S04.E05: Parasite Lost

[Trini]

Quote

Colonel Haley (April Parker Jones) makes a surprising decision regarding Supergirl. Kara writes s series of articles highlighting aliens in National City in the hopes that humans will stop being so fearful of them. Unfortunately, the article puts some of the aliens in harm's way.

David Mcwhirter directed the episode written by Maria Maggenti & Aadrita Mukerji

Airdate 11/11/2018.

[mxc90]

James/Kara couldn't invite anyone else from Catco to attend the rooftop event? Snobs!

Amadei was on earth for 20 years? Seems like a character that should have been introduced in earlier seasons.

The mother's anger/story was confusing with the one night stand claim and then she's in many photos with him. Why did she keep her daughter away from the father? When did she decide to hate aliens and steal Amadei's amulet? Why was the daughter the last image in Amadei's mind?

During Alex's long monologue, Supergirl could have cleared out all the civilians.

J'onn putting that hat on was super cheesy! J'onn J'onzz Private Eye!!!!!!!!!!

[sonyab]

Great episode!!! They are all great episodes.. I love this show! :) I love how at the end of an episode there is a cliffhanger. :)

Brainy: You told me to find you, not to call you.

ROFL! Yeah they need to be a couple.. :) I forgot her name, but they are adorable together!!! I wanted them to be a couple ever since they were outside the pizza place. :) I wonder if he is going to call her now.. Alex's hair is so confusing and distracting. At work she has no bangs, but then when she isn't at work she has bangs. She needs to get her bangs cut. It's way too long.

[GHScorpiosRule]

9 minutes ago, mxc90 said:

The mother's anger/story was confusing with the one night stand claim and then she's in many photos with him. Why did she keep her daughter away from the father? When did she decide to hate aliens and steal Amadei's amulet? Why was the daughter the last image in Amadei's mind?

Because she lied about the one night stand. And she kept the daughter from him to hurt him because he dumped her. broke her heart.

That said, I don’t know if I can stick with this show anymore. The anvils were so heavy they crushed me. I watch shows to escape real life.

The writers are not subtle. Nor are they clever.

[cambridgeguy]

I guess J'onn couldn't be bothered to call in his healing buddy all of those times Kara, Superman, or any other aliens were hurt?  And to be honest if aliens have been on Earth for at least 20 years then this anti-alien sentiment would have come up long before now, especially since it looks like the population has been steadily growing to the point where seeing an alien is pretty standard. 

I also keep expecting one of J'onn's alien group buddies to call him out for walking around as a human when so many of them are apparently willing to walk around openly.

[mxc90]

2 minutes ago, GHScorpiosRule said:

Because she lied about the one night stand. And she kept the daughter from him to hurt him because he dumped her. broke her heart.

That said, I don’t know if I can stick with this show anymore. The anvils were so heavy they crushed me. I watch shows to escape real life.

The writers are not subtle. Nor are they clever.

Thanks. From being dumped to hating all aliens is too much.

[Oreo2234]

So far this season the show has done a pretty good job at balancing screentime. There is no season two James right now. I hope they can keep it up. 

Edited November 12, 2018 by Oreo2234

[sonyab]

53 minutes ago, GHScorpiosRule said:

 The anvils were so heavy they crushed me. I watch shows to escape real life.

The writers are not subtle. Nor are they clever.

What anvils?

[AnimeMania]

There are too many aliens and too many different types of aliens. We have gone from a world of wondering if there are any aliens, to a world where every alien species there is is living on Earth. Why are there only 2 legged sentient species arriving and why didn't they bring their weird alien pets, exotic alien flora and fauna?

Edited November 13, 2018 by AnimeMania
misspelling

[Lantern7]

"Parasite Lost." Booooooooooooooooooo. I mean the episode title; that's some old-school Charmed shit right there.

Basic takeaway is that some people are willing to lean ways you're not comfortable with. Alex's overseer seemed cool through most of the episode . . . and then she told Alex to use a weapon that would've killed people, and she revealed that she hates "roaches." And that includes J'onn for posing as a human.

