Legends of Tomorrow season 3, episode 9 recap: Love, grief and Vikings

Photo Credit: Legends of Tomorrow/The CW, Dean Buscher Image Acquired from CWTVPR

This week’s Legends of Tomorrow dealt with the aftermath of Crisis on Earth-X in ways that were both funny and heartbreaking.

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On the Waverider, Leo Snart (Wentworth Miller) tried to help the Legends work through their grief about Stein’s (Victor Garber) death. Funnily enough, this weeks’ time aberration was a young Prof. Stein (Graeme McComb), who had been displaced to the 1000 A.D. In a surprising burst of competency, the Legends quickly rescued Young Stein. Unfortunately, the Cuddle Me Beebo doll he snagged for his daughter for Hanukah been adopted as a god for a local Viking tribe. Apparently, the doll’s presence would ultimately lead to the Vikings settling America.

Jefferson (Franz Drameh) plotted to tell Young Stein about his upcoming death, but the other Legends argued it wasn’t what Stein would’ve wanted. Worried that her team was still raw from Stein’s death, Sara (Caity Lotz) asked Agent Sharpe (Jes Macallan) to act as back up. The Legends tried to infiltrate the Viking’s camp by posing as another tribe. Things went well until Mick (Dominic Purcell), who had been challenged by Leo to abstain from drinking for two days, was discovered trying to steal some of god’s mead.

I really enjoyed the way the show dealt with the aftermath of the Crisis on Earth-X crossover. It acknowledged the tragic loss of Stein while also indulging in the wacky hijinks to make the show so enjoyable. Of course, Jefferson would be hit the hardest, but I liked the entire team’s dynamic was thrown off. I also liked Zari (Tala Ashe) was fully supportive of Jefferson’s plan to change history. Her questioning of the team’s mission and tactics has been one of the season’s most compelling subplots and very curious to see how it will resolve.

“Beebo will decide your fate”

The Legends saved Mick from fiery Viking justice, but Amaya (Maisie Richardson-Sellers) and Nate (Nick Vento) were caught stealing Beebo. Jefferson agreed to use a shuttle to take Young Stein back to his own time. The team finally just destroyed the Beebo doll but then Damien Darhk (Neal McDonough) and Nora (Courtney Ford) arrived under the guise of being the Norse gods. The group retreated and learned that Darhk’s arrival in the past was massively distorting time. Jefferson left Young Stein with a post-dated letter that he hoped would save him in the future.

Sharpe confessed to Sara that the Time Bureau had adopted a non-interference policy regarding Darhk because he killed so many of their agents. Subsequently, the team ran through a series of hilarious scenarios regarding how to attack Darhk before decided to just do it as a unit. The group succeeded in killing Nora and Sara interrupted Darhk’s attempt to resurrect her, which led to her being transported to Mallus’ realm. Moments before her death, Sharpe pulled Sara back to safety.

So, there is totally something going on between Agent Sharpe and Sara. Obviously, her continued interest in the team is driven by her belief that Mallus and his group are a real threat. But I also think she dropped by this week to hang with Sara. First, there was the bit with her telling the Vikings that she wasn’t interested in a husband. Then there was her slight smile when Sara complimented her Viking custom. Finally, the all-business Sharpe broke Time Bureau protocol to save Sara in the end. I feel pretty confident they’ll get together by the end of the season. And I hope that their potential relationship doesn’t follow the path of previous LGBT romances on the CW.

“Kicking ass is how we heal”

The attack succeeded in driving Darhk off, and the timeline was restored, but Stein was still dead. Jefferson visited Young Stein and learned that he burned the letter. Heartbroken, Jefferson later told Sara he needed time away from the team. Sharpe told Sara she’d tell the Time Bureau that they needed to treat Mallus’ crew as a bigger deal. The Legends threw a big going away/Christmas party to see Jefferson off. The episode ended with John Constantine (Matt Ryan) telling Sara that he needed her help to save a young girl from demonic possession.

While the show did make a big deal of Jefferson leaving, my feeling is that his exit will only be temporary. As opposed to Victor Garber, there’s been no public announcement about Franz Drameh departing the series, I’m assuming he’ll only be gone for a few episodes. My feeling is that Jefferson was written off the show for budgetary reasons, a la Wally being written off The Flash so that Ralph Dibney introduced. The Arrowverse does the “I just need some time away” thing whenever they add a recurring character. Whatever the reason, Jefferson needing some time off after Stein’s death makes a lot of sense for the correct perspective.

Next: Legends of Tomorrow recap: Crisis on Earth-X concludes

Also, I’m really interested to see how the team interacts with Constantine. His general sleaziness combined with his demanding a favor from Sara probably won’t sit right with the group. Also, he could provide the Legends with information they could use to push back against Mallus. Since Matt Ryan plays a fantastic Hellblazer, I’d be very happy if he took Stein’s place on the Waverider.

On February, Legends will return with a new episode that looks like it will pay tribute to The Exorcist. Legends of Tomorrow airs on The CW Tuesdays at 9 p.m.