The team tracks Savage to a small town in Oregon in 1958. Upon arrival, they discover there have been a recent string of murders and they suspect Savage is involved. Professor Stein and Sara go undercover at a psychiatric hospital, where Savage is working as a doctor, to find out his plan. While there, Sara meets a nurse named Lindsey and sparks fly. Meanwhile, Ray and Kendra pretend to be a married couple to gain the neighborhood's trust, but an interracial couple in the '50s isn't something that goes unnoticed. Soon, Savage is at their door.
Tropes:
- Artistic License – History: Lindsey, a woman native to 1958, calls Sara a "ninja". A word she would almost definitely have never heard, considering the first major appearance of ninjas in Western culture was in You Only Live Twice, which came out in 1967.
- Asshole Victim: The two racist boys that tried to beat up Jax and possibly rape Betty (partly out of anger for her dating a black kid soon after her boyfriend disappeared) get killed by the transformed Tommy and aren't even mentioned afterwards.
- Black Eyes of Crazy: Jax and the town's boys get these after being mutated into hawk monsters by Vandal Savage's meteorite experiments.
- Body Horror: The effects of the meteorite on Jax are not remotely pleasant.
- Bond Villain Stupidity: Savage had Kendra at his mercy and could have easily cut her throat if he didn't decided to gloat instead.
- Breaking the Fellowship: An attack by Chronos forces Rip to take off, stranding Ray, Kendra, and Sara in the '50s.
- But Now I Must Go: Jax and Sara have to pull this with Betty and Lindsey, respectively, as neither of them want to remain in a small 1950s town full of bigots even if they didn't have a mission to fulfill.
- Cliffhanger: Ray, Kendra and Sara are left stranded in the '50s, while the rest of the team are trapped aboard the Waverider with Chronos.
- Closet Key: Sara is this for Lindsey.
- Corrupt Cop: The local sheriff is entirely in Savage's pocket.
- Deliberate Values Dissonance: The sexism and racism of the 1950's is the reason why Jax and Sara hate the era.
- Given that this is a time period before segregation is struck down, Jax and Kendra experienced racial discrimination in both overt and subtle ways.
- And Sara is on the receiving end of some homophobia and misogyny.
- Did Not Get the Girl: Both Sara and Jax had to let go of their respective Girl of the Week.
- Double-Meaning Title: The title refers to both the Monstrous Humanoids attacking mostly at nighttime and the episode being Kendra's A Day in the Limelight.
- Fake American: Rip pretends to be one (as an FBI Agent) In-Universe.
- Failed a Spot Check:
- Averted, Savage is quick to notice that his dagger is stolen and that Kendra probably has it.
- Savage's "secret room," kept behind lock and key and containing a valuable artifact contained within an unlocked chest...has a window. With partially open blinds, yet.
- FBI Agent: Rip and Snart disguise themselves as these to investigate Savage's murders.
- The '50s: The team time travels to the 1958 to find Savage.
- Foreshadowing: Jax says a seemingly wholesome town like this feels like the setting for some horror movie where aliens start killing everyone.
- Gaydar: Sara deduces that Lindsay is a lesbian with minimal clues, such as her mention of being not one to look for marriage unlike the other nurses.
- Girl of the Week: Betty and Lindsey for Jax and Sara respectively. Both of them Did Not Get the Girl.
- Homage: To Horror films from the 1930s-1950s.
- Hospital Hottie: Sara has no trouble blending in as one. Her Love Interest Lindsey also happens to be a cute nurse as well.
- I Want My Beloved to Be Happy: Jax seems to be ok that Betty reunites with her boyfriend in the end.
- Mad Scientist: Savage takes on this role, testing the effects of an Nth metal meteorite on local teenagers and Jax.
- Magic Meteor: Savage finds one, very similar to the one that originally empowered the Hawks and himself. While it doesn't grant immortality or reincarnation abilities, it still has mutating capacities (see below).
- Male Gaze: Kendra dresses in a very revealing Little Black Dress for most of the episode. Savage lampshades it.
- Maligned Mixed Marriage: Ray and Kendra, even though it's only a pretend marriage.
- Mid-Season Upgrade: Chronos apparently gets a new set of weapons from the Time Masters.
- Monstrous Humanoid: Of the winged type. The result of Savage's experiments.
- Mythology Gag:
- Vandal Savage's alias in the fifties is Dr. Curtis Knox, the same name of a Serial Numbers Filed Off version of Savage showed up in Smallville.
- The hawk monsters somewhat resemble the Manhawks, enemies of Hawkman and Hawkgirl in the comics.
- Nostalgia Ain't Like It Used to Be: Stein is briefly enamoured with the superficially idyllic appearance of The '50s. Jax and Sara (both of whom are subject to the prejudices of the era) waste no time in snarking about it.Stein: Even someone as jaded as yourself can't deny how idyllic this time was.
Jax: Yeah. If you're white.
Sara: And a man. And straight. And...
Stein: I get the point.
- Also somewhat ironic, as Jews received their fair share of bigotry in that era as well, a notion that seems to escape Stein.
- Oh, Crap!: Kendra and Palmer have one when they find out their neighbor is Vandal Savage.
- Politically Incorrect Villain: The sherrif is a racist prick. Justified, since they are in the 50s, where that actually was the politically correct way to act, and was working for Savage.
- Pop-Culture Pun Episode Title: The title is derived from Night of the Demon.
- Real Men Cook: For an immortal psychopath and would-be conqueror, Savage is a heck of a cook. Ray greatly appreciates a tuna surprise cooked up by the villain.Ray: Say what you want about Savage, he makes one hell of a casserole.
- Refuge in Audacity:
- Kendra and Ray pose as an interracial couple in the 1950s and manage to pull if off without much trouble.
- Averted with Jax who strikes up a romance with a local white girl...and gets beaten up by some local thugs and the sheriff for his troubles.
- Sesquipedalian Loquaciousness: Stein's tendency towards this gets on Jax's nerves.
- Shout-Out:
- Snart calls Sara "Nurse Ratched" during a mission briefing.
- Jax calls a bully in a diner "Biff."
- After Jax has changed for his date:Ray: Whoa, is tonight the Enchantment Under the Sea Dance?
- Jax refers to Harmony Falls as "Pleasantville" and "Mayberry".
- The episode title references Night of the Demon.
- Skewed Priorities: The sheriff is rather more concerned about a black boy being at Lover's Lane with a white girl than he is about said white girl being badly injured and bleeding, leaving her there when he takes Jax into custody. Justified, as he is later shown to be in Savage's pocket.
- Undercover as Lovers: Ray and Kendra.
- The Un-Reveal: We don't actually know if Mick is dead or not - we don't see his corpse, and Cold is very cagey around the subject.
- Took a Level in Badass: Chronos takes yet another one after he (apparently) acquired new weaponry from the Time Masters.
- What the Hell, Hero?:
- Stein calls Sara out on starting a romantic relationship since she'll have to leave and break the poor girl's heart, especially since it's the '50s and there aren't many open lesbians.
- Jax also gives one to Leonard concerning Mick.
- You, Get Me Coffee: Attempted by Doctor Stein on Sara, only for her to throw it right back at him.Dr. Stein: I could also go for a cup of coffee.
Sara: Me too. Black, two sugars.
