“DC’s Legends of Tomorrow,” a spin-off of both “The Flash” and “Arrow” and the latest in a long line of superhero TV series from producer Greg Berlanti, teams the TV versions of Batman’s Justice League colleagues The Atom, Hawkman and Firestorm (and others) with DC’s iconic time traveler Rip Hunter, who’s out to defeat DC’s murderous immortal supervillain Vandal Savage.
Victor Garber (“Alias”) classes things up considerably as Dr. Martin Stein, the older half of Firestorm. Conversely, while I count myself among the few big fans of “Superman Returns,” I think Brandon Routh in these opening episodes emotes like a block a wood, and the fellow who plays Hawkman isn’t any stronger.
The first two episodes (and apparently the third) spend a lot of time in 1975, but word is DC’s Old-West antihero Jonah Hex will be joining the fray, so the series presumably will explore other, more expensive eras.
Having finished the first two episodes, I’m still hazy on why a guy like Hunter, whose vehicle would allow him to kill Baby Hitler in the crib, would need so many superbeing cohorts to defeat Savage – but perhaps an answer awaits.
I see some critics are being tough on “Legends” -- but “Legends” is not a critics’ series. I imagine most critics would rather be rewatching “Jessica Jones” or “Daredevil.” (Critics from fancy papers like The New York Times and The Washington Post apparently couldn’t even be bothered to review “Legends.”)
One suspects, however, that fans of the many other superhero projects Berlanti has written -- which include the Ryan Reynolds “Green Lantern” movie and ABC’s “No Ordinary Family,” as well as “Arrow,” “The Flash” and “Supergirl” – will find more to like in “Legends.”
… The many mismatched parts make "Legends" feel like several different shows competing for supremacy, with some more engaging than others. I would gladly watch a whole lot more, for instance, of Garber's Martin Stein coldly dismissing the accomplishments and intellect of Routh's Ray Palmer. …
... there is a family-hour charm among the many wooden performances and something to be said for the show's unapologetic comic book overtones. "DC's Legends of Tomorrow" wears its intentions, like its future tech, on its sleeve — you're either in for the ride or you're not, no character deconstruction or cinematic analysis required. …
The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette says:
... an overstuffed paint-by-numbers affair that will test the number of comic book series one network can viably sustain. …
The San Francisco Chronicle says:
... if they want or need to fix the show, casting should be at the top of their to-do list. Most of the actors are acceptable; a couple are not. Ciara Renée is beautiful and may look the part, but her performance is wooden and amateurish. Crump is another weak link as Vandal Savage. He has all the menace of a shopping mall shoe salesman. …
... There’s so much going on in the big fight scenes that it’s hard to keep track of our heroes, and harder still to figure out why their super-powers seem to have so little effect on the regular mortals around them. But that kind of over-size-itis is not uncommon in opening episodes. …
... certainly impressive from a visual standpoint, with bountiful dollops of action. Yet based on the mix of personalities, this colorful series will have to improve significantly to achieve even near-legendary status. …
... Legends of Tomorrow can't make its characters jell, can't clarify its narrative mission and can't get out of its own way and stop talking. … by the fifth or sixth episode, Legends of Tomorrow may have found its footing, but as a vehicle to get things moving, this almost couldn't be worse. …
8 p.m. Thursday. The CW.
