S02.E19: Alex

[The Crazed Spruce]

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Alex gets kidnapped and her captor threatens to kill her unless Supergirl releases a notorious criminal from prison; Rhea has an interesting proposal for Lena.

[stealinghome]

Aside from the big plot contrivance of 1) J’onn mysteriously not being able to read the bad guy’s mind and 2) the implausibility of the bad guy stalking Alex for a year and no one noticing, this was a REALLY engaging episode. Now THAT is how you do filler! It’s not like anyone thought they wouldn’t save Alex, but I really enjoyed seeing both Maggie and Kara being pushed to their limits and learning to work together. (Also enjoyed Alex being a badass and oh, that credit card scene was nasty.) I also liked that Kara convinced the dad to tell them where Alex was—that felt like classic Kara from last season to me, appealing to the father’s love for his son. It does feel like the show has forgotten that that compassion is what sets Kara apart, so I like to think this was the show AND Kara rediscovering it. I do think we could’ve used a little more obviously heightened emotion and also A SISTER SCENE AT THE END, but overall that was really enjoyable. This was filler, but still better than half the plot-heavy episodes this season. And thankfully it returned the Danvers Sisters to the show’s fore.

The ILUs at the end were really sweet (though if I was writing the episode, I’d have had Maggie almost say it at the episode’s start but then get distracted by Kara and her own grumpiness, hee). Floriana Lima did a really good job tonight, I thought--the contrast between Cop!Maggie, and then Worried Girlfriend!Maggie when she couldn’t stay detached anymore, was striking, particularly when she and Alex talked on the laptop. Alex/Maggie continues to be, by far, the best-written couple on the show. It’s amazing that the same writers who give us Sanvers also give us all the other relationships on the show. I also like what the episode did with Kara and Maggie—they had their conflict at the start, of course, but I do think we’ve seen tension between them (mostly from Kara) about Maggie taking up a lot of Alex’s attention, and I liked that Maggie called Kara out on that and Kara didn't own it verbally, but changed her attitude immediately. I wouldn't mind seeing Kara and Maggie continue to butt heads though--it makes sense to me, and I believe is true to the Maggie of the comics.

Kara and J’onn’s scene was really good. Those two are such a treasure when the writers let them interact every 8 episodes or so.

Ahhh, Lena, don’t fall for it! Don’t fall for it! I’m hoping Lena is playing the long con on Rhea. The manipulation is so obvious—and yet sometimes that’s the most convincing of all, I suppose. Effective B-plot, but I was WAY more interested in the A-plot.

I’ve SO enjoyed the last few Mon-El-light episodes, but I have a feeling my luck on that front is about to change. Sigh. See how good the show can be when he has 3 minutes, writers? Do that more often. Like always.

This show is so, so much better when it focuses on the Danvers sisters as its heart. Toss in J’onn and a side of Maggie and you’ve found the way to MY heart.

Best episode in a while, maybe since 2x15.

[shantown]

I loved the tension of Maggie's NCPD methods with Kara's superhero methods. It was a very real source of conflict and I would like to see it being an issue in the future too. The show has shown hints of NCPD vs DEO vs Supergirl (vs Guardian) in the past and I think that would be a good way to create character-driven conflict between the major characters. 

Anyway, I thought it was a good, tense episode with some good light bits of humor. You knew Alex was going to be saved, but it was enjoyable to watch how it would happen. I miss useful Jimmy, but no Guardian was good. I like Winn at the DEO instead of in the back of some van. I like Mon-El being used in small doses. 

[Primal Slayer]

Wasn't a bad episode. I enjoyed the tension between Maggie and Karas methods. The bad guy had actual brains and we didnt have to deal with dumb romance drama. 

I would've applauded them if they had let the bad guy win and they had to give his dad over to end up saving Alex which they could've used to get further drama for some episodes. 

[Humbugged]

Mitchum Huntzerger's kids !!! Getting Alex into trouble since 2010

[BkWurm1]

1 hour ago, Primal Slayer said:

Wasn't a bad episode. I enjoyed the tension between Maggie and Karas methods. The bad guy had actual brains and we didnt have to deal with dumb romance drama. 

I would've applauded them if they had let the bad guy win and they had to give his dad over to end up saving Alex which they could've used to get further drama for some episodes. 

The whole point was they can't do that.  For the bad guy to win, Alex would have to die and nope, not willing for that to happen.  

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I enjoyed the tension between Maggie and Karas methods. 

I also liked the real conflict between Kara and Maggie but I'm kind of confused why Kara waited 17 hours before going in and getting the bad guys if all it took was a quick bust through the roof to grab them.  And really, just because they worked together to save Alex doesn't mean that the issues that were brought up when it comes to Kara's methods went away.  

 

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(Also enjoyed Alex being a badass and oh, that credit card scene was nasty.)

SOOO nasty!  I had to look away a couple times.  Applause to the makeup department.  

I liked how Alex was proactive the whole time.  I don't mind that someone gets kidnapped and needs saving but this is how you do it, with the "victim" not just sitting there waiting. It made the line about her "holding on" really moving for me.  

Oh but nitpick.  The putting the air in her pants thing, sorry, that's not something special to the Navy Seals, lol.  I got the same lesson when I was 13 at my local municipal pool. Junior Lifesaving Class for the win!    

7 minutes ago, Humbugged said:

Mitchum Huntzerger's kids !!! Getting Alex into trouble since 2010

Hee!  I was hating on Peter Thompson (and happy to pretend Mitchum finally got tossed where he belonged) the second I saw him.  Poor Alex.

 Thanks for sharing the Gilmore Girls connection!  

Edited May 2, 2017 by BkWurm1

[Primal Slayer]

Was it the point? I didn't get that from the episode, maybe I need to rewatch it. The point seemed to be "we don't negotiate with criminals" 

[thuganomics85]

Alex gets kidnapped and everything looses their shit!  Actually, I'm totally OK with that, because Alex is the best and that would be the biggest tragedy of all time!

I like that they brought up the tension between Kara and Maggie, because that would be something that would be under the surface between a cop and vigilante/superhero.  I certainly think Kara has noble intentions and everything she does is to protect the city, but I can also see why it would annoy Maggie to actually try "policing" and seem to be making headway, only for Kara to crash the party, unannounced, and deal with herself, with more property damage and injuries.  Plus, Kara admittedly does have a flippant attitude about it, but again, I don't think it's out of malice or disrespect, but just because she loves doing what she does and helping people.

That said, I did think she handled Alex's kidnapping the worst way possible, and I'm glad the show was willing to call her out on it.  I can only imagine how freaked out she was over Alex's kidnapping, but that was "bull in a China shop" moves going on there.  She really does dive in head first, which can be a good thing sometimes, but this clearly was not the right call, and just made things worse.  Of course, Maggie almost did the wrong thing by breaking out the dad, but that was only after it came down to the wire.  Still, I'm glad it all worked out, and hopefully there will be more give and take between these two.

