First Things First…
I’m intrigued about where things go from here. We’re through “The Phoenix Saga,” the show’s most ambitious swing to date. But there’s more…
This is the first episode that’s out of order. Apparently, there were serious production delays with some episodes, so from this point forward the story is muddled if you watch in the order the episodes were released. This episode, in terms of air date, was Episode 5.4 and came out two years later, but it sure sounds like it’s supposed to directly follow “The Phoenix Saga.” That’s why I’m watching and reviewing them in the order in which they’re in the Disney+ app. That follows the story the way it was meant to be told.
3 Things I Like
3. Jubilee Reacts Like a Teenager
“I think this whole thing is sick. You’re all acting like Jean’s never coming back. Maybe she’s alive. Did you ever think of that?”
Jubilee
Considering the high stakes battles she’s fought in, it’s easy to forget how young Jubilee is. She’s still a teenager. And her reaction here—slightly irrational in blaming her teammates for accepting Jean’s death, then breaking down sobbing in Rogue’s arms because she can’t control her emotions like the adults—is spot-on.
2. The Terrifying Purple Man
“Killgrave is bad news. I’m telling you, he’s wacko.”
Rusty
Zebediah Killgrave might not be the most powerful villain in this series, but he’s the most terrifying.
The purple skin has something to do with it—though they never call him Purple Man—but it obviously has more to do with his ability to control minds. I can’t imagine something scarier than losing control over my words and actions, especially if I’m aware it’s happening. What could be a more powerless feeling?
On top of that, he’s messing with kids. His basement is basically a torture chamber, where he straps them into chairs and brainwashes them.
I still haven’t watched the Netflix Jessica Jones series from a number of years ago, but I’ve heard David Tennant’s performance as Killgrave is also terrifying. If there’s anything as reprehensible as looking into a child’s eyes, barking “Obey me,” and subjugating them to your will, it’s doing it to a woman. And seeing how effective this version of the character is at making me detest him, now I’m even more intrigued to see the other version.
1. Cyclops Lashes Out
“Don’t you get it? I’m sick of the responsibility! I’m sick of being den mother to a bunch of quibbling children! I can’t do it anymore! Most of all, I’m sick of caring.”
Cyclops
There’s a world in which Scott continues to be a wet blanket and accepts Jean’s death with equanimity… where he agrees with the professor’s assessment that it’s important to honor Jean’s “great sacrifice” by carrying on and fighting the good fight.
Thankfully, this isn’t that world.
Instead, Scott erupts at the professor. He doesn’t want to hear his bullshit platitudes about the importance of their work, and of carrying on in Jean’s honor.
Nope… he flings his uniform at the professor’s feet and walks out on the team.
Of course, it doesn’t last. But that’s not the point. Seeing this fire from Scott is the point. He has every right to be furious, hurt, and bitter. And once Jean’s apparent death forces open the floodgates to these emotions, everything pours out…
… including his anger at the team, and at the world at large. We go back to the beginning and see how Scott was bullied as a kid because of being a mutant. He even was adopted once and then quickly returned by the couple, with the mother saying…
“A child like that shouldn’t be allowed near other children. You should’ve warned us he wasn’t normal.”
This is a really strong Cyclops episode. This rage is so unusual coming from him, but it feels earned because of what he’s dealing with now, and because of all this background we learn about him.
1 Thing I’m Mixed On
1. Laying It on Thick
After Scott walks out on the X-Men, he returns to the orphanage he grew up in. Conveniently, it’s now run by his old friend, Sarah—the one kid who was kind to him and didn’t make him feel like an outcast.
Oh, and look at that—she’s a widow. And she’s easy for Scott to talk to. Not to mention pretty…
Don’t get me wrong—I like the character. But this is the first episode with Jean gone, and they already lay it on pretty thick that Sarah could be a new love interest for Scott.
In the end, it doesn’t look like it will go that way. Scott ultimately decides he needs to return to the team. And then we find out Jean is alive after all. But the point isn’t whether or not Scott would find someone new. It’s just that they go very over the top in making Sarah seem like a great match for him immediately.
4 Things I Don’t Like
4. Fire Extinguishing Energy Beams
Since when can Cyclops use the energy beams from his eyes to extinguish fires? If anything, aren’t they more likely to start fires? Did he turn them to cold?
3. A Gentle Fall from a Chopper
Now this is more like it… Cyclops using his energy blasts to shoot down a helicopter…
But wait…
Killgrave falls from the chopper and gets up and runs away as if it’s nothing! I know he’s a mutant, but I doubt his mind-control powers would let him survive a fall like that without a scratch, bruise, or even a limp.
2. She’s Alive!
I’m not mad Jean is still alive, especially because her return leads to another classic X-Men arc. I don’t even mind that it happens so soon after they lost her. (The fact that this episode aired out of order, two years later, boggles my mind. It’s even more of a direct follow-up to “The Phoenix Saga” than I realized.)
But literally as soon as Scott walks in the door, Cerebro beeps and they get the notification that it has located Jean, and the team all stands there with these shit-eating grins on their faces. It’s just so sudden, and so silly.
1. Why the Ruse?
When Scott goes to Killgrave’s house to rescue the kids, I don’t understand why they even go through the motions of pretending they’re okay if they’re just going to openly attack him. Usually in this scenario, they’d only drop the façade if something gave away the fact that it wasn’t all good. But here, the kids are playing instruments and games, and Killgrave says he encourages them to enrich their minds, and then they just attack. If they didn’t, they might’ve fooled Scott.
Tim Matassa
