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Spoilers Supergirl - Season 3

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So what made the Aunt tolerant enough to accept a homosexual, but mainstream enough to be allowed to communicate with her sibling?
 
The fact that the majority of the conversation about this episode is focused on Maggie's father (and the occasional whinging about having lesbians on this show) is exactly the proof why these kind of episodes are needed.

Frankly, it's concerning that there's very little sympathy for Maggie on one hand, and a lot of talk about her father as a sympathetic character. No amount of abuse endured excuses abusing others, especially one's own children. He is a dipshit who abandoned his daughter because she "shamed him" by being gay. Her parents removed all her pictures. They erased her.

Yeah, her father isn't presented as a moustache twirling villain, but the point of the episode was not for the viewer, and especially not Maggie to understand or sympathize with his reasoning, because his reasoning is bullshit. He's just doing what a lot of homophobic parents are doing, deflecting their bigotry onto others, blaming others for the horrifying way in which they treat their children. The point was for Maggie to realize she doesn't need that kind of toxicity in her life, and that family isn't blood, it's acceptance.

It's not about understanding prejudice, it's about understanding what it's like living with that prejudice coming from those who should be closest to you. I really wish we saw her supportive aunt to contrast just how wrong her father is because this seems to have been lost on some of you.

I does seem to me some of you picked the wrong character to empathize with here, and it might do you good to rewatch this episode from Maggie's perspective. But those who really should, just like her father, I doubt they will...

As someone who is a victim of child abuse and whose father was basically a monster to me, the truth is always much more complex. People who are abusers don't have simple motivations and sometimes their actions are justifiable in their own minds. To have Maggie's father come across as just a simple villain would have been simplistic and I liked the more complex resolution.

I love the Maggie character on this show and its openness and honesty in dealing with Alex and Maggie's relationship.

My wife is Colombian (although Pres. Trump would consider her to be Mexican) and almost applauded when the father paraphrased Trump's comments. I also noticed for the first time, the description of Kara as a refugee in the opening monologue. Yes, the show is taking a stand but it is not a "leftist" stand, it is a humanistic stand. It is not cheering for socialism, it is cheering for acceptance of people of a cultures and backgrounds--something that is sorely needed right now.
 
Maggie's father left her on the street in front of her aunt's house.
Not necessarily. For all we know, Maggie had to walk a mile or more to get to her aunt's from where she was dropped off.

Seems to me like she gave Alex the sugarcoated version of the story, but with dad there was no reason to put any spin on the situation since he was there and knows exactly what he did.
 
It would be nice if they James Olson'ed the Alex and Maggie relationship, I'm here to watch a Superhero show not 2 people in a relationship soap opera. This episode could have used James as Guardian to cover for Kara whilst she was away. Word got out Supergirl wasn't in town and small time crooks seized an opportunity to run wild.

James is marginalized. There's no getting around that. After two seasons, he was reduced from the most level-headed person in Kara's life--often acting as her heart & moral compass, to Player In Name Only. I would not be surprised to see his season three path go the way of being killed off, or booted to some "D" plot that only requires his popping his head in every few episodes. Regarding relationships on the show, at least James and Kara's was naturally developed, where the two carefully shared their ideas and experiences, instead of the forced Teen Nick artificiality of the Mon-El storyline. That never got in the way of the main plot or SG's general superhero duties.

The fact that the majority of the conversation about this episode is focused on Maggie's father (and the occasional whinging about having lesbians on this show) is exactly the proof why these kind of episodes are needed.

Frankly, it's concerning that there's very little sympathy for Maggie on one hand, and a lot of talk about her father as a sympathetic character. No amount of abuse endured excuses abusing others, especially one's own children. He is a dipshit who abandoned his daughter because she "shamed him" by being gay. Her parents removed all her pictures. They erased her.

Her father is said to have been the lifelong victim of racism. Again, there's no comparison to what that does to a mind/soul, or the weight of the world's race history/battles a minority carries in said mind/soul, and on his or her shoulders from birth to death. No matter what that person does, how he or she is seen--their image--is always the first, middle and last impression millions will ever have of them. They cannot simply act a different way, or say nothing about themselves. They will always be "that race". There's no hiding, shileding or running away from that, and as a result, the father is in a far different category, despite the gross, offensive misuse of racism by the agenda-driven, hack writers in having Maggie argue that racism is on the same level as homophobia. If anything, her inexplicable misunderstanding of his racial struggles (something they can both relate to and never escape) makes him sympathetic as he cannot even find a modicum of understanding from one of his own race.
 
