It's nice to be back in the groove of new Supergirl Mondays! Without them, Mondays kind of stink! Anyway, today we got to look forward to the return of fan-favorite villain, Livewire! This appearance will make her the first non season-long villain to appear three times on the show! On top of that, there was some big action on the Guardian front and on the Mon-El front! Here was what stood out to us!
- James Gets Shot: We think the Winn-James friendship/partnership has been hilarious this season! And while it wasn't great that James got shot, it was a good catalyst for James telling Kara and the team to start working together.
- M'Gann Gets Attacked: Well this happened a lot earlier than we thought! M'Gann is psychically attacked and gets put into some kind of coma. This really is setting up the next episode to be epic!
- J'onn Mind Meld: J'onn carries a lot of hate toward the White Martians and we can't blame him. We found it especially interesting that if he were to meld with M'Gann, she would get his memories and with it, the smiles of his daughters. That is an intensely personal thing to share, especially with a perceived enemy.
- James is Guardian: We really liked how James was revealed to Kara. The scene with Kara and James at the DEO after James is knocked out with lightning was arguably Mehcad Brooks' best this season. Kara is insanely strong and powerful and James stood up to her and stood up for what he believes in! The Guardian role makes James happy and its growing on us too!
- Mars: J'onn decides to give the meld to save M'Gann which was a touching moment! Touching for many as J'onn needs his adoptive daughters Kara and Alex to get through the meld. Then on top of that, the two appear on Mars in a vision and J'onn, despite all his hatred, forgives M'Gann (essentially letting go of his pain from the White Martians).
- Mon-El and Guardian: Kara really did put Mon-El and Guardian in the corner with her comments. While it might not have been the best thing to prove they could be heroes by going off on their own, we did enjoy the team up! Mon-El and Guardian (and Winn to an extent) want to prove they matter. Because Supergirl is the leader she is, she is going to inspire people. It's arguably her biggest strength so James' and Mon-El's motivations feel genuine.
- Livewire and Supergirl Team Up: Some of the most compelling stories in DC Comics are when the villains and heroes work together for a bigger goal. That is exactly what we saw tonight and it's an aspect of the show we've never seen before. Supergirl has been unbending before and while that has its own merits, seeing her choose to let Livewire go albeit for a little while, shows growth on her part. She was able to reach her and stop her from killing. Just like Flash and Captain Cold, it's like they would be friends if they were on the same side.
End of the show wrap up. Like every episode, the last 7 minutes have so much in them we could do a recap all on just those moments. First you have James and Winn not backing down from Kara's wish for them to be sidelined, but she also seems a little easier on them about it. Second, you have M'Gann and J'onn finding peace between each other but that sounds like it's going to be tested soon as the White Martians are coming! And finally, Mon-El confesses his feelings for Kara but doesn't put her on the spot to reciprocate. It felt like he gave her the out before she even examined her own feelings. This will be returned to for sure!
Well there you have it, another Supergirl episode done. Let us know what you thought about it in the comments below and in the forum! Also, like keeping White Martians (excluding M'Gann) off of Earth, help keep advertisements off the site and visit the support page!
Comments
Very well put. The people who manage and write the show seem to have forgotten that it's titled Supergirl. There's been too much enphasis on role players and it's time to get back to basics. let supergirl be Supergirl and the Guardian must go.
There are 4 different narratives being told: Kara & Mon-El, J’onn & M’gann, Guardian, and Sanvers. And among those 4, remove any 1 and it has no impact on the other stories; and, more importantly, you can remove 3 at once and they change nothing as it relates to Kara's story. Pluck the Guardian out of the show and it changes nothing for Supergirl. Remove Sanvers and it changes absolutely nothing for the story of Supergirl — and it never will because Alex’s love life has ZERO bearing on Kara’s life. Same for J'onn and M'gann. And as much as I really enjoy Kara & Mon-El's plot, I’m still missing the sense of an overarching story for Kara. Maybe this season is finally getting back to her story now, but the last time I had the sense that Kara's story was driving the show was back in ep 2!
