All 18 Marvel Easter Eggs & References In X-Men '97 Episode 8

May 1, 2024, 11:34 a.m.

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All 18 Marvel Easter Eggs & References In X-Men '97 Episode 8

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Warning! This post contains SPOILERS for X-Men '97, episode 8

Summary Bastion is revealed as the season's mastermind, a merging of Master Mold and Nimrod who creates the X-Men 97's Prime Sentinels.

Cameos from Doctor Doom and Baron Zemo show their involvement in the conflict with OZT.

Magneto's power surge prompts Spider-Man's reaction and Nightcrawler wields swords in battle just as he does in the comics.

X-Men '97 episode 8 is the first chapter of the season's three-part finale, featuring several exciting references and epic Easter eggs. With the show's primary villain having revealed himself, battle lines are being drawn between humanity and mutantkind. To that end, the global crisis results in some very exciting cameos along the way as well (including some friendly neighborhood ones).

As seen in X-Men '97 episode 8, Bastion is confirmed to be the season's true mastermind. His dark origins are also revealed as the dark merging of both Master Mold and Nimrod, representing the entirety of Sentinel existence both past and future as the next evolution of mutant killer. Having created Operation: Zero Tolerance to exterminate mutants once and for all, the X-Men are featured defending themselves as best they can against Bastion's new Prime Sentinels. To that end, here are 18 of the biggest Easter eggs and references to be found throughout X-Men '97 episode 8.

Related Every Upcoming Marvel Movie: Full MCU Phase 5 & 6 List (& Beyond) Between Marvel Studios and Sony Pictures Entertainment, here is every upcoming Marvel movie release date and what we know about the projects so far.

18 Cable’s Computer Cube

Epic Future Tech

Having returned to the present from his life in the future, Cable joins with the X-Men to prevent his future from taking place. Unable to change events prior to the Fall of Genosha, Cable joins with his father Cyclops to take Bastion down before he grows to powerful with Operation: Zero Tolerance. To that end, Cable's cube computer is briefly featured at the beginning of the episode, the advanced AI that provides him with time stream navigation and knowledge and was first seen in the original X-Men series.

17 The Sorcerers of Kamar-Taj

A Major MCU Connection

During the X-Men's conversation with Cable about the Fall of Genosha and his failure to stop it, Beast references the "sorcerers of Kamar-Taj" and their studies of absolute points in time. Not only does this connect with the idea of fixed moments in the timeline as was seen in Marvel's What...If?, the Kamar-Tag reference on its own is pretty exciting, confirming another key aspect of this Marvel Universe beyond the X-Men and mutantkind. Seeing as how both Doctor Strange and Wong were featured in the original animated series, it follows that they're likely still around as well.

16 William Stryker on TV

Weapon X

Seen on the television at the Da Costa residence, William Stryker is featured speaking on the news about the inevitability of war between humans and mutants. A core part of the Weapon X program, this version of William Stryker mirrors the comics. That said, William Stryker has been played by three different actors in live-action since 2003's X2 where the colonel was portrayed by Brian Cox. Younger versions of Stryker were subsequently played by Danny Huston in X-Men Origins: Wolverine and Josh Helman in the more recent X-Men films beginning with Days of Future Past.

15 Mengele

The Nazi "Angel of Death"

At Bastion's base of operations for OZT, Valerie Cooper refers to Mister Sinister as "Bastion's very own Doctor Mengele". Bastion counters that he knew Mengele and that while he could have been so much more, he settled on being nothing but a Nazi puppet. During WWII, Mengele was indeed a member of the Nazi Party who experimented on the Jews imprisoned at the Auschwitz concentration camps. To that end, this real-life monster was given the nickname "The Angel of Death".

14 Magneto's Tattoo

From The Auschwitz Camps

Having been captured by Bastion and Sinister after the Fall of Genosha, Magneto is imprisoned at the OZT facility. As Valerie Cooper speaks to him, his arm is shown with his tattooed identification number given to him by the Nazis when he was a child in Auschwitz. To that end, they're the same numbers seen in Fox's live-action X-Men movies and the original numbers Magneto had in the comics. However, 214782 was later retconned to 24005 as the former couldn't have been a legitimate number used at Auschwitz in real life.

13 Stark Expo

From Iron Man 2

While investigating Bastion's childhood home, Cyclops, Jean Grey, and Cable find old toys along with a poster promoting the Stark Expo and a feature on robotics. In the MCU, the Stark Expo was a massive celebration of science and innovation put on by Howard Stark as early as the 1940s and was later revived by Tony Stark's Iron Man as seen in 2010's Iron Man 2. The Stark Expo was where War Machine made his debut as well as where Stark and Rhodey defeated Whiplash.

12 Doctor Doom

Major Marvel Villain

In X-Men '97 episode 8, Doctor Doom is revealed to be a member of OZT. Speaking with Bastion via a video conference, Doom confirms his collusion while also implying that he didn't know about the massive war crime against Genosha, a mutant nation that had been officially recognized by the UN. This does make a certain degree of sense, seeing as how Doctor Doom is the sovereign leader of Latveria. As such, if his involvement were to be exposed, it could result in negative geopolitical consequences for the supervillain dictator.

11 Baron Zemo

A Member of OZT

The classic Captain America villain Baron Zemo is revealed to be a member of OZT as well. Following Doom's comment, Zemo warns that Bastion's Prime Sentinel program can't go wide so long as the President of the United States and other leaders see the X-Men as heroes and allies to humanity. In agreement with the iconic Marvel villain, Bastion confirms that he already has plans in the works to wipe the X-Men out with hordes of Prime Sentinels already waiting for activation.

