S01.E04: White Knights

[futurechemist]

As with many time travel shows, this show works better as long as you don't think to hard about it.

The Time Masters are pissed off Rip stole a time machine on March 15 2166? Why don't they go to March 14 2166 and sabotage the engines? Come to think of it, that might make a nice Quantum Leap style show... Each week the team finds themselves in a random time period and has to stop Vandal Savage from doing something bad.

I kind of like that the team is flawed. Most of them aren't professional soldiers/assassins/criminals. They don't know how to be spies. And the way they screw up is entirely in character - like Ray assuming that he needs to save the damsel in distress.

[Rai]

I think this is it:

http://dc.wikia.com/wiki/Mikhail_Arkadin_%28New_Earth%29

Yes, that's correct.  My fellow nerds know what I am talking about.  That said, I needed a refresher on Valentina, but now I'm all up to speed.

[Sakura12]

How man fuck ups is that for Ray now. 6/7? Is he helping the team or hurting them? Without his suit he's the most useless person on the team. When the assassin and the criminals are more about saving the entire world and not just one person that's saying something. 

[ketose]

As much as I'm enjoying this show, I wish they had gotten the memo that TV shows are allowed to have subtext now, and not have everyone explaining their feelings and motivations.

That makes me feel angry!

 

There are certain powers and technology that trump everything else so much they make stories with them almost impossible. Mind control and time travel are at the top of the list. Doctor Who dealt with time travel by having a machine that had a mind of its own and very little in the way of actual missions. LoT borrowed from that "fixed point" BS from new Doctor Who. I actually liked the way they used time travel on The Librarians because they flat out said you can't change time and then go back, because your motivation would be gone, aka, causality.

 

Actually, Rip seemed to create the causality loop that got his family killed. Next thing you know, the Waverider will be the reason the alien meteor fell on the temple in the first place and Rip actually created Vandal Savage.

[johntfs]

Kendra really needs to stop bringing up that barista thing.  Like, it obviously didn't help that it was in the previouslies and then she repeated the line, verbatim, in the episode, but it's kind of a dumb line to begin with.  I'm not even really sure what point she's trying to make.  Also, I'm not a huge fan of her whole "hawk demon goddess taking over her body" thing.  In addition to not really making sense, it feels too similar to what Sara was already dealing with, and not really in a way where the two situations seem to compliment each other. 

 

I feel like this show would have benefited a lot from a few real successes early on, because, at this point, I'm not sure that history wouldn't be better off if they all just go home before they make anything worse.  The fact that this episode was the third or fourth time they've had a conversation along the lines of "should we keep doing this?" doesn't help.

 

That being said, I like a lot of the different dynamics that seem to be developing among the team members.  It helps that all the pre-existing pairs have had the chance to split up for a bit.  Hopefully, the team bonding a bit more will lead to them being more effective and making some actual progress towards their super important goal. 

 

The barista comment, as has been mentioned is pretty much "Nothing in my life has prepared to do this stuff that we're doing.  I was a normal person who really wishes she could have stayed a normal person."  Of all the "Legends" Kendra is the only one who didn't on some level choose to be what she is.  Ray built the ATOM suit.  Rip chose to be a Time Master (as far as we know).  Sara chose to join the League of Assassin and eventually to become White Canary.  Leonard and Mick chose to be supervillains.  Jax and Stein chose to be Firestorm (granted that Stein would have died otherwise, but choice was still involved). 

 

Another thing about Kendra is that she's in a similar situation to that of Jax and Stein - part of an intimate partnership.  From what we know, the Hawks are born, find each other and then die together at the hands of Vandal Savage, who absorbs their power to continue living forever.  This is probably the only time that Chay-ara has been without Khufu for any length of time, so she's literally unbalanced.  Sara, with her bloodlust, is also unbalanced.  Presumably Rip's idea is that these "unbalanced" women would be able to balance each other.  If it leads to Sara and Kendra hooking up, I won't be sad...

[Tara Ariano]

In case you missed it: here's the Previously.TV post on the episode!

 

The Calm Before The (Fire-) Storm
The Legends track Savage to 1986 USSR, but their conflict is anything but a cold war.

