WARNING: This article contains major spoilers for "Swan Thong," the DC's Legends of Tomorrow Season 5 finale.
DC's Legends of Tomorrow just said goodbye to Charlie and Zari 1.0.
In "Swan Thong," the Season 5 finale, the two Legends left the team -- one willingly, and the other forcibly. Unfortunately for Zari 1.0, her presence in the timeline was having an adverse affect on her brother Behrad. So, to save him, she volunteered to return to the Air Totem.
As the episode wound down, Behrad helped fix the Waverider with both versions of Zari. Suddenly, he doubled over in pain and blood bloomed on his chest. When Zari 2.0 pulled his shirt back, he had what appeared to be gunshot wounds, and Zari 1.0 came to a terrible realization.
"It's me," Zari 1.0 revealed, backing up. "By being here, I'm causing a temporal disturbance, and it's killing you... It means there's two timelines fighting for control of Behrad's life and, in mine, you're dead. I have to go back in the totem. Behrad-jan, it's my turn to save you."
Knowing she had to go, Zari went to talk to Nate. "I just wish I was leaving you with something," she said through her tears.
"You are, and you have," Nate insisted. "I lost everything at Heyworld, all of our memories, but you brought those back to me. Now, I get to remember the woman I love forever." Then, after a long kiss, he added, "No regrets."
After she wished Nate a goodbye in private, Zari moved on to the rest of the team, giving each a hug. "There has to be something we can do," Sara said ruefully.
"You already did," Zari replied, gesturing towards Zari 2.0. "You found me and brought me home."
Finally, she approached Behrad and took his face in her hands. They said nothing to each other, but shared a long embrace. When she stepped away, she used her mastery of the Air Totem to return to her previous state. As wind whirled around her, she appeared to dissolve, and rejoined her ancestors inside the totem. This leaves room for Zari 1.0 to reappear down the line, but in a much more limited capacity. Moving forward, it seems Zari 2.0 will be the team's main version of the character.
Afterwards, Nate told the team he needed a drink, and Charlie had somewhere in mind. She took them all back to her club in the '80s for a performance from her band The Smell. After a punk rock rendition of the Mr. Parker's Cul-de-Sac theme song, she walked outside with the Legends and revealed she had decided to leave the team.
"Actually, guys, I think this is the end of the line for me," Charlie admitted. "It's time for me to just stay put for once and set down some roots."
"Alright, well, if you ever need anything -- and I mean, anything -- you know where to find us. Once a Legend," Sara said, for Charlie to finish, "Always a Legend."
"Well, come on, all of you!" Charlie cried, opening her arms wide. After everyone ran in for a group hug, she added, "Oh, I love you. I'm really going to miss you guys. Alright, come on, get out of here! Go and enjoy your vacations! You've earned it." And with that, she walked back towards the club.
"This was something that was well over a year in the works," co-showrunner Phil Klemmer told TVLine. "We knew that [Maisie Richardson-Sellers] was wanting to make her mark as a filmmaker on her own, and so that allowed us to craft a story that would, hopefully, make for a satisfying conclusion. The finale was sort of all about her. For me, it's so bittersweet, bringing it back to that punk club and The Smell… The good thing is that people are allowed to come back and have come back."
As such, Richardson-Sellers has left the series, but it appears there is room for her to return down the line. Seeing as she has played both Amaya Jiwe, aka Vixen, and Charlie, she could perhaps even return as a brand new character. However, that likely won't happen anytime soon, as her departure is still fresh.
Returning to The CW in 2021, DC's Legends of Tomorrow stars Caity Lotz, Dominic Purcell, Nick Zano, Maisie Richardson-Sellers, Tala Ashe, Matt Ryan and Jes Macallan.