‘iZombie’ recap: Death by drone on ‘Patriot Brains’

Liv Moore may be a zombie, but she’s not a monster.

That’s what our brain-munching heroine discovers during the latest episode of “iZombie,” when she has a chance to take down uber-villain and Seattle scourge Blaine DeBeers but just can’t pull the trigger.

If she had been able to do so, she would’ve splattered his gray matter all over a stylish rooftop patio, what with those sharpshooter skills that were flowing through her veins.

But since Liv (Rose McIver) was a medical resident before Blaine turned her into a zombie, she took the Hippocratic oath and, undead or not, she’s sticking to it. Blaine is a virus, undoubtedly, but he’s still technically a person, and she can’t kill him. The consequences would be far too devastating for her.

The CW dram-rom-zom-com benefits greatly from that decision. Her leafy Pacific northwestern town and its citizenry? Not so much.

Alas, Blaine (David Anders) lives another day. And for him, that means his murderous Meals on Wheels program continues to thrive and his kill-to-order startup inches closer to reality. Astronaut brain, anyone?

That isn’t the only near-homicide during the hour dubbed, “Patriot Brains.” Major (Robert Buckley) shoots Blaine’s henchman, Julien, square in the chest. Man down! Multiple gunshot wounds!

Except the beefy Julien walks away, not even leaving a blood trail behind him. Cleanup won’t be a problem, but convincing Det. Clive Babineaux (Malcolm Goodwin) of the sequence of events, sans body, may be tough. Poor Major.

There’s love lost and found, death by drone, a 3D-printed 38-caliber revolver and cerebellum sashimi in this episode. And a new piece of zombie lore emerges, according to this DC Comics-based show: they all have visions and take on the dead person’s traits after eating brains. Liv isn’t alone after all. Here’s the lowdown:

Liv and Clive pick up a case at the local paintball park where a worker, an ex-military sniper, has been killed on the job by a real bullet. (Those paintballs sure do sting, but they’re not lethal, right kids?)

The victim, Everett Adams, had been tangled up in a nasty custody battle with his former wife and her new husband, a techie who wants to move the family to Silicon Valley. Adams wasn’t having it, though his PTSD from serving in Afghanistan made it difficult to have a rational chat about the matter.

Dutiful Liz eats his brain, absorbing his talent for firearms, which comes in handy during a paintball “free for all.” Last Man Standing trophy! Night sweats and insomnia come with the territory too, along with an understanding of the sniper mantra/justification, “One is less than many.”

The investigation focuses immediately on the couple, Penny and Sean, with Liv having visions of their violent confrontations with the victim and Clive uncovering Sean’s new business venture. Hint: drones.

An unmanned craft would explain how Adams was gunned down in the woods from an overhead angle. And Sean (guest star Percy Daggs III) wanted that work promotion so much that he was willing to arm and drone and eliminate his hurdle. The case, then, is pretty open and shut, unlike a lot of “iZombie” crimes with requisite multiple red herrings.

That piece wraps up nice and tidy, but most others do not, with Major continuing to dig himself into a deeper hole as he amateur-sleuths the missing homeless kids and street junkies cases. This week it takes him to a Crossfit-style gym where he tells a trainer he wants to get seriously juiced and he’s willing to eat brains to do it. (He’s read on the Internet that human noggins are the new bro muscle milk.)

Julien catches wind of Major’s request, pays him a visit and tries to find out what he knows. But Major’s packing heat now, hence the slugs to Julien’s torso and a somewhat shortened conversation.

Fans of Dr. Ravi (isn’t that everyone?) will be thrilled to know that there’s no such thing as cross-species undead infection. His zombie rat, created in the lab with a toxic cocktail of designer drug Utopian and energy drink Max Rager, bit him but can’t transform him. He only tells Liv about the former when he’s fairly sure of the latter.

And speaking of confessions, Lowell Tracy (Bradley James) has one for Liv: he doesn’t ask where his brain food comes from because he doesn’t want to know. His supplier, Blaine, lies about funeral home sources and he doesn’t press the matter.

Liv has news for him after learning last episode that Blaine killed Major’s friend, Jerome. Blaine is plucking innocent people off the streets, killing them in cold blood and selling their brains for profit.

Lowell, understanding fully that he’s a cog in that sickening wheel and may lose Liv because of it, digs up a grave for dinner. It’s gross and traumatic, especially since he actually went to the guy’s memorial beforehand. There’s no resolution here about how he’ll eat in the future, but chances are he won’t be ordering from Blaine’s seasonal menu anymore.

The state of Liv and Lowell’s relationship: off, on, off, on again. Good apology, Lowell. Two fun facts about him: he’s a trust fund baby, and he’s officially in love with Liv. And he tries to off Blaine himself when Liv backs out, but manages only to stab the zombiepreneur with a barbecue fork. Better luck next time, Lowell.

Blaine, who appears to be percolating a new specialty within his expensive brain-delivery empire, now knows that he’s a target. What will that mean for the Good Zombie Crew? He’s a dangerous man to cross, and even if he is a huge Nirvana fan, he’s rotten to the core. That cliffhanger ending makes me sorry there are no binge-viewing options for this show. Back next week.