| "Crisis on Earth-X" | |||
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| Arrowverse crossover event | |||
.jpg) Promotional poster and home media cover | |||
| Story by | |||
| Part 1:Supergirl | |||
| Episode title | "Crisis on Earth-X, Part 1" | ||
| Episodeno. | Season 3 Episode 8 | ||
| Directed by | Larry Teng | ||
| Teleplay by |
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| Production code | T13.20658 | ||
| Original air date | November 27, 2017 (2017-11-27) | ||
| Episode chronology | |||
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| Supergirlseason 3 | |||
| List ofSupergirl episodes | |||
| Part 2:Arrow | |||
| Episode title | "Crisis on Earth-X, Part 2" | ||
| Episodeno. | Season 6 Episode 8 | ||
| Directed by | James Bamford | ||
| Teleplay by | |||
| Production code | T27.13458 | ||
| Original air date | November 27, 2017 (2017-11-27) | ||
| Episode chronology | |||
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| Arrowseason 6 | |||
| List ofArrow episodes | |||
| Part 3:The Flash | |||
| Episode title | "Crisis on Earth-X, Part 3" | ||
| Episodeno. | Season 4 Episode 8 | ||
| Directed by | Dermott Downs | ||
| Teleplay by | Todd Helbing | ||
| Production code | T27.13408 | ||
| Original air date | November 28, 2017 (2017-11-28) | ||
| Episode chronology | |||
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| The Flashseason 4 | |||
| List ofThe Flash episodes | |||
| Part 4:Legends of Tomorrow | |||
| Episode title | "Crisis on Earth-X, Part 4" | ||
| Episodeno. | Season 3 Episode 8 | ||
| Directed by | Gregory Smith | ||
| Teleplay by | |||
| Production code | T13.20608 | ||
| Original air date | November 28, 2017 (2017-11-28) | ||
| Episode chronology | |||
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| Legends of Tomorrowseason 3 | |||
| List ofLegends of Tomorrow episodes | |||
| Crossover chronology | |||
| Preceded by | Invasion! | ||
| Followed by | Elseworlds | ||
"Crisis on Earth-X" is the fourthArrowversecrossover event, featuring episodes ofSupergirl,Arrow,The Flash, andLegends of Tomorrow onThe CW. The crossover began on November 27, 2017, withSupergirl andArrow, and concluded on November 28, withThe Flash andLegends of Tomorrow. In the crossover,Barry Allen andIris West's friends visits Central City for their wedding, only for the ceremony to be interrupted by interlopers from theparallel universe of Earth-X, where theAxis powers claimedvictory inWorld War II.
Development for a crossover of the four series began in December 2016 after the release of the previous crossover, "Invasion!". The premise and title of the crossover were revealed in September 2017 as production on the episodes began; elements from then upcoming animated web seriesFreedom Fighters: The Ray were part of the crossover, including the live-action appearance ofRaymond Terrill / The Ray, theFreedom Fighters, and the New Reichsmen.
"Crisis on Earth-X" was met with critical acclaim with it being widely considered an improvement on the previous crossovers. The crossover was viewed by an average audience of 2.71 million viewers per episode. A subsequent crossover aired the following year, titled "Elseworlds".
ANazi regime rules theparallel world ofEarth-X, where an archer known as Dark Arrow is theFührer and leader of the cabal known as the New Reichsmen. He seizes a temporal gateway from theFreedom Fighters, which enables travel to other universes. OnEarth-1,Barry Allen andIris West's friends, includingKara Danvers andAlex Danvers fromEarth-38, come toCentral City for Barry and Iris's wedding.Harry Wells,Cisco Ramon, andCaitlin Snow develop a serum to separate theFirestorm matrix fromMartin Stein andJefferson Jackson. However, Jefferson is reluctant to give up being Firestorm, while Stein is thrilled at the prospect of being able to live a normal life with his family.Oliver Queen re-proposes toFelicity Smoak, but she is hesitant about marrying him. The wedding ceremony is interrupted by invaders from Earth-X led by Dark Arrow, hisKryptonian wifeOvergirl, and the Earth-X analog ofPrometheus. After Alex andSara Lance capture Prometheus, the Nazis retreat. Dark Arrow and Overgirl, who are doppelgängers of Oliver and Kara respectively, discuss their next step withEobard Thawne, Barry's speedster nemesis who was previously presumed dead.
