X-Men '97 Season 2, Episode 5
"Weapon X, Lies, and DVDs"
Writer: Anthony Selliti
Director: Chase Conley
Cast: Voices of Cal Dodd, JP Karliak, Erika Ishii, Darin De Paul Crispin Freeman, Ben Bronsky
I can't wait for X-Men '17, when "Weapon X, Lies, and Streaming" drops and the whole episode seems really good at first, but by the end, it leaves you feeling like maybe "Weapon X, Lies, and Videotape" and "Weapon X, Lies, and DVDs" were better episodes despite their technological limitations.
Invasion of the Body Snatchers
Changes to the opening credits include the addition of Forge to the X-Men roster, though he doesn't appear in the episode (neither do any of the other X-Men aside from Wolverine and Morph). The episode itself opens to the dulcet tones of Garrison Kane, that metal-armed, Weapon X himbo, bro-ing out about his awesome metal arms to a captive audience of fellow former Weapon X operatives/experimentees, including Maverick, Sabretooth and Lady Deathstrike (technically, even the animated Lady Deathstrike has never been associated with the Weapon X project before, but this episode suggests she is a fellow test subject). This crack squad has been assembled by Wolverine, who is flying the chopper over a snowy landscape. He tells Morph — who has forced himself onto this ad hoc team to look out for Wolverine — that they're going to investigate reports (presumably the intel he received from Captain America in last episode's post-credit's stinger) that Weapon X is back to their old tricks experimenting on mutants.
Just then, some weird looking birds start flying into the chopper, causing it to crash. Morph climbs out of the flaming wreckage to discover Kane impaled on a tree. Maverick emerges from the wreckage, and nearby, Lady Deathstrike finds one of the weird birds. They search the surrounding area and discover a murderous polar bear, sporting some of the same alien-looking enhancements as the birds. Overwhelmed, they are rescued by the timely arrival of Wolverine and Sabretooth, who put down the beast. In the process, Wolverine exposes his claws; both Sabretooth and Lady Deathstrike are dismayed to realize he's lost the adamantium coating his bones.
They infiltrate the Weapon X facility, finding it rundown and disheveled. Maverick detects life signs in a lower level; suspecting it's Doctor Cornelius, head of the project, the group heads deeper into the building. Along the way, they encounter more horrific scenes: numerous dead bodies torn apart, blood everywhere. When they reach the lower level lab, Doctor Cornelius emerges. But after some cryptic taunting, he vomits all other Sabretooth, then explodes, transforming into one of the alien Brood. The transformation triggers a horde of Brood — the beings responsible for the strange wildlife outside — to emerge from the shadows of the facility.
Wolverine's team blasts and claws their way out, locking the Brood inside the lab. They then split up, one group to find a working vehicle in the vehicle bay, the other to power up the generator so they can open the bay doors and get out. With only Morph and Maverick able to vouch for each other's time after the crash and everyone suspicious of the rest possibly being infected by the Brood, Wolverine and Maverick head to the vehicle bay while Morph, Deathstrike and Sabretooth head for the generators.
Along the way, Deathtrike needles Morph over his devotion to Wolverine. But Sabretooth manages to restore power, and Morph discovers the cache of DVDs on various Weapon X subjects which give the episode its name. One of the DVDs contain information on the Brood, naming them and detailing how Weapon X discovered them after one crashed on Earth, and how they intended to use the cranial fluid of the Brood to help suppress the memories of their adamanatium-bonding subjects like Wolverine and Sabretooth. Movie night is cut short by the arrival of more Brood, but in the ensuing struggle, Morph realizes the Brood don't just breed to survive, they breed to improve themselves, looking for the best. And Wolverine is the best there is at what he does.
Brood Trouble
Just then, Wolverine and Maverick radio for help. Morph, Sabretooth and Deathstrike race to find them. Along the way, they discover Omega Red in stasis, and realize they're nowhere near the vehicle bay — instead, they're in the chamber for adamantium bonding. Just then a frantic Maverick appears, telling them they need to get out, that he and Wolverine were overrun by the Brood but then — Maverick is grabbed and killed by a Brooded-up Wolverine, who poses dramatically like the cover of Uncanny X-Men #234 just as the beam of Morph's light finds him poised over Maverick's body.
The group is little match for the Broodverine, but when Omega Red is accidentally released, he holds Wolverine at bay long enough for Morph, Deathstrike and Sabretooth to escape. Sabretooth is gleeful over being right that Wolverine was infected, but he and Deathstrike are more than happy to leave. Morph, however, refuses to leave Wolverine. In the ensuing fight, Sabretooth points out that Wolverine was in an adamantium chamber, not the vehicle bay; this whole mission was about him getting his adamantium bones back. Morph is willing to concede the point, but counters that if Brood with Wolverine's healing factor get out, the whole planet is doomed. So Morph suggests they draw Broodverine into the adamantium bonding chamber, to kill the Brood part of him.
Changing into Cyclops, Morph taunts Broodverine towards the chamber, but Sabretooth get impatient, and decides to punt the plan in favor of just killing Wolverine. That plan goes about how you'd expect, and it falls to Morph to once again lure an even angrier Broodverine towards the chamber. He delivers an impassioned speech about the importance of their friendship, but sadly, it takes him transforming into Jean Grey to get Broodverine to pause long enough for Deathstrike to sneak up behind him and chuck him into the chamber.
As the chamber does its thing, Omega Red bursts into the room, followed by a massive wave of Brood. He intends to purify the planet by unleashing the Brood on Earth Just then, a de-Brooded, re-adamantiumed Wolverine emerges, making short work of the Brood and attacking Omega Red with a ferocity and level of violence not allowed by broadcast standards in the 1990s. He ultimately kicks Omega Red into some falling wreckage, and then races to the actual vehicle bay behind his team, who steal a jet and blast out of the facility just before all the damage from their various fights causes it to blow.
As they quietly fly home, Wolverine tells Morph that he's not like him, that Wolverine's gotta be one thing. Morph says he's what, an animal with claws? And Wolverine agrees that's what he's the best at being. Morph asks him if it makes him sad, adding that it makes Morph sad. Wolverine says nothing. And we're all sad.
Recommended Reading
Uncanny X-Men #162-167 by Chris Claremont, Dave Cockrum and Paul Smith.
A scene from Maverick's first appearance in X-Men (vol. 2) #5 is animated in the opening credits, and that full story in X-Men (vol. 2) #4-7 is a fun if deeply '90s and largely nonsensical story featuring Jim Lee art (and, like this episode, Omega Red). But for a better look at Wolverine's messy past and relationship with the Weapon X Project, check out Wolverine (vol. 2) #48-#50, the story which first presented the idea that Wolverine's memories are shoddy thanks to implants from Weapon X and features some of the goobers referenced in this episode (or just check out Barry Windsor-Smith's "Weapon X" if you haven't already).
The real recommendation for this week, however, is the "Brood Saga." Not only does it feature the end of Dave Cockrum's second run as Uncanny X-Men's regular penciler and the beginning of the short but iconic Paul Smith run, but it effectively channels the horror elements of the Brood, features standout moments for Wolverine and Storm, introduces Lockheed the dragon, and serves as the conclusion of the X-Men's time as traditional superheroes.
