The climactic showdown is here, as Farouk and David face off against one another. But can David defeat his nemesis, and if he does, what will his victory look like?

Having teased us for ten long episodes, Legion wastes no time in giving us the conflict we’ve been waiting for – the fight of the century as David faces off against the Shadow King with the gloves off in an all-singing (literally) confrontation that’s as stylised and comic-book-ish as anything we’ve ever seen from the show. After that, well things get weird.

And bear in mind, this is Legion that I’m talking about here, so weird is relative but even by the standards of this most unusual of shows, proceedings here get really freaky. A small flash-forward teases us some vague details while simultaneously giving two of the least-used characters of this season some much-deserved screen time, before we get right back to the ‘present’.

Syd has seen more of David than he would like, and this leaves him to take some pretty desperate measures in order to keep hold of her. This alone sees him crossing some lines, in ways that absolutely surpass the boundaries he’s butted against before. This is where the show starts treading in some dangerous territory, re-introducing a previous theme relating to David with a new slant – one that veers dangerously close to extremely poor taste. It’s possible that the writers were attempting to do something more noble here than the end result might suggest, but for a smart show, it botches the landing quite horribly.

In the process, it tries to examine some metaphysical concepts as per usual – the nature of delusion, the concept of good and evil, the definition of what makes a ‘monster’. Unfortunately, it’s all tainted by that very unfortunate narrative decision the show elects to take – one that’s frankly not necessary and seems calculated more towards being ‘edgy’ than narratively coherent.

As it then ticks towards an unfortunately all-too-predictable close (and obvious lead-in to the next season), the fine performances of certain actors and the fascinating trajectories their characters could and should be taking are all somewhat drowned out by the sound of the show shoving its own size 14 foot in its mouth.

I wish I could say that it’s been worth it. I wish I could go back and watch earlier episodes and pretend that what I just watched didn’t happen. So much of what makes this show great has been its willingness to challenge the perceptions of what comic book TV ‘should’ be, and to present itself in unique and unusual ways. Its first season never felt as if it was pandering to anyone. Its second season has felt – at points – like its central character, drunk on its own power and out of control. This finale just feels like the end of a different show, and all I’m left with is a hollow feeling that something so good threw it all away on something so jaded.

Verdict: I won’t pretend that this season hasn’t had its occasional issues before now, but by and large it felt like it was heading in the right direction to me. Unfortunately, it unabashedly sprints over one of those boundaries it’s so fond of bumping up against here, and it rather spoils everything. 4/10

Greg D. Smith