InS.T.A.R. Labs, Prometheus reveals himself asTommy Merlyn's Earth-X doppelgänger, and taunts Oliver before taking asuicide pill out of loyalty to theFührer. Harry reveals that, through his exploration of themultiverse, he discovered that Earth-X is adystopian world where theAllied forceslost World War II. Dark Arrow, Overgirl, and Thawne steal an experimental sub-light generator, the Prism, from a research company. Oliver's team, along with Harry,Killer Frost,Cisco, andMick Rory, are held captive at S.T.A.R. Labs after the Nazi forces occupy it. Oliver, Barry, Sara, Martin, Jefferson, and Alex are taken to aconcentration camp on Earth-X, while Kara is moved to S.T.A.R. Labs. Overgirl is dying from disproportionatesolar irradiance in her heart, and Dark Arrow plans to use the Prism, powered by S.T.A.R. Labs' particle accelerator, to create artificialred sunlight that can weaken both Karas' invulnerability, allowing Thawne totransplant Kara's heart to Overgirl.
In the concentration camp, the heroes are rescued from execution at the hands ofSS-SturmbannführerQuentin Lance byRay Terrill andLeo Snart,Leonard Snart's doppelgänger. Thawne prepares to operate on both Overgirl and Kara, and Iris and Felicity work to rescue their friends at S.T.A.R. Labs. GeneralWinn Schott, the commander of the Freedom Fighters, is determined to strand Dark Arrow and Overgirl on Earth-1 by destroying the temporal gateway. While posing as Dark Arrow, Oliver discovers that the Nazis possess adoomsday device in the form of a timeship calledWellenreiter, a militarized equivalent of the Legends'Waverider. Oliver allows the timeship to enter Earth-1 to avoid jeopardizing his cover, but he is ultimately exposed when he refuses to kill Felicity's Earth-X doppelgänger, a concentration camp prisoner. The heroes struggle against both the Freedom Fighters'Red Tornado, deployed by Schott as a failsafe, and the Nazi forces, and Martin opens the gateway at the cost of being mortally wounded.
The heroes return to Earth-1, and Iris, Felicity, Kara, and the others are rescued by the returned heroes and theWaverider crew. Jefferson is also affected by Martin's injuries, so Martin uses the serum to separate the Firestorm matrix, dying from his wounds. Jefferson tells Martin's family of his fate; they, along with the Legends and Barry's team are devastated by Martin's death. His death spurs the heroes to declare war on Earth-X's Nazi forces. When the Nazis attack Central City, the heroes counter their assault. Harry, at the helm of theWaverider, destroys theWellenreiter after the heroes disable itsshield. Barry spares Thawne and allows him to escape; Thawne vows to return. During battle with Kara, Overgirl's solar radiation goes nuclear and Kara carries her into space, where her body explodes, killing her; Oliver kills a grief-stricken Dark Arrow soon after. After Martin's funeral, Kara and Alex return to Earth-38, Ray returns to Earth-X, and Leo decides to temporarily remain with the Legends.John Diggle, anordainedminister, officiates Barry and Oliver's weddings with Iris and Felicity, respectively.
