'Legends of Tomorrow' Season 5 Episode 14 Review: Inclusion of the TV parodies is a definite plus for series
Spoilers for 'DC's Legends of Tomorrow' Season 5 Episode 15 'The One Where We're Trapped on TV'
This is not the first dystopian future that the Legends have had to face as the season finale comes around, but this time, the roles that they're forced to play are perhaps the most hilariously strange yet. As the Fates subject the world to a totalitarian future straight out of 1984, the Legends find themselves brainwashed and scattered amongst TV shows, but no prison, no matter how bizarre, can keep the Legends contained for long.
Marc Guggenheim's directorial debut takes on quite an impressive challenge, covering multiple genre parodies of some of TV's most iconic shows. The episode plays on nostalgia in a lot of ways. It doesn't just pay tribute to several old series but also brings back a few old characters - Mona Wu (Ramona Young) and the original Zari Tarazi (Tala Ashe). The original Zari gets a big role to play as she journeys from genre to genre, reuniting the various Legends to try and get them to remember who they are and take the fight right back to the Fates.
The episode is 'Legends of Tomorrow' at its very best. We've seen their takes on various different film and television genres be a major part of the early season and bringing it all back for the penultimate episode is a brilliant move. It allows the show to have one last hurrah, getting all their genre parodies out before resuming serious faces for the finale. The roles that each of the Legends are forced to play are perfect and hilarious, but special note needs to be given to the poor, conflicted butler that John Constantine (Matthew Ryan) is transformed into, trapped between formal etiquette and love for magic. The added touch of the television characters retaining those personas as they switch genres only adds to the fun: an alien butler who practices magic may just be the best of all worlds.
For all the hilarity, however, this episode also has a lot of heart. The Legends' interpersonal dynamics transfer to their television personalities, allowing them to explore their stories in new ways - even teasing a potential romance to be explored in Season 5 between Astra Logue (Olivia Swann) and Behrad Tarazi (Shayan Sobhian). Constantine gets a compelling ending of sorts to his desperate search for redemption for the way he ruined Astra's life. Ava Sharpe's (Jes Macallan) moment of weakness, wanting Sarah to be safe, is fleeting but heartwrenching all the same.
Parodies, mess-ups, new identities, roles and costumes and the stories of a team that truly cares for each other, this episode of 'Legends of Tomorrow' has everything that makes the show great. It is a standout episode that may just go down as one of the series' best - it's certainly a seasonal high. The show has grown into learning how to balance absurd comedy with heart-filled storytelling and in this episode, they have mastered it.
The next episode of 'DC's Legends of Tomorrow' airs June 2, on The CW.
