Who Is Eson? X-Men '97's Major Cosmic MCU Character Explained

Warning! This post contains SPOILERS for X-Men ’97 season 2, episode 4

It’s been very exciting to see just how deep into the existing Marvel Comics lore X-Men ’97 is willing to adapt. Depicting entire arcs and major moments ripped right off the page, the entire X-Men ’97 series has thus far been one of the greatest successes when it comes to adapting comics lore (while still adding new takes and angles). Keeping that in mind, X-Men ’97 season 2 has continued that success, particularly with the new cosmic being they just introduced.

Overall, X-Men ’97 season 2 has been centered on the major villain Apocalypse, depicting both his origins in Ancient Egypt and the peak of his power in the distant future. While En Sabah Nur was quite formidable on his own as the world’s First Mutant, the power he gained that made him Apocalypse came from the stars, specifically from a cosmic being who first debuted in the live-action MCU.

Keeping that in mind, here’s everything you need to know about “Eson”, the cosmic being who helped transform En Sabah Nur into Apocalypse, as seen in X-Men ’97 season 2, episode 4.

Eson The Searcher Is The Celestial Behind Apocalypse’s Transformation And Conquest

X-Men ’97 season 2, episode 4 impressively adapts one of the most important moments of Apocalypse’s origins. Mirroring the comics, En Sabah Nur encounters none other than Eson The Searcher, a massive cosmic Celestial who apparently crash-landed on Earth centuries prior in this continuity. Learning of his future as Apocalypse inside the Celestial’s ship, Nur embraces his destiny willingly after all he’s endured, despite Magneto and Xavier’s attempts to rewrite history by making him the First X-Man.

Just like on the page, it’s Eson who communes with Nur telepathically and grants Nur advanced technology, transforming him into the immortal tyrant Apocalypse. Likewise, X-Men ’97 adds the new twist that Eson had been calling out to Nur since his days as a slave, summoning him and offering the chance to serve as “The Eternal Shore” as the eventual end of everything, connecting to Apocalypse’s classic line from the original animated series: “I am the rocks of the eternal shore; crash against me and be broken!”

However, the comics’ canon saw Eson striking a contract with Nur, offering the technology with the promise that Nur would one day have to pay a great price, giving his life (and perhaps more) to the Celestials upon their return at some undisclosed time in the far future. Interestingly, no such bargain is struck in X-Men ’97 season 2, as this new context sees Nur effectively being chosen for his new role on the Celestials’ behalf.

As such, it will be very interesting to see if future episodes of X-Men ’97 will continue to reveal more about the Celestials and Apocalypse’s divine appointment by Eson.

Eson’s Major Connection To The MCU Explained

The Guardians of the Galaxy watch Eson the Searcher

It’s also worth noting how Eson the Searcher connects to the MCU and Marvel Studios’ greater multiverse.

Marvel has established that all Celestials possess a shared tethered consciousness with all of their variants across realities. As such, this effectively means that the Eson seen in X-Men ’97 season 2 is the same as the live-action Eson who debuted in 2014’s Guardians of the Galaxy as a former wielder of the Power Stone. Shown eradicating an entire planet with the Infinity Stone, Eson was the second-ever Celestial to be introduced in the MCU after the severed Celestial head known as Knowhere (which also debuted in the first Guardians movie).

Keeping the Power Stone connection in mind, it’s very interesting that Eson is shown transforming En Sabah Nur with a large purple stone/gem/crystal. While it’s never explicitly stated to be this universe’s Power Stone, the odds have to be good. Likewise, it’d certainly make sense considering all the immense new power it gives Apocalypse.

At any rate, Eson the Searcher’s inclusion in X-Men ’97 season 2 is another prime example of how the series continues to expand in scope while truly using the greater Marvel Universe to its advantage (without ever losing focus on the X-Men themselves).

New episodes of X-Men ’97 season 2 release Wednesdays on Disney+ from Marvel Comics.