"Aches and Pains"
This week's episode of Black Lightning may not have been the strongest of the season, but it's a noted reminder of the show's continuous streak of solid quality all around. There's enough in here that highlights everything that makes this series one of the greater new entries of the genre such as the refreshing idea that our hero is a man coming out of retirement which we're now starting to see the damaging repercussions of such a decision. There's also a heavy focus on family history taking place this time around as we get a quick but pretty deep dive into Tobias Whale's tortured childhood while also digging through Jefferson's father's past. As I said, there's definitely enough here to explore and enjoy.
On the subject of Tobias, one of my personal favorite things to see in most superhero series to where the villain is frequently shown is a bit of background as to what led to the motivations of our antagonist. Similiar in case to Netflix's incredible Daredevil series, we're given an inside look into what makes our crime boss baddie the cold hearted individual that he is via tragic childhood flashbacks involving an abusive father. Tobias could have easily been your typical "he's mean and evil...the end" one dimensional criminal having nothing interesting behind his constantly mentioned skin color. Instead, because of the cleverly edited flashbacks showing the idea of Tobias being impacted and anchored down by his father's existence, we now have a villain with more layers showing a relatable side to his motivations.
 |
| Having Lynn show up as both Jefferson's concerned ex-wife as well as, in a sense, Black Lightning's medic was one of my favorite scenes on the show. It's a compelling relationship never before explored on any of these CW DC Comics TV series. |
On the other spectrum, we have Black Lightning who seems to be experiencing mysterious pains caused by some unseen bodily disruption. Judging by the static-like sound heard whenever Jefferson suffers these pains, one can assume that it's directly linked to his powers, but the episode never reveals what it may be just yet. Was he accidentally drugged by the Green Light which might explain his agitated outbursts as well? We'll just have to see. More importantly, as I've said previously, I just love the idea that our hero is one that is highly vulnerable even given his remarkable powers. Powers aside, Jefferson is presented as a man undergoing several factors of stress in his life, so the idea of him having to be on constant medical emergency watch makes his superhero escapes twice as intense and engaging.
Overall, this was a pretty entertaining episode with the exception of some of the musical choices, the horrendous make up on the actor who plays Tobias's father, and what I assume to be an intentionally awful costume for Thunder. As much as I like the idea of Black Lightning having super powered daughters to a degree, I honestly couldn't take any of Anissa's scenes seriously while she sported her fan made comic con attire. However, I did like the idea of her temporarily having her own tailor invoking the relationship shared between Jefferson and Gambi. Either way, just like the previous episode, I look forward to seeing what next week's episode brings with high anticipation. I can now happily say that Black Lightning is slowly becoming one of my top favorites in the CW line of comic book TV shows.
Bonus Thoughts
1. Gambi's Secrets & Freeland's Metahuman Universe
 |
| Am I the only one who still finds it awesome that Gambi is ironically played by the great James Remar who also played Raiden from Mortal Kombat? |
During the beginning of the episode, we see Gambi interacting with Tobias alluding to an old shared agreement underlining that Tobias would never return. Not only is it interesting to watch as the series slowly but carefully unravel the mysterious secrets behind Jefferson's right hand man, but we also learn that Tobias was given a serum for anti-aging. Considering that Anissa has uncovered a story about missing children with abilities, perhaps we're starting to finally present the meta human component of the Black Lightning universe which should be pretty intriguing. Think of this as the particle accelerator story on The Flash with the main difference being that we're still not entirely sure what the actual cause is.
2. Superhero Upgrades
One of my favorite things to see in a comic book superhero property such as this is getting some sense of evolution with our characters' power. On The Flash, it's seeing Barry learning how to throw lightning, phase through objects, or discover that he can travel through time amongst other things. With Black Lightning, we get to see Jefferson essentially fly using his powers and what I assume to be the suit's aid. We also get to see him actually use his electrical powers as an extension of his reach by grabbing a gun out of someone's hands with it. Now that's pretty badass if I do say so myself. Hopefully, we get to see more examples of Black Lightning's variety of skills and capabilities.
3. The Black Signal
Jefferson speaking to Inspector Henderson as an unmasked and completely exposed Black Lightning behind a hedge of bushes has got to be one of the greatest things that I've ever seen on a superhero TV series. Also loved that he gave the inspector a phone stating that he likes to keep things old school that he can consider it "the Black Signal". One has to wonder if that's an in-universe Batman joke or not considering the fact that DC Comics do exist as shown by Grace's Outsiders comic.
Funny Moments
1. Jefferson Gets Caught Being Proud of His Daughter
 |
| Now, granted we do get a nice seeing with Jefferson speaking to his daughter about fighting not being the best response during confrontational moments, there's a pretty hilarious moment prior to this where he proudly smiles after Jennifer states that she fought off 2 girls. This not so stealthy smile leads to his wife calling him out on it stating that it's not okay to which he immediately tries to catch himself. Gotta love that surprise reaction. |
2. My Most Curiously Sought Out Character
 |
| I can't be the only guy that gets immediately curious whenever, who I believe to be, Syonide shows up. Does she have powers on the show or is she just Tobias Whale's weapon specialist hit woman? Just by design alone, she looks like that badass female side villain that steals ever scene that she's in, so I hope that they give her something visually captivating to do action-wise. |
Episode Rating: 8/10
No comments:
Post a Comment