Then we cut back to Earth, where Kara is missing from CatCo and Cat is none too pleased about it. Winn’s attempts to cover for her are so adorable, and so very awful. “Kara has lice.”
Kara’s rejections of Krypton were painful to watch, as I knew they would be. I loved the slip in calling Kal-El, Clark. The hallucinations attempts at the end to keep Kara there were a bit heavy handed, and Chyler’s acting was a little bit over the top for me, but so emotional that it didn’t really affect the episode.
Hank pretending to be Kara was one of the highlights of the episodes for me. Especially him struggling to walk in heels. I do have a feeling that his interactions with Cat Grant lead to the Siobhan Smythe subplot getting brought in starting with next episode.
As much as I expected the Krypton scenes to break me, it was actually the scene with Alex and Alura that did that. Seeing how worried Alex is, and how much she deeply loves her sister was great. (Also, this episode played extremely well with Chapter 2 of Sterling Gates and Bengal’s Adventures of Supergirl, now available at digital comics retailers everywhere).
I like that when Alex and Astra had their first confrontation, Alex shot instinctively, but then pulled another gun, just a second too late. Maybe the other gun had Kryptonite bullets?
On the podcast, Frank & Tim said it was weird that Lord wanted specifically Dr. Pepper, and thought it might have something to do with the new cans of Dr. Pepper teamed up with DC Comics. While it’s obviously a very intentional product placement, it seems that Mr. Lord just has a hankering for Dr. Pepper. He asked for some to help Reactron way back in episode three too.
Kara’s anger when she came back was very palpable and directly mirrored the story that this episode was based on. The moment I’ve been waiting for since this episode was announced, was when she came back from the fantasy. Specifically, I was waiting for one line we never got. As powerful and heart wrenching as Kara’s monologue was, I can’t help think that hit would have been better punctuated with a single “BURN.” at the end. I also liked Non taking advantage of what the Super-Family’s real weakness is. It’s not Kryptonite. It’s not magic. It’s trying to save everybody. If the option is fighting someone, or saving people, they’re going to stop fighting. Or at least the comic versions will, and the TV show version of Kara.
Astra versus J’onn was amazing. I am still not over the fact that we get to see J’onn in full costume on this show. That not only is he a recurring character, but a main character. That astounds me.
Alex killing Astra was not entirely unexpected, but still shocking. I figured we would get that out of Alex eventually, as a way of showing the difference between a soldier and a superhero. J'onn taking the fall for Alex was a great touch, and his explanation was top notch. Supergirl can’t have her hero sullied, because as much as she brings inspiration to everyone else, Alex is the one who inspires her.
The end scene makes me all weepy. I love the relationships these characters have and how well they all play off of each other.
Closing thoughts: this would have been a fantastic season finale, but I’m so glad it wasn’t. With a few changes, it would have also been a serviceable series finale, but I’m even happier that it isn’t that. The ratings spiked back up this week, and I’m patiently (hahahaha not really) waiting for a season two pick up. Please CBS, help my poor ulcer and renew already!
Two last things: there’s no episode this week, but my filler comic review is almost done, so there will be something to read! And if you haven’t already heard, March 28th is a date to circle on your calendars… Because Central City’s own Barry Allen will be making an appearance on Supergirl!
See you soon when I review the recently recollected: Supergirl Volume 1: The Girl of Steel by Jeph Loeb, Greg Rucka, Joe Kelly, Jimmy Palmiotti, Justin Gray, Ian Churchill, Ed Benes, and Amanda Conner!
Corinne McCreery has been a fan of comic books for over twenty years, and a fan of Supergirl in particular for just about that long. Other comic characters near and dear to her heart are the members of the New Teen Titans (Especially Nightwing), Kitty Pryde and Roy Harper. Other non-comic related interests include water skiing and tattoos, of which she has five, three of which are comic related. One of the best days of her life came when she met Dean Cain, and was able to recreate the famous Crisis on Infinite Earths cover with the Man of Steel that she grew up with. Currently she lives in Oakland, CA; a transplant from South Dakota. You can find her online on tumblr at effyeahsupergirl or Twitter at @corimarie21, where you will likely find her live-tweeting the west coast airing of Supergirl every week.
