‘I am Legends’ is a perfectly accurate title for an episode where zombies overrun England and we get ‘corporeal’ Gideon bunny hopping across the Waverider’s bridge. This is Legends of Tomorrow.
Kicking things off right after the Legends got high on immortality they realize things aren’t as they should be. Their time couriers are gone. As is the portal to Hudson University, where they left the Waverider.
Astra made good of her promise, getting Atropos and Lachesis on the Waverider and stranding the Legends in England. Unbeknownst to them, Gary is on the ship trying to get a snack for his bunny friend replacement for his hell hound emotional support animal. Gideon has just enough time to warn him before she’s shut down.
When the Legends can’t get in contact with the ship they realize something is very wrong. Sara gets a vision when Ava holds her hands but claims it was just a flash. Blaming the immortality for fritzing out her powers she refocuses the task at hand. Suspecting Astra and Charlie’s sisters their main concern is how they’re getting back to the Waverider before they can use the Loom.
Ava remembers the Time Bureau set up safe houses all over the world, some of which are still operational. Including one in London. They just need to get from John’s house in the middle of nowhere England to the city. Sans Zari, they’re immortal superheroes and nothing will stop them. The bus schedule does slow them down thought. When it does finally show up, no one has money to pay for it, so Mick just throws the driver out.
On the Waverider, Astra’s considering the Fates’ offer to use the Loom, but she has some demands of her own. Prunes get a universal veto. Dogs never leave their puppy years. Oh, and her mother comes back. Lachesis pulls her aside to discuss her demands while Atropos uses one Loom piece for a spell that affects all of England.
Back with the Legends, Sara suggests Ava take point on this mission while her powers and vision are disposed. Per usual Ava’s a little hesitant to step into Sara’s role. She agrees but says she and Sara are co-captains in her books. Sara says ‘always’ and they make a pinky promise on it.
Zari’s worried they’re going to run out of immortality before they can bring Behrad back, but Nate reassures they still have time. At the back of the bus, Constantine’s so hurt by Astra’s betrayal he’s ready to start smoking again. Zari stops him, exhausted by his nihilistic attitude. Just then Mick turns a woman into roadkill. The team’s worried he killed her until she gets back up and lunges at them. She’s a zombie and she’s not alone.
While fighting the horde Constantine learns they don’t care about his flesh, probably because he’s already damned. Upside, they handle all the zombies. Downside, the bus is broken down and they’re not fixing it anytime soon. Constantine and Zari go off on their own to find another vehicle while the others say behind to fix the bus.
In the meanwhile, Gary’s been trying to fix Gideon. The only thing he manages to do is shock himself. However, the few hundred volts to his brain has the benefit of him seeing Gideon now. She picks him up, brushes him off and tasks him with stealing the Loom rings. Easy-peasy. Elsewhere on the ship, Lachesis discourages Astra form her plan to save her mother by showing her mother’s preordained death.
‘Gideon’ hops away to draw Atropos’ attention. (It is strange enough of a sight I started putting quotes around ‘Gideon’ from this point in my notes.) While she’s gone Gary grabs the rings. The next phase of ‘Gideon’ and Gary’s plan, steal a time courier and get to the Legends.
Speaking of the Legends, Ava’s worried about Constantine and Zari. Sara reminds her the Legends work best when they’d flying by the seat of their pants. She can trust the team to handle themselves in a sticky situation. Things seem to take a turn for the better when the army shows up. But they see the blood on the Legend’s clothes and assume their infected, promptly shooting Ava in the head.
Thanks to the frat god’s chalice the bullet doesn’t do much but hurt. The team is rounded up by the army and tossed into the back of a truck. Ava gives her best off the cuff inspiration speech to rally the team. Mick remembers he’s been locked up in a truck like this one before and that the doors have a weakness. He has Nate punch the door out and they dive out the truck. They did get closer to London, now if only they weren’t stranded in the English countryside.
While the rest of the team was mistaken for zombies Constantine and Zari head to an auto shop. Constantine knows about the place because of the same reason he knows most places, he helped a guy with a demon problem one time.
While they’re there a horde closes in on them, forcing them to take refuge inside. Zari dispatches a zombie on her own, finding car keys in the process. She wants Constantine to return to the team alone since the zombie won’t attack him. He’s not about to leave her behind and comes up with a plan. The zombies want anyone with a pulse so they just need to stop Zari’s heart for a minute. There’s only the small issue of him maybe not being able to start it back.
