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Spoilers Supergirl - Season 3

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Just because he doesn't have his own series doesn't mean that Superman's not busy dealing with his own Earth-shattering crises.

or why Tony Stark didn't call Captain America and Thor to help him with Extremis
Or Banner, who was actually in the film!
 
Just checked out the episode. That fight was pretty good. Not great. I wish there had been a bit more damage, but it did have some shades of Man of Steel, when at first Kara (perhaps heeding Alex's advice) wasn't as concerned about the civilians when she was slugging it out with Reign in that office building.

I like the idea of Reign, but I'm not sold on the actress and this take on the character. It reminds me of Davis Bloome from Smallville, and I did like how they humanized Doomsday there. I think they are going with something similar with Reign, and as for her human life that's okay-nothing that exciting but passable-but not really buying her as this super destructive being. I got how the character looked in the comics stuck in my head and I think they needed to perhaps have a non-Reign form and a Reign-form and hire a UFC fighter or female bodybuilder to handle the action. Also not feeling Reign's costume that much. I guess it's supposed to be that she's a dark reflection of Supergirl, but I don't know. I don't think she needs the cape or the mask.

I've mostly bailed on this show until the winter finale drew me back, because I wanted to see Reign. I got tired of the Mon-El moping and while we did get some of it here, it wasn't too bad. Saturn Girl was alright. I'm not well versed in the history of the Legion of Superheroes, but from what I recall of the cartoon and also Smallville, it was Clark/Superman who was the big influence on them. I get that this is Supergirl's show but did they need to really alter that? I guess it fits with Mon-El now being the founder of the Legion, but I felt it was unnecessary. I get that it's Supergirl's show, but you don't have to minimize Superman's importance.

And with Reign now out there, they need to feature Superman fighting her or explain that he's off planet or something. Like comics, it gets difficult explaining why so and so wasn't there to help out. I have thought in the past, why not have Arrow call in the Flash. I remember that one time Flash zipped over to Nanda Parbat and took down most of the League of Assassins in seconds. For a threat like Reign, Superman should at least be in the mix somewhere. I'm fine with him just being off world or him handling something else. But at least do a better job acknowledging why he isn't there.

I did like the Lena and James pairing. I wish she had seen the Guardian shield. Letting her in on that secret might be interesting.

The big fight really helps sell this finale. And I thought it ended in a good place, drama wise, with both Kara facing a challenge like never before and Reign's Kryptonian side either taken over completely or is close to it.
 
Or why the folks on Deep Space 9 didn't call in the Enterprise whenever they were in trouble, or why Tony Stark didn't call Captain America and Thor to help him with Extremis, or...

The Enterprise was half a galaxy away. Superman was half a second. Presumably, the Enterprise fought in the Dominion War.

Just because he doesn't have his own series doesn't mean that Superman's not busy dealing with his own Earth-shattering crises.

Something that could easily be mentioned. And yes, if there is something this devastating going on, Superman would be there even if Kara doesn't want it because she has a chip on her shoulder.

Family does that.

A battle like this would get the attention of live reporters as well. And Superman would be aware long before Kara got into that kind of trouble.
 
Saturn Girl was alright. I'm not well versed in the history of the Legion of Superheroes, but from what I recall of the cartoon and also Smallville, it was Clark/Superman who was the big influence on them. I get that this is Supergirl's show but did they need to really alter that? I guess it fits with Mon-El now being the founder of the Legion, but I felt it was unnecessary. I get that it's Supergirl's show, but you don't have to minimize Superman's importance.

Superman has plenty of importance of his own, but this isn't his show. The job of Supergirl's writers is to serve the needs of this show, not some hypothetical Superman narrative that nobody's paying them to write. And in the context of this show, given Mon-El's established role, it makes sense.


And with Reign now out there, they need to feature Superman fighting her or explain that he's off planet or something. Like comics, it gets difficult explaining why so and so wasn't there to help out.

Seriously? This is no more of an issue today than it was when people asked about it two years ago. In fact, it's less of an issue, because Supergirl has more than proven by now that she doesn't need her baby cousin's help to defend her hometown. We really should be past this tedious debate by now.


