S06.E13: The Gauntlet

[scarynikki12]

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Supergirl and team race Nyxly for control of a magical totem that controls courage.

 

 

[Jediknight]

Kara, to pass the test you had to let the plane crash.  You had to have the courage to face your fear of losing Alex.

Nice to see that Lena told Kara that she's a witch.  That secret wouldn't have helped anybody.

It was clear that everybody was having fun getting to ham it up.

[Primal Slayer]

While it was still a pretty bad episode, by Supergirl standards nowadays it wasn't a that bad of an episode. 

The flashbacks were the best part, the writing there was more serious than it was for a normal episode. 

Not really sure how a Kryptonian hologram recording of a Krypto witch still acts as if she is alive and can sense magic from people but....there it is. 

I really hate Alex's gauntlet, it literally does anything the episode needs.

I did laugh at Alex/Kellys conversation because....Alex is all "Thanks for coming, I didnt want to pull you away from your important work of helping the aliens find housing" .....um Alex...girl....there was a city destroying mega storm that was about to hit! There would be no housing or anyone to help if you all didn't stop it. Kelly was in the right place. 

[cdnalor]

Interesting Wizard of Oz references in this episode.  A show about courage has the scientist named Beatrice Lahr, which resembles Bert Lahr who played the Cowardly Lion.  Her assistant is named Dorothy and the other scientist is Dr. Frank Gale, the same last name as Oz's Dorothy.

[DanaK]

Really enjoyable episode. The comedy was pretty good, especially Brainy being possessed by the witch

[DanaK]

1 hour ago, Jediknight said:

Kara, to pass the test you had to let the plane crash.  You had to have the courage to face your fear of losing Alex.

Interesting, I hadn’t considered that. I was thinking she needed to stop being afraid of being found out, but yours makes more sense

[Chicago Redshirt]

2 hours ago, Jediknight said:

Kara, to pass the test you had to let the plane crash.  You had to have the courage to face your fear of losing Alex.

Nice to see that Lena told Kara that she's a witch.  That secret wouldn't have helped anybody.

It was clear that everybody was having fun getting to ham it up.

Interesting theory. I will give the show credit whatever it might take to pass the test because it's not telegraphed. My thought was that she lacked the courage to be revealed as the beacon of hope she eventually has become. 

Thank Beebo that they did not drag out Lena being a secret witch and/or will she use her witchiness to help the Super Friends. 

I think that it made it easy to overlook the ridiculousness of this plot because at least the actors were enjoying themselves instead of seeming like they were running out the clock as in some recent episodes. 

2 hours ago, Primal Slayer said:

Not really sure how a Kryptonian hologram recording of a Krypto witch still acts as if she is alive and can sense magic from people but....there it is. 

I really hate Alex's gauntlet, it literally does anything the episode needs.

I did laugh at Alex/Kellys conversation because....Alex is all "Thanks for coming, I didnt want to pull you away from your important work of helping the aliens find housing" .....um Alex...girl....there was a city destroying mega storm that was about to hit! There would be no housing or anyone to help if you all didn't stop it. Kelly was in the right place. 

In most incarnations of Kryptonian crystal AI stuff, the crystals have a program that acts as though they are living. and have the attributes of the living people...so I will accept that. 

Her "Hand of the Soldier" apparently can't make a decent mask for her. 

In terms of "doing what the plot requires," Kelly's shield can apparently absorb with no problems whatsoever lightning strikes of 800+ megajoules.  (Apparently the Back to the Future 1.21 gigawatts is 1200 megajoules, in case you were curious like I was).

Is it just me, or did/does Kelly have way more chemistry with Orlando than she has ever had with Alex? 

[thuganomics85]

Silly episode for sure, but I thought it was a fun way to counterbalance the heavy-handiness of last week's episode.  If nothing else, the cast were having the time of their lives hamming it up.  Jesse Rath was a blast as "Brainy being possessed by a Kryptonian Witch", but I think my favorite might have been J'onn/Dave Harewood as "Overly Courageous" J'onn that made him come off like the universe's biggest coach/mentor/motivational speaker/proud dad.  The man can deliver a pep talk in any situation!

