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Triggers Season 3 Episode 2 Recap

October just feels more like October when Supergirl is on! Tonight, we got to enjoy the second episode of Supergirl's third season. Going into the episode, we knew that this one was going to be a pretty powerful one featuring Jane The Virgin's Yael Grobglas as Psi. Adding to that would be Lena Luthor's first day as owner of CatCo and the next step in Samantha Arias' story. Fans were curious if Psi would be addressed as the same villain from Sterling Gate's Adventures of Supergirl, if Kara's attitude would improve, and if any clues about where Mon-El went would be revealed. Answers and epic events that stood out to us are below:

  1. Everyone's Mornings are Explored: We thought this was a cute way to show how Kara's mornings have changed now that Mon-El is gone, as well as how Maggie and Alex are continuing to enjoy that post-engagement bliss, all the while introducing us to Samantha's routine. While at this point, we don't know what Samantha does, it's clear she is in a good position with her enormous and beautiful house.
  2. Lena Surprises CatCo: Surprising everyone in the office, especially James, is Lena Luthor, who looks like she has decided to jump in head first to running the media mogul firm. It would seem her efforts last season in rebranding Luthor Corp into L Corp were successful enough that she can leave it to be run without her guidance.
  3. Kara Adds Her Contact Info to Analyst Distribution List: Last episode left a lot of Supergirl fans in a place wondering if we would ever see our bright and shining Kara again. She showed us just a snippet of her smile at the end of the premiere episode but wounds don't heal in one episode. Kara does continue to lean heavily on her Supergirl persona to cope with the loss of Mon-El.
  4. Psi vs Supergirl Round 1: Kara is reduced to her knees with fear after the simplest of encounters with Psi! J'onn makes note that her powers come from the Meta-Human gene but her abilities are extremely powerful, more so than possibly his own. Kara, still hoping to be more than human, tries to hide her pain from those close to her.
  5. Ruby Believes Samantha Has Powers: With only two episodes under our belts, its clear Ruby is a big fan of Supergirl. The possibility of her mom sharing those powers delights her to the point that she starts telling her friends about it at school. Of course because of it, she gets into a fight and forces Samantha to reschedule a major meeting she had planned.
  6. Psi Vs Supergirl Round 2: Psi bounces J'onn out of the fight almost immediately! Her powers on the mental abilities scale are off the chart! From that, we learn what Kara's fear is. In this case, it was the being alone in her pod. While there seems to have been some level of suspended animation, it also alluded to the fact that Kara seemed to have been aware of the time passing. Being secluded in a pod like that for all those years could break ANYONE! Very traumatic but goes to show just how strong Kara is mentally!
  7. Psi Vs Supergirl Round 3: THIS WAS PERFECT! Psi, as powerful as she is, is wielding fear. And while many would say that is the ultimate weapon, fear can be overcome, just ask a Green Lantern. So when Kara is given the most powerful vision yet, one that puts Mon-El in her ultimate fear, and that she might have been responsible for his death, it's of course ALEX who is there to give Kara the ability to overcome her fears. In the end, it was possibly the most epic moment when Kara steps through Psi's attempts to induce fear. The headbutt was the best finishing move!
  8. Kara and Lena Reconcile: Kara comes back after defeating Psi and she realizes what she's been doing is not okay at CatCo. Because of it, she has another "Wake Up" moment where she stops the pity party, apologizes to Lena, and then ... comes face to face with Samantha! The lingering camera shot on that meeting was impressive foreshadowing!

Final moment of epicness, M'gann's surprise visit! J'onn needs to return to Mars, a place he hasn't been back to for decades! Let us know what you thought of this episode in the comments below and in the forum! Keep us your advertisement free site for Supergirl news and visit the support page! Supergirl's third episode of season three is October 23rd at 8pm on The CW!

Eric Johnston
Author: Eric JohnstonWebsite: https://supergirl.tvEmail: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Executive Editor/Owner
About the Author
Eric is the primary author for Supergirl.tv. He has been covering the Supergirl show since 2014, but been a fan for decades. "Hope, Help, and Compassion for All, El May Arah!"

