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The first season of Legion, FX’s incredible Marvel Comics based show, is coming to a close. It is extremely well-written, well-directed, and well-acted. It is character driven, plot driven, and theme driven.

Everything within Legion is meticulously orchestrated from top to bottom. It is definitely the smartest superhero production to make it to the screen.

Critics, YouTubers, and fans all praise the series, but few really break down what makes the show so good. They dwell on amazement or spend time speculating on various aspects of the show. They often miss what really makes the show great.

There are many factors that make Legion special, and one of the biggest is the casual use of violence in the show. Legion is not violent, per se, but it does have moments of intense violence. It is meant for a mature audience, but it ignores the childish gore that dominates other programs. Instead, Legion approaches super powers and violence in a sophisticated manner.

This article will have some spoilers, but none of the items discussed are real spoilers.

Mutants and Powers

David Haller is a mutant. He is the mutant. In the comics, Legion (his character name) can accomplish anything and solve any normal situation with power. However, he is limited by a fractured mind and competing personalities that fight for control.

Legion’s storylines in the comics aren’t traditional superhero works. Most of the action with David takes place within his own mind as he attempts to handle both internal and external threats. In essence, it is about coming to terms with power and self-control.

Although some comics based movies have minor plot-lines that focus on accepting power, they rarely deal with the issue in a realistic manner. Instead, powers are used to show off a computer animator’s skill. They blow the mind and dazzle an audience. They are fireworks, which exist for a minute, look pretty, then fade away. If you take away the powers, the plot can continue with little difficulty.

Logan, which went to great lengths to depict an attempt at being heroic in a world without heroes (as we discussed here), fails to tackle this issue of how powers are depicted. In the comics,

In the comics, Logan gives up what makes him Wolverine, his claws, and tries to live the life of a normal human. His film version has no restraint because the audience wants to see him “kick ass” instead of brood.

While Logan tackles other important issues, the character Logan experiences no difficulty in solving his problems with his claws in a very showy manner. If anything, his powers are even more dazzling, with complex fight scenes that dwell on the violence. This is not a problem in the movie, because audiences want to see Wolverine act this way.

The themes and intensity of Logan are able to thrive in spite of his powers, not because of them. Ultimately, it is a very intense road trip movie about aging (like most road trip movies) that happens to have super powered individuals as its main characters. It is well-written, and could have been a good film if the mutants were normal people.

The problem is that current comics based movies and television shows depict powers to show them off. Often, the individual super hero is given a “moment” to really shine. It is the equivalent of a musical solo.

Legion takes a different approach and makes the plot about the powers themselves. They are not decoration.

Casual is Realistic

Very rarely are powers explored and analyzed in Legion. The powers exist, things happen, and the plot moves forward. Each use of power is to get to the next point in the plot. Very little is for show. There is an economy of motion, and every aspect of the show is refined to its most efficient use.

There are very few moments of exposition besides the occasional explanation to transition forward in the plot. This includes the brief discussion of how Ptonomy’s powers work to provide a transition into the realm of memories in Chapter 2. It is necessary to set the boundaries and limitations to create the moment of drama that comes when Ptonomy no longer has control within David’s mind.

The greatest example of the casual approach to super powers comes at the end of Chapter 1. Someone allowed Sydney Barrett to appear in his dreams. We don’t know who does this, but it could have been Ptonomy. It really doesn’t matter because the plot is able to push forward without an explanation. Then someone created flames, and we aren’t told who or how because this doesn’t matter. Finally, David is broken out of a building.

As the group flees, Rudy appears and uses telekinetic powers often. However, the camera rarely fixates on him. He is in the background doing amazing things, but we are following David from place to place. “Go go go” is the constant refrain, which pushes the plot, and the camera, forward.

Ptonomy fires his gun. Kerry and Syd punch people. The scene is constantly moving as everyone works together to get to safety. The powers they use and the violence they cause is left in the background because they are moving too fast for the audience to fully consider the implications of their actions. There is no difference between Rudy’s flinging someone hundreds of feet through the air and others randomly kicking and punching.

This approach emphasizes the action, and the world of Legion is one in which people are not afraid to use their powers. All that matters to these mutants is action, and any discussion has to wait until after the action is complete. There is a Nietzchean quality to this, especially with various snippets of discussions about powers and gods. Their powers exist, but they are never the true focus.

Other depictions bind their characters, turning them into mere props. Those characters make quips, rely on sight gags, and show off. Those characters are akin to Kabuki actors who break the flow of the production to garner applause (the mie pose). Super powers, to the other shows and movies, exist for spectacle, and the characters are built around their powers. They, the characters and their powers, are, ultimately unnecessary to the plot.

This is not true for Legion; the powers are the plot. There is no time to show off one’s ability in a “real” situation. That is just not realistic. Everything in Legion happens at once, creating both chaos and order that is truer to how powers would actually work than how other media depicts powers.

Action, Not Words

There are three characters that exemplify an emphasis on casual violence: Cary/Kerry Loudermilk, Rudy, and The Eye (Walter).

Although Kerry is introduced first (Chapter 1), there is no explained association between Cary and Kerry until Chapter 4. There are brief moments where Kerry appears and disappears, but the basis of their mutant power (the ability to share a body) is not fleshed out until it is needed: a link needs to be established to allow for the fight/dance in Chapter 4 to make sense. They just act, feeling no need to justify their actions.

Rudy, one of the quietest characters, is all background. He is a very powerful telekinetic, and he tosses people without even a glance. He kills people in a violent manner without even a second thought, and it causes no more effort than a shrug. We do not know the extent or nature of his powers, but we see them demonstrated. He acts, and he continues to act.

The Eye has very little backstory, and much is hinted. His powers are less obvious than Rudy’s. He can take other people’s shape, knock them unconscious with a touch, and is immune to bullets. none of this is explained, and he acts instead of talks. Things just happen around him, which makes the action sudden and intense.

Kerry fights, Rudy kills, and The Eye tortures, all without a second thought. Their powers are used to convey action, and any kind of decoration or explanation weakens the strength of that action.

The Violent Mind

In a show about the mind, having uninterrupted action seems like it could undermine the themes, but it really emphasizes them. Reality is not based on constantly having things laid out for you, especially not action. Violence is also a fact, not entertainment to dwell upon.

When Legion does lay out things for you, it is to create even more questions and to solve some confusion. These explanatory scenes are less about the characters understanding what is happening than coming to terms with what is happening. For the audience, the exposition is explanatory only to make sure everyone is on the same page. Backstories are limited, and excessive details are left out. There is plenty of mystery to go around.

The key difference is violence or non-violence. When powers are used for violence, they are allowed to speak for themselves. When they are non-violent, then they are partially explained.

Part 2 of this article discusses David’s use of powers, which separates Legion from the other super hero shows and movies.