Zari’s willing to do anything that will get to the Loom the fastest. Constantine stops her heart, carrying her through the horde. There’s a sickeningly long moment when they get to the van where Zari doesn’t move again. But just as Constantine starts to panic she breaths again. With sighs of relief all around, they get out of there finding their friends and making it to London.
Meanwhile, Gary is discovered after the Fates notice the rings missing. ‘Gideon’ turns out was nothing more than a hallucination but he’s encouraged by her all the same. With some quick thinking, he uses a spell to hide the rings.
The Legends make it to the bar that doubles as the safehouse but the time courier there is dead. Zari’s distraught her brother’s changes seem slimmer and slimmer by the minute. Constantine somehow while trying to comfort her turns it into an argument. And that becomes a make-out session.
When they return to the team, the others have cracked open beers and junk food while they wait out the courier charging. With nothing but time to kill and an old bar to ponder in their conversation turns to the Loom and what they’d use it for. Sara’s content where she is in life, sailing the timeline with this team that’s become her family. Ava and Nate are content with their lives and their friends too. Mick just wants a simple life of crime. For Zari, aside from her brother, she wants to make the world more inclusive. Constantine talks about throwing a huge party, but with some prodding, he admits he still wants to do right by Astra.
They share a toast and Sara slips away from the group. Ava follows, knowing she’s been hiding a vision she had earlier. Sara saw the pub being overrun by zombies and herself dying as she protects her team. She couldn’t see past her death, but she believes the team will get to the Loom. Right on cue Nate notices the pub is surrounded. Oh, and their 24 hours of immortality just ran out.
Meanwhile, Astra’s trying to make Gary give up the rings. He doesn’t understand why she would turn on the Legends. Astra doesn’t want to bring her mother back anymore because she can’t watch her die again. Gary reminds her why watching her mother die a second time would be so hard.
It’s because of all the good moments that came before. Life isn’t without loss, but loss is painful because we get to experience the good first. His empathy gets through to her and she’s about to use a courier to get the Legends. Unfortunately, Atropos overheard. Ready to betray them and no longer immortal she’s no longer of any use to them. Atropos kills her, threatening Gary with the same fate if he doesn’t hand over the rings.
The deaths don’t stop there. Just like in Sara’s vision the pub is overrun. Our brilliant, brave, and brash captain goes down swinging while Ava can only watch. Sara sacrificed herself to give her team the chance to live. But she couldn’t see past her death so there’s no way she would know even with her sacrifice the Legends would still be overwhelmed. The time courier charges and Ava gives it to Charlie, the only one who can use the Loom anymore. Charlie runs for the portal while the rest of the Legends give their lives to keep back the horde.
On the ship Charlie finds Gary. Seeing a fact he finally trusts he gives her rings but Atropos kills him moments after. Charlie squares her shoulders and faces her sisters. She’s not running anymore, ready to use the Loom with them.
Review
With only a few episodes left this season’s Legends is holding nothing back. ‘I am Legends’ is a fantastic zombie fanfare. The episode has fun with immortality making for some great visual gags; the Legends being mistaken for zombies because of their extreme injuries and steeled up Nate sparking when he’s pushed out a moving vehicle. The fights are fun and energetic until they have to carry the weight of those final scenes. And Amy Louise Pemberton in all her glory can only ever add to Gideon’s charm. Plus there were some playful tweaks to her personality here was obviously Gary objecting himself onto her.
But, like the best of Legends episodes, the heart is with the characters. Just a bunch of friends, sitting a pub as the world falls apart around them. It could be something out of Shaun of the Dead or The World’s End. Any comparison to the Blood and Ice Cream Trilogy is the highest sort of praise.
Even knowing their deaths are only temporary (Sara Lance never stays dead for long) there was still a weight to that final fight in the pub. It only builds the anticipation for what comes next (which, looking at the promo for the next week’s episode, promises shenanigans of Legends of To-Meow-Meow proportions).
Only Legends Could
- Add another mark to Sara Lance’s death tally.
- The Pinky Swear is their ‘always’!
- Good to know Mean Girls is still culturally relevant in 2042.
- Nate steels up so much this episode if I didn’t know better I’d call it a season finale.
- Gary coming in clutch with his magic.
- That Quarantine Zone sign hits so different right now.
