Welcome back to Fox’s X-Men adjacent spinoff,The Gifted, which takes place in a world where most of the famous mutants were lost under vague circumstances. Last season, the Strucker family was taken in by the Mutant Underground. Andy and Lauren Strucker had manifested their mutant abilities, and they were exponentially more powerful together. Reed Strucker was once a mutant himself, and he may be again in the near future.
Lorna Dane, a.k.a. Polaris, sided with the Hellfire Club’s Frost sisters, Esme, Sophie, and Phoebe. Lorna turned her back on the Underground and brought down a plane filled with their enemies. Andy and a few other mutants joined Lorna and the Hellfire Club, leaving the Underground broken. The Gifted season 2 episode 1 picked up six months later, and things have changed.
Under New Management
The senior members of the Hellfire Club were outraged by Reeva Payge and her recent actions. Reeva explained that her goal was a mutant homeland, but her fellow council members didn’t share her vision. She laid out her ambitious plans, but she was met with only resistance. When the council turned against her, Reeva used her vocal abilities (or possibly, some really strong breath) to incapacitate them while the Frost sisters murdered them. In the aftermath, Reeva renamed their group the Inner Circle.
Undercover Mother
Although the Mutant Underground was believed to be dead, they continued to operate in secret. Reed directed the group to a Sentinel Services raid on a mutant hideout. Blink and Lauren helped most of the corned mutants escape, while Caitlin treated the wounded. Reed’s powers also started to manifest, but he controlled them with drugs. Blink and Thunderbird’s relationship had progressed, and they took in a young girl, Christina, to help her find her sister.
Caitlin and Eclipse were more worried about finding Andy and Lorna, respectively. They took a trip to meet a mutant hacker, Wire, for information on the Inner Circle. Instead, Wire tried to double cross them and Caitlin was grazed by a bullet. She and Eclipse managed to get some info from Wire, who wanted nothing more to do with them.
The Son Also Rises
Meanwhile, Andy had given himself a ridiculous makeover and bonded with Lorna as the birth of her baby neared. Lorna’s powers were flaring out of control, and a special chamber was constructed for her upcoming childbirth. Lorna asked Andy to watch her back, and protect her baby if the Inner Circle tried to prioritize her life over her child’s. Elsewhere, Lauren had a dream about reuniting with Andy, which turned into a nightmare. Lauren later forced her parents to acknowledge that Andy wasn’t kidnapped, and he left of his own free will.
A New Dawn
When Lorna finally went into labor, even the Inner Circle wasn’t ready for the destruction she unleashed. Lorna’s powers caused so much havoc that Eclipse immediately recognized their signature from miles away. He rallied the Underground to track Lorna’s location, as her mental block nearly endangered herself and her baby. Andy was initially worried that the Frost sisters would harm the child. Instead, they gave Lorna a vision of the future. Lorna and her friends had ushered in a new dawn for mutants.
Thunderbird lost Lorna’s trail when her power spasms ceased. Eclipse assumed that she had died. However, Lorna was safe as she named her baby “Dawn.”
What did you think about The Gifted season 2 episode 1? Let us know in the comment section below!