Legends of Tomorrow Review: White Knights (Season 1 Episode 4)
Finally, a sense of cohesiveness in the writing of DC’s Legends of Tomorrow. The show’s fourth episode, “White Knights,” outshines the previous three episodes, bringing to light four pairs of foil characters, seven of whom reside on Hunter’s Waverider.
The first pair the writers highlight are Ray and Leonard. Clearly, Leonard Snart’s obvious (and literal) foil is Mick Rory — Captain Cold and Heat Wave. However, his true foil is Ray Palmer, which is why they work so well together. Ray is book smart — he knows everything there is to know about science — and Leonard is street smart — able to steal anything, from keycards to emeralds. Even though they don’t plan it, these two opposite characteristics give them a way in to Valentina and Savage’s operation.
The next two opposing characters are Professor Stein and Jax. Professor Stein is the adult, the levelheaded middle-aged man who even throws well thought out temper tantrums (instead of regular ones) to try and impart the importance of his message to the young man in his care. The young man, Jax, is the immature and impulsive one who wants to test out his powers dangerously, without thinking of the possible consequences. Hopefully, the writers will finally bring these two together in cooperation in the next episode.
Sara and Kendra are the most volatile opposites among the crew, causing death, maiming, and destruction. The monster and the human have been tasked by Rip to bring their own prominent characteristics out in the other and help them control it, even though both seem unwilling to believe it completely possible.
Rip and Druce are the foils who are seen the least in this episode. The audience has already gotten a glimpse of Rip’s disagreement with the Time Masters, but Druce brings it out man to man. The writers succeed in portraying two people of the same order: Druce –methodical and obedient to the law, and Rip — emotional, vengeful, and willing to do whatever it takes to complete his mission. One can only hope that the writers don’t forget about the Time Masters’ mission to bring Rip to heel. After all, fending off two enemies instead of one can be that much more interesting if the story is crafted well.
The idea of foils and opposites is further highlighted when Stein discovers that Vandal Savage is trying to learn and use the power of Firestorm against the team, and perhaps create a Firestorm on the opposite side of Rip Hunter’s war, a Firestorm that could, if created, destroy Jax and Stein. The end of the episode leaves the audience with somewhat of a cliffhanger, but here’s to hoping they continue with this motif in the next episode to bring this arc to a resolution.
What did you think of this episode of DC’s Legends of Tomorrow? Share your thoughts in the comments below!
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DC’s Legends of Tomorrow airs Thursdays at 8/7c on The CW.
Emma Leigh
Emma is an executive assistant in the interactive games industry. She spends her time adoring Joss Whedon, tweeting about massive fails in the shows she watches, and cooking while watching Friends. She lives with her girlfriend in Southern California, where they hole up in their apartment on weekends to watch television about superheroes and vampires.