Constantine got the spotlight on this week’s Legends of Tomorrow, as a trip to New Orleans in 1856 reawakened some painful memories. Plus, Mona got herself into a Beauty and the Beast situation (but not with Gary), while the rest of the team had to deal with a doll possessed by the soul of a serial killer… oh hell no indeed.
1. Guest Starring Pee-Wee
I didn’t realize Paul Reubens was voicing the killer doll(s) in this episode, which was a serial killer dubbed Mike the Spike whose soul was so dreadful that it was unable to pass to the other side and became a dybbuk. Perhaps I should’ve been able to tell it was him, given how high Mike’s voice was, but in any case, it was fun hearing him shriek lines like “Wrong doll ya dick!” I thought it was a shame Victor Garber didn’t come back when Mike possessed the Martin Stein doll Leo Snart made last year, but it would’ve been weird if the doll’s voice had changed given, well, dolls don’t talk, and having Reubens was cool on its own.
I wasn’t actually freaked out by the murderous doll, but speaking as someone who was freaked out by promotional images for Bride of Chucky alone as a kid, I imagine it must’ve been rather intense for younger viewers. I was personally wondering how they hid the wires, as CG wire removal must be expensive right?
2. Bad Romance
(No, Caity Lotz was not in that Lady Gaga video, stop asking me.)
Love was definitely in the air this week, between the reveal of what happened to Constantine, and Mona realizing she has feelings for the Kaupe under her care (what? You never seen Gargoyles?). It leads a very amusing (if rather contrived) sequence where she asks Nate for romantic advice, who assumes she’s talking about Gary, who’s rather enamored with her. I can’t get past the fact that she asked “What about the man meat?,” and he thought she was talking about Gary being bi. On that note, I liked that Nate called out some of Gary’s creepier comments and behavior, which is one step closer to letting me truly love the character.
Anyway, Mona discovers the fugitives are already being taken away for experimentation: one of the agents happens to be a jerk who opened his car door into her, an early sign he wasn’t one for empathy, and that her job is being undermined. She tries to stop them, only to receive a slash from her hairy friend along with the others as he escapes. No one said true love would be easy – maybe Constantine will whip up a potion to truly tame him later in the season?
3. Namecalling
Mick’s still using the Book of Brigid to bring to life his triple-breasted warrior queen Garima to life – as he later tells Sara, if she can date a clone, why can’t he have a fake girlfriend? Sara’s attempts to build bridges between Ava and Mick with an early roasted Christmas dinner falters, but fortunately the killer reminds them that despite their differences, the two are ultimately allies who help each other out, especially when one’s had their leg slashed (yikes). I also love Ava doesn’t get too mad at Sara for trying to get her to like Mick more, we’re all adults here.
4. Oops
We learned from this episode that Constantine fell in love with a bartender named Desmond, or “Dez” (Supernatural‘s Christian Keyes). Neron, the demon who owns Constantine’s soul, wanted his help overthrowing the triumvirate ruling Hell. Dez, who possesses the medallion of Saint Marron, bound his soul to Neron instead, but was dragged to Hell with Neron when Constantine summoned the strength to drive him out. I must say, despite the doomed romance, it was cool seeing Constantine actually be bi for once.
So in 1856, Constantine is detected by Dez’s great-great-grandmother, the Priestess Laveau, who implores him to change history and save the last of her bloodline. Despite Zari’s objections, Charlie encourages him to go back in time to break up with Dez before everything went to Hell (no pun intended), as it’ll mean Constantine never traps her in Amaya’s form. Turns out, Charlie’s shapeshifting was key to her immortality, and without it she fears growing old and dying like everyone else, which Zari chides her for. Constantine breaks his history, suspending everyone in time, except Charlie and Zari, who took the jumpship to stop him. Charlie regains her powers (although she clearly likes Amaya, going with her as her default now), but Zari gets turned into a cat. (I’m guessing in this new timeline, Zari’s parents bought a cat instead.) Oh blimey indeed.
Continued below5. Technically Speaking
Director April Mullen did some pretty fresh things in the episode, like using handheld cameras to follow characters as they entered rooms to drive up the suspense – there was also the excellent cut where Gary got lost daydreaming after Nate after mentioned his trigger word “high school.” I also felt for the first time that the characters were in New Orleans, rather on a set, despite the brief time spent there, which was fantastic, as was the sly gag of mournful funeral music emerging as Constantine shrugged about not wanting to not talk about his past. And then there’s the doozy of the show’s ending: the Legends are suspended fighting the Stein doll, frozen as a result of Constantine breaking the timeline, as the camera moves around. It’s arguably more impressive than the similar shot from season 1’s “Last Refuge,” as the CG is far less obvious.
Bonus thoughts:
– I have no comment whatsoever on Ray’s mustache or the dreadful puns it left in its wake.
– I agree with Ray, why is there a serial killer quiz on this cereal box? A nod to the cereal convention in “The Sandman” perhaps?
– Saint Marron seems to be fictitious, but funnily enough my family are Maronite Catholics.
– Neron was an obscure comics demon created by Mark Waid and Howard Porter in 1995: it’s nice to have another big bad from the comics again.
– What do you mean next week is the mid-season finale?!
