Chapter 25 (Legion)

Last updated
"Chapter 25"
Legion episode
Episode no.Season 3
Episode 6
Directed byJohn Cameron
Written by Noah Hawley
Featured music Jeff Russo
Cinematography byAlex Disenhof
Editing by
  • Regis Kimble
  • Robin August
Production codeXLN03006
Original air dateJuly 29, 2019 (2019-07-29)
Running time51 minutes
Guest appearances
  • Jean Smart as Melanie Bird (special guest star)
  • Jemaine Clement as Oliver Bird (special guest star)
  • Jason Mantzoukas as Jerome / The Wolf
  • Pearl Amanda Dickson as Teen Syd
  • Samantha Cormier as Cynthia
  • West Mulholland as Blue
  • Sophie Nack as Sweetie
Episode chronology
 Previous
"Chapter 24"
Next 
"Chapter 26"
Legion (season 3)
List of episodes

"Chapter 25" is the sixth episode of the third season of the American cable television series Legion , based on the Marvel Comics character David Haller, and connected to the X-Men film series. It is the 25th overall episode of the series and was written by series creator Noah Hawley and directed by executive producer John Cameron. It originally aired on FX on July 29, 2019.

Contents

The series follows David Haller, a "mutant" diagnosed with schizophrenia at a young age. Struggling to differentiate reality from fantasy, Haller tries to control his mutant powers and the sinister forces trying to control them while evading a government agency, Division 3. Summerland and Division 3 eventually team up in order to catch Amahl Farouk from finding his original body. While Farouk was captured, David is now labeled as a threat and hunted down, prompting him to escape. In the episode, Syd's mind has manifested as a baby in the astral plane, where she is adopted by Oliver and Melanie Bird.

According to Nielsen Media Research, the episode was seen by an estimated 0.332 million household viewers and gained a 0.1 ratings share among adults aged 18–49. The episode received generally positive reviews from critics, who praised the character development and the rap battle sequence, although some expressed criticism for the pacing and lack of progress with the previous episodes.

Plot

In the astral plane, Oliver (Jemaine Clement) and Melanie (Jean Smart) live in a hut. One day, Oliver finds a baby in the fields and they both decide to adopt her, naming her Sydney. They are also often disturbed by a man named Jerome (Jason Mantzoukas), also known as The Wolf, a person whose presence seem to annoy everyone, who also found a woman named Cynthia (Samantha Cormier). Oliver and Melanie decide to adopt Cynthia to help her lost "innocence".

As time passes, the baby grows into a child, with both her and Cynthia constantly being tempted by The Wolf. Cynthia succumbs to his tricks and walks away with him. The child is constantly haunted by nightmares, result of the real world's influence. To avoid the Wolf, they move into the city, although Cynthia has fallen for The Wolf. The child now becomes the teenage version of Syd, who is struggling to find her place in the world. She runs into Cynthia, who tries to get her to join The Wolf. Syd refuses and tells Oliver and Melanie that she wants to save Cynthia.

Syd and Oliver go to the Wolf's lair, where they take Cynthia to their house. However, The Wolf has followed them, prompting Oliver and The Wolf to engage in a rap battle. Oliver wins the rap battle, although Cynthia still willingly goes with The Wolf, much to Syd's disappointment. Oliver and Melanie tell Syd that they prepared her for this life, encouraging to return to the real world, just as she grows into her adult version (Rachel Keller). She awakens in the airship, finding that Switch's doorway is malfunctioning, although she is unable to enter.

Syd meets with Cary (Bill Irwin) and Kerry (Amber Midthunder), telling them she can stop David and Switch. Cary creates bracelets for each other, which will allow them to enter the doorway. Before entering, Kerry asks Cary to transfer her wounds to him so she can fight, which he does at great cost. As the time demons appear, Syd, Cary and Kerry enter the doorway, which finally closes.

Production

Development

In July 2019, it was reported that the sixth episode of the season would be titled "Chapter 25", and was to be directed by executive producer John Cameron and written by series creator Noah Hawley. This was Hawley's seventeenth writing credit, and Cameron's third directing credit. [1]

Filming

The episode featured a rap battle sequence, where Oliver and The Wolf performed at a night club dream sequence. [2] The idea wasn't originally planned by Hawley while writing the script, although he commented that "I would be depriving his [Jemaine] fans and my audience of a golden opportunity if I didn't take this seriously." Hawley wrote the rap lyrics as a placeholder, assuming that they would later change them, but Clement liked it enough, "But he did it, happily, and had no real complaints. I said if you want to re-write this at all, feel free. He changed very little, we filmed it, and it's one of my favorite things ever." [3]

