You know how you can tell that X-Men ’97 was created by an entire team of people who love the X-Men? Because pretty much every single frame of the two-episode premiere on Disney+ includes a shout out to some bit of X-lore. All of these references — these… Easter eggs, if you will — combine to create a familiar, welcoming vibe. It helps make X-Men ’97 feel like a blast of Saturday morning fun.

Now that you’ve watched both episodes and absorbed all of that X-citement, you can get granular with it. What are the references, callbacks, and weird bits of minutiae that you overlooked? That’s where this list comes in, because oh wow do we have a lot to talk about.

Ahead you will find a whole bunch of X-Men Easter eggs that call back to the animated series and the comics. Did we miss some? Yeah, definitely! Honestly, point them out (politely!) because all of these eggs were clearly hidden with care and talking about this nerdy stuff is fun.

So, what are you waiting for? Our deep dish — I mean deep dive into X-Men ’97 Episodes 1 and 2 await you!

1. X-Men ’97 opens with the biggest blast of nostalgia: those damn iconic opening credits. They’ve been recreated, shot for shot, with updated animation and an updated roster. The biggest difference, though, can be seen at the very end of the credits when a lineup of villains charges at the X-Men. There they are above: Magneto soaring over — from left to right — Juggernaut, White Queen, Lady Deathstrike, Pyro, Mystique, Sabretooth, and Avalanche. Who was in this lineup in 1992?

   All of the same characters, except White Queen and Lady Deathstrike replace… Thunderbird (or more likely his younger brother Warpath, both of them heroes) and Gargoyle — an old Hulk villain. Neither character ever played a major role in the animated series; Thunderbird/Warpath appeared as a background character in the Season 1 episode “Slave Island” where he was an ally of the X-Men. So finally, after over 30 years, the X-Men credits have a villain lineup that is actually comprised of X-Men villains from the animated series!

   In X-Men ’97 Episode 2, “Mutant Liberation Begins,” the opening credits change up a bit. Instead of being a shot-for-shot remake, a number of scenes — highlights from the ’92 series — are slipped into the montage. Those scenes are actually moments from past episodes that have been reanimated. Take a look!

   Storm defeating Callisto (1×5, “Captive Hearts”)

   Bishop traveling through time (1×11, “Days of Future Past — Part 1”)

   Dark Phoenix rising on the Blue Area of the Moon (3×17, “The Dark Phoenix Part IV: The Fate of the Phoenix”)

   Magneto lifting Asteroid M (4×4, “Sanctuary — Part II”)

   And lastly, but not leastly, the closing credits of X-Men ’97 are a direct homage to the original Season 1 closer — although it’s not done with updated computer animation which is honestly kind of a bummer!

2. While X-Men ’97 is firmly set in its own established continuity, there are a few Marvel Studios touches that call back to the Marvel Cinematic Universe. One is the presence of WHiH World News, which is the go-to news channel in the MCU.

   Another MCU-esque Easter egg: the presence of the Stark Industries logo in the opening establishing shot of New York City.

3. The first two episodes are filled with fashion flashbacks to the original series. It’s almost like the animators documented every outfit these characters wore throughout the series and gave them li’l wardrobes to pull from. Almost like? That probably is what they did. Let’s start with Rogue, who’s wearing the same bright magenta mini dress that she wore in the first episode of the ’90s series.

   When Wolverine and company track Sunspot to a night club, Logan wears his de facto street clothes from the original series. That’s not the only outfit he wears in the two-part premiere, though! He can also be seen sporting the… super tight, peach-colored… spandex or velvet T-shirt that he wore during “The Phoenix Saga.”

   Seriously, what material is that supposed to be?

   Cyclops has a number of out-of-uniform moments in the premiere, including one where he pulls out the turtleneck and windbreaker that he wore frequently in the original series.

   That, by the way, is what Cyclops wears to interrogate Henry Peter Gyrich. That’s his intimidation turtleneck. He visits Rikers Island with Storm, who’s also repeating an outfit:

   Unlike all the other X-Men, at least Storm knows how to mix and match accessories to give her standout pieces a whole new vibe.

   In X-Men ’97 Episode 2, both Storm and Jean Grey re-wear outfits from the original series’ first season.

   That’s Jean Grey’s look from Season 1’s “Cold Vengeance,” and that’s what Storm wore on her “vacation” to Genosha in that very same episode.

   And of course I have to mention all of the athletic gear that the X-Men sport in “To Me, My X-Men.”

   Gambit, Jubilee, and Wolverine’s workout clothes were previously seen in the X-Men ’92 Season 3 premiere, “Out of the Past.”

   And all of those looks, including Rogue’s aerobics wear, originated in 1992’s X-Men #4, with art by Jim Lee.

4. One of X-Men ’92’s most enduring memes involves Wolverine laying on his bed, in full uniform, caressing a framed glamour shot of Cyclops and Jean Grey. So of course when we see Scott and Jean’s room in X-Men ’97’s second episode, the show included that exact same photo on Jean’s dresser. Think Scott and Jean ordered wallet-sized prints of this photo, too?

