S01.E11: 3 X 1

[Bort]

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As tensions heat up among the team at Mutant HQ, no one knows who they can trust. Fearing for his family's safety, Reed rethinks their future at the compound. Meanwhile, Dr. Campbell proposes an improved program to Jace that could change everything.

[AimingforYoko]

I had a feeling EmmaEsme and the Cuckoos sicced Campbell and Sentinel Services on the Underground. It really is creepy when they all talk in unison.

[Lady Calypso]

I didn't realize that this was coming back tonight until a few hours ago. And...what a way to come back for the last few episodes, I guess. My first impression? What a shit episode in general. Besides a couple of small moments, I can't say I liked much of what happened. 

First off, I laughed really hard at Blink's flashback opener. Wow, that was plain bad, both dialogue-wise and acting-wise. Granted they only had a couple of minutes to sell the scene, but it was just a horrible way to enhance Blink's "wise" advice to Lauren about fear and hatred....or something. I tuned out what she was saying to Lauren, to be honest. Also, did she want her boyfriend at the time to say "Oh hey, I'm a mutant too!" I mean, she jumped on him pretty quickly, and then he just stood there. There was no in between. 

Caitlin needs to shut the hell up. She's officially my least favourite character on the show. I know Jamie Chung isn't a great actress, but her character doesn't whine all the damn time like Caitlin does. She acts all high and mighty when it comes to her children, and she's willing to...oh, LEAVE A WHOLE BUNCH OF MUTANT KIDS BEHIND WHILE SHE RUNS AWAY. Wow, way to be brave, woman. And it doesn't help that this is the third Let's Escape to Mexico subplot they've tried in 11 episodes. Also, the fact that Caitlin and Reed decided to run because....the Frost triplets are scary and they can't be trusted? Though if they go to Mexico, do they really think they'll find such trustworthy mutants there? I have no idea what their plan was there. I guess get away from Campbell and the program first, but then what? 

I'm very tired of Andy's whole "let's jump into fighting" without consulting anyone. Of course dumb kid gets blasted in the wall because he decided to surprise everyone in the room instead. I mean, I'm all for him not wanting to just run away, but kid needs to learn how to control himself. This is why one of the triplets came to manipulate him. 

I'm not quite sure why, but I'm also tired of Lorna, Marcos, and the pregnancy. 

What did I like? The triplets, actually. I don't mind that they sent a tip to Sentinel Services in order to get the Mutant Underground to give in. They're shady, but very handy. Also, they're not mopey or boring, so that's a plus. I didn't hate Lauren/Wes, although they kept their scenes to a bare minimum, which helped. I also liked more siblings being brought in and being shown as powerful when working together, much like Lauren and Andy.

[SimoneS]

The show is losing me with the Frost triplets. It is so FAKE! I can see the director telling the actress what expressions to make in each scene and the film being sliced together. Just horrible. Worse, the actress playing the triplet is dire. They just casted for blonde, pretty, and thin with no consideration of acting talent.

The rest of the show was alright, but not good. Hopefully, they end the season on a high note because it is hard to tell if the show will be renewed..

[emcmac87]

I know it wouldn't have worked considering the previous plot line, but I really wish the triplets could combine in to one, verbally they already are so it shouldn't be too hard. 

Also I'm sick of the pregnancy because it seems like it's only been a week or 2? And she's still first trimester? So since we can't see she's pregnant they mention it, over and over and over which is just annoying. 

It it seems like they created sons machine from Lauren and Andy's powers that the hounds or w/e had on there arm, destroying that should have been a priority since Lauren had an obvious ah ha moment. I also think they knocked out Andy so Dual Powers Activate wasn't an option. When he said "they" said the way to go I was kind of hoping for the great grandparents though. 

[Lantern7]

Does anybody have word about the future of the series? I mean, if I had to "make do" with Legion to fill the "TV Show About Mutants" slot . . .  well, it's arthouse to this series' big studio film trying not to be a blockbuster.

Man, some stuff doesn't work in live action . . . like the Mr. Terrific mask. Or the Clarice flashback. Yes, in the comics, there was such a thing as Purifiers. Apparently, they're okay with spraying your car if you're a mutant, then blowing it up. PICK ONE. And did they have any evidence? "Your eyes mark you as a child of the devil!" "I have an infection. It makes my eyes look green." "And the pointed ears?" "My mother was a High Elf. What of it?!?"