Figured Nxy was going to pass the test first, because the villain needs to start out ahead so that the hero can play catch up.  I'm guessing Kara's way of "passing the test" is to either let the plane crash or maybe reveal her identity.  Also wondering if we'll be seeing Nxy's actual family soon.  Noticed they met the effort to get "Hey, it's that Canadian Guy!" Adrian Hough to show up as her father.

William is now wanting to somehow get himself to join the Superfriends and I document them/go on ride alongs or whatever.  I really wish I cared more.  Meanwhile, Andrea continues to be more one-note every minute she's on screen. 

Glad they aren't keeping Lena being a witch a secret.  I did love how Kara's reaction was surprised, but really not that shocked, because in this world, finding out your friend has magical powers really isn't that mind-blowing.  Less "Holy shit, you're serious!" and more "Oh, that's kind of unexpected.  When did you start entering that phase in your life?"  You know, it was just Lena making a simple change to her lifestyle like going vegan or getting a motorcycle!

[cambridgeguy]

If Dr. Lahr is really keen on harnessing lightning she should really be talking  to Star Labs instead of hanging out in National City.  Granted it's Speed Force lightning, but they do all sorts of weird stuff with it over there.

[Oreo2234]

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Is it just me, or did/does Kelly have way more chemistry with Orlando than she has ever had with Alex? 

They both have more chemistry with pretty much everyone else they interact with. 

Quote

Jesse Rath was a blast as "Brainy being possessed by a Kryptonian Witch", but I think my favorite might have been J'onn/Dave Harewood as "Overly Courageous" J'onn that made him come off like the universe's biggest coach/mentor/motivational speaker/proud dad. 

Those were my favorite moments too. Jesse Rath and David Harewood seemed to be having fun. 

Edited September 29, 2021 by Oreo2234

[tennisgurl]

See, this actually feels like an episode from the last season of the show, with calls backs to the first episode, the cast getting to cut loose a bit, building tension between the hero and the big bad, it actually feels like we're building to something. I kept expecting them to cut away from the action to teach us an important lesson about the opium epidemic or something but nope! A nice more silly sort of episode that was a welcome change up from the heavy handed and generally heavy episode we had last week. 

Everyone basically overdosing on courage was really fun, especially J'onn as everyone's proud dad/life coach, while Kara keeps making hilarious "the fuck?" expressions. Then we had Alex running into danger, Nia going into a dream coma, and even Brainy, who spent his whole day "guesstimating" said in the same tone other people would use while scribing snorting heroin off the floor of a gas station bathroom. Brainy possessed by a witch that acts like the guardian of the bridge of death from Monty Python and the Holy Grail was great too, Jesse Rath was clearly having a blast.

Not surprising that Nxy managed to finish her challenge first, the villain always has to get ahead of the heroes at first so they can have their big dramatic victory. I really did feel bad watching her flashback to her brother betraying her, it really sucks what happened to her, not that it makes everything else she has done alright. Peta Sergeant really is killing it, she makes for a great, compelling villain. Since it was telling an emotional truth that won her challenge, I am guessing that Kara has to show courage in an emotional way, maybe showing herself to be Supergirl, and not just saving people and taking risks. 

I am glad that Lena told Kara almost right away about the witch thing, I think we have established by now that secrets are a very very bad thing. Of course Kara's reaction to finding out that her friend is a witch is just "oh, that's cool", this is the Arrowverse, stuff like this happens every other day. Really, the weird thing is how hard Lena clung to the "there must be a scientist explanation for this!" bit, I know that National City is more tech/aliens than magic, but she has to have heard that its around.

I still feel like Kelly would be more satisfied by running for office or getting into community organizing  or another kind of activism instead of just putting on a costume so that she can kick systemic injustice in the face.

Edited September 29, 2021 by tennisgurl

[angora]

Well, I had a good time, in no small part because the cast were clearly enjoying themselves. Optimistic Little League Coach J'onn was cracking me up the whole time, and he and Let Me at That Dragon Alex made a great duo together. Man, David Harewood doesn't get to be funny nearly often enough. Brainy was a blast too, between the Kryptonian witch possession and the horrifying realization that he'd been "guesstimating"; I love Jesse Rath.

