legion

So what am I going to watch until Legion comes back?

I just binge-watched the series on Hulu. Like so many of the new series popping up this days this show has comic book roots. But it's not a show about a guy or girl solving crimes while wearing a cool suit. It's not a show that's easy to describe.

The series opens with the main character, David Haller (Dan Stevens), living in a psychiatric hospital after a suicide attempt. But all is not as it seems. In fact, in Legion, nothing is like anything anyone has seen before. The show was created by Noah Hawley (Fargo). Viewers learn early on that Legion is part of the X-Men universe, and David and many of the characters he meets are mutants. The X-Men are always, at their heart, stories about outsiders, and David Haller is as outsider as they come. Diagnosed as schizophrenic when he was just a child, David's grasp on reality is tenuous at best. As the series progresses we learn a bit more about his childhood and his abilities, but it becomes clear that the show and David may just be scratching the surface of what he is and what he will become.

Telekinesis ...

Alternate reality ...

Don't mess with David

Legion is not just action-adventure, but it is also a love story. When David meets Syd at the institution (Rachel Keller) it is love at first sight for the pair, and the course of their romance runs smoothly - except for the part about Syd not wanting to be touched ...

"Holding hands"

Hawley has assembled a great cast for Legion. Dan Stevens takes on a very different role from his previous appearances in Downton Abbey or Beauty and the Beast. Other stand-out performances include Aubrey Plaza as David's pal Lenny, and David's Scooby gang: Bill Irwin, Jean Smart, and Jemaine Clement.

Jean Smart as Melanie Bird

David and Lenny

Legion sets itself in ... well, it's not exactly clear. The show has a late '60s, early '70s look, but so much of the show takes place in David's mind that it's hard to tell when we are exactly, or if he just really likes the look of films like A Clockwork Orange and classic television shows like The Avengers and The Prisoner. I know I like those shows, so Legion appeals to me aesthetically. I don't want to tell too much more about what happens in the show, as it's best experienced spoiler-free. Maybe a rewatch is in order until David and the gang return in February 2018 ...

Syd at Clockworks Psychiatric Hospital

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