Season 1

Finally, a Marvel show about the X-Men universe! This is already better than the best seasons of the best ever Marvel shows (S02+ of Agents of SHIELD and Daredevil)... and certainly much better than the Iron Fist or The Defenders!

SEASON 1:

Be warned, the show is extremely confusing - being from the perspective of a mental patient - and has a bit of a slow start, though it picks up significantly in E03, at which point it upgrades to merely "very confusing" until the penultimate episode. Sadly, this resulted in my wife loosing interest before getting to that point, so be sure to stick with it.

I love the chilling glimpses - and brilliant soundtrack accompaniment - of the antagonist: the "monster." They are by far the best representation of this creature/character, ever!

Also, there are subtle hints as to how this show, and its protagonist, tie in to the story of the better-known X-Men.
This takes place in the past, similar to X-Men: Days of Future Past and X-Men: First Class, so it shows some interesting prototypes of well-known technology and even appliances (Espresso, anyone? ;).

I am sad to see there are only 8 episodes, with it ending just as soon as things start to come together and make sense.

When Season 1 ended after finally explaining (a few) things, I thought Season 2 would finally be less confusing...
WRONG!

SEASON 2:

S02 jumps forward an unknown amount of time, we have to peice together what happened in between.
Not only am I not sure what is reality, at times, but even if I'm watching a TV show anymore.

At times it turns into an International Indie Film (complete with Chapter titles, and Interludes), a Nature Channel animal documentary, and even a Hip-Hop Ballet (though a good one!).
Wow!

SEASON 1 RECAP (for SEASON 2):

Here is a recap of the ending of Season 1 to help get you started, to make things (slightly) less confusing:

https://screenrant.com/legion-season-1-finale-mid-credits-sequence-explained/

Finally, a Marvel show about the X-Men universe! This is already better than the best seasons of the best ever Marvel shows (S02+ of Agents of SHIELD and Daredevil)... and certainly much better than the Iron Fist or The Defenders!

SEASON 1:

Be warned, the show is extremely confusing - being from the perspective of a mental patient - and has a bit of a slow start, though it picks up significantly in E03, at which point it upgrades to merely "very confusing" until the penultimate episode. Sadly, this resulted in my wife loosing interest before getting to that point, so be sure to stick with it.

I love the chilling glimpses - and brilliant soundtrack accompaniment - of the antagonist: the "monster." They are by far the best representation of this creature/character, ever!

Also, there are subtle hints as to how this show, and its protagonist, tie in to the story of the better-known X-Men.
This takes place in the past, similar to X-Men: Days of Future Past and X-Men: First Class, so it shows some interesting prototypes of well-known technology and even appliances (Espresso, anyone? ;).

I am sad to see there are only 8 episodes, with it ending just as soon as things start to come together and make sense.

When Season 1 ended after finally explaining (a few) things, I thought Season 2 would finally be less confusing...
WRONG!

SEASON 2:

S02 jumps forward an unknown amount of time, we have to peice together what happened in between.
Not only am I not sure what is reality, at times, but even if I'm watching a TV show anymore.

At times it turns into an International Indie Film (complete with Chapter titles, and Interludes), a Nature Channel animal documentary, and even a Hip-Hop Ballet (though a good one!).
Wow!

SEASON 1 RECAP for SEASON 2:

Here is a recap of the ending of Season 1 to help get you started, to make things (slightly) less confusing:

https://screenrant.com/legion-season-1-finale-mid-credits-sequence-explained/

Half genius and half infuriating, I guess that means it must meet in the middle somewhere? But that doesn't work, because there's nothing about Legion that's average. The visuals and aesthetic are unquestionably the draw here, and numerous moments have been burned into my memory. It's a show that's trying to reach for something further away, combining styles, music and moods to take you on a trip - and unfortunately it sometimes falters.

It may be enough for some people, but I watch shows for the story and the characters, and Legion almost never delivers in those aspects, to the point where I wanted to scream. David does carry the show quite well and is a very sympathetic character, but the focus on his broken mind means that we don't get to know much of him at all. All we see is the torture that the Shadow King has brought upon him. The other characters are a very mixed bag, some of whom caused me to almost hit the fast-forward button whenever they came of screen.

Legion would rather have a character perform an interpretive dance than deliver a compelling narrative. It would rather insert a slow motion sequence than give us exciting action. It's chosen style over substance, and while I have to admit that it's a choice that was made with a hell of a lot of statement and reason behind it, it's always going to make something a difficult watch (for me, at least).

To be very clear, I am quite in awe of the way the show looks. There were moments in episode 7 where everything came together in an incredibly effective manner. It's just such a double-edged sword. There were two-and-a-half episodes that were spent trapped in the same moment, and that is just ridiculous. The show is in no hurry to move, and by doing that it's not holding my attention. I don't care about most of these characters, in fact I actively dislike a number of them. I don't want beat poetry, I want a reason to come back each episode. I don't know anything about these people, there was no growth across the season. Everyone is so concerned with David that they have no motivations of their own.

So, let's finish up where the show absolutely shines: Aubrey Plaza. Wow. THERE is the reason to keep coming back. She's always been an entertaining actress, but here she's mesmerising and terrifying and fun and sexy and horrific. All the best moments of the show involved her.

I like Legion but I don't love it. The show is obviously not going to change its style as it goes on and I do want to keep watching, so I can see a struggle ahead. Season 1's end sets things up for a new direction but I can't say it was all that compelling. Most of the season is spent thinking, "what the hell is going on?" and when answers come it feels like the show just wants to try and do something to confuse you more. Season 2 would do best to avoid repeating that.

After 3 episodes, the show was really damn good. After that, it started to falter somewhat.

The show can be pretty cerebral. It's not very conventional. It's one of those shows that definitely takes that step forward in terms of the next generation of shows. The budget and effects look really good for the most part, and feel like a modern show with a good budget. This is not a typical kind of production, nor is it a generic "spinoff" of the x-men franchise. It's more it's own mostly solid thing.

I like the story, and the complex storytelling that is going on with the protagonist and it's showcase of his powers, but also the problematic aspect to his powers in regards to mental health. I like the characters, and i like the romantic relationship between the leads. What's also surprised me is often how creepy this show can be. When it comes to the scary parts each episode, they can be quite creepy and scary really. I love it, i love how well done those parts are.

It's just later on in the season, the story can be a bit too weird for it's own good, and the storytelling isn't as good and the characters aren't as developed. Plus the pacing mid season is rushed, and then afterwards slows to a crawl. So there's some definite missteps there, but i think overall it was a pretty good season.