Superman on Television

Supergirl: Episode Reviews

Season 5 - Episode 3: "Blurred Lines"

Originally Aired: October 20, 2019
WRITTEN BY: Lindsay Sturman and J. Holtham
DIRECTED BY: Eric Dean Stanton

REGULAR CAST:
Melissa Benoist (Kara/Supergirl)
Chyler Leigh (Alex Danvers)
Mechad brooks (James Olsen)
Jesse Rath (Brainiac 5)
Katie McGrath (Lena Luthor)
Nicole Maines (Nia Nal/Dreamer)

GUEST STARS:
Azie Tesfai (Kelly Olsen)
Andrea Brooks (Hope)
Staz Nair (William Day)
Julie Gonzalo (Andrea Rojas)
Phil LaMarr (Malefic J'onzz)

Rating - 4 (out of 5): This episode was a definite step up compared to the first two episodes of the season. Again, those episodes weren't terrible. They just didn't grab me like I wanted them to. They were necessary and they set up the conflicts for the first part of the season, so I can't be too disappointed because without them we wouldn't have gotten this episode.

That is some deep and insightful writing right there. I'm on the ball tonight.

Lena's story continues to be a favorite of this season. The addition of Andrea Brooks as Hope gives McGrath someone to interact with and the two have always had good chemistry, so even though Brooks is Hope and not Eve it still works for me. Lena getting Kara to steal Lex's journals was some high level Luthor manipulation, so even though I think she's being a little overdramatic in feeling betrayed I'm still all in on this sub-plot. Andrea Brooks is doing a great job playing a character that is supposed to be free from emotion while still having a lot of personality.

J'onn's end of the episode was my favorite. The twist that he was the one that erased his brother from their society added some emotional weight to the battle with Malefic and gave him some complexity as a character. It seems like most of the time he is the back-up hero/cheerleader/exposition device but having him remember this and having the battle with his brother get so personal makes for a much better character. Him lying to Kara and the others is dramatic, but largely unnecessary. That's a SMALLVILLE move.

Then again, Lena is acting like Lex from SMALLVILLE, so I guess it fits.

William Day is starting to grow on me as a character. Andrea Rojas is not, but I'm sure it will be dramatic when she is revealed to be working with Leviathan. The spat between Brainy and Nia felt like it was dramatic for the sake of being dramatic and that the writers haven't found the hook for the relationship yet. Getting them together was the easy part. How their relationship should work seems to be a harder nut to crack, which is too bad, because a healthy romantic relationship would be nice. I also liked the spider villain of the episode, even if she was, like the villain from the first episode of this season, used and then immediately discarded. This whole "introduce a villain and then get rid of them in the same episode" is getting tiresome.

Still, this was a definite joy to watch. The story held my attention and I'm digging the mounting drama. It looks like next week's episode is going to be enjoyable as well.

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