'Legends of Tomorrow' recap: 'Helen Hunt'

Legends of Tomorrow travels to 1930s Hollywood in “Helen Hunt” as the Legends work to send Helen of Troy back to her time.

Last time on Legends of Tomorrow, the team went back to London in the 1890’s. Instead of a vampire, they found Damien Darhk and he was resurrected. At the end, Sara gave Rip to the Time Bureau because he betrayed the Legends and his actions led to the deaths of multiple Time Agents.

“Helen Hunt” opens on a Hollywood movie set in 1937. A woman yells at another woman for being late and brings her to the set. A couple of producers/directors complain about the main actress taking too long, then they see the woman. One of the men says she is going to be their new lead, and she introduces herself as Helen of Troy.

On the Waverider, Nate runs after Sara, letting her know he has yet to find any trace of Darhk throughout time. Sara tells him to shower and rest, saying they will find Darhk but they have to take care of themselves and each other.

Meanwhile, Ray is continuing to help Jax and Stein separate Firestorm. He hooks them up to tech that should transfer Stein's half of Firestorm to Jax. Stein and Jax talk about being a superhero, and Stein insists he is too old for it; if not for their Firestorm connection, he would have left already. Ray starts the process but it overheats and an explosion occurs, knocking both Jax and Stein off their seats. Ray rushes to Stein to check on him, but Jax answers. They both look down at their hands and realize they have switched bodies.

Sara calls the Legends to the bridge to talk about a beautiful woman who appeared in 1937 and is at the center of a war between movie studios. The Legends learn about Jax and Stein’s Freaky Friday experience and Sara tells them to stay on the ship.

Sara sends some of the team to do recon on the set. A fight breaks out when a man drops a prop near Helen and she flees in the chaos. She talks to Eddie Rotherberg, a man from K&G Pictures and gets in his car. One of the men from Warner Bros shoots at Rotherberg as the two drive away.

Back on the Waverider, the group discusses what to do about Helen. Stein gives an impassioned speech about Helen taking away roles from some of his favorite childhood actresses, including his favorite Hedy Lamarr. Gideon tells the team Rotherberg is having a gala to introduce the world to Helen, so the Legends get dressed up. Jax helps Stein get dressed and listens to him talk about how excited he is to go to the party. Jax says he is staying behind because he is tired now that he is in Stein’s body.

At the party, Stein sees Hedy Lamarr and fanboys about her to Rory. He introduces himself to Hedy, praising her acting, but Hedy is upset saying she has little chance to make it in the business. Helen arrives and the men in the room act starstruck. Zari and Sara follow Helen inside and tell her they are taking her home. Helen refuses, saying the gods answered her prayers. She says she is going to find her agent and leaves. The women follow and find her talking to Damien Darhk, who is at the party with Eleanor and Kuasa.

Kuasa offers Amaya a drink and speaks to her in her native language. Amaya realizes Kuasa is from Zambesi and a totem bearer as well. Kuasa once again hints that she knows Amaya in the future before she leaves.

Meanwhile, Darhk asks Sara to leave Helen alone and tells them to go home to the present. If not, he will kill them all. A fight breaks out between Ray and Rory over Helen, while Stein helps Hedy when a man tries to take her purse.

Back on the ship, Sara scolds the male members of the team for getting in a fight. She tells the Legends about Darhk’s offer to leave them alone if they stop fixing the anachronisms. They discuss what to do and settle on sticking together and continuing their mission. Amaya mentions her talk to Kuasa and that she holds the Zambesi water totem. Ray’s face shines with recognition, but he simply wishes Amaya good luck.

Sara, Amaya, and Zari go back to Hollywood and find Helen, who is still reluctant to return to her time. She says Hollywood is not perfect, but men are not killing each other in her name. Moments later, men from the two movie studios begin shooting at each other. The Legends tell Helen it is not her fault, but she needs to leave and she agrees. Zari and Amaya work on knocking out the movie men while Sara gets Helen to the car. Helen sees them all fighting and is amazed to find out they are warriors.

Coming back on the ship, the women quickly realize something is wrong with the Waverider. Jax and Stein were working on the communicators but discover entire parts of the ship are not working, then the power shuts off. Stein tells the team because Hedy Lamarr’s career was cut short, her ideas that are the backbone of technology the ship uses do not exist. Stein announces he is going to see Hedy and help her get an acting job.

Zari and Helen talk about women and the differences between their times. Helen reiterates the terribleness of Troy, and how she was imprisoned and forced to watch the war.

Stein finds Hedy at a call center for Warner Brothers and is able to persuade her to go find a movie executive and get her contract back. The two run into Darhk and Eleanor, who realize Stein is in Jax’s body. Stein and Hedy run and he attempts to tell her about Firestorm. Jax feels Stein’s fear and the team heads to Hollywood.

Sara puts Amaya and Zari in charge of protecting Helen. Since the power is out, Amaya gives Helen a knife for protection because she and Zari must manually go lock the doors. Zari gets to her door but Kuasa slides under it in her water form. She attacks Zari and knocks her out. Amaya arrives and fights Kuasa. In another part of the ship, Helen hears the sounds of the fight.

During the fight, Amaya tells Kuasa she does not have the right to the totems. Kuasa reveals she is one of Amaya’s granddaughters. Amaya does not get any more information because Helen sneaks up behind Kuasa and stabs her with the knife. Kuasa dissolves into water and disappears.

Stein tells Hedy to run and he goes to face Darhk and Eleanor. The team arrives and Sara proposes a duel; she and Darhk in a battle with only swords. The two fight and Ray notices Eleanor using powers and demands she stop. Rory shoots at her but she takes the fire and holds it in her hands.

Hedy rushes over to Stein and Jax and tells them they must join together. Stein says no, but she believes they can merge and fix their situation. They merge and attack Eleanor, who had knocked out the other Legends and started using her powers on Sara. Darhk reveals Eleanor is actually his daughter Nora when she is hurting Sara. When they attack Nora, Darhk rushes to her side to help, but Firestorm is able to overpower them and knock them back. The Darhk’s teleport away. Jax and Stein are back in their original bodies, but Ray calls to the team, holding an unconscious Sara.

Hedy gets her job back and the lead in a new film. She thanks Stein for his help and kisses him and Jax on their cheeks when she says goodbye.

Ray tells Amaya that Gideon put Sara in a coma for few days, but she will be okay. He starts to tell her that Kuasa is her granddaughter, and she interrupts saying Kuasa told her earlier. She understands why he did not tell her, and he says he can tell her what he knows. She says no, saying they protect history so she should not know.

Zari finds Helen practicing with the knife. She tells her to keep it to use in Troy if needed. Helen says Troy is not a home and questions how the heroes can send her back to such a horrible place. She hands Zari back the knife and Zari looks pensive. Later, Zari takes Helen back to her own time, just not to Troy. She brings Helen to Themyscira, home of Wonder Woman and the Amazons.

Legends of Tomorrow produces another fun episode in “Helen Hunt.” Body Swap episodes can be ridiculous, but I think Franz Drameh has a fun take on Stein. I am a bit confused about Helen, wondering if she is supposed to be cursed or have powers. If it is just her charm and beauty, then it feels like it should have affected anyone attracted to women, including Sara since she is bisexual. Overall an enjoyable episode, but I am worried about the effects of Nora’s magic on Sara.

Tune in Tuesdays at 9 p.m. on The CW for new episodes of Legends of Tomorrow. Check out the preview for the next Legends of Tomorrow episode, “Welcome to the Jungle.”