White Knights: The Tug-of-War of Teamwork

Alright, Legends of Tomorrow fans!  Our very knowledgeable and enthusiastic theStream.tv hosts — Jack, Jon, and Tatiana — did a rapid fire show today with some great points and character dissections.  There’s a lot of ground to cover.  But first, we need to mention something very important that was revealed on the show …

Jack, you don’t know what Full House is!?  Who are you!?  It’s like I’m talking to a total complete stranger.  In the words of the great Stephanie Tanner, “How rude!”  How could your life be complete without looking up to Uncle Jesse and wanting to mimic his coolness?

Okay, now that I’ve gotten that monkey off my back, we can continue with this week’s discussion of Legends of Tomorrow …

The “Lust” is Raised to the Power of Two

What is this “lust” I’m talking about?  It’s Sara’s bloodlust and whatever avian-type lust Kendra has because it seems that Sara isn’t the only one with anger management issues.  Kendra, if all of you remember, totally “hawked” out at the Pentagon.  Rip later sets Sara up as Kendra’s mentor so that Sara can teach her some self-control.  But it’s soon revealed that Rip created the pairing so that the two could learn and help each other.  Oh Rip, you’re just full of surprises you rascally Time Master.

Now, this interdependence within Angry Superheroes Anonymous could go either way.  We could end up with the two becoming extra, extra angry.  I mean, they could very possibly feed off of each other.  Or it could become the next version of Captain Cold and Heatwave.  A perfect mash-up of assassin and warrior-priestess.  Kind of like the all time greats of history: Batman and Robin, the Lone Ranger and Tonto, peanut butter and jelly, bread and butter, turkey and gravy, meat and potatoes, cereal and milk … I have no idea why I digressed into food.  Maybe it’s because I’m writing this at midnight and haven’t had dinner yet.

What do you guys think?  Is this a good idea?  Sure, Rip suggested it, but how many of his ideas have actually panned out since the show started?

The Boy Scout and the Bad Boy

Brandon Routh seems to have a knack for playing nice guys.  I mean he was Clark Kent / Superman in Superman Returns (2006) of which, Jon, I fully agree with you that he was perfect for the role.  Here, on Legends of Tomorrow, his Ray Palmer is basically a wealthy Clark Kent — always going by the book and doing what’s right.  And then, on the other end of the spectrum, you have Captain Cold — always in it for himself.  Although last week we did see him do a selfless act that got us all a bit teary-eyed.  Could the old saying of “opposites attract” work on bros also?  I would think so because, as Jon again keenly pointed out, the two obviously like to be around each other.  Ray probably wants to be as cool as Leonard, and Leonard probably wants to be as smart as Ray.

I thought it was quite hilarious seeing Ray try to do his best stalker impression and follow Leonard and Valentina on their walk.  I say “try” because Leonard could detect him from a mile away.  I’m wondering if Ray was secretly taking notes to see how he can be just like Leonard.  The pairing of Ray and Leonard is definitely one of the higher points of the show.

Not Trusting Rip Hunter

I would have to agree with Tatiana that Rip is a bit selfish.  And that’s probably why I like the character and find him compelling.  Characters need to be selfish because selfishness causes conflicts.  A story without conflicts would be pretty boring.  Now, could Rip have approached many things differently?  Of course.  But it’s these choices and mistakes that sort of set him up as this rogue.  You should always have a character drive the story, and have him deal with the consequences and outcome.  With everything going wrong with the mission, I can say that Legends of Tomorrow has, so far, steered clear of any type of deus ex machina.

The Martin and Jax Relationship

Jack, I agree with you on Martin taking it a bit too far when berating Jax.  When I started hearing some of the words he was using, I said to myself, “Damn.”  It seemed that Martin and Jax were really patching things up between them.  In “Pilot: Part 2”, Jax was the one who told Martin that he was being too hard on himself.  What happened to that growing rapport?

Now, to play devil’s advocate and give Martin the benefit of the doubt, Jax is kind of a cocky fellow.  Jax is, how should I say it?  I’ll use a piece of dialogue from the original Point Break (1991).  Something FBI Agent Ben Harp, played by John C. McGinley, said to the young Johnny Utah, played by Keanu Reeves … “You are young, dumb, and full of c__.”  And I think Tatiana would agree with that since she’s told us how she now appreciates the advice of elders.

I’m interested to see where this will end up.  The fighting between the two is getting a bit old, and Jax keeps repeating the story of how Martin kidnapped him.  Jax did have the opportunity to go back, but he chose to stay, so he can’t use that excuse anymore.  What do you think?  Did Martin take his berating a bit too far?  Or does Jax deserve some of it?

Me, Jack, Jon, and Tatiana want to know if you agree or disagree with our points.  Give us your thoughts in the comments.

You can also read my written recap of “White Knights” at Bam Smack Pow.

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Legends of Tomorrow After Show is where you will be joined by host Jack Hind, Jon Lee Brody and Tatiana Mariesa. They will discuss, review, and breakdown each new episode of Legends of Tomorrow.

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