With ‘Secret Invasion’ crashing and burning, an overlooked critical darling of a Marvel show is getting the respect it deserves

If Secret Invasion has taught us anything, it’s that Marvel has flown too close to the sun. The juggernaut of a brand that seemingly could do no wrong made a massive miscalculation in what should have been a monumental success. The limited series drew from the famous comic run of the same name but disappointed critically. Instead of a study in espionage, Secret Invasion killed off all your favorite characters before ending predictably.

But despite the monumental failure, fans have been looking for a positive. When they aren’t celebrating Clarke and her pride for the worst scene in the series, they turn to previous cult favorites that have sadly faded into the shadow of Marvel studios. Remember 2017? Before Marvel had absorbed Fox, mutants were up for grabs, and FX had one of the most innovative and unique takes on the genre in a long time. In a post on Reddit, u/Shervico encouraged Marvel lovers to revisit the brief but popular series – Legion.

The poster’s comments were quickly followed by like-minded fans who had followed along initially and newcomers who found the series a breath of fresh air.

Legion emphatically leaned into its weirdness

A show truly ahead of its time, Legion was not out to support cameos or set up franchises. Instead, it delved deep into the pathology of a complex character from the comics. And that character is one of the strongest X-Men – David Haller. Portrayed by Dan Stevens of Downton Abbey fame, the actor demonstrated his acting chops with the constantly-evolving character trying to get a handle on his mental health. First diagnosed with schizophrenia, David enters Clockworks Hospital where he meets the girl of his dreams – Syd Barrett (Rachel Keller). Through her and her body-swapping powers, he learns more about his mutation and his connection to one of the most powerful of them all – Charles Xavier.

But it isn’t so easy to give David powers and call it a day. The reason that he is called Legion is not only because of his mutation but because of his mental illness as well. David gets a curveball when he learns that his powers don’t explain all of his issues. He is Legion because he has multiple personalities that also have powers of their own. This opens David up to a world where his abilities are essentially endless. Legion isn’t full of boss fights and conflicts easily tied up in a bow. Legion dares to ask the question if someone should have all this power. And if they do, is it inevitable that they become the villain?

Syd asks this very question herself when David takes a turn for the worst in season 2. Legion has been building up to this climax with The Shadow King, but the series was ultimately not about their conflict. It is an examination of bigger themes all with a backdrop of psychedelic visuals and an inspired soundtrack. When watching Legion, it’s impossible not to get the feeling that this show was made because of passion and did not live or die at the hand of a big studio looking for a cash grab. Even Marvel’s more innovative ventures, such as WandaVision, have a bottom line. Continue the brand for another decade. Loki is perhaps the closest to Legion, taking place outside of space and time and introducing audiences to something they have been missing. But when it comes to a show that was not trying to impress anyone but themselves, there was nothing as daring as the story of David Haller.