Things are getting pretty intense in X-Men ‘97 Season 1. Just when everybody thought that Mister Sinister was behind the attack on Genosha, the recently released Episode 7, titled Bright Eyes, made a big reveal and unveiled the main villain for the first season. And along with this revelation, the latest episode introduced a mysterious organization called OZT. So, what does OZT mean, and what is its connection to the X-Men?
Warning: Major spoilers ahead. Read at your own risk.
X-Men ‘97 Episode 7 made several big reveals and surprising character appearances. After teasing a Marvel crossover cameo, Captain America finally showed up as Rogue started investigating the culprit behind the massacre of Genosha and looking for Henry Gyrich and Bolivar Trask. She then learned of the group OZT, which was later revealed to have a connection to Gyrich, Trask, and the series’ main villain, Bastion.
Later, the other X-Men members, Jean Grey, Beast, Cyclops, and Morph, discovered the OZT lab and Prime Sentinels hiding behind a door disguised as a vending machine when the group got an invite from Trask to visit Madripoor. Just like Rogue, they were puzzled by the meaning behind these letters.
What is OZT in X-Men?
In the original X-Men comics, OZT stands for Operation: Zero Tolerance, an organization dedicated to wiping out the mutant-kind and a brainchild of Bastion. This comes from the crossover storyline that ran through Marvel Comics’ X-Men-related titles in 1997. The story follows the Onslaught Saga and focuses on Bastion and Gyrich.
The two managed to infiltrate the US government to launch their genocidal plan, dubbed Operation: Zero Tolerance, with Bastion getting approval to implement it. From there, he finally made his move to eradicate the X-Men and all mutants by activating numerous Prime Sentinels.
One of the crossover’s highlights was the capture and torture of Jubilee. This forced Forge and the X-Factor to work for Bastion to take down the X-Men and other mutants. As a result, he ended up invading the X-Men's mansion and took control. However, Senator Robert Kelly stopped this plan and mandated S.H.I.E.L.D. to take down the operation. Bastion, the Zero Tolerance agents, and Prime Sentinels then surrendered.
Who is Bastion in the X-Men comics?
Bastion is known for being one of the X-Men’s most formidable foes. He’s a fusion of a human and a Sentinel, a great threat to Charles Xavier’s dream of coexistence between humans and mutants. He has been the villain in several X-Men story arcs, such as the Messiah Complex and the Second Coming.
Bastion was reborn with a natural-looking human body with the help of the Siege Perilous’ mystical energy. But don’t be deceived by his physical appearance; he’s a peculiar cybernetic hybrid who has no memories of his past. Rose Gilberti takes him in and gives him a human name, Sebastion Gilberti. He then becomes anti-mutant and aligns with groups like Graydon Creed’s Friends of Humanity.
X-Men ‘97 Episodes 1 to 7 are now available to stream on Disney+, while new episodes drop every Wednesday. With only three episodes left for the first season, fans can expect to see more revelations. Now that the X-Men and the mutants are in danger with Bastion’s arrival, it looks like Charles Xavier’s return will happen soon.