Did like Alex finding ways to make the best out of her situation and wasn't just laying around and accepting her fate.  Although, she sure was lucky that she happened to be wearing shorts that night for modesty sake, after she used her pants as a flotation device!

The guy playing Rick was good and sold him as a credible threat (although, he almost was too all-knowing), but I really loved seeing Gregg Henry as the dad.  He's one of my favorites, and did a great job at showing that his character wasn't a good guy, but did love his son, and was willing to stop him before things really became bad.  I kept comparing him to Winn's dad and the differences between them.

Ah, Mon-El.  I was just warming up to you, and then you a) make a remark about how they will no longer need cops in front of Maggie and b) confess your love for Hawaiian pizza.  Boo!

And... Jimmy disappears again.  Poor Mehcad Brooks.

J'onn and Winn didn't do much, but still had some nice moments.

Glad Lena figured out Rhea was keeping things from her, but it looks like she still doesn't know the full extent, since it looks like they're going into business after-all.  What is your game, Rhea?!  You better not to anything to my beloved Lena!

Fun episode.

[BkWurm1]

45 minutes ago, Primal Slayer said:

Was it the point? I didn't get that from the episode, maybe I need to rewatch it. The point seemed to be "we don't negotiate with criminals" 

Right, and giving him what he wanted - freeing his dad - would be giving in to the demands of the criminals.  The issue was specifically that they could never open that door for criminals to start controlling Supergirl by making demands, no matter the cost.  

[Athena5217]

The best part of this episode was when Mod-El started to talk about his "superhero" experience and everyone just stared at him. The 2nd best part was the last scene with Alex and Maggie. The 3rd best was when Wynn got excited after picking up Alex's signal--it didn't work as expected but Wynn's reaction was great.

[immortalfrieza]

Have I suddenly been transported in a mirror universe? Since when have any of these superhero shows had a plot that didn't require even a single person to be an idiot in order to work? J'onn tries to mind read the father and son right away and in the latter case they establish that he can't and the former doesn't know anything, instead of just having him sit there in the interrogation room the whole episode when they could have had all the answers instantly like this and other shows usually do with that ability (though they should have had J'onn interrogate the father for any possible place his son could of hid Alex the moment they realized the son was responsible, even if just to rule those locations out.) Alex didn't just sit there and do nothing in captivity though ultimately she really should have, but there's no way she could have known that, and she managed to hold out by being smart about what she had.

Probably the only dumb thing anyone did this episode was that while Lena caught on to Rhea being an alien right off the bat, only to let Rhea worm her way back into her good graces anyway. Still, I buy Lena falling for the second deception much better than her falling for the first, at least Lena wasn't just taking Rhea at face value right off. Well, assuming Lena actually DID fall for it, it would be awesome if it turns out she's actually conning Rhea back.

37 minutes ago, thuganomics85 said:

 

I like that they brought up the tension between Kara and Maggie, because that would be something that would be under the surface between a cop and vigilante/superhero.  I certainly think Kara has noble intentions and everything she does is to protect the city, but I can also see why it would annoy Maggie to actually try "policing" and seem to be making headway, only for Kara to crash the party, unannounced, and deal with herself, with more property damage and injuries.  Plus, Kara admittedly does have a flippant attitude about it, but again, I don't think it's out of malice or disrespect, but just because she loves doing what she does and helping people.

 

This is probably the only thing I didn't like about the episode. Normally I would just pass off stuff like what Maggie was saying about the hostage situation as motivated by Maggie simply being pissed off at being one upped by Supergirl and jealousy over the fact that Maggie was getting nowhere after 17 hours while Kara resolved the situation in 30 seconds and Maggie couldn't have done the same.

That is normally that's what I'd pass it off as, however:

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That said, I did think she handled Alex's kidnapping the worst way possible, and I'm glad the show was willing to call her out on it.  I can only imagine how freaked out she was over Alex's kidnapping, but that was "bull in a China shop" moves going on there.  She really does dive in head first, which can be a good thing sometimes, but this clearly was not the right call, and just made things worse.  Of course, Maggie almost did the wrong thing by breaking out the dad, but that was only after it came down to the wire.

This makes it clear that the writers were trying to push the idea that Maggie was right about her whining when she really, really wasn't, by putting Kara into the 1 time out of 10 where her bull in a china shop approach wouldn't actually work and didn't for an episode. It might even have actually given Maggie a point if it wasn't for the fact that Maggie's slow and methodical approach didn't work either and both of them simply ended up getting lucky at the last minute that the father both knew where Alex was and cared enough to tell.

If the bank robbers had shot one or more of the hostages dead an hour in to the negotiations I'd bet money she'd be pissed at Kara for not showing up and saving the day instead. Some property damage and a couple broken bones is a small price to pay for assuredly saving lives. It's one thing if those bank robbers just happened to Kryptonite sabot rounds or something (speaking of which, if you're going to operate in National City or Metropolis, you probably should get some before even trying) but there was no indication of that. Maggie's method was extremely risky and Supergirl's was all but a sure thing, that makes Maggie wrong.

Edited May 2, 2017 by immortalfrieza

[opus]

At least Mechad Brooks looked good in his Subaru commercial.

Edited May 2, 2017 by opus

[KirkB]

It's amazing to me how much better the show is with no James and very little Mon-El, although the latter managed to make his limited appearance more cringe worthy by making such a targeted and insensitive comment. In fact, the more I think about it, him saying that to Maggie's face makes little sense unless he was somehow unaware of the fact she was a cop.

59 minutes ago, thuganomics85 said:

Glad Lena figured out Rhea was keeping things from her, but it looks like she still doesn't know the full extent, since it looks like they're going into business after-all.  What is your game, Rhea?!  You better not to anything to my beloved Lena!

I'm wondering that myself. Why would she need Lena to help create technology she already has?

 

27 minutes ago, immortalfrieza said:

If the bank robbers had shot one or more of the hostages dead an hour in to the negotiations I'd bet money she'd be pissed at Kara for not showing up and saving the day instead. Some property damage and a couple broken bones is a small price to pay for assuredly saving lives. It's one thing if those bank robbers just happened to Kryptonite sabot rounds or something (speaking of which, if you're going to operate in National City or Metropolis, you probably should get some before even trying) but there was no indication of that. Maggie's method was extremely risky and Supergirl's was all but a sure thing, that makes Maggie wrong.

At the end of the day, for all the good she has done and in spite of how much the city loves her, Kara is still as much of a vigilante as Oliver Queen or Barry Allen. She has no official sanction. Kara does more good than harm, certainly, but crashing into a building like that could get people killed just as easily as a bad hostage negotiation. On that subject, why WAS Maggie doing that? I was under the impression hostage negotiation was a specific kind of training, and it makes it look like Maggie is the only cop in National City, like Joe West apparently is on the Flash.

