S02.E11: The Martian Chronicles

[johntfs]

5 hours ago, dippydee said:

Also, Winn is awesome. I don't know when it happened but he's so much better than he was last season. The DEO did him some good.

The DEO gave him a real place to showcase his strength.  Before he was basically Kara's "friend-who-wished-there-were-benefits" AKA the dude who looked up stuff on the internet and did vaguely techy stuff for the magazine.

[tennisgurl]

Hopefully M'Gann doesn't die on her way back to her planet, Poochie style :) I really do hope she comes back soon, I like her and her relationship with J'onn. Come back soon!

Winn was pretty great this episode, running into the middle of a super fight and recalculating a nuclear reactor, and right after being frozen in an alien pea pod thing. It really seemed like they were setting him up to realize, by the end of the episode, that his calling was to work tech stuff with the DEO. Its what he's good at, what he likes to do, and doesn't require him to run after James in a van. Also, I thought Jeremy was actually pretty good at playing evil for a few minutes. Makes me want to take a trip to an alternate universe where he followed his fathers footsteps and become evil.

We also got lots of Danvers Sisters, even if the argument was a little contrived. I feel like Kara would have been talking about her Earth Birthday a LOT more, and Alex would remember that. Oh well, it was nice to get what we got. Kara being nervous about her sister leaving her sounds like a legit issue, and I hope its something we can use more subtlety later.

James wasn't around...and that's all I have to say about that. This was the best episode in awhile, so make with that what you will.

Maybe the White Martians saw all the other aliens lined up, waiting to take over the Earth, and decided they didn't want to wait in line?

[Trini]

2 hours ago, mrspidey said:

I can't believe they had Megan literally pull an "I must go. My people need me."

Your people who just tried to kill you?? Don't gooooo....  :(

[Humbugged]

8 hours ago, Chyromaniac said:

I don't know how an episode that talks about Barenaked Ladies as much as this one did, can fail to have an appearance by the band.  Also - did Alex say she was a huge fan of them in college?  Because unless she was either A) waaaay into the Big Bang Theory song or B) the Doogie Howser of Ninja Scientists, I don't see how that could have happened.  Look, I really enjoy the band - but I also remember peak BNL, and Kara wouldn't have even crashed by then.

I believe it's the writers trolling because of all the shit they have been getting because Alex (john) has been ignoring Kara (Paul) to spend all her time with Maggie(Yoko Ono) since the start of the season and they are getting shit for the lack of Danvers Sisters scenes

This is a show that used Chyler's previous career to make jokes about her being a punk and places of work where the staff spend their time in broom closets boning.Because we also got the random Country music thing and this exists

 

Edited February 7, 2017 by Humbugged

[Bats27]

3 hours ago, KirkB said:

It's not crass, it's a fair point. Until Mon-El came around I would have said it was the "woman of steel, man of kleenex" trope, even though Clark and Lois pretty much dismiss that whole thing since I'm pretty sure they get down to it from time to time. Mon-El seems to have no problem controlling himself when he sleeps with human women. So what's the deal with Kara? Well, growing up I imagine the idea of having sex with someone she could break in half if she wrapped her legs around them them a little too tightly had some effect, though again it doesn't seem to have stopped Clark. So the larger issue must be from either the show runners or Kara herself. Clearly the show runners don't have an issue with sexuality, given everything you pointed out, so my guess is the hang up is on Kara's end, she just has never stated it outloud. Maybe there is a Kryptonian hangup concerning sex? It wouldn't be an issue for Clark since he was raised on Earth but maybe Kryptonians are forbidden from sex before marriage or something?

Those could be interesting ideas, IF they were explored.  The issue is that, as of yet, nothing like that has even been hinted at, let alone explored.  And for goodness sake, even Barry is getting to have some hanky panky now, so what gives with Kara?

It reminds of how so many writers seemed terrified of giving Wonder Woman any kind of romantic/sex life in the comics (at least on-panel).  Not all, but enough to be noticeable.  It's like they think that it makes her "less pure" or some other such nonsense.

[kalamac]

Given some of Kara's over the top reactions to other people being in sexual situations, I was wondering if she was maybe asexual.

On another note, from the episode itself, who the hell eats a cupcake with a fork, even if they're sharing it.

