This week on Legends of Tomorrow (S7E9), the former Waverider crew returned to the Manor Dimension to hide from Evil Gideon, and figure out their next step — at least, that was the plan until the Cursed Crew, a group of reality TV filmmakers who sold their souls to the demon producer Harris Ledes (Giles Panton), turned up, and began manipulating the gang against each other for ratings. Oh my God, are the Legends getting back at us?
1. I Needed This
Things had gotten a little serious on Legends lately: that’s not to say it had become less surreal, or was taking itself as seriously as it did in season one, but between Constantine’s machinations in the latter half of season six, and the crew being stranded this season, it was harder to just enjoy it as a comedy ride. That wasn’t the case here: this was, hands down, the funniest episode since “This is Gus” (another Behrad episode, which we’ll talk about more in a sec), and one of the funniest episodes of the series, full stop. The laughs really started with the escalation of everyone walking in and discovering Gary and Gideon in bed, and just kept coming as they transformed into the most annoying versions of themselves, while the reality TV style cinematography made it feel — more than ever — like the superhero version of The Office or Modern Family. (Three words: pixelated nudist Spooner.)
2. What is That Noise?
I don’t watch reality TV shows, honest (I’ve barely enough time to watch the shows I actually want to), but living on the Internet (and, OK, an occasionally wasted youth) means I’ve seen enough in the form of gifs and memes to know the production crew did a really great job of mimicking how these shows wring tension from every last argument, with the most insufferable music and sound effects. I have to applaud the show’s whole crew for pulling off the recreation of that, which made everything feel so much more dramatic and stressful than it actually is — no wonder this garbage is so addictive, you don’t need to invest in what’s actually happening onscreen, you just let the music tell you how to feel from all the slack-jawed expressions.
3. How Versatile is This Cast?
During the scene where Zari and Nate get into an argument over his comment that he would never find her as attractive as “Flannel Zari,” it just struck me how amazing it is that these are the same actors, yet they have a completely different chemistry than they do when they’re filming scenes with the original Zari. I then realized how much I’ve taken for granted that the Legends cast can portray so many different characters, or different versions of characters, as they did last week, or this week: sure, there are times when you notice intentional similarities, like when Gideon becomes almost as ruthless as her evil duplicate here, but they never ever make me feel like I’m watching the wrong Zari, or Sara, or Ava. They’re like an improv theater group: one moment they’re lovers, the next they can be enemies — they’re a truly talented and underrated bunch.
4. Behrad’s Big Break
As mentioned earlier, if this can be called anyone’s story, it’s Behrad’s, with his truly touching confession at the end that he became the chill, marijuana-addicted bro we all know and love because of his sister’s reality show, which exploited his emotional childhood moments, leading him to choose to repress his emotions. It’s a fantastic turn that adds so much depth to the character, making him more than another Ray; it’s understandable that what Behrad precisely adds to the series was always a major question mark, given the retroactive nature of his introduction, but it’s so good it’s finally been answered. It’s makes sense that he’s gonna take his relationship with Astra slowly now as well, given how gung ho he was about asking her out at the start of the episode: that was the old Behrad, pretending he wasn’t nervous about getting involved with a former denizen of Hell.
5. Gideon, Really?
After being manipulated by the similarly influenced Gideon, Gwyn proposes to Sara that they not just prevent the death of his beloved Alun, but everyone who died in World War I, by stopping the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand. However, at the end of the episode, Gideon states this is actually a good idea, and it takes a moment for the Legends to realize she’s not joking: why though? I’m sure any historian could tell you World War I was inevitable, and that Ferdinand’s death was just the trigger, as Europe was already locked into a series of pro and anti-Austrian alliances. Guess we’ll just have to wait to find out!
Continued belowBonus Thoughts:
– Like Behrad’s storyline, Sara admitting she’s experiencing burnout is another great reminder from this show that it’s OK to not to be OK. Speaking of Sara, her reality show persona was basically who she would’ve become if she had never hopped on that boat with Oliver.
– I’m ashamed to admit it took me this long to realize Gwyn’s religious comments were being censored because it was a show produced for viewers in Hell.
– I think it’s low-key funny that opening a window in Hell causes the temperature to rise, when usually it causes a breeze.
– Big props to the make-up team for remembering Gary’s third nipple.
– New title card! That’s definitely going to be a thing on a Legends drinking game…
Alright, I guess we’re heading to Sarajevo in “The Fixed Point” next week — see you all then, and remember to avoid any trashy TV in the meantime.
