MovieChat Forums > Legion (2017) Discussion > Yeah...BIG problems with season 2 of Leg...

Yeah...BIG problems with season 2 of Legion

posted 5 years ago by MovieMax (5)
9 replies | jump to latest

First off, I'm a big fan of the show, BUT...this season really had some SERIOUS issues. Where to start?
1. Cultural Indexing/Timeline Continuity problems: the vehicles, clothing, architecture and music are indicative of the 1960-1970s, yet, the computer technology in season 2 doesn't correspond to the same period. When Clark Debussy is interrogating Lenny Busker in Division 3 HQ, he's using what looks like a very advanced tablet computer. Then, in the very same interrogation, Lenny states her dad used to neglect her when she was a little girl, choosing to watch pron on the internet instead. They didn't have the internet in the 1950s, so WHEN did that happen???
2. Character actions that make absolutely no sense: When Sidney finds the drain hole in the desert, and a rope with a hooked rabbit flies out of it, she just goes calmly over and unhooks the rabbit, holding the open hook in her hand as if oblivious to the threat it poses. Most sane, rational people- as her character is portrayed to be- would immediately recognize that the rabbit was BAIT to LURE her to rescue it, not to mention that a sink drain hole in the MIDDLE OF A @#$% DESERT- complete with a giant, pink, rubber stopper and chain- is NOT NORMAL, and run away from it or at least seek David's assistance before going anywhere near it to begin with. Yet she is hooked as if she never even recognizes what is CLEARLY a threat. Sidney isn't a fool, she's NOT stupid; such an action is NOT CONSISTENT with her character.
3. Absurd Plot Holes: A perfectly arched mouse hole in the wall of a MAXIMUM SECURITY SOLITARY CONFINEMENT CELL?!? Come on writers, how STUPID do you think your viewers are? Keeping the Shadow King alive "for trial"??? So...you threaten to terminate David out of fear, yet- instead of just KILLING the Shadow King when he's vulnerable, the MOST DANGEROUS mutant alive, and a man who you clearly know has killed hundreds if not thousands of people already- you keep him alive for a meaningless "trail"??? Finally, he just FREELY walks into the room where David is imprisoned in a force field (final episode, season 2) and casually sits at a table- as if he is a witness against David- while the rest of the staff do NOTHING??? Have they decided to just "pardon" Farouk? HUH?!?!?!? That ending makes NO SENSE AT ALL!

Conclusion: this season went WAY OFF the rails in the last two episodes. Get better writers, or you'll lose your fan base come season three. Your viewers deserve better than cheap, stupid "JJ Abrams" plot devices that undermine an otherwise edgy, thoughtful and intelligent story.

[–] BourbonKing (5612) 5 years ago

Noah Hawley's trying to weave a story in the same distorted frame as Wes Anderson does with his quirky movies that look like time-capsules but utilize social norms and technologies from various eras.

[–] MovieMax (5) 5 years ago

If true, then he's made a very poor decision; the audience this particular series attracts expects logical consistency, in characters, timeline, and plot. The first season had it, this season does not. Frankly, they can call it "distorted frame" all they want; that's just a label to make poor thinking, writing, and directing, look like it has a purpose. The surreal elements- like the weird, green, pointing hand balloons all around Div 3 HQ- are entertaining, but when you blur the lines so finely that you eliminate any sense of what is real and what is not, then it just becomes a distorted, silly mess that leaves the watcher annoyed and bored. I've had it with directors employing stupid gimmicks to get around corners they've painted themselves in to, and then acting like their "sleight of hand" is intentional verses the "get out of jail free" card it really is. If this is how Hawley expects to tell this "story" then FX should find a new director fast.

[–] DarthRoger (867) 5 years ago

I think the difference is that Wes Anderson's movies (which I love!) are supposed to be "quirky" and have a surreal kind of feel to them. I think Anderson gives you interesting vistas to look at but also fills them with intriguing characters, like Steve Zissou. I understand that Anderson's movies are linked but they still take place in different eras.

[–] DarthRoger (867) 5 years ago

I haven't seen this show yet, although I've been planning on watching. Based on the problems you've outlined above, I'm less inclined to watch.

Though I understand shows like Legion are based on comic books, there's still a point where your ability to accept something absurd hits a wall. Continuity and common sense are big deals to me. I've quit watching shows because they'd create some far-fetched scenario to add a "shock factor" to a season's ending, when doing so was unnecessary.

Guess we can blame Breaking Bad. Ever since BB, all these new series writers feel like they have to have some twisted ending that leaves you speechless and keeps you on edge until the next season. It's an effective - although lazy - gimmick to make people tune in and keep watching a story that's going nowhere. Look no further than Bloodline as an example. Lots of shock but very little "there, there!"

What writers fail to realize about BB, was that the shocking endings on that series ALWAYS were part of the overarching story. They were't there just to shock. They aren't going to be able to cover for poor story telling on these other shows by just giving us a shock every now and then.

[–] MovieMax (5) 5 years ago

True.
The irony is BB was one of the few that actually tied up the loose ends and made an ending that was at least believable and consistent with the characters. Personally, I believe this all started with LOST. Abrams promised to "explain everything" at the end then explained nothing. His lame excuse that the "show was never about the island it was about the people" is complete BS, as the "people" in LOST would have NEVER had meaning without the island.
Like I said, season 1 of Legion was very good, and this season was decent until the last 2-3 episodes. The climax of seeing Farouk, the Shadow King, casually sitting in judgement of David- under the pretense that David is a "monster"- is akin to Gustavo Fring of BB sit in judgement of DEA agent Hank Schrader, it doesn't make any sense at all.
Also, how is it that David is suddenly a BIGGER threat than the villain, a man who can just kill everyone else in the room with a thought, and who is now even MORE POWERFUL and an EVEN BIGGER threat since he got his body back? Yet, he's just sitting casually across the table from the Summerland and Div 3 folks as if they're all old friends?
It just doesn't make any sense at all.

[–] AnubisRaydeen (7897) 5 years ago

How did you enjoy season 1? Are you sure you saw season 1?
>oh no, style and tech disparity in a psychedelic symbolism show

[–] MovieMax (5) 5 years ago

Yes I did.
OK then, tell me then where season 1 of Legion was technologically, culturally, and thematically inconsistent? What character actions were not consistent with the nature of the characters in season one?
Well? And I'm talking about the actual "real world" they live in, not mental projections or psychedelic visions.

[–] AnubisRaydeen (7897) 5 years ago

I think your problem comes from what you assume is real and what isn't. If they actually did that Indian dance in season 1 and it wasn't symbolic then the whole show sucks.

However, I will agree with you about the last episode of S2. Farouk suddenly being in a position of power is a pretty lame stretch ... assuming that it is real.

[–] DracTarashV2 (4474) 5 years ago

With all that said, I look forward to season 3. :)

2 was incoherent, but a thrilling ride all the same.