Edited May 2, 2017 by KirkB

[Lantern7]

Okay episode, thought Kara vs. Maggie was a bit much. And then you bring in Mon for the pizza scene . . . couldn't Kara keep him in a closet when company comes?

"Who knows my secret? Let's see . . . there are my foster parents, Lena's mom*, everybody at the DEO . . ." "OHMIGAWD! That's why Kara Danvers and Supergirl were never seen together!!!" "Crap, who didn't tell Maggie from Accounts Receivable?"

I liked the Lena/Rhea scenes. Of course, Lena isn't stupid, and she probably would have put two and two together even if Rhea didn't blurt out "thank the gods." But she's working with her on what I'm assuming is the macguffin for the season finale.. I'm hoping Lena doesn't follow her brother, and not for more homoerotic scenes with Kara. Been there/done that with Smallville.

*I think that was what she said. Please correct me if I'm wrong.

[Perfect Xero]

35 minutes ago, KirkB said:

At the end of the day, for all the good she has done and in spite of how much the city loves her, Kara is still as much of a vigilante as Oliver Queen or Barry Allen. She has no official sanction. Kara does more good than harm, certainly, but crashing into a building like that could get people killed just as easily as a bad hostage negotiation. On that subject, why WAS Maggie doing that? I was under the impression hostage negotiation was a specific kind of training, and it makes it look like Maggie is the only cop in National City, like Joe West apparently is on the Flash.

Kara works for the DEO though? Granted, they shouldn't have jurisdiction in a hostage situation unless the baddies were aliens or using alien tech, but she's got more official standing and sanction for her actions than the others.

[immortalfrieza]

28 minutes ago, Perfect Xero said:

Kara works for the DEO though? Granted, they shouldn't have jurisdiction in a hostage situation unless the baddies were aliens or using alien tech, but she's got more official standing and sanction for her actions than the others.

As I recall Kara also has official sanction from the President, if the President coming to honor Supergirl a while back is any indication.

[Trini]

Definitely one of the better episodes of the season! More of this, please?

[Dobian]

Halfway into the episode I was saying, why don't they just talk to the dad and appeal to his fatherly side about not wanting his son to be a murderer?  Of course they finally figure that out when Alex is drowning.  Supergirl not very quick on the uptake this episode.

[ottoDbusdriver]

I thought the squabble between Kara and Maggie over pizza was poorly written -- really ham-handed (maybe ham and pineapple-handed).

Did they also wipe the mind of Rick's father ?  Because I'm pretty sure he figured out Kara was Supergirl by now.
And did they mind wipe the guard in the room when Kara "the reporter" slammed the table -- because I'm pretty sure he knows now too.

And seriously, who drags a reporter into the prison interrogation room over a kidnapping ?  DEO rep, NCPD rep, and Catco Magazine -- 1 of these things is not like the others.

I thought Rick's entire motivation was just weak -- and what was the plan after he got his dad out of prison ?  Because they would have had to have gone on the lam for the rest of their lives.  So I don't think Rick really thought things thoroughly, considering he had been planning for a year.

Edited May 2, 2017 by ottoDbusdriver

[Winston Wolfe]

6 hours ago, Lantern7 said:

"Who knows my secret? Let's see . . . there are my foster parents, Lena's mom*, everybody at the DEO . . ." "OHMIGAWD! That's why Kara Danvers and Supergirl were never seen together!!!" "Crap, who didn't tell Maggie from Accounts Receivable?"

Yeah, that's a big problem for me.  Even though the DEO is a super-clandestine, super-duper top secret agency, no good can possibly come from so many people knowing Kara is Supergirl.

Best episode in a very long time, and demonstrated that non-super-powered baddies, if written well enough, can be just as entertaining as super-villains, maybe even moreso.

Mon-el -  "as someone who's done a bit of super heroing" - dude, we haven't even seen you use whatever powers you're supposed to have in about four episodes.  Get over yourself.

I liked Maggie's observations about the collateral damage super-heroes can cause.  Reminded me of the original Superman when George Reeves used to slam two baddies' heads together like something out of a Three Stooges movie.  Last time I saw that, couldn't help but think, well, there's two guys with major concussions, heh.  The whole conversation between Maggie and Kara really underscored how the capes can actually be more dangerous to ordinary folks than they are to the bad guys.

[Winston Wolfe]

10 minutes ago, ottoDbusdriver said:

Did they also wipe the mind of Rick's father ?  Because I'm pretty sure he figured out Kara was Supergirl by now.
And did they mind wipe the guard in the room when Kara "the reporter" slammed the table -- because I'm pretty sure he knows now too.

And seriously, who drags a reporter into the prison interrogation room over a kidnapping ?  DEO rep, NCPD rep, and Catco Magazine -- 1 of these things is not like the others.

Damn good point.  Kara's anger issues and impulsiveness kinda make it hard for her to maintain a secret ID.  I'd have to think that off-screen J'onn mind-wiped Rick's Dad and the guard and surreptitiously used his own super-strength to smooth out the dent in the table.  Otherwise, "oh-oh more blackmail coming." 

[cambridgeguy]

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Yeah, that's a big problem for me.  Even though the DEO is a super-clandestine, super-duper top secret agency, no good can possibly come from so many people knowing Kara is Supergirl.

I suppose it's possible J'onn mind reads every agent and verifies their loyalty but there's no guarantee they won't crack if they're captured and interrogated by the baddies.  There's still no rational explanation for Kara to be hanging around the DEO in her civilian clothes all the time.

Also, why didn't they pump Rick full of drugs and see if he could continue to block J'onn?  If he was just using strength of will (the Batman approach) then that should fail if he's loopy from sedatives and other such things.

[KirkB]

1 hour ago, ottoDbusdriver said:

I thought Rick's entire motivation was just weak -- and what was the plan after he got his dad out of prison ?  Because they would have had to have gone on the lam for the rest of their lives.  So I don't think Rick really thought things thoroughly, considering he had been planning for a year.

Oh, I get his motivation. Wanting to get his dad, the only good person in his life as far as he was concerned, out of prison? I get that. But he really, really wasn't thinking ahead. Best case scenario, his dad gets out of prison, the two of them go on the run, and Alex is released alive and unharmed. He still has a shape shifting telepath and all the DEO resources at his disposal, the top DEO agent he kidnapped, her highly motivated cop girlfriend, and her super powered alien sister, out looking for both of them. If Alex had died, he would have had all of that after them and out for blood.

1 hour ago, ottoDbusdriver said:

Did they also wipe the mind of Rick's father ?  Because I'm pretty sure he figured out Kara was Supergirl by now.
And did they mind wipe the guard in the room when Kara "the reporter" slammed the table -- because I'm pretty sure he knows now too.

The guard might have seen a pissed off woman hit the metal table hard enough to dent it. That's not necessarily anything special. Unless the table is adamantium or something a human can do that. At most he might think the reporter has powers, there would be no reason for him to automatically have the realization she's Supergirl.