Nice rooftop party. Brainiac 5 getting drunk for the win. "Love live the Legion!!" Splat. At least he recovered quickly.

I was okay with the episode. Anvils fell, sure, but I was more pissed realizing that the CW station where I live will be running a football game tomorrow night where the teams' combined record are 3-14.

Edited November 12, 2018 by Lantern7

[Oreo2234]

Quote

and then she told Alex to use a weapon that would've killed people

It would have killed Alex too. I was surprised neither of them acknowledged that. 

[quarks]

I'm getting a bit of whiplash here. In the first season - just four years ago - aliens were so rare that encountering one got the reaction of WOW AN ALIEN. Now, it turns out that an alien has been publicly living here for twenty years, curing aliens, and everyone knew it - but didn't bother to call him in on any of the occasions where Kara or Mon-El or Random Alien has been hurt or sick? Like, say, just in last week's episode? 

[TV Anonymous]

"...you salute a superior officer when you leave, Director Danvers."

What is what? Danvers is a civilian. Even if she was not, she was not in uniform. What kind of Marine colonel is Haley?

 

28 minutes ago, Oreo2234 said:

It would have killed Alex too. I was surprised neither of them acknowledged that. 

It was mentioned between Haley and Danvers that each DEO personnel had 'personal dome' that would protect them from Danvers' weapon.

[legaleagle53]

17 minutes ago, TV Anonymous said:

"...you salute a superior officer when you leave, Director Danvers."

What is what? Danvers is a civilian. Even if she was not, she was not in uniform. What kind of Marine colonel is Haley?

The DEO is quasi-military in its structure and function and apparently derives its authority from the Executive Branch.  And Colonel Haley was expressly put in charge of oversight by the President himself, so she is technically Alex's boss, if not her commanding officer outright.

[ottoDbusdriver]

Come on Lena -- put it all together.  You're at a party hosted by Kara, and 3 people from the DEO are there.  And the only person missing from the DEO with close ties to both Alex and J'onn and Brainy is the Kryptonian that looks a lot like Kara.

They have to come up with a different name for that parasite other than 'parasite' -- it's just too generic.  What happens if they encounter a new, different parasitic organism -- are they going to call that parasite 2 ?

[Oreo2234]

Quote

It was mentioned between Haley and Danvers that each DEO personnel had 'personal dome' that would protect them from Danvers' weapon.

Oh right I missed that. That makes sense now. 

Quote

Come on Lena -- put it all together.  You're at a party hosted by Kara, and 3 people from the DEO are there.  And the only person missing from the DEO with close ties to both Alex and J'onn and Brainy is the Kryptonian that looks a lot like Kara.

It's just ridiculous at this point. It makes Lena look so clueless. 

[Lantern7]

J'onn with the fedora . . . too much. I would want him to lean hard into the noir trope, up to and including getting an attractive glasses-wearing secretary with a high voice, who always answer the phone with "J'onn J'onzz, Manhunter from Mars, how can we help ya?"

27 minutes ago, ottoDbusdriver said:

Come on Lena -- put it all together.  You're at a party hosted by Kara, and 3 people from the DEO are there.  And the only person missing from the DEO with close ties to both Alex and J'onn and Brainy is the Kryptonian that looks a lot like Kara.

Well, we could always get a "She Always Knew" moment . . . like how Cat Grant had been calling Kara "Kira," yet knew she was Supergirl. Seriously, though, where is Cat these days?

2 hours ago, AnimeMania said:

There are too many aliens and too many different types of aliens. We have gone from a world of wondering if there are any aliens, to a world were every alien species there is is living on Earth. Why are there only 2 legged sentient species arriving and why didn't they bring their weird alien pets, exotic alien flora and fauna?

Basically an Alien Nation situation, only here the aliens are coming "out of the closet," American society has to deal, and it goes in both directions. Also, I'd like to see human-looking aliens with no real differences from humans. But then, if they're like us, how would they have gotten to Earth?

Kara had to use LEXIS NEXIS. Man, that brings back memories for me.

