X-Men ‘97’s first season concluded with a bang as the finale featured lots of exciting developments, especially for long-time X-Men fans. To fully understand and appreciate the gravity of what happened though, here are shows that you need to watch for the X-Men ’97 finale.
Even if you’ve already watched the final episode, going back to these shows is still a great idea to give you a better appreciation and grasp of the events, along with what will happen moving forward.
Spoiler Warning: This article includes spoilers for X-Men ‘97, so proceed with caution.
The Original X-Men '90s Series is a Must-Watch to Fully Appreciate the ’97 Finale
For many viewers, X-Men ’97 served as an entry point to the mutants, especially for more casual fans who know them from the live-action films.
As most fans know though, this show is a sequel to the classic 90s X-Men: The Animated Series. While you don’t need to watch the original to understand what happens in the sequel, watching it is highly recommended.
Sure, it’s an old series at this point, but the series’ story and even its animation have held up incredibly well.
What’s more, even if you’ve already worked through most of the X-Men ’97 episodes, finding out the details of what happened before makes the events in ’97 hit harder.
For instance, the multiple scenes of Xavier and Magneto are even more emotional if you’ve seen their journeys in the original series.
Then, there’s the finale’s shocking time-bending ending. If you’ve seen the 90s show, you’ll have a better idea of what to expect in the second season.
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Pryde of the X-Men Pilot Will Enhance the Experience
Another show you may want to give a try (if you can find it at least) is Pryde of the X-Men. Calling it a show is not entirely accurate though as it’s just a pilot from 1989 of a show that did not get made.
Even though the NBC series it was intended for didn’t get picked up, this pilot still serves as a nice time capsule of the late 80s X-Men.
If you watch this and then see the X-Men ’97 finale, we won’t blame you if you get moved by how much the series has evolved.
Moreover, you can also get a deeper appreciation for the quality of the latest series when you compare it to something from 1989.
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Star Trek: The Next Generation Episode is ‘Extra Credit’ For X-Men ’97 Finale
Star Trek is not at all related to X-Men, except maybe for The Next Generations’s Picard who is played by Patrick Stewart (Xavier in the Fox movies).
Interestingly though, one specific Star Trek: The Next Generation (or TNG) episode is recommended viewing, at least as extra credit for the finale.
This is based on the recommendation of former showrunner Beau DeMayo who shared on his personal X (formerly Twitter) account an image from the episode Cause and Effect from TNG’s fifth season.
The episode follows the USS Enterprise as it gets stuck in a time loop. While the X-Men ’97 finale did not have a time loop, it had some time-bending developments at the end where the group was sent to different times.
In that sense, this episode is perfect to watch to get a better understanding of the finale. It may even hold the key to how the heroes will solve their new dilemma.
Do you have other shows or movies that you think are a must-watch for the finale? Share your picks with us in the comments.
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