1 hour ago, Winston Wolfe said:

Yeah, that's a big problem for me.  Even though the DEO is a super-clandestine, super-duper top secret agency, no good can possibly come from so many people knowing Kara is Supergirl.

It hasn't really hurt Barry Allen too much, and it seems like half the damn world knows he's the Flash. The majority of people who know are already on Kara's side and/or have secrets of their own. J'onn takes care of the ones who might be a problem.

[Chicago Redshirt]

Entertaining, but if you think too much about things, they fall apart at the seams a little. We are supposed to buy that...

1. Rick apparently knew that Kara was special from when they were teens but never said anything to Alex or Kara or anyone.

2.  Rick decides to free his father using this elaborate Saw-like blackmail scheme, complete with a timer and mini-traps, anticipating most countermoves.

3. In the process, he learns a) that the DEO has the Martian Manhunter working there when the DEO is quasi-secret and even the DEO didn't know J'onn was an alien until about a year ago b) J'onn's abilities c) some means of blocking MM's mind-reading abilities

4. When Rick decides to strike, he just so happens to be in the elevator of Maggie's apartment building when Alex comes out.

5. Despite having super-speed, flight, X-ray vision, and super-hearing, Supergirl can't figure out where Alex is. (Yes, there was a reference to her trying to use super-hearing to figure out where Alex was. But that was from a stationary point and for a short period of time. There literally is no way that given 36 hours Supergirl couldn't have searched  the entirety of California. Especially if she called in her cousin or others for help).

6. Despite having a live friggin feed to where Alex is, tech genius Winn can't figure out where Alex is.

7. Rick was so desperate to "save" his father that he was willing to become a murderer. 

8. Despite having the aforementioned powers, Supergirl doesn't notice that Alex isn't where the lead suggested she would be

9. Rick's temptation of Maggie was such that she could a) drive from the DEO to wherever the prison is supposed to be, b) get through the prison bureaucracy c) with a gun (which, by the way, why does Maggie have Alex's gun?) d) knockout cameras and guards e) get access to Papa Rick and f) somehow expect that she could literally jailbreak him in 2 hours. 

[stealinghome]

I do agree that Rick's scheme required a huge and implausible number of things to go his way, but to defend the writing on one ground!, I'm pretty sure the double date at the start of the ep was in Alex's apartment. I don't think we've ever seen Maggie's (I'm sure they don't want to build a set--I'm guessing Maggie and Alex will move in together in the finale or early next season anyway).

[themadman]

This is the second time they've used the "I can't read his mind. He must be blocking me somehow." excuse this season. It's going to get old very fast.

[The Crazed Spruce]

Well, that's two really solid episodes in a row. I'm a little disappointed that they burned off Dick Malverne (who was basically Kara's Lois/Lana in her early stories in the comics) as a Villain Of The Week, but I really bought into the tension. And this is probably the first episode of.... well, anything I've seen in a while where none of the characters acted like a complete moron. (Well, except for Mon-El, but he wasn't really germane to the plot, so I'll let it ride....)

[Jediknight]

Don't turn Lena evil, please don't turn Lena evil.

Really good episode, gotta mention a nice background event, after Alex slugs Rick you see Winn put up his hand, and Alex gives him a high five.  I've said it multiple times, but I've got to say it again, I love the sibling chemistry these 2 have.

[tennisgurl]

The second good really good episode in a row! Granted, much like last weeks episode, it wasn't perfect or anything, but it was still a solid episode that was actually about Supergirl, and had lots of good action and tension.

I thought the conflict between Maggie and Kara was really understandable, and I understood both of their sides. I can see where Maggie would be pissed off at Kara jumping in to save the day (and cause injuries and property damage) after several hours of hostage negotiation, and that Supergirl chasing down criminals and causing property damage and possibly leading to defense attorneys using Supergirl as an excuse to get criminals out would be a pain for cops to deal with, even if they appreciate her help. I can also understand why Kara would be confused as to why Maggie would be upset with her, when she managed to save people at the bank, and she doesn't really have to deal with the aftermath of her crime fighting like Maggie does. She just flies in, stops bad guys, and leaves. She really just wants to help people, the consequences just didn't occur to her. Of course, Mon-El had to be an asshole at the dinner about how the city doesn't need cops, when Maggie THE COP is sitting right there. I like Mon-El better like this, in small doses, but shit like that is why he makes me roll my eyes.

Ricks schemes seemed a little too advanced for just some random guy, even if he did plan this for over a year, but I still bought it well enough, and I thought he was a good villain of the week. His motives were understandable, but he was still threatening enough to be a credible threat. It was also cool seeing Mitchum from Gilmore Girls here, and I thought he did a lot with only a few scenes. The guy certainly didn't seem like any kind of upstanding citizen, but he did seem like he very much loved his son, and was as good of a father as he could have been, even when he apparently didn't need to be, considering the backstory. I love that Kara appealed to him as a father, it seemed like classic Kara. She shouldn't just want to punch her way out of every problem, she should inspire people to be better through her natural sweetness.

I know that tons of Super hero stories have heroes often being way too casual about their secret identities, but is it really a good idea that everyone at the DEO knows who Supergirl really is? Even, like, the random person in the mailroom? The cleaning crew? Did J'onn really mind read everyone who ever enters the building ever? Even if he did and knows they can be trusted, they could still be blackmailed or drugged or something. This seems like it could be a real issue! Also, they really needed to look into how Rick was able to block mind control. Is that just a spray you can buy at Target now?

Stay away from Lena! I hope this isn't the start of her turning evil, I don't want that at all!

[MarkHB]

Things I loved:

• The acting by all 3 of the principals (Melissa, Chyler and Floriana).  I thought they did a great job all the way around.
• The flashbacks to the beach trip from the pilot (OK, they didn't show it in the pilot, but I think that's when they filmed all the kid stuff)
• Lena's alien identifier device; nice continuity, there.  There was something else that was a callback but I can't remember what it was.

So far as this goes...

2 hours ago, Chicago Redshirt said:

Despite having a live friggin feed to where Alex is, tech genius Winn can't figure out where Alex is.

Even though I knew it wouldn't happen, I kept hoping that Kara would pop over to Earth-1 and bring the Atom back with her.  Tracing that feed should be right up his alley.

[cambridgeguy]

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Even though I knew it wouldn't happen, I kept hoping that Kara would pop over to Earth-1 and bring the Atom back with her.  Tracing that feed should be right up his alley.

The Atom?  Cisco could have vibed Alex in an instant and Barry could have raced around the entire city in 24 hours.  Ray's always off in another time period but those two are (usually) right where they're supposed to be.

[JapMo]

3 hours ago, Jediknight said:

Don't turn Lena evil, please don't turn Lena evil.

YES, turn her evil.  She has the genius mindset of Lex, who, before Gene Hackman turned him into a buffoon, was always a very worthy nemisis to Superman.