Comments

#48 RE: Triggers Season 3 Episode 2 RecapSupergirlfan 2017-10-23 10:12
Quoting Kelly:
Quoting Supergirlfan:
Ok.. I understand Winn said Supergirl had a panic attack... But I have another thought about this...When Lena and Kara finish their conversation.. Kara walks to the Elevator.. Lena as she walks away looking over her right shoulder at Kara to see where she is going. When Kara gets to the elevator she does the shirt rip and then we see Kara from behind and high (camera?) If you look at the elevator door you see her reflection.. And to me it looks like supergirl standing there.. If you Pause and look at the reflection it looks like she has her hands on her hips.. looks like she is wearing her cape.. and you can see the "S" on her chest... Maybe Im over thinking this but maybe im right for once... What do you think?...
Im not what your talking about....

Maybe its just me seeing it.
#47 RE: Triggers Season 3 Episode 2 RecapKelly 2017-10-23 06:24
Quoting Supergirlfan:
Ok.. I understand Winn said Supergirl had a panic attack... But I have another thought about this...When Lena and Kara finish their conversation.. Kara walks to the Elevator.. Lena as she walks away looking over her right shoulder at Kara to see where she is going. When Kara gets to the elevator she does the shirt rip and then we see Kara from behind and high (camera?) If you look at the elevator door you see her reflection.. And to me it looks like supergirl standing there.. If you Pause and look at the reflection it looks like she has her hands on her hips.. looks like she is wearing her cape.. and you can see the "S" on her chest... Maybe Im over thinking this but maybe im right for once... What do you think?...
Im not what your talking about....
+2 #46 RE: Triggers Season 3 Episode 2 Recapsuperbill 2017-10-21 17:59
Just got back from a week in the Wisconsin north woods, so I had to catch up using the CW website. IMO "Triggers" was one of the better episodes in the entire series. Best part was Melissa's acting, especially the anxiety scenes but also her scenes with Lena, Alex, and Winn. Among her many gifts is an extraordinary range of facial expressions which never fail to capture the essence of the moment. I loved the elevator scene but, as others have said, some explanation of the damage needs to be provided in a future episode. Also of note was Lena as CEO, which was spot-on, and Alex being the hero to Kara twice, both wonderful scenes. I also loved Alex melting Winn's defenses with only a steady gaze; that was so good. Psi was a great villain, very complex and dangerous. There is a lot more to learn about her and I really hope they use her again. The special effects were also a highlight, and I could almost feel the claustrophobia of the pod myself. This season is off to a tremendous start!
#45 RE: Triggers Season 3 Episode 2 RecapGene Steinberg 2017-10-21 15:24
Those of you who are worrying about the lower ratings for Supergirl and other CWTV fare this year, it seems that there's a lot of growth in the critical Live +3 ratings:

http://tvbythenumbers.zap2it.com/daily-ratings/tv-ratings-friday-oct-20-2017/

So more people are using DVRs this year. I wonder how the Live +7 will fare.

Peace,
Gene
#44 Elevator thought..Supergirlfan 2017-10-20 08:46
Ok.. I understand Winn said Supergirl had a panic attack... But I have another thought about this...When Lena and Kara finish their conversation.. Kara walks to the Elevator.. Lena as she walks away looking over her right shoulder at Kara to see where she is going. When Kara gets to the elevator she does the shirt rip and then we see Kara from behind and high (camera?) If you look at the elevator door you see her reflection.. And to me it looks like supergirl standing there.. If you Pause and look at the reflection it looks like she has her hands on her hips.. looks like she is wearing her cape.. and you can see the "S" on her chest... Maybe Im over thinking this but maybe im right for once... What do you think?...
#43 Triggers Review...pt. 6RobertAnthony 2017-10-19 16:20
Triggers triggered off a strong effort. If Girl of Steel was solid, Triggers was strong.

SCORE

Acting…4.5
Writing…3.5
Adventure…4.0
SFX…4.5

Political penalty…-0.5

Bonus for Easter eggs….1.0

TOTAL…17/20.


WHEW!
#42 Triggers Review...pt. 5RobertAnthony 2017-10-19 16:18
When Melissa showed her fear, we felt it with her as Supergirl. The viewers are given a more psychological adventure where things can be in someone’s head. Out of all the fears Supergirl has whether it’s someone other than Alex, Winn, James, Jonn and Maggie knowing she and Kara are one and the same, being poisoned by Kryptonite, we learn that she fears that Mon-El is dead. She thinks she sent her love to his death. We head back into the rocket but now not in that first person view. We see Mon-El in the pod, which is being hit by meteors, and then it blows up. Melissa sells the anguish.

