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Sci-fi books being adapted for the small screen often result in numerous changes being made to the story. The shift in medium makes these alterations necessary. That being said, sometimes live-action adaptations diverge from the source material to keep viewers on their toes. After all, a not insignificant number of viewers will have already read the book(s). I can understand this urge to keep fans guessing, but it can definitely be met with resistance when certain episodes air.
That's exactly what happened when Apple TV altered one of Isaac Asimov's biggest twists during Foundation Season 3's finale. When Bayta Mallow (Synnøve Karlsen) was revealed to be the Mule, rather than Magnifico Giganticus (Tómas Lemarquis), those familiar with the literary version of Asimov's space opera were caught very off-guard. It was a notably different version of the twist from the books, made more prominent by the tease throughout Foundation Season 3 that the original reveal would be honored. Regardless, it's done now, and part of the show's canon. The divisive writing decision has left an interesting loose end, though.
I Wonder How 'Foundation' Season 4 Will Use Magnifico After the Altered Mule Twist
As mentioned before, Foundation Season 3 very strongly teased that Magnifico, as in the books, would turn out to be the real Mule. Despite Pilou Asbæk's character being thrust front-and-center as Asimov's fearsome Mentalic, those who had read the books felt confident that his clown was the one in control, pulling his former master's strings with powerful psychic abilities. Nope. The show had other ideas. It turns out Bayta was the Mule, controlling both Magnifico and whoever Asbæk was actually playing. The Fake Mule was killed by Gaal (Lou Llobell), but Magnifico survived the events of Season 3.
Foundation Season 4 won't open with a time jump, so the series won't be able to fast-forward to an era where Magnifico is long dead.
So...what's next for Magnifico? Asimov's original twist meant Magnifico revealing himself as the Mule, and then going on to commit more acts of villainy. Because Lemarquis' version of the character is nothing but the obsequious clown that the Mule is merely pretending to be in the books, the two are entirely separate from one another. Bayta has taken his role in the live-action adaptation. Therefore, whatever Magnifico does next is uncharted territory for Foundation. He was never intended to be an actual, standalone character. As such, there's no way to accurately predict his next move or if he'll even continue to be involved in Foundation Season 4.
Could Apple TV's Magnifico Still Be the Mule?
This is something I've found myself wondering lately. The last we saw of Lemarquis' character, he was playing his visi-sonor, but the music being performed appeared to be disarming Bayta. Gaal tells her: "He only plays my song now," quietly explaining that Magnifico had been "tampered" with so that he was no longer under Bayta's control. The thing is, if Bayta really is the Mule, then I'm not convinced the visi-sonor would be enough to take her down. The Mule has already been established as immensely powerful. Because of how much Magnifico’s visi-sonor affects her, I think it's very possible that she's just the latest front for the Mule's mind games and his desire to remain hidden in plain sight.
In other words, my theory is that Magnifico is the Mule, as in Asimov's work. With Pilou Asbæk's character out of the picture, perhaps Magnifico needed to deflect attention from himself, and so simply started controlling Bayta instead, creating another false Mule. I'm not claiming that this is definitely the case, but I think there's enough evidence there for it to be a legitimate possibility. If not, then maybe Magnifico will just become Gaal's mild-mannered, musical henchman in Season 4. Either way, there have already been enough changes to the source material that Foundation's course has once again been altered forever.
