iZombie Season 4 Episode 5: Goon Struck Review

Ariba BhuvadMarch 27, 20185089 min

If you would like to read my review of the last episode, click here.

Synopsis: While tracking the murder of a hockey player, Liv stumbles onto Chase Graves’ evil plan. Meanwhile, Major is forced to make a horrible decision. Lastly, Peyton tries to contain a volatile situation. (TVGuide)

Writer: Bob Dearden

Director: Joaquin Sedillo

Rating: TV-14

Running Time: 42mins

Airs: Mondays at 9pm on The CW (United States)

This week’s iZombie took a dark turn with Renegade’s execution and left us with broken hearts and Liv’s determination to continue what Renegade started. Each week iZombie seems to be tackling deep, moral issues and goes above and beyond their typical storylines, which has made this season one of their best ones yet.

The episode begins with Peyton taking down the complaints someone has against a zombie bus driver and demand he is fired. Peyton indicates this would be a discriminatory act and upon talking to the bus driver learns that he does not have enough brains to feed his family and promises to send him more rations.

Major and Don E. got some screen time together this week as they seem to be heading somewhere with someone stowed away in the trunk. When they make a pit stop at a gas station, Don E. gets in an argument with the elderly lady at the register who reports him and sends in the security footage to the cops. Meanwhile, back at the lab, a Fillmore-Graves soldier brings in four bodies–three zombies and a human who were all shot in the head. Liv ends up eating the brains of the human who was a Canadian hockey player named Gordie. Any Canadian fans watching this week’s episode of iZombie were most definitely ecstatic with the awesome representation in the story.

Clive and Liv head to the hockey rink to interview Gordie’s fellow team members to see if they can learn information regarding his death. They all refuse to talk which pushes to channel the hockey player brain she is on to get some answers. While she is playing, she has a vision of Gordie being beaten up by one of his team members. Later, Clive and Liv interview him and find out that the fight took place three years before and was one of many fights they had. The interrogation also reveals that he is a zombie and knows Liv is on Gordie’s brain.

Chase Graves is placed in quite the dilemma this week as he reveals to his soldiers that he has captured Renegade. They insist on making an example out of her but he hesitates because he wants to keep her alive to get information out of her. It seems he has formed some sort of bond with her and doesn’t seem to keen on killing her. Major and Don E. arrive at a hotel room where we learn they are holding General Mills’ daughter hostage. The situation goes sideways when they realize she has overdosed on Utopium. In order to save her life, Major scratches her and turns her into a zombie.

Liv has another vision which shows Blaine shooting Gordie and the other men. Clive and Liv bring Blaine in for questioning but since a vision isn’t definitive proof of a crime, he is let go even though Liv believes him to be guilty. But before he is let go, he mentions a laundromat, which pushes Liv to tell Clive about Renegade and her place of business. Another vision has Liv connecting Gordie and his teammate to Renegade.

While filling out Blaine’s release paperwork, a woman is brought in covered in blood from head to toe. It appears she has shot a bus driver (yes, the one from the start of the episode) in the head after he started attacking a passenger. Unfortunately, the rations he received never went to him because he chose to feed his family. Peyton tells Chase Graves what happened with the bus driver who promises to take care of the driver’s family.

Chase is pressured once again to make an example out of Renegade because his lack of action will send the city into mayhem. He pulls her out of the frozen sleep she was in and charges her and gives her the punishment of a death sentence. The public gathers to see Renegade’s execution just as Liv, Ravi, and Peyton show up. Despite trying to stop it, Liv fails and the execution takes Renegade’s life. Liv is determined to continue her work and tells Gordie’s teammate that they must continue her work.

iZombie has done a great job this season keep things light-hearted but relevant and interesting. There are a lot of parallels to the current state of the world and what is going on in iZombie’s New Seattle. They should be commended for not just telling another zombie story but actually infusing it with elements and topics that viewers can relate to. What will Liv get up to when iZombie returns in two weeks? We can’t wait to find out!

Score: 7.5/10

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