iZombie: Season 1, Episode 2: Brother, Can You Spare a Brain?
The episode title is a play on a classic Bing Crosby song and it’s that kind of cleverness that is making this show fantastic. It’s so self-aware and pokes fun at its own roots. The comedy and intelligence of this new show is very refreshing. Applause to the cast for having such great chemistry and to Rose McIver in particular for being able to pull off such a constantly evolving character.
The addition of David Anders as Blaine was magic. I thought he was awesome as Adam/Takezo Kensei on “Heroes” and I think he’s awesome here. As the charming villain he works really well. He is the dark mirror image of what Liv could be. Let’s not even mention his amazing lines: “I hear zombies are finito. Has over-saturation killed us?”
Of course the one thing he decided to do once he finds out he can create new zombies is start a racketeering scheme. Brains for cash from rich zombies. It is very genius. I can see him becoming a major boss of Seattle if he keeps this up in the right way. Having the rich in powerful in your pocket and feeding them anyone who gets in his way. All the while, pretending to be a nice guy so Liv can continue to be in his pocket as well. Unfortunately for him, she’s far too clever to fully trust him.
Aside from our new central villain, we saw a very powerful change in Liv’s character. Eating the brains of a murdered artist gave her a passion she has been missing since she was changed six months before. Her character has regained the ability to love and we see that reflected in her attempts to rekindle her relationship with her ex-fiancé Major. Major, who was in no way accepting of her advances. I think we will be seeing a more lively, optimistic and likable Live moving forward.
I’m very interested in seeing this show continue, but I really hope they don’t stick too closely to the “murder of the week” format. It works well with a lot of shows (Castle), but I think this show is capable of so much more. Maybe this is just the way we’re starting it off to familiarize us. Please live up to your potential iZombie!
Jonathan Thomas Jones is a speculative fiction author and founder of geekhavenreviews.com. He has been passionate about all things geek for his entire life. See more about him at jonathanthomasjones.com and follow him on twitter @jtgloryjones.
