No matter how hard any of the Legends tried, things couldn’t go back to the way they were before aliens kidnaped Sara.
Sara was determined not to let her new altered DNA change anything on DC’s Legends of Tomorrow Season 6 Episode 8, especially her relationship with Ava.
But things are always changing on the Waverider, and there is no such thing as “normal” when it comes to the Legends.
The overall theme of “Stressed Western” was a nice sentiment that proved that not all change is bad, and normal isn’t necessarily a good thing.
This all started when Sara admitted to Ava that she is now an alien-human hybrid clone.
Sara: Who wants to talk about space when we have Legends gossip to catch up on?
Ava: Oh, hot and juicy. Okay. So, Spooner’s great, well, once she put away her rail gun.
Sara: Sounds like my kind of girl.
Ava: Yes. Oh, and I was a binder, and, actually, I think I turned into a cartoon.
Sara: That’s a new one.
Ava was pretty accepting of the fact, which was not surprising given her own clone status. But it was obvious that Ava was worried about Sara and how her new powers would change things between them.
The tension between the two fiancés steadily grew until it forced them to confront their issues.
Both of them realized that they needed to stop pretending that nothing had changed and that one of the most special parts of their relationship is that they are not normal. And this is where we cue the “awe’s.”
With all the change that was happening, it was nice to see Sara easily slip back into captain mode.
The fact that she is now part alien makes her twice the badass that she previously was.
Nate: So you’re bulletproof now?
Sara: Yeah.
Nate: Welcome to the club!
And, on another positive note, it’s wonderful not to have to worry so much about Sara dying anymore now that she is bulletproof.
Sara Lance is back and stronger than ever, and we could not be happier for her or the rest of the team. They get by on their own, but there is no doubt that Sara keeps them in check better than anyone.
This episode lacked new developments, though.
The only part of the hour that pushed the story of DC’s Legends of Tomorrow Season 6 forward was Constantine leaving to find the Fountain of Imperium.
And there’s not a lot we even know about that.
Many different side stories overlapped one another, and they were all a bit insignificant to the big story. It seems as though you could throw “Stressed Western” away, and nothing would change about this season.
It was undoubtedly a fun episode with the Old West theme and the cowboy narrator, but the content of it was mostly fluff that we’re not very concerned about.
Another disappointing part of the episode was Bass Reeves.
It’s always a delight to see David Ramsey on an Arrowverse show because we miss him as John Diggle, but there was really no point in having him play Bass.
Other than an offhand comment by Sara, there was no talk about how Bass looked just like the Legends’ old friend Diggle.
Sara: Dig?
Bass: Yes, ma’am. I definitely do dig.
So, if there was no deeper meaning to him stopping by DC’s Legends of Tomorrow for an episode, why have him do it in the first place?
It would have been great if he had a greater role or if his presence somehow connected back to Diggle, but, sadly, that was not the case. We will have to cherish that two-second interaction between Sara and Bass, I guess.
On the bright side, “Stressed Western” introduced a new dynamic duo in Astra and Spooner.
They butted heads from the very beginning of the hour, so we knew that it was only a matter of time before they were forced to team up and become friends.
Even though we knew what was coming, it was fun to watch them bicker and figure out that they work better as a team than not as one.
Plus, it was great and unexpected that Astra was the one who encouraged Spooner to take control of her powers.
While their story was seemingly unimportant, we can’t say no to a little bit of sibling bonding between Zari and Behrad.
Zari noticed Behrad flirting with Astra and immediately took it upon herself to play matchmaker and give her baby brother some advice.
But he was quick to deny his feelings toward Astra and direct his attention towards another dame. His deflection leads us to believe that he has real feelings for Astra, and a romance will blossom between them soon.
Listen, I believe long-distance relationships can work, but the 1800s, that’s a bit of a stretch.
Zari
Despite Behrad’s true feelings, Zari was determined not to let her brother get heartbroken.
This led to a very heartwarming moment between the two of them, and we cannot wait to see Zari go into big sister mode and interrogate Astra if she and Behrad do start dating.
While Behrad’s romance with Astra is just beginning, Zari’s roaring relationship with Constantine will have to be put on hold for a moment.
Constantine is off to find the map to the Fountain of Imperium, and, unfortunately, it appears that his mission will be solo.
Spooner: Something big must have happened to turn this place from Deadwood to Disneyland.
Behrad: It must be our alien, or gentrification. Either way, we should stop it.
Hopefully, Constantine’s new adventures will tie into whatever the story of the second half of this season is. Perhaps he will run into Bishop? We all know that he’s not really dead.
The Fountain of Imperium does have ties to aliens, so it will likely have importance going forward. For now, let’s hope that Constantine can get his magic back without dying.
What did you think, DC’s Legends of Tomorrow Fanatics?
How great was the cowboy narrator? Were you disappointed by the show’s use of David Ramsey? Did you hope that we would see Nate and Zari 1.0’s reunion in the totem? Should Nate get a seat in the Hall of Justice?
And does Sara’s craving for cherries mean something deeper, or is it just one of her new alien quirks?
Let me know in the comments, and do not forget that you can watch DC’s Legends of Tomorrow online right here via TV Fanatic!
DC’s Legends of Tomorrow airs Sundays at 8/7c on The CW.
Sarah Little is a staff writer for TV Fanatic. Follow her on Twitter.