The Gifted
A suburban couple's ordinary lives are rocked by the sudden discovery that their children possess mutant powers. Forced to go on the run from a hostile government, the family joins up with an underground network of mutants and must fight to survive.
Callum reviewed
November 5, 2025•
⭐⭐⭐1/2 -⭐⭐⭐⭐ – The Gifted – When Family Becomes the First Battlefield
Set in the shadow of the X-Men but standing on its own two feet, The Gifted takes the mutant metaphor and turns it inward — into a family drama where powers don’t just divide the world, they divide the dinner table. What begins as parents trying to protect their children quickly becomes a story about secrets, trust, and identity. When one of the parents’ own powers are revealed after years of denial, the show pivots beautifully: if the adults can lie about who they are, why should the next generation play by their rules?
Stephen Moyer trades in his fangs from True Blood for telekinesis and trauma, proving that science fiction suits him just as much as the supernatural. Amy Acker, usually the emotional anchor in anything she touches, slips seamlessly into the sci-fi world and shows that compassion can be just as powerful as mutation. Together they ground what could’ve been a flashy power-fest into something deeply human.
This isn’t X-Men: First Class — it’s X-Men: First Crisis, the quiet war fought in kitchens and safehouses rather than stadiums. Across its two concise seasons, the show knew when to end, wrapping up before the concept wore thin. For fans of mutant lore, it’s an oblique angle on a familiar world — no costumes, no Xavier’s mansion, just people trying (and sometimes failing) to hold a family together when the world sees them as dangerous.
🥃 Pairing: A glass of red wine by candlelight — warm, tense, and reflective, best shared with the people you trust most… or the ones you’re not quite sure you do.