The Legends are stranded in 1975.
The first episode of DC’s Legends of Tomorrow was an enjoyable experience, even if it was clear the latest addition to The CW’s DC lineup had some room to improve. What surprised me most about the second part of the pilot is just how quickly the show is moving to address those early flaws. If you weren’t already sold on this new series, this week’s episode should clinch the deal.
It definitely helps that “Pilot, Part 1” got most of the early setup and exposition out of the way. This follow-up chapter had more room to dig into thew newly assembled team and exploit the time-travel premise to its full potential. The scale of this adventure was a bit smaller in the sense that the Legends spent the entire episode stuck in 1975. No futuristic sci-fi warfare this week. Even so, there was plenty of spectacle to be had thanks to two flashy battle sequences that book-ended the conflict. The first battle sequence this week was especially impressive, what with all the panning and slow-mo fighting and energy blasts. Director Glen Winter deserves a lot of credit for giving these first two episodes a cinematic, Hollywood-caliber vibe.
That spectacle was all well and good, but as with The Flash and Arrow, it’s the character dynamics that are the real meat of the show. The first episode hit on the crucial element that’s going to distinguish Legends of Tomorrow from its sister series. This isn’t a team of heroes. It’s a group of miscreants and losers that are doomed to be forgotten after they die. Every character on the show is lonely and emotionally damaged in some way. This episode was great about exploiting that element and playing these characters against one another in both comedic and dramatic ways. Arthur Darvill’s Rip Hunter played a very small role compared to the premiere, but the rest of the group had plenty of time to shine.