[wayne67]

The barista comment, as has been mentioned is pretty much "Nothing in my life has prepared to do this stuff that we're doing.  I was a normal person who really wishes she could have stayed a normal person."  Of all the "Legends" Kendra is the only one who didn't on some level choose to be what she is.  Ray built the ATOM suit.  Rip chose to be a Time Master (as far as we know).  Sara chose to join the League of Assassin and eventually to become White Canary.  Leonard and Mick chose to be supervillains.  Jax and Stein chose to be Firestorm (granted that Stein would have died otherwise, but choice was still involved). 

 

Another thing about Kendra is that she's in a similar situation to that of Jax and Stein - part of an intimate partnership.  From what we know, the Hawks are born, find each other and then die together at the hands of Vandal Savage, who absorbs their power to continue living forever.  This is probably the only time that Chay-ara has been without Khufu for any length of time, so she's literally unbalanced.  Sara, with her bloodlust, is also unbalanced.  Presumably Rip's idea is that these "unbalanced" women would be able to balance each other.  If it leads to Sara and Kendra hooking up, I won't be sad...

 

The problem isn't so much the inference that she's just a normal person in an odd situation dealing with odd things. It's that it's so specific and repetitive. We get it Kendra, you were a barista, we heard you the first time and it's even less interesting the second time around. Probably doesn't help that it seems to be in the previouslies a lot. I just hope it doesn't become some kind of catchphrase. "I used to be a barista."

 

I do find it amusing to think of Kendra and Sara hooking up, not because I'm into that personally but because Hawk man would probably be so annoyed when he finds out whenever he reincarnates and or is revived or whatever. I can already hear the dialogue in my head

 

"You hooked up with another woman? What about our great love spanning millenia?"

 

"I was bored, we were on a break. Shut up already. You're making me wish you were dead again."

[johntfs]

I kind of like the barista stuff.  It's like a perfect metaphor for Kendra's inexperience.  "You don't get it.  I'm not even a regular waitress.  All I know how to do is make and serve coffee.  I'm totally unqualified for saving the world and stuff."

 

Meanwhile, I kind of hope Kendra eventually refer to Sara as "Snuffleupagus."

[kismet]

Got to catch up on the thread, but wanted to get my thoughts out first unfiltered. I have to say I like the episode. I love how these writers are not taking themselves to seriously. They are name dropping pop-culture, making secret insider jokes about the actor's previous gigs and in general just seem to be having fun.

 

I like that they continue to switch up the partnerships. I do not know if they are doing it intentionally to get a feel for the different chemistries, but I find it gives each episode a fresh dynamic.

 

Overall, decent episode. It was good. The episode had a very Alias like feel to it, perhaps it was the Russian lab infiltration gone wrong, all the spy work or the fact that Prof was out in the field. For me though it worked. I enjoyed the plot A with Prof/Cold/RP the most because of the action & the interactions. Plot B with Rip & Rory was a little boring & too much plot exposition. Plot C with Kendra & SL felt out of place, but at least felt like it was building towards a female friendship. Although after hearing how good SL was in this week's ARROW, it felt a little off to see her struggling with the bloodlust. It made me mad, that Team Arrow didn't bother to save any lotus for SL.

Edited February 13, 2016 by kismet

[ketose]

If Kendra kept saying she was a mixologist instead, I would have to stop watching the show.

[kismet]

The show does seem a little obsessed with everyone's occupations prior to joining up to save the world. As much as I'm tired of hearing that Kendra was a barista, it's also getting annoying to hear that Jax was a mechanic. Maybe if they spent less time discussing their resumes and more time discussing the missions, the missions might actually have a better success rate.

[jhlipton]

Plus his inner spy daddy was on display in both ways <3

 

I didn't watch Alias, and VG is an OK but not gosh-wow actor, so he doesn't get any special pass.  When he was telling Jax what J's father would have said, I was hoping Jax would tell him "You're not my father. Don't try to be him."

[festivus]

I enjoyed this one. Cold and Heat are funny as ever and Sara continues to be awesome. Even Ray is pretty funny, this Ray is in BR's wheelhouse. Best of all, no Vandal Savage. 

[ketose]

The show does seem a little obsessed with everyone's occupations prior to joining up to save the world. As much as I'm tired of hearing that Kendra was a barista, it's also getting annoying to hear that Jax was a mechanic. Maybe if they spent less time discussing their resumes and more time discussing the missions, the missions might actually have a better success rate.

