‘Legion’: Where We Left Off

With the superb and surreal Legion returning to FX for Season 2 on Tuesday, April 3, viewers may be in need of a refresher before the new season rocks their world.

Based on Marvel’s David Haller/Legion character — who was created by Chris Claremont and Bill Sienkiewicz and debuted in NEW MUTANTS #25 — Legion’s first season dealt with David realizing that he’d spent the bulk of his life being mentally invaded and manipulated by the being known as the Shadow King.

In the Season 1 finale, “Chapter 8,” David’s comrades at Summerland, a safe haven for mutants founded by Melanie and Oliver Bird, attempted to forcibly remove the Shadow King from David’s subconscious mind.

Watch the video at the top of the page for a recap of the first season via David himself — joined by… David! — and then read on below for a rundown of where we left off with each character.

David Haller (Dan Stevens)

As the powerfully telepathic son of an as yet-unnamed mutant, David spent the majority of his life as a severely mentally troubled individual. It wasn’t until his lengthy stay at Clockworks Psychiatric Hospital that he both met the girl of his dreams, Syd Barrett, and learned that his mind had been infested, since childhood, by a parasitic mind mutant known as the Shadow King.

In the Season 1 finale, David confronted the Shadow King on the astral plane while Cary Loudermilk tried to separate the two. While David was being strangled, Syd allowed Farouk into her body in order to save David’s life.

We last saw David — finally free of the Shadow King for the first time in decades — being sucked into a mysterious flying orb, no bigger than a basketball, and whisked away. Probably the worst time to get trapped in a drone, right?

Sydney “Syd” Barrett (Rachel Keller)

With a mutant power that forces her to mentally trade places with anyone she touches, with her mind entering their body — and vice versa — Syd Barrett found a loving, kindred spirit in David, a man who she could touch, worry-free, inside the astral plane.

In the Season 1 finale, after a confrontation with the Shadow King –who she was connected to due to her once swapping bodies with David — Syd decided to go against protocol and help Farouk escape after becoming convinced that David wouldn’t survive a full Shadow King split.

After she allowed Farouk into her body, via a kiss to David’s lips, Syd inadvertently sent Farouk into young Kerry Loudermlik, and the Shadow King then transferred into an unassuming Oliver. Syd in the meantime thought she and David could have some happy time together, only for that pesky orb to get in the way…

Shadow King (Navid Negahban)

Insanely powerful mutant, Amahl Farouk – The Shadow King – lost a duel to the death against a hated mutant enemy inside the astral plane. With his physical body dead, Farouk invaded the mind of David Haller, his enemy’s son, who had been given up for adoption.

Having been contained and backed into a corner within David’s mind, Shadow King, in the form of a decaying and rotting Lenny, convinced Syd to help him escape David’s mind.

Once free, and in the body of Kerry Loundermilk, Shadow King took down Cary, Ptonomy, Melanie, and Clark, before clashing with a fully recovered David. The result of this showdown, however, was Oliver becoming Shadow King’s newest host. And foolproof escape vessel.

Cary/Kerry Loudermilk (Bill Irwin & Amber Midthunder)

Cary and Kerry Loudermilk are mutants whose symbiotic relationship allowed Kerry, the muscle, to live inside the body of Cary, the brain. While inside Cary, Kerry doesn’t age, which is why she is decades younger than Cary.

Cary and Kerry enter the Season 1 finale on the outs, with Kerry resenting Cary for what she considered to be an abandonment when they were both in the astral plane.

By the end of the episode though, with Cary injured and on the floor of his wrecked lab, Kerry ran to him, thankful he was alive.

Ptonomy Wallace (Jeremie Harris)

Ptonomy, a Summerland mutant whose abilities include the power to transport others back into their own memories, was instrumental in helping David discover the presence of Amahl Farouk inside his mind and how his presence dated back to David’s early childhood.

In the season finale, Ptonomy tried his best to stop Farouk (who was inside of Kerry’s body) from escaping the lab. Unfortunately, he was overpowered while trying to shoot his gun and taken down.

Melanie Bird (Jean Smart)

As one of Summerland’s founders — along with husband Oliver and Cary Loudermilk — Melanie and her team rescued David from the hands of anti-mutant task force Division 3 after he had been taken in following the mass death and destruction that had befallen Clockworks Psychiatric Hospital.

Melanie began the Season 1 finale feeling a bit shaken over the fact that, though he was miraculously back after 20 years, Oliver had no recollection of her or their marriage.

Later, during Cary’s attempt to separate David and the Shadow King, Melanie tried to stop the parasitic telepath from escaping the lab. She was taken down with a psychic blast from Kerry/Farouk’s playful “fingergun,” and soon her husband would once more be taken from her – this time thanks to the Shadow King’s possession.

Oliver Bird (Jemaine Clement)

Having finally returned, after years spent inside an icy chamber he’d constructed within the astral plane — albeit with much of his memory missing — Oliver assisted Cary in his scientific attempt to ungraft the Shadow King from David’s psyche.

Unfortunately, this placed Oliver in a prime spot to be overtaken by Farouk when his psionic energy field clashed with David’s. Sadder still, Oliver finally remembered who his wife Melanie was just minutes earlier. Now however, he’s Shadow King’s new host and together they took off on the open road while Division 3 rushed in to help sort out the chaos inside Summerland.

Clark (Hamish Linklater)

Clark, the “Interrogator” from Division 3, was initially in charge of David Haller’s capture and containment following a bizarre psionic attack on Clockworks that left many inmates and employees dead.

Presumed dead, Clark’s recovery period following the Summerland mutants freeing David – during which Clark was badly injured — was shown at the top of the Season 1 finale. We learned about his husband, his son, and his drive to get back out in the field to exact revenge.

However, after witnessing the Shadow King in action, Clark exited the first season with a full understanding of Farouk’s powers and a newfound desire to work with the Summerland mutants to stop him.

Lenny Busker (Aubrey Plaza)

Lenny, a fellow patient at Clockworks Psychiatric Hospital during David’s lengthy stay, was tragically killed when Sydney accidentally swapped consciousness with David. Overwhelmed by his vast telepathic powers, Syd caused David’s power to seal off all the inmates in their rooms – catching Lenny inside a wall.

In a way though, Lenny never truly left the series, as the Shadow King then used her form to further manipulate David. Even after Farouk possessed Oliver and fled from Summerland, we saw Lenny, indicating the Shadow King isn’t done with her just yet.

“Legion” Season 2 premieres Tuesday, April 3 at 10:00pm ET/PT on FX.