Tala Ashe as Zari. Photo courtesy of DC Legends TV.
Please Keep In Mind That This Article Contains Spoilers For “Here We Go Again” and Events That Occurred Prior.
I’m surprised it took Legends Of Tomorrow this long to do a Groundhog Day episode. There’s just something about the formula that no matter how many times you see it throughout various types of media, it can still be just as fresh when a different band of characters is involved. This time around we got to have fun with our team of Legends, with the episode giving Zari a luminous spotlight. The result? Well the result was a pretty fun and enjoyable ride, that provided strong character growth for our cast.
Having the episode revolve around Zari was fantastic. Thanks to that decision, she got some extremely strong character development, and she now feels on par with the rest of the crew. Her journey this episode was really quite amazing. She went from declaring that her spot on the team was temporary, to reluctantly learning about the other Legends, to finally finish it all off with self sacrifice. That’s not even mentioning the darkest part where she actually pulled the trigger on a pistol that she had held to her head. The fact that all of this development didn’t feel rushed or forced is a testament to the writers.
Even with how strong the episode was, I can’t help but feel just a tad shorted that the whole thing was a dream. Zari’s development remains intact, but the moments she shared with the rest of the team (particularly the last self sacrificing one) are moot. I know they tried to make up for this by having her go around to each member at the end, but it doesn’t give the same impact. On the plus side we got to see Gideon personified as a person, which was an odd sensation to watch.
Amy Louise Pemberton as Gideon (left) and Tala Ashe as Zari (right). Photo courtesy of DC Legends TV.
Real or not though, we got some really fun moments with the crew. All of the montage scenes with Zari messing around were great. My personal favorite was her holding up cards behind Mick and Ray’s conversation, which I actually laughed out loud at. On top of the fun, we got to learn a little bit more about each person on the ship. From Mick’s novel writing, to a further exploration of Sara and Ava, as well as Nate and Amaya being unable to keep their hands off each other. Each character got some strong moments, even if the spotlight was always on Zari.
When it came to interacting with the crew, Zari’s dynamic duo with Nate was a blast, and it was a joy to see him fairly instantly embrace her Groundhog Day situation. I always like when shows force new pairings, as it freshens things up, and this is a great example. Having Nate work with Zari (and being the only one to believe her for awhile) was a clever direction to go. Even though those interactions never really happened, I do hope that we see Nate and Zari bounce off of each other more often in the future.
If the episode had any big flaw, it was the fact that we were provided with yet another episode completely unrelated to the overall storyline with Mallus. Especially after last week’s episode, it’s a shame that such strong momentum was hampered. I know we still got a fantastic episode that not only built upon Zari as a character (while also adding layers to everyone else), but I feel like the show should be focusing on Mallus more than they are.
Pictured (L-R): Nick Zano as Nate Heywood/Steel, Maisie Richardson-Sellers as Amaya Jiwe/Vixen, Brandon Routh as Ray Palmer/Atom and Caity Lotz as Sara Lance/White Canary. Photo courtesy of DC Legends TV.
Legends provided us with an episode that was a blast, while delivering some strong emotional beats and character growth. While Mallus mainly was in the back of everyone’s thoughts, Ray’s Constantine secret was revealed and Rip has escaped to get Wally’s help. With Zari committed to the team, and Sara more understanding of her, the team is in strong form. Hopefully another confrontation with Mallus will be happening sooner rather than later!
What did you guys think of the episode? Be sure to leave your thoughts in the comments down below!
Bonus Notes:
- Zari building a tolerance to the sedatives isn’t how that works. But, insert dream sequence explanation here.
- Under no circumstance would Nate suggest a fun & games montage instead of continuing to try and save the ship. But since it provided some good laughs, and it was all a dream anyways, I’ll let it slide.
- That Hawkgirl helmet was a nice call back and all, but man…I don’t miss her one bit.
- I’m glad Gideon felt the need to include Gary in her simulation.
- I’ve always thought Rip Hunter is one of the weakest characters the show currently has, so I’m not too excited about his return.
You can catch new episodes of DC’s Legends of Tomorrow when they air on The CW network every Monday at 8pm EST
I still think the show could be more serious. I also think some of the characters actions (especially in the show after this one) are completely nonsensical at times.
I want the show to be successful, but I think they really need to do something big but subtle–and the personification of Gideon was a good example of what I mean.
I mean I think that Legends of Tomorrow, even with its flaws, is currently the best CW show airing (something I thought I’d never hear myself say). So to me it’s already much more successful than it was starting out. It’s done a good job making a name for itself.