Reception

Viewers

In its original American broadcast, "Chapter 25" was seen by an estimated 0.332 million household viewers and gained a 0.1 ratings share among adults aged 18–49, according to Nielsen Media Research. This means that 0.1 percent of all households with televisions watched the episode. [4] This was a 15% increase in viewership from the previous episode, which was watched by 0.288 million viewers with a 0.1 in the 18-49 demographics. [5]

Critical reviews

"Chapter 25" received generally positive reviews from critics. The review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes reported a 80% approval rating with an average rating of 7.8/10 for the episode, based on 5 reviews. [6]

Alex McLevy of The A.V. Club gave the episode a "B+" grade and wrote, "The rap battle between Oliver and Jerome is maybe the single silliest thing Legion has ever done. Sillier than a lip-synching mouse, sillier than any droll witticism or stomping on a previously enormous delusion creature or any of it. On an episode already experimenting with a far lighter and more playful tone than just about every episode that's preceded it, it pushed the series into a downright goofy realm. But circumstances aside, if you can't enjoy a ridiculous rap battle between Jemaine Clement and Jason Mantzoukas, I'm not sure I want to know you." [7]

Nick Harley of Den of Geek gave the episode a 2.5 star rating out of 5 wrote, "'Chapter 25' is going to make a certain type of Legion fan very happy, just not this one. One person's delightful experiment is another's fanciful slog. To each their own. I thought 'Chapter 24' turned the action and urgency of the season up to 11, and this episode halted that momentum dead in its tracks with a self-satisfied detour filled with metaphor and little else. At least like the foot looks to be back on the pedal next week." [8] Kevin Lever of Tell Tale TV gave the episode a 4 star rating out of 5 and wrote, "'Chapter 25 provides Syd the answer she's been seeking this whole time. It does so with a fantastic hour of self-discovery told with returning characters long missed." [9]

Related Research Articles

<i>Legion</i> (TV series) American television series

Legion is an American superhero television series created by Noah Hawley for FX, based on the Marvel Comics character David Haller / Legion. Set in the X-Men film series, it was produced by FX Productions in association with Marvel Television, and ran for three seasons from 2017 to 2019, with Hawley serving as showrunner.

"Chapter 2" is the second episode of the first season of the American cable television series Legion, based on the Marvel Comics character David Haller, and connected to the X-Men film series. The episode was written by series creator Noah Hawley and directed by co-executive producer Michael Uppendahl. It originally aired on FX on February 15, 2017.

"Chapter 4" is the fourth episode of the first season of the American cable television series Legion, based on the Marvel Comics character David Haller, and connected to the X-Men film series. The episode was written by co-producer Nathaniel Halpern and directed by Larysa Kondracki. It originally aired on FX on March 1, 2017.

"Chapter 6" is the sixth episode of the first season of the American cable television series Legion, based on the Marvel Comics character David Haller, and connected to the X-Men film series. The episode was written by co-producer Nathaniel Halpern and directed by Hiro Murai. It originally aired on FX on March 15, 2017.

<i>Legion</i> season 2 Season of television series

The second season of the American cable television series Legion is based on the Marvel Comics character David Haller / Legion, a mutant diagnosed with schizophrenia at a young age. The season is produced by FX Productions in association with Marvel Television. Noah Hawley serves as showrunner.

"Chapter 7" is the seventh episode of the first season of the American cable television series Legion, based on the Marvel Comics character David Haller, and connected to the X-Men film series. The episode was written by co-producer Jennifer Yale and directed by Dennie Gordon. It originally aired on FX on March 22, 2017.

"Chapter 8" is the eighth episode and season finale of the first season of the American cable television series Legion, based on the Marvel Comics character David Haller, and connected to the X-Men film series. The episode was written by series creator Noah Hawley and directed by Michael Uppendahl. It originally aired on FX on March 29, 2017.

<i>Legion</i> season 3 Season of television series

The third and final season of the American cable television series Legion is based on the Marvel Comics character David Haller / Legion, a mutant diagnosed with schizophrenia at a young age. The season is produced by FX Productions in association with Marvel Television. Noah Hawley serves as showrunner.

"Chapter 5" is the fifth episode of the first season of the American cable television series Legion, based on the Marvel Comics character David Haller, and connected to the X-Men film series. The episode was written by co-executive producer Peter Calloway and directed by Tim Mielants. It originally aired on FX on March 8, 2017.

"Chapter 9" is the first episode of the second season of the American cable television series Legion, based on the Marvel Comics character David Haller, and connected to the X-Men film series. It is the 9th overall episode of the series and was written by series creator Noah Hawley and co-executive producer Nathaniel Halpern and directed by Tim Mielants. It originally aired on FX on April 3, 2018.

