The Gifted – hoMe

By: Darryl Ley

Fourteen years ago in Gainesville, Florida we see a young Clarice (Leah Lewis) and her Foster sister Lilly (Given Sharp) in their room talking when their drunk foster father returns home. Clarice wants to run away fearing more abuse, but Lilly wants to stay and worries that the others will be punished if they escape. The two eventually escape when he begins beating on the bedroom door as the title credits roll.

In the present Clarice Fong/Blink (Jamie Chung) awakens to find John Proudstar/Thunderbird (Blair Redmond) already up and working at his laptop preparing for the Mutant Underground meeting. Lorna Dane/Polaris (Emma Dumont) and Marcos Diaz/Eclipse (Sean Teale) argue about what to do after seeing Reeva Payge (Grace Byers) and Benedict Ryan (Peter Gallagher) cooperating. Lorna wants to return to the Inner Circle to learn more about Reeva’s plans and Marcos thinks it is too dangerous. She eventually convinces him and leaves.

Evangeline (Erinn Ruth) meets with the Mutant Underground at their apartment building. Lauren Strucker (Natalie Alyn Lind), Caitlin Strucker (Amy Acker), Reed Strucker (Stephen Moyer), Marcos, Clarice and John are also there. She tells them about the planned meeting and finds out that Lorna has become a double agent. The rest debate whether or not it is safe to let Andy (Percy Hynes White) go and it there is anyone strong enough left in the underground to oppose Reeva.

At the Inner Circle Lorna psychs herself up as she enters the building and again tries to find out what the new team of Max (James Carpinello), Tico (Tyshon Freeman) and Heather (Chelle Ramos) before they are called away to start the mission. Caitlin exercises while Reed works on contacting the underground network back at the apartments. They talk about what to do about Reeva and Caitlin suggests contacting her brother who has links with the Department of Homeland Security. Reed feels that it will be too dangerous and that Caitlin’s brother will be watched by the authorities.

Caitlin decides to go and Lauren volunteers to go with her while Reed remains to organize the event. That night Lauren translates the note left by Andreas Von Strucker and falls asleep into a shared dream with Andy. The letter says that Fenris is composed of light and dark that are constantly in conflict and that through conflict he and his sister came to understand each other and become stronger.

Andy is confused by Lauren visiting and she tells him she’s there to stop him and the two fight with Lauren getting the upper hand and landing an attack on Andy causing him to wake up blood covering his face and shirt. The Frost sisters (Skyler Samuels) come in to check on him and he tells them about Lauren’s attack. He reveals the full extent of their psychic connection and Esme says that they need to bring Lauren in also suggesting that they can help. After they leave the sisters make it clear that they have to recruit Lauren or she has to die.

Marcos, John and Clarice arrive at the specified area to meet Erg (Michael Luwoye). Clarice is unconvinced that Erg will actually help. When he arrives he seems angered to be there and just asks where they are going. Marcos checks in with Reed before he leaves and we see him at the apartment alone. He decides to go over and investigate the music box, which he then turns on which triggers a memory. In the past we see young Reed (Christian Finlayson) finding the same music box that was hidden away by his father.

In the present we see Reed affected by the music box with his mutant power activating and him seeming to be in some pain. He pushes the music box away, which stops the tune and allows him to get control of himself. On the ground he sees the two notes that fell out of the hidden compartment in the music box.

Caitlin and Lauren have tracked down her brother Danny (Jeffrey Nordling) and Caitlin approaches him with her hair dyed and wearing a disguise. Marcos, John, Clarice and Erg head to the meeting and Erg reveals that he has been blackmailed into attending by Evangeline who knows details of all the Morlock bases. The two formed the Mutant Underground together before they were betrayed and went their separate ways.

Back in Clarice’s memories young Clarice and Lilly are outside of the house watching as their foster father angrily shouts at the other two children left in the household. Lilly refuses to leave them and begs Clarice to send her back. Lauren, Caitlin and Danny meet at the cemetery by their empty graves, they tell him about the situation and reveal that Andy is part of the recent attacks.

At the Inner Circle the Frosts give out last minute instructions to the new team before they head out, Lorna watches. Max leaves saying that they are off to kill a dragon, which Lorna realizes is a reference to Evangeline who can breathe fire and shapeshift her hands into talons. She calls Marcos and lets him know just before Andy comes to talk.

Andy comes to ask about Lorna and the Frosts’ offer. she says that you can’t force someone to believe when he asks what she might do in his place. At the apartment Reed carefully translates Andreas Von Strucker’s note while remembering things from his past. We see that his father eventually catches him with the music box. Reed is so upset by the surfacing memories he has to take a dose of his medication to stop an attack.

Lorna tries to find out more about the attack by talking to Sage (Hayley Lovitt) who shuts her down. They are then interrupted by Esme who has come to talk with Lorna. She’s not happy about the advice Lorna gave to Andy and she reiterates the fact that Reeva will likely kill anyone she sees as a threat ,including Lauren and including Lorna and Esme asks her to stay out of it.

The team heading to the Mutant Underground summit arrive in time to see the building it was to be held at in flames and body bags being brought out. John tries to track if there are any survivors but finds none. John doesn’t want to give up and asks Erg to help who flatly refuses. The two argue and tensions rise until John punches Erg who redirects the energy into an attack that sends John flying.

Lauren and Caitlin talk while waiting for Danny to arrive and Lauren learns a little more about her mother’s younger days. When Danny finally arrives he is clearly very nervous and it is eventually reveals that the meeting is an ambush. When he asks questions about Reeva Payge he was almost immediately arrested and forced to turn on his sister. They also learn that Benedict Ryan runs the Purifiers.

When Sentinel Services comes to arrest them Lauren quickly disables their vehicles and sets up a barrier to stop their gunfire as she and her mother drive away. At the Inner Circle Andy can sense that Lauren is in danger and the Frosts arrive to confirm that she just narrowly escaped capture by Sentinel Services. They use that fact to get him to agree to their plan to bring in Lauren. They also use the fact that Reed’s powers are hurting to him to prove that his family would be safest with them.

Clarice and John talk and she tells him about Lilly and we see that when Lilly went back after they escaped she was killed by their foster father. She sees the same thing in John and refuses to see it happen again. She breaks things off with him and announces that she is leaving with Erg to join the Morlocks.

As Lauren and Caitlin drive back from the ambush Lauren questions her actions while Caitlin reassures her that she was just protecting her family. They agree to not talk to Reed about how bad it was with the ambush. Marcos meets with Lorna to tell her about what happened. she tells Marcos that Reeva intends to take Lauren. At the Morlocks hideout Clarice talks with Erg who commends her on her bravery for leaving the Underground. He reassures her that her presence means everyone there is safer.

At the apartments Caitlin notices that more of the serum is gone while Reed questions how they were able to escape from Sentinel Services. John sits with the dog in his bathroom stunned from the day while we see Clarice going to sleep. We see both Andy and Lauren preparing to sleep. Andy is actually with the Frosts in his room preparing.