We know Supergirl would win. But mind over matter seems to win the day and in the final showdown, Kara punctuates that point with a vicious WWE-style headbutt.

I have left Maggie and Alex’s argument over wedding music choices and Alex wanting kids out because well, if you read into the spoilers, at episode five it might be all she wrote for Sanvers.

Near the end, Kara and Alex are watching Kara’s favorite film The Wizard of Oz. If Supergirl gets to the 2018-2019 season, Melissa should convince writers and show-runners to do something of a dedication to the film classic on its 80th anniversary, like singing Over the Rainbow. She should get another chance to show off her singing, as I felt in the fun Flash musical crossover she was held back. Then again Kara was under the whammy of the Music Meister and scared stiff.
#41 Triggers Review...pt. 4RobertAnthony 2017-10-19 16:15
. She struggles, and struggles until she hits a point where in a variation on Superman Returns, she is able to smash through the elevator shaft and escape. So this gets a bonus point (0.5 for the shirt rip and 0.5 for the Superman Returns egg). And it turns out according to her own Instagram, Melissa becomes Renaissance Girl as she did some of the camera work with what looked liked a specially made Steadicam.

Some big points for the VFX especially in the scenes where Psi laid her whammy down. When Kara confronts Psi in the vault, Psi hits her with a blast where in which we return to Krypton on its final day. The whole vision was done first-person point of view. We are with Kara so to speak as the rocket lifts off. Cities on fire, the planet is blowing up. And all the while there was no Blake Neely music. As great as he is, music accompaniment would’ve been clichéd. The first scene where everyone gets up to start their day was written with close-ups and wide shots. But in Kara’s apartment, the spaces are her solo, no Mon-El. The ship scene is cramped. But again, Kara is in a confined space. The aforementioned elevator scene adds to the VFX.

The adventure was supported by the effects and was heart pounding everytime Supergirl met Psi.
#40 Triggers Review...pt. 3RobertAnthony 2017-10-19 16:15
I happen to like that Morgan Edge is “stuck on the barge” if you will. This allows the female characters to develop; including Samantha/Reign’s story, only it’s without using her powers, but they are mentioned by her daughter Ruby who like any daughter wants her mom to help her out. Though life is tough for a single mom, the apartment they share is pretty spiffy, like something out of an HGTV show. And we find that she will be able to pay the rent by running L-Corp while Lena runs Catco. Thing is will Ruby like this? Given how she got in trouble for starting a fight with a schoolmate, it might not be so.

If I have to give a political penalty, it’s a very, very slight one about a dossier Lena wants Kara to do on Edge. It will remind oneself of a certain someone’s dossier, one that is nothing but propaganda. Thankfully we don’t get bonked on the head with it. So for a penalty…a half point that’s all.

My bonus goes to the scene where as Kara is doing her classic shirt rip just as the elevator closes and she’s trying to ride the elevator to finish her transformation, she is supposedly hit by Psi. My bonus goes to the scene where as Kara is doing her classic shirt rip just as the elevator closes and she’s trying to ride the elevator to finish her transformation, she is supposedly hit by Psi. But Psi is robbing another of the banks, so in the confined space of the elevator, reminiscent of the ship, Kara suffers a panic attack.
#39 Triggers Review...pt. 2RobertAnthony 2017-10-19 16:13
Then Alex, seated Indian style in front of little sis does a hop to Kara. They then hug. THE FEELS. Melissa Benoist and Chyler Leigh bring back again that season 1 magic, something the writers failed to do in season 2.

Lena Luthor has taken over Catco and has a hands-on approach to doing things. But she runs things with a slight iron fist even for her best friend Kara. Lena also steps on James’ toes in the process, but she eventually allows him into the mix. This writing works given Katie McGrath is a series regular. She also has become a little libertarian/classic liberal in removing Cat Grant’s exclusive elevator privileges. She may have been a boss at L Corp, but she has become a study in progress at Catco and she will make some errors along the way.

Speaking of writing, when Lena confronted Kara after she failed multiple times to do her job, one was thinking, uh oh, Lena’s going to find out or turn heel! But, given this is episode 2 and way too early to pull any kind of trigger, the writer’s deflecting with Lena talking about Mon-El. Good move!


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