Superman Homepage writer Michael Bailey reviews episodes from the “Supergirl” TV series, airing on The CW.
Check out his review of the 6th episode of Season 5 in which, while a new villain is under arrest at the DEO, Supergirl (Melissa Benoist) uses him to try and understand who is responsible for the recent attacks. Meanwhile, Andrea (Julie Gonzalo) and Lena (Katie McGrath) think back on their tumultuous past.
Originally Aired: November 10, 2019
WRITTEN BY: Dana Horgan and Nicki Holcomb
DIRECTED BY: Shannon Kohli
REGULAR CAST:
Melissa Benoist (Kara/Supergirl)
Chyler Leigh (Alex Danvers)
Jesse Rath (Brainiac 5)
Katie McGrath (Lena Luthor)
Nicole Maines (Nia Nal/Dreamer)
GUEST STARS:
Andrea Brooks (Hope)
Staz Nair (William Day)
Nick Sagar (Rip Roar)
Julie Gonzalo (Andrea Rojas)
Patti Allan (Leviathan Agent)
Rahul Kohli (Jack Spheer)
Rating – 4 (out of 5): I’m not sure what it says about this season that the best episode of the season thus far was essentially a set of flashbacks that did more to further a side characters than all of the other episodes combined.
Like, I realize that these shows can be a slow burn and maybe I’m expecting more from the pacing, but this was the first episode that I enjoyed from beginning to end and had only one huge problem with.
It was Andrea being able to fight J’onn. He’s on Superman’s level. This show constantly has him on the back foot for some reason.
Anyway, Lena has been the best part of this season, so I it makes sense that an episode focusing on her and her relationship with Andrea would be good as well. Watching Lena deal with the treachery in her life after opening herself up was genuinely touching and I ended up feeling really bad for her. I still think some of the drama is a bit forced, but watching her befriend Andrea and Kara and then, to her mind, get betrayed gave her behavior more weight. The only place where I felt she screwed things up for herself was with Jack, who really seemed to love her, and she left him to start her new life. The descent into her going full Luthor has been well handled and well-paced.
Also…seeing Lex is always a treat and was a real surprise as I don’t pay attention to episode details before I watch it outside of the teasers at the end.
Andrea was a real surprise. To be fair, we’ve seen what we’ve seen about the character for story purposes, so it would be wrong to say that we FINALLY got her backstory. That was the intention. Still, I ended up actually liking the character by the end of the episode. Seeing how she did everything for her family makes her betrayal of Lena go down better. And, to be honest, I am pretty sure that Lena would have done the same thing, but that’s beside the point. The only hiccup is her costume. It was a bit…off. I can’t quite put my finger on it. Other than that, it was nice getting to know Andrea as a character.
Finally, I think another reason I liked this episode so much is that it focused on a small number of characters. It seems like the supporting cast has gotten bigger than the stories can handle and making sure everyone has a moment makes for some weak scenes. Having everything Lena and Andrea made for a tighter and more enjoyable installment.
The season continues to be uneven, but this was definitely a stronger entry.
Check out the “Supergirl – Episode Reviews” Contents page.
I think all the shows could use trimmed down casts. Like is there any real reason to have Ralph Dibny as a series regular on Flash? Or for that matter constantly conjuring up versions of Harrison Wells just to keep Tom Cavenaugh around?
That’s a fact regarding Wells. After seeing another version of Well’s all I could think of was how many more versions of him are they going to conjure up? It’s getting beyond stupid.
Have to agree regarding a better episode. Although the story lines are all over the place, the show still manages to maintain it’s “all about the woman!!” Yes those strong invincible women!!! I don’t think there’s been one scene this season while in her new (and disliked costume), that has her flying in that stretched out, arms in front, hair blown speeding through the sky. Batwoman. Yes this 90 lb waif dons the costume and does NOTHING Batman like. This show, another female drama fest, has NO purpose other than playing off Batman and displaying more of the tired and… Read more »
Have you tried….not watching?
If the TV show “Supergirl” and “Batwoman” really bothers you, simply stop watching.
That could help.
That is certainly an option!! I suppose it’s going that way. Can’t take take much more of this torture anyway.
This might be my favorite episode of the season so far. I’m always down for a Lena-centric episode, because Katie McGrath is excellent. The scene where she discovers Andrea has the medallion was gut-wrenching. Also, kudos for giving us more on Andrea and what she’s been through. I knew they were going to do something with her, but seeing what she did for her father and for Russell all the more tragic. I agree that when they focus on one or two storylines, the show is so much better. It’s not that I don’t like the cast, but we don’t… Read more »
This was the best episode of the season. It really did a good job of showing what Lena has gone through in relation to Lex, Kara and of course Andrea. I liked how we saw conversations between all these characters in what were essentially, before the episode showed us, off-screen interactions. It shows that things “happen” in between the weekly installments.
As for Flash, the best Wells was Harry from season 2. He was the spitting image of his doppleganger from season 1, but it was nice to have him on the side of good. People love Cavanagh.
Well so far this may be the dumbest version of Wells. It’s getting beyond stupid that they keep bringing this character back.
Cavanaugh is great but the part has kind of just turned into an acting workshop. I wish they would either pick a Wells and stick with him or just be willing to let him go.
100% agree! And I like Cavanaugh as well, but a new version every season?