Only under great duress is one’s mettle assessed; responses to troubling times are the litmus test of one’s character. While some possess the temperament to endure and gather themselves, there remain those too broken who easily resort to destructive paths. The massacre of Genosha has wrecked the X-Men in the worst way imaginable, and Rogue’s extreme reaction in its aftermath, as shown in the seventh episode of the season, is her coping mechanism. However, considering this as the lowest point for the mutants would be foolishness, as even worse is yet to come, which is teased by the latest episode of X-Men’97 titled ‘Bright Eyes’, as an evil mastermind plans to break the spirit of the mutants worldwide.
In the previous episode, it was revealed that Charles Xavier had actually survived Gyrich’s assassination attempt and was living in the Shi’ar Empire with his beloved Empress Lilandra. Just as he was prepared to forego his past life on earth and accept his new life as the emperor of Shi’ar, a psychic vision of the horrors of Genosha shook him to the core, and Charles prepared to head back to earth. It is revealed that Mister Sinister was responsible for using Mr. Mold to create the Tri-Sentinel using Trask’s DNA. On the other hand, Ororo gains back her powers by thwarting Adversary’s mind manipulation and letting go of her self-doubts in the process, and after learning about the situation at Genosha, she too rushes back to her X-Men family. Before the reunions, however, the X-Men seek out the perpetrators of the massacre, and a terrifying enemy emerges from the shadows.
Spoilers Ahead
Was Rogue Able to Apprehend Trask?
The episode begins on a somber note as the grieving team attends Remy’s funeral. His good friend Nightcrawler, aka Kurt, performs the role of pastor, performing the rites as he recounts the life and deeds of Remy, the ever-wise Gambit, who wore luck on his sleeves to turn the odds in his favor, rising from a rough upbringing to becoming one of the most valiant members of the X-Men family. With teary eyes, the present mutants pay their respect to their fallen comrade, with Rogue’s absence creating uneasiness among all. After all, Remy loved her dearly and sacrificed his life to save her and his fellow mutants; the least Rogue can do is be present at his funeral, as rightly pointed out by Jubilee. However, little does she know that an aggrieved, furious Rogue has single-handedly declared war against humanity, as she is seen destroying a covert military base in search of Gyrich and Trask.
Trask, the mastermind behind the mutant killing Sentinels, is obviously the prime suspect in the Genosha massacre, which was conducted by a Tri-Sentinel. Rogue suspects that the government is secretly aiding Trask and Gyrich. Eventually, she crosses paths with Captain America, who tries to reason with her, but to no avail. Captain reveals that he, too, is trying to nab Gyrich, who was supposedly moved from Riker Island prison to another secret base, which Rogue and Cap approach together. However, it turns out that even the base is empty, someone must have tipped the enablers about the possibility of interference. They see a mention of ‘OZT’ in the tech of the base, raising suspicion of a particular organization behind Gyrich’s escape. Cap had hacked the servers of the base previously to learn that Gyrich is being kept in a base in Mexico City, but he awaits permission from higher-ups to operate in a foreign nation. Rogue is unwilling to spare any time, and seeing Cap’s unwillingness to adhere to her off-the-books approach, an infuriated Rogue throws his shield afar and flies off. In comics, X-Men and Avengers have squared off multiple times, and despite their role as protectors, it’s not very often we see members of the Avengers supporting mutant rights vehemently. Was this altercation a tease for future conflict? We have to wait a bit for the answer.
The ‘base’ in Mexico City turns out to be a luxurious villa where Gyrich is chilling, further proving Rogue’s suspicion about the shameless shelter the government is willing to provide to the most heinous mutant-hating criminals. As Rogue corners him and asks about OZT, Gyrich gloats about having friends in high places without a shred of remorse. With killer instinct, Rogue prepares to read his memories using her tactile drain powers, but as she begins to do so, a psychic outburst knocks her out.
What is OZT?
On the other hand, Scott contacts the President of the States to help out mutants in their direst hour, who, unsurprisingly, refrains from doing so citing political reasons. Realizing that mutants have to look out for themselves, X-Men travel to Genosha and lend a hand in rescue missions. Emma Frost and Madelyn Pryor turn out to be alive, and they have managed to protect a number of other mutants as well. The team gets an alert about Trask sending a transmission, and seeing him remorseful, the X-Men get a bit shocked. Trask reveals that Sinister orchestrated the massacre without his knowledge, and he feels guilt for being a part of such a heinous crime despite having locked horns with the team multiple times in the past. Scott raises suspicion regarding the authenticity of his word, and Trask asks the team to come visit the UN peace legion in Madripoor, stating they will witness the doom that awaits the mutants in the future. After this segment, the scene shifts to Jubilee assisting Sunspot as he comes out as a mutant in front of his mother, and we are not quite sure why this sequence was shoehorned into this episode.