I did like the Lena and James pairing. I wish she had seen the Guardian shield. Letting her in on that secret might be interesting.

I'm wondering more about the assassin seeing the shield. Presumably he was just arrested rather than killed, so he may now know what Guardian looks like unmasked.


Plus Superman is the more experienced hero here, even on Supergirl's show.

Experience isn't everything. Remember, when Superman was under Queen Rhea's mind control and they fought, Supergirl won fair and square. She's the stronger of the two. Superman himself freely admitted that.

Besides, it's always easy just to assume that Superman is busy fighting his own battles. After all, he's a very experienced hero, so he probably gets a lot of calls for help.
 
^
Seriously
Christopher?

Don't condescend. This might be a tedious discussion to you, but I am not on the boards as much as you are, so it's not a tiresome discussion to me.

I know that this is Supergirl’s show. I can read the show title, and I said as much in my post that this is her show. Once an actor was cast for Superman and has shown up more than once on the show, I don’t think it stretches credulity to wonder why he wouldn’t show up for a potential world ending (‘world killer’) threat like Reign.

Experience isn’t everything but it’s not something to easily dismiss, especially with a threat the level of Reign. And what does it matter if Supergirl bested Superman last year, when two Kryptonians could be an advantage against Reign?

I would’ve liked to see Superman on the show to help out against Reign, but I was fine without seeing him, so long as an explanation was provided for his absence. There could be a real-world issue of actor availability or budgetary restraints. I mean they did just do the big Earth-X crossover so money might be tight. But a line of dialogue explaining that Superman isn’t coming isn’t that expensive.

To just dismiss Superman because Kara defeated him once before or is more powerful doesn’t make sense to me if he can provide assistance and speed up capturing or stopping Reign. Having Superman there is another incredibly powerful person to help her out and that could help save lives. Kara’s desire to save lives should’ve been more important than providing another example of Girl Power.

I get that Kara can be flawed and she might not be thinking clearly due to the return of Mon-El. I haven't watched many of the episodes leading up to this finale so I don't know what else she might be dealing with. One of the things I liked about Supergirl during the Sterling Gates/Jamal Igle run was that she was more relatable than Superman, she did have more flaws, she could get angry, she could be rash. So seeing that on the show is fine, however there should also be a moment when she realizes she made a mistake by being so rash and correct it.

Regarding what you said about Superman fighting his own battles, I suggested a similar reason in my post so it would be nice if you actually read what I wrote before you went in to nitpick it.
 
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Once an actor was cast for Superman and has shown up more than once on the show, I don’t think it stretches credulity to wonder why he wouldn’t show up for a potential world ending (‘world killer’) threat like Reign.

Because he's a guest star and has other gigs. If he's not available, they can't use him. Unless you want another guest appearance by tiny CGI Superman in the distance or Superman's boots.
 
Just now watched the episode and I don't even see what all the fuss is about. There was nothing in the episode to make Clark go flying across the country to help Kara until the climax...Kara getting beaten within an inch of her life might get his attention. Prior to that, Reign was an unknown threat that Kara was investigating. Clark doesn't have Super-Omniscience any more than Kara does.

And in general, characters fighting their own battles in their own titles is just Super-Hero Comics 101.
 
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Just now watched the episode and I don't even see what all the fuss is about. There was nothing in the episode to make Clark go flying across the country to help Kara until the climax...Kara getting beaten within an inch of her life might get his attention. Prior to that, Reign was an unknown threat that Kara was investigating. Clark doesn't have Super-Omniscience any more than Kara does.

Exactly. If Superman were to show up, the time for that would be in the next episode, in reaction to these events.
 
After Kara learns from the crazy guy about what Reign could be, she could've texted Clark or sent him a message to see if he knew anything about it. The promo for the next episode, which sets up the Legion of Superheroes, and they will likely at some point team up with Kara to stop Reign just shows the idea that Kara would need help for a threat like this is not illogical or takes away from her. She gets help from the DEO all the time. Heck, Martian Manhunter should've also been involved in fighting against Reign.