[VCRTracking]

3 hours ago, AnimeMania said:

There are too many aliens and too many different types of aliens. We have gone from a world of wondering if there are any aliens, to a world were every alien species there is is living on Earth. Why are there only 2 legged sentient species arriving and why didn't they bring their weird alien pets, exotic alien flora and fauna?

 

1 hour ago, Lantern7 said:

Basically an Alien Nation situation, only here the aliens are coming "out of the closet," American society has to deal, and it goes in both directions. Also, I'd like to see human-looking aliens with no real differences from humans. But then, if they're like us, how would they have gotten to Earth?

I think we have to accept they retconned the history of Earth-38 that aliens have been public knowledge for years as is their living among us. What I still don't get is why so many aliens would want to live on what for them must be a primitive, much less technologically advanced society from where they're from. For me it seems less like a metaphor for real life immigration and refugees they're trying to do and more like a scenario of instead of trying to conquer and colonize Asia, the Americas and Africa hundreds of years ago, imposing their culture and religion, Europeans actually tried to peacefully live and assimilate among the native populations instead.

Edited November 12, 2018 by VCRTracking

[Trini]

3 hours ago, AnimeMania said:

There are too many aliens and too many different types of aliens. We have gone from a world of wondering if there are any aliens, to a world were every alien species there is is living on Earth. Why are there only 2 legged sentient species arriving and why didn't they bring their weird alien pets, exotic alien flora and fauna?

Funny you should mention flora, because Kara apparently had a Kryptonian flower plant in her roof garden.

 

2 hours ago, Lantern7 said:

Nice rooftop party. Brainiac 5 getting drunk for the win. "Love live the Legion!!" Splat. At least he recovered quickly.

Speaking of; that was a nice scene, but what was the occasion for the party again?

[Trini]

I can buy that maybe most aliens have been in hiding until recently, but it's still clearly a retcon that 'they've been here the whole time!'

I was about to say that this episode introduced us to the first human-alien hybrid, but then I remembered Ruby from last season. Although, Sam apparently was identical to a human for most of her life.

[Perfect Xero]

I'd have found it more interesting if the alien healer guy had actually been a crappy father. It would have been a nice bit of gray in the story.

37 minutes ago, VCRTracking said:

 

I think we have to accept they retconned the history of Earth-38 that aliens have been public knowledge for years as is their living among us. What I still don't get is why so many aliens would want to live on what for them must be a primitive, much less technologically advanced society from where they're from. For me it seems less like a metaphor for real life immigration and refugees and more an alternate scenario of instead of trying to conquer and colonize Asia, the Americas and Africa hundreds of years ago, imposing their culture and religion, Europeans actually tried to peacefully live and assimilate among the native populations instead.

This is one of the things that bugs me. I feel like the guy with a steel plant should have much less concern of losing business to aliens than the woman running a high end tech company who now has to compete with people who have mastered faster than light travel and quantum computing.

Someone like Lena could invest years and a small fortune into R&D on the new Widget, only for the Appellaxians to show up with even more advanced Widgets that they can sell for dirt cheap because for their people a Widget is about as advanced as a VCR.

Edited November 12, 2018 by Perfect Xero

[Cthulhudrew]

Maybe I'm being petty, but I just can't get over the ludicrous concept of an alien who can heal all aliens, but can't heal humans. Because somehow their DNA is so completely different from that of dozens, or hundreds, or thousands of other species? Dumb.

[VCRTracking]

24 minutes ago, Cthulhudrew said:

Maybe I'm being petty, but I just can't get over the ludicrous concept of an alien who can heal all aliens, but can't heal humans. Because somehow their DNA is so completely different from that of dozens, or hundreds, or thousands of other species? Dumb.

And the fact that he was able to have a child with another human!

[thuganomics85]

Of course, Kara is ends up being shocked about mean comments posted under her articles.  I'm starting to think she's just never used the internet until now.  I really can't buy another explanation at this point.  Just keep her away from the likes of Reddit, because I don't think she'd be able to handle it!

Yeah, I can think of several times where an alien healer really could have been helpful for the gang, so him apparently being around all of this time raises so many questions.

