If You Think Magneto Is Bad, You’re Not Ready For The Villain X-Men ’97 Is Setting Up

Warning! This article contains SPOILERS for X-Men ’97, episode 9.

X-Men ’97 season 1 is nearing the finish line, and the animated series’ latest episode teased the debut of a formidable villain from Marvel Comics. While the Marvel Cinematic Universe should still have a few years before the debut of its version of the X-Men — though some mutants have been appearing and more multiverse variants will show up in Deadpool & Wolverine — Marvel Studios’ X-Men ’97 fills in the team’s live-action absence nicely. The animated series gives each of the team’s members their time to shine, which is impressive, as X-Men ’97‘s character roster is large.

Among the animated series’ best characters is the most famous X-Men villain, Magneto. However, X-Men ’97 is bringing a lot of nuance to the character. Magneto started his journey in the series by fulfilling Charles Xavier’s wishes — with Professor X thought to be dead — and leading the X-Men. Now that Charles Xavier is back, the Marvel Studios series has seen Magneto go back to his more antagonistic ways, though “Magneto was right” has been a resonating theme in the season. The clash between the two characters has led to a major tease for a possible X-Men ’97 season 2 villain.

X-Men ’97 Episode 9 Makes Onslaught Inevitable

Magneto Vs Charles Xavier Happens Yet Again

X-Men ’97 has had several incredible episodes. It seemed hard to top episode 5, which saw the Sentinel attack on Genosha that resulted in a massacre and Gambit’s death. However, the series has made it clear that there are many twists and turns still in store, and X-Men ’97‘s episode 9 has started going down a path that should likely result in the debut of a major villain from Marvel Comics — Onslaught. In the animated series, Charles Xavier has come back from space and revealed he is alive to Magneto and the X-Men.

X-Men ’97‘s episode 9 dealt with the fallout of Magneto’s decision to kill Earth’s electromagnetic field. Magneto is back to his antagonistic ways, recruiting Rogue and Sunspot to his side. Charles Xavier and the X-Men crashed Magneto’s Asteroid M to get him to undo the damage to Earth before it became permanent. With no other choice, Charles exploited Wolverine having taken off Magneto’s helmet and used his powers to get into Magnus’ mind and try to revert the situation. That mesh between the characters’ minds is what led to the creation of Onslaught in the comics, teasing his animated arrival.

Onslaught’s X-Men Origin Explained

The Villain Is Extremely Powerful

X-Men ’97 is taking inspiration from Marvel Comics’ “Fatal Attractions” storyline, as has been made clear by both the series and showrunner Beau DeMayo. In the comics, Magneto also used his powers to disrupt Earth’s electromagnetic field. After Magneto ripped Wolverine’s Adamantium skeleton from him, Charles Xavier retaliated by wiping Magneto’s mind and sending him into a coma. While most of those events have happened in X-Men ’97, Magneto is still in control of his mind, as Cyclops stopped Professor X to buy Gold Team more time to deal with Bastion. Charles could still wipe Magneto’s mind in the finale.

After Charles sent Magneto into a coma in the comics, Magneto’s anger for the way humanity treated the mutants was merged with Xavier’s own dark feelings on the matter, which he kept to himself, and led to the character becoming the amalgamation of that hatred — Onslaught. After some time, Onslaught was able to separate himself from Professor X’s body, with the X-Men villain becoming a being of pure energy that wore Magneto’s classic red armor. Being a combination of Magneto and Charles Xavier, Onslaught is a formidable foe that took more than just the X-Men to stop.

Why Onslaught Is Magneto’s Perfect Evil Evolution

The X-Men Might Need Some Help

Onslaught started out in the comics with the same goal as Magneto, which was to finally make mutants the superior race to humans, no longer hunted by them. Having the combined might of Magneto and Charles Xavier, Onslaught would be able to push Magnus’ goal into existence, stopping Bastion’s Sentinel plans but then turning into an even bigger threat for the X-Men to face. As the ultimate evil evolution of Magneto’s crusade, Onslaught would be everything the Master of Magnetism is but heightened.

Onslaught’s debut in X-Men ’97 could lead to a major event in season 2. To stop the villain in the comics, it took the combined forces of the X-Men, the Avengers, and the Fantastic Four. Captain America and Spider-Man’s X-Men ’97 cameos have hinted at the Avengers possibly appearing in the series, and with Doctor Doom also having shown up, the Fantastic Four might not be far behind. X-Men ’97 season 2 could then focus on Onslaught’s quest for mutant supremacy while the superhero teams band together to take down the amalgamation of Magneto and Charles Xavier’s thoughts and powers.