S01.E17: Manhunter

[slayer2]

A helluva lot to process in this episode

So Kara did tell Lucy after all. And now she's the boss of the DEO. She can be a tad more useful now...

True! So proud of Kara, take notes Snyder, THAT is how you write the heart of a hero. I would have broken Lucy in two. Cheers to superheroes with restraint and good judgement!

[Snorfbat]

Personally, I'm hoping for Kon-El (i.e. Superman's imperfect/hybrid clone; a.k.a. Superboy) because that would be a way to shake up Kara's life in a way that wouldn't require a lot of ongoing makeup or any more effects than they've already been using with Kara and Astra/Non/other Kryptonian criminals).

 

It would also tie back to Kara's original mission on Earth; taking care of her younger cousin (or his clone as the case might be). They already have an actor in the right age range from the Black Mercy episode and they could play up the Young Justice show angle of Superman being really uncomfortable about his clone and thus continuing to keep his distance. If they wanted to limit it to guest appearances then have him go live with Kara's reunited foster parents.

You might get your wish.

[John Potts]

A somewhat depressing, if regrettably believable episode. J'onn is arrested and threatened with vivisection for... illegally entering the planet? OK, he is guilty of identity fraud, but as far as I know, that's not a capital offence. And I particularly loved the idea of an "Independent" Inquiry - led by a friend of the guy being impersonated and his assistant has also had previous dealings with both the accused and his chief champion. Also, the message seemed to be "Don't be special - you'll only be resented, even if you act in the interests of others" since that was Pa Danvers message to young Kara (as well as the government response to J'onn). I also liked the way how the Witchfinder in Chief talked of how he needed to detain J'onn to Protect the PLANET but that he was going to be dissected to give AMERICA the weapons need to defeat them. As I said, it's believable that the government might act that way, it's just rather depressing.

 

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statsgirl  I liked Jeremiah and Alex referring to J'onn as a refugee. I wonder if that word would have been used if not for Mr. Trump and various other member of the Republican Party.

 It's not just your possible next President. In the UK we're currently undergoing a referendum on the EU and those advocating "Leave" tend to equate "foreigner" with "Terrorist" & to hear the Anti-EU camp speak, if it wasn't for our membership of the EU, we'd still be ruling America. Yes, the EU wasn't invented for nearly two centuries after we "lost the colonies" but that just shows how devious they are!

As for Cat, it's nothing to do with the Queen whether Cat gets a Damehood or not. Aside from the fact that while (in theory) they are granted by the monarch, all honours are actually granted by the Prime Minister, Britain does grant them to Americans (Ronald Reagan was awarded a Knighthood, for example) - it's the US that bans its citizens from accepting them. It falls under "...renouncing all other powers and potentates", or however the Pledge of Allegiance phrases it.
 

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BkWurm1  One spot that I was giggling at the absurd was when J'onn "saved" Jerimiah from the non lethal albino python

 

 

I particularly liked the way that a trained soldier's response to seeing a snake in a jungle was to drop his rifle! I guess it fits with pretty much all TV portrayals of soldiers as being completely incompetent - unless they're the heroes. And what exactly were Jeremiah Danvers' squad mates doing while he was building a fire? Did Pa Danvers forget he had a radio or did his colleagues just not care he'd just dropped out of radio contact?

 

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twoods Shut up Sioban. If you weren't such a bitch none of this would have happened. I hate characters that aren't self aware of how much they suck.

 Again, although it's a really unattractive trait, it's totally believable. "I hate Kara because I got caught lying to my boss!"

[legaleagle53]

5 hours ago, John Potts said:

As for Cat, it's nothing to do with the Queen whether Cat gets a Damehood or not. Aside from the fact that while (in theory) they are granted by the monarch, all honours are actually granted by the Prime Minister, Britain does grant them to Americans (Ronald Reagan was awarded a Knighthood, for example) - it's the US that bans its citizens from accepting them. It falls under "...renouncing all other powers and potentates", or however the Pledge of Allegiance phrases it.

That's not in the Pledge of Allegiance and has nothing to do with it.  The prohibition against the acceptance of titles is found in Article I, Section 9, Clause 8 of the United States Constitution:

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No title of nobility shall be granted by the United States: and no person holding any office of profit or trust under them, shall, without the consent of the Congress, accept of any present, emolument, office, or title, of any kind whatever, from any king, prince, or foreign state.

It's known as the Title of Nobility Clause.  What you're thinking of is the Oath of Allegiance that all naturalized US citizens take upon becoming citizens:

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I hereby declare, on oath, that I absolutely and entirely renounce and abjure all allegiance and fidelity to any foreign prince, potentate, state, or sovereignty, of whom or which I have heretofore been a subject or citizen; that I will support and defend the Constitution and laws of the United States of America against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that I will bear arms on behalf of the United States when required by the law; that I will perform noncombatant service in the Armed Forces of the United States when required by the law; that I will perform work of national importance under civilian direction when required by the law; and that I take this obligation freely, without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion; so help me God.

Edited May 28, 2016 by legaleagle53

[John Potts]

Fair enough - but my point still stands that it's American Law & not British Law that prevents Cat from styling herself "Dame Catherine Grant". And yes, I was thinking of the Oath of Allegiance - look, it's not my law, I just knew Americans couldn't be Knights (or Dames/Commanders/Officers/Members) of the most noble order of the British Empire!

[GHScorpiosRule]

On 3/22/2016 at 0:16 PM, HighHopes said:

De-lurking to say: When Lucy was going off about how Kara (and all of the other aliens) hide who they are and lie about it and that she hated them for it, I just wanted Kara to tell her "Well we do that, because when you do find out about us you run experiments on us!". Of course they wouldn't be shouting it from the rooftops because as soon as the government found out they would be pretty much dead.. 

THIS! I was yelling this same thing at my teevee! I'm so sick and tired of these types of "accusations" on the superhero shows I watch. I swear, I wanted to punch my fist through the television. 

I've missed a good chunk of episodes, starting from right after the one where Kara was supposed to babysit Cat's son, and so I haven't seen the trajectory of Lucy's character, if there has been one. I just know from the little bit I have seen of her, I don't like her. I wish she'd go away. And I don't believe her as an Army whatever.  Whcih leads to...

On 3/22/2016 at 11:15 PM, piperkat said:

 

Of course, officers don't wear their full dress uniforms on a daily basis, or run around indoors with their cover (hat) on, LUCY.

And THIS. It was driving me NUTS, that Lucy kept her cover on, while indoors! I'm pulling my hair out, even as I know it's a fictional show. But I wanted to snatch Lucy's cover off her stupid head.

Other than those things, I really enjoyed this. Wish I could watch the one where Kara was influenced by Red-K.

[Lazlo]

Honestly I know I'm probably alone in this but I would have found it easier to sympathise with J'onn and (especially) Alex if they didn't run a super secret black ops organisation that imprisons aliens without trial (and people - remember Alex's illegal kidnapping of Maxwell Lord?) Obviously Harper is far, far worse and I can completely understand why J'onn hides but I don't think Alex has much self awareness of how sketchy the organisation she belongs to can be. I think if Harper wasn't so obviously a jerk and CADMUS a chamber of horrors the Government might even have had a point to be worried - the man they put in charge of their alien defence operations was killed under myterious circumstances and then secretly replaced by an alien duplicate a decade ago. His chief subordinate became aware of this at some unspecified time and did and said nothing. We, the viewers, know the inside story on all this and motivations of the people involved but I don't entirely blame the government for freaking out a little.

Siobhan also lacks any self awareness, though in her case I know that's deliberate. I've warmed to the character and interested in seeing where they go now.