The first season of X-Men ’97 was a masterpiece. It was perfect from beginning to end. And one of the best parts of the series was how it took multiple storylines from the comics and condensed and reworked them to fit the show’s own, largely original storyline. It was brilliantly done. I gave the show a perfect 10/10 score in my review last week. Loved it!

So what about season 2?

X-Men ’97 has already been confirmed for a second and third season. In fact, season 2 is already in production. Showrunner Beau DeMayo has been fired by Marvel for reasons that have not yet been revealed, but he wrote a lot of the scripts for season 2, so there should be some quality assured. But aside from Apocalypse being a main focus, season 2 could feature pretty much anything and anyone. Season 1 was also filled to the brim with cameos and Easter Egg character appearances. Anyone could appear from anywhere in the franchise.

I did a List of Six years ago about characters and concepts I hoped to see in X-Men ’97. Nothing on that list came to pass. Now that we know what we can expect from this show, I’ve put together a new list specifically for what I’d like to see in season 2! And expect FULL SPOILERS for season 1 in this list as I discuss what I’d like to see happen next!

6. New temporary team

Season 1 ends with the X-Men trapped in time, with some in the past and some in the future, both with connections to Apocalypse. The season also ends with Forge and Bishop in the present day teaming up to save them, with Forge having put together a bulletin board of various mutants. The implication is that they’ll put together a temporary team of X-Men to save the originals — and I am fully on board with this idea! How much fun would it be for the new season to start off with an entirely new group of X-Men just for kicks and giggles? The show played around with the opening credits in season 1, dropping and adding characters as the season/story progress. Imagine if the first episode of season 2 featured an entirely new team, drawing into the opening credits as if it were normal? That would be a hoot!

As for my ideal roster: Forge, Bishop, Iceman, Archangel, Shadowcat, Emma Frost, Havok, Polaris and Colossus. Forge and Bishop form the team. Iceman and Archangel were both in the original show, and were confirmed as original X-Men in this new show. Why not call upon them to help now? Shadowcat was teased on Bishop’s board and is the most famous X-Man who never appeared in the original show (for whatever reason). Emma Frost survived Genosha for a reason, surely. Havok and Polaris were both on Forge’s X-Factor and surely he’ll call upon some members of his former team to join him now. And Colossus was an ally of the team in the original show, and appeared on Forge’s board, so obviously bring him in. Also, if I could have one more, I’d pick Cannonball. He appeared in one of the last episodes of the original show, so he’d be fun to bring back.

5. Genosha Horsemen

Apocalypse is going to be a major player in season 2, based on all the teases we had at the end of season 1. One of the biggest teases, and something all the fans predicted, was that Apocalypse will resurrect Gambit as his new Horseman of Death. That’ll be awesome! But what about the other three horsemen? War, Pestilence and Famine? I think Apocalypse should resurrect four mutants who were killed on Genosha, not just Gambit. That amazing and terrifying episode killed a whole bunch of named characters from the comics, so there are plenty to choose from. With Gambit as Death, Apocalypse could choose from Leech, Banshee, Dazzler, Marrow, Callisto, Sebastian Shaw and more! Granted, that will undo a lot of those very impactful deaths…but it would be much more impactful if Apocalypse picked known mutants to be his new Horsemen.

4. Breakworld

In the first season, X-Men ’97 made use of a whole bunch of classic comic stories: E is for Extinction, Lifedeath, Operation: Zero Tolerance, X-Tinction Agenda, the classic arcade game and more! So that got me thinking: what are some modern day X-Men storylines worthy of being adapted? Are there any X-Men storylines from the past 20 years that are as classic as the Dark Phoenix Saga or the like? Honestly…not really. So what would I pick anyway? I’d go with a real curveball and pick the Breakworld storyline from Joss Whedon’s Astonishing X-Men. It’s a weird new alien world, has a fun villain in Ord, and…I dunno. It’s something that could be squeezed into a single episode, especially if Colossus and Shadowcat are on the temp team and need a storyline in which they could shine. The Breakworld story also started with a cure storyline, which could also be adapted, perhaps. There’s two episodes for you!

3. X-Statix

How about a real swing for the fences? X-Statix is an insane satire series about a group of new mutants forming a weird little team of mutant celebrities. They go on dangerous black ops missions for their owner, but mostly it’s a comic about shallow celebrities. I think that would be pretty neat for an episode. In the absence of the X-Men, some rich bastards cobble together their own mutant team and turn them into beloved celebrities. It would be weird, but the show could squeeze the essence of X-Statix down into a single episode and say something about celebrity and a new angle on mutants.

2. Onslaught

I put Onslaught on my earlier list, and I’m bringing him back because the groundwork is clearly laid for him to show up. A lot of people — myself included — thought season 1 was teasing Onslaught with all the mental escapades between Xavier and Magneto in the finale. But nope! They didn’t do anything overt to hint towards him. But I still want it to happen. Onslaught was peak 90s X-Men in the comics, and considering how well the show has done with reworking other storylines, I’ve no doubt they could make magic out of Onslaught’s convolution. And considering how many Avengers showed up in the first season, they could even bring them in for a real, full-on comic story recreation!

1. X-Factor Investigations

Obviously the thing I want most in the world is for more Multiple Man stuff. He’s my favorite comic book character. And he was at his peak in the days when he headlined his own X-Factor Investigations comic with his friends. It’s a very, very simple idea and all of the characters are already established in X-Men ’97. After being on Forge’s X-Factor, both Madrox and Guido are spotted helping with the cleanup on Genosha, so both survived. In the months/years between season 1 and season 2, there’s more than enough time for them to team back up with Wolfsbane in order to open their own detective agency. And then in one episode of season 2, one of the X-Men needs some help detecting something…and we get X-Factor Investigations! Though I don’t know if the voice actors for Multiple Man and Strong Guy are suited for sustained interaction…but they can be partially recast! And they can get updated looks. And then I can die a happy man.

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