I'm surprisingly still intrigued by James' arc the most, and the idea of Guardian being used as a symbol of the anti-alien movement, against his will.  And now it looks like he's planning on working Ben in order to try and find out who is the true leader behind the Children of Liberty.

Drunk Brainy was great.  And there is clearly some kind of history with him and Nia, even though he doesn't know it.

So, they pull some trickery by having Haley seem reasonable and supportive of Alex at first, only to reveal she's anti-alien too.  Grey is clearly not a color on this show or its characters.

When it comes to Lena, I almost wish that someone just has a Men in Black-style memory eraser, so anytime she figures something out, they just simply erase her memory.  That would be way more believable than her missing all of these big damn clues.

[AnimeMania]

1 hour ago, VCRTracking said:

1 hour ago, Cthulhudrew said:

Maybe I'm being petty, but I just can't get over the ludicrous concept of an alien who can heal all aliens, but can't heal humans. Because somehow their DNA is so completely different from that of dozens, or hundreds, or thousands of other species? Dumb.

And the fact that he was able to have a child with another human!

That's different, that was sexual healing!

Did they say why the alien abandoned his child.

[AnimeMania]

1 hour ago, thuganomics85 said:

So, they pull some trickery by having Haley seem reasonable and supportive of Alex at first, only to reveal she's anti-alien too.  Grey is clearly not a color on this show or its characters.

I don't know why, she seems to rely on Brainy just as much as Alex.

[ottoDbusdriver]

3 hours ago, Trini said:

Funny you should mention flora, because Kara apparently had a Kryptonian flower plant in her roof garden.

 

Speaking of; that was a nice scene, but what was the occasion for the party again?

There was never a reason given for the rooftop party.

Maybe National Citrus Day -- because there was a lot of limes, lemons, grapefruits, etc. on the tables.  Like, a lot.

Curious question -- does Kara own the entire building where she lives ?  Why would she think she could just re-model the roof ?  Wouldn't building mgmt. have issues with that ?
 

40 minutes ago, AnimeMania said:

That's different, that was sexual healing!

Sexual healing, baby, it's good for ..... aliens.

I wonder if Agent Liberty's followers would question his leadership if they knew he was using alien tech -- aliens bad, alien tech ok ?

[AngelKitty]

5 hours ago, Lantern7 said:

I would want him to lean hard into the noir trope, up to and including getting an attractive glasses-wearing secretary with a high voice, who always answer the phone with "J'onn J'onzz, Manhunter from Mars, how can we help ya?"

Yes, yes, I want that show!

[UNOSEZ]

9 minutes ago, AngelKitty said:

Yes, yes, I want that show!

Partner him with Manchester Black.. And for "plot reasons" force him back to his British accent.. Then have those two kooky kids doing stuff for the alien community 

 

7 hours ago, Lantern7 said:

Alex's overseer seemed cool through most of the episode . . . and then she told Alex to use a weapon that would've killed people, and she revealed that she hates "roaches." And that includes J'onn for posing as a human.

I didn't read it as hates aliens... Did she call them roaches... If she did then my bad.. But I don't remember hearing it... She seems to work fine with brainy... The only alien she seemed to take issue with was J'onn... And it felt more like she thought him being an imposter was a problem... But I'll give you shits probably thinks an agency created to deal with alien threats o earth should be led by a human.... I hope she comes around.. But if she remains a hardliner but continues t be reasonable and fair I could live with that.. The show couk use a human or two who didn't hate aliens off GP.. While still having some issues with i  guess the uptick in alien world destroying 

[catrice2]

Was Manchester in this episode?

[Winston Wolfe]

4 hours ago, thuganomics85 said:

Of course, Kara is ends up being shocked about mean comments posted under her articles.  I'm starting to think she's just never used the internet until now.  I really can't buy another explanation at this point.  Just keep her away from the likes of Reddit, because I don't think she'd be able to handle it!

Kara is still incredibly naive for someone who has been to different worlds and who currently works as a reporter.  I don't get it.