[JapMo]

3 hours ago, tennisgurl said:

I thought the conflict between Maggie and Kara was really understandable, and I understood both of their sides. I can see where Maggie would be pissed off at Kara jumping in to save the day (and cause injuries and property damage) after several hours of hostage negotiation, and that Supergirl chasing down criminals and causing property damage and possibly leading to defense attorneys using Supergirl as an excuse to get criminals out would be a pain for cops to deal with, even if they appreciate her help. I can also understand why Kara would be confused as to why Maggie would be upset with her, when she managed to save people at the bank, and she doesn't really have to deal with the aftermath of her crime fighting like Maggie does. She just flies in, stops bad guys, and leaves. She really just wants to help people, the consequences just didn't occur to her. Of course, Mon-El had to be an asshole at the dinner about how the city doesn't need cops, when Maggie THE COP is sitting right there. I like Mon-El better like this, in small doses, but shit like that is why he makes me roll my eyes.

You think the attack by Maggie towards Kara was understandable, but you have a big problem with the one comment Mon-El said, which in effect was praising his girlfriend?  Maggie was the giant asshole.  The nameless, faceless DEO agents who are on the front line in every episode yet watch silently as Supergirl gets all the praise have more of a beef than Maggie should.  If they had written this a little better where Maggie had made comments in previous episodes that she didn't like superheroes butting in to police work, or they had addressed the fact that Kara was causing too much property damage, her tone would have made sense.   But she blindsided Kara and I was surprised that not only did Alex not try to defend her sister, but after Kara stalked out, she told Maggie she (Alex) had to go smooth things over with Kara because they were BOTH stubborn.  No Alex...you tell your girlfriend she went over the line and better apologize to your sister.  Period.  

Posters have referred to Barry Allen, and I agree that Barry had a cocky attitude and blew off any constructive advice Oliver Queen was trying to give him, but remember that was very early in the first season.  He's grown tremendously, and while Kara has, too, she was never shown as being insensitive or disrespectful to the local jurisdiction, and there's never been any foreshadowing that the police were unhappy with her help.      

[tennisgurl]

2 hours ago, JapMo said:

You think the attack by Maggie towards Kara was understandable, but you have a big problem with the one comment Mon-El said, which in effect was praising his girlfriend?

I don't really have a big problem with Mon-Els comment, I just thought it was insensitive. He probably didn't mean it like that, but it was still a crappy thing to say to Maggie, even if his intentions were good. I don't think Maggie was totally in the right in that conversation, I think both she and Kara brought up good points both here, and in the episode. I would have liked it if we saw more in previous episodes that established that the cops (including Maggie) had an issue with Supergirl, but, in a vacuum, I understand why Maggie was angry. She was tired and frustrated from hours of hostage negotiation, that was all suddenly put to waste after Kara literally swooped in to save the day. Maggie could certainly have been less argumentative about it, and throwing it out at a dinner party was inappropriate, but Kara was rather dismissive of her issues, even if she has never shown any disdain for law enforcement by any means. Really, in the larger look at the series, the whole conflict seemed to come a bit out of nowhere, and I would have liked to see more build up for a conflict between the cops and Supergirl, if they wanted to have one, but, in this episode, I thought they both had points, and they both could have handled things better.

[stealinghome]

I have to agree that both Maggie and Kara brought up valid points in the argument. I do also agree that there's a time and place and Maggie shouldn't have brought it up at dinner, for sure (and she knew that--you could tell she felt shitty when Alex left). But Kara didn't react like a paragon of maturity, either. Unfortunately, the writers seem to be going with a running theme of Kara being on a high horse about superheroics this season, between her "James can't be a hero because he's a puny HUMAN" earlier and now her "I am above critique" attitude this episode. I just don't know WHY the writers are leaning into Kara being a bit arrogant about superheroing, since she never was last year.

Mon-El's comment was just douchey. C'mon, no one is that oblivious. Side note, I loved how Alex, Maggie, AND Kara all rolled their eyes when Mon-El started talking. They know what's up. Kara, if you spend your life rolling your eyes at your idiot of a boyfriend, you need to rethink your dating choices.

Edited May 2, 2017 by stealinghome

[GHScorpiosRule]

13 minutes ago, tennisgurl said:

Really, in the larger look at the series, the whole conflict seemed to come a bit out of nowhere, and I would have liked to see more build up for a conflict between the cops and Supergirl, if they wanted to have one

THIS. It all came out of nowhere, and I know I have to hand wave "real life" issues aside. Like how Maggie seems to be Jack of all Trades of cops-meaning NO ONE ELSE can do cop/detective things except for her. As someone mentioned upthread, She seems to be the only Detective in National City.  I mean, really, SWAT should have been there, and a cop who is an expert in hostage negotiations should have been doing the negotiating. And up until this episode, I haven't seen any of the cops, Maggie included, having any issues with Kara "swooping in" to save the day. And Maggie being a major jerk about it over dinner. And Kara also being dismissive was out of character, I think, even for her. Hell, even Supes helps with the every day helping cops catch crooks. It was all to set up the drama/conflict to have them set aside the conflict and team up to save Alex plot.

And speaking of which, Maggie should have been automatically recused or removed from even working on the kidnapping because of her relationship with Alex. Even in other procedurals, when it's a case where the lead's loved one is involved-be it kidnapping or murder, the Captain, Lieutenant, etc., removes them from the case. Oh, wait. Forgot that Maggie is the ONLY Detective on the National Police Force, so of course she has to work it.

It's no secret that Timm's version of Maggie Sawyer is my favorite, and I can't help but compare whenever I watch this show. And this show's Maggie is so lacking. Though she is preferable to obnoxious, arrogant jerkwad Maggie Sawyer from Smallville.

I do NOT want Lena to go EVUHL, just because for Supes, Lex is EVUHL. And I sure do hope she is playing Rhea. And I'll keep on thinking that until it's proven to me otherwise.

And again with Plot Contrivances with J'onn not being able to read the minds of humans. The only time I can recall where J'onn couldn't read minds was in Timm's Justice League's "Star-Crossed", when the Thanagarians came to take over Earth, but then he forced his way in to one of the officer's brains when they had instituted Martial Law over Earth.

Other than these nitpicks, I enjoyed the episode.

[Lady Calypso]

8 minutes ago, stealinghome said:

I have to agree that both Maggie and Kara brought up valid points in the argument. I do also agree that there's a time and place and Maggie shouldn't have brought it up at dinner, for sure (and she knew that--you could tell she felt shitty when Alex left). But Kara didn't react like a paragon of maturity, either. Unfortunately, the writers seem to be going with a running theme of Kara being on a high horse about superheroics this season, between her "James can't be a hero because he's a puny HUMAN" earlier and now her "I am above critique" attitude this episode. I just don't know WHY the writers are leaning into Kara being a bit arrogant about superheroing, since she never was last year.

