X-Men ’97 Episode 6 Review: “Lifedeath – Part 2”

In episode 2 of X-Men ’97, Storm lost her powers due to the X-Cutioner’s horrible weapon — a weapon crafted by her new love interest, Forge. Talk about complicated. This week, we continue her story as well as see the return of Professor X as he deals with the politics of Shi’ar space and being the Royal Consort of Empress Lilandra Neramani.

If you didn’t witness last week’s episode about Genosha, well, maybe you’re lucky. That level of pain and destruction caught most X-fans by surprise and to be honest, we’re all still reeling from Rogue’s closing lines. Before things get too spoiler-heavy, let’s swoop in to episode 6, “Lifedeath – Part 2.”

---

Might and Glory

Episode 6 opens with a battle raging through space. Giant ships send destructive beams cross the stars at each other. The Shi’ar Empire is caught in battle against the Kree. Deathbird and the Imperial Guard, led by Gladiator, face off against Ronan the Accuser and a squadron of Kree soldiers. The Shi’ar seek the Supreme Intelligence so they can knock out the Kree’s central system of knowledge. Among the Imperial Guard, Cyclop’s long-lost brother Vulcan also makes an appearance.

Just as Deathbird prepares to kill Ronan, a royal messenger interrupts her grandstanding. He lets her know Empress Lilandra is sending out an important broadcast. In a holo-gram to the entire Shi’ar Empire, Lilandra announces her impending marriage to Professor X. The Empress’ news is met with shock, concern, and possibly even disdain from Shi’ar everywhere.

---

Families Are Such Black Holes

Since the events of the Dark Phoenix, the Shi’ar do not look kindly upon mutants or the X-Men. What’s more, Charles Xavier seems exceedingly happy alongside Lilandra and among the Shi’ar. He even has exoskeleton armor that allows him to walk. Still, he misses the X-Men and wants to visit. Xavier proposes to Lilandra that they spend some time on Earth.

Both Lilandra and Xavier know what it’s like to have complicated families. After all, Lilandra’s brother attempted to conquer the entire galaxy with the M’Kraan Crystal. That’s why Lilandra compares families to black holes, describing them as “ever-spiraling vacuum[s] of drama.” She reminds Xavier that he’s earned a life of his own. As a ruler, he also must play the role of perfection and she needs him around to educate the Kree once the Shi’ar defeat them. At the end of their discussion, she does allow that the X-Men can be invited to their wedding.

---

A Tawdry Romance

At Forge’s house, Ororo tends to his infected bite. All the while, The Adversary taunts her and questions why she still wants to help him — “kissing the hand that beats you” can’t be healthy for one’s self-esteem. The Adversary urges Ororo to abandon Forge, before trapping Ororo in a coffin to trigger her claustrophobia. It seems this whole time she was still in the evil spirit’s clutches.

Brave even in the face of danger, Ororo says she does not fear death, to which the Adversary replies, “Yes, you fear living.” This revelation shocks Ororo, and The Adversary pushes that she renounced her powers when she resigned herself to a life among the X-Men. Suddenly, the real Forge rushes in to the rescue, using his mystical powers to drive away The Adversary. He reveals that he got his magic knowledge from his mother and her book of desert magic. This book also says a rare desert plant called the midnight cholla can heal his infected bite.

---

Hush Now, Bark Later

At a gathering in the Shi’ar royal court, Lord Araki and Deathbird voice their concerns about the wedding. Lilandra’s sister says her marriage would force an alliance with an inferior world. Deathbird invokes the Rite of M’Dashaa, a test of loyalty that would earn Xavier the right to marry Lilandra. According to the Shi’ar custom, she gets to choose the test and her test is that Charles allows Lilandra to purge his mind of all memory and connection to Earth. No biggie.

---

Idealistic Insanity

As the meeting is temporarily adjourned, Gladiator speaks with Xavier. Lilandra’s top guard explains the Shi’ar guiding principle is to bind other cultures into one — which is to say, their own. Xavier questions whether two halves can be whole if one is erased.

