Sunday, March 6, 2016

Legends of Tomorrow - Episode 4/5/6 - Podcast Research

 
Episode 4
 
I like this show. It's campy and it moves quickly enough to keep you from over thinking it's missing plot points and poor application of time travel physics. It just wants to have fun this one and not have to think to much. Brandon Routh is totally childlike as The Atom and sees everything around him with wide eyed enthusiasm. Some of the best comedy on the show is generated by his interactions with the Rogues who hate his kind of hopeful cheery nature. They of course will only sneer at him and make some remark but would never dream of slapping him in the head. This is not that kind of show.

Unlike Arrow and The Flash, Legends of Tomorrow is less serious, with less filler and more humor than the other two shows. It's got a nice combination of characters who are having time travelling adventures. I wish for more time travel but that is just me. Maybe they can gather up a caveman army to fight Vandal Savage one on one.

The effects are still impressive. The crash of the Waverider was a nice touch and gives me hope that they will be fighting Nazi Super Robots or the future and that would look terrific. Of course riding Nazi T-Rexes is out of the question until at least season two. After all, this show doesn't have an unlimited production budget.

Having access to history gives the team a significant advantage and I like the way each episodes is like an episode of Mission Impossible, especially if they uses their future intel to pull of an Ocean's Eleven type of highly organized heist. Those are fun scenes to watch fall apart. I now look for the moment when it all turns to crap....until later in the episode or the next episode. Many cliffhangers here and I am glad I saved up several episodes to watch at the same time because I found at the end of one, I needed to see what happened next.

There is a plan for everything until the plan falls apart or Hawkgirl goes loopy. Why do NONE of their schemes or plans ever work out the first time? They usually need two or three tries before they get things to go their way.

Rip is playing his version of Dr Who which makes sense since the actor playing Rip also played Rory on Dr Who. In some strange way it grounds this show in it's own kind of reality. Every character is outrageous and a bit over the top but the mix of heroes and personalities is good. I don't need things to get more complicated than that.

Rip of course has the Time Masters to deal with but for now they are letting him do his thing for some reason. They are giving him a chance to stop Rip but they seem to ignore him and let them run wild because sometimes a wild card will win you the hand and the game.

The fact that they deal with him like this by giving him an offer to turn himself in shows that he is very important to them and to the future. They just aren't going to make it easy for our team. It's the illusion of control as opposed to actually control. Of course they know that an attempt on Rip's life would fail yet they allowed it to occur anyway speaks volumes about these so-called Masters of Time. Bah! A good time paradox is the way around any kind of 'master' to stop. The Butterfly Effect only with Time.


How could Snart NOT sleep with the slinky Russian. Oh yeh, he needed to steal her ID and wallet. I like that running gag. It happens twice in this episode alone. I like Snart picking the pocketbooks of women he encounters with his greasy charm. He should do it every episode until it's eventually done to him. Now THAT is the woman for Captain Cold.


I have to admit that podcasting about this show has got me into watching it and finding that I really enjoy it. It's a fun live action comic book show with little of the filler that slows down both Arrow and The Flash for me. Plus I am currently podcasting about this show so I am getting extra special into it.

Episode Five

Why does every male character have to have his shirt off in this episode? Damn Hollywood trainers and these pretty boy actors. I could be a GOD with such advantages. Well and effort, which I am not prepared to put in now that I am elderly.

  
I like the jokes Wentworth Millar makes about breaking into a buildings. But the REAL great line we have all been waiting for was this one.

"This isn't my first prison break'. - Wentworth Millar

If you get that reference then you truly are my people.

Brandon Routh still cracks me up. Cheerfully walking into the gulag cell and getting himself beat up while Mick is distracted by fire.

Rip also took some punches to get answers and help from the Russian mob. How do men fight in a sauna without their towels falling off? Because once the man I am fighting is naked I will stop fighting because, well, nudity is a deal breaker in any fight. If our dicks touch that would be worse than a punch in the face.

I like how the whole Atom armor can be transported like an action figure in a box. To bad we didn't get to see it in action. No revenge for Atom on these Russians unless getting out alive is reward enough this time.

I enjoyed how Jax sent a message to Professor Stein by cutting it into this arm. You can only do that a few times, however. I suspect the future timeship will use it's advance medical bay to fix those wounds and scar tissue.

I like the way the Atom and the Rogues are growing to like and even respect each other. It's a little thing but team building is something this show works very hard at doing. I think they are getting more successful with each episode. I would love to see them wear the same outfits like the X-men in a future episode. There can be a one off reason for the outfits but I want to see it. What if they fought Savage UNDER THE SEA??

Victor Garber plays it straight up. He is such a valuable genre actor since Alias.

OOOOOO I like the idea of a female Firestorm. The battle against her was epic. I wanted to see her last a big longer than she did.


Rip Hunter gets some revenge on Savage - nothing permanent however but nice to see that we can still hurt Savage and that he maybe CAN be stopped if they just mess with his evil schemes enough times. Throw Savage off his game to the point where he makes a mistake and they can end him. I just would hate to wait years for that to happen.

Very satisfying episode. Great action, effects and character moments. I especially liked the way you could see Heat Wave start to feel something different for the first time in his life - appreciation and respect for a teammate he though was not worthy of those feelings. When Atom took the beating to save Heat Waves life in the torture chamber we saw something change and that is a fun thing about Legends of Tomorrow - character development and team building. The creators have given a lot of thought to the little things and I appreciate THIS kind of filler.

The Atom cares what the Rogues think of him and he wants them to take him seriously as a worthy accomplice in the schemes they are involved in.

Why can't their be and Atom suit for everyone. Was that every answered and I missed it. Why can't anyone just wear the suit and sneak into the prison??  It was totally useless in this episode. The most powerful personal weapon system that they have and it's not used. Are the effects becoming too expensive?

Great ending to the episode with a last second fight with the bounty hunter Kronos and a nice squee moment with a different future Green Lantern.

Episode Six
 
It's such a little thing but I am enjoying watching Heat Wave develop feelings and a conscience for the first time in his life. When the Atom took a beating for him, something changed. I like this kind of character development. This is how you do filler right. Give me angst and struggle. THAT is what I am interested in. That is the only path to redemption and REDEMPTION is what I want to see from a bad character becoming a good character. Heat Wave is fast becoming my favorite guy on the team.
 
Poor Jax loves Hawkgirl. Of course she is only one of two women he knows so his choices are rather limited.

Good fight scenes and stunt work again. The fire and explosion guys really earned their pay with this episode. This place is Heat Waves wet dream.

And then comes the SQUEEEEEEE moment with a very special guest star.


 
I hate this kind of burned out dystopia. I always wonder about the little things like how someone uses the toilet or gets fresh water and fruit. I know. Not the point.
 

No comments: