The Hellfire Club is Reborn in ‘The Gifted’ Season Finale

Lauren Gallaway
TV Marvel
TV Marvel

SPOILER ALERT: This post contains spoilers from The Gifted episodes “eXtraction” and “X-roads.” Proceed with caution.

The Gifted concluded its first season with a powerful two-hour finale. The first hour, “eXtraction,” sent the team on two missions: one to find Reed’s mother and one to abduct Doctor Campbell. The second episode, “X-roads,” asked each character the ultimate question: do you remain fighting with the Mutant Underground, despite its heavy losses, or do you join the well-funded yet less reputable Hellfire Club? This question ultimately split up the team, setting up an interesting mutant group rivalry for Season 2.

Team Polaris

The Gifted

Polaris has been one of the most interesting characters on The Gifted this season. Her imprisonment in the first episode showed that she was volatile, reckless and powerful. Her pregnancy added another layer to her character, making her not weaker but stronger. When the Frost sisters showed up, they reminded Polaris of her family legacy — Magneto’s legacy — in starting the Brotherhood and being a member of the Hellfire Club.

While Polaris’ loyalties had always laid with the Mutant Underground, she couldn’t allow Doctor Campbell to continue with the HOUND program. Nor could she let Senator Montez implement legislation that was anti-mutant. Instead of choosing the path of non-violence, or at least non-fatal, she tore Campbell and Montez’s plane out of the sky and decided to help rebuild the Hellfire Club.

Team Hellfire

The Gifted

Polaris then asked the Mutant Underground who wanted to go with her. The Frost sisters were already on her side. You could say they were the architects of her decision in the first place. Sage, Fade and Mark also joined, which stunned the Mutant Underground. Eclipse could have gone with Polaris — he should have gone with her — but their moral centers were not in agreement here. With Eclipse choosing to stay on the side of the X-Men and the Mutant Underground, Eclipse has lost Polaris for the time being.

Better Together

The Gifted

Andy Strucker also joined Polaris, which sent shockwaves through the Strucker family. Andy had been acting more violent lately, wanting to be more like his super mutant grandparents, the Vonstruckers. His decision spilt his family apart, which means Andy and Lauren can no longer use their powers together. It also means that all the work their parents did over the course of the season, all the loss, all the sacrifices they made, was for nothing — or at least it looks and feels that way now.

So what’s next? Season 2, which has officially been ordered by FOX, could easily feature both the Mutant Underground and the Hellfire Club. In the wake of Doctor Campbell’s presumed death and Agent Turner’s decision to lay down his badge, what bad guys will these teams face in Season 2? Will they be fighting each other, like Magneto and Professor X before them? Quite possibly.

The Gifted is on hiatus until Season 2 this fall.

Lauren Gallaway
TV editor at FANDOM. Creator of The Marvel Report. Journalist, Comic-Con reporter, Podcaster.