Sign that the Cuckoos pwn everybody: synchronized walking. Oddly hot, to be honest. Of course, they're amoral on a good day, so they kinda need to die. Or at least get knocked off the high horse. I know, Esme's sisters just got bailed out, but all three are jerks. Also, the Tomax/Xamot talking probably drives some of you crazy.

Jace needs to get smacked. Hard. And often. If there's a mutant that can bring her daughter back for the express purpose of having her punch her dad in the face . . . who are we to say "no"? Seriously, your new bestie is hooking mutants, getting them catatonic, then siccing them on other mutants. I know that you probably figure every mutant is a terrorist with civil rights voided . . . but don't you have a voice in the back of your head? That said: his wife leaves him in two weeks. Or she gets killed. Maybe as collateral damage, like their kid. That would be oddly fitting.

Gee, I wonder who Lorna's dad is?!? *snicker* Kinda hate how the bigger picture stuff like the X-Men and the Hellfire Club (or "Inner Circle," if you were raised on the 90s cartoon) is being dragged out. On the bright side: pregnancy = power boost. KInda cool, even with the implications, like the vultures following Lorna around.

[Proteus]

Another great episode.

I loved the Cuckoos/Frost sisters. Skyler Samuels is really awesome playing all three.

The scene at the beginning with Blink and the Purifiers was really well done. I hope the show delves more into them.

I liked the mention of Polaris being bi polar.

Caitlin & Reed really come off as jerks at times and I hate that since I love Amy Acker & Stephen Moyer.

[Finis Terre]

8 hours ago, Lady Calypso said:

Caitlin needs to shut the hell up. She's officially my least favourite character on the show. I know Jamie Chung isn't a great actress, but her character doesn't whine all the damn time like Caitlin does. She acts all high and mighty when it comes to her children, and she's willing to...oh, LEAVE A WHOLE BUNCH OF MUTANT KIDS BEHIND WHILE SHE RUNS AWAY. Wow, way to be brave, woman. And it doesn't help that this is the third Let's Escape to Mexico subplot they've tried in 11 episodes. 

I'm "very tired" of the hate she's been getting. It was mostly Reed's decision, not hers (because in this stupid show the manly man has to have the upper hand, I guess LOL). A decision made also because people at the MU don't want them there.    

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I'm very tired of Andy's whole "let's jump into fighting" without consulting anyone. Of course dumb kid gets blasted in the wall because he decided to surprise everyone in the room instead. I mean, I'm all for him not wanting to just run away, but kid needs to learn how to control himself. This is why one of the triplets came to manipulate him. 

And you still wonder why the parents want to leave?

[Lady Calypso]

3 hours ago, Finis Terre said:

I'm "very tired" of the hate she's been getting. It was mostly Reed's decision, not hers (because in this stupid show the manly man has to have the upper hand, I guess LOL). A decision made also because people at the MU don't want them there.    

It was both of their decisions. Caitlin's been advocating for them to leave on and off all season. Her and Reed both agreed that they should run away. Marcos did tell them that they needed the Struckers there, and he did state that they wanted them there. They've shown the mutants be more accepting of the family. Reed annoys me too, for sure. But I don't like when characters constantly whine; I think that's a TV pet peeve of mine. So Caitlin constantly whining is not fun for me to watch. I even like Amy Acker, and have liked many of her past characters. It's just here, her character is so goddamn annoying. She's fine when she's working with Johnny and Marcos, but it's when she's around her family that she gets on my nerves. 

3 hours ago, Finis Terre said:

And you still wonder why the parents want to leave?

I think they mistakenly think that taking the kids away to Mexico is going to solve this problem. No matter where they go, Andy's still going to have severe anger management issues and poor impulse control, and he's still going to want to fight the good fight. Reed and Caitlin need to be parents, but they also don't understand that Andy's just learning about his mutant powers. I don't think they need to be accepting of him wanting to jump in on the action, but they also need to be listening to their children since they're the ones being hunted and have learned about their abilities. 

[sjohnson]

The Mutant Underground has no end game. They just are going to hang out indefinitely. This is not drama. Action, action, action as the script saves them from the Sentinels, yes, but not drama. This is really undermining the Polaris character for me, because she should be making real choices about the pregnancy. Hollywood is too conservative to seriously allow the character the choice of abortion, but the idea that two mutants would of course be able to produce a healthy child is nonsense, especially if you grant the mutant premise. One body that produces magnetic fields has to be very different from a body that produces lasers. It's not quite dogs marrying cats, but the assumption that the child of course would be viable long term really relies on mutation being FX, rather than an attribute of the body.

