Friday, March 4, 2016

DC’s Legends of Tomorrow 1x07 Review: "Marooned" (Love is in the Air?) [Contributor: Lizzie]


"Marooned"
Original Airdate: March 3, 2016

I’ve been on vacation for a couple of weeks, and catching up on Legends of Tomorrow was both a pleasure and a pain. It was a pleasure because well, despite my better intentions, I’ve grown fond of these characters. I’m not made of stone. I have feelings. And the pain part? Well that’s because at this point, I think we can all agree to give up on any pretense of a plot.

This show doesn’t make sense. It probably won’t ever make sense. But that’s okay; we’re not here for common sense. We’re not here for Vandal Savage. We’re here for Ray Palmer and his unlimited supply of goodness. We’re here for Martin Stein and his beret. We’re here for Sara Lance, assassin with heart; and Leonard Snart, criminal and softie. We’re even here for Mick Rory, who doesn’t get a redemption arc just yet.

We’re here for the characters. The rest doesn’t even matter. It shouldn’t — not if you want to enjoy the show. And we do. We’re here to have fun, to feel, to laugh, to be entertained. And in that regard, the show IS getting better.


IT MUST HAVE BEEN LOVE...


If I’m going to dedicate a long section of this review to one couple, it has to be Sara/Snart, or — as the Internet is calling them — Captain Canary. I tried to resist it at first, but now I’m all in. I ship it. Maybe it’s because Sara and Snart are, without a doubt, my two favorite characters on this show. Maybe it’s because Caity Lotz has chemistry with every living soul in her vicinity. Or maybe it’s because Wentworth Miller does this thing with his voice when he’s ben earnest and talking to Sara, and he almost sounds like a human being instead of a cartoon villain. And I want more of that Snart. The cartoon villain is not nearly as interesting.

When I analyzed the possible pairings before the show aired, I thought the writers would go the Ray/Sara route. I thought Sara would be depicted a la season one Oliver Queen — in desperate need of a light. But Sara Lance is not Oliver Queen, and she never has been. Even in her darkest moments, Sara has always carried an inner light. She just didn’t always know how to let it shine.

Enter Leonard Snart.

The pairing, or shall I say, possible pairing (because nothing has happened as of yet), only works because Sara already has her own inner light. Snart is not the guy who’s going to be Sara’s light — he’s got too many issues for that. But he IS the guy who can fight against his worst instincts from time to time in order to help Sara fight against hers. And maybe, that’s exactly what Sara needs. Not someone too good or too pure, but an equal. Someone who can understand both the darkness and the light, and the struggle to be better. Someone who can share the best and worst of his past with you. Someone who will give you his jacket when you’re both freezing to death. Someone you can sit absurdly close to in completely normal situations. Someone who can be quiet with you, and snarky with you, and even deep with you. And maybe, just maybe, Sara has already found that person.

(As a bonus: Can you imagine the look on both Oliver AND Barry’s faces if/when Sara comes back with Snart? I’d pay to see it, I really would)

BUT IT’S OVER NOW...


Or, it’s not, but maybe it should be?

Look, the whole Kendra and Ray thing? It’s not working for me. Not because they don’t have chemistry. Brandon Routh is another one of those magical creatures who seems to have chemistry with absolutely everyone. And he is so earnest and, well, good, that he might actually be good for Kendra in the long run. It’s just that... well, first there was Kendra/Carter. And she was mad about the whole “destiny” romance he pushed, and it was problematic. But then she was crying over him. And now she’s kissing Ray? It just doesn’t add up. Not enough time has passed.

Now, I don’t want it to seem like my only problem with this ship lies with Kendra, but... oh, wait, who am I kidding? All my problems lie with Kendra. The Ray Palmer of Legends of Tomorrow is an actual ray of sunshine who smiles and takes beatings for bad guys. Who could blame the girl for liking him? Even I like him, and I thought he was a creep less than a year ago.

But that’s not the point. The point is that the writers have failed to show me Kendra’s journey toward liking him, and ships are not intuitive things. If you want me to FEEL things about a couple, you have to SHOW ME how that couple came to be. You can’t do what this episode did and say: “Here’s a handsome guy, and a pretty girl. They like each other, so now they kiss.”

Or, I guess you CAN do that, but if you do, then you can’t expect me to like it.

Kendra needs time by herself. She needs time to actually process and mourn Carter. She needs time to understand who she is and what she can do. And then, if she wants to jump into a relationship with Ray, so be it. But now? No thanks. It won’t end well. And I don’t even care about how Kendra comes out of this. I really don’t. I just don’t want her to hurt poor Raymond.

