- "You're willing to die for what you believe in. Die for your friends. That's what happens when you go out there. We've all had to live without Gert Yorkes. It's not a life worth living. If we can change the world for the better, we should. You taught me that."
- ―Chase Stein to Gert Yorkes
Cheat The Gallows is the tenth and final episode of the third season of the television series Runaways, as well as the series finale.
Synopsis[]
Two years after defeating Morgan, visitors from the future send the Runaways back through time to prevent their own murders and even save a friend thought lost forever.
Plot[]
A future version of Chase Stein, still grieving over the death of Gert Yorkes at the hands of Morgan le Fay, has designed a time machine to try and save her. He returns into the past were three years have passed since the Battle at the Hostel. Karolina Dean is a student at UCLA and in a relationship with Julie; Molly Hernandez is the head of Atlas Academy's dance squad and still lives in the Hostel with Chase Stein, who isolated himself working on his time machine, with help from Alex Wilder, who is at the head of a foundation, Wilder Innovators.
Nico Minoru, who left her friends to learn how to develop her powers with a new master, has recently returned to Los Angeles, and is visited by another version of Wilder, who attempts to murder her. Minoru receives help from the future version of Stein, who explains that this version of Wilder also comes from the future and means to kill all the Runaways. Once Wilder flees, the Runaways gather at the Hostel, minus the current version of Stein, as the two versions must avoid interacting. They decide to go after the future Wilder, and arrive in time to stop him from hurting Julie.
Although briefly incapacitated, the future Wilder is able to make another time jump, going to the day before the Runaways discovered the truth about PRIDE. The future Stein provides the Runaways with their own time machines, and they all follow the future Wilder, arriving at the past Atlas Academy. The Runaways stealthily watch over their past counterparts, also Stein cannot help but going to talk with the past version of Yorkes. Due to the situation being incredibly complicated with the future Wilder taking a student hostage, Minoru uses a powerful spell to capture him and wipe out the memories of all witnesses.
The Runaways interrogate the future Wilder, but struggle about what to do with him and the current Wilder, as the future Wilder tries to sow the seeds of disagreements between them. For safety, the current Wilder is sent back into his time. The future Stein is ready to ask the same of the other Runaways, but as he explains that his true purpose is returning to the time of the battle with Morgan and save Yorkes, the Runaways decide to join and help him. However, the future Wilder explains that by changing the timeline to such an extent, their current counterparts will disappear. Nevertheless, they all time jump again, taking the future Wilder with them.
Stein explains his plan: he will take Yorkes' place as the one who forms and closes the circle of salt. Taking advantage of the Runaways' distraction, the future Wilder is able to slip away from them. Before le Fay's arrival, Minoru talks with her past counterpart, convincing her that she does not need to choose between her love for Karolina Dean and her powers, before disappearing and erasing the memories of the encounter, leaving her message at a subconscious level. Later, Stein is able to reclaim the magical salt and confronts le Fay in Yorkes' place. However, Yorkes comes all the same. Although she is wounded, Stein's plan works: it is he who is mortally hit by le Fay but closes the circle before Tina Minoru banishes her back to the Dark Dimension.
The past counterparts of the Runaways cry over the future Stein, before the past one, who had been knocked out unconscious by his future self, appears. Since the plan worked and Yorkes was saved, the life of the Runaways is profoundly changed, and the time-traveling Runaways are progressively erased, promising that they will never give up on each other. In the next day, the Runaways, now all alive, decide to go outside to celebrate their victory. Before they leave, however, Alex Wilder finds a note left by his dark counterpart, instructing to kill Minoru and hide someone named Victor Mancha. Although bewildered, he joins his friends like nothing happened.