The Struckers haven't decided what to do, so they at least have a meaningful choices to make, starting with, does a mutant listen to human (parents)? So for me they've always been more interesting.

The can of blood sharing looks stupid to me. The idea that sharing blood somehow means sharing powers strikes me as evidence the only science Hollywood writers know is homeopathy, which is not a science at all. 

As for this episode, the problem is that the Frosts don't even have a middle game. There isn't a glimmer of an idea as to how they will "stop" the superHound program, any more than there was about how they could stop the Hound program. Tear down one lab? The government builds more, secretly. Kill one scientist? The government hires an army to take up where Garrett Dillahunt left off. You don't stop a war by blowing up one base, or by killing one commander. To me, the fundamental silliness means that the cuckoos are just a waste, even though their shtick is momentarily amusing. 

It dawns on me one of their major problems, aside from their apparent desire for incest subtext which requires leaving the siblings kind of undefined, is that Percy White is actually age appropriate for the role. Which means that there are limitations on how long he can be on set/at work. So they minimize the role, for the sake of keeping production costs lower. 

[wayne67]

19 hours ago, sjohnson said:

The Mutant Underground has no end game. They just are going to hang out indefinitely. This is not drama. Action, action, action as the script saves them from the Sentinels, yes, but not drama. This is really undermining the Polaris character for me, because she should be making real choices about the pregnancy. Hollywood is too conservative to seriously allow the character the choice of abortion, but the idea that two mutants would of course be able to produce a healthy child is nonsense, especially if you grant the mutant premise. One body that produces magnetic fields has to be very different from a body that produces lasers. It's not quite dogs marrying cats, but the assumption that the child of course would be viable long term really relies on mutation being FX, rather than an attribute of the body.

The Struckers haven't decided what to do, so they at least have a meaningful choices to make, starting with, does a mutant listen to human (parents)? So for me they've always been more interesting.

The can of blood sharing looks stupid to me. The idea that sharing blood somehow means sharing powers strikes me as evidence the only science Hollywood writers know is homeopathy, which is not a science at all. 

As for this episode, the problem is that the Frosts don't even have a middle game. There isn't a glimmer of an idea as to how they will "stop" the superHound program, any more than there was about how they could stop the Hound program. Tear down one lab? The government builds more, secretly. Kill one scientist? The government hires an army to take up where Garrett Dillahunt left off. You don't stop a war by blowing up one base, or by killing one commander. To me, the fundamental silliness means that the cuckoos are just a waste, even though their shtick is momentarily amusing. 

The Mutant Underground is terrible; it's poorly funded, poorly supported and poorly organized, all they're doing is finding a hole and hoping the government doesn't find them while helping other mutants flee to 'safer' ground. They have only one major hub and it's overcrowded with refugees with no sign of relief.

The Struckers have been stuck in a stupid loop since the beginning, the parents keep thinking they can get the system to change while their children are being hunted and attacked every couple of days (I'm not clear on how much time has actually passed in the show so far). They are clueless, the children make token efforts at fighting but instead of learning how to harness their powers more effectively to better handle these frequent confrontations instead their mum has them doing Algebra.

The blood sharing is just mutant pseudo science, none of the powers make any sense if you think about it for longer than a few seconds.

As for the Frosts, we don't know what they're up to, they're devious amoral telepaths that do what they want whenever they want to in order to further their own agenda, even their boss/contact has no idea what they're up to, only whines when they do stuff after the fact. From what I can gather their short term goal is to recruit mutants, their middle goal is to take down the Hound programs and Sentinel service and if they're anything like Frost, their long term goals are probably to ensure that no one bothers them with giant robots and hybrid mutant attack dogs and or world domination.

The entire Xmen franchise is based on an idiot premise, at any moment one of the supposed super geniuses could hire a PR firm, unionise mutants and set up a colony somewhere on a small island chain or another planet/dimension/moon. They don't because writers constantly blow up those colonies in order to return to the status quo of the mutants hunted and persecuted so we can endure 60 years of the same plot recycled ad nauseum.

The Frosts could gather a handful of powerful mutants raid the Hound facility and use the 'manacles' to bind the strong the mutants together and create a hive mind controlled army of super mutants. 

They could do it with about ten mutants, Sage in the middle to process data, Warpath to add his enhanced senses and durability, the three cuckoos around them to organise the communication of the group and distract enemies, one of the mutants that can turn stuff invisible, The wonder twins to attack and defend, Lorna to use metal to create massive metal structures and last but not least Clarice to portal the small army around the place. With their powers combined it wouldn't be hard to take down humans with guns. They could even do so with minimal blood shed if they were so inclined.