Mon-El's comment was just douchey. C'mon, no one is that oblivious. Side note, I loved how Alex, Maggie, AND Kara all rolled their eyes when Mon-El started talking. They know what's up. Kara, if you spend your life rolling your eyes at your idiot of a boyfriend, you need to rethink your dating choices.

I think that both were right and wrong equally. Maggie shouldn't have brought it up at dinner, period. This was not the time to get in an argument with Kara about Supergirl's actions. She was just reacting to the hostage situation that took place probably not long before dinner and she was taking her feelings at the time out on Kara. It was very emotionally based, and Kara was blindsided. The only issue here is that the show didn't plant seeds earlier, so it feels out of place. I know Maggie hasn't been a huge fan of Supergirl, but she's never shown this type of hostility and I think this episode could have been a bit stronger if they took time to foreshadow this. Even if they had just planted seeds for the last two or three episodes, it would have been enough. I also think she has a little bit of trump over Maggie in terms of Alex. Maggie's still a new relationship to Alex and even if I do think she has say and that Kara seemed to forget that there are multiple people to care for Alex, I don't think Maggie and Kara's levels are the same with Alex. But Maggie is higher than Kara presumes that she is.

I totally get Maggie's anger. Even if it wasn't set up very well, it made sense. When Supergirl stops the bad guys, that is all she really does. She stops them from doing harm and then can walk away from the case. She doesn't have to testify, she doesn't have to build a case. It's not like the criminals automatically go to jail after Supergirl stops them. She only deals with the now, not so much on the after. It's actually a side that superhero shows don't always look into, especially when it comes to law enforcement and other factors. I also liked seeing more to Maggie. We've had very little of just Maggie, especially for a main character, so this was her episode to shine, and she did. I liked her calm method of talking to Rick. It shows that she has years of experience under her belt, and she knows there are other methods that aren't just using superpowers to smash her way out of things. You'd think that Kara would get that after that early season 1 episode where Kara couldn't use her powers to take down criminals. 

Overall, the story might have been sloppy in places, but the overall message was received by me and I think their intentions were good. It was still a strong episode regardless of that. Seeing Kara interacting with Maggie is what I've wanted since Maggie first appeared. Seeing Alex/Maggie share their first "I love yous" was nice as well, as I hadn't realized that they hadn't before. 

I did think the Lena/Rhea story wasn't needed, but I also get that shows apparently need two different plots, so who else would have gotten the B Plot? Apparently, not the other main character that was missing from this episode. Poor James. 

I'm going to hold out hope that Lena is playing Rhea. It would be nice if she was. But I couldn't help but laugh at the fact that Lena apparently needs Kara to keep her good. Their friendship is just too great. 

One last thing: I really worry about Maggie's future on this show. I'm not quite sure if they'll keep her and Alex together, and I'm not sure if Floriana is going to be part of the main cast next year, which means I worry about Maggie dying soon. I'd love for Maggie/Alex to make it, but I'm not sure if the show will want that, only because couples can't be THIS happy, ever. 

[catrice2]

19 hours ago, thuganomics85 said:

Alex gets kidnapped and everything looses their shit!  Actually, I'm totally OK with that, because Alex is the best and that would be the biggest tragedy of all time!

I like that they brought up the tension between Kara and Maggie, because that would be something that would be under the surface between a cop and vigilante/superhero.  I certainly think Kara has noble intentions and everything she does is to protect the city, but I can also see why it would annoy Maggie to actually try "policing" and seem to be making headway, only for Kara to crash the party, unannounced, and deal with herself, with more property damage and injuries.  Plus, Kara admittedly does have a flippant attitude about it, but again, I don't think it's out of malice or disrespect, but just because she loves doing what she does and helping people.

That said, I did think she handled Alex's kidnapping the worst way possible, and I'm glad the show was willing to call her out on it.  I can only imagine how freaked out she was over Alex's kidnapping, but that was "bull in a China shop" moves going on there.  She really does dive in head first, which can be a good thing sometimes, but this clearly was not the right call, and just made things worse.  Of course, Maggie almost did the wrong thing by breaking out the dad, but that was only after it came down to the wire.  Still, I'm glad it all worked out, and hopefully there will be more give and take between these two.

Did like Alex finding ways to make the best out of her situation and wasn't just laying around and accepting her fate.  Although, she sure was lucky that she happened to be wearing shorts that night for modesty sake, after she used her pants as a flotation device!

The guy playing Rick was good and sold him as a credible threat (although, he almost was too all-knowing), but I really loved seeing Gregg Henry as the dad.  He's one of my favorites, and did a great job at showing that his character wasn't a good guy, but did love his son, and was willing to stop him before things really became bad.  I kept comparing him to Winn's dad and the differences between them.

Ah, Mon-El.  I was just warming up to you, and then you a) make a remark about how they will no longer need cops in front of Maggie and b) confess your love for Hawaiian pizza.  Boo!

And... Jimmy disappears again.  Poor Mehcad Brooks.

J'onn and Winn didn't do much, but still had some nice moments.

Glad Lena figured out Rhea was keeping things from her, but it looks like she still doesn't know the full extent, since it looks like they're going into business after-all.  What is your game, Rhea?!  You better not to anything to my beloved Lena!

Fun episode.

At least he has a Subaru commercial. 

[kalamac]

11 hours ago, stealinghome said:

I do agree that Rick's scheme required a huge and implausible number of things to go his way, but to defend the writing on one ground!, I'm pretty sure the double date at the start of the ep was in Alex's apartment. I don't think we've ever seen Maggie's (I'm sure they don't want to build a set--I'm guessing Maggie and Alex will move in together in the finale or early next season anyway).

When Alex took down the smoke detector and threw it in the bin, I was wondering if that was minor forshadowing for a storyline where Alex has a fire in her apartment and Maggie asks her to move in rather than find a new place.

[GHScorpiosRule]

12 hours ago, stealinghome said:

I'm pretty sure the double date at the start of the ep was in Alex's apartment.

It was. The morning after, when Maggie asked if she'd seen Alex, Kara was like, 'you spent the night at her place,' so shouldn't you know?

[sskrill]

I really have to take Maggies side in the Kara/Maggie issue.  I don't think it was so much that Supergirl participated, I think it was the way she participated that pissed Maggie off.  Maybe just a courtesy conversation beforehand would have been enough to pacify Maggie - and if this had been going on for 17 hours and no one had been hurt then what's another 2 minutes?

And, yes, Maggie was in a mood at dinner and really should have just left it be, but Kara's condescending tone would have pissed me off too.  I don't know - maybe its because I've worked with people like that - you spend 2 months on a project and the person who spends the last 5 minutes putting the cherry on top acts as if they did all the hard work.

And Kara was also a bit too dismissive over Maggies place in Alex's life.  The 4 of them are in a hard spot now that the sisters are moving on to serious relationships and these are genuine issues that will come up.  It does make for good, honest conflict.

