The CW's Legends of Tomorrow - Episode 4.15 "Terms of Service"
With things getting out of control, Sara and Ava concoct a bold plan to take back the Time Bureau. When things go awry, Zari and Charlie must work together to discover what Neron is planning. Constantine is given a tough choice on who to save from Hell.
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.
"Terms of Service" was written by Grainne Godfree & Ubah Mohamed and directed by April Mullen
This hour reveals that Neron has been collecting souls in order to take over Hell, Tabitha has been trying to pass on the Fairy Godmother curse so she can be a witch again and Gary has just wanted to be an official member of the Legends. Those are the choices being made by the antagonists of the season. That is the motivation for every action they have taken. Now, it could be a little too late for the show to explain all of this now. This season has absolutely been more of a slow burn in revealing how the hunt for mystical creatures connects to everything going on with these demons from Hell. Moreover, this episode even keeps the team distracted for a large portion of the running time. They shouldn't have to deal with Gary once more. And yet, that's exactly what Sara, Ava, Nate and Rory have to do. It's a little annoying. Again, it's because the show continues wanting to play things both ways. It wants it to be believable that Gary would team up with demons. But it also wants his true loyalties to be with the Legends and their quest to protect the timeline and the magical creatures. This hour also explains that he has been keeping the Fairy Godmother at bay because she has wanted to do torturous things to the team. Of course, forcing them into a book club and to go on a simple mission with him as the captain can be torture as well. They would much rather focus on saving Mona from the Time Bureau and getting Ray and Constantine back from Hell. Instead, they are putting on fake smiles and are at the mercy of whatever Gary has planned for them. It's nothing too major in the long run. Plus, the big emotional climax seems a little too easy. The Legends have to remember why they were chosen by Rip in the first place. That's the mentality that keeps Gary around as well because he is a member of the team. That's sweet just not as effective as the show hopes it to be. All of this mostly just leaves Nora, Zari and Charlie on their own with the daunting task of dealing with Neron and Tabitha. Mona is seriously injured because Neron wants to prove to the world that magical creatures exist and the public should be afraid of them. Sure, he's pitching himself as the lone savior who can protect the world from these threats. Plus, the app he has them download is a literal contract to give their souls to him in Hell. That's his master plan in all of this. So, it's important that time is spent in Hell to understand exactly what's at stake. Constantine's venture into the underworld is filled with peril because he has condemned so many souls to this place. He still manages to get to a position to craft a deal with the current rulers. However, he is ultimately faced with the choice of whether to rescue Ray or Astra. This season hasn't done a great job at establishing why Constantine feels guilty about condemning Astra to this fate. In fact, the twist that she is a grown woman now and not the scared girl he always pictures is more meaningful than the actual choice. It just proves that everything continues to go wrong for Constantine. So now, he may be trapped in Hell as well and faced with the brutal torture of everything he has done. He may have an ally in that fight though because Nora is going down there to help rescue Ray. It's not her first choice. She wanted the Fairy Godmother powers to heal Mona. Instead, it was just a trap that leaves her with this curse. She is now the one who serves Gary. That's horrifying even though it's a little too lame to see him send her to Hell without knowing what's actually going on. That makes all of this seem like massive plot complications instead of character-driven story beats.