"Chapter 10" is the second episode of the second season of the American cable television series Legion, based on the Marvel Comics character David Haller, and connected to the X-Men film series. It is the 10th overall episode of the series and was written by series creator Noah Hawley and co-executive producer Nathaniel Halpern and directed by Ana Lily Amirpour. It originally aired on FX on April 10, 2018.

"Chapter 11" is the third episode of the second season of the American cable television series Legion, based on the Marvel Comics character David Haller, and connected to the X-Men film series. It is the 11th overall episode of the series and was written by series creator Noah Hawley and co-executive producer Nathaniel Halpern and directed by Sarah Adina Smith. It originally aired on FX on April 17, 2018.

"Chapter 13" is the fifth episode of the second season of the American cable television series Legion, based on the Marvel Comics character David Haller, and connected to the X-Men film series. It is the 13th overall episode of the series and was written by series creator Noah Hawley and co-executive producer Nathaniel Halpern and directed by Tim Mielants. It originally aired on FX on May 1, 2018.

"Chapter 17" is the ninth episode of the second season of the American cable television series Legion, based on the Marvel Comics character David Haller, and connected to the X-Men film series. It is the 17th overall episode of the series and was written by series creator Noah Hawley and co-executive producer Nathaniel Halpern and directed by Hawley. It originally aired on FX on May 29, 2018.

"Chapter 18" is the tenth episode of the second season of the American cable television series Legion, based on the Marvel Comics character David Haller, and connected to the X-Men film series. It is the 18th overall episode of the series and was written by series creator Noah Hawley and co-executive producer Nathaniel Halpern and directed by Dana Gonzales. It originally aired on FX on June 5, 2018.

"Chapter 19" is the eleventh episode and season finale of the second season of the American cable television series Legion, based on the Marvel Comics character David Haller, and connected to the X-Men film series. It is the 19th overall episode of the series and was written by series creator Noah Hawley and directed by Keith Gordon. It originally aired on FX on June 12, 2018.

"Chapter 20" is the first episode of the third season of the American cable television series Legion, based on the Marvel Comics character David Haller, and connected to the X-Men film series. It is the 20th overall episode of the series and was written by series creator Noah Hawley and co-executive producer Nathaniel Halpern and directed by Andrew Stanton. It originally aired on FX on June 24, 2019.

"Chapter 21" is the second episode of the third season of the American cable television series Legion, based on the Marvel Comics character David Haller, and connected to the X-Men film series. It is the 21st overall episode of the series and was written by series creator Noah Hawley, co-executive producer Olivia Dufault, and co-producer Kate Thulin and directed by Carlos López Estrada. It originally aired on FX on July 1, 2019.

"Chapter 27" is the series finale of the American cable television series Legion, based on the Marvel Comics character David Haller, and connected to the X-Men film series. It is the eighth episode of the third season and is the 27th overall episode of the series.. The episode was written by series creator Noah Hawley and co-executive producer Olivia Dufault and directed by Hawley and executive producer John Cameron. It originally aired on FX on August 12, 2019.

References

  1. "(#306) "Chapter 25"". The Futon Critic. Retrieved January 16, 2023.
  2. Preston, Tori (July 31, 2019). "Jemaine Clement and Jason Mantzoukas Rap-Battled on 'Legion' And My Pants Didn't Survive". Pajiba. Retrieved January 16, 2023.
  3. Travers, Ben (July 29, 2019). "'Legion': Jemaine Clement and Noah Hawley Break Down That Fairy Tale Rap Battle". IndieWire . Retrieved January 16, 2023.
  4. Metcalf, Mitch (July 30, 2019). "Updated: ShowBuzzDaily's Top 150 Monday Cable Originals & Network Finals: 7.29.2019". Showbuzz Daily. Archived from the original on July 30, 2019. Retrieved January 16, 2023.
  5. Metcalf, Mitch (July 23, 2019). "Updated: ShowBuzzDaily's Top 150 Monday Cable Originals & Network Finals: 7.22.2019". Showbuzz Daily. Archived from the original on July 23, 2019. Retrieved January 16, 2023.
  6. "Legion: Season 3, Episode 6". Rotten Tomatoes . Retrieved January 16, 2023.
  7. McLevy, Alex (July 29, 2019). "A trip into fairy tales helps a hero return to the world of Legion". The A.V. Club . Retrieved January 16, 2023.
  8. Harley, Nick (July 30, 2019). "Legion Season 3 Episode 6 Review: Chapter 25". Den of Geek . Retrieved January 16, 2023.
  9. Lever, Kevin (July 30, 2019). "Legion Review: Chapter 25 (Season 3 Episode 6)". Tell Tale TV. Retrieved January 16, 2023.