Legends Of Tomorrow Episodes 1-5 Reviews: Surprisingly Fun (Series Premiere)

CW's latest fantasy offering is DC's "Legends Of Tomorrow". The show is a spinoff of "Arrows" and "The Flash" (hence all the crossover characters).

The pilot begins with Rip Hunter traveling back in time from 2166 on his ship the Waverider to gather a ragtag group. They must stop villain Vandal Savage from destroying the world in the future. Savage is immortal (but to be honest, i dont find him very menacing). Everyone eventually gets on board (except Jax who was drugged and put on the ship). That wasnt very nice.

The group consists of:

White Canary/Sara Lance- This one is a little confusing but here goes. Sara was originally Canary on "Arrow". She died but was resurrected in the Lazarus Pit and took the new name. Her sister became Black Canary.
Hawkgirl/Kendra Saunders/Chay-Ara- one half of the hawk team. Kendra has been continually reincarnated throughout time along with her soul mate Carter.
Hawkman/Carter Hall/Khufu- along with his soul mate Kendra, Carter has continually been reincarnated throughout time. He was previously an Egyptian prince and she was a princess (or priestess). I'm not sure which.
Atom/Ray Palmer- thanks to a suit he developed, he can shrink down to microscopic sizes. He may be small but he carries a major wallop.
Firestorm/ Martin Stein- one half of Firestorm along with Jefferson Jackson. Martin is a professor and nuclear physicist.
Firestorm/ Jefferson Jackson- the other half of Firestorm. Firestorm is interesting because it is composed of two very different people who must work together.
Heat Wave/ Mick Rory- a criminal whose partner is Leonard Snart. He's an arsonist and uses heat as a weapon.
Captain Cold/Leonard Snart- criminal partner of Heat Wave but instead of using heat, he uses cold. The character is played by Wentworth Miller.

After amassing the team in 2016, Rip travels back to 1975 where they meet Professor Boardman (a Vandal expert). He turns out to be the child of Hawkman and Hawkgirl from a previous life. We also learn Rip is after Vandal because he killed his wife and child. Hawkman is killed and Hawkgirl is seriously injured.

Next they're in 1986 in the Soviet Union. Rip's time traveling mentor Zarman Druce shows up and tries to kill him. The baddies are trying to create an army of Firestorms. Ray and Rory are tortured for info. A Soviet scientist named Valentina Vosok merges with Firestorm but eventually destroyed by Jax. The team next ends up in 2046. And who is there to greet them is someone dressed like Green Arrow...but he is not Green Arrow.

Episode Guide:

Episode 1: "Pilot Part 1"
Episode 2: "Pilot Part 2"
Episode 3: "Blood Times"
Episode 4: "White Knights"
Episode 5: "Fail Safe"
Episode 6: "Star City 2046"

Grade: 4 Monsters (out of 5). I was originally very sceptical of "Legends Of Tomorrow". But I surprisingly enjoyed it more than the typical CW fluff. The fight scenes are fun. I'm always a sucker for time travel. What sets "LoT" apart are the unique character dynamics. Two very different people must work together to make Firestorm succeed. Two others are connected throughout time but dont always like each other. Many of the characters are "damaged goods" and reluctant about trying to save the world. "Legends Of Tomorrow" is definitely worth another look.