse tricks Cable and steals Cable's time device and goes back in time, but he accidentally falls in the axis of Time. Apocalypse hires Mister Sinister to kidnap psychics all across the universe. Meanwhile, Jean and Scott try to get married again. | ||||
| 64 | "Beyond Good and Evil (Part 2): Promise of Apocalypse" | Jan Strnad | November 11, 1995 | Apocalypse, Mister Sinister, Magneto, Mystique |
| Apocalypse kidnaps Psylocke, Jean Grey and Professor X. Meanwhile Bishop also gets trapped in the axis of time. Also, Cable and his son break into a government base to steal a time-device. | ||||
| 65 | "Beyond Good and Evil (Part 3): The Lazarus Chamber" | Michael Edens | November 18, 1995 | Apocalypse, Mister Sinister, Magneto, Mystique |
| Cable also uses another time-machine and comes to the present to get the X-Men's help in destroying Apocalypse's Lazarus Chamber. They go back in time to ancient Cairo and destroy the chamber. Apocalypse plans to use the psychics to destroy all time, and recreate a universe, where he will rule unchallenged. | ||||
| 66 | "Beyond Good and Evil (Part 4): End and Beginning" | Dean Stefan | November 25, 1995 | Apocalypse, Mister Sinister, Magneto, Mystique |
| As the true and terrifying nature of Apocalypse's final plan emerges, several in his band team up with the X-Men to stop him. With Bishop's help the psychics are freed. At the end the psychics move Apocalypse to the Astral Plane, so he could age without the help of his chamber. | ||||
"Beyond Good and Evil" was meant to be an ending to the series, until FOX bought a few more episodes at the last minute. As such, the final six episodes have a different animation style. Saban hired a studio in the Philippines (simply called the Philippine Animation Studio, which also worked on the second season of the 1994 Fantastic Four series) because the animation studio AKOM (the company that did the previous four seasons) was unavailable due to other projects in their pipeline.
| Script # | Title | Writer(s)[8] | Original Airdate[8] | Villain(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 67 | "Phalanx Covenant (Part 1)" | Steven Melching & David McDermott | September 7, 1996 | Phalanx |
| The X-Men are attacked by the Phalanx, a race of techno-organic aliens seeking to assimilate all life on earth. The alien Warlock allies with Beast, Forge, and Mr. Sinister to defeat the Phalanx. | ||||
| 68 | "The Phalanx Covenant (Part 2)" | Steven Melching & David McDermott | September 7, 1996 | Phalanx |
| The X-Men are attacked by the Phalanx, a race of techno-organic aliens seeking to assimilate all life on earth. Warlock, Beast, Forge and Mr. Sinister are trying to find help but Magneto at first sees this as his chance to watch humanity go down until he learns his son Quicksilver has been captured by the Phalanx. | ||||
| 69 | "Storm Front (Part 1)" | Mirith Colao | November 2, 1996 | Robots |
| The alien Arkon comes to Earth and begs Storm to return with him to his planet, to save it from meteorological chaos which threatens his people. After much pleading, Storm agrees, but leaves a clue for the other X-Men to follow. Once successful, Storm is proclaimed savior throughout this universe. Then Arkon asks her to marry him. | ||||
| 70 | "Storm Front (Part 2)" | Brooks Wachtel | November 9, 1996 | Arkon |
| Spectacular preparations for Storm's wedding to Arkon proceed quickly. Meanwhile the X-Men discover that Arkon is a ruthless tyrant. | ||||
| 71 | "The Fifth Horseman" | Steven Melching & David McDermott | February 8, 1997 | Fabian Cortez, Apocalypse |
| Fabian Cortez kidnaps Jubilee because Apocalypse is trapped in Astral Plane and needs a host body. Cortez brings her to a temple, but Beast comes and rescues Jubilee and destroys the temple. At the end, when Apocalypse comes out of a portal, he takes over Cortez's body, transforming it into his form and banishing Cortez from it. | ||||
| 72 | "Jubilee's Fairytale Theatre" | Brooks Wachtel | November 16, 1996 | Magneto, Sabretooth |
| Jubilee leads a group of school children on tour of a cave on Mansion property, only to be caught in a cave-in. As the water in the cave rises, she keeps the kids calm by spinning a medieval fairy tale of knights, princesses, trolls and dragons. Some of these characters might just seem to resemble the X-Men. As she tells the kids the stories, the real X-Men arrive and save them. | ||||
| 73 | "Old Soldiers" | Len Wein | February 22, 1997 | Red Skull |
| Wolverine thinks back to the time when he fought during World War II and teamed up with Captain America. Wolverine and Captain America must break into a Nazi establishment to rescue a kidnapped scientist, and fight the Red Skull. | ||||
| 74 | "Hidden Agendas" | Steven Melching & David McDermott | September 6, 1997 | Army officials |
| Sam Guthrie's parents have contacted Professor Xavier about their son's mutant powers. Rogue goes back to the South to check things out and finds Sam living the life she never had. Family and friends support the young Cannonball, but Rogue must teach him how the rest of the world lives when shadowy Army officials attempt to use the youthful mutant. | ||||
| 75 | "Descent" | Steven Melching & David McDermott | September 13, 1997 | Mister Sinister |
| In London, England's Victorian era, two scientists, Dr. James Xavier and Dr. Nathaniel Essex, hotly debate Charles Darwin's theory of natural selection. Essex believes mutants are the next genetic step forward and begins a bizarre experiment involving mutant evolution. The origin of Mr. Sinister is revealed, as Dr. Xavier attempts to stop Essex before he goes too far. | ||||
| 76 | "Graduation Day" | James Krieg | September 20, 1997 | Magneto, Henry Gyrich |
| It's the final episode for the X-Men. At a Mutant/Human Relations Summit, Henry Peter Gyrich attacks and cripples Professor Xavier with an energy disruptor. The X-Men and Moira MacTaggert try to save Xavier, but all seems lost. Lilandra comes and has a cure, but Professor Xavier must leave with her and go with her to the Shi'Ar Empire to be cured. Meanwhile, Magneto makes final preparations to take over the world with his mutant army, but on the eve of the invasion Cyclops, Wolverine, and Jean Grey infiltrate Genosha to tell Magneto that Xavier is dying. He halts the assault on humankind out of respect for his greatest enemy, equal, and only friend. The final scene of the show depicts a lasting moment as all of the X-Men and Magneto stand outside the X-Mansion and say goodbye to Xavier as he leaves with Lilandra and her ship to the Shi'Ar home world. | ||||
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