Yeah, he was raised with that set of values and assumptions and it shapes his reactions, clearly. But my point is that it's not just that, that there are multiple layers of nuance going on there. He still loves his daughter, and he was willing to make an effort. Just coming to the shower and trying to be a good guest, rather than denouncing the whole thing, shows that he was at least willing to try accepting who Maggie was. But he just couldn't reconcile his desire for his daughter to be happy and accepted and safe with his deep-rooted belief that being gay means being an outsider or a second-class citizen. Certainly he has some wrong ideas that keep him from accepting who she is, and he's handled it badly and selfishly, but it's something more complex and interesting than just one-note stock bigotry.

That's a mark of good character writing -- that you can disagree entirely with a character's point of view but still understand that there's something relatable and sympathetic underlying it. His actions aren't motivated by hate, but by love filtered through some very wrong and disruptive assumptions.




In places like National City, yes. But he comes from a more rural part of the country where those older attitudes still hold sway. So that shapes how he sees things. He hasn't had enough experience with the world Maggie lives in now to believe she can be truly accepted or safe in it.

Maybe Papi has had too much experience with homophobia in his world to think his daughter could ever be safe in it. .

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2...s-most-famous-gay-hate-murder-matthew-shepard

Perhaps on this Earth, Mathew Shepard was murdered in Maggie's home state of Nebraska instead of Wyoming and Papi knew he could not possibly protect her from every potential sadist in the state.

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Even though dad stalked off, I still think it was interesting that he came to the wedding shower in the first place. He knew Alex was a woman before he left Nebraska, but still he came.

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Her father's request to not make him "witness" her lifestyle reminds me of two room mates I knew in college, 1 gay/1 straight. Once the straight guy walked in on his gay roommate having a tryst. When the gay roomie later asked what his problem was, Mark exclaimed, "I knew you were gay, Sean... I just never saw you BEING gay before tonight."

The kiss at the shower was the first time Papi saw his Margarita being gay and he could not handle it.

What I could not handle is Alex once again "rolling over and playing dead" when it comes to her feelings / wants.

If Maggie says no to Valentine's Day, its no (unless Kara gives her false hope.)

If Maggie says no to kids, Alex clams up like its not even worth a second thought.

Oh how I wish when Maggie said "You are all I need..." that Alex countered with "You are all I need too... but besides 'needs' I have wants, wants that children could fill."

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It's a superhero show, not a show "whine about Trump" show. Again, if they want to make a show about these issues, do a spinoff and see how it goes.

If you're offended by the ideals of free speech, democracy, equality, tolerance, and diversity, most of which represent the themes, then you're definitely watching the wrong show. ;)
 
Batman... Well, Bruce Wayne was mentioned as a citizen of Earth One a few weeks ago, even if Wayne Tech was featured in the Future Newspaper from the Reverse Flash's Time Vault four years ago...

Earth 1 Maggie Sawyer, who we have not met yet, is probably already hooking up with Batwoman.
 
Not necessarily. For all we know, Maggie had to walk a mile or more to get to her aunt's from where she was dropped off.

Maggie has previously alternated between saying that she was abandoned on the street and that her parents sent her to her aunt's house after they kicked her out of theirs, so the most logical conclusion to be drawn is that both statements are true since she's repeatedly switched between them.
 
Maggie has previously alternated between saying that she was abandoned on the street and that her parents sent her to her aunt's house after they kicked her out of theirs, so the most logical conclusion to be drawn is that both statements are true since she's repeatedly switched between them.
Yes, it could be that that's what happened, but there's no reason why it necessarily must have happened that way. Moreover, it's quite common for people not to share the whole truth of how they were abused, especially all at once and in situations where they've indicated reluctance to talk about it, which certainly means that what you're saying isn't the most logical way it might have happened. All we know for sure is that we have two different narratives of what happened. Pulling up to a place and leaving someone there is a distinct narrative from leaving that person on the side of the road; being left on the side of the road pretty much implies a lack of proximity to a noteworthy destination.
 
And again, it's bad writing to reduce everything to nothing but polemics and politics. Writing is about characters, and a story that lets characters and their relationships be complex is better than one that just makes them ideological sock puppets.

I think you're misinterpreting my intention, I'm not advocating he should have been written more simplistically, I do agree that it is way better that the show doesn't shy away from all the complexities and it is absolutely vital to understand where prejudice comes from and why it doesn't go away. That all absolutely stands.