[AudienceofOne]

I guess I was the only one who was bored then, huh? I thought the Lena scenes were great, although I don't know how Rhea got so knowledgeable about Earth she could pass herself off as a human. 

[Spaceman Spiff]

20 hours ago, Chicago Redshirt said:

Entertaining, but if you think too much about things, they fall apart at the seams a little. We are supposed to buy that...

1. Rick apparently knew that Kara was special from when they were teens but never said anything to Alex or Kara or anyone.

2.  Rick decides to free his father using this elaborate Saw-like blackmail scheme, complete with a timer and mini-traps, anticipating most countermoves.

3. In the process, he learns a) that the DEO has the Martian Manhunter working there when the DEO is quasi-secret and even the DEO didn't know J'onn was an alien until about a year ago b) J'onn's abilities c) some means of blocking MM's mind-reading abilities

4. When Rick decides to strike, he just so happens to be in the elevator of Maggie's apartment building when Alex comes out.

5. Despite having super-speed, flight, X-ray vision, and super-hearing, Supergirl can't figure out where Alex is. (Yes, there was a reference to her trying to use super-hearing to figure out where Alex was. But that was from a stationary point and for a short period of time. There literally is no way that given 36 hours Supergirl couldn't have searched  the entirety of California. Especially if she called in her cousin or others for help).

6. Despite having a live friggin feed to where Alex is, tech genius Winn can't figure out where Alex is.

7. Rick was so desperate to "save" his father that he was willing to become a murderer. 

8. Despite having the aforementioned powers, Supergirl doesn't notice that Alex isn't where the lead suggested she would be

9. Rick's temptation of Maggie was such that she could a) drive from the DEO to wherever the prison is supposed to be, b) get through the prison bureaucracy c) with a gun (which, by the way, why does Maggie have Alex's gun?) d) knockout cameras and guards e) get access to Papa Rick and f) somehow expect that she could literally jailbreak him in 2 hours. 

Thanks for saving me from typing all this out myself.

As to #2, it always amazes me how these ordinary people are able to bank roll these elaborate schemes. The guy had space in two warehouses, that can't be cheap.

[Chicago Redshirt]

9 hours ago, GHScorpiosRule said:

It was. The morning after, when Maggie asked if she'd seen Alex, Kara was like, 'you spent the night at her place,' so shouldn't you know?

My bad. I guess that also explains how Maggie got access to Alex's gun, although not necessarily why she chose to take it rather than her usual gun. One would think any metal detection would pick it up just the same. 

It doesn't change the overall point, though. We're also expected to buy that a) Rick must have bugged Alex's apartment and decided the best time to execute his year-long plan was as we saw or b) Rick was just riding the elevator hoping that Alex happened to show up.

Oh, also that Rick not only knew about the subdermal tracker that DEO agents have (which, did we know about them prior to this episode? I'm sure there were previous episodes where one of the DEO crew had been kidnapped or missing and such a device would have been handy), but he also anticipated that Alex would dig out the tracker and attempt to reactivate it and come up with a countermove.

3 hours ago, AudienceofOne said:

I guess I was the only one who was bored then, huh? I thought the Lena scenes were great, although I don't know how Rhea got so knowledgeable about Earth she could pass herself off as a human. 

Unlike her doofus son, Rhea takes things seriously. It's not as though Earth is a closed book. So she has a lot of study material. And she also presumably has a royal staff that could help her.

[immortalfrieza]

9 hours ago, sskrill said:

And, yes, Maggie was in a mood at dinner and really should have just left it be, but Kara's condescending tone would have pissed me off too.  I don't know - maybe its because I've worked with people like that - you spend 2 months on a project and the person who spends the last 5 minutes putting the cherry on top acts as if they did all the hard work.

Nah, it's more like if you spend 2 months sincerely and competently on a project and getting absolutely nowhere, then a person comes along and solves all the issues you were having if not completely doing your job for you in the space of a few hours at most, just because they're smarter, stronger, faster, more dedicated, whatever than you are. Sure, you have the right to be a bit miffed that someone accomplished in no time what you've spent weeks trying to do, but you can't blame said person for the fact that despite your own significant level of competence they are simply much BETTER at whatever it was than you are. It's the same thing with the hostage situation, Maggie was simply doing nothing more than taking her anger and jealousy out on Kara over the fact that Kara did in seconds what Maggie was utterly failing to do in 17 hours, toting out some half baked arguments to back herself up that might have some validity if Maggie had actually been getting anywhere and if the actual issue wasn't the fault of the National City justice system rather than Kara herself. Some sort of bull "Supergirl beat me up a bit while I was clearly committing a crime therefore I should get off scot free" defense if I recall correctly. Speaking of which:

12 hours ago, Lady Calypso said:

I totally get Maggie's anger. Even if it wasn't set up very well, it made sense. When Supergirl stops the bad guys, that is all she really does. She stops them from doing harm and then can walk away from the case. She doesn't have to testify, she doesn't have to build a case. It's not like the criminals automatically go to jail after Supergirl stops them. She only deals with the now, not so much on the after. It's actually a side that superhero shows don't always look into, especially when it comes to law enforcement and other factors.

Probably because the vast majority of cases, the superhero is a vigilante operating outside of the law and thus don't really care if the criminals get off due to some technicality as long as they are off the streets for a while and hopefully learn their lesson, and/or is simply catching someone in the act which is so blatant that in spite of a lack of testimony from the one who brought them in there's no way they couldn't possibly be convicted anyway and thus the superhero doesn't need to go around testifying in court because all they're really doing is nothing more than just taking the criminal from the crime scene straight to jail. Both of these are really clear It's actually really rare that a superhero doesn't bring down a criminal in situations where they aren't so transparently guilty of whatever crime that they might as well be wearing an I'M ROBBING NATIONAL CITY BANK t-shirt. In fact, quite a few supervillains are really only free to menace the world because they are really REALLY good at removing any connection between them and their crimes, like the modern interpretations of Lex Luthor are a good example, but the average criminal is rarely if ever actually able to do that.

[Lady Calypso]

32 minutes ago, immortalfrieza said:

Nah, it's more like if you spend 2 months sincerely and competently on a project and getting absolutely nowhere, then a person comes along and solves all the issues you were having if not completely doing your job for you in the space of a few hours at most, just because they're smarter, stronger, faster, more dedicated, whatever than you are. Sure, you have the right to be a bit miffed that someone accomplished in no time what you've spent weeks trying to do, but you can't blame said person for the fact that despite your own significant level of competence they are simply much BETTER at whatever it was than you are. It's the same thing with the hostage situation, Maggie was simply doing nothing more than taking her anger and jealousy out on Kara over the fact that Kara did in seconds what Maggie was utterly failing to do in 17 hours, toting out some half baked arguments to back herself up that might have some validity if Maggie had actually been getting anywhere and if the actual issue wasn't the fault of the National City justice system rather than Kara herself. Some sort of bull "Supergirl beat me up a bit while I was clearly committing a crime therefore I should get off scot free" defense if I recall correctly. 