The desire to establish Supergirl on her own is strong, and it makes sense that this is her show and she should be the star of her show. Over the years I think they have done a good job with that. But when you are encountering another Kryptonian and one on Reign's level, or was purported to be even before the actual fight, then bringing Superman in or mentioning him (not solely to dismiss him) makes sense. Sure Superman overshadows Kara in the real world and would threaten to do so on the show, but that's just part of it. On a Nightwing show Batman would overshadow him potentially, so you do have to be careful and judicious in the use of the big guns. That being said, just last week, we saw Kara mention that Superman would avenge her if the Earth-X villains succeeded in killing her.

http://screenrant.com/supergirl-legion-super-heroes-trailer/
 
Superman has plenty of importance of his own, but this isn't his show. The job of Supergirl's writers is to serve the needs of this show, not some hypothetical Superman narrative that nobody's paying them to write. And in the context of this show, given Mon-El's established role, it makes sense.

But Superman does exist on this show, and they wrote a crisis that would be worthy of his attention.


Seriously? This is no more of an issue today than it was when people asked about it two years ago. In fact, it's less of an issue, because Supergirl has more than proven by now that she doesn't need her baby cousin's help to defend her hometown. We really should be past this tedious debate by now.

That's a chip on the shoulder of Supergirl, which in the context of the show, she shouldn't have. And clearly, since she got her clock cleaned, she did need help.

Experience isn't everything. Remember, when Superman was under Queen Rhea's mind control and they fought, Supergirl won fair and square. She's the stronger of the two. Superman himself freely admitted that.

That was the worst writing of the series--having Supergirl beat him and then making Superman look even weaker by having him run around saying it was fair and square. Let's also not forget that after the fight was over, Kara collapsed herself and was KO'd. She was done too. But even if you buy into the nonsense that Supergirl could beat Superman, which could only happen with weak writing, Superman could turn the tide in her favor, and her ego could set loose Reign on the world, which Superman would have to deal with anyway.

Because he's a guest star and has other gigs. If he's not available, they can't use him. Unless you want another guest appearance by tiny CGI Superman in the distance or Superman's boots.

Or an in show explanation why he isn't there.

Just now watched the episode and I don't even see what all the fuss is about. There was nothing in the episode to make Clark go flying across the country to help Kara until the climax...Kara getting beaten within an inch of her life might get his attention. Prior to that, Reign was an unknown threat that Kara was investigating. Clark doesn't have Super-Omniscience any more than Kara does.

True, but that battle wasn't so short that it wouldn't make the news, and Clark does have a TV, unless he's chilling with Lois in the Fortress getting some.

Exactly. If Superman were to show up, the time for that would be in the next episode, in reaction to these events.

True, but they knew a big battle was coming and a Kryptonian was involved. Someone might have suggested to let Superman know about it. No one did.

That being said, just last week, we saw Kara mention that Superman would avenge her if the Earth-X villains succeeded in killing her.

Yeah--and Reverse Flash laughed it off.
Given how many Kryptonians were running around on Earth in Season 1, I don't think that would set off much of a red flag in this setting.

That was a weakness of not having Superman in the first season, or maybe say he was dealing with some of them in Metropolis might have been a good idea.

Let's also not forget that they are changing history on the show by having Supergirl, not Superman, be the inspiration of Legion.
 
After Kara learns from the crazy guy about what Reign could be, she could've texted Clark or sent him a message to see if he knew anything about it.

You're forgetting -- Kal-El was an infant when he left Krypton. Kara was a pre-teen. Of the two, she has immensely more Kryptonian knowledge than he does. He's the one who'd come to her for help with a Kryptonian-history problem, not the other way around.
 
But Superman does exist on this show, and they wrote a crisis that would be worthy of his attention.




That's a chip on the shoulder of Supergirl, which in the context of the show, she shouldn't have. And clearly, since she got her clock cleaned, she did need help.



That was the worst writing of the series--having Supergirl beat him and then making Superman look even weaker by having him run around saying it was fair and square. Let's also not forget that after the fight was over, Kara collapsed herself and was KO'd. She was done too. But even if you buy into the nonsense that Supergirl could beat Superman, which could only happen with weak writing, Superman could turn the tide in her favor, and her ego could set loose Reign on the world, which Superman would have to deal with anyway.