[Trini]

17 minutes ago, kalamac said:

On another note, from the episode itself, who the hell eats a cupcake with a fork, even if they're sharing it.

But I want to savor it without making a mess!  :-/

[Dobian]

I'm starting to think they're deliberately keeping Kara a virgin so the show remains a good lead-in to Jane the Virgin.

[BooBear]

Not to get off on a tangent but why did I think Kara suggested on the show that she wasn't (a virgin)?  And not that I have considered this issue on long train trips or anything but of the two I could imagine that Kara would be the easier of the two to be able to have sex and not hurt anyone. I have no idea how Superman does it. Has it ever been addressed or alluded to in the comics? 

And that is, imho, one of the only good / interesting things about Monel.

[Oreo2234]

I don't know if she is or not but she really behaves like someone who is very inexperienced in that area. Her behaviour would make more sense if she is.

Edited February 8, 2017 by Oreo2234

[KirkB]

6 minutes ago, BooBear said:

Not to get off on a tangent but why did I think Kara suggested on the show that she wasn't (a virgin)?  And not that I have considered this issue on long train trips or anything but of the two I could imagine that Kara would be the easier of the two to be able to have sex and not hurt anyone. I have no idea how Superman does it. Has it ever been addressed or alluded to in the comics?

I don't recall the show making a point of it one way or the other, although it's possible I missed or have forgotten a scene or two. For reasons I can't entirely explain I always got the sense she was. As for the mechanics of the act in question, I don't know if it's been mentioned in the comics but I imagine Lois does most of the work so Clark doesn't risk...umm, pushing too hard?

[ZennyKenny]

To me she seems like she just has old-fashioned morals when it comes to sex. Just based on how she reacts to catching others in the act. Plus like Oreo2234 said, she does come off as very inexperienced. Kinda makes me wonder what her teenage years were like.

[Trini]

Is PTV not doing recaps of the show anymore?

[twoods]

Oh great, another Kara relationship that is going to be drawn out all season. Who didn't see coming that she would have her epiphany and MonEl would be dating someone else. They gave up Kara and James for this? 

Still loving Winn, and definitely feel the bromance with him and James. I am probably the only one that missed him. 

Poor Hank- hopefully Megan comes back.

Edited February 8, 2017 by twoods

[Starfish35]

I didn't even realize James wasn't in the episode.  *sigh*  I did notice there wasn't much Mon-El.  I wonder if this is when Chris Wood went over to do his TVD episode.  

I agree that the move has done wonders for Winn.  And this was a good episode for him.  

I'm going to miss M'gann - I hope she comes back soon.  

[legaleagle53]

On 2/7/2017 at 3:35 AM, Spaceman Spiff said:

Not to mention Monel…dude it’s been 2 days since you professed your feeling, wait a bit more before swiping left, or whatever the fuck he said.

They were on a break!

[Rushmoras]

Am I the only one who found the distinction between a regular birthday and Earth birthday totally superfluous and unnecessary even by this show's standards? Why can't it be said, "Hey, it's my birthday! I was thinking we could celebrate". But, no, it has to be said: "It's my Earth birthday. You know, the exact time and place on which I crashed into Earth 13 years ago, which we celebrate every year, because we don't celebrate my Krypton birthday, because why would we?"

[stealinghome]

But why would they not celebrate Kara's Kryptonian (actual) birthday? I'm sure she can do the calculations as to when it is. I assumed they celebrate both.

[secnarf]

Presumably the Kryptonian year and calendar are different? The day likely isn't static, and may be more/less frequent than the length of the earth year.

[kalamac]

6 hours ago, stealinghome said:

But why would they not celebrate Kara's Kryptonian (actual) birthday? I'm sure she can do the calculations as to when it is. I assumed they celebrate both.

Yeah, when she was all 'I know we normally just do cupcakes', I did wonder if Earth birthday was purely a sister thing, and her actual Kryptonian birthday is friends and family thing.

[stealinghome]

4 hours ago, kalamac said:

Yeah, when she was all 'I know we normally just do cupcakes', I did wonder if Earth birthday was purely a sister thing, and her actual Kryptonian birthday is friends and family thing.