I'm just saying that within this discussion which has dominated the thread the emotional context of what Maggie is going through has been lost, and as you can see by some of the other posters dismissive attitudes towards Maggie, I think that is the more important takeaway that needs to be brought to the front because it's completely lost on some.
 
On Will and Grace recently Will dated a 20-something, and could not recognise the new beau's coming out story because it was completely free of trauma.

How old is Maggie?

Is Maggie in her 40s?
 
Maybe Papi has had too much experience with homophobia in his world to think his daughter could ever be safe in it.

Yes, that was pretty clearly the intent.


Perhaps on this Earth, Mathew Shepard was murdered in Maggie's home state of Nebraska instead of Wyoming and Papi knew he could not possibly protect her from every potential sadist in the state.

Oh, there have been many, many more homophobic murders in this country than that one. It was just the most publicized. People forget that the Orlando nightclub shooting was an act of homophobic terrorism. The shooter claimed to be loyal to the Islamic State and so the media and politicians latched onto the idea that it was Islamist terrorism, and that kneejerk narrative drowned out the fact that it was the largest single hate crime against the LGBT community in recent history. But no actual link between the shooter and IS was ever found; he was just generally a bigot and possibly closeted and ashamed of his own sexuality.



I'm just saying that within this discussion which has dominated the thread the emotional context of what Maggie is going through has been lost, and as you can see by some of the other posters dismissive attitudes towards Maggie, I think that is the more important takeaway that needs to be brought to the front because it's completely lost on some.

I don't know about other posters, but I haven't been discussing Maggie's side because I didn't think there was any ambiguity or misunderstanding there. The fact that Oscar treated her horribly and was unable to understand her point of view seems like a given to me. I just thought there was some confusion over why he acted that way. There's no doubt why Maggie acted the way she did, so there's no need to analyze it, or so I thought.
 
If you're offended by the ideals of free speech, democracy, equality, tolerance, and diversity, most of which represent the themes, then you're definitely watching the wrong show. ;)

That's a Reed Richards level stretch. Free speech is hardly represented in this show at all. In fact, it's quite the opposite. By force feeding left wing ideals down the throats of viewers, which have nothing to do with a superhero show I might add, that's hardly free speech--especially when the show bastardizes conservative values at every level, and portrays anyone who isn't a liberal as evil. The left is the exact opposite of tolerance. If they cared about free speech, equality and tolerance, they wouldn't be so obnoxious in how they shove their views down the throats of the viewers, while ignoring what the show is--a superhero show.

There is no tolerance on this show. None at all.

Again--the storyline involving the title character of the show was terrific. The storyline that whined about Trump policies was not. Like I said, if they want a show about Alex and her gay love life, do a spinoff.
 
Yes, it could be that that's what happened, but there's no reason why it necessarily must have happened that way. Moreover, it's quite common for people not to share the whole truth of how they were abused, especially all at once and in situations where they've indicated reluctance to talk about it, which certainly means that what you're saying isn't the most logical way it might have happened. All we know for sure is that we have two different narratives of what happened. Pulling up to a place and leaving someone there is a distinct narrative from leaving that person on the side of the road; being left on the side of the road pretty much implies a lack of proximity to a noteworthy destination.

Maggie has told Alex that her parents kicked her out of the house and sent her to live with her aunt, and she's also told Alex that her parents abandoned her on the street, so the theory that she's 'sugarcoating' the story goes out the window.

The only time Maggie has lied to Alex about her own coming-out was at the beginning of their relationship when Alex was still figuring out her own sexuality.
 
Maggie has told Alex that her parents kicked her out of the house and sent her to live with her aunt, and she's also told Alex that her parents abandoned her on the street, so the theory that she's 'sugarcoating' the story goes out the window.

The only time Maggie has lied to Alex about her own coming-out was at the beginning of their relationship when Alex was still figuring out her own sexuality.
I don't recall Alex hearing the version of being left on the side of the road. That was what Maggie reminded her dad that he had done. And it was road, not street. When was it Maggie told Alex she had just been left on the side of the road?
 
That's a Reed Richards level stretch. Free speech is hardly represented in this show at all. In fact, it's quite the opposite. By force feeding left wing ideals down the throats of viewers, which have nothing to do with a superhero show I might add, that's hardly free speech--especially when the show bastardizes conservative values at every level, and portrays anyone who isn't a liberal as evil. The left is the exact opposite of tolerance. If they cared about free speech, equality and tolerance, they wouldn't be so obnoxious in how they shove their views down the throats of the viewers, while ignoring what the show is--a superhero show.