THE BONDS OF FELLOWSHIP


The Mick/Leonard rift was, without a doubt, the highlight of an otherwise filler episode. I don’t for a moment believe that Mick is actually dead, just as I don’t for a moment believe he won’t get his chance at redemption. This is the same guy who wouldn’t leave Ray a couple of episodes ago, after all. But, I also don’t believe it’ll be easy. Mick’s journey can’t be the same as Snart’s. He’s not the same person, and he’s not as advanced in the “hero” journey as Leonard was. Let’s not forget that even Barry was accusing Captain Cold of being a good guy when he last appeared on The Flash.

For now, I think Mick will be left stranded. Which, bad idea. BAD, BAD IDEA. He might even join Savage for a while. But that’s not the end of the story. It can’t be. The boy who saved Snart as a kid, the man who carried Ray out of a jail cell, that man isn’t really a villain. He just wants to be. It’s easier, after all.

His momentary disappearance, however, ups the stakes. It might even advance the nonexistent plot. And, it also makes Snart a much more volatile character. Sure, he’s chosen the team time and time again, but that doesn’t mean it was easy, and it doesn’t mean he won’t regret betraying his partner. If the story Leonard told Sara tells us anything is that the bond between these two men is not so easily broken.

Other things:
  • This needs to be repeated time and time again: Rip is the most useless team leader in the history of television, and quite possibly in the HISTORY OF ENTERTAINMENT ITSELF. Not only did he lead his team into a trap that EVERYONE but him could see, but he made SURE not to take the Atom or like, both halves of Firestorm with him so if he got into trouble, he had to actually work to get out of it. Because, why make it easy or smart, right?
  • Also, Rip managed to piss off the criminal with anger-management issues into selling them all out. Well done, Rip. WELL DONE. Even I would have betrayed you if you’d said I had the IQ of meat. 
  • On top of all that, he left the ONE guy he KNEW would NEVER sacrifice him or anyone, for that matter, in charge of making the decision to SACRIFICE HIM.
  • The flashbacks proved that he was an idiot in the past too, letting the woman he loved take the fall for him with only a token protest.
  • The romance angle really wasn’t working for me with Rip/Miranda. I will admit that the message from his son at the beginning of the episode got me, though.
  • I like you now, Ray. I really do. But you’re no Han Solo. You’re not even Luke Skywalker, though you’re closer to him than you’ll ever be to Han. 
  • Can’t put into words how glad I am that Rip Hunter’s real name isn’t Rip Hunter. Now THAT would be a crime. 
  • Ray’s betrayed face when Mick called the pirates was everything. For all this episode really focused on the Snart/Rory dynamic, I think they’re leaving subtle clues about Ray and his naïve and somewhat admirable belief that everything and everyone can be saved.  And with this I mean it’s all going to blow up in his face, sooner rather than later.
  • There were time pirates in this episode. I think. I can’t really remember. That’s how boring they were.
  • Jax’s sass has been on point lately. He’s still the least interesting character to me, but at least he’s no longer a waste of screentime. 
  • This episode’s geeky references were a very nice way for the show to pay homage to the shows/movies that are responsible for it being around in the first place. Stein in a beret is the best thing this show has done so far. Victor Garber is my absolute favorite, and he will remain so, forever and ever.
  • You can’t end an episode with the team supposedly going somewhere and start it a week later with the Waverider stuck in limbo for a week. Our memories are not that bad. 
  • Please stop referring to Vandal Savage as an immortal tyrant. I beg of you. ESPECIALLY on episodes where he’s not even around. But, wait... when is he ever around? What was your mission again? I forget. 
DC’s Legends of Tomorrow airs Thursdays at 8/7c on The CW.

2 comments:

  1. CAPTAIN CANARY IS THE WAY TO GOOOO! I love how you pointed out that they can be quiet with each other. That's an extremely important part of a relationship that most people don't think about. It's in those quiet moments that you really get to know how comfortable you are with something. Also yes on Rip. He's uselessssss on so many levels. Grrrrr!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Great post! I completely agree about Sara and Snart - the reasons you gave sum up perfectly why they work so well together :) Marooned was my favorite episode of the show so far, but I can see your points - I'm no longer watching for the plot, I'm just there for the characters that I love. Even if it was a show just about Snart, Sara, and Mick, I'd be 100% on board with that.

    ReplyDelete