In other news, it's interesting that the best episode of Supergirl in ages had...very little Supergirl.  This episode had more of the team/ensemble vibe that works fairly well in Arrow and the Flash.  The villain of the week was not somebody Kara could punch or heat-vision into submission, she was more or less forced into a supportive role while Alex, J'onn, and Brainy took the lead.  It really worked to not have SG save the day for a change. 

Loved seeing J'onn actually make some meaningful contributions.  Now that he is, it's fascinating seeing how he chooses to use his powers.  J'onn seems to be adverse to reading people's minds unless he has too, but he'll phase into somebody's apartment at the drop of the hat, lol.  Last time he and Kara visited the jilted mom they didn't even bother to ring the bell or knock, just phased right into her kitchen.  Reminded me of folks beaming-down from the Enterprise and suddenly appearing on some planet.

Re: James - didn't the DA say that there would be repercussions for him suiting up as Guardian again?  Was that the reason for Lema's worried look at the end?

Minor flaws aside, a real step in the right direction.  Hope the show-runners and keep it going.

[GHScorpiosRule]

8 hours ago, TV Anonymous said:

"...you salute a superior officer when you leave, Director Danvers."

What is what? Danvers is a civilian. Even if she was not, she was not in uniform. What kind of Marine colonel is Haley?

 

It was mentioned between Haley and Danvers that each DEO personnel had 'personal dome' that would protect them from Danvers' weapon.

I know! I was going to mention this last night, but forgot. Alex is a civilian. She isn't required to salute.

8 hours ago, legaleagle53 said:

The DEO is quasi-military in its structure and function and apparently derives its authority from the Executive Branch.  And Colonel Haley was expressly put in charge of oversight by the
President himself, so she is technically Alex's boss, if not her commanding officer outright.

If Alex were military, working at the DEO, then she would be required to follow military protocol.

3 hours ago, AnimeMania said:

 

Did they say why the alien abandoned his child.

We don't know that he did. Just that he dumped the mother. When Elizabeth, his daughter, started writing letters to him, mom, intercepted his letters to her, so she thought he didn't give a shit about her. And mom said it herself, that he dropped her, so that made him a bastard, so yes, she kept their daughter from him.

30 minutes ago, catrice2 said:

Was Manchester in this episode?

Nope.

[sonyab]

Quote

Basic takeaway is that some people are willing to lean ways you're not comfortable with. Alex's overseer seemed cool through most of the episode . . . and then she told Alex to use a weapon that would've killed people, and she revealed that she hates "roaches." And that includes J'onn for posing as a human.

Yeah the overseer was cool until she said she hated J'onn and that he was a roach, and that he lied!!! GRRRRRR! Now I don't like her.

Quote

Nice rooftop party. Brainiac 5 getting drunk for the win. "Love live the Legion!!" Splat. At least he recovered quickly.

Hahahaha! YES! Brainy getting drunk for the win!!! I was so surprised that he recovered so fast!!!! ROFL! I guess he doesn't get any hangovers either!

Edited November 12, 2018 by Drogo
Quote formatting.

[sonyab]

5 hours ago, thuganomics85 said:

Drunk Brainy was great.  And there is clearly some kind of history with him and Nia, even though he doesn't know it.

 

That is interesting! What makes you think that?

1 hour ago, catrice2 said:

Was Manchester in this episode?

No. Too bad too. I was wondering where he was. :(

[cambridgeguy]

27 minutes ago, sonyab said:

Yeah the overseer was cool until she said she hated J'onn and that he was a roach, and that he lied!!! GRRRRRR! Now I don't like her.

She didn't call him a roach, she was upset with him for posing as Hank Henshaw and, in her mind, subverting the mission of the DEO.  She probably lumps Marsdin and J'onn together - even though they meant well they still lied their way into a position of power.  She also seems to view people as statistics - of course you sacrifice a couple of hundred people if it guarantees the safety of thousands since the needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few and all that.  I do think she has a "human first" mindset but isn't a kill them all type either. 

[Lady Calypso]

2 hours ago, Winston Wolfe said:

Kara is still incredibly naive for someone who has been to different worlds and who currently works as a reporter.  I don't get it.

