3x17 The Juggernaut Returns

[7.1/10] When I saw the title of this one, I rolled my eyes a little. I know he’s a big deal (literally), but I haven't much cared for Juggernaut in this show. He basically shows up to smash stuff and shout taunts, without anything beyond that. True to form, that’s most of the early portion of the episode. He somehow walks from Scotland to New York? Or I guess Gladiator threw him that far? I’m not here to gripe about plausibility in a fantastical show, but it did make me scratch my head.

More to the point, though, the first third of this one was largely him smashing through this or that: tossing cars around on a bridge, breaking through the doors of the X-Mansion, wreaking all manner of havoc in the Danger Room. There’s nothing wrong with it exactly, but it’s reached the point where that sort of thing elicits a big yawn out of me.

That said, then the show takes the Juggernaut into two directions that made me perk up a bit. One is humorous. The idea of a big nerd who steals the juggernaut powers is...odd but entertaining. Particularly when this episode delves into some pretty intense family drama and trauma, having a comic side plot about a Rick Moranis knockoff who gets magically bulked up makes for a tonally strange direction. But seeing him admit he’s not smart in “practical” ways, bumble around his own home, and disco dance to cheesy music in a giant Saturday Night Dance Fever tux got a laugh out of me.

But I was more moved by the flashbacks to the childhood that Xavier and Juggernaut shared. The notion that Juggernaut hates Charles not because of anything Charles did wrong, but because his life was made worse thanks to CHarles’ arrival because of his abusive and manipulative father, is difficult and deep. YOu can understand both why poor Charles suffered so much in a tough childhood, but also why Cain Marko, who had to suffer the brunt of his Father’s abuses, projects his anger onto Professor X.

I also love the fact that it isn’t magically solved by revealing all of this. Even when Xavier saves his half-brother’s life, it’s not enough to repair their relationship. And Charles trying to help his sibling only leads to more pain,a s he realizes that his stepfather was a craven man who only wanted Charles’ mother’s wealth and dealt harshly with his own son in the process. It humanizes both Xavier and Juggernaut, showing that the unflappable leader of the X-Men and his angry brute of a brother can both still carry a lot of pain.

The fact that Charles nevertheless chooses to help save Juggernaut is a truly noble move, and I like Storm turning his own advice around on him to show him the importance of doing the right thing, even when it’s emotionally difficult. Likewise, I like Juggernaut not smashing up the place once he’s revived, as the closest thing he can muster to a “thank you”.

Overall, this one starts poorly and has some broad yuks at play. But it also makes both Professor X and Juggernaut seem like better-sketched out, more psychologically complicated people, which is a far worthier thing to devote your runtime to.