The moment that we’ve been waiting for has finally arrived! The Flash, “Legends of Today,†is the jumping off point for establishing two of the last remaining heroes for DC’s Legends of Tomorrow, Hawkman and Hawkgirl. The vicious Vandal Savage is also revealed in the first half of the two-part crossover with Arrow. The only issue I really have with the episode is that it’s clearly “part one of two.†Having said that, there are definitely some great scenes and reveals in this episode.
Quite quickly, we’ll get the huge villain reveal out of the way, Vandal Savage. Having no knowledge of Vandal Savage before the episode, I really had no clue what to expect. My first thought is that he is one ridiculously bad dude.
Vandal Savage has such a smugness to him. When he breaks out of the cuffs, the cops ask him, “Where’d you learn that, Houdini?†Savage retorts back, “Actually, I taught him.†The intrigue around Savage is pretty awesome, but his scenes that follow his reveal are, well just about exactly the same. Apparently he is really good at throwing knives, but he doesn’t really match up to any of the mainstay villains for either of the two series. However, it’s quite obvious that they don’t want to give everything away considering that Savage is the main villain in Legends of Tomorrow. It really feels like he was neutered a bit here since they have to save the juicy bits for Legends of Tomorrow.  Vandal Savage aside, this episode has exactly what you would expect from a crossover, for better or for worse.
We’ve come to expect crossovers between the two shows and for the majority of the time, the crossover episodes are fun and exciting. I must admit, however, the wow factor of The Flash and Arrow being on the same screen has lost a bit of its grandeur. While it may not have me jumping up and down, the chemistry between the two is undeniable. I could listen to the banter from Amell and Gustin endlessly. Even where the on-screen action doesn’t grab me, the small quips and qualms between the two certainly does.  That can be said for the majority of the cast on both shows, although besides Arrow, the rest of the Arrow crew didn’t really do too much. I completely get the need for a crossover; I just wish they were more a part of the main plot of the first half of this episode. This is the sole reason two-parters are kind of meh. You have to have a setup episode, and then the second always features the big payoff.
While the episode kicks off the backstory for Vandal Savage, Hawkgirl and Hawkman, Cisco is really the key character within the conflict; albeit he isn’t really a part of the “action†at all. Cisco and Kendra, while appearing very different at first, are actually very similar. They are both suppressing their abilities.  It isn’t until the second meeting with Vandal, where Speedy attempts to kill him, that Cisco finally explains to Kendra that he indeed has powers too.
I love how well the two relate, since Cisco is easily one of my favorite characters on the show, just knowing that Kendra isn’t here to stay is pretty sad. The emotion he has when explaining that their powers are something that they should turn to instead of turn from is a great scene. Central City just isn’t a place for love to flourish it appears. Caitlin, Barry, Cisco and Wells have all had a pretty poor start at keeping that love flame burning. Yikes.
Of course, the crews don’t finish off or figure out how Hawkgirl and Hawkman relate to Savage just yet, but another key story line does begin to develop. Sort of pushed aside is the storyline of Caitlin and Harry working on a drug to super speed the Speedforce in Barry’s body to give him that extra push to beat Zoom. But, while the idea seems worthwhile, Jay Garrick is 100{3a19833c997fa52158a43c449fe089ff048ac0506a335cac10721cfa396ff282} against it. Knowing the Wells he knows, you really can’t blame him. But, if we knows anything about either Wells, it’s that they never take no for an answer. I am utterly convinced that Wells set this next storyline up, but it’s not 100{3a19833c997fa52158a43c449fe089ff048ac0506a335cac10721cfa396ff282} certain. Patty sees Wells and knowing that Wells is supposedly dead, she follows him back to STAR Labs and confronts him. Instead of backing down, Wells pushes forward and Patty fires a precision shot right at his heart.
Having to think fast, Caitlin knows that Jay is the only one that can save him by drinking their created drug, Velocity Six and phase-shifting through him to pull the bullet out. Of course, it works. But, I am convinced that he did this to test the drug since Jay wouldn’t have otherwise. Wells is focused on one thing, and that’s saving his daughter. He would do anything to further pursue that conclusion.