iZombie has been juggling so many different storylines this season that it would be understandable if fans of the show had forgotten who exactly Drake is working for or what Rita/Gilda’s real name is (for the record, it’s Rita, not Gilda). There’s been a ton going on throughout the CW series’ outstanding second season, and while that can sometimes be frustrating, as the show prioritizes one story ahead of another or becomes too confusing for its own good, it also leads to fantastic sequences like the final 10 minutes of “He Blinded Me…With Science.” That’s not to say that the rest of the episode was lackluster; however, those last couple of scenes really shake up many of this season’s stories in some very interesting ways, and with only four episodes left in iZombie Season 2, I can’t imagine just how explosive things are going to get in the next couple of weeks.
But before we look ahead to the rest of Season 2, let’s focus on tonight’s episode, which was another solid entry from one of television’s most consistent shows. What starts off as a typical case-of-the-week installment becomes really exciting as soon as Liv discovers that Dr. Cash worked at Max Rager. This story development allows for Liv to go undercover as a “normal” girl, with tanner skin and dirty blonde hair, and it also provides us with a quick reminder of exactly what’s going on in Max Rager’s basement and why we should be worried about it.
Additionally, Blaine, who has reversed back to his zombie form, meets with Ravi and is given a new cure that the good doctor created (with the help of Liv, who is on scientist brains this week). Ravi stresses that Blaine should only use the cure in case of emergency. Of course, as soon as Blaine begins to start showing signs that he might be on his way out, he takes the barely tested cure, not knowing what the ramifications of it could be, but believing that, whatever does happen, it’s got to be better than dying.
Ravi’s research about the cure has been of this season’s most fascinating storylines, not only because of how it affects both Blaine and Major but also for the possibilities that it possesses moving forward. If this new cure that Ravi has concocted does work, what would stop Liv from taking it and becoming human again? Or, as we see in this hour with Max Rager, could examining and testing zombies lead to something much more deadly?
For Rita, “deadly” is certainly a good word, as it appears that Vaughn’s daughter has now become a member of the undead. After Vaughn provokes one of the zombies Max Rager is testing in the basement, it kills one of his main scientists and then seemingly infects Rita, but that only happens after Vaughn leaves her to die. It’s all part of those thrilling ten minutes, which somewhat make up for the fact that “He Blinded Me…With Science” feels a little more hollow than the typical iZombie episode.
Perhaps it’s the scientific manner in which Liv speaks throughout the hour, but there’s not a lot of emotion in “He Blinded Me…With Science”; it’s missing much of the heart that’s been found in pretty much every other episode of this season so far. That doesn’t mean it’s a dull episode; Liv going undercover is a blast, Clive and Bozzio continue to get closer to the truth about zombies, and Blaine and Ravi’s interactions are absolutely marvelous, but there’s that magic that’s missing from it all, which may be due to the fact that tonight’s episode plot-heavy hour that has to do a lot of setting up for the final episodes ahead and doesn’t give its characters too much time for smaller, more human moments.
Furthermore, this weaknesses of this week’s episode also stem from the fact that much of Liv’s storyline, aside from her investigation at Max Rager, revolves around Drake, who has certainly been a solid addition to iZombie in Season 2 but has never been the most compelling character. With Drake’s loyalties appearing to shift almost every other episode, it becomes a little hard to invest in Liv’s discovery that he’s “working” for Boss (we all know that he’s an undercover cop, but she doesn’t yet). Perhaps if Drake was a more clearly defined character, or if his and Liv’s relationship had been going on for a couple more episodes, that scene would have had more of an impact, but it instead feels like a necessary plot development rather than a key emotional moment, the show giving Liv an important piece of information she needed to hear before this season’s final stretch of episodes.
Still though, it’s good to see Liv finally discovering the truth about things over the past couple of episodes that we’ve known for weeks. She’s an incredibly smart and resourceful character; it makes sense that she would figure everyone’s secrets out eventually, even as she continues to hide her own from some of the most important people in her life. With Major kidnapping Drake, I wonder how long it will be until Liv finds out his secret, and once she does, how will she deal with her ex-fiance taking her current boyfriend (temporarily) hostage? That’s just one of the many great questions those terrific final minutes leave us with, and even if “He Blinded Me…With Science” is a little underwhelming at times, those major moments at the end of the hour have me incredibly excited to see what iZombie has up its sleeve for the remainder of this excellent season of television.
Other thoughts:
- Liv going by the name of Gwen when she’s undercover at Max Rager is a nice shoutout to the iZombie comics. In the comic books, Liv’s character is actually named Gwen Dylan, and she’s a gravedigger, not an assistant at a morgue.
- With Clive and Bozzio discovering more about the brains they’ve found, he definitely has to learn the truth about Liv by season’s end, doesn’t he?
- Every single exchange Blaine and Ravi tonight is absolute gold. I hope iZombie gives us even more of them together in the future.
- Liv’s new, more “human” look was a lot of fun, especially Ravi’s reaction to it. Now iZombie just needs to let Rose McIver use her New Zealand accent at some point. Let’s make it happen in Season 3, writers!
- I know that it was probably partially due to all the Super Max he’s been drinking, but how cold was Vaughn leaving Rita behind? And if she is a zombie (it wasn’t made 100% clear if those were scratches or just blood on her face, but she did look much paler to me), could she end up helping Liv and Major take down Max Rager as a way of getting revenge on her father?
- Ravi’s preferred way of dying would to be ingested by a whale.
- “I was calling her Cinder-Ella.”
What did everyone else think about this week’s episode of iZombie? Comment below and let me know.
[Photo credit: Diyah Pera/The CW]
Follow Us
Visitor Rating: 5 Stars
Visitor Rating: 5 Stars