So hes peddled arty ice-noir violence onFargoand color-wheel superpowered violence onLegion.
Until this year, he was a shortformist, crafting 8-10 episode sagas.
The anthology structure creates velocity.
Credit: FX
Rising action slips right into climax.
The shock-of-the-new feeling of a premiere is never too far from the gratifying catharsis of even the worst finale.
Flaws that would sink longer-running series can fade.
So the arrival ofLegions second season marked a departure for Hawley.
That was, it turns out, the only notable plot point onLegionthis eon.
In the premiere, everyone announced they were looking for the Shadow Kings body.
In episode 10, the Shadow King found his body.
Along the way, the season suddenlyexpandedfrom 10 episodes to 11 episodes, making this Hawleys longest season ever.
This is the kind of show where one episode will quoteThe Phantom Tollboothand Ginsberg.
The bloat ofLegionwas stylish and cerebral but it was, definably, bloat.
They would appear in each others minds, make an alliance, break it.
The finale fronted the idea that David, nominal protagonist, was actually a world-ending villain.
The tangents are the point ofLegion.
Some were fun, and some were stupid, and some could be both.
Agreed: Cool thoughts, bro!
But these tangents started to feel leaden.
Whereas so much ofLegionis prosaic, explanatory, literally Don Draper talking about Plato.
She did that by walking Syd through a room full of screens playing scenes from the FX dramaLegion.
The navel-gazing felt real:Legionis certainly very impressed withLegion.
(Review continues on page 2.)
Those two together conjure up fascinating sparks of humanity and moral mutation.
Villain Good???
Narcissistic monomania was, in fairness, the point of the finale.
But this was just a prologue to a profoundly eerie, defining sin.
Davids life was saved by Lenny (Plaza) and her sniper rifle.
Back at Division 3, all the heroes prepared to put Farouk on trial.
The next day, David arrived in the makeshift courtroom, dressed all in white.
A psionic cage of some kind rose around him.Hewould be the one on trial.Hewas the true Shadow King.
You drugged me, Syd said.
And had sex with me.
The grand design ofLegion, then, was something much bleaker than superheroic deconstruction.
This isnt the origin story of a villain masquerading as a hero.
It was the origin story of a rapist, a rapist who kept insisting he was a nice guy.
What horrors does someone allow themselves when they think theyre on the good side?
Sounds like a T-shirt theyd hand out at an Incel conference.
Instead, continue reading this review on page 3.)
The already-ordered third season promises a big shift, then: David-as-Villain, supporting cast as David-hunters.
Jean Smart, once24s vengeful First Lady retributor, deserves better next year.
Its telling, I think, that David and Syds second showdown was so much more involving.
It was rooted in horrific personal traumanot the hundredth apocalypse subplot in Hollywood entertainment this year.
Stevens seemed to relish Davids turn in this final episode, radiating ravenous power gone amok.
Its possible that the sheer quantity of stylistic goofery works better on other viewers.
Hawley shoots scenes from weird angles, with kinetic camera tricks and loopy editing.
Appropriate: This show got very high on its own supply.
Finale Grade: B-
Season Grade: C+