5. When a franchise has as long and storied a history as the X-Men, why wouldn’t you pull inspiration from all eras at once? While this series is titled X-Men ’97, the plots that the showrunners pulled from actually began in the mid-to-late ’80s. This is some deep cut Chris Claremont X-Men realness, right here. Let me count the ways — and SPOILERS ahead!

   1. The two-part premiere concludes with a shock when Storm is hit with a laser that robs her of her mutant abilities, a seemingly permanent attack on her genetics and identity. This happened in Uncanny X-Men #185 (September 1984), although the circumstances were different. In the comics, the weapon was wielded by Henry Peter Gyrich and his target was Rogue. In both cases, Storm dove in front of the blast.
   2. The trial of Magneto happened in Uncanny X-Men #200, cover dated December 1985. That issue’s cover is directly referenced in Episode 2, “Mutant Liberation Begins.” That issue also introduced the status quo that we’re seeing play out in X-Men ’97, where Professor Xavier leaves Magneto in charge of the school.
   3. The birth of Cyclops’ son, Nathan Charles Summers, occurred in Uncanny X-Men #201 (January 1986). That… uh… kicked off a series of events that I’ll get to in a moment.
   4. The reveal of a Jean Grey clone, which closes out “Mutant Liberation Begins” on a WTF note, occurred in Uncanny X-Men #241 (February 1989). If you have no idea what I’m talking about here, I’m throwing up a SPOILER alert within a SPOILER alert because you don’t want to know what’s likely coming! For everyone else, a refresher: In the comics, a Jean Grey lookalike named Madelyne Pryor was introduced in Uncanny X-Men #168. She married Cyclops in Uncanny X-Men #175, and she had their son Nathan in Uncanny #201. Jean Grey returned from the dead in Fantastic Four #286, published the same month as Uncanny #201. Still, Madelyne persisted as a character, believing herself to just be a Jean lookalike — a Margot Robbie/Samara Weaving thing — until she learned her true origin in Uncanny #241. Is that where we’re headed? Considering that there’s an X-Men ’97 Madelyne Pryor figure on toy store shelves, I’d say “yes.”
   5. Rogue and Magneto: definitely a thing! In a storyline that started in Uncanny X-Men #269 (October 1990), Rogue found herself powerless and in the Savage Land (the dinosaur playground nestled in a tropical portion of Antarctica, because comics). There she met, befriended, and, uh, got close to Magneto (Uncanny X-Men #274). Their relationship, as well as Magneto’s ability to actually touch Rogue, was explored further in 1995’s alternate reality storyline “Age of Apocalypse.” And even later, Magneto’s clone Joseph also orchestrated a way to touch Rogue skin-to-skin — and hey, that happened in Uncanny X-Men #341, which was published in 1997!

6. The Daily Bugle cover depicts the mutants Loa and Nature Girl (inset); and clockwise from top: Dust, Maggott, Marrow, and Banshee. It also references the Hellfire Gala, which is an annual event that debuted in 2021. That Hellfire Gala article was written by Eddie Brock (Venom) with photos by Peter Parker (Spider-Man).

   Beast’s bookshelf includes Animal Farm, which is the book he read while incarcerated in the first series. It also includes a book by Julia Lewald, who was one of the original series’ showrunners.

   Jubilee jokes about Sunspot having the ability to shoot gold balls out of his body, which is the actual mutant power of the comic character Goldballs, an X-Man now known as Egg.

   We first see X-Men liaison Val Cooper during a video call wherein she’s working out. That’s also how we’re introduced to the President in X-Men ’92, while she’s working a StairMaster.

   “To me, my X-Men” has long been a catchphrase of the team, although it’s origin is rather winding and bizarre — but it does date back to the 1960s.

   The Sentinels peg Storm as an “Omega Level” threat, which is a classification of mutants that entered usage in 2001’s X-Men Forever #3. Omega is as dangerous as they come.

   All the major Easter eggs have already been covered, but I just wanted to clear X-Cutioner’s name because this is a radical departure for the character!

   In the comics, X-Cutioner was an FBI agent named Carl Denti whose partner, Agent Fred Duncan, secretly worked with Charles Xavier during the 1960s X-Men comics. Oh — and Duncan was also a hoarder of X-villain weaponry. When Duncan died, Denti inherited not only Duncan’s files (which revealed his connection with Xavier) but all of that alien tech and wild weaponry. Then, dubbing himself X-Cutioner, ol’ Carl set out to punish mutants who had not been convicted of their crimes. So! Not a bigot, just a cop, which… is its own whole set of issues. Do I have a soft spot for Carl because his costume is ridiculous and his name is Carl? Yes. And also, his debut in 1993’s Uncanny X-Men Annual #17 is a fantastic, under appreciated issue!