In roughly chronological order as I watch the episode:
Sister hug!!!!!!!
Chyler's acting when Kara talks about missing Astra is wonderful.
Why doesn't Kara hear Non standing behind them?
A funeral in the sky. Well done. I really like Non setting aside his hatred to bring Kara to the funeral because he knew that's what Astra would have wanted. Very nice touch. I wish Kara had said, "Thank you for bringing me here."
These scenes are the first time I like the actor playing Non, as they are the first scenes in which he's not trying to overact out of his skin. When he's being villainous, he tries way too hard. Here, he's subdued, and it does wonders for his performance.
A two-week mourning period. That's a nice plot device to hold off the war until the end of the season.
The bad guys know where Kara lives, and Astra isn't there to protect her any more, so basically, on the first day of that war, Kara's apartment is toast.
The writers address Alex's guilt and her desire for honesty. Good. If Alex had gone along with the lie too easily, it would have been out of character.
Max screams. It doesn't suit him.
"You owe me more than a thank you." Max is quick to mention saving Supergirl's life but makes no mention of also trying to kill her. I really hate Max. He's such a *****ebag.
Why doesn't someone sit down with Max and spell it out for him? "Yes, if powerful people go bad, they can hurt the little people. One example of this is when a powerful billionaire coerces a man into becoming a bomber by holding his daughter's health hostage. Another example is a powerful billionaire building a super monster with the brain of a child, endangering people's lives." Because it's really that simple. Max is a hypocrite, The End. Anything less is absurd.
Italia Ricci is smoking hot.
A Google search tells me that
Siobhan is an Irish form of
Joan meaning "God is gracious." I was hoping that the name Siobhan was linked to the word
silver, as in Silver Banshee, but that is not the case.
Siobhan is so blatantly unlikeable.
Kara eavesdrops and the first word she hears is "Eavesdropping." Ha! That's clever.
The episode
strongly addresses the concept of holding Max without due process. Bravo! This is one of the fundamental foundations of civilization, and I think most action/adventure shows wouldn't bother talking about it, much less devote a whole episode to the concept.
Update: Italia Ricci is still smoking hot.
"On my three. One, two, three, go."
Did anyone else think of Monty Python? "One, two, five." "Three, sir!" "Three."
In a police raid, you can always tell who the main characters are. They're the ones not wearing helmets so the viewers can see their faces. They rely on the plot to give them magical protection from head wounds.
If Supergirl has to fill out time-off requests with HR, does that mean she's drawing a DEO paycheck?
When Hank and Alex visit the NCPD, I notice one thing: Chyler Leigh is also smoking hot.
During that scene, the close-ups on Chyler put her face on the left side of the screen, looking left, which leaves the right side empty and unused. It looks odd, and it disrupts the flow of the scene.
The policeman has the file they need right there on his desk. I know it's because the story needs to move along, but it still makes me snicker.
No mayor or police force would ever be able to keep five decapitated victims out of the news. That's absurd.
After this scene, I immediately pegged the Supergirl-hating cop as the jailer, which the viewer was meant to do.
The IM argument between Kara and Siobhan: humorous, but does nothing for me.
This episode shows a problem in Kara's life that really needs to be addressed (better than they do here). If she has to keep leaving work to do Supergirl things, then she truly isn't a good or effective assistant. Kara wants both worlds: she wants to be a superhero, and she also wants to be a normal person. At the moment, she's (silently, passive-aggressively) demanding that Cat give one of those things to her without earning it. It makes me uncomfortable. Realistically, Kara would be written up, then fired.
The argument between James and Lucy is a drag. James's slip-up is a bit of clumsy writing. However, the fact that Siobhan overheard part of their conversation means that the scene accomplished multiple things at once, so kudos for that.
Why is Lucy upset that James is friends with Supergirl? Until she finds lipstick on his collar, her reaction is childish.
I understand the need for drama and for a standard love triangle, but something about the James/Lucy storyline just isn't working. I don't know what it is or how to fix it, but I hope it gets resolved soon.
Why doesn't Supergirl use her X-ray vision to see the jailer's face?
The fight scene with the chains was cool, especially when Supergirl whirled around with chains swirling around her. And yay, super speed!
How can a material be so weak that Supergirl can burn it away in seconds with her heat vision, yet so strong that she can't use her super strength to rip free of it?