There is no tolerance on this show. None at all.

Again--the storyline involving the title character of the show was terrific. The storyline that whined about Trump policies was not. Like I said, if they want a show about Alex and her gay love life, do a spinoff.

There is nothing in the show that goes against the values of the Republican party. The show is pretty pro capitalist in fact. Cat Grant is a successful business woman, as is Lena Luthor. Supergirl is not fighting against the injustice of the free market. The show is also pro-family values.

The ideals that are criticized are "social" values possessed by reactionary social conservatives on the far right of the political spectrum. That the far right has made its way into the mainstream does not make its values less reactionary or less bigoted.

The show deals with the nature of racism rearing its head again in our society. Aliens are the allegory for minorities.

The show deals with how a gay couple is treated in society. (Most people have no problem with it but there are a few who still do.) It is not an left wing agenda to present a lesbian relationship--many shows include same sex relationships because they exist in our society and society has now stopped looking the other way pretending that 15% of the population is not gender straight. Yes, some people still wish to turn a blind eye but if that aspect of the show offends you then it isn't the show for you. It does, however, fit very squarely within the established ideals of a Superman show.

The show deals with the refugee crisis which is a world problem. Where do people fleeing war torn and oppressive countries go when free countries do not welcome them? What are the issues when some of those refugees may not be entirely "good"? Read the novel EXIT WEST for a deeper analysis of this. There is a lot of debate in the U.S. about this right now but the truth is that this is much more of an issue in Europe and Asia.

Yes, the show does take some of Trump's more ludicrous lines and ideas and pokes fun at them. But the truth is that defending Trump's wall and his statement about Mexicans is a racist and xenophobic act in itself.

In the end, unless someone is defending racism, homophobia, or xenophobia (none of which are established Republican values) then there really isn't much to criticize.
 
Unfortunately, they make very thinly veiled attacks on conservatives all the time. And yes, it's very offensive to conservatives. They attack Trump all the time as well. This is not what I want in a superhero show. I only stick around because of stories like the Mars plot last night. That's why I watch it.

This is not supposed to be a show about Supergirl's gay adopted sister. If that's the kind of show someone wants to make, make it, but it's not a comic book genre story. No politics are. And it's one thing to do this storyline, but to have the storyline take up so much time that they actually write half an episode that has nothing to do with anything in the genre, that's a lot.

No, a lesbian agenda is not a left wing ideal. There are gay people on both sides of the aisle. But this show attacks conservatives all the time. From having the aliens in the season finale mocking Trump's slogan to this week with the wall, it's getting very old. It goes WAY beyond the "Alex is gay" storyline that has now been shoved at the viewer for a year.

If you want debate on refugees and Trump's policies, that's what news channels are for. There are plenty of places for politics. A superhero show shouldn't be one of them.

It's like when the NFL can't just play football.

You're right that racism, homophobia and xenophobia are not Republican values. 100 percent right. But Supergirl uses thinly veiled attacks to make that exact impression.

It's horrible.
 
That's a Reed Richards level stretch. Free speech is hardly represented in this show at all. In fact, it's quite the opposite. By force feeding left wing ideals down the throats of viewers, which have nothing to do with a superhero show I might add, that's hardly free speech--especially when the show bastardizes conservative values at every level, and portrays anyone who isn't a liberal as evil. The left is the exact opposite of tolerance. If they cared about free speech, equality and tolerance, they wouldn't be so obnoxious in how they shove their views down the throats of the viewers, while ignoring what the show is--a superhero show.

There is no tolerance on this show. None at all.

Again--the storyline involving the title character of the show was terrific. The storyline that whined about Trump policies was not. Like I said, if they want a show about Alex and her gay love life, do a spinoff.

No one is force-feeding you anything. That the show says something about the sad state of affairs in this country is free speech in itself. The fact that you disagree with the political topics presented does not mean you're getting brainwashed into becoming a Democrat. Personally, I think FOX News is trash, but it doesn't mean I have to watch it or I'm being forcefed or brainwashed with ultraconservative ideals. I'm sure if the episodes talked about how great the current real-world administration is for promoting to build a wall or for banning Muslim immigrants, you wouldn't be complaining. Then again, it's free speech.
 
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