Legends of Tomorrow: This is Gus

July 13, 2021 2:40 PM - Season 6, Episode 9

This episode of Legends tackles all the pressing issues of the day: why representation matters, how marketing and merchandising can ruin a media property, how parent-child relationships can grow stronger through challenging times, how to best engage with an alternative version of oneself, and, the most important of them all, how uninformed behaviour can lead to the realization of bad (and mixed) fan-fiction tropes.

AV Club review

posted by sardonyx (14 comments total)

I don't know if anybody is still watching or if there is a desire to discuss the show, but I figured I'd put this episode up just in case as it packs a lot into an hour of TV.

Personally, though, I just needed to say: Gus was creepy. He wasn't at all cute. He had that old-man, wrinkled look that does not belong on a baby, alien or not.

Also, they didn't explain why Mick wasn't around for a year. Was that just due to the time jump to the future?

Overall, the review had a much higher opinion of the episode than I did.
posted by sardonyx at 2:42 PM on July 13, 2021 [1 favorite]

I absolutely loved this episode. They made me actually anxious as to whether Behrad would get restored to himself or not. I also teared up at the end when the Zaris had their conversation inside the totem. What it says about representation makes me think of some of the stuff that the stars and makers of Harold and Kumar Go to White Castle have said about that film.

I also really felt for Zari 2.0, and how she felt she'd neglected her brother. Zari(s) and Behrad are some of my favorite relationships on the show. Her monologue about what makes her brother special really touched me. It's going to be interesting to see how Zari 1.0 and Behrad relate in the next few episodes. (Will they go to war over the last donut?) And how John reacts when he returns to find a different Zari on board!

I was amused at the initial reactions to Capitalist Behrad as "hawt," followed in short order by "appalled at his selfishness and ruthlessness."

Yes, I agree that Gus was kind of creepy. I am not sure if that was intentional or not. If they keep him around we'll get a chance to find out in coming episodes.

I think "Why was Mick absent for a year?" is a deliberate mystery on the part of the writers and is probably setting something up for later in the season. But now we know why Dominic Purcell lost his shit on Instagram earlier this year.
posted by rednikki at 10:36 PM on July 13, 2021 [1 favorite]

I think Gus's design was deliberately a cross between Beebo and ALF, to ensure that watchers did not get immediately sucked into the "d'awwwwwwwww" abyss that the in-universe studio audience did.

Also to poke mild fun at the cries for Beebo merch. I definitely felt that one.
posted by humbug at 4:16 AM on July 14, 2021 [3 favorites]

It's not that I hated the episode. There are parts of it I really liked and there were definitely important character developments that occurred and lots of foundational pieces that were laid. There were just parts that felt off to me somehow that I can't quite put my finger on enough to elucidate. Maybe it was the sitcommy setup (with everybody forgetting Behrad's birthday and then going along with the plan to convince him that they didn't) that set me off on the wrong foot. And yes, I realize that a sitcommy setup was a deliberate choice to echo what happens later in the show.

Now, the question is, if they finally get around to merchandising Beebo (likely when they launch his own show), will they include a special edition Gus-Gus?
posted by sardonyx at 6:52 AM on July 14, 2021 [3 favorites]

I didn't realize until after I finished watching this episode that I'd accidentally skipped the previous week's 'Stressed Western'. I thought this episode was fine, but I enjoyed the Western episode more.
posted by oh yeah! at 4:42 PM on July 14, 2021

I thought maybe if you weren't posting, you weren't watching, and if you weren't, maybe others weren't as well. I only put this one up because I was pretty sure that Gus would garner a reaction from anybody left who was still following the show. But if you want to get back to posting, I'll be be reading (and probably commenting).
posted by sardonyx at 8:36 AM on July 15, 2021

I'm still watching Legends, Flash, and Superman & Lois, but not on any regular schedule -- I just kind of get around to them whenever I don't have the attention span for all my Netflix subtitled kdramas, rather than watching them on broadcast night to get the new thread up.
posted by oh yeah! at 12:24 PM on July 15, 2021

I feel you. Flash is a chore. I don't know why I'm still bothering. S&L isn't completely terrible (when it's focusing on Lois and Clark). I guess if there is interest I'll try to post Legends. At least it always provides something to talk about and doesn't leave the viewer banging their head on the nearest wall or desk asking "how can this be so bad and stupid? I thought there were professionals writing this?" (which is the appropriate response to recent Flash episodes).
posted by sardonyx at 12:41 PM on July 15, 2021 [3 favorites]

I'm still watching, and following these posts, but I'm less and less inclined to participate on Fanfare in general because posts about stuff I like are often flooded with negativity before I get a chance to jump in. It's really increased the amount of motivation required for me to post even on posts where the negativity isn't present.
posted by under_petticoat_rule at 6:24 PM on July 15, 2021 [1 favorite]

Okay, I realize this thread may not be the best example (what with me complaining about the bad writing on the Flash) and slagging Gus-Gus' appearance, but I hope that the Arrowverse threads are a mostly positive and welcoming place. I mean, I'm not in charge of them, but I've been around them since their inception, and I like our little DCCW community, and I hope that other people do too.
posted by sardonyx at 8:25 PM on July 15, 2021

Yeah, I didn't mean that as a criticism of you, I'm thinking of other shows where the negativity came thick and fast and choked the posts, although I seem to have banished specific examples from my memory.
posted by under_petticoat_rule at 7:30 AM on July 16, 2021 [2 favorites]

Was one of them Batwoman? Because that really picked up once the new character (and actress) found her feet.

Anyway I loved this episode. And hated Gus-Gus. But I could see how characters primed to read it as a pastel-coloured animatronic furby-hobgoblin-baby would find it cuter than us and the legends primed to read it as a potentially dangerous beebo-alien with unusually jerky movement. It was perfect.

Rory: Are you jealous?
posted by polytope subirb enby-of-piano-dice at 11:10 AM on July 16, 2021 [1 favorite]

Was one of them Batwoman?

I honestly don't recall, but my partner and I have been watching the new season and after every episode one of us remarks "This show has gotten so much better!"
posted by under_petticoat_rule at 5:56 AM on July 17, 2021 [1 favorite]

I felt mostly kind of confused as to what was going on in this episode?

Gus: not that cute, pink Mogwai (sigh)

Did enjoy the "Bud-Stuy" idea, at least. Not sure what was going on with the "oh, Behrad suddenly cleaned up" plot.

Pregnant dude is gonna be amusing.

More Zaris!
posted by jenfullmoon at 11:11 AM on July 18, 2021 [1 favorite]