Legends of Tomorrow Pits a Dark Gideon Against Dark Legends

| November 24, 2021 |

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Matt Ryan as Dr. Gwyn Davies in Legends of Tomorrow Season 7 Episode 7 — *Photograph: Michael Courtney/The CW*

This DC'south Legends of Tomorrow review contains spoilers.

I don't know that whatever DC prove has e'er had the kind of run that Legends of Tomorrow is on. We've reached the midseason finale, at about the midpoint of an odd season – going by COVID-adjusted production and air schedules, this feels more like a flavour half dozen.v, even if season seven has its own singled-out identity and vibe. Just at this bespeak in the season, information technology's incredible that not only have nosotros not had a bad episode, nosotros haven't even had a mediocre one.

The by month of Legends episodes have been amongst the strongest this testify has e'er put on, bookended past the perfect 100th episode and now the all-time midseason finale this show has e'er aired. And it's all because of the amazing chemistry the bandage has.

There are two moments that actually stand up out. "A Woman'south Place is in the State of war Effort" takes the Legends to an American aerospace factory during World War II. The men are all off fighting the war, and so the factory is trying to meet its product schedule by hiring a ton of women, but the factory flooring is segregated by a giant asshole of a boss, setting up a payoff to Astra's season long bubbling rage at early century racism. The women of the Legends go to work at the mill as an excuse to steal materials to repair their time car (busted by Bishop's toilet meteor) and get home. InstaZari is the just one to stay behind in the House of Secrets, changing places with her counterpart in the totem and working with Behrad to teach Nate Persian customs (by using Bishop to demonstrate hospitality) so Nate will fit in ameliorate in the totem.

The starting time moment that clicks is when everyone comes dorsum to the Business firm for dinner and sees Bishop roaming freely. Sara gets mad until Behrad explains what they're up to. She waves a finger in his face and tells him "you lot're lucky I love y'all guys," and the joy radiating from the show was palpable. This cast so patently enjoys each other that you tin't help but feel it. Every interaction feels effortless and truthful. That moment felt so much similar the pinnacle of this bear witness'south potential – it's Parks & Recreation with superheroes, a testify about nice people who like each other being nice to each other, with chemistry that leaps off the screen.

And speaking of chemistry, Behrad and Astra were electric. I couldn't take notes during their scene after in the episode. Astra freezes the manufacturing plant boss in a moment of rage at his bigotry, and she and Gideon use his "approved" stamp to imitate him. In true Legends fashion, they immediately hand power to the workers, dropping a proposition box on the middle of the shop floor then blessing basically every suggestion that comes beyond the desk. That includes integrating the factory, which leads to the only blemish on the episode (more on that in a 2nd), and forces the much smaller integrated staff to hustle to go their plane built in time.

Behrad, frustrated that Bishop is taking advantage of him, brings dejeuner to Astra in the role and they each share their stress and immediately go the well-nigh magnetic straight couple this show has ever shipped. She knows exactly who he is and explains him perfectly, and he knows exactly what she needs to hear and gives it to her, and their long look at each other at the end of that scene tells me the cast and crew know exactly how good they are together. I tin't wait for this show to come dorsum so we can become more from them.

The bear witness'southward lone disappointing scene was the argument about progress betwixt Astra and the janitorial supervisor near the pace of progress. The supervisor argues for "slow, sustainable" change, pushing back against Astra integrating the shop, while Astra pushes back proverb "when someone stabs a knife nine inches into your back, pulling it out 6 inches isn't progress." That's a terrific metaphor, but a heady topic for this show to tackle in and then petty fourth dimension, especially when we're living in the opening act of what William Gibson called "The Jackpot" – the moment in human history when all our systems simultaneously degraded to the point of plummet. Arguing nigh the pace of change is kind of moot.

That said, the show just kind of jumps by information technology. Integrating the factory is enough of a change to trigger Evil Gideon to send in a squad to take them down. The Legends get away with the help of Bishop, who sacrifices himself to buy them fourth dimension to get away. And we notice out at the very end that the squad attacking the Legends is actually a crew of alternate Legends.

This was a fun twist at the end of an excellent episode, which capped the strongest half-flavour Legends of Tomorrow has ever had. I hope the break doesn't kill the show's momentum, because we're in the middle of something really special here.