Now that the show is past the pilot, we are getting into the nitty gritty of what exactly this show can be – and what it can be is the most insane hour of comics television you’ll see each week.
1. Sara’s Episode
Every episode is going to be focused, more or less, on a couple of characters, and this was very much Sara’s turn for the spotlight. It gave enough background of her blood lust for folks who don’t watch Arrow, and introduced her as the incredibly gifted fighter/assassin that she is. Sara was always an odd choice for the show, but after Rip revealed his real reason for pulling each of these folks together (relatively little impact on the timeline), Sara suddenly makes a ton of sense.
Her interactions with Rip were a lot of fun this week, too, as we get to see a little more about what makes him tick. I was glad that the show didn’t go down the Sara/Rip romance rabbit hole, as that would undermine the loss of his family, and would be incredibly predictable. More on Rip in a little bit.
2. Snart’s Retcon
This show already has 500% more ‘people interacting with their younger selves’ than I anticipated before it started. I don’t hate that in general, but it can get played out pretty quickly. This week, we saw Leonard Snart talking with his childhood self about self esteem and looking out for one’s self, and it was a rare moment where Snart seemed to be something other than cold (pardon the pun).
But what the show did, in effect, was allow Snart to mellow out to a more neutral Rogue-ish level than we’ve seen so far. Snart attempted to put the fear of God into his father and, perhaps, might have forced him to spare the rod, as it were. If that’s the case, Snart’s personality might shift more towards the comics version of Captain Cold, which is a little more principled and a little less violent than the television version thus far. The show teases this a little by recalling that Rip said that these changes take time, so we may not see a sunny Snart next week, but it could be a shift that will come with time.
3. The Scientific Duo
Seeing Dr. Stein and Ray Palmer interact has been a fun twist on each character’s usual persona. Palmer is used to being both the smartest guy in the room, and lauded for his intelligence – Stein is potentially smarter and gives zero fucks about Palmer’s ego. Stein, on the other hand, is used to not being challenged on his science, and has been happy being the brain side of Firestorm – well, Palmer challenges him, and doesn’t need Jax to be a superhero.
This is a very fun pairing, and allows the show to set up some distinct moods. We have the Rogues and the Brains right now, with Jax, Sara, Rip, and Kendra all falling somewhere on that spectrum. I hope to see some more scientific piss contests that lead to stuff like microscopic men flying through a blood stream. Speaking of that…
4. Some Amazing Comic Booking
Just think about all the amazing stuff we saw in this episode: a bloodletting from Hawkman’s carotid artery, a tiny Atom vaporizing bits of dagger from Hawkgirl’s bloodstream, Captain Cold talking to Lil’ Coldie, time travel, and a joke about parachute pants. This is an unbelievable turn of events from just a few years ago. This isn’t a gritty, realistic look at superheroes in the ‘real’ world. This is insanity, and a glorious one at that.
I recognize that the level of comic book bullshit in this show will limit the potential audience, but if the show can strike a balance between the insanity we’ve seen so far and a real heart at its core, and it could be quite successful.
5. Rip’s Connection to the Past
Having Rip been unsuccessful in his first attempt to kill Vandal Savage in Ancient Egypt, and thus becoming a legend of his own among Savage’s brethren, is a fun idea, and a logical one, too. Of course he would attempt to go back to before Savage was immortal to try and kill him. It also makes Rip seem even less like a man with a perfect plan, and allows him to show everyone that he is flying by the seat of his pants a little more.
Overall, this was a strong episode, and a shift out of the 70s is a welcome change of pace for next week. What did you think? Tell us in the comments!
