Legacies season 3 episode 3, “Salvatore: The Musical!”, is a nostalgic episode that finally slows the show down long enough to really look at these characters for the first time this season. This episode pulls back the curtain on not only a musical about The Vampire Diaries Universe, aka the founding of the Salvatore School, but also on the characters who have to carry its legacies.
“Salvatore: The Musical!” has beautiful tributes to fan-favorite characters. It’s just the right amount of meta. Most importantly, this episode is hopefully a sign of where this season of Legacies is headed.
Dr. Goodfellow Isn’t So Great
There’s a lot to like about this episode. The cast’s talent shines in the musical numbers, which are beautifully written. There’s some emotional character-driven moments Legacies desperately needed. On the other hand, there are some parts of “Salvatore: The Musical!” that feel like they don’t fit. For example, this “monster of the week” clearly isn’t really a monster. His name is literally good fellow. He’s a distraction, which is fine and everything, because these kids could definitely use a healthy distraction mere days after losing one of their closest friends. Ultimately, his presence is basically useless? The Salvatore students could have created a musical on their own without his influence. There wasn’t a new monster last week and the events of “Salvatore: The Musical!” prove there didn’t need to be on this week either.
Similarly, if Ric needs this guy to nudge him to take on a relationship with a woman he barely knows, then Ric really isn’t the badass he used to be (we love that Landon poked fun at this). Ric has been burned, sure. He’s been through hell and back, but Legacies keeps forcing this romantic relationship between him and Sheriff Mac without building any foundation between them. Everything we’ve seen until now has been circumstantial and, frankly, fueled by compulsion. None of it has been real, so Ric’s risk loses all of its weight just like that. There’s no risk because there’s nothing to lose. Not yet, at least.
Lizzie Will Be Okay
Jenny Boyd‘s performance as Lizzie Saltzman is a standout in “Salvatore: The Musical!” So much of Lizzie’s time on Legacies has been about figuring out who she is to herself and her loved ones. A lot of that is tied up in feeling like she’ll never live up to her mother, Caroline Forbes. A lot of us have been impatiently waiting for the day that Candice King returns to the role of Caroline to visit her daughters at the Salvatore School. We kinda get that this week in a moving voiceover while Lizzie reads a letter from her mother. It’s the reminder that Lizzie needs in that moment — that she is more than enough, she is doing her best, and she is not broken. Hearing those sentiments in Caroline’s actual voice is enough to make any TVDU fan cry.
It’s interesting that Lizzie believes Caroline’s life jumped on track as soon as she became a vampire. Anyone who has seen TVD knows it wasn’t that easy. Lizzie put her mom on a pedestal, and we can’t blame her for doing that because her mom is Caroline freaking Forbes. That’s why Caroline’s letter is so important. Lizzie and Josie carry Caroline’s legacy every day, but they aren’t only that legacy.
Caroline reminding her daughter that things aren’t always as simple as they seem in a musical or in a dusty book on a shelf. Change and growth come every day through the biggest and smallest of steps. Lizzie prioritizing herself and knowing she is enough is a step in the right direction. It’s so clear even through the distance that Caroline Forbes could not be prouder of the woman her daughter is becoming. Lizzie is strong as hell, and she’ll be okay.
Always and Forever
We get to see a side of Hope that we keep wishing Legacies would spend more time with during “Salvatore: The Musical!” Not only do we get to see Hope paint again, we get to see her actually express her emotions through some cool magic rather just seeing her swoop in to save the day. She can only push things down and away for so long. Of course, she does swoop in to save the musical. Can we talk about how talented Danielle Rose Russell is? We are in awe of her.
Sometimes the legacy Hope carries get lost in the Super Squad antics. This isn’t to say that Legacies needs to call back to Klaus or Hayley as often as it does Caroline. This also isn’t to say that Hope’s journey should only orbit around her infamous family. It’s just to say that her family and those losses are a big part of her, and it would be beneficial to see more introspective moments on the show. We do love how we get to see Hope painting again in this episode. Of course Hope Mikaelson turns to art when she’s angry, stressed and missing her dad. We wouldn’t expect anything else. There’s a vulnerability to that act alone — bearing her feelings on a canvas anyone can see.
Hope’s always and understandably struggled with vulnerability, which makes her asking Dr. Goodfellow to say something her father would say a bit odd. We realize that he’s magical, influential and apparently he’s met Klaus before, but Dr. Goodfellow is the last person we would believe Hope would turn to in such a time. Again, it feels misplaced, like maybe Ric and Hope should have had that moment, but Legacies seems to be figuring out what it wants to do with Ric… still. It’s logical that Hope will continue to grapple with the weight of whether or not her family would be proud of her. That’s not something that will magically go away after a strange man tells her she’s enough. Our only wish is that Legacies continues to give Hope the space to explore this, whether it be through painting, singing or whatever.
Other Spelltacular Moments:
- This cast is so talented. Should every week be a musical? We think so.
- The montage of MG doing everything he can to remember Dr. Goodfellow is so good.
- It was a missed opportunity to not let MG participate in the musical, because Quincy Fouse is beyond talented!
- This isn’t spelltacular by any means, but Jade is such an odd addition to this episode.
- This episode made us love Jed because of how much he loves Stefan.
- Was anyone actually shocked that Alyssa screwed MG over?
- They should just let Chris Lee sing every week.
What did you think of this episode of Legacies? Let us know in the comments below!
Legacies is new Thursdays at 9/8c on The CW.
