Last week, FOX’s “The Gifted” debuted with a premiere Headline Planet called “energetic” and “engaging.”
The action continues Monday night.
Entitled “rX,” the episode airs in the immediate aftermath of last week’s premiere. John, Marcos, Clarice and three of the Struckers avoided Sentinel Services by teleporting to the Mutant Underground.
Reed, the Strucker family patriarch, was not so lucky. The portal closed before he could enter, leaving the frightened family separated.
How will last week’s events affect the key characters? What new challenges await the mutants as they attempt to survive in a hostile world?
“rX” begins to answer some of those questions.
The episode officially airs at 9PM ET, but Headline Planet had the opportunity to screen the episode before broadcast. Based on that screening, we’re happy to share 7 things you can expect.
Photos from the episode are also included.
We did not include any major spoilers, but those hoping to go into Monday’s episode completely fresh should refrain from reading.
Family Flashback
Before diving into this week’s action, Monday’s “The Gifted” offers a look in the rear view.
Specifically, it revisits a night the Struckers spent at the bowling alley.
The scene begins as a portrait of a loving, seemingly normal family but quickly escalates into something more. It offers a window into how society perceives and treats mutants — and how some members of the Strucker family faced that reality prior to the events of the premiere.
The premiere had real stakes
In the closing moments of last week’s premiere, Clarice opened a portal to help John, Marcos, Caitlin, Lauren, Andy, Reed and herself evade Sentinel Services. The portal, which brought the characters to the Underground, closed just before Reed could get through.
The ending was not a fake-out. The portal did close, and Reed was indeed left on the other side.
The situation leaves Caitlin, Lauren and Andy immensely concerned for their father (and he for them). It also matters to Marcos.
In addition to being a good, sympathetic person (who can understand the pain of being separated from family), Marcos has a particularly vested interest in Reed’s survival: he needs the Strucker patriarch’s help to save Lorna.
The Strucker family separation is not, however, the only consequence of last week’s ending. Clarice exerted considerable energy during the teleportation, and she opens this week’s episode in a frightening state of shock. She is unable to consciously respond to the others, and her immediate health is very much in question.
Portal Problems
Clarice’s health represents a top priority for John, Marcos and the others.
It is not, however, only her health at stake.
While Clarice cannot consciously communicate, her body is responding to the trauma. The shock is causing Clarice to involuntarily open portals.
These portals create a window between the Underground and other parts of the world — parts that, it should be noted, are not completely remote. Potentially dangerous people and objects can pass through, rendering the Underground seriously vulnerable.
As Caitlin and Marcos pursue medicine from a local hospital, Lauren, Andy and John do their best to help close the portals (or at least protect themselves from the ones that stay open).
But will their best be good enough to prevent a crisis?
Dad Jokes: Marcos’ true power?
In an effort to save Clarice, Caitlin and Marcos embark on a mission to locate necessary medicine
The expedition gives us a window into Marcos’ personality; he evidently has a proclivity for “dad jokes.”
The mutant, who is also known as Eclipse, delivers several corny lines about the healthcare industry (along with a cheesy joke to a member of the healthcare industry).
Jail Isn’t Joyous
Lorna was arrested in the early moments of the premiere.
This week, she finds herself moved to a detention center. It is not an inviting environment.
In addition to hosting a rough crowd, the prison contains one element that is particularly problematic for mutants.
Lorna tries to maintain her cool, defiant demeanor, but it becomes clear that surviving in her situation, let alone escaping, is going to be challenging.
New Mutants
While the key characters from last week’s premiere take center stage this week, Monday’s episode does introduce us to some additional members of the Mutant Underground.
Characters introduced this week include Dreamer (Elena Satine) and Pedro (Dinarte de Freitas).
Jace, The Antagonist
The premiere introduced us to Sentinel Services, the aggressive, shadowy agency focused on detaining mutant criminals/fugitives. We also saw — but learned little about — agent Jace Turner.
This week’s offers far more insight into the character. We learn about his motivation for pursuing mutant criminals. We also witness some of the ruthless tactics he will employ in that pursuit.
