Spoilers Supergirl - Season 2

[dahj]

It felt kinda over, since we've had three episodes in a row that were not arc-related.

This season has had many ongoing storylines, there's Cadmus, Alex's coming out, Mon-El becoming a hero, James becoming Guardian, Kara becoming a reporter, J'onn and M'gann connecting, Lena's family... they do seem to have a bit of trouble juggling them all, like they basically ignored that M'gann is in prison for several episodes...

 

[Forbin]

I never took Jerry Doyle for overly religious (never listened to his show, though).

 

[Morpheus 02]

Wow, that is some crazyness right there.
I love the bit about the box office results for Noah, and God's Not Dead. I checked Box Office Mojo and Noah made $101M, and God's Not Dead only made $60M. I don't know what world he's living, but in this world 101 is quite a bit bigger than 60.

To be fair, I think they mean big as in relative to budget and marketing scope.

In that sense Gnd probably made a bigger percentage of it's investment back.

Which doesn't say anything about the movies relevance, of course, as the only people who watched it were evangelicals and atheists who made fun of it on YouTube.

According to BoxOfficeMojo, God's Not Dead made $61 million in the US on a $2 production budget. Raw profit might not be as big as other movies, but making 30 times its budget seems like an excellent investment to me. A comparable recent successful movie, Hidden Figures, has made $123 million so far on a $25 million budget. $100 is much more in raw money, but only 5 times as much profit. Noah, which added a whole bunch of random stuff (though I I thought took a "biblical" interpretation on it being a violent world then) made $101 million in US on $125 million, which would be a loss Domestically. Now, with international, it was $362 million, but I believe the studio gets a far less return on that. And I have heard the marker is making twce as much to be "successful"

Kevin Sorbo isn't just religious, he comes off at times like he's joinging the ranks of Jerry Doyle, Stephen Baldwin, Jon Voight, etc.

I never took Jerry Doyle for overly religious (never listened to his show, though).

I believe Jerry Doyle and Jon Voight are more like secular conservatives, but if you're generalizing people different than you, it'd be hard to make distinctions.

Will Kevin Sorbo's personal views and acting work really affect the majority of Supergirl's audience or the show itself? I don't think so...just fodder for haters.

I think most people will be just fine with his appearance, and might even prove a ratings boost.

 

[kirk55555]

Saying its "fodder for haters" is ridiculous. I think that an actor's beliefs and things they've said, especially when they basically shout them out like Sorbo, is a legitimate area to criticize and consider when you're watching/supporting something. Now, whether a certain actor bothers someone is subjective, but you're not being a "hater" by bringing this kind of thing up. Most people don't know or care about Sorbo at this point, so I doubt his appearance will help or hurt the show. Still, its not wrong to wonder why a guy like him was ever hired for a show like Supergirl, when he's well known for being the kind of person that he is.

That said, if people are right and he's Mon-El's Dad, the king of a slave owning planet of mostly a-holes, then I suppose the casting actually works out well As it is, I'm not going to skip his episodes. I watch Babylon 5 without skipping Doyle's stuff (heck, I still like the character of Garibaldi) and Firefly without skipping past Adam Baldwin, so I personally can get past an individual actor's behavior (to a certain extent) if the overall show is good. Its still something to think about, though.

 

[Ovation]

Generally, I ignore performer/creator/artist/etc. views and focus on their work unless they actively promote hateful or harmful actions (example, urge people to give money to bigoted organizations, promote anti-vaccine messages--equivalent of supporting a crime against humanity, as far as I'm concerned, or something similar). Then, where appropriate, I have no qualms about calling them out, boycotting their stuff and so on. However, if I ignored every creative endeavour put out by someone whose personal views differ from mine...I'd have a much poorer cultural experience. It's a fine line, but I try to aim for the active promoters of harm (as I see it) rather than the more passive ones.

 

[Commander Richard]

I never took Jerry Doyle for overly religious (never listened to his show, though).

I believe Jerry Doyle and Jon Voight are more like secular conservatives, but if you're generalizing people different than you, it'd be hard to make distinctions.

I've always thought that they had similar views but it's mainly their extremism that they have in common and more often than not, that's what either scares people or puts them off.

Still looking forward to Sorbo. Like most people, he's complex and part of that is that he's still a draw.

 

[Commander Richard]

2x12 "Luthors"...

