Legends of Tomorrow season 4, episode 14 review: Nip/Stuck

Constantine battled his family, as The Legends were put on ice in this week’s episode of DC’s Legends of Tomorrow. But was “Nip/Stuck” worth the watch?

It wouldn’t be like DC’s Legends of Tomorrow to waste any opportunity to shock its viewers. So it shouldn’t come as a surprise to learn that, what appeared to be a cooling off-episode for the Legends (literally), soon turned into a battle for souls, war at the Time Bureau and, above all, an exercise for everyone to work on their team-building skills.

With that in mind, here’s everything that went down “Nip/Stuck” and whether or not it was as satisfyingly ridiculous as it sounds (SPOILER ALERT: It was).

Outcasts and Misfits Make A Great Time

“Nip/Stuck” may have been full of genuinely laugh-out-loud moments but, like always, there was a coherent and important message behind all of it.

With Mick Rory choosing to fire on Neron, he unwittingly got the Waverider and, by extension, his entire team, trapped under an avalanche. Naturally, this caused tension, as he and Sara began arguing over their different approaches, criticizing each other’s social activities in the process.

A tension-raising scenario, no doubt, that was reflected in one of the episode’s other two arcs, as the new Time Bureau agent, Nora Darhk, found herself thrown in at the deep end when her evening of learning about the importance of teamwork through the organization’s files soon turned into a bid to help Mona free Ava (and the rest of the Bureau) from Gary’s hypnotizing eye-nipple from hell.

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Though Nora was eventually brainwashed by that very monster, Mona managed to save the day by transforming into the formerly-outcast “Wolfie” – accepting all of who she was in the process. In doing so, she freed Ava and Nora from Gary’s mental grip as the trio regained control of the Bureau.

The Legends solved their issue aboard the Waverider in a similarly unorthodox manner as, realizing that they were running out of power and energy (and eventually air), they turned on the ship’s engine and just decided to have a good old-fashioned party, putting all of their differences aside as they played Ray’s team-building card games – if you gotta go, may as well do it having fun, right? However, their actions allowed the Waverider to thaw the surrounding snow, giving them the opportunity to fly to safety.

As Legends always proves, there was a method to its madness. In placing these characters in these unusual situations, it successfully managed to highlight what people can accomplish when they put their differences aside and/or overcome their demons and decide to work together.

Constantine In Hell

The episode’s other narrative heavily revolved around the Legends’ own Master of the Dark Arts, John Constantine – who found himself forced to open a portal to hell that could be reverse-engineered to allow something to come out of it. It was a new trick that he couldn’t perfect without running into one of his ancestors (the heartless King Constantine who took great pleasure in sending innocent creatures to hell), but one that he picked up when Neron gave him the opportunity to.

While the narrative appeared to focus on Neron’s successful attempts to use Constantine to rescue Tabitha from hell, the real story was the demon hunter’s arc, as the writers continued to remind us of the literal hell that awaits him when he dies. Furthermore, they reminded us of the fact that the little girl known as Astra, and now Ray, is also damned to an eternity of suffering in hellfire and brimstone.

In doing all of this, the episode was presented as a redemption arc of sorts for the guilty demon hunter who, after opening the portal, threw himself into it and vowed to save Ray. In that moment, he was no longer afraid of what awaited him, as he was willing to face it in the present and, in doing so, save his loved ones.

Legendary Leftovers

• John Constantine is undoubtedly one of the most compelling characters on the show, and this episode was the latest example of that.
• Now that “Johnny” has ended up in hell, could we finally see Astra?
• It was nice to see Sara and Mick share a remotely touching moment together, as they reminisced about being the last of the original Legends.
• Brandon Routh did such a great job playing the villain here. He’s such a natural hero that it was a breath of fresh air to see him bring Neron to life.
• Tabitha was the Fairy Godmother?! Of course she was.
• Gary’s eye-nipple was just such a Legends thing to do. Seeing him have it bitten off by Wolfie, however? Now that was a little more “out there” than we’re used to.
• The Puca was adorable!
• “Get away from him, you beast!” – classic Aliens reference from Ava Sharpe (one that Legends has already used before in the season 3 episode “Phone Home”).

Legends of Tomorrow returns to The CW next Monday, May 13, ay 8:00 p.m. ET. Are you excited? Let us know in the comments below!