For an impromptu end, the Legacies season 2 spring finale was one hell of an episode. Congrats to the whole Legacies team for letting us end season 2 (for now) in such epic style!
So, last episode ended with Hope asleep (and in Josie’s mind), Landon dead, Raf zombified, Lizzie pretending to be dead, and the rest doing their best to play up Lizzie’s death so Darth Josie wouldn’t catch onto their plan.
That’s a hell of a lot to wrap up in one episode, but I was SERIOUSLY impressed with how well this episode worked as a finale.
I mean, yes, of course I’m desperate to know why Hope is still seemingly stuck in Josie’s mind, and why Landon hasn’t woken up if the Necromancer did his part. But I’m also really glad that we have some threads left to pull on this summer while we wait for news regarding when it will be safe for the Legacies cast and crew to return to set.
I’m sure they’re as eager to film those last four episodes (including that confirmed musical ep!) as we are to see them, but first and foremost, it must be safe for them to return.
That all said, here’s my full review of all the craziest bits of the Legacies season 2 spring finale:
Of course Josie’s subconscious is a fairytale world
I mean, we knew it from the previews already, but it makes a lot of sense. And I hope now that she’s rewriting the story, her subconscious world will morph and change to fit the woman who dreamed it up.
If we ever end up in Josie’s subconscious again, I hope we find it a different sort of fairytale kingdom. One where the princess is a little more fierce and badass, while still maintaining that sense of goodness, with the same kind heart and good humor.
Dark Josie reigns supreme
I’m thinking in the hierarchy of villains, she’s somewhere underneath Malivore, and probably Kai, too, but definitely higher than Clark or the Necromancer or pretty much any of the singular monsters from last season. For some reason, that black magic energy is just so much more powerful than almost anything else we’ve seen on Legacies so far.
There are a couple TVD era villains I can think of (the Mikaelsons, anyone?) that would give her a run for her money, but she’s gonna rank pretty high on the Legacies villain list for a long time.
Hope is Lizzie and Lizzie is Hope
I gotta say, Danielle Rose Russell does a mean Lizzie Saltzman. I bought it hook, line, and sinker. It must have been a lot of fun for Danielle to get to do something a little different for a change than more of Hope’s tortured hero drama.
I mean, don’t get me wrong, I love me some Hope-saved-the-world-and-all-she-got-for-her-trouble-was-this-black-puddle-of-goo drama, but it was nice to see one of the show’s strongest actors get to flex a different muscle for a bit in the Legacies season 2 spring finale.
So, what exactly happened to Landon?
Last episode, he was stabbed by Raf with the golden arrow. I really believed that when they pulled it out, he would start his resurrection cycle again, but no such luck. Raf is holding the arrow when he brings Dr. Saltzman down to take a look, and at no point in the course of this episode did it appear that Landon was even thinking of bursting into phoenix-y flames.
So, is Landon dead? Or just stuck like it seems Hope probably is at the end of the episode? Well, we have a bit of a wait till we find out, but let the conjecture begin!
No non-consensual kissing for these fairy tale ladies
I know, I know. When we start thinking in fairy tale tropes, it’s easy to start believing in true love’s kiss, but I actually really like the stand the writers took in this episode.
You have to be the change you want to see in the world, and, in order to re-write tropes like those of Snow White and Prince Charming, you have to start somewhere. Why not our little supernatural show about witches, vampires, wolves, and the menagerie of monsters they had no idea they were sharing a world with.
Little Red Riding Witch vs. the Big Bad Wolf Queen
I find it interesting that Hope was able to fend off the darkness pretty well until it took Josie’s form. Is Hope just reluctant to hurt someone who looks like Josie, even if she is in her evil form? I think that may have been part of the case, here.
Plus, it’s nice to know that Josie had the power to tame her darkest impulses all on her own.
Lizzie’s gets a major dose of truth
It’s really unfortunate that everyone has fallen into this ‘Lizzie is terrible’ schtick, but it was probably good for her to hear.
Lizzie is so self-assured in her popularity that she doesn’t see the forest for the trees. She can think of how each and every person treats her in one-on-one situations and such, but she doesn’t take a look at the big picture very often. I’m sure even Lizzie would have noticed that the other students fear her more than love her.
