The Gifted S02E06 Review: Danger Room

The Gifted, Season 2, Episode 6: iMprint

Really haven't been catching up with The Gifted and many of the other superhero shows, huh? Been kind of busy lately, and things sort of just ended up getting piled up. Whoops! Anyway, this episode of The Gifted is... it's pretty neat. It does have some of the normal problems that the show is pretty problematic about -- unfocused episode that jumps around from one plot point to the next, pretty banal dialogue, plot developments that feel unnaturally done, and all that jazz, but still... it's ultimately not a bad episode. I liked parts of it, and didn't really care for some of it.

The best part of the episode has to be the Esme Frost flashback. I haven't realized how much I liked Esme and her sisters throughout the past season and half of this show, considering she alternates between being a mysterious presence in the background of the show or being the deliverer of huge plot twist, but here we get some short flashbacks to the Stepford Sisters' backstory, and it's... it's actually the most effective flashback the show's ever done, although admittedly that's a pretty low bar to clear. The revelation that the triplets were forced by an evil government agency to torture captives to find and seek other mutants, and then the subsequent revelation that they are in fact artificially-created clones, and then the fact that there were originally five of them, with two having died during their breakout attempt? All very effectively done, adding layer upon layer to the story, and one of the opening shots being the bizarre arrangement of their beds finally being given context when we see the original five? Definitely well done.

The fact that Esme ends up opening up to Lorna, who spends much of the episode disillusioned about the Hellfire Club/Inner Circle due to them keeping her in the dark about the operation and only forcing her to train in Danger Rooms, is actually well-done. Esme slowly showing some hints of individuality and refusing to agree with her sisters is done pretty well, and I do like the bonding moments that they have, all because Esme wants to make Lorna believe in their goal.

Of course, things go south when Esme ends up being kind of a fool and hums Lorna's lullaby, causing Lorna to damn well near choke Esme to death. It does end up leading to a very heartfelt apology and backstory-sharing on Esme's part, though, and I'm definitely a huge fan.

The other big plotline is Reed trying to control his powers, and while the original talk session with Thunderbird features some cringe-y first draft dialogue, the foundation of the plot is sound, with Reed being equally still in denial and wanting a "quick way out". We do get a brief, nice talk with former recurring character Shatter, who tells Reed about this pretty harrowing moment about how he attempted to take his life when he refused to accept his mutant nature (leading to that cool-looking, if tragic, appearance). The goddamn Purifiers show up and attack, though, leading to a do-or-die situation when their only way out is Reed activating his powers. Poor Shatter dies in the process after a badass last stand, and while Reed does activate his disintegration powers, this ends up leading to a pretty neat little twist where apparently Reed now doesn't know how to shut off the disintegrating hands.

Meanwhile, Jace Turner continues to fall deeper and deeper into the Purifier rabbit hole, trying to convince himself that the Purifiers are just a group of heroes that's a wee bit too violent for his own good. It's equal parts unintentionally hilarious and frustrating. I get that there's only so much screentime to share around so many characters, but I really felt that Turner went from a (admittedly not the best-written) conflicted character to a very flat "rah rah" antagonist.

The other real notable subplot is the whole interaction with Caitlin and Lauren. Lauren's still having dreams, their brief and somewhat-violent talk with the psychiatrist ended up with them realizing that Rebecca is pretty damn violent and killed her own family, and some talk about how it's Caitlin's responsibility to get Andy back and not Lauren's... while Lauren's just convinced that she'll have to fight Andy sooner or later.

Overall, not the most even of episodes. Some great moments from Esme, Polaris, Reed and Shatter, and I really did enjoy both Reed and Esme's storylines in the episode. The setup of the episode itself, though, and the larger plot, still remains pretty unsatisfactory.


Marvel Easter Eggs Corner:

• Not 100% sure about this, but Creed Financial is likely a reference to Victor Creed's family. Victor Creed's more well-known as long-time X-Men villain Sabertooth, although I'm not 100% sure if it's a coincidence. 
• Lorna, Andy and Rebecca train in a super-realistic holographic room, which, of course, is an allusion to the X-Men's Danger Room.