At first, I thought that was Gotham's David Mazouz as Lex.

 

[Tuskin38]

Was the name Lionel ever used as Lex's father before Smallville? I know it's shown up since Smallville

Just wondering if it was a Smallville invention

 

[Commander Richard]

^ According to Wikipedia, Lionel was created for Smallville.

 

[TREK_GOD_1]

"Luthors"--

SG/Kara: I did not think it was possible for this series to force yet another connection for Kara; her breathless defense of Lena goes beyond any sort of optimism characters of this type are said to possess. Moreover, when it came to other characters--notably one with no shady relations and helped others as a proven hero (Guardian) she did not extend that same level of "innocent until proven guilty" consideration.

She says she spent her life wishing she could talk to people no longer here. While anyone can express that, if the fan chatter has any merit (about Lena thinking Kara is SG), she just served up support of her suspicion.

Lena: The "child of the villain goes good" is a worn plot device, and it would help the series to have SG have a main Luthor nearly her own age--a parallel to her cousin and Lex. That's one thing this series has missed all along.

Hmm...the chess scene after Kara left the office. Perhaps she will be the villain after all.

Metallo: His courtroom speech was laying the PTB's immigration commentary on thick (as usual). As a villain, he is treated as more of a thug than the calculating version seen (for one example) in Superman: The Animated Series, where he was not limited in concocting schemes or having a magnetic personality. Completely lost on this version.

Plot convenience: Metallo using the Kryptonite increased the rate of decay. Without that, Supergirl had no chance against him.

Mother Luthor: Priceless expression as she watched Metallo's escape.

Probably the most developed villain in this series' history. I hope she's not a short lived antagonist--but is more than just a Luthor. Leave that to her daughter.

James: Setting James up to be "one sided" about Lena (and hammer the rift between James and Kara--yes, that was clear) was heavy-handed, all to sell Kara being right (after weeks of her being judge and jury where James was concerned), and....

His "trust" and Clark/Luthor speech to Kara was perfect. She trusts and sell just about anyone else on any random street corner, but treats James like some child jumping around with a towel pinned around his neck, playing Superman.

Whether Lena was good or evil matters not, as he has experiences with the Luthor family she simply would not be aware of, so his suspicion was justified. Her lack of insight about the Luthor family makes one wonder why Clark never shared that with Kara.

Guardian vs. Metallo: the rough fight was handled well enough.

Mon-El: Talking about Kara to Eve. Wow...that was not expected. Wait, this is a CW show, so it was expected. So, the PTB push toward the near end of the "will they / won't they" with Mon-El. Tiresome. In any case, they might have a few issues when...

Lets just say his mistrust of some older guy could lead to a problem or two, IF the showrunners try to be fresh.

NOTES: The FX--I guess this series will play it 2nd rate until the end.

The Lex battle suit--nice to see.

GRADE: C-

 

[Commander Richard]

• Loved the episode. It was nice to get some backstory on the Luthors and that includes a good dose of who Lexi was and his rivalry with Superman. I hope we get more. It's only a matter of time before Lex shows up.
• I'm glad that Lena didn't end up on the run.
• Katie McGrath looks a bit like Madonna. Never noticed that before.
• They have to do a better job with Cyborg Superman's look.

 

[Christopher]

Why did Kara spend so much time at the DEO in civvies instead of her costume as usual? She even wore street clothes for her workout, which doesn't seem like a good idea.

Also, how come the gang didn't know about Alex and Maggie dating? It's been weeks! And Alex and Kara have talked about it in the DEO office, so I'd thought at least Winn would've known.

I'm a bit surprised we didn't get any advance news about Lex Luthor "appearing" on the show, albeit as a kid. Usually that sort of thing gets reported in advance, but it was totally unexpected.

Speaking of which, what did Lillian mean when she said she and Lena were the only Luthors left? I thought Lex was in prison, not dead.

Now that Kara and James have made up, I hope the next step after Game Night is a Supergirl-Guardian teamup.

 

[Vendikarr]

The trip to Luthor's vault was fun. I expect the DEO will be up there salvaging every scrap of technology they can find.

I guess the big mcguffin Kara will have to deal with in the season finale is in the box Mama Luthor found. "He finished it."

