FX‘s cerebral X-Men affiliate series Legion left off on a tantalizing cliffhanger last season: David Haller (Dan Stevens), freshly clean of the parasitic Shadow King, was taken prisoner by some sort of floating metallic orb, which shrank his body and transmitted it into its shiny interior before flying away.
Obviously, this leaves us with some questions… but then again, what aspect of Legion doesn’t? We’ve rounded up all the most probing unsolved mysteries that linger from season one, and that we hope to get a bit of closure on in season two.
1. Who took David?
That’s the big question. Who in the world of Legion has the technology to accomplish such a crazy kidnapping? Fans have theorized a number of contenders, the most obvious being Division 3, which spent the entire first season looking for David. They came for him in the finale, and one of them did mention to “send the Equinox.” Is that a code name for the orb drone? We know Division 3 is also hoping to track down the Shadow King and stop him from worldwide domination, so perhaps they plan to use David as a way of finding him. We know that Summerland and Division 3 team up in season two; is David’s capture what brings them together?
There are a number of other contenders, too. Some fans assume it may be a figure from the X-Men comics, like Mojo or even Professor X himself, who we know is David’s real father. Or maybe it’s something else entirely, some Legion-esque twist we never saw coming. What we know for sure: There is a year-long time jump between seasons one and two for everyone but David, who, because time moves differently in the orb, thinks it’s only been one day.
2. How will the Shadow King influence Oliver and what is he looking for?
Melanie’s husband Oliver has had a rough go of it. Like David, he possess extreme mutant capabilities, and he spent 20 years in an astral plane while his body was cryogenically frozen. He finally woke up, and was briefly reunited with Melanie, before the Shadow King infected him and whisked him away on a road trip to “someplace warm.” Previews show Oliver basking in a sun-drenched pool with Lenny, so it looks like they made to that warm place. But how long will they be there, and what is the Shadow King’s master plan for Oliver? It’s hard to say. Oliver is, in a lot of ways, an easier vessel than David, who fought its presence intensely. Oliver’s mental prowess deteriorated during his time in the astral plane. Whatever the Shadow King has planned, Oliver may be the best way of accomplishing that task. His strong powers don’t hurt, either.
3. How will Melanie react to her husband’s disappearance… again?
Melanie spent much of season one in a state of depression over the loss of her husband. To have him and to lose him once more in such a short span of time is an extra gut-punch to the character. It’s the sort of thing that can drive a person mad, or to dangerous extremes.
Perhaps that’s another part of the reason why Summerland joins forces with Division 3. They’re looking for the Shadow King, but maybe Melanie is just looking for Oliver. We hope she’s making choices with a clear head.
4. What is the state of Summerland after the time jump?
The Summerlanders join up with Division 3… but why? Yes, to find the Shadow King, but there has to be more to it than that, right? And how does it affect the other mutants, like Syd, Cary (Bill Irwin), Kerry (Amber Midthunder), and Ptonomy (Jeremie Harris)? We know that the show changed filming locations from Vancouver to Los Angeles between seasons, and Dan Stevens said that change is reflected on the show. Will they leave the secluded forest facility and head elsewhere? What is the foundation of their group now that they’ve intermingled with the enemy? And what’s going on with Clark (Hamish Linklater), the Division 3 interrogator who David scarred and who came back with a vengeance in the finale?
5. Will we see Professor X?
This is another question everyone is asking. We got a brief tease of David’s father in a chalkboard sequence last season, and even saw a flash of his famous wheelchair. Even better, Dan Stevens appeared on an episode of The Late Late Show with James Corden alongside Patrick Stewart, who plays Professor X in the X-Men films. He asked Stewart if he’d ever consider appearing on Legion as his father. “Absolutely, 100%,” Stewart replied.
Stevens has also teased the possible appearance of Professor X in other interviews. In a chat with Collider, he said that although it won’t be on David’s mind towards the beginning of the season, “It definitely comes into play, as we move on, as it does naturally for people who discover they’re adopted.”
That sounds like a definite maybe to us!
6. Will there be more dance sequences?
According to Dan Stevens, yes! In another Collider interview, he teased that, “We have more dance involved. It just gets more and more playful.”
Can anything top the Bollywood number for season one? We can’t wait to find out when Legion returns this Tuesday, April 3 at 10 PM ET on FX.
Image: FX
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