The following show critique portion of this review was written by my colleague Ben Belcher.
Having started off as an ensemble cast of DC characters from a slew of different Arrowverse shows, Legends has come a loooooong way and become one of my favorite shows every year. It is absolutely wacky and ridiculous and it knows it, and I love it.
Season six picks up right where the last season left off where we see Capt. Sara Lance being abducted by aliens! Holy crap! Unfortunately for Sara, the rest of the Legends are a bit too smashed to realize that she’s gone until it’s too late! What follows is an insane adventure among the stars to rescue our beloved super assassin turned time-travelling ship captain with Mick Rory while the rest of the Legends scour the timeline for aliens who’re causing all sorts of calamities.
While the crew searches for aliens lost in time we’re introduced to this season’s newest character Spooner, a woman who was allegedly abducted by aliens and can now hear their thoughts and feel their presence. She’s a tough Spanish badass who’s not afraid to blow you away at a moment’s notice if you cross her, and she adds an interesting dynamic to the team clashing with Ava while relating to Astra and ultimately bringing out the best in both of them.
Astra’s arc this season was particularly interesting. She feels like she’s not adding anything to the team and that she’s out of place in a world she doesn’t really understand. Constantine steps in and starts to show her the ropes of magic, facilitating his own arc for the season as well. While he tries to teach Astra how to control her new power, he finds that he has lost his own and seeks out a mystical artifact called the Fountain of Imperium to restore himself. Everything culminates in a heartfelt scene between him and his lover Zari, from the current timeline as they have to say goodbye to each other. With Matt Ryan leaving the role of Constantine this year, this felt like a perfect way to say goodbye to his character.
Mick Rory’s story this season is every bit as heartfelt while still managing to be absurd and hilarious. As the only other member of the original crew, Mick feels an obligation to rescue Sara and sets out to do just that with everyone’s favorite time agent and now magical apprentice Gary. Mick meets a punkish alien woman named Karen, and does what he does best… gets pregnant! Now he has to deal with becoming a grandfather and father to 42 alien hybrids all in the same year! After all of the craziness he’s been through seeing him decide to step away for a while made sense, but I’m still sad to see him go.
We don’t get to spend as much time with Nate this season, but we do get to see him enjoying some time with Zari from the other timeline, and there’s something so nice about seeing them just be happy together. Behrad gets more than a few chances to shine though, and I’m here for it. He has very quickly become one of my favorite characters on the show, and if you disagree, watch the episodes “Meat: the Legends” and “This is Gus” and get back to me.
The season wanders a bit, but finds its footing in a very interesting villain named Bishop. Bishop is the man who originally created the Ava clones and has since dedicated his life to saving humanity by splicing us with different alien DNA. He’s lyrical and bombastic and over the top, and he is everything a villain for the Legends should be. Watching the struggle between him and Sara over the course of the season was compelling and dramatic in a way that Legends has struggled to be for years, while also still managing to be insanely fun.
Legends of Tomorrow is great fun. It’s goofy and absurd, and it just works. I love seeing the madcap cast of characters roll with the punches and I can’t wait to see more.
Video Quality
DC’s Legends of Tomorrow: The Complete Sixth Season arrives on Blu-Ray with a pleasing AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 1.78:1. The series is quite bright and colorful, and there are some magical instances of beautiful colors popping off the screen. Black levels are appropriately deep and give way to a nice amount of detail in shadows. The bright whites of the show do not fall victim to any blooming in this presentation. The levels of detail in this presentation is quite striking, as all of the subtle details in the various settings are easily identifiable. Skin tones appear very natural across the entire cast. There are no egregious instances of aliasing or compression artifacts detectable here. The show uses CGI frequently to pretty great effect, and that is represented well here. The Blu-Ray presentation will be very appreciated by fans of the show.
Audio Quality
This Blu-Ray comes with an incredibly dynamic DTS-HD 5.1 Master Audio track that perfectly brings every location to life. Action sequences and more kinetic moments are given the appropriate power in the mix with a forceful showing in the low end. Ambient sounds are also precisely placed in the rear channels. Dialogue always comes through nice and clear without being stepped on by the powerful score or any sound effects. The score of the show often fills the room with tonally appropriate music that plays to the strength of each adventure. The audio track does a solid job of handling everything that is thrown at it with ease.
Special Features
- Deleted Scenes: 28 minutes of unused material is provided here including scenes between Nate and Ava discussing the status of their respective relationships, numerous moments with Spooner, a trip to the farmer’s market, some old west fun and more. Some of these moments includes unfinished visual effects.
- Never Alone – Heroes and Allies: A 21-minute featurette which goes beyond DC’s Legends of Tomorrow to also discuss Batwoman, Superman & Lois, Stargirl, The Flash and more. In this piece there is a larger discussion about the teams or family that work together in service of the common good. It is nice to get a perspective from various different shows. This was previously included on the Batwoman: Season 2, The Flash: Season 7 and Superman & Lois: Season 1 Blu-Rays.
- Gag Reel: A seven-minute collection of flubbed or forgotten lines, giggle fits, goofing around, malfunctioning props and more that provide some big laughs.
- VFX Creature Feature: A five-minute featurette which takes a look at some of the creatures in this season and how the visual effects evolved to the finished product on screen.
- Animation Split Screen: A nearly six-minute comparison video which shows a rough sketch of the animation as compared to the final version.
- Actors Split Screen: A two-minute look at the actors recording their voiceovers during their Beauty and the Beast-esque turn as common household items come to life.
Final Thoughts
DC’s Legends of Tomorrow is the zany stepchild of the Arrowverse that continues to offer healthy doses of fun and adventure that sets it apart from the rest of the DC slate. With this season comes many shakeups, departures and arrivals that will both break your heart and beam with joy. There are the occasional bumps along the way, but it remains one of the CW shows that has us most excited to tune in every week. Warner Bros. Home Entertainment has released a Blu-Ray featuring an excellent A/V presentation and some enjoyable special features. Fans of the show pretty much know what to expect with these releases and should not be disappointed in the slightest. Recommended
DC’s Legends of Tomorrow: The Complete Sixth Season will be available to purchase on Blu-Ray and DVD on November 9, 2021.
Note: Images presented in this review are not reflective of the image quality of the Blu-Ray.
Disclaimer: Warner Bros. Home Entertainment has supplied a copy of this disc free of charge for review purposes. All opinions in this review are the honest reactions of the author.
Dillon is most comfortable sitting around in a theatre all day watching both big budget and independent movies.