We have Wise Cat back again. She must have taken her Lexapro. Her story about not writing the truth, and possibly costing someone her life, was powerful.
Berlanti & Co. are
Doctor Who fans, as am I. Those of you who are long-time Whovians will recognize the call signs Greyhound Leader and Trap One, which is a clear homage to
Doctor Who. Here we get what might be another one: black star alloy could be an homage to the 1980s
Doctor Who episode "Warriors' Gate" which featured dwarf star alloy.
The scene in which James makes another attempt to change Kara's mind is powerful. "You're holding humans and you're completely unaccountable." I also love the fact that these two can argue, but underneath, you know they're still the best of friends.
Since I had pegged the Supergirl-hating cop as the jailer, I was surprised when it turned out to be the other guy. Nicely done, writers.
He looks like he shoots Alex in the face, but we later see she was shot in the chest, which knocked her out because the plot called for it. Well, okay. This is similar to the way people in action shows have fist fights but never get bruises on their faces. Things just work differently in TV land.
The next convict to be executed is a really nice, likeable guy in a cardigan, so that the audience will feel concern and suspense when he is dragged to the guillotine. Because if he had been a serial muderer, it wouldn't have worked. He was probably the only nice guy in the whole prison, so what are the odds that he would be the one to be captured with Supergirl?
Why would a nice, obviously not-hardened criminal be sentenced to Fort Roz on a first offense? Seems harsh.
I like his mis-use of words. "Up the creek without a poodle."
The jailer conveniently waits 12 hours before executing his prisoners, because the plot calls for it. Okay.
Agent Vasquez gets three scenes with dialogue! She needs her own spin-off show.
I get that having Supergirl under the light of a red sun will make her normal, but that would take time. She's a battery which holds her charge for a long time. She wouldn't suddenly become powerless if she entered a dark room with no windows, so why would she suddenly become powerless just because someone turns on a red lamp? Her cells still have all that yellow-sun energy stored up and ready to use.
One thing I love about the overall writing is that many episodes have storylines which mirror and reinforce each other. In this episode, the jailer represents the extreme abuse of power that James was warning Kara about, and Kara gets a good hard look at what unaccountable justice run amok actually looks like. Nicely done.
I felt genuine suspense about the professor's death. He's not a main character, so I didn't know if he would be toast or not. That's good writing, because it's sometimes hard to generate genuine suspense about these things.
Bullets in a confined space, shot at a person in armor, ricochet all over the place. But, again, TV land physics.
Supergirl and the jailer were an even match when they fought, but when Alex fights him with no armor or superpowers, suddenly the jailer is the equal of a human?!?! Ugh. Total breakdown in storytelling.
Alex shoots her gun to let in the sun. Okay. Was she shooting through the floor of the cabin, and then through the roof of the cabin? Did her eight tiny bullets open an enormous hole in the cabin 50 feet above them?
The final fight scene was good for a rough draft. It needed some work. For me, this is the first real disappointment all season.
After Supergirl takes the professor home and lets him go, I half expected him to suddenly sneer and say, "She fell for it! Bwa-ha-ha-ha-ha!" That would have been a nice twist.
"Still harboring hope, even for me. You really are an alien." Good grief, there is no end to Max's *****ebaggery.
Kara's naivete is in character, but I like Alex's solution better.
The final words between Alex and Max sound like the writers are trying to re-ignite the sexual tension between them. Dear writers: please don't do this. Max tried to kill Alex's sister. Alex hates Max. Max is a *****ebag. That ship didn't just sink, it got obliterated in a hail of cannon fire. Just let it go.
I get that James doesn't like lying to Lucy, but he can tell her some of the truth. He can say, "Lucy, I work with Supergirl to fight crime, just like I worked with Superman. So yes, I know about the DEO. I'm sorry you're upset about that. Supergirl and I are just friends." Why is that so hard? Supergirl's secret identity, by itself, is irrelevant here, so James has no reason to ask for permission to divulge it.
Kara and Alex both talk to the AI as if it's Alura, when they both know perfectly well that it is not.
David Harewood's acting as Kara tells Hank that she can't work with him any more is very good. In general, David Harewood's acting is very good, but especially in the final shot.
A mix of great and not-so-great writing, and yet, somehow, it still stands as a solid episode.
Update: Italia Ricci is still smoking hot.
. I guess I just prefer the bad girls of tv.lol.
