The Latest X-Men ‘97 Episode Has A Game-Changing Post-Credits Scene

By Chris Snellgrove
| Updated 3 seconds ago

From the very beginning, the Marvel Cinematic Universe has conditioned fans to keep their butts in their seats until the movie’s inevitable post-credits scene. Often, these scenes make major changes to this fictional world, like introducing Tony Stark to the Avengers or simply introducing Thanos to the audience. However, outside of the MCU, post-credits scenes are not always guaranteed. Case in point: when X-Men ‘97 Season 2 dropped on Disney+, none of the first three episodes had any such scene. For that reason, most viewers didn’t stick around during the fourth episode, bailing as soon as the credits started.

If you did that with the most recent episode (“The Rise of Apocalypse, Part II”), though, you actually missed out on a pretty epic post-credits scene featuring cameos from two fan-favorite Avengers. We see Logan meeting up with Captain America and Black Widow, and they deliver him a file folder labeled “Weapon X.” Cap expresses concern about the X-Man tackling this place on his own, but Logan enigmatically says that he’s put a crew together. This sets up one of the most important plot points of Season 2: Wolverine getting his adamantium back. Plus, if his crew includes former Weapon X test subjects, we might even get an X-Men ‘97 cameo from everyone’s favorite Merc With a Mouth: Deadpool!

Logan And The Cap’n Make It Happen

Most of “The Rise of Apocalypse, Part II” takes place in Ancient Egypt, where some major events go down. Apocalypse makes his inevitable heel turn, assuming command of a high-tech spaceship that will help him in his plans to conquer the entire world. Thanks to Bishop, most of the X-Men are zapped back to the ‘90s, but Magneto stays behind to stop Apocalypse, the mutant threat he accidentally unleashed. This leads to a climactic fight between Apocalypse and the master of magnetism that is likely to leave you crying. After the credits, we get a scene of Wolverine in the present day, meeting with Captain America and Black Widow.

There’s a bit of humor in this X-Men ‘97 scene: Wolverine mentions how he smelled Cap “from a mile away” before being startled by Black Widow, who successfully snuck up on him. Because he’s the only one who dressed incognito (he looks like a bank robber on lunch break), Wolverine also teases Cap about wearing his extremely recognizable uniform. Getting down to business, Cap (who mentions last seeing Wolverine 50 years ago) gives the X-Man a file folder labeled “Weapon X.” The Avenger warns Wolverine not to fight these guys alone, to which the mutant replies that he’s gotten “a crew” and that he’s “getting the old band back together.”

Let’s Talk About X, Baby

So, what does this X-Men ‘97 scene mean? While we can’t predict the future (you’ll need to talk to Mystique’s girlfriend for that), it’s possible to make some educated guesses. Last season, Wolverine had all of the adamantium stripped from his bones by Magneto. The metal was originally attached to him by Weapon X, a shady organization that also implanted him with false memories. It’s a reasonable assumption that Wolverine’s mission will result in him having adamantium bones and claws once again. It’s possible that Apocalypse will be involved, as he’s the one who restored Wolverine’s adamantium in the comics so the violent mutant could serve as one of his Horsemen.     

Who is the “crew” that Wolverine has assembled for an attack on Weapon X? This may refer to Team X (a CIA-backed covert force) or other members of the Weapon X program. Either way, that means we’re likely to see Sabretooth, Wolverine’s hated foe (though they made a kind of amends back in X-Men: The Animated Series). We’ll also likely see Maverick, who was teased in the X-Men ‘97 Season 2 prequel comic. While it’s likely to just be those two joining Wolverine for his secret mission, there’s a nonzero chance the team will include Deadpool, who was also a Weapon X test subject.

Old (Like, REALLY Old) Friends

At any rate, there’s plenty to love about this X-Men ‘97 post-credits scene. We get fun interactions between Cap and Wolverine, confirming they haven’t worked together in over half a century; this is a reference to a classic X-Men issue where they (along with Black Widow) teamed up back during World War II. Plus, seeing the Avengers onscreen has renewed fans’ hopes for an interconnected Marvel Animated Universe (hey, it’s gotta be better than the current MCU!). All of this combined to make the post-credits scene just one element of another awesome episode in the greatest Marvel show in television history.