Once they succeeded they could use this as a first step to an actual rebellion/revolution instead of running and hiding all the time.

Yes I overthink these things. 

[Gwen-Stacys]

"The entire Xmen franchise is based on an idiot premise, at any moment one of the supposed super geniuses could hire a PR firm, unionise mutants and set up a colony somewhere on a small island chain or another planet/dimension/moon. They don't because writers constantly blow up those colonies in order to return to the status quo of the mutants hunted and persecuted so we can endure 60 years of the same plot recycled ad nauseum."

Actually, the point of The X-Men franchise was to mirror the civil rights movement of the 60s, with Professor X playing the part of MLK and Magneto as Malcolm X. When you look at the entire series from this perspective, it all makes sense. You have mutants that can pass for human (like the black folk that could pass for white) and those that can't (I.E. obviously black folk). The subject matter seems ad naseum bc it is ad naseum in real life.

But on topic of this episode, I actually enjoyed it. It was very much a table setting episode for what's going to happen in the season finale as well as the second season. The Mutants are going to be divided into two warring entities that are ultimately fighting for the same end game (just like the comics).

Edited January 3, 2018 by Gwen-Stacys

[wayne67]

3 hours ago, Gwen-Stacys said:

"The entire Xmen franchise is based on an idiot premise, at any moment one of the supposed super geniuses could hire a PR firm, unionise mutants and set up a colony somewhere on a small island chain or another planet/dimension/moon. They don't because writers constantly blow up those colonies in order to return to the status quo of the mutants hunted and persecuted so we can endure 60 years of the same plot recycled ad nauseum."

Actually, the point of The X-Men franchise was to mirror the civil rights movement of the 60s, with Professor X playing the part of MLK and Magneto as Malcolm X. When you look at the entire series from this perspective, it all makes sense. You have mutants that can pass for human (like the black folk that could pass for white) and those that can't (I.E. obviously black folk). The subject matter seems ad naseum bc it is ad naseum in real life.

But on topic of this episode, I actually enjoyed it. It was very much a table setting episode for what's going to happen in the season finale as well as the second season. The Mutants are going to be divided into two warring entities that are ultimately fighting for the same end game (just like the comics).

I'm well aware that mutants are supposed to mirror the civil rights movements of the 60's ... However;

A) It's a poor comparison, mutants typically don't trigger till puberty as opposed to black people who tend to start off black and in some cases lighten over time 
B) Mutants have god like powers that allow them to regularly destroy buildings, ignore basic physics and rip holes in space time
C) Mutants have access to superior technology that allows them to leave Earth whenever they'd like
D) The real life civil rights movement actually made significant progress over the last seven decades as demonstrated by the election of Obama and the reduction of 'racist' policies in the last 60 years while mutants have undergone a rinse repeat style of save the world, be hated, save the world, be hated and persecuted by the government for what the violent minority does. As demonstrated by the Civil War Saga where all mutants had to register and submit to government authority or be locked up in a hell dimension indefinitely without trial or due process. 

The premise is stupid because god like powers would allow some people to set up communes where they can be king/queen, like Xavier and his little militia group made up of brainwashed teenagers. 

[piequinn35]

9 hours ago, wayne67 said:

They could do it with about ten mutants, Sage in the middle to process data, Warpath to add his enhanced senses and durability, the three cuckoos around them to organise the communication of the group and distract enemies, one of the mutants that can turn stuff invisible, The wonder twins to attack and defend, Lorna to use metal to create massive metal structures and last but not least Clarice to portal the small army around the place. With their powers combined it wouldn't be hard to take down humans with guns. They could even do so with minimal blood shed if they were so inclined.
 

“Alone we can do so little; together we can do so much.” 

Johnny is not Warpath, he is Thunderbird, Warpath is his brother.

PS: The Cuckoos work for whose mutant? A big reveal at the end?

[wayne67]

20 minutes ago, piequinn35 said:

“Alone we can do so little; together we can do so much.” 

Johnny is not Warpath, he is Thunderbird, Warpath is his brother.

PS: The Cuckoos work for whose mutant? A big reveal at the end?

My bad, I keep forgetting what the character names are, they leave such a small impression in my brain. I keep forgetting what the main characters are called. 

I'm hoping we see Sebastian Shaw. Do we have an in show reason for why the Xmen aren't helping the Mutant Underground? 

