X-Men '97 Just Gifted Fans Another Unexpected Avengers Cameo
"X-Men '97" has been a dream come true, delivering an even more mature, bold version of the original '90s animated series. Like its predecessor, it directly adapts comic book story arcs, with this show in particular choosing some rather bleak ones.
The season lured us in with the promise of fun nostalgia before shattering that notion with one of the darkest moments in the entire Marvel Studios history with the genocide of mutants in Genosha. This changed everything for the show and for the characters, challenging the very notion of the X-Men, what they stand for, and the legacy of Charles Xavier's work.
But it hasn't all been world-ending threats, the show still has the kind of interpersonal soapy drama fans have always loved from the original. We've got Rogue and (the late) Gambit, Cyclops and the two Jean Greys, with each character in the ensemble getting a chance to shine. Even Morph, who had the misfortune of dying in the very first episode of the original "X-Men: The Animated Series," before returning from the dead as a minion of Mister Sinister.
The new show has been an abundance of Morph goodness, from acknowledging Morph's they/them pronouns to giving us so many different cool morph transformations – including some big characters like Quicksilver. Now, Morph goes to the big leagues, giving us a smashing Avenger cameo: The Hulk.
The Hulk smashes into X-Men '97
In the middle chapter of the three-part finale, "Tolerance Is Extinction," the X-Men try to stop Magneto — who has declared war on the world by creating a worldwide blackout. The team splits in two, with half going to fight Magneto and try to convince him to reverse the blackout, the rest set out to stop Bastion and his Prime Sentinels. Morph joins this second team, and as they face the sentinels, Morph simply exclaims two of the coolest words in the entire season, "Morph Smash!" as he transforms into The Hulk, using his super strength to smash a giant Sentinel to bits.
What makes the transformation interesting is that it seems Morph doesn't just get the Hulk's looks, but also his abilities. The same thing happened when he turned into Quicksilver and became super fast. Will the show ever address how long he can utilize another character's super powers?
Anyway, part of why the scene is so thrilling is that it's a team-up, which we haven't seen the X-Men do properly since the season premiere — and that's something that the Marvel movies are often lacking.
Back in the early days of Marvel Cinematic Universe, the draw was seeing these characters interact and fight together. We got that in "The Avengers," but also in smaller moments like War Machine and Iron Man fighting together or Thor and Hawkeye meeting. Those kinds of interactions have decreased significantly in the past few years, as actors became more expensive and the MCU got higher stakes. These interactions are now saved mostly for the big events movies or after-credits scenes. It's why "The Marvels" was so fun, because it gave us three heroes fighting as a team. This is a lesson the MCU better take to heart before bringing the X-Men into the main fold.