Headcanon firmly accepted. :)

[j5cochran]

16 hours ago, Rushmoras said:

Am I the only one who found the distinction between a regular birthday and Earth birthday totally superfluous and unnecessary even by this show's standards? Why can't it be said, "Hey, it's my birthday! I was thinking we could celebrate". But, no, it has to be said: "It's my Earth birthday. You know, the exact time and place on which I crashed into Earth 13 years ago, which we celebrate every year, because we don't celebrate my Krypton birthday, because why would we?"

My sister has three adopted children, from Korea.  They each get to celebrate their birthdays, and their "gotcha" days - the day that each arrived in the United States.  You don't get presents on gotcha day, but it's still a celebration!

As for the show, I think that Kara was playing Exposition Fairy, so that viewers that are a bit slow on the uptake will understand what an Earth birthday is. As with my nieces and nephew, your gotcha birthday or Earth birthday is important, just not as big a deal as a regular birthday.

[RobertDeSneero]

On 2/6/2017 at 10:30 PM, stealinghome said:

I just found it out of character. There's absolutely no way that Alex, who absolutely adores Kara, hasn't been babbling to Maggie for weeks about Kara's Earth Birthday! Actually, that was one of the beats that rang really awkwardly in the Sanvers apartment scene, too. Alex just gave Maggie this generic "I think I hurt Kara's feelings" instead of saying "it's Kara's earth birthday and she's bummed that we're not hanging out." Who wouldn't, at that point, tell their SO that it's their sister's birthday?...except then you have to confront why Maggie didn't know about it to begin with.

There's no way that Alex, who has been conditioned to keep Kara's secret all her life, would talk so freely about her sister, even to Maggie.

[Rushmoras]

5 hours ago, j5cochran said:

As for the show, I think that Kara was playing Exposition Fairy, so that viewers that are a bit slow on the uptake will understand what an Earth birthday is. As with my nieces and nephew, your gotcha birthday or Earth birthday is important, just not as big a deal as a regular birthday.

Yes, I know, they do that quite often in the show. Which sometimes, as this time, kind off ticks me off. It's like they are thinking that their viewers are dumb and need to have descriptions of words placed for them on a platter.

[ruby24]

On 02/07/2017 at 2:16 PM, Bats27 said:

Those could be interesting ideas, IF they were explored.  The issue is that, as of yet, nothing like that has even been hinted at, let alone explored.  And for goodness sake, even Barry is getting to have some hanky panky now, so what gives with Kara?

It reminds of how so many writers seemed terrified of giving Wonder Woman any kind of romantic/sex life in the comics (at least on-panel).  Not all, but enough to be noticeable.  It's like they think that it makes her "less pure" or some other such nonsense.

I'm glad I'm not the only one who's been wondering about this! I've definitely noticed this and I'm not sure what to make of it, since every other relationship on the show gets to have the sexual element to it, so it's not like the show itself is afraid of sex.

But there seems to be an issue with it surrounding Kara for some reason. She does seem inexperienced but I don't know if we're supposed to think she's a virgin or not. They'll probably never even address it once she and Mon-el get together.

[legaleagle53]

7 hours ago, RobertDeSneero said:

There's no way that Alex, who has been conditioned to keep Kara's secret all her life, would talk so freely about her sister, even to Maggie.

Why not?  Maggie already knows that Kara is Supergirl, so there's no secret for Alex to keep.

[RobertDeSneero]

6 hours ago, legaleagle53 said:

Why not?  Maggie already knows that Kara is Supergirl, so there's no secret for Alex to keep.

If your goal is to keep a secret, it's best to be in the mindset of not giving away anything, even if it's safe to do so.  It's like costumed heroes using real names with each other even when they think they are alone or the bad guys are knocked out.  They shouldn't because you want secrecy to be a habit.  Alex really shouldn't tell Maggie anything that she doesn't need to know because it's safer for everyone that way.

[legaleagle53]

7 hours ago, RobertDeSneero said:

If your goal is to keep a secret, it's best to be in the mindset of not giving away anything, even if it's safe to do so.  It's like costumed heroes using real names with each other even when they think they are alone or the bad guys are knocked out.  They shouldn't because you want secrecy to be a habit.  Alex really shouldn't tell Maggie anything that she doesn't need to know because it's safer for everyone that way.

Maggie had already figured it out, though.  As she told Alex, the glasses really aren't fooling anyone, plus she'd observed the way Alex talked about Supergirl and Kara and simply did the math.  