But Maggie wasn't getting nowhere. She seemed to be getting through to them but we won't know because Supergirl swooped in before that could happen. Not everything has to be done in a quick manner. In this particular case, lives were not in immediate danger. There were no deaths, no injuries. Sure, it's easier to have Supergirl swoop in and stop the criminals in less than a minute, but then the question remains: what's the point of police, then? What's the point of detectives and firefighters and lawyers if Supergirl can stop them and take them to jail? And I think they attempted to explain why Supergirl isn't needed in every situation, since the cops and detectives and others have the experience to stop these people themselves. And, like Maggie said, the criminals are using a Supergirl Defense, where they are being let off since Supergirl isn't going through the right methods to stop them, so they can act like the victims. That's not really on Kara, but it it an issue that is now part of her methods. It's also a really dumb defense but unfortunately, it's now part of the canon. 

Honestly, in your scenario, I'd be pretty pissed at the other person for swooping in and taking over a project. Sometimes, it's not helpful to just finish a project or finish a job for someone else, especially if you don't ask. Being impatient that things were not going as quickly as you wanted and finishing the job because you weren't pleased is not a good strategy. I'd definitely blame the other person for swooping in without permission and showing off just because. If I'm working hard on a project, I want the satisfaction of it being completed. Kara's naivety and heroism doesn't get a pass for me this time. Her intentions were good, but the execution was very sloppy. 

Sometimes, all she needs to do is ask if they need any help first. These cops and detectives and other enforcements know what they're doing. They didn't need Supergirl's help two years ago with petty criminals and they don't need her now. If they need her help with this type of situation, they can always ask. And as nice as it is to have someone who's strong, fast, and able to take down the petty criminal quickly, that's not always the best way, and it makes people feel pretty stupid, helpless, and weak. It's not a nice feeling to be bragging about how great you are, either. They have showed more of Kara's elitist attitude this season. First, with James becoming a superhero, then with Mon-El and his attempt to be a superhero but also judging him right off the bat for being a Daxamite, and now with this whole Maggie situation. So at least they have set this issue up. 

[Dobian]

19 hours ago, JapMo said:

YES, turn her evil.  She has the genius mindset of Lex, who, before Gene Hackman turned him into a buffoon, was always a very worthy nemisis to Superman.

Well, Michael Rosenbaum kind of restored Lex to greatness again in Smallville.

[GHScorpiosRule]

7 minutes ago, Dobian said:

Well, Michael Rosenbaum kind of restored Lex to greatness again in Smallville.

Yes! Yes he did. And while playing Lex, he also provided the voice for Wally West/Flash on Justice League/Justice League Unlimited!??

[immortalfrieza]

1 hour ago, Lady Calypso said:

But Maggie wasn't getting nowhere. She seemed to be getting through to them but we won't know because Supergirl swooped in before that could happen. Not everything has to be done in a quick manner. In this particular case, lives were not in immediate danger. There were no deaths, no injuries.

The very fact that Maggie took 17 hours just to get the point where she was even beginning to get those bank robbers talked down is proof Maggie was getting nowhere, the fact that she didn't bring in SWAT or arrange for any other means to resolve the situation after that long also shows that she was too arrogant to recognize that she wasn't getting anywhere. In OUR world, dozen hour negotiations like that are necessary because other options are riskier if not completely unfeasible, that's not the case here. It would take all of 5 seconds at any point in those 17 hours for those bank robbers have started shooting hostages dead, just to show they weren't playing around or just because they're psycho, or whatever, it was INCREDIBLY lucky for Maggie and those hostages that they didn't lose their patience. Then Supergirl showed up and deals with the whole situation in seconds with no casualties so Maggie redirected her own self loathing and jealousy over the fact that she didn't accomplish anything even after all that time onto Kara.

Quote

Sure, it's easier to have Supergirl swoop in and stop the criminals in less than a minute, but then the question remains: what's the point of police, then? What's the point of detectives and firefighters and lawyers if Supergirl can stop them and take them to jail?

Simple, because Supergirl possibly can't be everywhere in National City all at the same time, (which is probably the reason why Supergirl didn't stop those robbers 5 minutes in to the 17 hours) and even if she could would be really wrong of everybody to expect her to do everything for them. However, when Supergirl DOES show up to help, solves the issue with no problem whatsoever like she did with the bank robbers this episode, the appropriate reaction is "thanks! Good job Supergirl!" not contempt over the fact that she found the time to fix their inability to do anything to solve the problem or at least the very slow progress they were making to solving it. Even if they can solve the problem quickly and easily the reaction should still  their reaction still should be appreciation rather than contempt.

1 hour ago, Lady Calypso said:

Honestly, in your scenario, I'd be pretty pissed at the other person for swooping in and taking over a project. Sometimes, it's not helpful to just finish a project or finish a job for someone else, especially if you don't ask. Being impatient that things were not going as quickly as you wanted and finishing the job because you weren't pleased is not a good strategy. I'd definitely blame the other person for swooping in without permission and showing off just because. If I'm working hard on a project, I want the satisfaction of it being completed. Kara's naivety and heroism doesn't get a pass for me this time. Her intentions were good, but the execution was very sloppy.

You wouldn't have any right to be pissed though, mildly miffed maybe but not really pissed off. In my scenario you've made it very very clear that you aren't getting anywhere and possibly never will, are unwilling to accept that, and are refusing to bring in help to finish the project after it's become clear that you can't. Whoever the boss is in this situation would have to be unbelievably incompetent NOT to bring somebody else in to get some fresh eyes on the problem, even if you did perfectly competently and still ended up in that situation it's still entirely on you. If you're majorly pissed about the fact that someone shows up to fix a project that you couldn't possibly make more clear you are making barely if any progress at all on, you've just looking for someone to blame for your own failures and are still unwilling to acknowledge them and so you have an excuse not to strive to be better. Even if the only reason said person succeeded where you failed is because they happen to among the pinnacle of human ability that you could never possibly reach, that's still not this person's fault, if anything it's yours for taking the project in the first place and your boss' fault for putting you on the project when you weren't enough for it, even if at the time neither of you could have anticipated that you wouldn't get anywhere.

Edited May 3, 2017 by immortalfrieza

[JapMo]

6 hours ago, AudienceofOne said:

I guess I was the only one who was bored then, huh? I thought the Lena scenes were great, although I don't know how Rhea got so knowledgeable about Earth she could pass herself off as a human. 

No...not the only one.  I didn't think the episode was very good.  But I loved Queen Rhea...Teri Hatcher is so wonderful to watch.  Can't wait for when she tells Mon-El he's now the king.  I want to hear what lies she tells about his father's death.  Like 'his heart failed him...just ignore that stab wound in his chest.'