FX's Legion is arguably the trippiest show on television, and apparently, the network is keen on giving the series a little extra time to blow some minds. The series just got some great news from FX. Season 2 will receive one additional mind-bending episode that will be tacked on to the season. Will this episode be enough to make sense of all the crazy things that have happened in Season 2 thus far?
FX has not specifically stated which episode of the remaining bunch is the episode that creator Noah Hawley added to the season. Legion fans are left to guess which episode is the newcomer, as FX also shared vague summaries for each remaining installment of Season 2. Perhaps the most interesting reveal of these is that David will fight the future in the Season 2 finale. Whatever happens, the new episode has pushed the Season 2 finale to June 12 and means fans will get another week to watch the series.
Legion's ratings do not seem to be a driving factor in the addition of another episode. Now, it would make some degree of sense if another episode was added because Noah Hawley got the heads up FX was cancelling the series after this season and wanted to give the show a more conclusive ending. That said, networks typically aren't in the business of giving shows they wish to cancel more primetime television time, so that's probably not what's happening here.
Alternately, Noah Hawley might have gotten the greenlight for another Legion episode for clarity's sake, as Season 2 has somehow managed to be twice as confusing as the first season. Hawley could have added another episode to give more insight into several things going on in the show's story, although one would imagine an episode like that would focus primarily on the future David wishes to prevent. It's certainly the most confusing storyline in Legion Season 2 thus far. The logic of David helping the Shadow King to save the future still doesn't make that much sense.
Full disclosure, as there's been no evidence of this event happening, but there could be a third exciting reason Legion got an additional episode. Noah Hawley might have finally convinced Fox to let Patrick Stewart come on the show to play David's father Professor X. The move would make sense as it was Professor X that first separated the Shadow King from his physical form. Since Season 2 of Legion is focusing on the Shadow King's quest to get his body back, a flashback episode to their battle would be appropriate. Chapter 18's episode description does tease a "reunion," so maybe there's going to be a reunion between David and his father. If that were true, one would imagine FX would heavily promote Stewart's appearance given the show's low viewership, but sometimes surprises generate more buzz than advance notice.
Legion airs on FX Tuesdays at 10:00 p.m. ET. For more on upcoming superhero shows, visit our superhero premiere guide. For a more generalized list of what's coming to television in 2018, visit our summer premiere guide.