The Jax part was funny to me because Rip figured he could fix the shuttle because he was a car mechanic. Now I would laugh my ass off if Kendra told someone "A month ago, I was a barista" and they told her to fetch some coffee. Extra points if she clawed their eyes out for saying it.

[kismet]

The Jax part was funny to me because Rip figured he could fix the shuttle because he was a car mechanic. Now I would laugh my ass off if Kendra told someone "A month ago, I was a barista" and they told her to fetch some coffee. Extra points if she clawed their eyes out for saying it.

True, but at least it was a logical leap that a mechanic could fix a broken shuttle.

 

There is no logic when Kendra says it, except to indicate that she was just a normal girl. If they aren't going to make a joke about it by asking her to fetch coffee, than they really need to drop it. It's the seriousness in which the actress says it that is wearing on me. Like being a barista is some solemn career path. Plus if they made a joke about it, it might loosen Kendra up a little. She is so stiff and humorless about everything. It's been a rough few weeks for her I know, but a little humor wouldn't hurt, esp considering how robotic the actress can be.

[ottoDbusdriver]

There is no logic when Kendra says it, except to indicate that she was just a normal girl. If they aren't going to make a joke about it by asking her to fetch coffee, than they really need to drop it. It's the seriousness in which the actress says it that is wearing on me. Like being a barista is some solemn career path. Plus if they made a joke about it, it might loosen Kendra up a little. She is so stiff and humorless about everything. It's been a rough few weeks for her I know, but a little humor wouldn't hurt, esp considering how robotic the actress can be.

 

Maybe Kendra was just a small town girl, living in a lonely world. She took the midnight train going to Central City.  :)

[thuganomics85]

 

Now I would laugh my ass off if Kendra told someone "A month ago, I was a barista" and they told her to fetch some coffee. Extra points if she clawed their eyes out for saying it.

I can totally see how this show would do that:

 

Kendra: "I was a barista!"

Stein: "Fine, have it your way!  If you only think you are capable as barista, then be a damn barista!  Get us some damn coffee!"

Snart: "I prefer iced coffee, please!" (smirks at camera)

Mick: "I want mine FLAMING HOT!!!"

Ray: "Me too.  With sugar.  No, two sugars!!  No, three!!  You know the funny thing about sugar?  Well, you see.."

Rip:  "I have only myself to blame for all of this."

Sara just in the back, shaking her head and trying not to laugh.

[MissLucas]

Well, after reading through this thread I'm relieved to see that I'm not the only one considering to ship Ray and Snart. Their pairing is terrific and makes me put up with time travel shenanigans, Rip's idiotic leadership decisions and Hawkgirl's barista trauma. But boy do I wish for a spin-off.

[Sakura12]

I guess I don't really care about Kendra talking about being a barista, because I don't care about Kendra. 

[jhlipton]

There is no logic when Kendra says it, except to indicate that she was just a normal girl. If they aren't going to make a joke about it by asking her to fetch coffee, than they really need to drop it..

 

I think she's only said it twice, but the keep playing it in the previews.  It's not so much her as it is the writers.

 

How difficult is it to write three dimensional characters that are also women? And if they can't do it, can they hire people who can. There are men who can do it.

 

Come to Sleepy Hollow. We have great female characters, now that the adults are back in charge.  Abbie and Jennie are smart, strong and kick-ass (without having to prove it).  Doesn't hurt that Nicole Beharie is one of the most talented and beautiful women on TV.

[Jediknight]

The Jax part was funny to me because Rip figured he could fix the shuttle because he was a car mechanic. Now I would laugh my ass off if Kendra told someone "A month ago, I was a barista" and they told her to fetch some coffee. Extra points if she clawed their eyes out for saying it.

Thinking about that, it's a nice reverse of Caitlin's treatment of Jefferson (darn you Stein) when we first met him.  Caitlin was a snob when it came to Jefferson, she didn't think Jefferson was doing anything with his life, and she looked down on him being a mechanic.  Rip doesn't look down on him being a mechanic, he knows how smart Jefferson is, and he has faith that Jefferson despite only working on cars can fix a freaking spaceship.

Edited February 14, 2016 by Jediknight

[tessaray]

I wish this show were on earlier in the week, the end of the week is always so busy for me.  I didn't realize it was a 2 part episode or I might have waited and watched them back to back. Oh well...