 

[Dick Whitman]

That was strange that Lillian talked about her and Lena as the last Luthors. Particularly because later on she did refer to him as being in Prision. Maybe she has written him off because he is in Prison and how Lena described him as going crazy?

I am surprised they cast Lionel as someone who could easily play an adult Lex. Even on Smallville there was the sense that Lionel was closer to the actual John Byrne and Marv Wolfman created version of Lex. Who built his own business empire and I'd not inherite it from his father. When Lionel briefly had his head shaved that lead to fan theories that he was going to take Lex's name. This actor cast as Lionel looks exactly like most expectations of Lex himself. More than merely giving John Glover a buzz cut did. Kind of blurring the line between father and son. I am not sure if like that. Particularly if we never see an adult Lex.

 

[The Old Mixer]

but treats James like some child jumping around with a towel pinned around his neck

More like a child jumping around with a pot on his head and a garbage can lid in his hand.

I expect the DEO will be up there salvaging every scrap of technology they can find.

After a nuclear explosion?

 

[Commander Richard]

Also, how come the gang didn't know about Alex and Maggie dating?

That surpised me too.

Speaking of which, what did Lillian mean when she said she and Lena were the only Luthors left? I thought Lex was in prison, not dead.

Lex is alive and in prison serving multiple life sentences. I take it she meant that she and Lena were the only ones free.

What happened to Lionel?

 

[Christopher]

Lex is alive and in prison serving multiple life sentences. I take it she meant that she and Lena were the only ones free.

But that's just it. Lillian said it while she was still in jail, before her escape.

 

[Snaploud]

Why is Kara seeking a fight with a Kryptonite man without back-up? Does she really think that little of Hank/Martian Manhunter, Mon-el, and Guardian?

 

[Commander Richard]

But that's just it. Lillian said it while she was still in jail, before her escape.

Oh, well Lex is still alive. Maybe he's too insane or far gone in some way to be of any use. I didn't read too much into her line to be honest.

 

[DigificWriter]

My review of Luthors:
Best episode of the season (if not the series) so far. I love that they took direct influence from Smallville by giving the Luthor patriarch the first name of Lionel, making Lena Lex's paternal half-sister, and mentioning that Clark and Lex started out as best friends before things went south between them and Lex went off the deep end. It's a nice way of acknowledging some of the things that that series added to the Super-Mythos, and simultaneously adds to the overall mythos of Supergirl in some interesting ways.

I really like Mon-El as a character and think Chris Wood has been a nice addition to the main cast this season, so his interactions with Kara in this episode made me smile. I was also so hoping they were going to kiss before Mr. M (I cannot spell or say his name) so rudely interrupted them, but it should be fun to see what happens now that Kara's got another, more supernatural, suitor.

Most of Kara and Lena's early interactions were fraught with sexual tension and lesbian romantic undertones, but the show seemed to pull back from that a bit before the midseason finale, only for said tension and undertones to return in spades this episode, especially during the final scene of the episode between the two characters, which has me torn between wanting to see SuperCorp get made "series canon" and wanting to see Kara and Mon-El finally get together.

It was pretty obvious that Lillian was up to shenanigans when it came to Lena, but I still liked the interactions between the two this episode, especially since we got to see Lex's warsuit, the Persuader's Atomic Axe, and a few other "toys" on account of Lillian opening Lex's vault using Lena's DNA. It was also fun getting to see both Metallo and Cyborg Superman in the same episode and helping Lillian out, even though I do wish Hank had gotten a bit more to do. It's sad that they killed off Metallo on account of his (synthetic) Kryptonite heart exploding, but I liked the tension that having said heart be synthetic and therefore unstable and dangerous provided, especially towards the end of the episode when Kara went to go find and save Lena.

I like it when the show is able to organically create tension between our main characters because it generally leads to great character development, so the fact that they had James and Kara so openly and diametrically opposed when it comes to Lena this episode was fun and interesting for me. I also liked that they used that tension to repair the already-existing rift between the two characters resulting from Kara finding out about James' nocturnal activities as Guardian.

All in all, this was a really fun hour of television and, as noted, the best episode of Supergirl thus far this season (if not the entire series). It also set up next week's Valentine's Day episode (which, based on the preview, is giving me serious "Something Blue" [from Buffy the Vampire Slayer Season 4] vibes) really well, and I can't wait to see the full extent of shenanigans to which Mr. M gets up to with regards to trying to woo Kara.