[Gwen-Stacys]

"A) It's a poor comparison, mutants typically don't trigger till puberty as opposed to black people who tend to start off black and in some cases lighten over time"

It actually works perfectly when you consider that black kids aren't considered "kids" anymore after a certain age. And are often seen as dangerous, especially if they're not tiny

"B) Mutants have god like powers that allow them to regularly destroy buildings, ignore basic physics and rip holes in space time"

....okay?

"C) Mutants have access to superior technology that allows them to leave Earth whenever they'd like"

In comics, everyone has superior technology. Like the Fantastic 4 before they were fantastic. Tony Stark (technically). And I'm sure there are other humans, but I'm not as well versed in Marvel lore as I am in DC

"D) The real life civil rights movement actually made significant progress over the last seven decades as demonstrated by the election of Obama and the reduction of 'racist' policies in the last 60 years while mutants have undergone a rinse repeat style of save the world, be hated, save the world, be hated and persecuted by the government for what the violent minority does. As demonstrated by the Civil War Saga where all mutants had to register and submit to government authority or be locked up in a hell dimension indefinitely without trial or due process."

Same could be said for African Americans (as well as other minorities) to this day in the US. Look up Kalief Bowder; there was even a Netflix documentary on him. In fact, there are plenty of documentaries on the lapse of justice being served in the American Justice system. And just because Obama was elected president, doesn't mean that racism is suddenly over (look at Charlottesville, Dillon Booth, all the attacks on Mosques, etc) and to even insinuate that is very naïve. But we're getting off topic of the episode this thread is meant to be discussing, so....

I love the shakeup that The Cuckoos are adding to the overall story. And Andy's for sure joining Hellfire with them, along with Lorna.

Edited January 3, 2018 by Gwen-Stacys

[piequinn35]

1 minute ago, wayne67 said:

My bad, I keep forgetting what the character names are, they leave such a small impression in my brain. I keep forgetting what the main characters are called. 

I'm hoping we see Sebastian Shaw. Do we have an in show reason for why the Xmen aren't helping the Mutant Underground? 

Are they not dead in this timeline? and the others are in hiding.

[wayne67]

8 minutes ago, piequinn35 said:

Are they not dead in this timeline? and the others are in hiding.

I have no idea. If the other X men related mutants are in hiding why aren't they hiding with the Mutant Underground? They have more combat experience than any of these noobs. 
 

9 minutes ago, Gwen-Stacys said:

"A) It's a poor comparison, mutants typically don't trigger till puberty as opposed to black people who tend to start off black and in some cases lighten over time"

It actually works perfectly when you consider that black kids aren't considered "kids" anymore after a certain age. And are often seen as dangerous, especially if they're not tiny

"B) Mutants have god like powers that allow them to regularly destroy buildings, ignore basic physics and rip holes in space time"

....okay?

"C) Mutants have access to superior technology that allows them to leave Earth whenever they'd like"

In comics, everyone has superior technology. Like the Fantastic 4 before they were fantastic. Tony Stark (technically). And I'm sure there are other humans, but I'm not as well versed in Marvel lore as I am in DC

"D) The real life civil rights movement actually made significant progress over the last seven decades as demonstrated by the election of Obama and the reduction of 'racist' policies in the last 60 years while mutants have undergone a rinse repeat style of save the world, be hated, save the world, be hated and persecuted by the government for what the violent minority does. As demonstrated by the Civil War Saga where all mutants had to register and submit to government authority or be locked up in a hell dimension indefinitely without trial or due process."

Same could be said for African Americans (as well as other minorities) to this day in the US. Look up Kalief Bowder; there was even a Netflix documentary on him. In fact, there are plenty of documentaries on the lapse of justice being served in the American Justice system. And just because Obama was elected president, doesn't mean that racism is suddenly over (look at Charlottesville, Dillon Booth, all the attacks on Mosques, etc) and to even insinuate that is very naïve. But we're getting off topic of the episode this thread is meant to be discussing, so....

I love the shakeup that The Cuckoos are adding to the overall story. And Andy's for sure joining Hellfire with them, along with Lorna.

B) It's hard to buy you're the oppressed underdog when you can rip apart buildings with your mind.
C) My point is they could use that superior technology to either fight back more effectively or to leave the planet.
D) I said progress, not complete elimination. As for attack on Mosques, it's not like there's any reason for people to be wary of Muslims with the frequent Trucks of Peace. Random civilians being racists aren't uncommon even today, especially towards white people but generally there are very few active nation wide government supported persecutions of minorities. 