Only those who appeared in multiple episodes are listed on the table. Despite being credited,Katie McGrath andOdette Annable do not appear in theSupergirl episode,[7][8] andDavid Ramsey andKatie Cassidy do not appear in theArrow episode.[9][10]
Planning for the yearlyArrowversecrossover began in December 2016, withArrow showrunnerWendy Mericle saying, "We actually sort of do, believe it or not, have a concept for what we want to do for next year's crossover. It's crazy".[18] By February 2017, planning began for a true four-way series crossover. Because each series was renewed for an additional season, the producers could plan production schedules to incorporate the crossover. Executive producerAndrew Kreisberg said, "One of the big things we learned from "Heroes Join Forces", which made "Invasion!" slightly easier, was building in shut-down days, where shows just went dark. The single hardest factor in doing the crossovers is actors' availability because the shows keep going on. You're basically juggling four shows' worth of schedules."[19] That May,Mark Pedowitz, then president ofThe CW, confirmed that there were no plans to incorporateBlack Lightning in the crossover, as it was not part of the Arrowverse at the time and was scheduled to debut in the middle of the2017–18 television season.[20]
In June 2017, executive producerMarc Guggenheim noted that it would be hard to top the threat of aliens in "Invasion!", so this crossover would aim to "increase the emotional stakes and the emotional payoffs".[21] In September, it was revealed that the title of the crossover would be "Crisis on Earth-X" and thatRussell Tovey asRay Terrill / The Ray would make his live-action debut in the Arrowverse, ahead of appearing in the animated web series,Freedom Fighters: The Ray, along with other characters and concepts from that series.[5][22] Guggenheim, who developedFreedom Fighters forCW Seed, felt that employing Earth-X in the crossover due to fitting into the plans of what the showrunners wished to make for a crossover that had the heroes being evil in another world, as they could have made another parallel universe but instead opted to use an idea that had already been implemented. The producers knew from the beginning of the crossover's conception that they wished to have the Arrowverse's heroes be villains in Earth-X. In 2019, Guggenheim called "Crisis on Earth-X" the "gold standard" of the yearly crossovers.[23]
Filming of the four episodes began on September 22, 2017.[22]Supergirl's episode was directed byLarry Teng,Arrow's byJames Bamford,The Flash's byDermott Downs, andLegend of Tomorrow's byGregory Smith.[1]
The crossover's story was conceived by Kreisberg and Guggenheim. The teleplay forSupergirl's episode was written by showrunnersRobert Rovner and Jessica Queller,Arrow's by showrunnerWendy Mericle andBen Sokolowski,The Flash's by showrunnerTodd Helbing, andLegends of Tomorrow's by showrunnerPhil Klemmer andKeto Shimizu.[1]
In August 2017, Mericle added that the crossover would be "very much rooted in theDCU".[24] At theTelevision Critics Association press tour in August 2017, Pedowitz said that the crossover would involve romance, with Berlanti adding, "our way of making the show bigger this year was to go even more personal, so it's a big life event for a few different people on the show. There are many life events that happen."[25] Mericle described the story as one where the character of Oliver Queen "explores the question of true love".[26] "Crisis on Earth-X" did wrap up several story arcs including the weddings ofOliver Queen andBarry Allen,Alex Danvers getting over her ex-girlfriend, andMartin Stein leaving the Legends.[27]
In September 2017, in a statement revealing the crossover's title, Guggenheim and Kreisberg said that the crossover was conceived "to be evocative of the annualJustice League/Justice Society [comic book series] crossovers we grew up with and looked forward to as kids".[22]
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Several series regulars and recurring characters reprised their respective roles.Supergirl cast membersMelissa Benoist,Chyler Leigh,Jeremy Jordan, andChris Wood star asKara Zor-El / Supergirl,Winn Schott, andMon-El.[1][2][3]Frederick Schmidt guest stars asEarth-X Metallo.[4]Mehcad Brooks appears the Earth-X version ofJames Olsen.[3]Arrow cast membersStephen Amell,Emily Bett Rickards,Echo Kellum,Rick Gonzalez, andJuliana Harkavy appear asOliver Queen / Green Arrow,Felicity Smoak / Overwatch,Curtis Holt / Mister Terrific,Rene Ramirez / Wild Dog, andDinah Drake / Black Canary.[1][2]
