Hi Guys! Supreme Chief Keith is out for the week, so I’m covering Supergirl! After I watched this week’s episode, I was glad I was recapping this one and not last week’s, which kinda bored me. This week was better and included some great acting, but some of the writing left me wanting… Let’s dive in!
Toy Story 4: Andy’s Toys Try to Murder Him
Let me get this out of the way: I do not ship Winn and Kara. His crush has been more annoying than sweet and because of it, he’s been one of the characters I’ve cared the least about. And yet, in this episode that was somehow the most and least about Winn’s crush on Kara (I’ll explain why in a minute), I cared the most for Winn. Part of that is due to Jeremy Jordan’s really strong performance this week.
I say that this episode is both the most and least about the crush because usually Winn’s scenes all play on the fact that he has feelings for Kara. His puppy dog looks, his eagerness to help her, his jealousy over Kara’s affection for James… With Toy Man’s introduction, most of his scenes were about that instead, which made for a stronger character. I cared more about Winn because it wasn’t about Kara. His angst over being scared that he will turn into his father was very compelling. His conflict over helping the FBI kill his father versus not actually wanting him to die was very well done.
This of course led to this episode being the MOST about Winn’s crush, because he finally acts on his feelings (in completely the wrong moment) and kisses Kara in his moment of vulnerability.
Winn gets another emotional hit after an already tough day.
Winn tells Kara he can’t hang out with her socially anymore right now, because bottling up the pain of her rejection could lead him to exploding like his father. While I’ve been over Winn’s crush, I think this was the episode it bothered me the least because it had more depth, it had emotional consequences, and will lead to interesting things down the road with Kara and Winn’s separation.
Now Kara doesn’t have the sole affection of either of her guys. “If you weren’t in my life, I’d be lost too.” Clearly this will bother her, but perhaps she needs to become a little more self sufficient.
Getting Away from The J’onzz’s
While I used to hate scenes at the DEO, now that they’ve fleshed out Hank/J’onn’s character — and made it less about the military aspect of the group — they’ve become more tolerable. (Except when General Lane is around.) Now that Kara knows Hank’s identity, they’re allowing us more insight into his powers and his emotions. Alex tries to convince Hank to use his Martian powers to spy on Maxwell Lord while she… ahem — distracts him. When Hank finally agrees, we see the extent of his shifting, his phasing, and even his memory wipes. That last one, used on a clever security guard, didn’t just erase the night, but his whole life.
Hank is very torn up about this. Every time he transforms back into J’onn J’onzz, he becomes more and more like the monster people would see him as. There seems to be a lack of control he experiences as J’onn that makes his powers go too far? But also there is the metaphor here. They were a bit heavy handed about the “coming out of the closet” aspect of it, but it’s important to note that J’onn feels less ostracized as a black man than he does as a monstrous alien. The show doesn’t touch on race often — only one scene was really of note (James and Kara punching out their anger) — but there could be potential for them to discuss it here.
What J’onn feels as an alien, the reaction he fears from humans, is what many black men feel in the real world. They are seen as dangerous and unworthy of a second chance (see the police “defense” on nearly any of the recent police shootings). Hank/J’onn, as the leader of a super secret organization, might not spend a lot of time in the regular world, but it makes me wonder if he’s experienced the racial prejudice that can often match his fears of coming out as Martian Manhunter. It would be bold for the show to explore this, but the layers are there… But they did mention that Kara coming out as Supergirl was very different from Hank coming out as J’onn because Kara is a “pretty, blonde (read: white) who looks like a cheerleader.”
In Which I Hate Maxwell Lord Even More Than Before
Maxwell Lord has a face you just don’t like. Douche-face if you will (and that’s a clear choice, because I found his face much less douchey, more open, when J’onn shapeshifted into him). So I’ve never liked him and I’ve always slightly tuned out during his storylines. Now that he’s stepping up as the big bad of this arc, he’s even worse.
He threatens Supergirl (and his hate for her grows every moment it comes into contact with her), he kidnaps and attacks James, and bugs Alex with a recording device — telling him all he needs to know about Alex’s subterfuge, Supergirl’s identity, and even some of her weaknesses. Plus we still don’t know why there is a girl, clearly a metahuman (or whatever we call mutants/inhumans on this show), in the bowels of his company. I cannot wait for Supergirl to punch him in his douchey face.
Things That Didn’t Make Sense
- Toy Man’s glass projection. There was NO explanation of how he accomplished this tech 1.) With only his toy/bomb making skills. 2.) Two days out of prison. 3.) Where you can’t tell at ALL that it was glass? Seriously, how did he make that thing look so human?
- WHY DIDN’T WINN TELL KARA THAT THERE WERE 10 BOMBS THERE BEFORE HE WENT? He’s a tech guy who’s friends with Supergirl. He couldn’t have gotten a message to her SOMEHOW?
- SPEAKING OF WINN BEING THE TECH GUY: WHY DOESN’T HE KNOW NOT TO SPEAK INTO THE WIRE? That felt so cheap to me. He literally does this as a side job for a superhero. He knows better. Don’t make Winn dumb just because he’s distracted.
- The FBI kept SHOOTING AT TOY MAN WHILE WINN WAS IN THE WAY. That cannot be how firing on a suspect works when there are civilians around. Also, stop being a douche Emma Caulfield.
- How exactly does ice protect civilians from 10 bombs!??! Once again, I needed an explanation as to how Kara saved the day.
Oh, I forgot to talk about James/Lucy. Mostly because I don’t care. While I’d love for Kara/James to get together, I don’t need a Kara longing stare in every episode. Just like Winn’s crush was annoying, the needless reminders of Kara’s are getting to be so as well. Because we know how they both feel. I preferred Cat calling out the Kara/James work flirt. That moment was more nuanced than Kara’s longing stare. Also, Lucy and James’ fight early in the episode annoyed me because she begged him for his opinion and then got mad when he offered a diplomatic answer. “I don’t need your permission!” You asked for his opinion!
This was good though:
I shall call my favorite moments section Rays of Sunshine, because they are what make Kryptonians so strong on earth (yay puns!):
- J’onn and Kara flying together was a delightful way to begin the episode.
- Like I said earlier, Jeremy Jordan really impressed me this episode. I think he took some really non-nuanced writing and added to it. While I don’t need an angst storm every time he’s around now, he showed he could bring some gravitas to Winn.
- “Well hey, you have a homicidal maniac in the family too, so you know where I’m coming from.”
- “I don’t normally inhale.”
- “He seems like a sensitive boy. Think he can cry on cue?”
- Sisterly bonding!
