iZombie Review: Death Moves Pretty Fast (Season 5 Episode 5)

iZombie brings the show’s most notorious villain back to the forefront of this series. 

In a bold move, Blaine’s murderous past come back to haunt him on iZombie Season 5 Episode 5, “Death Moves Pretty Fast,” as the loveable antagonist becomes public enemy number one for the first time in the undead drama’s history.

Change hasn’t always been on this show’s side but pulling the trigger on outing Blaine sets in motion a promising storyline for one of television’s most beloved and diabolical criminals.

Will Blaine finally throw in the gloves and fully embrace his evil ways? I sure hope so!

There was always this assumption in the first season that Blaine would get his reckoning for killing all those innocent people and that Major’s hero ideology would ultimately prevail.

But what we didn’t realize then was Blaine was never meant to be a one season antagonist, nor was he really meant to be a villain.

Over the course of this series, we have seen Major’s heroic qualities be his downfall, while Blaine’s mastermind skills not only kept him alive but rewarded him for his behaviour. iZombie has always sent a clear message that the bad guys don’t always get what’s coming to them.

But Blaine’s reckoning finally comes on “Death Moves Pretty Fast,” as the show moves quickly to get Al’s the evidence she needs to post her scathing article. The hammer of justice is swift and fast as we see this reporter succeed in outing Blaine’s past within a matter of two episodes, setting into motion a storyline that will rock the core of this series. 

So it’s really no surprise Blaine manages to swing the entire episode in his favour with humour, death threats, and one simple scene.

As he takes time out of his cozy life to read Al’s article, you can see the impact of her words start to settle on Blaine’s face. David Anders does an incredible job of conveying the character’s disbelief and horror as he comes to terms with Seattle seeing who he is really is.

Then we witness something on Blaine’s face we hardly ever see — pure and utter rage. Blaine could turn around and shoot someone at point blank range without blinking. One of the most genuine parts of his character is his ability to stay in a constant state of calm and composure. He always makes the audience feel like he is in control of the situation.

But in this moment of anger, Blaine has truly lost for the first time and we begin to understand the impact that will have on him. He can no longer hide behind the carefully built facade he has created for himself and that unhinges the man.

Blaine looks ready to burn the entire city to the ground and as the likeable antagonist we can’t help but root for, you kind of hope he does just that.

Gage Golightly’s Al is more of a plot device than a character and it would have been nice to see her developed more to enhance the build-up to her big moment. That being said, what we do see of her is incredibly captivating.

iZombie does a brilliant job of having Liv’s vision flashback switch frames so it is Al we see come out of the vision instead. This helps with the transition between the two storylines and gives each girl her own space to get work done.

The most prominent scene for Al comes when she confronts Peyton about Blaine. Not many things fluster Peyton and so it is a bittersweet moment to see the walls this fierce character has built around herself crack as Al asks the question no character has been willing to ask for five seasons: why did you let Blaine get away with this?

It is a wake-up call for Peyton as she realizes she has been complicated in letting Blaine walk free and allows a true moment of reflection for the series as it nears the end as well.

We’ve seen Blaine sidetracked by his bonkers Dad and the domestic life of the rich, but just like we have become comfortable with Blaine committing unspeakable acts, he has become comfortable with getting away with them.

Blaine got cocky and he slipped up for the first time in a big way — he let someone see who he really is.

Meanwhile, Peyton and Liv have become so accustomed to waving off whatever terrible deed Blaine does for the sake of Seattle that they don’t feel as much empathy for his victims as they should.

The fall of Blaine puts into motion a series of wonderful character developments and promising story arcs I can’t wait to see explored. This new obstacle for Blaine is lending real substance to the series in its final hours. 

“Death Moves Pretty Fast” doesn’t stop there. Almost every character gets a storyline of substance on this ambitious new episode.

Our two morgue assistants have some excellent moments together as Liv leans into the unpredictable Ferris Bueller brain and Ravi reluctantly goes along with all her awful nicknames.

For fans of Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, iZombie offers up some subtle references to the infamous 80’s movie with a character named Harris and callbacks to the film’s original soundtrack. 

Vampire Steve even makes an appearance and in a pleasant surprise, sticks around for the entire episode to help Liv pull off the ultimate prank. The presence of Steve’s (or Double-Oh-Steven as Liv calls him) oddball character is always a welcoming addition to the cast.

Clive’s presence on this episode is missed, but his absence during the investigation is more than made up for by the stellar dialogue that takes place between Liv, Ravi, and Blaine. The writing is witty and the delivery comes off in a casual way that reminds us this is not the first time these three have found themselves in this situation.

“Death Moves Pretty Fast” is an incredibly strong episode that succeeds because it leans on iZombie’s greatest asset, David Anders.

Workplace drama at Fillmore Graves still struggles to make a lasting impression and Al’s cutthroat attitude could use some more context to fully get behind her motives, but with a great villain at the forefront of the episode, there is little left to be ungrateful about.

Blaine’s charisma, a clever murder case, and Liv and Ravi’s shenanigans create an installment that feels right at home with the earlier seasons of this show while introducing exciting new dynamics for the core group.

Who knew the prospect of Blaine facing consequences for the first time could be so thrilling.

Top Lines from “Death Moves Pretty Fast”:

Major *leaving a voicemail for Ravi*: “Anyway, you complete me.”

Ravi: “You’re not Batman!”
Clive “You don’t know that.”

Ravi: “Did you threaten your neighbour’s life last night?”
Blaine: “I sure did.”
Ravi: “Well he’s dead now so…”
Liv: “…you’re under arrest for murder.”

Blaine: “I’m untouchable.”
Ravi: “Guess again, if you did this, you will pay for it.”
Blaine: “Will I, though?”
Ravi: “Yeah, you will.”
Blaine: “Ya, but…will I?”

Blaine: “Meet Liv and Ravi from the Seattle P.D. They just popped by to see if I committed a murder. We do this every few months.”

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iZombie airs Thursdays at 8/7c on The CW.

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