 

The lack of flashbacks made this episode flow so much better.  Mentally I know CL can't be front and center of every episode, so having Sara and Kendra training was okay.  Kendra really is a menace if she doesn't get her powers under control.  At least Sara manages to get the bloodlust under control eventually.  (Or maybe Rip is the only one who can get thru to her - that might be interesting.)

 

I only own about half a dozen comic books (usually one volume collections related to shows) so I appreciated the reference to the Vanishing Point.  I never watched Prison Break and only the first season of Alias, so some of the other stuff is lost on me but I love both Snart and Rory, they liven up every other pairing they are in.  

 

I wish they would have named the TM bounty hunter guy something other than Kronos (or is that a comics thing?) because I was a huge Highlander fan and still have Comes a Horseman/Revelation 6:8 practically memorized.  :-)

 

And a question - did they say how long the language pills last?  Or are they permanent (a la Babel Fish)?  

Edited February 14, 2016 by tessaray

[BkWurm1]

I think Kendra can dispense with "I was just a barista." Did she go to barista school? Was that her chosen profession? Unless she dispatches Savage with hot coffee, it would suffice if to say she was a girl from the Midwest who moved to the big city.

 

The funny part of her saying she was a barista is that she'd only been a barista for a couple months before she became a Hawk so it's not like being a barista actually defined her.  Side note, wish I had a clue how old Kendra was supposed to be.  They treat her character like she turned 18 and moved to Central City (at least they did when they tried to pair her with 12 year old Cisco) but she's clearly older so is she supposed to have just finished college or has she been stuck on the farm for years afterwards or what, I just can't tell how old she is supposed to be. 

 

Sara calling Kendra big bird was awesome! I did roll my eyes at the magic language translating pills, but other then that I loved this episode! Snart is by far my favorite after Sara and I actually really like Ray. Letting him be a dork really works. Plot may be on the weak side, but I love these characters so much I don't care

My favorite Ray was cold, wet stalker Ray, lurking behind a statue in the park.  I like actually getting an explanation for why language isn't a problem but could someone explain to me why if everything just translated to English why anyone had a Russian accent? 

 

Let's see, the second part of the pilot was about Savage trying to reverse engineer the Atom suit.  This episode is about Savage trying to create his own Firestorm.  Is he going to try and make his own version of the hot and cold guns in a few episodes.

 

They still haven't explained why they need to track down Savage at various points in time when they know EXACTLY where he'll be during the Arrow/Flash crossover episodes.  If you're going to have the Time Masters around at least explain why this isn't a possibility. 

 

While people grieve in different ways and all that it doesn't look good when Stein shows more lasting grief over Ronnie's death than Caitlin does over on the Flash.

 

Well Flash is the worst of all the shows for 3-D female characters so that was no surprise. As for why they don't jump back to when they fought VS on the Flarrow crossover, well, I hated that episode and I know I'm not willing to revisit it so I can't really blame the rest of them, lol.  No actually, all I have is that Vandal was particularly strong that time since he had that staff weapon so he'd be a pretty tough target. 

 

How man fuck ups is that for Ray now. 6/7? Is he helping the team or hurting them? Without his suit he's the most useless person on the team. When the assassin and the criminals are more about saving the entire world and not just one person that's saying something. 

To be fair, the time that they got trapped in Vandal Savage's house, if Cold hadn't been intent on stealing more than the dagger they'd have been on their merry way long before VS showed up so that one, while it seems like Ray's fault, I actually blame Snart for.  Poor Ray, he tries so hard and has the best intentions but he just has no feel for the room...pretty much exactly like on Arrow but on Arrow he was head cheese at his company so no one pointed it out. 

 

I was happy to enjoy Kendra more in this episode.  I had my worries after she managed to bug me while unconscious last week.  I think I like the idea that her past life memories kind of have formed this alter ego aka the Winged Demi Goddess that is all instinct because at least it's more interesting then her just trying to remember stuff in each episode.  That said her flipping out came out of no where.  Still, I was giggling at all the confusion they left behind.  (And Firestorm just breaking through the roof, hee!) 

 

Mick was a surprise in this episode.  He didn't have a big part but he came off fun and smarter than I'd have given him credit.  I wasn't so naïve to thing the Time Masters were going to just let everyone go home but I was thinking that only the team was in danger, it never occurred to me that they were lying to Rip as well (until Mick pointed it out).  As a whole, a good episode.  Looking forward to next week.

