Legends of Tomorrow: “Pilot, Part One”

Since they’re airing the pilot in two parts, we have a rather tentative review of the latest DCCW series, a sort of Justice Leagues by way of the Forgotten Heroes.

Fans of Doctor Who will recognize where Time Master Rip Hunter got his time-travelling start.

Titles: “Pilot, Part One”

Director: Glen Winter
Writers: Greg Berlanti, Marc Gugenheim, Andrew Kreisberg

Victor Garber as Dr. Martin Stein
Brandon Routh as Ray Palmer / The Atom
Arthur Darvill as Rip Hunter
Caity Lotz as Sara Lance / White Canary
Franz Drameh as Jefferson ‘Jax’ Jackson / Firestorm
Ciara Renée as Kendra Saunders / Hawkgirl
Falk Hentschel as Carter Hall / Hawkman
Dominic Purcell as Mick Rory / Heat Wave
Wentworth Miller as Leonard Snart / Captain Cold
Casper Crump as Vandal Savage
Peter Francis James as Dr. Aldus Boardman
Kiefer O’Reilly as Jonas
Amy Pemberton as Gideon
Alex Duncan as Mother
Brad Kelly as Scary Dude in Bar
Stephen Amell as Oliver Queen / Green Arrow
Katie Cassidy as Laurel Lance / Black Canary

Premise

Rip Hunter time-travels from the future and gathers heroes from one era to stop Vandal Savage from taking over the world.

High Points

The show has potential, with its tone, far more Flash than Green Angstow, and its conflicting heroes, many of whom have agendas that differ from each other’s. We’ll see if these disparate elements cohere as a show.

Low Point

The first hour serves up a confusing blend of excessive exposition and missing explanation. Is Hunter lying when he says that the guy who invented the A.T.O.M. suit and the people with Firestorm’s powers left no imprint on the timeline? And if they can travel through time, why not finish off the job at the end of the Vandal Savage’s last appearance, when it would be a simple matter to do so?

The Scores

Originality: 2/6

Effects: 5/6

Acting: 5/6 Uneven, of course, and frequently campy. Caity Lotz and the supervillains have a fun time in a bar fight.

Emotional Response: 4/6

Story: 4/6 It’s the first act of a two-part episode, so the rating must be tentative.

Production: 5/6 They accomplish a lot of locations on a budget, but it feels a little low-rent next to its parent shows.

Overall: 5/6 I hope they have some clue as to how time travel works in this universe. A show that ad libs its basic underlying premises quickly becomes lost.

In total, “Pilot, Part One” receives 30/42

2 replies on “Legends of Tomorrow: “Pilot, Part One””

  1. I’ll stick with it, but the first hour did have a few bits that didn’t make much sense taken on their own. It was a bit campy but this seems like a perfect vessel (pun completely intended) for campy fun.

  2. Look, I realise it helps with “conflict”, but they better eventually have some REAL justification for bringing villains along. Because that’s just 100% stupid, unless they actually need their specific powers.

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