Hey X-Men ’97 — what did we ever do to you? You give us a totally radical video game adventure last week, and what do you give us this week? Pain? Grief? A trip to the depths of emotional hell? I get that the X-Men are a soap opera and bad things have to happen to them, but WTF! This is Disney+! Maybe pull some of the punches, why dontcha?!

Sorry if I sound a bit shocked but, uh, I Just watched the same episode you did. “Remember It” is absolutely an episode I will remember forever — like in my nightmares. And things started out so fun, too! A trip to the island nation of Genosha, which finally lives up to — if not surpasses — all the fun in the sun initially teased on their brochure way, way back in X-Men Season 1. Now I’m wondering what kinda deal you can get on a hotel room in a former paradise if half of the hotel is charred to a crisp.

Below you will find a whole bunch of X-Men Easter eggs from Episode 5, “Remember It.” SPOILER warning, obviously, but you knew that! What are you waiting for? Our deep dish — I mean deep dive into X-Men ’97 Episode 5 awaits you!

1. Once again, X-Men ’97 uses its dynamic opening credits to tee up the tragic tale to come. First, we get a redo of a moment from a past episode…

   Cable fighting Apocalypse (4×18, “Beyond Good and Evil: Part I”)

   There’s also a moment that, as far as I can recall, doesn’t actually happen in the original series. It’s a moment featuring Gambit and Nightcrawler throwing down against some Genoshan magistrates, back before the island became a mutant nation.

   But like all the choices made with the opening credits, it’s likely this shot was included to give a subliminal reminder of Genosha and Nightcrawler. Similarly, the credits also include shots of Storm fighting Callisto (Callisto is in this episode) and the Dark Phoenix’s death (but then again, there’s always Phoenix stuff in every episode).

2. Seeing all these cameos at once is like opening a pack of ’90s X-Men trading cards. Instead of a written explanation, well, here ya go — !

   I am absolutely certain that I missed some. A few more will be covered in the next section, but let me know if I missed any big ones!

3. X-Men ’97 has been pulling a lot from the ’80s comics and the ’90s TV series, but “Remember It” finds the show’s inspo coming from the 21st century. Magneto took control of Genosha and secured its recognition by the United Nations in 1999’s Magneto Rex limited series. However, the idea that a council of mutants would lead a nation of mutants is a much more recent one. When the X-Men established the mutant nation of Krakoa in 2019’s House of X #1, it was revealed that the island’s government would be a group of 12 mutants dubbed The Quiet Council. “Remember It” brings this idea to Genosha with a council of its own, comprised of…

   Roll call!

   This council lasts for approximately the length of one very, very awkward slow dance.

4. Before we get to the incredibly upsetting stuff, let’s talk about how X-Men ’97 incorporates an essential part of Cyclops and Jean Grey’s romance: the time they had sex on a butte in New Mexico. Okay, the episode changes it to Nevada, but this is otherwise definitely the same incident. As Jean recounts to Wolverine, and as Cyclops simultaneously tells a news reporter (in a quite frankly shocking moment of candidness from the always uptight Scott Summers), the two shared an intimate moment right after Jean gained control of the Phoenix Force. They were alone, she felt called to the far reaches of the galaxy, she asked to look in Scott’s eyes — and she held back the force of his optic blasts using her new godlike power. As Jean says in the episode, it was getting to see Scott’s eyes that kept her grounded on Earth.

   This moment plays out in X-Men #132, towards the start of “The Dark Phoenix Saga.” During the only quiet moment of that saga, Cyclops and Jean find themselves relaxing along with the other X-Men at one of the many getaways owned by ex-X-Man Angel. Jean and Scott have a moment alone on a butte in New Mexico, where she sets up a picnic for the two to enjoy. But Jean has something else on her mind: she takes of Scott’s visor, holds his blasts in check, and makes her move.

   Okay, it was 1980. What did you expect? This comic was approved for all-ages by the notoriously conservative Comics Code Authority. For decades, fans have agreed that “This is our moment. Let’s not waste it” means sex.

5. Die-hard X-fans probably saw this coming the instant Genosha was mentioned in the series premiere — and tragically, this is exactly what we watched unfold in “Remember It.” The massacre on Genosha, enacted by a roach-like Master Mold and its hundreds of Sentinels, is a direct adaptation of Grant Morrison and Frank Quitely’s groundbreaking New X-Men story “E Is for Extinction.” In the comics, 16 million mutants died. The death toll in X-Men ’97 is unclear, but it looks like there won’t be many survivors. So far, the only survivors identified are Nightcrawler, Glob, Pixie, their cool bird-girl friend, and Rogue.

   Now, there is a lot more to unpack here — because of course there is. For one thing, the “E Is for Extinction” massacre was predicted way back in Madelyne Pryor’s psychic trip in Episode 1. Remember when Madelyne — then believing she was the real Jean Grey — probed Henry Gyrich’s mind and was suddenly interrupted by a violent, terrifying premonition? Well, all of it came to pass in this episode.

   First, Madelyne was reunited with her son, Nathan Charles Summers (a.k.a. Cable).

   Remember that weird swirling dust tornado man in the vision? He says the same thing that Cable says when he’s yanked back through time.

   Gruesome Master Mold that’s just a huge head and a bad attitude? Check.

   Death arriving in the form of a green laser blast? Yep, got that too.

   And it all ends with mass death.

   On top of all that, the score is the same in that vision and in the extinction scene in “Remember It.” Heartbreaking.

6. Meet news reporter Trish Tilby, the woman who is Beast’s long-term, on-again off-again romantic interest in the comics. The two have a little spark in their sit down interview. She even makes Beast blush!

   Jean Grey follows her urges and kisses Wolverine. This first happened in the comics in Uncanny X-Men #242, when Wolverine was reunited with a not-dead Jean Grey. The two had a more sensual moment in X-Factor #61, when Jean granted Wolverine’s dying wish by making out with him.

   Jean catches Scott Summers communicating with Madelyne Pryor psychically — and she’s not happy about that. Scott is no stranger to psychic cheating in the comics. He had some awkward daydream moments about the X-Men’s other telepath Psylocke, which crossed over into real life when she licked motor oil off of his face. But the real psychic infidelity came when Emma Frost joined the team… right after the “E Is for Extinction” storyline.