Warning: spoilers ahead for Episode 6 of Legends of Tomorrow Season 4, called "Tender Is the Nate."
Legends of Tomorrow has become the wildest of the shows in the Arrow-verse over the years, and Season 4 has mostly seen the Legends facing down magical creatures of the week rather than one big bad. Last week's episode teased that none other than the Time Bureau could be the dark force threatening the Legends (and probably all of time and space) this season when Hank Heywood ominously referred to "Project Hades."
Hank joined the Legends in the Waverider in "Tender Is the Nate," but we don't know any more about Project Hades than we did before. Luckily, the stars of Legends of Tomorrow recently chatted Hank Heywood and Project Hades during a set visit. Caity Lotz, who plays Sara Lance, said this about how the Legends will begin to sink their teeth into the mystery of Project Hades:
It starts to be uncovered, and at first, we don't really know what's going on, and things feel kind of conspiracy theory and then the team has to do some diving, which is also where Mona's character comes in a lot. She's got some information, so it's kind of hard for her to get to the bottom of it, and we have to figure out what's really going on.
Based on Caity Lotz's comments, we shouldn't expect the Legends to get a giant info dump cluing them into what's going on at the Time Bureau, which isn't altogether surprising. If not for Hank's menacing mention of Project Hades on the phone to an undisclosed person, viewers would have no reason to suspect him of anything other than bureaucratic meddling. Instead, he has an agenda of his own to which his son and the Legends are not privy, and it can't be a good one. It's not like it's called Project Heaven!
Hank decided to move forward with the mysterious Project Hades after an incident at the Time Bureau, after magical creatures escaped and were wreaking havoc on the building. It wasn't until Mona figured out their favorite foods that the creatures calmed down enough to be controllable. Hank's realization that they could be controlled clearly led him to the conclusion that they could be used to his advantage. The how and why of Project Hades are as much of a mystery as ever, but at least we can count on the Legends cottoning on.
In "Tender Is the Nate," Mona proved that she's eager to keep her job, and that might lead her to want to side with her top boss over anybody else. That said, the same episode saw her forming a bond with both Ava and Nora, who is stuck in Time Bureau prison and in the midst of an unlikely courtship with Ray Palmer. Mona seems to be a good person, and good old Gary certainly likes her (now that he's seemingly moved on from Constantine). When the chips fall, perhaps the Legends can count on Mona on their side.
At this point, none of the Legends seem too suspicious of Hank. They don't exactly love him, but he's been a thorn in their side because he interferes with their shenanigans and -- in Sara's case -- relationship. Tala Ashe, who plays Zari, weighed in on how her character will have a part to play in figuring out Hank's real motives:
I think she's wary of the Time Bureau and, as time goes on, she's going to be one of the people who's kind of suspicious of the shady things that may be happening there and she's very much willing to go and try to figure out what's going on there. She's always going to, I think, rub up against authority on a certain level. Yeah, who knows what those guys are up to? Maybe not good things.
Zari's first inclination isn't to trust new people anyway, so she could be key to seeing through Hank's deception. Her background before even joining the Legends proved that she was a woman unafraid to cross lines if that's what it takes to achieve her goals; it makes sense that she'd be willing to look into the Time Bureau's shady dealings even if the Time Bureau is theoretically populated by allies to the Legends, like Nate and Ava.
Speaking of Nate and Ava, it should be interesting to see where their chips fall when Project Hades inevitably comes to light. Although Nate has had his fair share of issues with his father, they had a breakthrough in "Tender Is the Nate," so he may be inclined to give him the benefit of the doubt unless delivered concrete proof. Perhaps he isn't quite as over the Legends' concealment of Charlie in Amaya's form as he seemed! He did decide that he belongs at the Time Bureau by the end of the hour.
As for Ava, actress Jes Macallan stated that her character is "always trying to please Hank," and we already know that she takes her job very seriously. Although she has allowed her professionalism to thaw around people like Sara and now Mona and (surprisingly) Nora, she is still dedicated to doing her job to the best of her ability. For now, her job is working for Hank at the Time Bureau and containing magical creatures. If she's asked to choose between her feelings for the Legends and her allegiance to the Bureau, she'll have a difficult decision to make.
For now, we can only wait and see how Legends of Tomorrow begins to drop details about Project Hades. The big annual Arrow-verse crossover is coming up to disrupt the flow of three of the shows, but Legends of Tomorrow won't be one of them. Arrow, The Flash, and Supergirl are the only shows participating in the crossover this year. Legends has its own event in the works, and the focus on just Legends could mean new info on Hank Heywood and Project Hades.
Tune in to The CW on Mondays at 9 p.m. ET for new episodes of Legends of Tomorrow Season 4. If you're in the market for shows to watch when the fall series go on their winter hiatuses, take a look at our midseason TV premiere schedule for some inspiration.
