In the closing moments of X-Men '97's two-part premiere last week, a second Jean Grey showed up at the X-Mansion. In "Fire Made Flesh," Beast explains that the dishevelled double is the real deal and the one we've spent the past couple of episodes with is a clone that's much younger on a cellular level.
He later discovers that Mister Sinister created the new Jean and it's then that the villain exerts his influence over his creation to "wake her up."
She proceeds to unleash horrifying visions on the rest of the X-Men and transforms into the Goblin Queen. The mutants battle demons as she makes off with her and Cyclops' son, Nathan, delivering the baby to Sinister.
The X-Men set off to track the boy down as Wolverine comforts the original Jean. He brings the hero's memories back by getting her to read his mind, confessing his love for her - at last! - in the process.
Jean then manages to psychically link up with the Goblin Queen and gets her to doppelganger to see sense. Scott Summers and the clone break Nathan out of captivity, though the escaping Sinister warns them that by halting his experiments, they've doomed the child.
He's right because they're forced to watch as a Techno-Organic Virus spreads across Nathan's body, leaving Scott and the second Jean with no other choice than to send him into the future with Bishop (setting the stage for him to one day return as Cable).
Traumatised by what she's gone through, the clone leaves the X-Mansion as both Jeans discuss the fact neither of them knows exactly when they were swapped out by Mister Sinister. She takes the name "Madelyne Pryor" and sets off on her own adventures.
Scott, meanwhile, reunites with Jean, but there's clearly a divide between them.
In the final scene, we catch up with the powerless Storm in a bar where she's approached by a man named Forge. He's an old friend of Professor X and claims he can help her get back what she's lost...
In our review of the show's first three episodes last week, we concluded by saying, "A triumphant return for X-Men: The Animated Series, X-Men '97 is an eXtraordinary epic which, while a little overreliant on nostalgia, should satisfy fans of the original show and serve as an eXcellent entry poin
X-Men '97 revisits the iconic era of the 1990s as The X-Men, a band of mutants who use their uncanny gifts to protect a world that hates and fears them, are challenged like never before, forced to face a dangerous and unexpected new future.
The first two episodes of X-Men '97 are now streaming on Disney+ with new instalments following weekly.