[BkWurm1]

Nitpick!!!

 

Ok, I remember the 80's. (At least the last half of them)  I was not super old but old enough and I don't think it really was the height of the cold war.  1986 was the year the Challenger blew up, the year of Hailey's Comet (yes, I spent a night tramping through a meadow using flashlights with red tap over them and pretending I could see something in the telescope) the year the Mir Space Station went up and there was international support and everyone was talking about Gorbechev and Glasnost.  It was the year of Chernobyl.  I remember that was the year when they started talking about real fears of nuclear extinction as something in the past.  Maybe my parents just watched very optimistic news anchors? 

 

Ok, end rant.  I have a real hard time watching the Goldbergs as well since they are constantly mixing and matching their chronology incorrectly (last week it was all about a movie (Porky's) that came out in 1982 but last year they had a huge ode to Ferris Bueller (1986)  Hurts my head.  It was so much easier when I hadn't lived history. 

Edited February 15, 2016 by BkWurm1

[MissLucas]

Agreed, 1986 isn't height of the Cold War - there are better candidates for that title *cough*Deutschland83*cough* But what really bugged me was that they were not having fun with the setting - as they did with the 70's. Obviously you can't really go crazy with fashion when you go to the USSR but at least use some music from the period, plenty of great songs came out that year.

[MarkHB]

At this point, I believe writers -- or marketers -- will use the phrase "height of the Cold War" for any point between Churchill's "Iron Curtain" speech and the fall of the Berlin Wall, or at least the election of Gorbachev as General Secretary.  Personally, if the "height" is taken in relation to the likelihood that the Warsaw Pact and NATO would blow up the planet, I'd say it was back before I was born, probably around the Cuban Missile Crisis.  Brezhnev and Nixon were starting "detente" before the latter's resignation, so by that point I think we had all realized that there would be no meaningful "survival" if the missiles flew, and the idea that it might actually happen on purpose really receded from everyone's thinking... hence the popular culture worries about WOPR and luftballoons.

[DigitalCount]

Mick was a surprise in this episode. He didn't have a big part but he came off fun and smarter than I'd have given him credit. I wasn't so naïve to thing the Time Masters were going to just let everyone go home but I was thinking that only the team was in danger, it never occurred to me that they were lying to Rip as well (until Mick pointed it out). As a whole, a good episode. Looking forward to next week.

Yeah, Mick was kind of a boss this week. He was the only person involved in all of the off-ship storylines if I remember correctly, and he did everything he was supposed to, up to and including sacrificing himself for the mission.

I wish they had put in some sign that Kendra had the possibility of going crazy, instead of hammering in all the stuff we already know with painfully obvious dialogue. Otherwise, this was the best episode yet. I'm glad they're going with a multi-part story instead of another one-off.

[BkWurm1]

At this point, I believe writers -- or marketers -- will use the phrase "height of the Cold War" for any point between Churchill's "Iron Curtain" speech and the fall of the Berlin Wall, or at least the election of Gorbachev as General Secretary.  Personally, if the "height" is taken in relation to the likelihood that the Warsaw Pact and NATO would blow up the planet, I'd say it was back before I was born, probably around the Cuban Missile Crisis.  Brezhnev and Nixon were starting "detente" before the latter's resignation, so by that point I think we had all realized that there would be no meaningful "survival" if the missiles flew, and the idea that it might actually happen on purpose really receded from everyone's thinking... hence the popular culture worries about WOPR and luftballoons.

YES!!  Thank you.  That's the way I had perceived the world around me at that time.  For me as a kid 99 Luftballoons was practically a different generation, lol.  1982 to 1986 was a different world. 

 

I wish they had put in some sign that Kendra had the possibility of going crazy, instead of hammering in all the stuff we already know with painfully obvious dialogue.

 

They seem to be still writing as if everyone is still only this episode finding the show. 

[henripootel]

As with many time travel shows, this show works better as long as you don't think to hard about it.

Works for me on Doctor Who but I have trouble with it here.  I mean the whole time machine thing drives the whole overall endeavor but they still don't seem to realize they have a time machine.  'Can't upset the timeline', fine, but their being there upsets the timeline, so they can but they can't, with no further explanation.  But I want kinda want one. 

 

For example - in what way was Snart anything but right, if they're gonna send in a secret force to steal the mcguffin, be read to send in reinforcements.  If you can't get them there in a timely fashion, you have a time machine.  Take all the prep time you need, go back an hour or two and drop in the troops.  