The Flash cast membersGrant Gustin,Candice Patton,Danielle Panabaker, andCarlos Valdes appear asBarry Allen,Iris West,Caitlin Snow / Frost, andCisco Ramon / Vibe.Tom Cavanagh appears as bothHarry Wells andEobard Thawne / Reverse-Flash.[1][2]Legends of Tomorrow cast membersVictor Garber,Caity Lotz,Dominic Purcell,Franz Drameh,Brandon Routh,Maisie Richardson-Sellers,Amy Pemberton,Tala Ashe andNick Zano appear asMartin Stein / Firestorm,Sara Lance / White Canary,Mick Rory / Heat Wave,Jefferson "Jax" Jackson / Firestorm,Ray Palmer / Atom,Amaya Jiwe / Vixen,Gideon,Zari Tomaz andNate Heywood / Steel.[1][2]Russel Tovey reprises his role asRay Terrill / The Ray fromFreedom Fighters: The Ray.[5]
Part Four is the final episode ofLegends of Tomorrow to feature Garber as a series regular, due to him being cast in a revival of the musicalHello, Dolly!.[28] His departure led to Drameh's in the following episode.[29] Prior to the release of "Crisis on Earth-X",David Harewood andKatie McGrath confirmed that theirSupergirl characters would not be involved in the crossover.[7]
Guest cast members who appear in one or more parts of the crossover includedJesse L. Martin,Keiynan Lonsdale,Danielle Nicolet,Patrick Sabongui,Colin Donnell,Paul Blackthorne, andDavid Ramsey reprising their roles asJoe West,Wally West / Kid Flash,Cecile Horton,David Singh,Tommy Merlyn,Quentin Lance, andJohn Diggle. Donnell and Blackthorne instead played their Earth-X counterparts without appearing as their original versions.[2][14][16]Jessica Parker Kennedy appeared as a caterer, later revealed inThe Flash season four finale "We Are the Flash" to beNora West-Allen,[11] andWilliam Katt appeared in part one as the minister who initially tries to marry Barry and Iris.[13] FormerArrow regularSusanna Thompson makes a brief voice only appearance as theWellenreiter's artificial intelligence.[17] FormerLegends of Tomorrow regularWentworth Miller returned as the Earth-X version ofLeonard Snart.[30]
Matt Letscher, who played Thawne in his normal form inThe Flash andLegends of Tomorrow, was not asked to return as Thawne for the crossover, allowing Cavanagh to play the role solely.[31]Katie Cassidy was planned to appear asLaurel Lance's Earth-X counterpartSiren-X, but her inclusion was dropped due to the death of her father,David Cassidy, during filming of the crossover.[9] Cassidy would later appear as Siren-X inThe Flash fourth season episode "Fury Rogue".[32]
Blake Neely, the primary composer of all four series,[33] composed the score for the crossover. La-La Land Records released the soundtrack physically on June 5, 2018, in a limited run.[34]WaterTower Music also released it digitally on June 15, 2018.[35][36]
"Free Stress Test" byProfessor Murder, "Justice" by Misun, "All Eyes on You" bySt. Lucia, "By the Stream" by Tom Hillock & Nicolas Boscovic, "Love Is Emotional" by Neil Finn, "String Quartet No. 62 in C Major, Op. 76, No. 3, Hob. III:77, "Emperor": II. Poco Adagio, Cantabile" byKodály Quartet, and "Runnin' Home to You" (from the musical crossover episode "Duet") performed by Melissa Benoist are heard in the first part of the crossover but not included in the soundtrack.[37]
All music is composed by Blake Neely, Nathaniel Blume, Daniel James Chan, andSherri Chung.
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "The Flag Still Stands" | 3:20 |
| 2. | "We're Going to the Wedding" | 1:19 |
| 3. | "Dark Arrow, the Fuhrer" | 1:19 |
| 4. | "Pretending Nothing Happened" | 1:39 |
| 5. | "Best Wedding Ever!" | 4:41 |
| 6. | "Prometheus-X Locked Away" | 3:38 |
| 7. | "A Special Kind of Idiot" | 3:14 |
| 8. | "Oliver Wants a Yes" | 2:26 |
| 9. | "Being True to Yourself" | 2:32 |
| 10. | "Sides Meet - Saving the Building" | 3:43 |
| 11. | "Big Messy Brawl with Nazis" | 2:27 |
| 12. | "Dark Arrow Storms the Lab" | 2:58 |
| 13. | "Overgirl Needs a Heart" | 3:18 |
| 14. | "March to Their Deaths - Meeting the Ray" | 2:34 |
| 15. | "Two Warriors" | 2:42 |
| 16. | "Sneaking Oliver In" | 2:03 |
| 17. | "Inside Nazi Command Center" | 4:25 |
| 18. | "Storm Chasers" | 2:36 |
| 19. | "A Hero Falls" | 1:18 |
| 20. | "Ending a Tornado to Open a Breach" | 2:22 |
| 21. | "Breached Back Into Mayhem" | 2:56 |
| 22. | "Like a Father" | 3:52 |
| 23. | "Rememberances" | 2:31 |
| 24. | "Heroes Unite" | 4:31 |
| 25. | "Disabling the Shields" | 2:41 |
