Now we know how Maggie and Alex will end.
Spoilers Supergirl - Season 3
- Thread starter dahj
- Start date
- Status
Wow. After being disappointed with the season to this point, I thought this one knocked it out of the park. It was in keeping with the darker, more somber tone they've been reaching for this year, but here it felt earned and meaningful in a way it hasn't up till now.
So many things worked. Tying the story back to Kara's public debut; "I remember all of them"; "Are you testing my faith ... Supergirl?"; James's story about being saved by Superman; the prison visit at the end. Contrary to TREK_GOD_1's perception, I thought the themes of faith were treated with admirable thoughtfulness and sympathy. This episode even helped me put in perspective Kara's killing of the White Martians I found so objectionable last week -- I think a less "clouded" Supergirl might not have killed so thoughtlessly, or at all.
This was not only the first solidly good episode of the season, but one of the series' best overall. Here's hoping Supergirl has found its stride again and can keep this quality going.
So many things worked. Tying the story back to Kara's public debut; "I remember all of them"; "Are you testing my faith ... Supergirl?"; James's story about being saved by Superman; the prison visit at the end. Contrary to TREK_GOD_1's perception, I thought the themes of faith were treated with admirable thoughtfulness and sympathy. This episode even helped me put in perspective Kara's killing of the White Martians I found so objectionable last week -- I think a less "clouded" Supergirl might not have killed so thoughtlessly, or at all.
This was not only the first solidly good episode of the season, but one of the series' best overall. Here's hoping Supergirl has found its stride again and can keep this quality going.
I also thought this was one of the series best episodes. On every level.
It was the first time in a long, long, time James had meaningful scenes. It was interesting that he suggested to Winn they go out that night and be crimefighters but Winn said it was unneeded. Almost like the writers acknowledged how useless James as Guardian is. He was merely Kara's friend, with no romance and works really well at that.
I liked the explanation that the Cult of Rao was based on wrongly interpretation of a Kryptonian probe. Which is much better that the convulted nonsense on Smallville of Kryptonians visiting Earth throughout our distant past. The idea of Krypton studying Earth through probes is a common element in many different versions of the Superman story.
It was the first time in a long, long, time James had meaningful scenes. It was interesting that he suggested to Winn they go out that night and be crimefighters but Winn said it was unneeded. Almost like the writers acknowledged how useless James as Guardian is. He was merely Kara's friend, with no romance and works really well at that.
I liked the explanation that the Cult of Rao was based on wrongly interpretation of a Kryptonian probe. Which is much better that the convulted nonsense on Smallville of Kryptonians visiting Earth throughout our distant past. The idea of Krypton studying Earth through probes is a common element in many different versions of the Superman story.
A pretty good one. Interesting to see a story exploring faith in both positive and negative aspects. And it's good when they draw on Kara's memories of her life on Krypton and the Kryptonian values she brought with her, because that's part of what makes her story distinct from Superman's story.
It was also nice that it refocused on the Kara-James friendship, and on those two and Winn hanging out and investigating things as a team, like they used to. I think I read that the producers want to bring that back more often.
I felt that Supergirl should've made a public statement in response to the cult. This was about people's response to her presence and her image, and she should've done more to try to regain control of her own narrative. If Cat were still around, I'm sure she would've said the same thing and done her part to help.
And I hope Alex and Maggie don't break up over the kids thing. TV characters always make choices in such haste. Maybe Maggie would change her mind about kids in a few years, or maybe Alex would. At the very least, Alex should give Maggie the same speech she gave to Kara. The two of them still need to work on sharing everything and not bottling up the things they think will upset the other.
By the way, the cult leader was played by Chad Lowe, who was the voice of Captain Marvel on Young Justice (after his brother Rob Lowe briefly played the character).
It was also nice that it refocused on the Kara-James friendship, and on those two and Winn hanging out and investigating things as a team, like they used to. I think I read that the producers want to bring that back more often.
I felt that Supergirl should've made a public statement in response to the cult. This was about people's response to her presence and her image, and she should've done more to try to regain control of her own narrative. If Cat were still around, I'm sure she would've said the same thing and done her part to help.
And I hope Alex and Maggie don't break up over the kids thing. TV characters always make choices in such haste. Maybe Maggie would change her mind about kids in a few years, or maybe Alex would. At the very least, Alex should give Maggie the same speech she gave to Kara. The two of them still need to work on sharing everything and not bottling up the things they think will upset the other.
By the way, the cult leader was played by Chad Lowe, who was the voice of Captain Marvel on Young Justice (after his brother Rob Lowe briefly played the character).
So did this episode paint Kara/Supergirl as a Jesus figure? Coville did say he would continue to pray to her, and for her, but the main deity is Rao, whom the cult worshipped through the intercession of Kara.
Yeah. This was definitely the best DCW episode of the season so far.
Really well done.
ETA: There's one exception: The Buckley cover at the end. Not because it's bad - it's in fact one of my favorite songs of all time - but just the fact that it seems like every other TV show has to squeeze it in at some point, that it's starting to become trite.
Really well done.
ETA: There's one exception: The Buckley cover at the end. Not because it's bad - it's in fact one of my favorite songs of all time - but just the fact that it seems like every other TV show has to squeeze it in at some point, that it's starting to become trite.
Last edited:
Good point. Just yesterday while I was on my lunch break, I encountered an elderly African-American woman in the street who was spouting some nonsense about kicking some "white kid's ass."Granted, she might have been mentally ill, but then again, maybe not. I have no doubt that at some point in her life, she faced blatant racism and discrimination. Sometimes people can't help being resentful and bitter after going through persecution.