Back to the actual discussion of the episode. Why does no one in the mutant underground have any guns ? They could have come in handy to take down either one of the Mutant hounds instead of relying on their powers whatever they were. Stupidity abounds. 

[piequinn35]

3 minutes ago, wayne67 said:

I have no idea. If the other X men related mutants are in hiding why aren't they hiding with the Mutant Underground? They have more combat experience than any of these noobs. 

I have to rewatch the X-Men: Days of Future Past as the other X-Men were already dead and Prof X & other mutants were hiding in a temple.

[wayne67]

6 minutes ago, piequinn35 said:

I have to rewatch the X-Men: Days of Future Past as the other X-Men were already dead and Prof X & other mutants were hiding in a temple.

Didn't that future stop existing what with the time travel? Also this is the beginning of the Sentinel Program rather than the end game where the entire human race is punished because of the potential for mutantness. Theoretically this should be set after X3 so only Jean, Scott and Xavier would be dead, Wolverine, Colossus and Beast should theoretically be around to help with defense and or organisation. 

[piequinn35]

Logan is dead in Logan movie :) Imo, this tv show is going to the timeline of X-Men: Days of Future Past before they time travelled. 

[wayne67]

1 minute ago, piequinn35 said:

Logan is dead in Logan movie :) Imo, this tv show is going to the timeline of X-Men: Days of Future Past before they time travelled. 

They are ? So this is a dead timeline show? Well that makes everything extra pointless since we know that they fail at stopping the Sentinels and their entire existence is overwritten anyway. 

[piequinn35]

Well that is just my opinion, some shows just want to showcase abilities/powers/gifts but who knows if they can really stop Trask or SS or another Big mutant villain.

[RachelKM]

On 1/3/2018 at 0:12 PM, wayne67 said:

I'm well aware that mutants are supposed to mirror the civil rights movements of the 60's ... However;

A) It's a poor comparison, mutants typically don't trigger till puberty as opposed to black people who tend to start off black and in some cases lighten over time 
B) Mutants have god like powers that allow them to regularly destroy buildings, ignore basic physics and rip holes in space time
C) Mutants have access to superior technology that allows them to leave Earth whenever they'd like
D) The real life civil rights movement actually made significant progress over the last seven decades as demonstrated by the election of Obama and the reduction of 'racist' policies in the last 60 years while mutants have undergone a rinse repeat style of save the world, be hated, save the world, be hated and persecuted by the government for what the violent minority does. As demonstrated by the Civil War Saga where all mutants had to register and submit to government authority or be locked up in a hell dimension indefinitely without trial or due process. 

The premise is stupid because god like powers would allow some people to set up communes where they can be king/queen, like Xavier and his little militia group made up of brainwashed teenagers. 

I agree.  I totally get the metaphor.  But unfortunately it has always struck me as imperfect, despite being a long time X-men fan.  It's sort of like Alan Ball attempting to use vampires as a metaphor for gay rights and marriage. Um... Vampires are super fast, super strong, AND EAT PEOPLE.  Likewise, while the vast majority of mutants appear to want to be peaceful, if a powerful mutant wants to take people out and/or cause mass destruction, he or she can. 

That doesn't mean I think the way the oppression of mutants is presented on this show is okay.  It's clearly vile to arrest people who are doing no harm and disgusting to experiment on them.  But it's hard to compare it to civil rights movements when Cuckoos/Frost Girls are instructing people to blow themselves up and the Fenris Twins decimated whole buildings by holding hands and furrowing their brows. 

As to this episode specifically, I agree that it really brought home that the Mutant Underground has no actual plan and no specific goal. What exactly are they trying to achieve?  I mean, the Cuckoos are psychotic; but I believe they have concrete and defined goals. 

Edited January 4, 2018 by RachelKM

[Finis Terre]

On 2.01.2018 at 3:50 PM, Lady Calypso said:

It was both of their decisions. Caitlin's been advocating for them to leave on and off all season. Her and Reed both agreed that they should run away. They've shown the mutants be more accepting of the family. Reed annoys me too, for sure. But I don't like when characters constantly whine; I think that's a TV pet peeve of mine. So Caitlin constantly whining is not fun for me to watch. I even like Amy Acker, and have liked many of her past characters. It's just here, her character is so goddamn annoying. She's fine when she's working with Johnny and Marcos, but it's when she's around her family that she gets on my nerves. 

