LegiOn Season One
Brain Stormed
released OUT NOW! 2017 | 15 | Blu-ray/dVd Director Noah Hawley Cast dan stevens, rachel Keller, aubrey Plaza, Jean smart
Superhero shows are everywhere these days, and we’re slipping into overkill territory. Legion does something very different. Coming from the mind of Fargo’s Noah Hawley – who pulled off turning a Coen brothers movie into a successful series that didn’t slavishly ape it – it takes the X-Men universe, steps to the side and back (it’s set in an undefined ’60s/’70s era, albeit one with touches of modern technology) and finds a new way in.
Dan Stevens gives one of his best performances as the tortured David Haller, long-diagnosed with mental illness, who turns out to be something more. But the real revelation here is in the treatment of the villain, a dastardly parasite hitching a ride in his mind, portrayed usually – spoiler alert – by Aubrey Plaza. Lenny Busker is a fantastic, fascinating creation, who can become anything it wants to, and Hawley uses that to stage elaborate dance sequences and brain-worrying surreality. The rest of the cast also impresses, especially Jemaine Clement, who pops up for a few episodes in a key role and clearly has fun.
If the show has issues, they come when it has to confront more standard tropes (such as a decent but uninspired romance between David and Rachel Keller’s Syd) – and an episode with the leads trapped in one place simply doesn’t work.
There is no denying that the show is divisive, but the series heartily rewards sticking with it, unleashing all manner of weirdness while actually offering up answers as the season unfolds. Legion proves there is room for more than just your basic heroes vs villains stories, and has a lot of fun playing with some of the standard elements. Feed your brain and be ready for season two.
Extras A series of seven featurettes explores the likes of make-up, costume design, effects and the romance between David and Syd (17 minutes). You also get documentary overview “Fractured Reality: A Different Kind Of Hero” (10 minutes) and 26 minutes of deleted scenes. James White
David’s girlfriend Syd is named after the co-founder of Pink Floyd, whose “Dark Side Of The Moon” influenced the score.