Kang the Conqueror is back in Marvel's lineup!
Today's episode of X-Men '97 (Season 2, Episode 4, "Rise of Apocalypse - Part II") puts the time-traveling villain in his full comic-accurate costume, and it's the first official Kang design Marvel has put out since the company changed direction on the character.
MINOR SPOILERS FOR TODAY'S EPISODE AHEAD!
The reveal lands mid-episode. Rama-Tut, voiced by Star Trek legend John de Lancie, watches En Sabah Nur complete his transformation into Apocalypse and decides his pharaoh routine has run its course. He summons his Time Chair, suits up, and departs for another timeline as Kang the Conqueror.
The design itself looks as if it was lifted straight out of the comics: green tunic, purple gloves, purple helmet, and the solid blue face with white eyes that artists have been drawing since the '60s. The new look is a bolder, and arguably, more comic-accurate take than we saw on screen in 2023's Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania.
Kang was supposed to be THE MCU's big bad. "He Who Remains" kicked off the whole arc in the Loki season one finale back in 2021. Quantumania made the Conqueror the face of the Saga in February 2023, and the fifth Avengers movie carried The Kang Dynasty as its title for a while. Then the plan collapsed in December of 2023 when Marvel Studios cut ties with Jonathan Majors, thanks to his off-screen drama. The movie became Avengers: Doomsday, and Robert Downey Jr. blew everyone's minds, including mine, at San Diego Comic-Con when he removed his Doctor Doom mask.
It looks like Marvel Animation will be the place where the character gets a second life.
As we reported last week, Rama-Tut's return may once have had ties to wider MCU plans before those were scrapped, which makes his full Kang glow-up feel less like a one-off Easter egg and more like Marvel Animation making room for him.
For those into Marvel Comics trivia like me, here's a little tidbit: Rama-Tut predates Kang on the page. The pharaoh persona debuted in Fantastic Four #19 back in 1963, a full year before Kang the Conqueror showed up to battle Earth's Mightiest Heroes in Avengers #8.
Casting de Lancie is a nice surprise. The man spent years tormenting the Enterprise crew as Q, so handing him Marvel's ultimate time meddler is a phenomenal choice, and not to mention somehow oddly fitting... I hope we get a chance to see more!
So where does the series go from here? X-Men '97 is already confirmed through Season 4, Kang exits the episode alive and headed for parts unknown, and today's installment also drops a post-credits scene with big implications for Wolverine, so don't turn it off too early!
As things sit now, if the writers want the Conqueror back, there's a LOT they can do with him.
X-Men '97 continues to surprise me with the little nods to not only the original series, but the comics and decades of lore that go with them. It's turned out to be much deeper than a simple '90s revival. Although I will admit that I was disappointed that they changed Madelyne Pryor's costume in the first season… I, like many teenagers at the time, was a big fan of her Goblin Queen costume in the original comics 🤓.
What do you guys think of Kang's new look? Do you want this version sticking around for the remainder of the season? Could he be the centerpiece of the 4th season?
Sound off in the comments below!
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