 

Ultimately it's Reed who decides about everything and she agrees., but is it because she believes in his approach? I don't think so. Her body language in episode 11 is very telling. That's what'so irritating in this show: the inept writers fashioned Caitlin into an obedient housewife type; when Reed was not around, she did fine and was allowed to grow and have agency. Meanwhile Reed gets the juicy bits, but they are wasted because they don't influence the character in a meaningful way and  Moyer is awful. I hope (wishful thinking, I know) they get separated by the end of this season,, but I'm afraid her character will be sacrificed to please fanboys who are only interested in powers.

Quote

Marcos did tell them that they needed the Struckers there, and he did state that they wanted them there.

I'm not so sure about that. Basically, he spoke on his own behalf. He clearly likes Caitlin and seems protective towards her.

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I think they mistakenly think that taking the kids away to Mexico is going to solve this problem. No matter where they go, Andy's still going to have severe anger management issues and poor impulse control, and he's still going to want to fight the good fight. Reed and Caitlin need to be parents, but they also don't understand that Andy's just learning about his mutant powers. I don't think they need to be accepting of him wanting to jump in on the action, but they also need to be listening to their children since they're the ones being hunted and have learned about their abilities. 

From what the parents say, they are under no illusion that running away will solve the problem. They do listen to the children, with good and bad consequences. The events of the last episodes basically confirm the kids are not ready to fight and should not be part of the confrontation. Also, they aided and abetted mutants so the "kids are the ones being hunted" argument makes little difference.

[paulvdb]

12 hours ago, wayne67 said:

They are ? So this is a dead timeline show? Well that makes everything extra pointless since we know that they fail at stopping the Sentinels and their entire existence is overwritten anyway. 

I'm not familiar with the comics or the movies so I don't care how it fits into that larger universe. As far as I'm concerned this series can stand on its own without connections to the rest of the Marvel Universe. Just like I can watch Smallville and not have a problem with Lois being there when Clark is only supposed to meet her when he starts working at the Daily Planet. Or wondering how Erica Durance's Lois could ever become Teri Hatcher's Lois.

[thuganomics85]

Frankly, I would rather Esme and the other Cuckoos keep killing left and right if they promised to quick speaking in union every other sentence.  Now, that shit is just plain annoying!  But anyway: they are working for their secret organization (and they report to Tyrus from Breaking Bad!), and have currently got the Mutant Underground agreeing to work for them, after they secretly ratted out one of the MU's stations to show that they "need them."  Of course, I suspect Marcos will probably not be happy about this, so hopefully he'll keep an eye on them.

Nice to see Reed and Caitlin haven't learned a damn thing and still try to escape to Mexico.  Give it up, you two.  Sentinel Services want your kids and no country is going to protect them.  Running away is not going to solve anything.

No surprise, Jace has now gone back to taking out mutants by "any means necessary", due to his buddy dying.  So, he's align himself with Campbell again and they are now planning on unleashing combined mutants against the MU.  Fun!

So, we go back on break next week and then have a two-hour season finale the week after?  I guess something special is happening.  At least they've already renewed the show, so no worries on that front (for once.)

[Proteus]

On January 3, 2018 at 4:25 PM, wayne67 said:

They are ? So this is a dead timeline show? Well that makes everything extra pointless since we know that they fail at stopping the Sentinels and their entire existence is overwritten anyway. 

This show has no connection to the movies. It's in its own timeline and universe.

[wayne67]

On 1/4/2018 at 9:59 AM, RachelKM said:

I agree.  I totally get the metaphor.  But unfortunately it has always struck me as imperfect, despite being a long time X-men fan.  It's sort of like Alan Ball attempting to use vampires as a metaphor for gay rights and marriage. Um... Vampires are super fast, super strong, AND EAT PEOPLE.  Likewise, while the vast majority of mutants appear to want to be peaceful, if a powerful mutant wants to take people out and/or cause mass destruction, he or she can. 

That doesn't mean I think the way the oppression of mutants is presented on this show is okay.  It's clearly vile to arrest people who are doing no harm and disgusting to experiment on them.  But it's hard to compare it to civil rights movements when Cuckoos/Frost Girls are instructing people to blow themselves up and the Fenris Twins decimated whole buildings by holding hands and furrowing their brows. 

As to this episode specifically, I agree that it really brought home that the Mutant Underground has no actual plan and no specific goal. What exactly are they trying to achieve?  I mean, the Cuckoos are psychotic; but I believe they have concrete and defined goals. 

