TV Review: LEGION: Season 1, Episode 4: Chapter 4 [FX]

Legion Chapter 4 Review

FX‘s Legion: Season 1, Episode 4: Chapter 4 continues to question our perception of the reality. A reality that neither the audience nor the characters seem to understand.

One of the very first things Syd Barret (Rachel Keller) asks in the beginning of Chapter 4 is, “What is real?” It is a great question but not something we’re getting an answer to anytime soon.

Chapter 1 and Chapter 2 were an emersion into the visual circus that is David Haller’s (Dan Stevens) mind. Chapter 3 was a mild retreat from that, but Chapter 4 takes us into Syd perception of David. There is an obvious link between David and Syd. A link that isn’t necessarily easy to explain, but it is plainly apparent that their connection is more than just the flashback speckled here and there.

Syd’s jumps through memory feel like a low-grade version of what David goes through on a daily basis. The fact that she too is seeing the Angriest Boy in the World character leads us to believe that the connection the two share may be evolving.

One big theme that runs throughout this particular episode is symbiotic relationships. There are actually quite a few of these in this episode.

Aside from David and Syd, there’s Cary Loundermilk (Bill Irwin) and Kerry Loundermilk (Amber Midthunder). Initially, it wasn’t incredibly clear what their relationship is. There is a lot going on with David’s story. So much so that the other characters fall by the wayside. Luckily, this episode paints a beautiful, yet subtle relationship without being too heavy-handed.

The relationship between Kerry and Cary isn’t a romantic one. But it is a relationship built on mutual respect and love for one another. In Episode 4 it becomes more clear that Kerry and Cary share a body.  This initially sounds complicated but Kerry’s explanation seems fairly normal in comparison to the series so far.

The highlight of the show delves into their relationship as the scene cuts back and forth between Cary, who is with David’s unconscious body and Kerry as she is about to face off with the minions of Division 3. The moment is presented alongside the song Undiscovered First by Fiest. This seems to perfectly sum up the relationship between the two. It shows not only that the two share a body but that they are connected much deeper than that. When Kerry is fighting and enjoying herself, Cary feels it. When things go south and Kerry gets knocked around, Cary feels that too. It isn’t till Kerry gets shot that we revisit the question posed by Cary earlier on when he wonders what happens to Kerry when he dies. But what happens in the reverse scenario?

The final symbiotic connection is David himself. Whether or not you’re willing to believe it is real or not.

The Yellow Eyed Monster takes the form of  Lenny (Aubrey Plaza). The Monster desperately tries to convince David to get both of them out of their current altered reality.  She then coaxes David into breaking out of his astral plane prison. She leads David to believe Syd is about to shanked by The Eye (Mackenzie Gray). David is too focused on Syd’s well-being to question Lenny’s sudden need for them to get out. David’s sudden burst of emotions acts as the catalyst to bring him back reality. It is through this interaction that we realize the Yellow Eyed Monster is a bigger threat. A bigger threat than just a voice talking in David’s ear.

It isn’t til the final scene where we see Lenny’s translucent image attached to David’s back that we realize the Yellow Eyed Monster is an invisible passenger with a plan.

It isn’t clear what the so-called plan is but what is clear is that the Yellow Eye Monster will definitely be pulling David’s strings well into Chapter 5.

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