Cast[]
Main Cast:
- Rhenzy Feliz as Alex Wilder / Alex Wilder / Alex Wilder
- Lyrica Okano as Nico Minoru / Nico Minoru
- Virginia Gardner as Karolina Dean / Karolina Dean
- Ariela Barer as Gert Yorkes
- Gregg Sulkin as Chase Stein / Chase Stein
- Allegra Acosta as Molly Hernandez / Molly Hernandez
- Angel Parker as Catherine Wilder (credit only)
- Ryan Sands as Geoffrey Wilder
- Annie Wersching as Leslie Dean
- Clarissa Thibeaux as Xavin (credit only)
- Ever Carradine as Janet Stein (credit only)
- James Marsters as Victor Stein
- Brigid Brannagh as Stacey Yorkes
- Kevin Weisman as Dale Yorkes
- Brittany Ishibashi as Tina Minoru
- James Yaegashi as Robert Minoru (credit only)
Special Guest Star:
Guest Stars:
- Scarlett Byrne as Bronwyn
- Timothy Granaderos as Lucas
- Claudia Sulewski as Julie / Julie
- Keisuke Hoashi as Kwan
- Derek Luh as Brayden
- Cooper Mothersbaugh as The Gert
- Rob Parks as Buzzcom Reporter
- Rachel Gage as Brianna
- Emily Alabi as Cassandra
- Unknown Actress as Christina (uncredited)
- Unknown Actress as Jesse (uncredited)
Appearances[]
Locations[]
- Los Angeles, California
- Honduras (mentioned)
- Fiji (mentioned)
- Hawaii (mentioned)
- Dark Dimension (mentioned)
- Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser (mentioned)
Events[]
- Chase of Alex Wilder
- Infiltration into the Hostel
- Battle at the Hostel (mentioned)
- Assassination of Gene and Alice Hernandez (mentioned)
Items[]
- Chase Stein's Time Machine
- Abstract
- WizPhone
- Energy Pistol
- Church of Gibborim Bracelet
- Energy Knife
- Staff of One
- Nico Minoru's Dagger
- Corvus
- Anti-Magic Serum
- Fistigons
- WizGlass
- Crow Necklace
Concepts[]
Vehicles[]
To be added
Sentient Species[]
Creatures[]
Organizations[]
- Runaways
- Runaways
- Wilder Innovators
- Wilder Innovators (mentioned)
- Buzzcom
- PRIDE
- PRIDE (mentioned)
- Wizard
- Church of Gibborim
- Morgan le Fay's Coven
- NASA (mentioned)
- Runaways (mentioned)
- Disney Cruise Line (mentioned)
Mentioned[]
- Chase Stein
- Gert Yorkes
- Victor Stein
- Quinton the Great
- Geoffrey Wilder
- Catherine Wilder
- Tamar
- Nico Minoru's Master
- Alphona
- Alphona (indirectly)
- Victor Mancha
- Nico Minoru
- Alice Hernandez
- Gene Hernandez
- Eiffel
- Catherine Wilder (indirectly)
- Catherine Wilder
- Catherine Wilder
- Amy Minoru
- Robert Minoru
- Dale Yorkes
- Stacey Yorkes
- Doctor Who
- Star Wars
- The Pirates of Penzance
- Backstreet Boys
- *NSYNC
- Hillary Clinton
Trivia[]
- Allison Beteta, Biz Betzing, Courtney Kato, Tyler Lofton, and Nathan Varnson were cast doubles for Molly Hernandez, Karolina Dean, Nico Minoru, Alex Wilder, and Chase Stein, respectively.
- The official synopsis says that it has been two years since Gert Yorkes' death, but the episode's main events are set three years after Yorkes' death.
Music[]
| Song title | Artist | Location(s) |
|---|---|---|
| In a River (Acoustic) | Rostam |
|
| Don't Hesitate | Rat Boy |
|
| Forever | George Simms & Simon Astall |
|
| Last Ones Left | Stylo Beddoe |
|
| Outnumbered | Dermot Kennedy |
|
References[]
External Links[]
| Season One | Reunion • Rewind • Destiny • Fifteen • Kingdom • Metamorphosis • Refraction • Tsunami • Doomsday • Hostile |
| Season Two | Gimmie Shelter • Radio On • Double Zeros • Old School • Rock Bottom • Bury Another • Last Rites • Past Life • Big Shot • Hostile Takeover • Last Waltz • Earth Angel • Split Up |
| Season Three | Smoke and Mirrors • The Great Escape • Lord of Lies • Rite of Thunder • Enter The Dreamland • Merry Meet Again • Left-Hand Path • Devil's Torture Chamber • The Broken Circle • Cheat The Gallows |