But in Mr. Rodas' (?) case, you would think his beef would be with Caucasians, not LGBT people. I guess this whole time, I was expecting his reasons were religion-based. I'm pretty sure there are parents who have disowned their gay/bi kids although they themselves did not experience discrimination growing up.
Thats actually what I was predicting the whole time. I paused it to make a prediction actually - and the resulting speech made so much *less* sense then its set up. I briefly wondered if it was written differently, and then changed at the last minute to not be as controversial. With current racial tensions / politics, I was really hoping for the twist; "I don't care that you love a woman, but did it have to be a *white* woman?"
Last edited:
It's amazing to me how much better this show is when they don't focus on shoving liberal politics down the throat of the viewer. This episode had no real politics in it, and the story was terrific. They borrowed on a concept of people worshiping Superman in the comics, and Kara's reaction was similar to Clark's--she really didn't know how to handle it, but tried to say, "hey, I'm no god."
It shows that a show like this doesn't need a super powered villain of the week. I wouldn't even call Chad Lowe's character evil--just an extremely overzealous man who took things way too far. He broke the law and had to be punished for him, but I didn't feel he was evil. And yes, it was nice to see religion not treated as evil.
Strong episode, and I hope the show builds on it.
It shows that a show like this doesn't need a super powered villain of the week. I wouldn't even call Chad Lowe's character evil--just an extremely overzealous man who took things way too far. He broke the law and had to be punished for him, but I didn't feel he was evil. And yes, it was nice to see religion not treated as evil.
Strong episode, and I hope the show builds on it.
I hardly think the episode was endorsing Coville's belief as fact. It was just exploring the idea of faith and people's need to believe in something. It's not about whether it's literally true (since we saw different characters praying to different deities in the closing montage), it's about the comfort and sense of meaning it brings to the individual.
Plus, it was more realistic writing to show Coville rationalizing away the evidence to make it fit his existing beliefs rather than suddenly changing his mind. All too often, showing people hard proof that their beliefs are wrong just drives them to cling to those beliefs all the more fiercely. And given that he's now in prison, it probably helps him cope with that hardship if he convinces himself it's part of some higher plan.
I really like this episode. Coville might be one of their best guest characters of all time and I hope we see the character again. I like how we get a glimpse of him as a broken man in the teaser that makes his transformation all the more effective. I liked James story about Superman saving him and I like how it makes a point of Kara being in a bad place right now. Alex breaking down in tears was good acting but I think they are starting to make her almost to emotional vunerable. I hope they address that but at the same time I don't want to them to do the cliche thing of making her hard when her realtionship with Maggie falls apart.
I wonder why Coville would worship only Supergirl as a God as oposed to looking at al Kryptons like that because Superman has been around for awhile. Makes we wonder he see's them more like Angels and Supergirl might be their cities version of a Guardian Angel.
Jason
I wonder why Coville would worship only Supergirl as a God as oposed to looking at al Kryptons like that because Superman has been around for awhile. Makes we wonder he see's them more like Angels and Supergirl might be their cities version of a Guardian Angel.
Jason
Supergirl is the one that saved him. The only weak points I found was how he got the Kryptonian probe, but I just put that on the back burner and went with it.
Superman probably got the same treatment at some point.
Not even after Doomsday killed him, and he, you know, came back.
Actually there was something very similar with Superman, and now that you mentioned Doomsday and his return, I'm almost positive something happened around that time. I know I've read it before.
Another good episode, we got a complex villain, an evenhanded look at faith and religion and Kara dealing with her Kryptonian heritage which I hope we get to see more of this season.
Sad that they're breaking Maggie and Alex up, I knew Floriana Lima only signed on for a few episodes this season, but I hoped they'd keep Maggie on as the off-screen wife with an occasional guest appearance like Lyla on Arrow. Seems that's not to be.
The way they handled J'onn not going to help at the end was hella lame though.
I'm liking this start of the season, it's only been 4 episodes, but the show seems way more focused than last season.
Sad that they're breaking Maggie and Alex up, I knew Floriana Lima only signed on for a few episodes this season, but I hoped they'd keep Maggie on as the off-screen wife with an occasional guest appearance like Lyla on Arrow. Seems that's not to be.
The way they handled J'onn not going to help at the end was hella lame though.
I'm liking this start of the season, it's only been 4 episodes, but the show seems way more focused than last season.
There was nothing sympathetic about the near collective, dismissive attitude regarding the man asking Lena if she had been baptized. That's the showrunners pushing a general resistance of religion (real religion, not DC Comics stories) by many of the main characters.
As mentioned yesterday, the story was muddled with mixed messages--mainly leaning in one direction. first, James challenges Kara with--
Believing in the spiritual sense of a Creator has nothing to do with believing in random people in the same way. James contradicts his counter to Kara by not only using the non-believers' idea that prayer is not reliable, but justifying Coville's cult by saying people need someone/thing to believe in. The point of his Superman story is that he was not looking to a person to save him, nor seeking a personal as figure of worship, but he was praying to be saved from what would have been guaranteed death. That's far different than idolatry--treating a person as God, when the person is simply a person (or alien, in Kara's case), not a creator of / in control of life.
James' contradicting his own, initial statement made him the proxy for the overall message of various forms of non-belief, at least where humans were concerned throughout this episode, after all, there was the negativity during the "girls' night" scene, James "believe in somebody" as a substitution, and Coville still idol-worshipping by continuing to praying to an alien at the end of it all. That seems like an affirmation of the non-believer or, (what I will suggest the showrunners are aiming at) anything other Abrahamic religions.
- Status