“Ok, fine yeah whatever, I’ll do it”- Captain Cold
Right out of the gate, Episode 2 started with good action that seemed well choreographed and almost cinematic. Flat-out enjoyable moments is what this show is going to need to excel right away, at least before we get into the thick of the story. That opening scene of the nuclear weapon auction was a very fun moment. It even gave us a bit of a spoiler with the inclusion of a certain ARROW big bad. Not to jump the gun here, but I couldn’t help but wonder if that will lead us to the idea that he may be immortal as well.
This scene also really gave individualized moments for certain characters to shine, including Dr. Stein and the Rouges. This week was another episode where I was extremely impressed with the Rouges. Wentworth Miller continues to have delivery where he seems like a true blue supervillain, but with a small sense of compassion. We were even exposed to the idea of him actually caring about his teammates, be them heroes or not. His line, “I remember, I just don’t care” and his scene with Ray when they discussed the concepts of heroes/criminals and being a survivor really stuck out to me. Both examples of how this show will be able to bring out so much more in these characters we’ve already seen. Speaking of Ray Palmer, how cool was the moment where his suit was the size of an action figure? That was a great job of making this superhero unique from a certain shrinking character pop culture was recently exposed to.
Once this episode continued on, it slowly calmed down but it strayed away from the introductory feeling of episode 1. We won’t be presented with the final standoff with Savage right away. So why not be given short term stories and problems, which will lead to character progression and the bigger problems? That idea was exactly what this episode was. Losing Ray’s tech at the nuclear weapon auction may not have been a season long problem but it was the right one for just Episode 2. It gave us room for good moments, and most importantly fun moments. I don’t know how parents might take pot humor, but I thought it was hilarious.
Let’s go ahead and jump right to the big issue here. Episode 2 and we already have a certain winged cast member dead. If this show can continue to share the character spotlight, I think the stories centric to Hawkman and Hawkgirl will be essential to this show. I didn’t really enjoy the idea of Dr. Aldus being the couple’s son. It just didn’t seem essential. But Hawkman dying and the mythos behind the dagger will advance things forward. It’s going to give everyone motivation, especially Hawkgirl. But it will also change how we see Vandal Savage. He now knows someone or in our case, a team, is out to get him. But even more important, the team is capable of killing him. I would like to see more of Vandal’s obsession with Hawkgirl, it would bring out more of who he is besides an immortal warlord.
Although it wasn’t an impossible task or final standoff battle, it was still a good episode. There was solid action. There were fun moments including a bong knock-out but first and foremost, our characters progressed. They kicked a little ass, had inner conflict (Stein questioning himself) and exterior conflict (the missing tech) and mourned the loss of a teammate. As the episodes go on, I fully expect them to dig deeper into each other and the threat of Vandal Savage.
Hopefully we dig further into the DC universe as well! What did you think about Episode 2? Comment below.
Written by Mark Storey, LEGENDS OF TOMORROW Beat Writer
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