Beebo the God of War

"Beebo the God of War" is the ninth episode and mid season finale of the third season of the American science fiction television series Legends of Tomorrow. It was released on The CW on December 5, 2017. The series revolves around the eponymous team of superheroes and their time-traveling adventures. In the episode, Martin Stein (guest star Graeme McComb) and a Beebo doll (guest star Ben Diskin) are sent to Vinland, captured by Vikings, and rescued by the Legends.

The episode was written by Grainne Godfree and James Eagan and directed by Kevin Mock. Franz Drameh stars as Jefferson Jackson in his final regular appearance as the character alongside Caity Lotz, Brandon Routh, and Maisie Richardson-Sellers, Amy Louise Pemberton, Tala Ashe, Nick Zano, and Dominic Purcell. The episode was the third highest viewed of the third season. The episode and the character Beebo were positively reviewed by critics. It features the Legends mourning the loss of Martin Stein, but contrasts the sadness with a goofy tone.

Plot
After the death of Martin Stein in the previous episode, the episode opens on a younger version of Stein buying a Beebo doll for his daughter. The store claims to be out of dolls, but Stein finds the last one, takes it, and is chased by a crowd of upset people.

The Legends are then alerted to a change in the timeline that is causing the Vikings to conquer America. They also learn that the younger version of Stein has been transported to a Viking colony in Vinland where he is found by Leif Erikson. The Legends conclude that Stein and the Beebo doll caused the change in the timeline. The Vikings begin to see Beebo as a god.

The Legends bring Stein onto the Waverider, he notices that his future self is missing. Jax attempts to inform him of his upcoming death but Nate stops him. Sara receives a call from Time Bureau director Ava Sharpe, and she asks Ava to assist with the change in the timeline; Ava accepts.

The Legends party with the Vikings, but Mick Rory tries to steal mead from an altar to Beebo, leading the Vikings to attempt to burn him alive. Leo Snart puts out the fire. The Vikings then find Nate and Zari in the process of stealing Beebo. The Vikings attack, Beebo is thrown into the air, and melted by Mick. The Vikings proclaim Beebo a false god and prepare to leave Vinland, until Damien and Nora Darhk arrive and claim that Damien is Odin. The Legends then flee to the Waverider. Ava contacts the Time Bureau and they order her to return. The Legends attack and defeat Damien, but Sara is briefly sent into an alternate dimension.

Jax attempts to save Stein's life by providing him with a note containing the details of his death. However, Stein destroys the note to help Jax come to terms with his death; this prompts Jax to leave the Legends. Sara then boards the Waverider and finds John Constantine, who asks for the assistance of the Legends.

Analysis
The episode features tones of grief and sadness, it pairs the darker tone with a goofy and silly vibe. the Legends mourn Martin Stein's death in various ways. Sara refuses to allow the Legends to be involved in the attack against Damien Darhk out of fear they might be harmed. Jax attempts to save Stein's life. His effort mirrors Marty McFly's attempt to save Doc Brown's life in Back to the Future. Both provide their mentor figure a note containing the details of their death. While Brown takes the note and survives, Stein destroy it and instead helps Jax move on. Leo Snart hosts therapy session for the Legends. However the Legends do not properly appreciate his effort to help him.

Development and filming
The episode was directed by Kevin Mock. Preparation for the episode began on October 3, 2017, and concluded on October 12. Filming began the following day. Executive producer Phil Klemmer, described the premise of the episode as the Vikings pursuing worship of Beebo over Christianity, causing them to continue "charging across the new world" instead of returning to Scandinavia.

The character of Beebo was inspired by Tickle Me Elmo. During a panel at a fan convention in Vancouver, the show's cast explained that Beebo represented an attempt from the writers to introduce further chaos into the series' plot. They stated that they were worried that audiences could perceive Beebo's inclusion as "jumping the shark". However, Beebo was well-received by audiences and was featured in a spin-off Christmas special titled Beebo Saves Christmas.

When Stein uses a bow and arrow, Oliver Queen's theme plays.

Writing
The final draft of the script was finished the next day. The episode was filmed from October 13 to October 25. The episode was written by Grainne Godfree and James Eagan.

