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An engaging finale that you'll either love or hate...
Jun 12, 2018 · Legion’s second season has been leading David down the path of evil, and by the end of “Chapter 19,” he drops his heroic mask and embraces a life of selfish, destructive wickedness — all ...
- Oliver Sava
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The complete breakdown in the relationship between David and Syd is the instigator for this, with Syd showing up to shoot David before he can kill the Shadow King, as she believes that Farouk should be left alive as he is the only person who can stop David.
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By Ryan Matsunaga
Posted: Jun 13, 2018 3:09 am
This review contains spoilers for Legion's Season 2 finale, titled "Chapter 19."
A delusion begins like any other idea, as an egg. That egg was laid in the first season of Legion, and tonight, we saw it hatch.
The eleventh and final episode of Legion's second season picks up with David and Farouk on a collision course. Farouk finally has his body back. David is unshackled, unhinged and ready for vengeance.
Music and sound have been a prominent motif in this season, and the pair's beyond bizarre entrances to the tune of "Behind Blue Eyes" somehow feel like an appropriate capstone to it all (it’s worth noting that Lenny’s new blue eyes were a major catalyst for David’s rapid unraveling).
Faced with betrayal from the person he trusted the most, it seems that David’s psyche has begun to crumble. Various aspects of himself emerge, one cold and logical, another egomaniacal. While Legion has always played coy with its comic book roots, this seems like a direct throughline to the original Marvel Comics character, who drew power from his multiple personalities.
In any other show, this would seem like a non-sequitur, a step away from what we would have assumed to be the big moment of the season finale: the resolution of David and Farouk’s showdown. Instead though, Legion reveals that this was, and has always been, a distraction.
The true reveal, the true delusion we have been operating under, is that it was never about the Shadow King. It was about the premise we accepted, so quickly and without hesitation, that David is the hero of this story. Despite his shortcomings and his flaws, we wanted to believe that ultimately, he is a good person, and deserving of love.
Back in physical reality, David has been saved at the last moment by one hell of a shot by Lenny, shattering Syd’s bullet in mid-flight. With Syd knocked unconscious by the blast, David finally goes too far, choosing to manipulate Syd’s mind, effectively tricking her into loving him again.
Division 3 arrives, late to the party as usual, taking Farouk and Lenny into custody to face judgement. David and Syd return to headquarters, where Syd can tell that something has changed, she just isn’t sure what.
The pacing in this episode is bizarre, and occasionally frustrating. Coming off of such a huge high, the season finale segues into a much quieter second half. It feels strange to leave so many threads hanging. Ptonomy is still trapped in the machine, Cary and Kerry’s reversal has yet to really be addressed, and clearly, Lenny and Amy have plenty of unresolved business.
At this point, we as the audience know full well where David goes from here, and yet Stevens manages to infuse the moment with a certain element of empathy. His sense of betrayal is so palpable. If not justified, it’s at least understandable. David is on the wrong path, but he doesn’t know that. To him, he’s still the hero in this story.
For 19 episodes, we have been right there with him. Despite the growing evidence to the contrary, we believed that ultimately, David would be vindicated. We deluded ourselves into thinking David was the hero, when in fact, he makes a far, far more interesting villain.
As the show’s second season draws to a close, Legion is finally born, a force of unimaginable pain and destruction.
This story has never been about fulfilling audience expectations, and has frequently found its strongest footing when it's actively subverting them. The show's final twist in the closing moments of the finale, transforming David from a misunderstood hero into a full-blown villain, is exhilarating and provocative. While I'm somewhat frustrated that the finale chose to evade any real sense of closure, I am without a doubt excited to see how this plays out in the next season.
If the first season of Legion was the story of a hero coming into his powers, the second turned out to be a compelling look at a villain discovering his destiny. While little in the way of closure is provided, the finale does give us some of the show’s best scenes to date, and a remarkable new direction for the next season.
- Ryan Matsunaga
Jun 17, 2018 · “Chapter 19” focuses on what happens when its hero, David Haller (Dan Stevens), finally does battle with the villainous Shadow King (Navid Negahban, in a delightfully odd performance). The two...
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The Praesidium is a Presence of Mary Ch 19, No 23 The Meeting Ch 11, No 5 The Meeting the Mainstay Ch 19, No 22 Auxiliary Membership Ch 16, No 2 Praetorians Ch 16, No 1 Adjutorians Ch 16, No 2 The Legion Promise II Ch. 15 Pope John Paul II to the Legion of Mary Page 5 The Founding of The Legion of Mary Page 5