It's incredibly poor writing for Kara to continue to be shocked with the anti-alien community. I get that they're just coming out of the woodwork and being more open now, but can this show honestly tell me that Kara has NEVER run into an incident before? And she's never experienced a bad review before? I know it was because her article was about aliens, but her completely stunned face made me irritated instead. Hello, show, you have the girl who was prejudice against Mon-El for half a season. 

2 hours ago, Winston Wolfe said:

Re: James - didn't the DA say that there would be repercussions for him suiting up as Guardian again?  Was that the reason for Lema's worried look at the end?

That seemed to be thrown out the window when Guardian was painted as a hero against aliens. I guess it could still be brought up but Guardian is seen as some sort of "hero". 

Well, they're finally giving James a plot I can get behind. Him working undercover with Ben is something that I am excited to see happen. I actually really loved his scene with Ben at the event, as well as with Lena when he told her his plan. That's the James I've wanted to see since early season 2. He had this passion back in season 1, but then it disappeared. 

1 hour ago, cambridgeguy said:

She didn't call him a roach, she was upset with him for posing as Hank Henshaw and, in her mind, subverting the mission of the DEO.  She probably lumps Marsdin and J'onn together - even though they meant well they still lied their way into a position of power.  She also seems to view people as statistics - of course you sacrifice a couple of hundred people if it guarantees the safety of thousands since the needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few and all that.  I do think she has a "human first" mindset but isn't a kill them all type either. 

She did say that the DEO was meant for capturing aliens, not having them run the DEO. So, although I don't think she has the mindset that Ben and his followers do, she still has the mindset of human vs alien. 

Yeah, I'm not thrilled that there have suddenly been aliens around this whole time, and some of them blatantly doing alien-esque stuff. However, it's not the worst thing and I do think the story is interesting at the moment. It's kind of nice to see the seasonal problem being huge and not just pertaining to Supergirl or it being some global end-of-the-world crisis. It's definitely a global crisis, but not an immediate one. It's a problem that's been growing and will continue to grow UNTIL the big global end-of-the-world crisis. 

[UNOSEZ]

4 minutes ago, Lady Calypso said:

That's the James I've wanted to see since early season 2. He had this passion back in season 1, but then it disappeared. 

More like a Network sized Mon-El blanket was put on hi fire and it took basically two full seasons for him to burn thru it

[UNOSEZ]

14 minutes ago, Lady Calypso said:

Yeah, I'm not thrilled that there have suddenly been aliens around this whole time, and some of them blatantly doing alien-esque stuff.

Wel i thought about I some more and it probably adds up a bit.. Jeremiah dancers vanished when the guru were pretty young.. And Kara alive about 13 or 14 years ago in the show universe.. And superman was already active.. So 20 years isn't that much of a stretch

[sonyab]

1 hour ago, cambridgeguy said:

She didn't call him a roach, she was upset with him for posing as Hank Henshaw and, in her mind, subverting the mission of the DEO.  She probably lumps Marsdin and J'onn together - even though they meant well they still lied their way into a position of power.  She also seems to view people as statistics - of course you sacrifice a couple of hundred people if it guarantees the safety of thousands since the needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few and all that.  I do think she has a "human first" mindset but isn't a kill them all type either. 

Well she hates aliens and is glad J'onn isn't working at the DEO anymore.

[Rushmoras]

OK, I'm just going to say what's been on my mind ever since Season Two (when the show went to the CW). TOO MUCH FREAKING ALIENS. JEEZUS, IT FEELS LIKE A FREAKING ANGEL TV SERIES WHEN IN EVERY CORNER THERE BE A DEMON, VAMPIRE OR A WAREWOLF WANTING TO DO SOME POOR SNOB IN, BUT IF IT WAS PLAUSIBLE IN ANGEL, IN HERE IT IS NOT, BECAUSE SEASON ONE DID NOT EVEN ESTABLISH THAT THERE ARE A GAZILLION OF ALIENS RUNNING AROUND ON EARTH, JUST KARA, KAL-EL, JONN, AND THE BLOKES THAT ESCAPED FROM FORT ROZZ. ALSO, THE MAJORITY OF ALIENS LOOK LIKE THEY BELONG IN A LOTR CONVENTION, AND THE REST LOOK RIDICULOUS. Ok, venting time is over.

