X-Men '97 episode 8 review: Get ready

It is the beginning of the end of the first season of Disney Plus' X-Men '97.

X-Men '97 episode 8, "Tolerance is Extinction Part 1," picks up right where the previous episode, "Bright Eyes" leaves off, kicking off the three-part finale of the season and delivering some shocks and awe.

SPOILER ALERT - PLEASE READ AT YOUR OWN RISK IF YOU'RE NOT CAUGHT UP WITH X-MEN '97.

We start with a bang as Bastion, the ever-scheming anti-mutant mastermind, unleashes an army of Prime Sentinels. These aren't your garden-variety robots; they're legit human volunteers twisted into mutant-hunting machines. Yep, some humans were so into getting rid of these mutants that they decided they'd be better off serving as Sentinels than... living a normal life. The hatred and intolerance of mutants have decidedly reached new heights, and that's both worrisome and terrifying. Don't like your neighbor? Come turn into a killing machine for them while having no recollection of it whatsoever! Don't give us humans this stupid idea.

I HATE TO SAY I TOLD YOU SO, but Cable drops a bombshell I've been harping on since episode 5: he has yet to be able to prevent the disaster at Genosha because it was an "absolute point in time." Translation: Some things are so set in stone not even a time machine can scrub them off. Also makes sense as to why we see The Watcher, Uatu, in that episode before things really heat up and get a little crazy.

Meanwhile, Val Cooper, who's been riding the fence between the humans and the mutants, has a change of heart and decides to flip the script on Bastion's master plan. In a daring move, she frees Magneto - the Daddy of Magnetism -hoping to counter Bastion's play. Magneto wastes no time and lets loose a massive electromagnetic pulse that zaps the Prime Sentinels and sends humanity back to the technological Stone Age. Heeeeeeck yes.

Just when you think it can't get more intense, Charles Xavier makes his grand return to Earth. The stage is set for a showdown that promises to shake the foundations of mutant and human relations.

Also, enter Spider-Man, Silver Samurai, and Omega Red cameos.

Val Cooper's actions reveal a desperate truth: she believes that the dream of peaceful coexistence might just be a pipe dream. In freeing Magneto, she not only betrays Bastion but also symbolically throws in the towel on the hope that humans and mutants can ever live in harmony.

As we leave off, Magneto's chilling declaration of "enough" echoes as a dire warning. The mutants are tired - they're battered, and they're not gonna take it anymore. With humanity knocked off its high-tech pedestal, what's next for our heroes and their adversaries? Stay tuned for the next episodes, because if this opener is anything to go by, we're in for a heart-stopping finale to this saga of superpowered strife.

Don't forget to tune into Disney+ next Wednesday for episode 9, because something tells me the sparks are just beginning to fly.