10 Morph Takes On Juggernaut's Form

Xavier's Half-Brother

Following the twist that reporter Trish Tilby was secretly one of Bastion's sleeper Prime Sentinels, the X-Men still in the mansion take the fight to the hordes of mutant killing cyborgs. This includes Morph who takes on the form of Juggernaut. Having been featured multiple times in the original X-Men series, Cain Marko's Juggernaut is Xavier's human half-brother who was imbued with incredible size and strength by the Crimson Gem of Cyttorak.

9 "Done With Malls"

Calling Back To OG X-Men Series

X-Men '97 episode 8 also features the activation of several sleeper Prime Sentinels who quickly surround both Jubilee and Sunspot. Having been shopping, Jubilee and Sunspot flee the mall while avoiding incoming fire. Naturally, Jubilee declares that she is "so done with malls", a reference to the premiere episodes of the original X-Men series from the 90s where a group of original model Sentinels attacked her before she was rescued by the X-Men before ultimately welcoming her into their ranks.

8 James Bond

Multiple References To 007

As confirmed on Twitter by X-Men '97 creator and head writer Beau DeMayo, it's confirmed that various James Bond movies served as some key inspiration for multiple moments in X-Men '97 episode 8. This includes Moonraker inspiring Wolverine's free fall fight, Goldmember inspiring the Summers' Family car chase, and You Only Live Twice for Bastion's OZT headquarters. Likewise, DeMayo confirmed that there were many more nods to 007 within the episode as well.

7 Nightcrawler Wielding Swords

A Teleporting Swashbuckler

An epic nod to his swashbuckling fantasies in the original comics, Nightcrawler is seen wielding swords just as he often does in the comics. However, X-Men '97 ups the ante by giving Kurt Wagner three swords to wield simultaneously thanks to his prehensile tail. Additionally, Nightcrawler gets to add his three blades to Wolverine's six, joining back-to-back as they take on an entire group of Bastion's new Prime Sentinels (while also nodding to their strong friendship in the comics).

6 Atlas On Bastion's Car

A "Burden" Protecting The World

Bastion was about to visit the ruins of the X-Mansion before he had to return to the OZT facility to deal with Valerie Cooper who'd released Magneto. However, Bastion's car is briefly featured with a hood ornament of Atlas, the Greek titan burdened with carrying the world on his shoulders. As such, this likely symbolizes how Bastion sees himself and his mission to end all mutants, a task and heavy burden only he is capable of shouldering.

5 Magneto Was Right

Put It On A T-Shirt

As Magneto amplifies his powers via the North Pole, Valerie Cooper confirms why she set him free and her belief that "Magneto Was Right". Having realized that Magneto knew the truth about humanity's inability to coexist with mutants, the "Magneto Was Right" line is a classic slogan from the comics that emerged following his presumed death after the original Fall of Genosha on the page, one that appeared on shirts worn by students at the Xavier School. As such, it's a major moment in X-Men '97 that shows Magneto is likely done playing by Xavier's rules and is ready to go to war.

4 Spider-Man

Does Whatever A Spider Can

Feeling Magneto's major surge of power across the globe, none other than Spider-Man himself is featured reacting to the Master of Magnetism's declaration of war. This is very exciting following the premiere episode's Daily Bugle newspaper tease, as well as Spider-Man's past crossover with the X-Men as seen in his own Spider-Man animated series from the '90s. To that end, this is hopefully a tease for future crossovers in X-Men '97 as well.

3 Silver Samurai

Classic Wolverine Foe

The Silver Samurai is also featured reacting to Magneto's power surge at the end of this episode. Having been featured in the original X-Men series, Silver Samurai is a classic Wolverine villain who also made his live-action debut in 2013's The Wolverine. As such, it will be exciting to see if he makes any future appearances beyond this short cameo in X-Men '97.

The Wolverine Based on the 1982 comic event "Wolverine," The Wolverine takes place after X-Men: The Last Stand and follows Logan on a journey to Japan at the behest of a former acquaintance. Living in isolation after the world-changing events in the prior movie and haunted by the death of the woman he loved, Logan is found and asked to travel to Japan to meet with a man named Ichiro, who he had saved during World War II. At the end of his life, Ichiro offers Logan a chance to free himself of his healing abilities to finally die by taking them for himself. However, Logan soon learns that Ichiro's intentions for immortality are far less honorable than he had expected, leading him to struggle to face off with a former ally. Director James Mangold Release Date July 26, 2013 Studio(s) 20th Century Distributor(s) 20th Century Writers Mark Bomback , Christopher McQuarrie Cast Famke Janssen , Will Yun Lee , Brian Tee , Hugh Jackman Runtime 2h 6m Franchise(s) The Wolverine Sequel(s) X-Men: Days of Future Past , Deadpool prequel(s) X-Men Apocalypse Budget 120 million

2 Omega Red

Another Classic Wolverine Foe

With Magneto's global wave of power shutting down several machines and power sources beyond the Prime Sentinels, it's revealed that Magneto inadvertently set loose none other than Omega Red. A creation of the Soviet Union, Omega Red was a living weapon not even the USSR could control, resulting in his frozen suspension. Likewise, Omega Red would be freed and subsequently frozen on more than one occasion as seen in the original X-Me animated series.

1 To Me, My X-Men

Xavier's Back Baby!

Having finally returned to Earth following his time with Lilandra and the Shi'ar Empire, Professor Xavier is back and ready to help set things right. To that end, Xavier naturally calls his children using his telepathic abilities with his most classic line from both the show and the original comics: "To Me, My X-Men". As such, it's a very exciting way to end X-Men '97 episode 8 and the first chapter of the show's three-part season finale.

New episodes of X-Men '97 release Wednesdays on Disney+.