| 26. | "For the Win!" | 1:49 |
| 27. | "A Kiss Goodbye - Surprise Double Wedding" | 4:51 |
| Total length: | 78:18 | |
Comic artistPhil Jimenez created a custom cover for the event, which invokes the cover design of theJustice League of America #207, the 20th annual Justice League of America and Justice Society of America crossover.[22] Promotional trailers for the event were released throughout November,[38][39][40] before the full trailer was released on November 20.[41]
The crossover began withSupergirl andArrow on November 27, 2017, and concluded onThe Flash andLegends of Tomorrow on November 28, all onThe CW.Arrow, which normally aired on Thursdays at 9 pm, moved to Monday at 9 pm for the crossover and did not air an additional episode on November 30. Pedowitz stated that they decided to have the crossover occur over two nights, as opposed to the four nights of "Invasion!", becauseThe Flash andLegends of Tomorrow were already paired together on The CW's schedule, and "it would be better and tighter in terms of storytelling to make it like a two-night, four-hour miniseries. We thought this was a tight, concise way of doing it".[42] Guggenheim added, "We're really approaching this big four-part event as two back-to-back two-hour movies, and I think when you look at it through that lens, it becomes less important for theSupergirl episode to feel like aSupergirl episode and theArrow episode to feel like anArrow episode, which was always our approach in the past".[25] Guggenheim tried to get "Crisis on Earth-X" released as some kind of "single, seamless, no act breaks" movie, with the possibility of even shooting up new footage, though this was not possible due tounion rules.[43][44]
All four episodes and the behind-the-scenes featurette "Inside the Crossover: Crisis on Earth-X", were released onBlu-ray andDVD inRegion 1 along with the rest ofArrow's sixth season on August 14, 2018,[45]The Flash's fourth season on August 23,[46]Supergirl's third season on September 18,[47] andLegends of Tomorrow's third season on September 25.[48] The four episodes were released together on a separate DVD on September 3, 2018, inRegion 2,[49] and September 5 inRegion 4.[50]
"Crisis on Earth-X" was released onThe CW in four parts on November 27 and 28, 2017. The crossover was viewed by an average audience of 2.71 million viewers per episode. Part one, the second lowest viewed episode, was released to an audience of 2.71 million viewers. It was followed by the lowest viewed, Part two, with only 2.52 million.[51] Parts three and four were the highest viewed with 2.82 and 2.8 million viewers respectively.[52] TheArrow andSupergirl episodes where their series highest rated episode in over a year.[53]
| No. | Series | Air date | Rating/share (18–49) | Viewers (millions) | DVR (18–49) | DVR viewers (millions) | Total (18–49) | Total viewers (millions) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Supergirl | November 27, 2017 | 0.9/3 | 2.71[51] | 0.7 | 1.72 | 1.6 | 4.43[54] |
| 2 | Arrow | November 27, 2017 | 0.9/3 | 2.52[51] | 0.8 | 1.89 | 1.7 | 4.41[54] |
| 3 | The Flash | November 28, 2017 | 1.0/4 | 2.82[52] | 0.7 | 1.83 | 1.7 | 4.64[54] |
| 4 | Legends of Tomorrow | November 28, 2017 | 0.9/4 | 2.80[52] | 0.8 | 1.82 | 1.7 | 4.62[54] |
Speaking about the crossover as a whole, Jesse Schedeen ofIGN felt that "ultimately, 'Crisis on Earth-X' set a higher standard for what these crossovers can achieve than last year's 'Invasion!'".[55] Scott Mendelson ofForbes said the "Crisis on Earth-X" was "a better Justice League movie than the actualJustice League movie and in many ways was better or at least equal to the bestMCU crossover events."[56] Rob Leane ofDen of Geek thought the crossover was the "best crossover yet", saying, "It offers fresh ideas alongside heaps of fan service, and the special effects wizards behind the scenes make the limited TV budget feel like that of a massive movie."[57]
Thereview aggregator websiteRotten Tomatoes reported a 93% approval rating, based on 14 reviews for the episode. The website's critical consensus reads, "Kicking off an Arrowverse crossover event, "Crisis On Earth-X, Part 1" offers viewers a fun outing with quirky characters preceding the action and tragedy to come."[58]