Nightcrawler finds Rogue in a dingy alley in Mexico City; seeing Day of the Dead being observed in front of her, Rogue is again reminded of Remy, and she breaks down once again. Nightcrawler comforts her, and along with the rest of the team, the duo travels to Madripoor. To allow X-Men easier access, Trask has already taken care of the security, and as the team enters the inner recesses of the facility, they get shocked to see the much more advanced technology on display, creating synthezoid-type advanced Sentinels. Also, the workers present at this section of the facility once again wear the OZT insignia in their uniforms, an acronym even the most veteran members of the team, like Logan, can’t recognize. The team is doubly shocked to see a despondent Trask channeling his inner Oppenheimer by quoting the famous line while standing on a ledge across the window, prepared to take his life in guilt for being an unwitting part of the mutant massacre. As the team rushes to save even a scoundrel like him, Rogue questions him about OZT. Trask reveals that it is a faction that rose from his past Sentinel programs and has been secretly operating in the shadows all the while. With technology far superior, Sinister was able to take Trask’s designs and modify them to modify Sentinels to such devastating capabilities that it would put even the Genosha massacre to shame. No longer willing to do the devil’s bidding, Trask has chosen to take his own life as a last resort, and just as he tries to jump, Rogue catches him. However, upon learning that Trask doesn’t know anything else about Sinister’s plans, Rogue decides to drop him to death, much to the team’s shock and disgust. A villain like Trask might have deserved an end like this, but Rogue’s anger and grief have clearly overwhelmed her intellectual capabilities.
Who is Bastion, and What Are His Diabolical Plans?
However, within a moment, Trask, who has suddenly turned into a techno-zombified entity (Cable’s final form?), knocks the lights out of Rogue with a single punch and parts the building from the middle by launching a vicious attack. As the mutants reach the ground, a vicious fight ensues, but ultimately Techno-Trask manages to incapacitate everyone in the team. With the release of an EMP cluster grenade, Trask is finally neutralized, and it turns out Cable was the one to take him out. As Jean probes his mind, she is shocked to learn about his true identity, and Scott is surprised to know that Cable was the future version of his son, Nathan Summers, all along. Without wasting much time in family chitchats, Cable states that he has returned to warn the team against Sinister’s co-conspirator, the true orchestrator of the events, whose arrival implies severe danger for the mutant kind.
Our focus shifts to a super-being named Bastion, who was previously seen to be in cahoots with Gyrich as well, but seeing how he almost gave in to Rogue’s probing, Bastion considers him to be a liability and kills him. Later, Bastion meets with Sinister, who expresses doubts over his methods after Trask’s revelations almost jeopardize their plans. Bastion reassures him, stating that his modus operandi is much more advanced and direct than that of old-timers like Sinister. It is hinted that the character is an evolved form of an old mutant enemy and we think that there might remain a connection to Apocalypse with this one. To show a glimpse of devious plans for the mutants, Bastion reveals that he has intercepted a recording in the Shi’ar Empire, where Empress Lilandra is seen announcing her upcoming marriage to Charles Xavier. Sinister is surprised to see Charles alive, as Bastion plans to utilize this truth to create a rift between humanity and the mutants. In hindsight, this will work in two ways: if the news of the professor’s survival becomes public, it will make humanity even more skeptical about trusting the mutants, as they will perceive mutants as liars, and on the other hand, it can break the spirit of the mutant kind to know that their leader was busy pursuing his romantic interest when they needed him the most. The recording is indeed a trump card in Bastion’s hands, who, as revealed in the final moments of the episode, might have another ace up his sleeve.
As X-Men’97 episode 7 ends, it is revealed that Bastion has managed to capture and subdue another prime leader of the mutants, Magneto, and his survival in the Genosha massacre will put a nasty spin on the narrative, implying that he was part of the conspirators who orchestrated the event. Using both Charles and Erik, Bastion is going to demean mutants on the world stage in an unthinkable way, and there is little the X-Men can do to stop him. In comics, Bastion is a combination of two extremely dangerous anti-mutant mechanisms—advanced Master Mold programming and Nimrod, a futuristic Sentinel—and his origin, or why he displays humanistic traits, remains a mystery. With the prime directive of exterminating mutants being his only objective, the mutants are in for another nasty surprise, and even with Professor X and Storm’s return to the team, their future looks grim.
