This episode of iZombie manages to combine the usual murder of the week while moving several of the subplots forward. The rabidly anti-zombie forces in New Seattle are deep-rooted and more pervasive than I thought, and are starting to surprise Liv and friends. They also bring up an interesting moral question this week. I do like shows that make you think without hitting you over the head with being preachy (looking at you, last season of Supergirl). Not everything is as it seems in “dot zom.”

The show opens with the abrupt death of Cornell Piercey, local computer genius. He gets even less screen time than the usual victims of the week, which is a bit rough on him, but then, there’s a lot going on. Ravi knows the man by reputation, and sounds like something of a fan as he, Liv, and Clive start their investigation. In the first few moments, they find it’s an odd corporate climate with needlessly complicated titles, that the man had some interesting projects going, and there’s a familiar name in his records.

 

Ravi talks to Peyton about an aspect of the case while they sit in on the rehearsal for the comedy troupe they are trying to use to get some good PR for zombies. It doesn’t go well. Liv and Ravi come up with an unusual cause of death and a few clues. Liv isn’t quite up to her usual cooking display, and she takes a shortcut that Clive finds a bit disturbing. They do a few interviews and learn some surprising things about one of the employees. They also interview Dalton about neuro-pharmacology. Nice detail on their part; Dalton was a minor character who worked for Blaine in past seasons. He has some interesting things to say, and Liv’s new quirks start showing up, to Clive’s bemusement.

 

Back at the same school we saw last week, a teacher gets fired for being a zombie. Blaine’s Scratching Post has an unwelcome outdoor issue, and Don E fills in the boss on what’s going on. They have a guest who could help Blaine’s reputation, but things don’t go how he expected. Liv checks in at the safehouse for her Renegade network, talks to Major, and has a great idea about how to fix a problem. Her new brain persona has some upsides. Stuart, who seems to be her tech guy, is worried about a new program the “Dead Enders” (hate the concept, clever name) are setting up online.

 

Blaine continues to get surprised by developments with his guest, who keeps leaving him guessing. Inspector Lambert, Filmore-Graves’ annoying French investigator, shows he has his own agenda that Major would definitely not approve of. We see another lurking big bad, who is not interested in peaceful coexistence. Liv goes on an odd diatribe about nootropics, and Ravi refuses to get sucked in. she interrupts herself with a vision of the events around the murder.

 

Liv and Clive do a follow up interview with their new information. Clive makes up a lame source, and the person they talk to seems surprisingly uninformed about zombie issues. They get some more information, but aren’t sure how to fit it in with everything else. Blaine continues talking with his new friend, and their pests outside become more of a problem. Major and Liv make someone an offer that you just know is going to go bad.

 

Blaine deals with his unwanted attention outside with some uniquely zombie flair that was fun to watch. He finally impresses his new friend, and then has to make some frantic preparations to backstop a lie. Peyton checks in with the comedy troupe, and things go off the rails again. She does get a hint of hope for the future. Liv made use of Jimmy’s actual job as police sketch artist to try and run down something from her vision, and finally gets a hit. The new player proves to be a really horrible person who has some serious issues with zombies. He walks out of the interview on an ominous note.

 

Liv gets an update from Stuart, puts a few things together with the help of her new brain, and passes some things on to Clive. Things progress with Blaine’s odd little side trip. How the man can be so brilliant and so stupid at the same time is just baffling to me. Liv’s new hire lives up to my concerns in a really ridiculously short time, and sets other badness in motion. He gets what he deserves off that lapse and Blaine’s poor choices start catching up with him.

 

The new suspect gets brought in, as thoroughly vile as he was before. Liv’s new hire get in more and more trouble as he gets made the proverbial offer he can’t refuse. He shows up finally, with some lame excuse and a bad story Liv is too distracted to properly pay attention to. She’s going to regret that in the future, I’m fairly sure.

 

Liv and Clive compare notes, which looks good for their case… for a while. She gets another vision that creates some complications for them. A few more pieces fall into place, and Liv realizes the larger scope of what’s going on. Liv questions the fairness of the system given the choice she and Clive have to make now. He has fewer doubts, but does seem troubled about the new wrinkles.

 

Peyton and Ravi revisit the comedy folks, and things work out a lot better. Things take a turn with Blaine and his new acquaintance. He has no idea what’s coming, and it’s going to be interesting to see what comes next. Clive and Liv go to confirm what Liv saw in her vision. What they get is a surprisingly frank confession that makes Liv and Clive’s moral dilemma much worse. In one of his darker periods, Batman said, “The law is useless, only justice counts.” That’s more or less what Liv and Clive are facing, and they’re really torn about what to do. It’s a nasty place to be and I’m very much hoping they follow up on this next episode.

 

What I liked: For four seasons, Liv and Clive have upheld the law, helped (sometime hindered) by their friends and associates. While some people on the show have done some questionable things, usually Liv and always Clive have been upholders of the law. Now that might not be enough. It’s a big thing to bring into the final season with such a finite time left, but it could make for some great stories. I hope they stick with it. That to one side, Blaine dealing with his pests was a great scene. Ravi got a few good one-liners in, but he usually does.

 

What I didn’t: There was a lot of interesting buildup with the Clive/Dale/Michelle situation last episode, and that seems to have poofed all of a sudden. Hopefully they’ll get back to that. Major really needs a better grip on his organization and people. There are so many extreme factions building up in Seattle that our band of heroes is going to have to make some firm decisions and take some definitive action, and I could see them not all ending up on the same side.

 

Another fun episode of a good show. I’m giving this a high 3.5 out of 5. So far, they seem to be going out on a high note for this final season.