Legends of Tomorrow Premiere Thoughts

The newest superhero show by the team that brought us Arrow, The Flash, and Supergirl, has just premiered on The CW on Thursday night. What did I think?

Well, it was the best premiere episode of any superhero show thus far.

Already there are critics whining about "campiness" and "wooden performances" and any other sort of nonsense. I have to wonder if any of them watched the same show I did. It's no campier than Doctor Who and it certainly doesn't feature wooden performances to any of us who have watched any of these shows before, and above all else it is the most FUN a television show has been in years.

That's right, in an age where everything has to be serious business edgy or dark and nihilistic, Legends of Tomorrow pops out of the box with a delicious Silver Age comic taste and un-apologetically delivers on action, comedy, adventure, and the most thrilling ride I've had on a TV show in a long time. Of course, this is just the premiere, so things can change, but that the staff and cast had the guts to go all out retro and fun with this show gave it both its own identity and a set up for potential greatness down the line.

Was it perfect? Not entirely, after a great first half, the show slows down a bit with a bar fight and a confrontation with a villain ends sloppier than it probably should, but those are VERY minor quibbles.

The Atom and Rip Hunter are the straight men characters that a show like this needs with the latter turning in a very outlaw-esque performance, Firestorm is both the team brain and every-man, The Hawk lovers add a romance bent, and the trio of White Canary, Captain Cold, and Heat Wave, are the muscle and morally ambiguous characters that you both want to root for and hope can grow up during their journey. For such a large main cast, every character has chemistry with every other, which not only leads to some good comedic moments but satisfying drama as well.

But the set up was so well done, the tone is so unabashedly bright and fun, and the cast is so well picked, that I welcome any future episodes with open arms. This story can really go anywhere at this point.

So I say, be wary of the critics on this one just as you are when it comes to superhero and action films. Watch it for yourself to see, but I bet if you are a fan of pre-2000 comic books at all, you will have a new favorite show to watch every week. It's just that good.

And I, for one, cannot wait until next Thursday to see more.