Magneto pops into Xavier’s memory, and he doesn’t want to regret abandoning the X-Men. Lilandra questions why he wouldn’t let go of the pain and she reminds Charles that Deathbird would jump at the chance to replace her sister as empress. For the time being, Charles decides it’s time to show his devotion for Lilandra.

---

Chum in the Water

In the desert, Ororo and Forge travel to the mountainous cavern where they can find the healing cactus. Once again, Forge tries to apologize to Ororo. She muses whether maybe she’s better this way if her existence doesn’t inspire such hatred. Forge’s wound causes him to collapse in pain and then it’s up to Ororo to retrieve the cactus herself by crawling through a dark, tight tunnel.

---

Class Is Now in Session

When the Shi’ar meeting starts back up, Xavier hesitates to renounce the X-Men. Deathbird charges in to make her case against Xavier. In her eyes, Lilandra’s marriage would be mixing Shi’ar blood with a backwater race descended from simians. The council chimes in, echoing her xenophobic concerns, noting that Xavier isn’t even a pure Terran. Mutants are even less than humans in their eyes.

This outlook is all too familiar to Professor X, but before he can reply, Deathbird initiates a coup. Her soldiers shoot at the Imperial Guard and Gladiator defends the Empress. Just as the battle heats up, Professor X sweeps them all into the Astral Plane. Class is now in session — and the Shi’ar are about to get schooled.

---

Watch the Forecast

Meanwhile, Ororo navigates her way through the tunnel. A familiar growl echoes up toward her. The Adversary has returned and taunts her to give up, to beg for her life and feed it her delicious surrender. But Ororo slowly realizes that she will no longer play the demon’s games. She won’t make herself smaller to appease others and she won’t hold back any longer. Outside the mountainous cavern, a tempest brews.

Ororo pushes back against her self-imposed limitations and allows herself to fly again. A surge of awesome natural power shoots out of the mountaintop and into the upper reaches of the planet’s atmosphere. Storm returns in a glorious display of her mutant gifts. The Adversary is pushed back into the shadows as Storm proclaims, “So let them thunder, for I am lightning.” She flies once again alongside the plains horses in her Giant-Size X-Men outfit.

---

A Second Chance

Inside Forge’s room, Storm heals him with the cholla. He marvels at the return of her powers, especially in the face of such a formidable demon spirit. Storm asks, “What are demons, but reflections of our fear and shame?”

Nearby, the TV report about Genosha airs. Storm sees the news and covers her mouth in shock.

---

Strike at the Knees

On the Astral Plane, in Professor X’s classroom, Charles tells his Shi’ar captives that their empire’s strength is drawn from subjugated worlds. These cultures are only allowed to flourish through assimilation and submission — otherwise they would be rivals of the Shi’ar.

Lord Araki questions whether Terrans really know any better. Charles concedes that “coexistence is messy” but all of these rules about who is better and how the betters must maintain control are made up, a game of make believe.

---

Children of the Atom

Charles concludes his presentation with his X-Men’s greatest lesson to their planet: We are all children of the atom.

Suddenly, Charles’ psychic lesson is overtaken. A colossal Gambit looms above the Astral Plane classroom before Gambit, and all of Xavier’s students, decompose into skeletons. News of Genosha finally reaches Charles’ mind through his psychic connection with his X-Men. Even though he was close to breaking through with the Shi’ar, Charles decides he must return to Earth. The X-Men need him.

---

An epilogue for episode 6 shows Bolivar Trask running to escape an off-screen voice. He reminds his pursuer that he shared his DNA for access to Master Mold. Trask begs to be killed for his part in the Genoshan genocide. Sickly green light bathes Trask as a familiar voice reminds him he only needs to place his faith in Sinister.

What do you think Mr. Sinister’s plans are? Join the conversation with other Marvel fans over at Sideshow Social Network or in side.show/geekgroup, and don’t forget to Let Your Geek Sideshow!