Looking at the number of totems/episodes left before the finale, we might be falling into a formula here for the last leg of the show's run, but I think that would be all right. It gives the storyline a clear focus, the totems are all emotion/character-based, which has always been an asset of the show's, and I feel like there's enough potential within the different totems that they'll be able to do different stories with them - we got wacky hijinks this week, but there's room for variety moving forward. And if Kara has interact with/be tested by each of the totems at some point, that will be a nice lead-up to the finale, since each one would presumably be tied to a specific part of her character/history and bring the nostalgia feels.

Even though Kara giving up on the courage test and ceding the totem to Nyxly was a blow, I also thought it was a moment that was very emblematic of who Supergirl is. From the start of the series, she's been all about her friends/team making her better - the whole "el mayarah" thing - so it makes sense to me that she recognized that getting everyone back to normal was the priority, deciding the situation was too dicey to risk her failing the test again and making everything worse. Yes, part of it was her shaken faith in her ability to pass it, but it was also a deliberate choice to give up one piece on the chess board to save innocent lives, determined that she and her friends will be able to get back ahead of Nyxly before it's all over.

ITA on the "thank god Lena being a secret witch wasn't dragged out for weeks" sentiment. I like that the scene played a little like a coming-out, with Lena being kind of nervous/hesitant, and Kara being a little surprised but completely supportive. That's just life in the Arrowverse!

On a final note, I really enjoyed Brainy just being casually green at the start of the episode. Normally there has to be an in-show "reason" for his image inducer to be off, but there's no reason he should have to have it on when he's just with his friends. I know Jesse Rath adores the character, the costume, and basically everything about Brainy - maybe he lobbied to squeeze in a few more "green scenes" on the show before the series finale?

[Trini]

I did enjoy the comedic bits - and yes, it was great to see J'onn/Harewood do some comedy - but otherwise, I wasn't really felling the actual plots of this episode. I guess the totem search gives the rest of the season structure, but it feels very ... basic? I don't know, I want something better for the final season.

I assume that most of the extras fighting in the coffee shop scene was mostly the regular stunt team having fun?

[cambridgeguy]

12 hours ago, Trini said:

I did enjoy the comedic bits - and yes, it was great to see J'onn/Harewood do some comedy - but otherwise, I wasn't really felling the actual plots of this episode. I guess the totem search gives the rest of the season structure, but it feels very ... basic? I don't know, I want something better for the final season.

They used up all of their creative energy crafting a nuanced take on some very complex social issues facing society, so apparently all they could come up with was a scavenger hunt and recycled most of the paragon titles.  It'll be hilarious if Paragon of Hope Kara has trouble getting the totem of hope, though.  She should have just called in Kate Kane for the courage one.

[TV Anonymous]

On 9/28/2021 at 10:07 PM, Primal Slayer said:

Not really sure how a Kryptonian hologram recording of a Krypto witch still acts as if she is alive and can sense magic from people but....there it is. 

The canon of the crystal is that it is not just a recording of someone but the whole copy of their personality and consciousness. Therefore the holograms act as if they are sentient, just without physical body. As references see Val-El in Krypton, Zeta-Rho in Superman and Lois, and Alura In-Ze in the earlier episodes of this show.

[Rushmoras]

On 9/29/2021 at 5:02 AM, Jediknight said:

Kara, to pass the test you had to let the plane crash.  You had to have the courage to face your fear of losing Alex.

 

Yep, thought the same.

I don't know, I prefer these type of quirky episodes rather than your special education episodes, although, I prefer they don't do either. Though, a bit of a dissonance in the beginning of the episode, if compared to the previous one where Kelly was bitching at everyone for not helping her out and not being there, so now, she is not helping them out and not being there (I know, towards the end she comes), because she has her own villains to deal with. I mean, pot calling kettle black, Kelly? No? OK...

Since they treat science as pseudo-out-of-your-ass-whatever-the-plot-demands-tool, then why did I even think that Lena will have to train extensively to be able to use even remotely powerful magic? Of course not. This wont be the case at all.

Also, harnessing lightning? Didn't in the real world it was deemed to be economically non-feasible?

Oh, yeah, and Andrea, she's still Acrata, right? Why can't she simply visit every shadow or what not and spy on super friends herself instead of grilling a reporter to do that? I mean, the dude's got a point; he does not have the means to be their bosom buddy.

  

On 9/29/2021 at 5:07 AM, Primal Slayer said:

Not really sure how a Kryptonian hologram recording of a Krypto witch still acts as if she is alive and can sense magic from people but....there it is. 