But at the same time, Lizzie’s bravado is a delicate facade. Just underneath that thin, flimsy coating of “thick skin” she pretends to have is a girl who just wants to be liked. She just wants to know that when she sacrifices herself to save her school and her sister, someone will have nice things to say about her and a few nice memories to carry her on with.
Jed and Kaleb’s riff off
This whole Jed and Kaleb competition for Alyssa Chang’s affection is kind of hilarious. Them having a riff off full of skilled (and some rawer talent) runs in the middle of Lizzie’s fake funeral was adorable. I mean, that was a terrible memorial, but at least it helped dissolve a little of the tension already ramping up in this episode.
Oh, and if their bonding over Alyssa’s flaws means a new bromance is born, I am SO here for that, too.
A deal with the devil… adjacent
In order to save Josie from the black magic churning through her cells, Alaric had to make a deal with the Necromancer. Since our zombie-creator found himself powerless against the powers of Lord Josiemort, he knew there was only one way to get her out of his life and himself back in the driver’s seat.
Returning Raf and Alyssa to actual life and (supposedly) reviving Landon was just a trade off. The real choice was between giving all of Josie’s black magic to the Necromancer and giving him a supercharge of his power or letting her fall deeper and deeper into the evil coursing through her veins.
The unbreakable covenant spell
Eerily reminiscent of the Unbreakable Vow from Harry Potter, the Necromancer agrees to be bound by their deal. In order to assure Alaric that he would hold up his end of the deal, the Necromancer breaks out the Unbreakable Covenant Spell, which would require each party to hold up their entire end of the deal to reap the benefits.
This is why I’m sure beyond sureness that whatever’s keeping Hope asleep is affecting Landon, too… somehow.
Enter M.G. and his unique ability to speak Lizzie
Only someone who truly knows Lizzie down to her soul could have turned an entire room of people laughing at her into a crowd that remembers their friend fondly. I would have loved to hear more of their remembrances of the nice things that Lizzie did for them. For every wild, crazy thing she’s done, there’s something downright sweet to balance the scale.
It shows how much M.G. really truly cares for Lizzie. It’s not just a crush or some teen hormonal thing. He loves that girl. He knows her down to her marrow. And every wonderful thing he does for her brings her closer and closer to seeing how incredible his belief in her is. And only someone who believes in the good in her is going to be able to win her heart. I can’t wait to see her crush on him next season. It’s coming, I can feel it.
The actual fairy tale narrative
First of all, Evil Queen Josie’s armor outfit was STUNNING. So freaking gorgeous, even in all black.
I love that, in the end, Josie and Lizzie were both so afraid to hurt each other that they found themselves second class citizens in their own lives. Last episode, Lizzie had to choose herself in order to even have a chance to beat Josie in the Merge. In the Legacies season 2 spring finale, Josie has to set aside her fears of being powerful enough to beat Lizzie in order to push Dark Josie out of power.
Josie takes a break?
Toting all that power around for so long seems to have worn Josie out a bit. It might be a good thing for her to take a step back from her power. I’m interested to know what might be important enough for her to restore her magic. Who will have to be in life-threatening peril for her to jump back into the fray?
They like me! They really like me!
Lizzie’s look of incredulity when the other witches who spent most of the day badmouthing her showed up at the lakeside to celebrate her life.
Thank you, ‘Legacies’ writers, for bringing Raf and Alyssa back to the land of the living
Poor Rafael has been through enough. He’s had the shit end of the stick so far this season, so I hope now that his heart is beating again, he can have something go his way for once. Landon coming back would be a start, but something else would be nice, too. Maybe a nice new romance or bromance? Raf needs more people in his life than just the two people who love him the most, and bring him the most pain, too.
So, did Alaric and the Necromancer go through with their Unbreakable Covenant?
If they cast that spell over their deal, then the Necromancer HAS restored Landon and his perma-sleep is being caused by something else. OR, and there’s a decent chance of this, the Necromancer used a loophole of never declaring WHEN he would restore Landon to his body, and the Necromancer is delaying raising Landon until the opportune moment, which will undoubtedly involve Malivore and probably Clark, too.