The Morlocks were far more believable as an oppressed group, they lived in the sewers, their genetics left them disfigured and or discolored whereas the X men hung about a mansion, using a super high tech plane to get around the place while sometimes jumping back and forward in time with multiple Omega level mutants.

I think my biggest problem with this episode is that there was no one in that Mutant Underground outpost with any useful offensive or defensive powers before the Struckers showed up and no one had a gun or any weapons to defend themselves from capture by what essentially amounts to an evil amoral government agency in league with shady scientists. Essentially it suffers from the Star Trek problem where only a handful of people can demonstrate any aptitude in a situation because they're main characters and everyone is essentially a background character that has to wait for them to show up to save the day.

It was tedious that no one thought to attack either the manacle or the guys opening fire on a house with no actual provocation for doing so. 

[Raja]

On 1/4/2018 at 10:28 PM, Proteus said:

This show has no connection to the movies. It's in its own timeline and universe.

Not only is the show not connected the X-men movies at times seem  not connected beyond using the same actors.  The thing is after Samuel L. Jackson in Iron-Man and Robert Downey Jr in  The Incredible Hulk made their appearances the old rules of tell your own story became obsolete and the X-Men after decades of telling their own inconsistent stories started to fall to the wayside compared to MCU. Thus Supergirl, even though she is separate, different earth and all, had to find a way into the Flarrowverse.

 

If I am following the story correctly before this episode the X-men and Magneto's equivalent  on the other side went missing. But now we are told the X-Men, told the Mutant Underground you are to hold the mantle of good mutant kind. If we were to link it to something perhaps they left on one of their intergalactic adventurers.

Edited January 7, 2018 by Raja

[athelyna]

Finally got around to watching this episode.  I want to like this series, but I'm getting really bored of alternating everyone sits around Mutant HQ arguing about what to do about current crisis, finally go out to do something, some people get captured/recaptured while the others get away or they find out about new crisis, they all go back to Mutant HQ to argue about what to do before going out to do something and rinse and repeat.

The endless arguments about we need to do more and be willing to kill vs we need to follow the guidelines the X-men left behind are getting boring.  It's probably why they are stuck in this endless loop of going out on missions, accomplishing nothing, then arguing about why they've accomplished nothing.  I don't mind interpersonal conflict, and I get that people would have different ideas about the best way to handle these situations, but it's the same arguments and same character beats.  John is cautious and want to stay on the noble path, Lorna wants to do more and is willing to hurt people, Marcos wants Lorna and the baby to stay safe, and the Strucker parents are okay with helping but don't want to see their kids hurt while the Strucker kids want to stay and help their friends. 

I kind of want an episode where they just sit around and argue and come up with a clear definitive mission statement for the group, then just work on following through and I wouldn't mind seeing the group split up along different ideologies.  Hopefully teaming up with the Frost sisters will get some sort of forward momentum going. 

[Chas411]

On 9 January 2018 at 5:09 PM, athelyna said:

 

Finally got around to watching this episode.  I want to like this series, but I'm getting really bored of alternating everyone sits around Mutant HQ arguing about what to do about current crisis, finally go out to do something, some people get captured/recaptured while the others get away or they find out about new crisis, they all go back to Mutant HQ to argue about what to do before going out to do something and rinse and repeat.

 

 

This!! It's so boring. There's never really anything at stake because they don't have any sort of end goal. 

Clarice is awful and I knew as soon as Dreamer died shed suddenly starts"stepping up". All the characters are horrifically bland actually. And the casting of Skylar Samuels as the new big bad was a huge mistake. Both the character and actress are painfully bland.

[bow]

Just caught up.

Who is the African-American guy talking to the Cuckoos?

That sounds like music from Florence + the Machine? If so, that’s awesome.

Mention of Lorna father, which means Magneto...so that’s cool.

Why was there so much dialogue added in post-production?

I love how they handle the Stepford Cuckoos. They are so much like they are in the comic books.

[AKA...CJ86]

I know we had one, a couple, before, but nice Lorna's Father shoutout.

I'd like the Cuckoos if they weren't badly spliced into scenes together, but hey, only so much you can do on TV.  I hope we get a glimpse of the Inner Circle.  The Hellfire Club was always my favorite villain team.  I'm enjoying their introduction to the show, I was getting bored, show slowly losing with just Sentinel Services/Turner/Campbell.

I know it's been said the show isn't related to any of the movies, but if I can make it fit and am satisfied with my headcanon, it's in line with the films for me.