Villainess Review: Kathy Meyers (DC's Legends of Tomorrow)

I still remember seeing the promo for this episode of DC's Legends of Tomorrow, but more on that later. The episode, titled "Slay Anything," centered on Freddy Meyers, a notorious serial killer who slaughtered several students on the night of his school's prom in 1989, and he was executed for his crimes in 2004. The Legends were tasked with this case due to hearing about the coroner suddenly being killed, and it actually saw the Legends split up and travel to two different timelines. Sara, Ava, and Mick went to 2004, as the coroner's murder took place during that year, while Nate and Ray actually went to 1989, as they were planning to change things for Freddy and save him from his fate as a killer.

Freddy, as it turned out, would have some help from Nora Darhk, as this was during her arc as a Fairy Godmother. As we would see, Freddy Meyers was, pretty much, an outsider--an introvert. However, Freddy was asked out by Tiffany Harper, the popular girl at his school, and we see him inform his mother, Kathy, about his heading to prom, while Kathy had a mother-son movie night planned. While Freddy headed to his prom in 1989, the 2004 timeline saw the other Legends face off against the masked killer, who murdered Tiffany (who had survived the rampage in 1989) and took more victims, including Ali, an old flame of Mick's.

In the 1989 timeline, Freddy was a hit thanks to Nora, but that same killer appeared and was set to begin the infamous spree. As for 2004, Sara, Ava, and Mick faced off against the killer, with Mick shooting his fire gun in a rage over Ali's murder. The flames ended up melting the mask, and to the shock of the Legends (but not myself, I'll explain later), the killer was unveiled as Kathy Meyers, Freddy's mother.

So it was Kathy who committed the murders all the way back in 1989, and as the villainess revealed, she did so due to the fact that she believed that all of her victims were taking Freddy from her, as her son was all she had. The disguise she donned in 2004 was the same one she had 15 years prior, and while Tiffany survived Kathy's rampage, Freddy ended up taking the fall for his maniacal mother's actions. Kathy stated in her villainess rant that she couldn't live without her son, and as she revealed, that statement was taken literally. On the night of Freddy's execution, Kathy suffered a fatal heart attack right after her son's death, but her time in Hell was short-lived, as she was resurrected by Astra Logue (who was one of the Big Bads that season).

Kathy saw her resurrection as a second chance to continue her murderous spree, and she did just that in the reunion. Meanwhile, the 1989 timeline saw Kathy begin her original spree before Zari unmasked her, with Freddy being shocked that his mother was an attempted killer. Kathy's attempt to convince Freddy that she was all he needed, as well as actually coercing him to join her in the spree, fell on deaf ears, leading to the deranged madwoman actually attempting to kill her own son. Zari's brother, Behrad, stopped Kathy with the use of his powers, and as a result of Kathy being thwarted in 1989, the timeline changed. Freddy actually lived and had a good life, all of Kathy's murders (which included Mick) were undone, and Kathy also lived on as a prison inmate, convicted of her evil actions.

"Slay Anything," was the fourth episode of Legends of Tomorrow's fifth season, and aired on February 11, 2020, though based on the theme, it was clearly planned to air on October and served as the season's Halloween-themed episode, but the season's open was pushed back. The episode's villainess, Kathy Meyers, was played deliciously by Beth Riesgraf, and I just absolutely loved her. As I said before, I remembered watching the promo, and even a week before this episode aired, I figured it would be the boy's mother. The reason is simple: this episode was a clear homage to the Friday the 13th movies, so of course we would see a Pamela Voorhees homage in the form of Kathy Meyers. I seriously consider Kathy Meyers my favorite one-shot villainess from this show; she was deranged, she was ruthless, she was flat out psychotic and clingy. Honestly, it's a miracle Freddy didn't develop an Oedipus Complex.

I also loved the added bonus that Kathy actually died, came back, and continued her murderous spree. That's bonus points in ruthlessness. Riesgraf played Kathy's insanity in such spectacular fashion; she truly shined in both timeline reveals. I honestly think she relished in playing such a psychotic role, and I also think that Riesgraf, to be honest, was the true star of that episode. Beth Riesgraf has done a lot of TV, most notably playing Parker on the series, Leverage, and reprising that role in Leverage: Redemption. She also played villainess Daisy Brennan in an episode of Perception, and she has also appeared on shows such as NCIS, The Librarians, and Criminal Minds.

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