Schedeen gave theSupergirl episode an 8.1 out of 10. While he felt that theSupergirl episode "clearly isn't in much of a hurry to get where it's going", Schedeen said it did "prove to be a very entertaining start to the crossover." Ultimately, the episode "did, however, make the most of this massive pairing of heroes, delivering an endless stream of banter and character drama before transitioning into an epic battle royale. There are certainly worse ways to kick off a crossover."[59] Caroline Siede atThe A.V. Club awarded the episode a "B+" rating. She said the episode "isn't a particularly great episode ofSupergirl, but then again it isn't really trying to be. And as the first hour of an ambitious four-part Arrowverse movie, it's hard to ask for anything more."[60] Kayti Burt ofCollider gave the episode 4 out of 5 stars, stating, "I was wildly impressed with the storytelling ambitious 'Crisis on Earth-X' has shown so far. There were some narrative missteps, but this is like nothing we have ever seen on-screen before: a true comic book-style crossover event that ties hours of superhero serials together in one epic story."[61]
Rotten Tomatoes reported an 89% approval rating, based on 9 reviews for the episode.[62]
Schedeen gave theArrow episode a 7 out of 10, saying that the episode "struggled to find that balance between character drama and plot progression, as well as in establishing stakes big enough to support such a massive crossover in the first place. But for all its flaws, at least this episode still included some entertaining moments and a generally strong portrayal of its twisted villains."[63]The A.V. Club's Allison Shoemaker gave the episode a "B" rating. She thought it was "difficult to judge how successful this episode ofArrow is because it's neither an episode ofArrow nor a complete story," but concluded, "it's a lot of fun, kind of dumb, and just not as exciting as what came before. Someone has to check those boxes and set up what comes next, and it seems that this time,Arrow drew the 'event' short straw."[64]
Rotten Tomatoes reported an 89% approval rating, based on 9 reviews for the episode.[65]
Schedeen awardedThe Flash's episode a 9.2 out of 10, noting that while part 1 had "a slow start" and part 2 gave "a fairly underwhelming follow-up... the crossover finally seemed to click" in part 3.[66] Scott Von Doviak atThe A.V. Club gave the episode a "B+" rating, stating "Even a lesser installment like this one features the spectacle of the Flash and The Ray battling the Red Tornado, as well as the appealing non-superpowered Nazi-fighting team of Iris and Felicity. For the most part, I've felt like a kid coming home with a fresh stack of comics, and I can think of no higher praise than that."[67] Mike Cecchini ofDen of Geek gave it 4 out of 5 stars. He wrote that while"'mirror universe Nazis' don't make for the most nuanced of villains, and when you're using concentration camp imagery, well, you'd better make sure you're not being exploitative,"The Flash's episode "completely embraces its lunacy in ways that I don't even think those first two chapters dreamed of."[68]
Schedeen gave the final episode an 8.5 out of 10 rating. The episode "didn't have quite the urgency it needed during the final showdown between good and evil," but "did make the most of Professor Stein's heroic sacrifice and its emotional fallout."[69] Oliver Sava ofThe A.V. Club gave the episode an "A" rating, stating "No piece of live-action superhero media has captured the feeling of a comic-book crossover event likeCrisis On Earth-X. With a huge cast of characters, a major death, and a final scene taking big heroes in bold new directions,Crisis delivers the thrills, the twists, and the inspiration that should come from a superhero story with this massive scope."[70] Jim Dandy fromDen of Geek rated the episode 5 out of 5 stars. He wrote, "This year's was an objectively wonderful hour of DC television, but it also moved the season's story along forLegends in a meaningful way, and provided significant character development for Jax and Sara. It gave Franz Drameh and Victor Garber a chance to stretch their acting wings, and it closed out a timely, wall-to-wall entertaining four hours of television."[71]Collider's Carla Day gave theLegends episode 5 stars out of 5, saying the crossover was "leaps and bounds better than any of the previous crossovers." She went on to say that "It set the standard high for all future crossovers in the story, character interactions, and fight scenes."[72]
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| Legends of Tomorrow | |
| Black Lightning | |
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| Related | |
