Marvel Just Had Its X-Men Equivalent Of Civil War

Warning: This article contains SPOILERS for X-Men '97 season 2.The Marvel Cinematic Universe has had its fair share of box office hits and critical darlings, but Captain America: Civil War is by far one of Marvel's most influential movies this century, and the X-Men just had their own version. Ahead of their big role in Avengers: Doomsday, the X-Men have been back in the limelight thanks to X-Men '97 season 2.

The primary focus throughout this installment has been taking down Apocalypse, something the heroes finally managed to achieve, but not before having an internal battle between mutants. With Apocalypse threatening to take over Gambit's consciousness, the X-Men wanted to defeat the villain while sparing Gambit's life, while X-Force and X-Factor teamed up to eliminate the threat by any means necessary.

This contrast in views led to these supposed allies engaging in direct battle, despite working towards the same goal overall. As a result, Cyclops and Jean Grey were forced to fight their own son, while various other mutant vs. mutant confrontations took place during X-Men '97 season 2's ending, all for Apocalypse to gain his freedom anyway.

In many ways, it mimicked what made Civil War so special, as it involves two groups of like-minded individuals after the same thing yet having different views on how to achieve it. Captain America and the X-Men represent the much more moral side of the argument, but the other perspective is understandable, especially when looking at the high stakes.

X-Men '97's version of this was arguably more tragic, as X-Men's mutants aren't like normal superheroes and often face discrimination, meaning they should band together. Instead, they chose to battle one another since they couldn't find common ground on how to deal with Apocalypse, making for a compelling brawl that we don't see very often.

X-Men ‘97’s Mutant Vs. Mutant Battle Was Great, But It’s No Civil War

While there was understandably a lot of criticism about how X-Men '97 season 2 ended, particularly regarding Apocalypse, the mutant vs. mutant battle was still a highlight. It could have been even better with more time dedicated to each individual fight, but it was still fascinating to watch these heroes face off against one another.

Seeing Cable utilize the full extent of his powers to get past his parents was haunting yet entertaining, while there were several other fun clashes along the way. Morph and Wolverine teaming up to take on Psylocke and Archangel was a pretty even tussle, while Polaris and Bishop held their own against X-Factor until Gambit assisted them.

Even Jubilee vs. Havok proved to be a fun fight despite not having the same stakes, showing that it isn't just X-Men '97's most powerful mutants that can put on a good show. Despite all the highlights, these bouts were ultimately condensed and didn't have a whole lot of build-up or fallout, especially compared to Captain America: Civil War.

There, we got an insight into each character's morality, as it wasn't simply one group vs. another, but rather close allies being pitted directly against each other. Wanda and Vision ended up on opposing sides despite how close they were, and the actual showdown between these heroes got a lot more spotlight compared to the X-Men '97 fight.

The animated show still did a great job of capturing viewers' attention and delivering a fun spectacle, but it simply lacked the same kind of thrill as Civil War, making it a fun yet inferior version of this classic Marvel event.

X-Men ‘97 May Not Be Done With Its Internal Conflict

For the most part, X-Men '97 season 2 was given a happy ending, as other than Nightcrawler's heartbreaking death, the rest of the heroes survived and were able to take down Apocalypse. However, while this seemed to suggest peace and harmony were on the horizon for mutants, episode 9's post-credits scene casts that into doubt with Mystique's arrival.

She disguised herself as Valerie Cooper, who she proceeded to shoot twice, presumably killing her. In the process, Mystique essentially confirmed that she had her mind set on attacking the United States, which could once again force mutants to take different sides, and this time, it may even divide the X-Men.

Through her shapeshifting abilities, Mystique may pit these mutants against each other, either by making certain characters seem untrustworthy while impersonating them, or via simple manipulation. Either way, whatever the villain's plans are, she's almost certain to leave a trail of destruction behind her, including emotional damage.

This could involve meddling in romantic relationships and exploiting insecurities to escalate tensions among mutants. In turn, this may also lessen their favor among humans, setting up another major conflict between those still determined to achieve peace and those who feel like their mistreatment has gone on long enough.

Without knowing exactly what Mystique's goal is just yet, it's hard to know for sure how she'll impact her fellow mutants in X-Men '97 season 3. One thing is for sure though: she's bound to cause problems, meaning this next X-Men civil war could be far bigger than in season 2's finale.