Edited November 12, 2018 by Rushmoras

[4evaQuez]

2 hours ago, cambridgeguy said:

She didn't call him a roach, she was upset with him for posing as Hank Henshaw and, in her mind, subverting the mission of the DEO.  She probably lumps Marsdin and J'onn together - even though they meant well they still lied their way into a position of power.  She also seems to view people as statistics - of course you sacrifice a couple of hundred people if it guarantees the safety of thousands since the needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few and all that.  I do think she has a "human first" mindset but isn't a kill them all type either. 

I know I wasn't supposed to, but I kinda agreed with Colonel Haley. One, I don't remember her calling anyone a "roach" or showing outright hate to aliens. She was upset that J'onn was an imposter and working a job that he did not honestly earn, and I agree with her. While he had great intentions and did a wonderful job as Director, he was in a position where he chose to actively and continuously lie to his supervisors and his employees about his identity and his qualifications. This is no different than someone lying about their educational or employment history or achievements. Yeah, you may be great at the job once hired, but if discovered that you lied, the company has every right to fire you because of the questionable methods used to achieve the job.

Overall, I really liked this episode even though it brought up a lot of questions. I loved seeing the return of Parasite and I liked the effect of the drained aliens. Overall, I also really like the cast this season with the exception of James who still seems rather pointless.

[mommalib]

3 hours ago, cambridgeguy said:

She didn't call him a roach, she was upset with him for posing as Hank Henshaw and, in her mind, subverting the mission of the DEO.  She probably lumps Marsdin and J'onn together - even though they meant well they still lied their way into a position of power.  She also seems to view people as statistics - of course you sacrifice a couple of hundred people if it guarantees the safety of thousands since the needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few and all that.  I do think she has a "human first" mindset but isn't a kill them all type either. 

I think Haley gonna be complex but not necessarily a villain. I can see her being someone that Alex respects but they will have their differences. I gotta admit  I liked how she checked Alex.

Edited November 12, 2018 by mommalib

[Lady Calypso]

11 minutes ago, 4evaQuez said:

I know I wasn't supposed to, but I kinda agreed with Colonel Haley. One, I don't remember her calling anyone a "roach" or showing outright hate to aliens. She was upset that J'onn was an imposter and working a job that he did not honestly earn, and I agree with her. While he had great intentions and did a wonderful job as Director, he was in a position where he chose to actively and continuously lie to his supervisors and his employees about his identity and his qualifications. This is no different than someone lying about their educational or employment history or achievements. Yeah, you may be great at the job once hired, but if discovered that you lied, the company has every right to fire you because of the questionable methods used to achieve the job.

Overall, I really liked this episode even though it brought up a lot of questions. I loved seeing the return of Parasite and I liked the effect of the drained aliens. Overall, I also really like the cast this season with the exception of James who still seems rather pointless.

I think they set Haley in a strict grey area when it comes to aliens. She doesn't seem to share the mindset that aliens are roaches who need to be killed, but she also has a set precedent with the DEO in regards to aliens. I think this line, uttered by Haley:

Quote

"I am glad order's been restored, and we're heading towards more civil, honest times."

can have Haley go either way. It could very well be Haley was more upset about J'onn, rather than all aliens, but she made it clear that she prefers the DEO catching aliens and putting them away. I don't quite know how she feels about Brainy after they exposed her true intents at the end of the episode, since they were misdirecting/intentionally withholding this vital piece of the Colonel.

Either way, Colonel Haley's way of thinking could be dangerous too. It all depends on what her opinions on aliens really are. We know her issue with J'onn, but she seems to rather have humans running things, not aliens. 

