***This review contains spoilers***
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“Black Lighting” season 3 raises the stakes, giving our heroes their biggest challenge so far. Unfortunately, the pacing is just as bad as previous seasons and the plot is all over the place. And while most of the Arrowverse shows were able to capitalize on the big crossover, “Black Lighting” didn’t do much more than awkwardly acknowledge that it all happened.
The overall plot for this season was a good concept, but the execution was lacking. Last season set up the war with Markovia, and it took all of this season to get to it. In the meantime, we mostly got Freeland vs. the ASA. It was a slow build even to this, as the shadowy government agency and the Pierce family had the same enemy. It actually might’ve been a cool twist if the ASA faked the invasion to control Freeland and it’s metas, but periodically the Markovians popped up to do a whole lot of nothing. One of the biggest issues with the foreign threat is that the show did a poor job of defining who and what they were. There was no indication of how big this country was, or even where it was located. It sounds European, but the to-and-from between them and Freeland made it seem like they were right next door. It didn’t help matters that their leader, Colonel Mosin was such a generic villain. It was only once they introduced Gravedigger that they finally had a true face.
Gravedigger turns out to be a solid addition to the show, even though he only arrives near the end of the season. He has a solid a origin story, and with more time he could have been a much more sympathetic character. Another new addition this season was Brandon. His early appearances seemed kind of random, and while he had a lot of promise with his powers and his backstory, they never ended up doing anything meaningful with him. Another new character, TC, fared somewhat better. His ability to talk to machines was done in an interesting way, but they he tended to get lost a bit in the shuffle. The power-mimicking, meta-human hating ASA soldier Thierry also showed promise as an interesting addition, but then he disappears most of the season.
As usual, the heart of the show is with the Pierce family. Unfortunately, they all seem to have their own agendas most of this season. This either keeps them apart or at each other’s throats. Black Lighting himself seems to have to smallest character arc. Once he sides against the ASA, it’s back to business as usual. Thunder/Blackbird is given a lot to do, but her character is kind of grating to everyone around her, as it’s her way or no way. Her love life story is fairly uninteresting, until they finally commit to her relationship with Grace Choi. Grace’s story starts off bizarrely, before finally starting to gel. However, she is missing from the show for a good chunk. Jenn is given a lot of material, but like previous seasons, it’s all about her choosing the right path over the self-destructive one. She’s as hard-headed as always, so it’s a little annoying that you rarely get to see her grow as a hero or a person. And poor Lynn was put through the wringer this season. While she got the glory of saving the metas, she was also tricked into a Green Light addiction. It doesn’t hit the family dynamic as hard as it could since she spends most her time at the ASA. The final returning character worth mentioning is the new and improved Painkiller. His cold and calculating demeanor, plus his mastery of combat makes him a standout villain. Too bad his interactions with our heroes is kind of limited. And his redemption arc flies by a bit too fast. It could’ve probably rolled into next season.
“Black Lighting” season 3 gives us the big Markovian invasion, but not till the end and it’s never feels that big…and there’s a lot less metas than I expected. The ASA conflict though is solid enough, but it keeps the Pierce’s apart even though the show is at its best when they’re together.
***1/2 out of *****