The question arises, however, as to whether Kara knows that Maggie knows.  I don't think that's been established yet.

[stealinghome]

I have to imagine Kara knows that Maggie knows, though I agree it has been left unclear and the writers might well decide to revisit it. 

but in the same way I can't see Alex NOT telling Maggie that Kara's Earth Birthday is a thing, I really, REALLY can't see Alex not letting Kara know that Maggie knows.

[PatternRec]

Are we all gonna not say anything about M'gann wearing Green-face? 

[secnarf]

1 hour ago, PatternRec said:

Are we all gonna not say anything about M'gann wearing Green-face? 

I'm pretty sure people have already commented on that and the identical clothing ("uniforms"?), as well as how ridiculous it was for M'gann to be a small Green Martian when fighting a much larger White Martian, and why can't both her and J'onn shapeshift into creatures even larger than the White Martian for the purposes of fighting.

[John Potts]

Overall I liked the episode: the central part of it was truly tense, if rather derivative of The Thing. But the whole "trapped with the killer" bit was done well and I was totally blindsided by the, "Gotcha!" of there being a second Martian. Winn had some great moments (loved the interaction with J'Onn "How long will it take you to deactivate the Self Destruct?" "BASE DESTRUCTION IN FIVE MINUTES" "...I guess about four and a half minutes?" plus he was pretty damn calm to keep typing while the superfight was happening). Gotta love those countdown timers that can tell to the second exactly when the base will go boom, though that is a comic book cliché.

I would have thought that Kara & Alex would refer to her arrival day simply as her birthday (a least in public) - it's probably a lot simpler than trying to work out what Earth day corresponds to her Kryptonian birthday. But a bit of a douche move on Alex's part not to realise she was booking a date on "Arrival Day" - given how close they are, it seems unlikely she would just go, "Screw my sister, it's the are Naked Ladies!". And on that subject, I was also thinking, "Really? The Bare Naked Ladies? I wouldn't have pegged her as a fan" - OK, it's possible, but it was like when Lorelei bought tickets for Rory & friends to see The Bangles (on Gilmore Girls) - writers need to realise that the bands YOU like may not be what your characters like.

On ‎07‎/‎02‎/‎2017 at 3:26 AM, ottoDbusdriver said:

If green Martians are also shape changers, why don't they change into the form of ...... oh I don't know ...... a much larger form equivalent to the size of the White Martians so they can best them in battle.

OK, the real answer is "Plot convenience & budget", but if I had to Fanwank an answer, I'd say that irrespective of form, Martians have the same "base strength", so while a bigger Martian might be heavier, it's not stronger (in fact, since mass increases on a cubic scale but strength would tend to increase on a square, larger animals are actually proportionately weaker - it's why ants can drag ten times their bodyweight but we can't). But applying real world physics to comic book shows is probably a mug's game, even if it's sometimes amusing.

[secnarf]

51 minutes ago, John Potts said:

I would have thought that Kara & Alex would refer to her arrival day simply as her birthday (a least in public) - it's probably a lot simpler than trying to work out what Earth day corresponds to her Kryptonian birthday. But a bit of a douche move on Alex's part not to realise she was booking a date on "Arrival Day" - given how close they are, it seems unlikely she would just go, "Screw my sister, it's the are Naked Ladies!". And on that subject, I was also thinking, "Really? The Bare Naked Ladies? I wouldn't have pegged her as a fan" - OK, it's possible, but it was like when Lorelei bought tickets for Rory & friends to see The Bangles (on Gilmore Girls) - writers need to realise that the bands YOU like may not be what your characters like.

I thought Alex told Kara that Maggie got the tickets as a surprise for her - so Alex didn't have any input.

[Starfish35]

1 minute ago, secnarf said:

I thought Alex told Kara that Maggie got the tickets as a surprise for her - so Alex didn't have any input.

That's what I remember.

[stealinghome]

Yeah, Maggie surprised Alex with the tickets. Alex didn't intentionally book a date on Kara's Earth Birthday.

re: Alex liking the Barenaked Ladies, I think a large part of the writers' motivation was simply to have fun with the band's name. ;) But I can buy Alex liking them. I am more skeptical that Maggie would be really into them!

[John Potts]

1 hour ago, secnarf said:

I thought Alex told Kara that Maggie got the tickets as a surprise for her - so Alex didn't have any input.

