[7.3/10] The structure of this one is really weird. After theoretically dying or at least being trapped in the sun after her big sacrifice, Jean/Phoenix is just back in the first scene and being treated by Moira MacTaggert like it’s no big thing and something the audience should already have known. I literally went to go check and make sure I hadn't skipped an episode.
Then we get the details, but it’s halfway through the episode and told through rank exposition by a character we’d never seen until this episode. It’s a bizarre way to follow-up on one of the X-Men’s signature arcs and one of the show’s biggest swings to date.
That said, I like this episode, even if Jean’s introduction is really odd. I appreciate anchoring it in the relationship between Scott and Jean, which adds ballast and character to what could otherwise be a cheap resurrection story.
On Scott’s end, he’s become entangled with Fazzler, who remains one of the most amusing artifacts of the 1980s in the Marvel canon. Not for nothing, this episode feels a bit like a follow-up to Pryde of the X-Men, the embryonic precursor to this series, considering its use of Dazzler and Emma Frost. Regardless, while I’m hesitant when it comes to love triangles, I like the idea of Scott helping a fellow mutant in need, and finding himself gravitating toward someone, right at a time when Jean is back but not really herself. There’s a lot of meat to that conflict, real or imagined, and I’m interested to see it play out.
I’m more sanguine about Mastermind using his mind control powers to convince Jean that she's a refugee on a historical sailing vessel. It’s a little odd, but I do like big swings. ANd the presence of the Hellfire Club/Inner Circle wanting to bring Jean/Phoenix into the fold because of her power is a solid angle, even if all of the characters involved could use a better introduction.
That said, I do like how it plays on the interesting ideas of what the Phoenix is and wants. I love the idea that the Phoenix isn’t quite ready to leave jean’s body because it enjoys the thrill of human sensations. (Shades of more than a few episodes of the 1960s Star Trek series.) And while the show already played at this idea a bit already with Morph, I like the notion that Jean is understanding of Scott, while the Phoenix represents a certain jealousy and vengefulness. The duality of man is a hoary trope, but also a rich one worth exploring.
I’m not crazy about the whole sitcom misunderstanding thing between Soctt, Jean, and Dazzler. But the idea that Phoenix is tearing a rift between them, both in terms of putting them on separate “teams”, but also straining their personal relationship, is an interesting angle.
Who knows where they’ll go from here, but for a first outing, the Dark Phoenix arc is on a better track than the original Phoenix arc ever was, despite some structural weirdness in how the story is told.
Review by Andrew BloomVIP 9BlockedParentSpoilers2023-05-17T22:00:13Z
[7.3/10] The structure of this one is really weird. After theoretically dying or at least being trapped in the sun after her big sacrifice, Jean/Phoenix is just back in the first scene and being treated by Moira MacTaggert like it’s no big thing and something the audience should already have known. I literally went to go check and make sure I hadn't skipped an episode.
Then we get the details, but it’s halfway through the episode and told through rank exposition by a character we’d never seen until this episode. It’s a bizarre way to follow-up on one of the X-Men’s signature arcs and one of the show’s biggest swings to date.
That said, I like this episode, even if Jean’s introduction is really odd. I appreciate anchoring it in the relationship between Scott and Jean, which adds ballast and character to what could otherwise be a cheap resurrection story.
On Scott’s end, he’s become entangled with Fazzler, who remains one of the most amusing artifacts of the 1980s in the Marvel canon. Not for nothing, this episode feels a bit like a follow-up to Pryde of the X-Men, the embryonic precursor to this series, considering its use of Dazzler and Emma Frost. Regardless, while I’m hesitant when it comes to love triangles, I like the idea of Scott helping a fellow mutant in need, and finding himself gravitating toward someone, right at a time when Jean is back but not really herself. There’s a lot of meat to that conflict, real or imagined, and I’m interested to see it play out.
I’m more sanguine about Mastermind using his mind control powers to convince Jean that she's a refugee on a historical sailing vessel. It’s a little odd, but I do like big swings. ANd the presence of the Hellfire Club/Inner Circle wanting to bring Jean/Phoenix into the fold because of her power is a solid angle, even if all of the characters involved could use a better introduction.
That said, I do like how it plays on the interesting ideas of what the Phoenix is and wants. I love the idea that the Phoenix isn’t quite ready to leave jean’s body because it enjoys the thrill of human sensations. (Shades of more than a few episodes of the 1960s Star Trek series.) And while the show already played at this idea a bit already with Morph, I like the notion that Jean is understanding of Scott, while the Phoenix represents a certain jealousy and vengefulness. The duality of man is a hoary trope, but also a rich one worth exploring.
I’m not crazy about the whole sitcom misunderstanding thing between Soctt, Jean, and Dazzler. But the idea that Phoenix is tearing a rift between them, both in terms of putting them on separate “teams”, but also straining their personal relationship, is an interesting angle.
Who knows where they’ll go from here, but for a first outing, the Dark Phoenix arc is on a better track than the original Phoenix arc ever was, despite some structural weirdness in how the story is told.