You are asking this in a show where just in this season they extracted DNA from a hologram in pursuit to get Kara out of a Phantom Zone?

 

Edited October 1, 2021 by Rushmoras

[legaleagle53]

One of the things that I find fascinating is that because of their experiences with the Totem of Courage, Kara and Nyxly are now both psychically linked on a level that enables them to sense each other's emotional states. That could be a very useful ability for Kara in order to predict Nyxly's next move (along with Dreamer's abilities, which she is finally starting to master). I'm curious about what she saw while she was in her enhanced dream state (since she had deliberately tapped into her powers on a level that she had been previously afraid to try).

Edited October 3, 2021 by legaleagle53

[Winston Wolfe]

Haven't watched the episode yet, seems like fun. It appears that here in the tri-state area the WB has relegated Supergirl to Saturday afternoon at 4pm. I hadn't seen it on the prime time schedule in quite some time. Talk about playing out the string. I'm wondering what the series finale will look like.

[Trini]

10 minutes ago, Winston Wolfe said:

Haven't watched the episode yet, seems like fun. It appears that here in the tri-state area the WB has relegated Supergirl to Saturday afternoon at 4pm. I hadn't seen it on the prime time schedule in quite some time. Talk about playing out the string. I'm wondering what the series finale will look like.

The regular slot is Tuesdays. In my area, it was bumped because of baseball this week.

Edited October 3, 2021 by Trini

[Lantern7]

Witchcraft from Krypton.

Yes, I think I'm good with the series ending now.

It was a fun episode (preempted here in NYC on Tuesday; finally got around to watching today), but it still feels like a slog to the end . . . a battle between the "Super Friends" and a rogue imp from the Fifth Dimension. Also, Lena is going to become a witch. I mean . . . wouldn't Lex Luthor have been a fitting final foe? Or is he being rested for Superman & Lois?

That's all I got. I liked the courage overkill scenes, but I can't remember much else.

[Chicago Redshirt]

We had Kryptonian witches in the Reign storyline, including, apparently, Vita. 

[Noneofyourbusiness]

On 10/3/2021 at 11:33 PM, Lantern7 said:

Witchcraft from Krypton.

As Chicago Redshirt said, we've had witchcraft from Krypton since Season 3. Selena, Ayala and Vita were the Dark Kryptonian Witches whose coven created Reign, Purity and Pestilence. Their good counterparts from another universe appeared last season in the episode where Brainy became green, and went into the bottle with the other Brainiac-5 whose Earth had been bottled.

Edited October 5, 2021 by Noneofyourbusiness

[DanaK]

16 hours ago, Noneofyourbusiness said:

As Chicago Redshirt said, we've had witchcraft from Krypton since Season 3. Selena, Ayala and Vita were the Dark Kryptonian Witches whose coven created Reign, Purity and Pestilence. Their good counterparts from another universe appeared last season in the episode where Brainy became green, and went into the bottle with the other Brainiac-5 whose Earth had been bottled.

Wow, I completely forgot they were in those storylines

[Noneofyourbusiness]

BTW, Nyxly's brother Bryxly was played by Spencer Borgeson, who was Sam Winchester's son Dean in the last episode of Supernatural.

[Genius]

I didn't see Supergirl trying to find housing for the displaced Ormfell residents even ONCE this episode.  Why wasn't Kelly apoplectic???

[Maelstrom]

So we have Tad Cooper the dragon (I still super believe!)

J’onn channels his inner Saperstein (I still miss Selfie 😢)

Lena must tap into her inner Morgana le Fey (she really needs to go have a chat with Ray Palmer and Nora Darkh about balancing magic and science).

Harry Kara has an empathic connection to Voldemort Nxy, which will come in handy in their race to collect Horcruxes totems. (Gee, I don’t ever recall seeing a team of superheroes search for an array of magical totems before... but if a giant Beebo comes in and saves the day here too, then I’ll officially wash my hands of this show)

Andrea channels every obnoxious stereotypical evil boss for no obvious reason.

And no one on the writing staff understands the actual definition of courage. I don’t think too much courage immediately leads to citywide brawls, but whatevs. 😒

On the plus side: Jesse Rath once again wins the episode with his portrayal of Brainy possessed by Kryptonian witch. He is seriously the only reason I’ve stuck with this show, I just love him.