Logan presented fans with the idea Professor X’s mind could be a Weapon of Mass Destruction. In previous X-Men films, Professor X’s powers saved the world… but not in Logan.
Aging and what appears to be dementia make it hard for Charles to control his powers -- so much so that Wolverine and Caliban have him locked up in a water tank munching down on pills all day. Just like a senile old man, Charles doesn’t like taking his pills, which is why Wolverine wants to move to the middle of the ocean and live on a boat until both of their deaths. That’s the only way a catastrophic event like the Westchester Incident can be prevented -- the day when Charles accidently killed seven X-Men, and possibly more mutant students at his school for the gifted in Westchester, New York. Hundreds of people were also temporarily paralyzed.
Charles doesn’t remember the Westchester Incident -- not until something similar happens again at a casino when Donald Pierce attempts to kidnap X-23. Charles saves her by having a seizure, which puts everyone in the area in excruciating statis--except for Wolverine and X-23, who aren’t affected as badly, which explains how Wolverine survived the Westchester Incident. After this second time, Charles realizes he did something unspeakable a year ago and understands why Wolverine has him locked away.
None of this was exclipictly shown in the film. In fact, Director James Mangold and Screenwriter Michael Green chose to omit flashbacks of the Westchester incident. And for good reason--the obscurity makes us imagine the emotional depth of the incident, rather than the terrifying reality. The figurative deaths are a lot harder to deal with because we’re forced to paint that bloody picture ourselves. We have to deal with both Wolverine and Professor X’s death in Logan and thank god Mangold didn’t make us actually watch the remaining X-Men die too.
What did you think happened in the Westchester Incident and were you happy there was no flashback? Let us know in the comments below. To read about how the Westchester Incident is connected to the comics, check out or list of Logan easter eggs.