[tennisgurl]

I am really going to need some clarification on just how long aliens have been around, or how common they are in this setting. I remember people still being like "aliens? Waaaaaaat?" during the first season, with the exception of Superman, but now they've been giving interviews and running about for at least 20 years?Or was that guy just a faith healer, until he told everyone he was an alien? It seems like the show went from a couple aliens, to aliens making up a good chunk of the population over just a season or two. If they've been around for awhile, have their been on and off waves of alien hatred throughout the years? Or has there been a lot of recent immigration? Speaking of, do other countries have aliens? What are their policies? Do aliens become official citizens the way human immigrants do, with tests and background checks (or the equivalent?) and all that? I want this show to get into some real world building damn it! I think that honestly sounds more interesting than humans being assholes and aliens being treated like crap by them. I mean, you can do that too, but I would like to hear a bit more about them being integrated into society, and how that affected the city on a more day to day way, like the alien street performer who got killed this episode. 

I am interested to see how Colonel Haley ends up being, and if she ends up being antagonist or more morally grey but not all evil. She didnt go on about J'onn being a roach or anything, she just said that she hated that he was in charge after impersonating an officer, which...she isnt wrong. I would like it if she didnt turn into another "dickhead authority figure for the heroes to work around" type, and is a tough but basically fair person who disagrees with how Alex runs the DEO, but isnt necessarily wrong about everything, and isnt really a villain. I dont know if that will actually happen (some of her comments about hiring aliens instead of catching them sounds pretty problematic) but I would be alright if she turned out to be more complex, or she learned to appreciate aliens as more than threats. 

How very woman scored, asshole bad guy lady. "Gee, how could my daughter be mad at me? All I did was hide her father from her for years out of spite, and joined a hate group and helped murder people because of a bad break up!" 

Is this Kara's first time on the internet? You could post a picture of a baby playing with a baby, and the comments would have at least two comments that were just ethnic slurs in all caps. 

[shantown]

Does Colonel Haley know Brainy is an alien? Alex kept referring to him as "Agent Dox" when all three were together, it's possible Haley thinks he's just a (slightly weird) human.

[catrice2]

 I'm already bored and exhausted with the storyline and don't even know if I will watch this episode. I may have to start following this show just by reading these boards. They don't know what they want to do with John James or Lena and this new storyline is just not interesting at all. Kara has always been the weakest part of the show

[GHScorpiosRule]

2 hours ago, tennisgurl said:

Speaking of, do other countries have aliens? What are their policies

Yes. Manchester Black said he and Fiona had to leave England when people found out she was an alien.

This season is just RETCON CITY. And, It’s not even going back to season one, though that’s the biggest. Because Ben did kill Fiona-he stuck a sword in the back of her neck and when he withdrew it, it was bloody. It was the kind of kill you see on Game of Thrones all the time.?????

Edited November 13, 2018 by GHScorpiosRule

[Cthulhudrew]

9 hours ago, Lady Calypso said:

It's incredibly poor writing for Kara to continue to be shocked with the anti-alien community. I get that they're just coming out of the woodwork and being more open now, but can this show honestly tell me that Kara has NEVER run into an incident before?

I'm just waiting for her to finally say to Alex, "Why the heck did I have to hide my identity for so long? There were entire alien communities out there in the world that Eliza and Jeremiah could have introduced me to so I wouldn't have to feel alone." There's probably an alien boarding school we just haven't heard about at this point.

Also, I don't quite get why there is so much confusion about who might be behind all of this anti-alien sentiment? J'onn already talked about the anti-alien meeting he went to, and surely he thought it was pretty odd that the guy rallying them was wearing some ridiculous Destro-like facemask. I'd think at the very least that should be their focus, but what do I know?

[GHScorpiosRule]

27 minutes ago, Cthulhudrew said:

guy rallying them was wearing some ridiculous Destro-like facemask

Okay, this made me ????????

[Perfect Xero]

17 hours ago, thuganomics85 said:

When it comes to Lena, I almost wish that someone just has a Men in Black-style memory eraser, so anytime she figures something out, they just simply erase her memory.  That would be way more believable than her missing all of these big damn clues.

It's going to be funny when Lena meets Ben Lockwood, who she's met 3 times in her life, in his Agent Liberty mask and immediately recognizes him.