5x06 Bloodlines

[7.4/10] Let’s get the part I don’t like out of the way. I love The Empire Strikes Back, but I think it ruined a lot of people. Scads of films and television shows defaulted to an “I am your relative” shocking twist in its wake. I’m just exhausted by it now.

The reveal that Graydon Creed’s father was a mutant made sense, as it speaks to a certain self-hatred in heritage that afflicts plenty of bigots. The fact that his dad was Sabretooth, someone already well-known by the audience, is a little cheap, but well within acceptable tolerances. Rogue being Mystique’s adoptive daughter is likewise a little convenient, but added complications to their dealings with Apocalypse, so it worked well enough. And the one-second indication that Mystique was Nightcrawler’s mother was so blink-and-you’ll-miss it that it never rises above being a neat little connection.

But the reveal here, that Mystique is also Graydon Creed’s mother, to where he and NIghtcrawler are half-siblings, and he has a family relationship with Rogue too, is just a bridge too far for me. Not every major character needs to be related to someone else of note! It plays like cheap arc welding when it would be just fine to have Creed forced to deal with Sabretooth parentage, or even reveal that he has a mutant sibling who isn’t already a known player, rather than leaning into the show’s small universe problem. What can you do?

That said, for a story concept I don’t love, I actually really admire X-Men’s execution of it. I’ve had my qualms about the religious messaging around Nightcrawler, but his example of forgiveness to people who’ve wounded him deeply, of showing radical grace to his fellow man, is nothing short of awing. As I said in my write-up of his debut episode, if more people were as genuinely compassionate in their devoutness as Nightcrawler, this world would be a better place.

To the point, “Bloodlines” goes to some dark places. Decades before stomach-churners like Hereditary, Mystique tells Nightcrawler, in so many words, that he ruined her life, and tells him directly that she never wanted him. There is heavily implied attempted infanticide. And as usual, there is the self-hatred that curdles into bigotry via Creed. Frankly, this would all be a lot to show to a kid.

But I appreciate the committed psychological approach the show takes to its characters amid the usual X-Men fireworks. Sure, you have the usual excuse to lure our heroes to some dam and get into a big explosive fight. But you also have Jubilee admitting her struggles with feeling unwanted as an orphan. You have Mystique revealing her sins but also confessing a certain lostness that comes from living bits and pieces of other people’s lives. And you have an open-hearted Nightcrawler speaking about his efforts to earn God’s forgiveness, and a wish for peace for himself but also an earnest wish to love thine enemy.

I’d like to think that’s the power here. Mystique takes Nightcrawler’s words, and more importantly his willingness to forgive her, to heart. She attempts to sacrifice herself for him, with a visual echo above the damn that mirrors her being about to throw him over a waterfall as a baby. If her change of heart comes from divine grace, it’s manifested through the impossibly kind and understanding sincerity of her son, willing to hear her sins and grant her whatever absolution and yes, love, he can muster, even though it’s clearly difficult for him.

That is big time stuff, with layers of emotion and intimacy and pathos that X-Men doesn’t usually provide in such a piercing way. The Creed parentage business is weak (though him ending up back with Sabretooth is a nice tease), and the action is typical. But the sentiments, strength, and understanding that emerge among the members of this broken family make this one a must-watch regardless.