Fair enough - but I would expect her to go (something like) "Tonight? That's great - but it's my sister's birthday, I'd better ask if she's OK with not spending it with her." I suspect there would be much angst (and you know how much TPTB love that, apparently) as each sister tried to accommodate the other's feelings.

[GHScorpiosRule]

Or, you know, ask if she could get a ticket for Kara as well? Since Maggie was able to get Alex the VIP or go backstage to meet the guys.

Oh wait. That wouldn't work, because it was supposed to be a date.

[jay741982]

On 2/7/2017 at 1:11 AM, stealinghome said:

Oh, and one more thing while I'm thinking about it: I call MAJOR foul on Kara's "every time I put myself out there, it backfires." Girl, the last time you put yourself out there, it backfired...on James. In fact, Kara has been the dumper/the uninterested party with all of her love interests pre-Mon-El. I see you rewriting the show's canon, writers, and I do not approve.

Yeah it's fucking annoying and I noticed it just like you did

[AudienceofOne]

Sorry but this episode sucked! It made no sense. White Martian one comes into the DEO as McGann but then they fight and suddenly Wynn is gone and tied up somewhere else in the base and he's Wynn and he's encrypted the entire base? When? It only made sense if there were three White Martians but apparently, no, there were only two. And when was Alex replaced? 

There is NOTHING more boring than closed room horror tropes. Oh, we're trapped in here with a White Martian and the base is going to explode! Yawn!

Anyone of us could be the bad guy. And look, two red shirts are suddenly in this scene that weren't here before. That complicates things.

If that wasn't bad enough, we had the bucket of stupid that is Supergirl FLINCHING from a bunsen burner being wielded by the White Martian in a slow circle that wouldn't threaten anybody except the most fire phobic. Oh, and we had everybody standing around while J'onn fought the White Martian when Supergirl could have just come in, knocked both of them unconscious and worked it out after.

No wonder I enjoy Mon-El. Having somebody come in and snark all over these idiots is the highlight of every episode for me.

On the plus side, no Jimmy! So that was good.

Edited February 26, 2017 by AudienceofOne
Names are important

[madam magpie]

On 2/6/2017 at 6:39 PM, kalamac said:

I'm sure Maggie would have understood "it's Kara's birthday, and it's important to her, so we'll have to do something another night, or meet up after the birthday celebration."  It feels like they're isolating poor Kara to make it seem like she has no choice but to turn to Mon-idiot. (to which I say, hey Kara, Lena is also an option, a better option, who seems to actually like and appreciate you).

The end was very sweet, but this bit really bugged me. That wasn't Kara being overly sensitive because she has to share Alex; that was Alex being selfish, immature, and mean. She bailed on Kara on a special day/celebration that Alex knows is super important and that they've always done together. And she did it with zero notice or promise of "Let's do whatever you like tomorrow, but today is the only day I can do this." She didn't tell Maggie the truth and thereby involved Maggie in hurting Kara. And why? Because she's so immature she can't tell these people what's actually going on. Just because you get a girlfriend doesn't mean you get a free pass to ditch everyone who's ever loved you. I really like the idea of Maggie/Alex, but in reality, they're a childish paring. I don't think that discovering your sexuality suddenly reverts your emotional maturity to that of a teenager.

Otherwise, this was s great episode! I hope M'gann isn't gone for good. The lack of Mon-El and Jimmy was a huge help. And I loved the shirt Kara wore at the end durong her chat with the real Alex.

[Star Aristille]

All this praise about Vasquez reappearing. . . . By any chance, is she also Agent Piper from Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.?  She looks so much like that actress.

[Star Aristille]

On ‎2‎/‎26‎/‎2017 at 5:54 AM, AudienceofOne said:

Sorry but this episode sucked! It made no sense.

Meh.  Matter of opinion.  I liked it and thought that it made plenty of sense.

Not that I mind, as a person of color myself, but does every Martian turn into a black person?  First J'onn, then M'gann, and now Armez?

[MarkHB]

On 9/15/2017 at 11:02 PM, Star Aristille said:

All this praise about Vasquez reappearing. . . . By any chance, is she also Agent Piper from Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.?  She looks so much like that actress.

Indeed she is!  Per IMDB, she's a very busy actress.