 

So now Jack Bristow and Heatwave are stuck in a gulag - you have a time machine / invisible space ship.  Plus a computer that knows stuff from the future.  I'll be sorely disappointed if they don't use these since the mission they're on is super-duper important.

 

Not for nothing but I'd enjoy a scene where Doctor Rip tells his team that they'll never be able to return to the home they left.  No matter how inconsequential their actions in the past, random chance is gonna change a few small details in your life, not the least being that they'll likely return to their own time to find themselves living their lives, with no reason to start on their time adventure because they fixed all that.  You might save the world but the 'you' that exists on the new timeline is unlikely to want to share their life with time-traveling you.  Time travel's a bitch.

[MissLucas]

I have to agree about the time-travel. A bit more thought should be given into the logistics of the whole endeavor and what can and what can't be done. IIRC so far Rip has established only one rule and that was that they can't go back twice to the same setting/place/time. But overall that's really not enough to stop viewers from asking pesky questions like why Rip chose to go back to ancient Egypt to kill an adult already evil Savage instead of pulling a variation of terminator etc. etc.

 

Sure this show is not '12 Monkeys' but at least something on the level of Doctor Who's 'timey-wimey' should be doable.

[KirkB]

Rip sort of half-assed an explanation for why they couldn't go back an hour or so when Carter was killed. Because if they try to interfere in points of time where they have already made an impact...umm, bad things can happen. That's where the timey-wimey comes in. It doesn't really explain why they couldn't go back to ancient Egypt and grab Savage (whatever his name was at the time) as a boy. Prevent any of this stuff from happening in the first place.

Edited February 17, 2016 by KirkB

[henripootel]

That's where the timey-wimey comes in. It doesn't really explain why they couldn't go back to ancient Egypt and grab Savage (whatever his name was at the time) as a boy. Prevent any of this stuff from happening in the first place.

I'm fine with timey-wimey but I think these writers are more 'we didn't bother to think this through'.  Not down with that.  Without some rules this whole plot because 'just a bunch of stuff that happens'.  

Edited February 18, 2016 by henripootel

[Krazykate58]

I was thinking the other day about this episode. I think I know why Snart was all bundled up in the sauna. Wentworth Miller who plays Snart is all so shooting Prison Brake  at the same time. Mr. Miller's character on Prison Brake is covered in tattoos , Mr Miller was hiding the fake ink. 

[Sakura12]

They started filming Prison Break 2 weeks after LoT stopped filming in March. Wentworth Miller no longer wants to take off his shirt on screen, that's why Leonard is always covered up. . 

[MarkHB]

I believe his PB character also had those tattoos removed.

[Starfish35]

A lot going on in this episode.   This and the one after it were two of my favorite episodes this season I think.  
 

“Are you quoting Top Gun?” “Maybe.”

”I meant use the door!”

Ray and Leonard.....I really loved their dynamic, and I really wish we could have seen more of it.  

Mick going with Rip to look for Chronos.....that’s some interesting irony, or foreshadowing, not sure which.  Rip does not give Mick enough credit.  

Rip telling Stein “you’re not impervious to bullets”.  Ouch. 😢

Nice subplot with Sara and Kendra training and helping each other.

The scene at the end with Rip and Leonard.....you can tell Rip is being very very careful what he does, because he knows one wrong move and Snart will kill him right there. 

[Sakura12]

I remember not liking this episode when I first saw it because I didn't like Sara being stuck with Kendra who I didn't care about it. Seeing it again it was a little better. But man does Rip suck at team building, thinking it was a good idea to leave two people with lets go with supernatural anger issues to fight it out. They could've killed each other if they both went into kill mode at the same time, he's lucky it was at different times. 

Knowing who Chronos is makes his storyline more interesting. I liked that it was Snart that Valentina liked, because sorry Ray, not everyone likes to talk science all time. But you can tell that hero business was already getting to Leonard since he didn't peg Valentina as being bad. 

The Jax and Stein fighting is starting to get annoying. When does that stop? They also did a lot of two parters this season, they don't do those anymore either. 

[MarkHB]

I think the two parters enabled them to save money on set construction, etc., leaving more for SFX. I wish they would remember that model.

I also with they would remember that they left the Valentina Vostok thread dangling.