“Romeo vs. Juliet: Dawn of Justness” was another fun episode of Legends Of Tomorrow. It showed us some very fun moments involving ol’ Willy Shakespeare and saving the story of Romeo and Juliet. But I would be doing a huge disservice if I didn’t address the biggest takeaway from this episode. This could be the very last time we see Ray Palmer or Nora Dahrk in the Arrowverse.
To be honest I’m not nearly ready to say goodbye to either of them, but the time has come to bid them “au revoir”. So let’s talk about what Ray Palmer and Nora Darhk meant to Legends Of Tomorrow.
To say that Legends Of Tomorrow is going to miss Ray a lot is the understatement of the century. Sara Lance may be the soul of the team, but Ray Palmer is the heart. Through the years, Brandon was able to make a character that got a lot of people angry at him, thanks to an ill-advised romance arc with Felicity Smoak, into one of the most beloved in the Arrowverse.
Always with a smile and a positive attitude for life, Ray has been one of the few constants as Legends Of Tomorrow switched from your regular super-hero show to the wonderful insanity it is today. Much like he did with me, Ray grew on people, and got all of us to root for the genius with a heart of gold. Slowly but surely, he became one of the Legends I looked the most forward to seeing each week.
Through the last few seasons, a big strength of Legends was Ray’s friendship with Nate. At times silly and other times heartfelt, there was not a better example of that than in “Romeo vs. Juliet.’ Ray puts off telling Nate that him and Nora are leaving the ship through most of the episode. After all, how do you say good-bye to your best friend? So during the mission, Nate decides to throw a bachelor party for Ray. It’s funny and pure Legends Of Tomorrow silliness, as it leads to William Shakespeare becoming a superhero novelist instead of a playwright.
But eventually, the truth comes out like it always does. Nate is hurt that Ray didn’t tell him immediately that he was leaving. It’s the classic situation where both are right and both are wrong. Nate had every right to be upset, but also should understand how hard this is for Ray. As for Ray, yeah you should tell your best friend as soon as possible. It’s the right thing to do but also how can you do something that would break their heart?
Thankfully though after a chat with Zari, Nate realizes the error of his ways and is able to catch Ray before he goes.
To say I didn’t cry as Nate and Ray said “I love you” to one another and hugged good-bye would be a damn lie. If you’ve ever had to say goodbye to your best friend, you understand the emotion they go through at that moment. It was as beautiful a moment as you will see on television this year.
So is this the last time we’ll see Ray Palmer in the Arrowverse? I don’t know. I really don’t. But in my heart, I hope the answer is no.
As for Nora Darhk, she’s a prime example of how to do a redemption story arc. Nora grew from a villain being controlled by outside forces to a hero understanding that her flaws are a strength not a weakness.
Courtney Ford is a big reason why Nora became an underrated highlight of the last few seasons of Legends Of Tomorrow. Thanks to her, we grew to love Nora as she struggled to deal with what life had done to her. Nora was easy to root for because of the spark and charm Courtney brought to the character. And when Nora and Ray became a couple and then got married, we cheered at seeing two characters get the happiness they deserve.
So a giant THANK YOU to Brandon Routh and Courtney Ford for making Ray Palmer and Nora Darhk two of our favorite characters on Legends Of Tomorrow. Thank you for showing up that being a hero doesn’t always end in death or anguish, but can end in happiness and love. Thank you for all the years of joy and entertainment that you two brought to Legends Of Tomorrow.
As Ray said to Gideon: “Thank You for Everything.”
LEGENDARY THOUGHTS
- How does the Waverider only have one bathroom? Seriously, Rip should have figured to install an extra one in there when he formed the Legends so long ago.
- Good to see Nora/Ava/Mona’s book club still goes on.
- “Who would have thought we’d still be here.” Sara and Ray’s farewell to each other was really touching. Now Sara Lance is the last one left from the original Legends team. *Insert crying emoji here*
- “He is so dramatic.” “Yeah.”
- Nate’s Riverdale joke was very good.
- To save Shakesphare’s career, the Legends perform Romeo and Juliet for the masses. The biggest takeaway: John and Zari make one heck of a Romeo and Juliet.
- As for the Loom of Fate plot, the team is able to find a piece of the loom in the form of a coin. Why a coin? Charlie says it to keep mortals from going insane looking at it.
- We also got the return of Mona! Mostly her role in the episode is interacting with Mick and try to convince him that he would be a good dad to Lita. I didn’t hate this, as Mona’s character is always at her best in small doses.
- “To Ray, who taught me how to be a better friend by being a better friend than I deserved.”
Legends Of Tomorrow returns April 7th on the CW at 9 pm.
