When Hank commandeers the Waverider in 1973, the Legends find themselves on the run in an RV after kidnapping the President who is only able to tell the truth. With the help of Constantine, they discover the reason that none of them can lie making for an uncomfortable family road trip. Nate, Zari, Nora and Gary work together to find out what Hank is really up to.
In 2018, there were 495 scripted shows airing amongst the linear channels and streaming services. The way people are consuming content now is so different than it used to be. It happens according to one's own schedule. As such, there is less necessity to provide ample coverage of each specific episode in any given season from a show. Moreover, it is simply impossible to watch everything. As such, this site is making the move to shorter episodic reviews in order to cover as many shows as possible. With all of that being said, here are my thoughts on the next episode of The CW's Legends of Tomorrow.
"The Getaway" was written by Matthew Maala & Ubah Mohamed and directed by Viet Nguyen
The idea of the Legends being trapped in an RV together as they are forced on the run sounds absolutely ridiculous and a lot of fun. In practice though, this hour is a little dour because the Legends are all trying to keep secrets while putting on a brave face. Sara doesn't want to face the reality that she and Ava could potentially be done. Meanwhile, Nate wants to keep his father at a distance while still trying to figure out what he's up to with the magical creatures. Plus, the specifics of this story are a little wonky. The Legends travel to 1973 in order to keep Nixon as a lying crook instead of someone who suddenly can't tell a lie. The show just chooses to go very broad with its Nixon interpretation. It has a lot of fun at his expense. He repeatedly gets drugged in order to avoid creating too many complications. But that also means he's just this broad impression instead of a stand-in for what was really happening at this moment in time. Moreover, the way the show keeps dismissing Charlie seems wildly out-of-touch. She has become a part of the team this season. Sure, she is a complicated member of the team whom the Legends can only somewhat tolerate. However, she has certain skills that come in handy. Here, she can slide into Nixon's life so that no one realizes that he is gone. The Legends don't have to worry about the secret service also hunting them. But the show opts to make it a punchline that Sara and the rest of the team keep forgetting about Charlie. That doesn't seem quite right. It may prove that Sara's head isn't in the game as captain. And yet, she rises to the occasion to help Mona in her time of need. Mona spends the hour trying to tell Sara about her recent transformation. She wants to be more than the latest fugitive housed on the Waverider. She wants to understand what's happening to her. Instead, she only gets the blame for everything that has gone wrong as of late. It's not her fault. The people experimenting on the magical creatures are responsible. This hour provides even more of a tease as to what's happening there. But again, it seems like the show is dragging it out for as long as possible. Sara and Constantine see that Mona has become a kaupe after being scratched by the previous one. She is suddenly very powerful and can even make trained agents doubt their abilities. Sara has to make an emotional appeal to fix the damage that she has done. She now sees Mona as a part of the team. That's special and may allow her to see clearly about her own life once more. It's just really forced to get the point across. Plus, this is the inevitable episode where Nate learns more about his father right before he is killed. Hank has long been seen as the main person behind this conspiracy happening within the Time Bureau. He steps in as the head of the organization after Ava needs some personal time following her breakup with Sara. He focuses entirely on hunting the Legends. He only lets them go in the end because he sees just how much they mean to Nate. His son is also making an emotional appeal in the hopes of better understanding his father. It's a moment that only happens because the truth bug hops into his mouth. And yet, the power of that moment is undercut a little bit by the audience probably waiting for Hank to say something that requires the bug to jump hosts and force him to tell the truth. That never happens. So instead, Hank returns to his secret conspiracy only to be killed off by the true person in charge - the demon Neron. That's enticing. Nora knows to fear him. But her inclusion mostly just creates the idea that she will be blamed for Hank's death which means people won't be taking Neron as a threat seriously anytime soon.
