DC's Legends Of Tomorrow: Season 7

This episode was a bad episode to come back from break from. I was a little confused at first. I also didn't like the dark ending. I don't respond to that.

Hopefully things will be better when we are with the real Legends next week. **1/2.

That was NOT a good episode at all but the very end made me totally forgive that fact. The best part about the crazy plan is that Gideon is serious. Next week is gonna be awesome.

Did I mention this week wasn't great? Because the characters weren't actually responsible for their own actions, it felt very low-stakes, and as if we were burning through an episode on reality show nonsense. The show does this a lot, and I don't like it.

I really like Behrad's description of how much it sucked growing up on a reality show. Behrad is cool and likable, and probably the most problematic character on the entire show. You could argue he's the most problematic character in the entire Arrowverse and I wouldn't put up too much of a fight. We actually know nothing about him. The conceit is the characters do and trust him, and that's supposedly good enough. It's good enough to trust him, but to know him? Without an origin or a hint of how he joined the team or what he role was supposed to be? Behrad is a very much unfinished character, and they can never quite figure out what to do with him. Case in point, the reality show confession was a very keen insight into the character. And then the show turns it into a confession of attraction to Astra, turning his feelings and his arc into about someone else. And there is nothing we know about Behrad himself. He is designed solely for the other characters to react to. The fact that he is so chill, bland, and vanilla is an intriguing part of that, but it doesn't stop him from not resonating with me entirely on his own. That's a problem, and even if I don't object to the romance with Astra, I didn't like it stepping on his moment of admitting his frustration in a lack of identity. Him having a lack of identity is his entire problem for me as an audience member. I don't want to attach Astra to that until the show has a better handle on it. I approve of him wanting to take it slow for that reason.

All in all, that episode was vaguely annoying. Until we get to Gideon's wacky plan to save Arch-Duke Ferdinand and prevent World War I. Are we crazy yet? Because I'm there for it. **1/2.

This episode made me a believer.

Honestly, this is one of the best premises the show has ever come up with. What's interesting to me is that I was dying to see this week based on how last week ended. But I never predicted it would be this great. And I certainly never predicted it would be this great for the reasons it was. There were surface things in the episode I didn't like, but unlike most weeks they worked out like gangbusters.

When I saw Zari and Spooner get together I was like, "This is going to be this show at its most insufferable, and turn Spooner into a gossipy sidekick for Zari because that's how nonsense on this show actually works." In reality, Zari finds out and realizes Spooner is asexual, which is very rare for any kind of television, and she explains to Spooner what the notion is, and Spooner bonds with her because she realizes she's not crazy and unusual after all. And I like that.

Similarly, Gwyn both annoys me and breaks my heart with his religious fundamentalism. The thing that breaks my heart is the fact that unlike almost every hypocritical fundamentalist who is gay and refuses to admit it, Gwyn takes penance for his feelings very seriously. He's actually worried about what God thinks instead of worrying about what his religious community would think. I'm not for a second suggesting there would be less gay fundamentalists if they behaved like Gwyn. I will suggest there would be a lot more self-denial and celibacy if those gay fundamentalists weren't just paying lip-service to God and weren't actually total hypocrites in their words and actions.

Thanwne shocked me, but he shouldn't have, because I heard Matt Lescher was coming back. But his role as a redeemed good guy surprised me, and impressed me that the Thawne on this specific tangent has gained enough wisdom to want to do the right thing by time, and protect it instead of mess with it. It's rewarding to me as a viewer who watched and enjoyed Lescher on this show, and is getting increasingly frustrated and disgusted with how The Flash uses Tom Cavanaugh's version on that show. It's precisely the fact that that version and that show have gotten so off-the-rails that I appreciate this show taking a different tack with the actor they are loyal to. And yeah, it's way more interesting.

The Fixed Point bar reminds me of the way station Sam Beckett visited in the last episode of Quantum Leap "Mirror Image". A way-station bar for time-travelers is a great idea, and I like the idea that a popular spot involves the most intractable fixed point of all. And I like that Sarah is allowed to try over and over again because she can't be killed. And I'm thinking that an Immortal time traveler like say, Vandal Savage might have had an easier assignment in breaking the fixed point than everybody else here. As it was, both her inability to die, and the clockstopper Maguffin, give her an edge nobody else has. Even by the end the snotty kids are rooting for her too. It felt weirdly empowering, especially figuring out it's not Time killing people, but a person. It's a really cool idea.

If the show was this every week I'd never complain about it. And I seem to recall the show was often like this in Season 3, its best season. But it's been awhile since it has been that thoroughly enjoyable. I missed loving this show, and while I'm not foolish enough to expect it every week past this going forward, I did enjoy feeling that way for this episode. *****.

"Mom." Gideon was TOO cute in the episode. That ending struck me as almost preordained.

Speaking of which, I liked how Nate tricked Robot Nate into putting on the time loop bracelet. I'm a little sad they killed off Thawne but his death scene was pretty good.

Matt Ryan is incredibly good as Gwyn. It's an entirely different type of character than Constantine, and it's very cool that he's very good at not only playing him, but playing him entirely differently.

I thought the massacre of the time travelers at the beginning was too dark. The show stopped being fun in that moment.

Spooner tricking Evil Gary was pretty funny.

Good episode. Gonna be a rough three weeks. Poor Gideon. ****.

It wasn't actually bad but I didn't respond to it. Mostly because the sensibility was structured as a series finale / penultimate episode, and I know the show is actually continuing, which makes that idea annoying instead of moving. And if this HAD been the second to last episode, I would have been annoyed because this season's arc has been utterly underwhelming when all is said and done.

Technically not a bad episode. But it hit me wrong anyways. **1/2.

I already liked Mike and it turns out he's Booster Gold. Well played.

I guess Nick Zano is off the show now.

That cliffhanger is pretty much this show daring the CW to cancel it, knowing fans would go into conniptions. Shows on the bubble doing that often don't get renewed. I think perhaps the show doing this will wind up more Fringe than Veronica Mars. I think we will get another season. Well see.

The war footage was startlingly relevant. I've noticed that about a lot of stuff I've recently watched.

Solid ending to the season. Hopefully it's not the ending to the series. ****.