Or an in show explanation why he isn't there.



True, but that battle wasn't so short that it wouldn't make the news, and Clark does have a TV, unless he's chilling with Lois in the Fortress getting some.



True, but they knew a big battle was coming and a Kryptonian was involved. Someone might have suggested to let Superman know about it. No one did.



Yeah--and Reverse Flash laughed it off.


That was a weakness of not having Superman in the first season, or maybe say he was dealing with some of them in Metropolis might have been a good idea.

Let's also not forget that they are changing history on the show by having Supergirl, not Superman, be the inspiration of Legion.
All this amounts to is a complaint that the show is not slavishly following the source material—which is actually one of its greatest qualities. Adaptations should NOT feel bound to recreate every beat from a different medium, and that is especially true of comic book adaptations.

This iteration of the Supergirl story is its own “universe” and is free to play with the building blocks as it wishes. As far as being “stronger” than Superman (a point far too many people find bothersome), I’m not a fiction writer and I can come up with half a dozen reasons as to why it could be so within the “rules” of “Earth-38” (just one option could be Supergirl’s time in the “Phantom Zone” could have affected her biological structure to make her a more efficient absorber of yellow solar radiation than Superman, offsetting his size and mass advantages; there are other ways I could explain it—thankfully the show didn’t bother and simply made a clear statement instead).

In the end, you don’t have to like the choices made, but you are not owed an approach to the adaptation of these characters that satisfies you.
 
An interesting take, however, they do have Superman on this show. He does exist. Without him, there is no Supergirl. The writers did acknowledge that, and the first time they used Tyler as Superman, they did a brilliant job with it.

They gave Superman a big role, without having him overshadow Kara, and they didn't need Superman to look weak to make Kara look strong. Then they ruined it with the Kara/Superman fight. It's very weak writing when the only way to make a female look strong is to make a male look weak. This show has a lot of misandry in it, and it's unnecessary.

And given that I am part of the audience, and their goal is to satisfy the audience, they do owe a sense of proper adaptation to the audience.

If I don't like the choices they make, I have every right to speak up about it.

You're forgetting -- Kal-El was an infant when he left Krypton. Kara was a pre-teen. Of the two, she has immensely more Kryptonian knowledge than he does. He's the one who'd come to her for help with a Kryptonian-history problem, not the other way around.

When it comes to history, a 12 year old is hardly the expert. She knows more about living on Krypton, but I'm guessing the Fortress has as much information about the planet as Kara does. But it's not exactly a problem that Kara would logically ignore her cousin over.
 
As a male viewer of Supergirl, I applaud the show's expressions of "girl power," and don't see any offensive "misandry" at all. There are plenty of good men on the show to go along with the bad, and it's not "misandry" every time a woman bests a man, or a man is shown in an unfavorable light.

As for Kara beating Clark, though she landed the deciding blow, they were clearly portrayed as pretty evenly matched. And Clark's easy acknowledgment of her victory could show some posters here how men of confidence and character react to strong women.
 
Kara whooped 'im. Not a problem.
One hopes that Power Girl could do the same.
 
As a male viewer of Supergirl, I applaud the show's expressions of "girl power," and don't see any offensive "misandry" at all. There are plenty of good men on the show to go along with the bad, and it's not "misandry" every time a woman bests a man, or a man is shown in an unfavorable light.

As for Kara beating Clark, though she landed the deciding blow, they were clearly portrayed as pretty evenly matched. And Clark's easy acknowledgment of her victory could show some posters here how men of confidence and character react to strong women.

I'm not sure what you're watching, but I don't see how you don't see the misandry. Just listen to some of Cat's dialogue--like when Linda Carter and Teri Hatcher were going back and forth, and she interrupted and made some comment about how these women were acting like men. I don't have the exact quote available, but that was a poster comment for misandry.

And the writers' decision to not only make Superman lose, but make him submissive and weak is hardly a sign of "girl power." It's the exact opposite. Weakening Superman doesn't make Kara strong. It only makes Superman look weak.

Steve Trevor is that man of confidence. He was shown as someone that could see and accept how amazing Wonder Woman was, but didn't have to be emasculated to do it.
 
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