Swan Thong
"Swan Thong" is the fourteenth episode and final episode of the fifth season and 82nd overall of the American science fiction television series Legends of Tomorrow, revolving around the eponymous team of superheroes and their time travelling adventures. It is set in the Arrowverse, sharing continuity with the other television series of the universe. The episode was written by showrunner Keto Shimizu and Morgan Faust; it was directed by Kevin Mock. It first premiered on The CW on June 2, 2020, to an audience of 725 thousand live viewers with an additional 530 thousand DVR viewers.
"Swan Thong" features the Legends restoring the original timeline and defeating the Fates. It was praised by critics, particularly the departure of Maisie Richardson-Sellers as Charlie in the closing moments. The episode features a cameo by rapper Sisqó who performs his 2000 single, "Thong Song".
Plot
After reality has been altered, Charlie leaves the Legends and rules with her sisters Atropos and Lachesis, albeit with regret. After the Legends, along with an alternate version of Zari Tarazi, infiltrate the Fates' temple, Sara Lance kills Atropos by throwing her into the Loom of Fate, destroying it in the process. As a result, Atropos' alterations to the timeline are undone and Sara regains her sight. The Legends then flee Lachesis, using the Waverider to travel four months into the future. However, they discover Lachesis rebuilt the Loom as a smartwatch app and imprisoned Charlie in The Museum of Bad Ideas. Charlie has been convinced that everything wrong with humanity is her fault. They free Charlie and return to the Waverider. Freeing her and taking her back to the Waverider, there they learn the Loom really is destroyed and Lachesis is using both the app and the AI Gideon as a cover. Mick Rory and his daughter Lita help inspires Charlie to rejoin the Legends. With Charlie's help, they shut down Lachesis' app and kill the final Encores at the museum. Realizing Lachesis is human without the Loom, Charlie forgives her and tells her to live the one life she has. Zari Tomaz realizes her presence is causing a paradox which is slowly killing her brother Behrad, so she departs. Astra Logue, now freed from the influence of the Fates, moves in with John Constantine. After the Legends return to 1970s London, Charlie departs the team to live a more peaceful life. Unbeknownst to the team, Sara is abducted by aliens.Production
"Swan Thong" was written by co-showrunner Keto Shimizu and Morgan Faust. Shimizu and Faust finished the production draft on January 13, 2020. The second and third versions of the script were finished on January 14 and 15, 2020. The fourth and final version was completed on January 16, the final day of preparation. Several alternative titles for the episode were considered including, "The Hateful Fates", "One Mans Trash...", and "Fight at the Museum." The final version of the title is a reference to Sisqó's "Thong Song". To set up the upcoming sixth season, the episode featured a cliffhanger ending with Sara Lance getting abducted by aliens.The closing moment of the episode features a punk rock version of the song "Mister Parkers Cul de Sac". The song, written by staff writer James Eagan, had previously appeared in an episode of the same name. The song was chosen as it talked about friendships. Co-showrunner Phil Klemmer told Entertainment Weekly that "I guess it encapsulates our show. Like a punk song, it sounds brash and kind of cacophonous, but if you listen a little bit more closely the lyrics are just about circles are like friendships that never end. That's Charlie basically screaming she's gonna remain a Legend forever." Tala Ashe appears as both Zari Tomaz and Zari Tarazi in the episode. However, due to technical constraints it was decided that this would be only temporary and that one of the two Zari's had to be written out. Tarazi was chosen to stay as the writers wanted to maintain the sibling dynamic between her and Behrad Tarazi. The episode was written knowing Richard-Sellers would not be returning for the sixth season and therefore had to conclude Charlie's character arc.
Casting
The episode stars Maisie Richardson-Sellers, Caity Lotz, Tala Ashe, Jes Macallan, Nick Zano, Matt Ryan, Dominic Purcell, Amy Louise Pemberton, Courtney Ford, and Olivia Swann as Charlie, Sara Lance, Zari Tarazi, Nate Haywood, John Constantine, Mick Rory, Gideon, Marie Antoinette, and Astra Louge. Additionally, Tala Ashe portrays Zari Tomaz, the version of Zari that was part of the Legends prior to the events of the season four finale, "Hey, World!".This is the final episode of Legends of Tomorrow to feature Maisie Richardson-Sellers and Courtney Ford as a series regulars. Richardson-Sellers left the show to work on her career as a filmmaker, with her first directing credit being the short film "Sunday's Child". Both Richardson-Sellers and Ford eventually returned to Legends of Tomorrow. Richardson-Sellers as a director, directing the episodes "There Will be Brood" and "The Fixed Point". Ford as Nora Darhk in the 100th episode, "wvrdr_error_100
This is the final episode to guest star Shayan Sobhian as Behrad Tarazi and Adam Tsekhman as Gary Green as the two were both promoted to series regulars for the remainder of the show. Former series regular Ramona Young guest stars as Mona Wu, this is her final appearance as the character. American rapper Sisqó makes a guest star appearance as himself as part of an exhibit in the "Museum of Bad Ideas". He was Klemmer's first choice for the cameo, however he did not ask him until four days before filming began.