I realize that over time shows flesh out the lives of the other characters, but this series is only at s2 and the protagonist has already become a subplot. In contrast, I've watched Arrow for 5 seasons and have never felt like that show wasn't about Oliver Queen.
They showcased the power levels of Guardian, Mon-EL, and SG at the police department fight. SG is taking hit after hit, tossed around and is still fine even telling Mon-El to mind the cops. Mon-El can take hits albeit using a van door for a shield, but the blasts are knocking him on his heels. James with shield up and bracing himself is knocked out for the count from just 1 blast. If James had showed up first its likely he would be killed.
Raise your hand if you thought the cops looked safe and wanted Mon-El to get in there and help Kara? Guardian pulled the cops out that very safe spot to run across the line of fire. So who made the bad call there?
Kara has been very consistent on this stance. She got mad at James for breaking into Max's compound. Mad at Alex for having dinner with Max. Mad Alex for going after Mon-El without her.
rewatch all the arguments they had. Kara never said "you cant be a hero". In fact she said he was a hero to her before this. James put words in her mouth and is the only 1 to judge who cant be a hero; "Mon-El isnt a hero".
Which brings me back to James and Winn. An action/adventure show doesn't have a lot of time to focus on characters finding "fulfilment" by providing emotional, logistical or technical support to the people flying at supersonic speed or throwing cars at the bad guys. It's like the movie "Sky High", you're either Hero or "Sidekick", and calling it "Hero Support" doesn't make glowing or turning into a guinea pig any cooler. Even if you manage to save the school once with "lame" powers. That's comedy.
I'm not saying the producers are right or wrong in following this path, but it seems to be the way it's heading.
I would point out that even though I understand and sympathize with the psychology and meta reasoning behind James as Guardian, it doesn't mean I don't agree he's being kind of a tool in how he expressed himself to Kara.
What's ahrdest to believe is that the show's management went away from what others correctly pointed out was the family atmosphere. They also forgot that the show's title is Supergirl. It's not called the Guardian. Supergirl is the lead hero. But you can be a hero without fighting someone. In the case of James and Winn they had established themselves as heroes before this unfortunate Guardian thing.
Why should James be content to sit behind a desk or take pictures while his friends are saving the world? Why should Winn be stuck at a keyboard until the DEO decides he's allowed to tag along on a mission? And no one at the DEO except for Kara and J'onn have any more "powers" than they do.
Why does it make a difference whether someone helps stop criminals because of pure altruism or because they are seeking personal fulfillment, or because they get a rush out of it? I don't care why the cop or firefighter comes to help, as long as they do.
Also, vigilante doesn't mean first season Oliver Queen actions here. James doesn't use a deadly weapon and we haven't seen him do anything that isn't clearly covered in making a citizen's arrest of obvious felons.
Winn obviously got caught up in the rush of being able to take down a supervillain without Kara or the DEO "beating them to it". Probably still hyped over taking down that alien slaver last week.
James, Winn and Mon-el: Operating off questionable motives (jealously, attention-seeking and insecurity)? Yes.
Making mistakes because of it? Also yes.
At least they haven't destroyed an oil tanker yet.
(And .. I am SO gonna get flamed now.)
I suppose we'll be stuck with other episodes of this already filmed but I hope that the show's management will realize they made a mistake and cut their losses. Get back to the family/best friends atmosphere we earlier had and remember that this is not the Olson show but the Supergirl show.
Yes, indeed - I totally miss the best-friends aspect of the Supergirl Team in the the first season. Especially the way they would work together to defeat the villains. I've always tried to make that a big part of my own fan-fiction stories. But now the Guardian storyline has pretty much put an end to it, hasn't it? And besides, Winn seems really out of character now, teaming up with James and turning his back on Kara. (He used to be her number-one fanboy!) I never would have predicted this development at the end of the first season. I think it's a big mistake on the part of the writers. breaking up Team Super in order to introduce the Guardian (who seems superfluous to me, anyway).