Legion brings the X-Men to TV in a mind-bending Chapter 1

It’s here – Legion has finally exploded onto our screens.

Set within the X-Men universe but without tying into the X-Men movies, Legion is the hit new TV show starring Dan Stevens as a troubled young man who’s a lot more powerful than he realises. Based on the Marvel comic book character of the same name, Legion is the powerful story of what happens when super powers meet mental illness… and it might just be the freshest take on the comic book genre to date.

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Dan Stevens stars as David Haller – a young man diagnosed with schizophrenia at a young age. Obviously, it wouldn’t be an X-Men story without superhuman abilities, and David soon exhibits a range of psychic powers… and it quickly transpires that he’s actually a mutant. That’s right, the same kind of mutant as Wolverine, Cyclops and Professor X.

Within the opening half hour, David exhibits telepathy and telekinesis on a startling scale.

Cool, right? But so far, so average.

But David’s mental illness is where the show really begins to shine.

Right from the off, Legion is a very different kind of TV show. The visuals are purposefully odd, with a trippy, head-spinning mix of practical and visual effects which leave the viewer feeling just as confused as David must be. There are shifting aspect ratios, slowing and quickening of time itself, and a whole blend of unnerving visuals. It’s stylistically a bit of a mind-fuck… and considering the subject matter, it really works. Using sound, light and colour along with blisteringly good special effects, we find ourselves pulled into David’s state of mind. And it’s every bit as unpredictable as you might think.

Thankfully, it’s not just style over substance – the characters are awesome, too.

Dan Stevens simply knocks it out of the park as David Haller. We don’t delve too much into his background for now… in fact, we see little more than his childhood self, evolving into a more rebellious teen as his mental issues begin to take hold. But from the off, it’s hard not to care about him. He’s struggling with dark forces he doesn’t understand – and we’re not even talking comic book villains here. This time around, the hero’s troubles come from within.

And it’s a rather interesting turn for a comic book hero.

Of course, all this is bound to change. He’s a mutant after all, and that means that his powers – when they fully emerge – will be channelled in a more positive, heroic way. But quite how that comes about remains to be seen. And whether or not he ends up being a more street-level hero (in the same vein as Marvel’s Daredevil or Luke Cage) is still up for interpretation. Let’s put it this way – it’s unlikely he’ll be joining the Avengers or the X-Men with his… issues.

But judging from this initial episode, David is going places.

Obviously, it’s not just David we’re interested in. Legion presents us with a whole host of subtly-crafted characters to dip into. And rather refreshingly for an origin story, we’re not given a massive amount of exposition or backstory on each of them.

Aubrey Plaza’s Lenny is a breath of fresh air, providing Legion with a light-hearted sidekick who manages to remain just the right side of overbearing. Rachel Keller’s Syd is equally great – intriguing and mysterious enough to keep you wondering whether or not she’s even real.

But let’s get back to David’s inner demons, which in the first episode of Legion, manifest themselves as actual demons. Let’s not sugar coat this – David sees things that he isn’t quite sure are real. We first meet him as a patient at the Clockworks Psychiatric Hospital where he’s being treated, and it gives us a glimpse into David’s own little reality.

We see what he sees – warts and all.

But could there be more to it than merely seeing things?

As fans of the comic books will know, David’s powers manifest in a rather spectacular way – suffering from dissociative identity disorder, each of David’s multiple personalities controls one of his unique mutant powers.

Will this be how Legion’s powers manifest in the TV series?

It already seems to be going that way. And it would be absolutely mesmerising to see Dan Stevens take on a role similar to James McAvoy in M. Night Shyamalan’s Split. After all, Legion (as David eventually becomes known) is more than the sum of his parts.

But will Legion eventually tie into the X-Men series proper?

For now, we’ll have to wait and see.

Legion stars Dan Stevens as the titular hero, alongside Rachel Keller, Aubrey Plaza, Bill Irwin, Jeremie Harris, Amber Midthunder, Katie Aselton, and Jean Smart.

Legion returns to Fox next week, 16 February 2017.

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What did you think of Legion’s first episode? Has Fox created a hit X-Men TV show? Leave your comments below… and follow Ryan Leston on Twitter, and Facebook for more on the latest TV shows.