The episode's title is a reference to its basis in Norse mythology.

Casting
Main cast members Caity Lotz, Tala Ashe, Nick Zano, Brandon Routh, Franz Drameh, Amy Louise Pemberton (voice), Dominic Purcell, Maisie Richardson-Sellers appear as Sara Lance / White Canary, Zari Tomaz, Nate Heywood / Steel, Ray Palmer / The Atom, Jefferson Jackson / Fire Storm, Gideon, Mick Rory, and Amaya Jiwe / Vixen.

This is the first episode of Legends of Tomorrow to not feature Victor Garber as a series regular due to the death of his character in the previous episode. However, a younger version of Martin Stein played by Graeme McComb appears. McComb previously portrayed this version of the character in "Pilot, Part 2" and "Compromised". This is the final appearance of Franz Drameh as a series regular. Drameh's departure resulted from Garber's exit from the series.

The guest cast includes Jes Macallan as Ava Sharpe, Matt Ryan as John Constantine, Courtney Ford as Nora Darhk, Neal McDonough as Damien Darhk, Wentworth Miller as Leo Snart, John Noble as Mallus and Ben Diskin as the titular Beebo. Ryan reprises his role from the canceled NBC television series Constantine. The series was retroactively added to the Arrowverse after Ryan guest starred in the Arrow season four episode "Haunted". He would go onto join the main cast in the fourth season of Legends of Tomorrow.

Release
"Beebo the God of War" was first aired in the United States on The CW on December 5, 2017. 1.61million viewers watched the episode's original broadcast, with a 0.6/2 share among adults ages 18–49. Down 1.2 million viewers from the previous episode, but up 100 thousand from the following one. The episode placed fifth in its time slot, behind The Mick, Black-ish, SEAL Team, and Will & Grace. The episode was the third-highest viewed of the season. After factoring in seven-day DVR viewership, the episode received an additional 1 million viewers, totaling 2.61 million viewers.

The trailer for the episode was released to YouTube on November 29, 2017. On September 25, 2018, the episode was released on both DVD and Blu-ray as a part of the Legends of Tomorrow season three box set.

Critical response
"Beebo the God of War" was met with positive critical reviews. Zeid Abughazaleh said that although Beebo "jump[ed] the shark", the episode "land[ed] on its feet" and brought weirdness to the series. The A.V. Club's Oliver Sava rated the episode an A−. He praised the episode for its use of Damien Darhk, stating that while he had grown bored of the character, his appearance was well executed. He also stated the episode successfully blended comedic and more serious moments, showed grief over Stein's death, and that it helped the "family dynamic" of the Legends. In a review for Den of Geek, Jim Dandeneau rated the episode 4.5 out of 5. He said that while he found the episode hilarious, he was still emotionally impacted by the departure of Jefferson Jackson in the episode's final moments. Writing for Entertainment Weekly, Shirley Li praised the episode for providing closure for Jax and Stein. She described the episode as being a good example of why the time travel genre works.

Jesse Schedeen of IGN rated the episode 9.8 of 10 and described the episode as a great follow up to the tragic ending of the previous episode. Scheedeen felt that the episode was both very silly and incredibly heart felt. He labeled the only problem he had with the episode as the lack of Mallus.

Beebo
Fans and critics praised Beebo. Unlicensed Beebo merchandise proved popular. The character returned multiple times throughout the series in different forms, such as in "The Good, the Bad, and the Cuddly" as the totem avatar and in "Crisis on Infinite Earths: Part Five" (2021) as a magical manifestation. He also appears on Legends of Tomorrow's parent shows Arrow and The Flash as a doll in the episodes "Level Two" and "The Elongated Knight Rises" respectively. Beebo also serves as the cover for both the DVD and Blu-ray of "Legends of Tomorrow: The Complete Series".

Beebo had a spin off Christmas special titled Beebo Saves Christmas that was received positively by critics. The special aired on December 21, 2021. Narrated by Victor Garber, the special sees Diskin reprising his role, alongside Ernie Hudson as Santa Claus, Chris Kattan as a Christmas elf named Sprinkles, Kimiko Glenn as Tweebo, Yvette Nicole Brown as Turbo, and Keith Ferguson as Fleabo.