If you, like me, were waiting for a more cohesive episode of Legion, well this was it. “Chapter 6” seems to be the most straightforward a show like this can get. In the last episode we saw the aftermath of what happened when David went into Division 3 to free Amy and the subsequent attack by The Eye on the group. To save his friends David has transported everyone inside the White Room of his mind, but it looks like he might not be the one in control.
Where’s My Mind?
In this episode we learn even more about Lenny/Benny/The Devil With the Yellow Eyes. It is further confirmed what we already knew: that are all the same people, a parasite in David’s brain. This time, the parasite has taken over and created this realistic Clockworks illusion that has trapped David and all of his friends. The closer David comes to finding out the truth or learning more about his past, the stronger and more resistant the parasite becomes. He (or she) has been there since before David was even born. David’s father left him in an attempt to hide him from this monster. Does this mean the parasite has something to do with David’s birth father? Where did it come from? Why did it target him? We have some answers, but like always, they just lead to more questions.
The whole gang is trapped in a recreation of Clockworks and Syd is the only one who appears to notice something is off. She feels as if her reality is like a dream, but different. She knows things have changed and she’s also the only one who can see certain things, like a door at the end of a hallway or flashes of memories from Real Life. In this world, her mental illness is labeled as delusional thinking, so that David will be less inclined to believe her. And unlike David she is not content to stay in a mental institution forever. She wants out.
All You Need Is Love?
Oliver Bird seems to be a key to getting out of this mind game. He visits Cary and somehow pulls him through a portal. Melanie in turn is transported back to the present day where she sees The Eye’s gun about to go off and everyone frozen. As a person who has spent 20 years in the Astral Plane, Oliver seems the best equipped to help them find a way out. (Or maybe not since he can’t seem to find a way to free himself.) But whatever David’s parasite is, Oliver seems to have some knowledge we don’t.
Oliver is able to reach Melanie inside David’s mind the same way Syd is able to see the truth amidst the lies. Does their ability to do things others cannot come from their strong feelings of love and desire to save the object of their affection? In Syd’s case it almost seems as if her fierce love for David is a tether, connecting her to the real world and giving her power. Perhaps her love, and Oliver’s, will be the key to saving them all.
I’ve Got the Power
However, as of right now, the parasitic Lenny is in control. Aubrey Plaza gives her best performance yet in this episode, dancing around in David’s memories with reckless abandon and pretending to be helpful with a dangerous,syrupy sweetness. It’s all about power, she tells him, and right now she has it all. The more he suffers, the stronger she becomes. David can’t even remember his own memories to know what’s true and what is false. He doesn’t know what is being hidden from him. And that can make all the difference.
Legion airs Wednesdays at 10 pm EST/PST on FX. With only two episodes left, it’s anyone’s guess what might happen next.
Stray Observations:
- If Lenny is just part of the parasite how can the others see her? How did Syd kill her when she became David?
- Why is dream Amy so mean?
- Aubrey Plaza’s costumes in this episode are EVERYTHING
- Bill Irwin doing magic is a joyful, heartwarming moment in an otherwise dark and twisty show
- Shoutout to the awesome director of this episode, Hiro Murai, who also directed Atlanta