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TV REVIEWS: FTN Reviews Legends Of Tomorrow Season 03 Episode 14: Amazing Grace

March 13th, 2018 by Todd Black Comments

Legends of Tomorrow Season 03 is winding down, and that means things have to come to a head, and “Amazing Grace” did that in a meaningful and fun way. For the final Totem was found, and it was found by none other than Elvis Presley.

Now, there’s a big danger to bringing in Elvis. Because…well…it’s Elvis. But thankfully, they not only did a touching tribute to the King of Rock ‘N Roll, but they did it in a wave that perfectly fit the show. For you see, the final Totem was the Death Totem. Which, could have gone many ways. But, here, Elvis used the power of the Totem to commune with his dead brother Jesse, which gave him the power in his voice and his music.

Putting the plot at the beginning of Elvis career was brilliant, for it allowed for a more spiritual journey of sorts as Elvis was trying to find his path in life and prove that different kinds of music can bring people together. It was fun to see just how much Elvis’ impact on the wold ranged. From games like Guitar Hero, to the names of certain rockers born from his music, to Nate’s hair gel.

It was also interesting to see how Elvis’ church connections, mainly his Uncle, were determined to not let him go through with his dreams because of what he felt God thought about such music. Believe it or not, this was the truth of the matter at that time. But through the music of Elvis and other key artists, music expanded.

But, of course, nothing could ever go simply, and when the dead literally did rise, it was up to Elvis to sing them back to the afterlife, and in doing so, further prove the power of music.

Yes, it was a bit hokey, but it worked more than it didn’t, and it allowed for some great character moments. Like Nate teaching Amaya about why Rock ‘N Roll mattered, Zari and Wally connecting in a funny way, and Ray giving a funeral for Axel the rat after he died, and Mick coming to peace with the loss of his rat. This is what makes Legends of Tomorrow so much fun.

Now, not everything worked, some of it was a bit on the nose, and I’m curious why the anachronism didn’t show up at all. They said it might have been because of the Darhk’s, but that wasn’t the case. So…why didn’t it register?

Either way, “Amazing Grace” was a very touching episode, and things are no doubt going to get very dramatic soon, so why not have one last fun episode before that happens?

4.5 out of 5 nerds

Todd Black is reader of comics, a watch of TV (a LOT of TV), and a writer of many different mediums. He's written teleplays, fan-fictions, and currently writes a comic book called Guardians (guardians-comic.com). He dreams of working at Nintendo, writing a SHAZAM! TV series, and working on Guardians for a very long time!