The young actresses were first rate. I thought at first it was Benoist made up to look younger but what spot on casting! The story was pretty decent as well, though I did think it implausible that the sheriff would have shot a child there- even in the bowels of a stadium it seems a gunshot would have been noticed.
Has she had a bunch of plastic surgery or something? She looks much different now.
And so we get our first look at Imra Ardeen, a.k.a. Saturn Girl, a.k.a. Mrs. Mon-el. As I predicted last season, Mon-el got sucked into a portal to the 31st century where he seems to have spent quite some time (with the Legion of Superheroes?). Poor Kara isn’t going to be smiling again anytime soon, is she?
This was one of those middle episodes where the writers realize they have too many narrative threads going on at once, and they rush to advance all of them at the same time. Mon-el coming back, J’onn trying to bond with his dad, Sam finally discovering who she really is. Unfortunately this resulted in a disjointed episode with nothing to connect the various threads. At least there was a vaguely related theme of “waking up”. Mon-el and Imra literally waking up, Reign waking up from within Sam, J’onn, er, waking up from spending too much time at the DEO.
With the crossover coming up next week, I thought this episode would have a lead-in to that, like Kara getting an invitation to the West-Allen nuptials. But not a hint whatsoever. Anyway, I’ve created a separate thread for all crossover-related discussion: Crisis on Earth-X.
In a way it sets it up. It gives Kara a good reason to go away for awhile and not worry so much about her Home Earth.
OK, so I guess last night’s episode was setting up the rest of the season’s arcs but it was terrible after an excellent episode. I am looking forward to the big Cross-Over Event next week at least.
I suspect this episode offered less to part of the audience that watches the shows without being readers of the source comic books.
Most of that didn’t work for me at all -
A Story - Mon-el:
It made no sense at all for Mon-el not to just say “I got sucked into a portal to the future. It’s been 7 years. There are people in those pod things who are important to me, help me get them out and safe.” Having him sit around being sullen (with the occasional bout of “trust me, even though I’m not saying anything”) was just dumb. They still could have been conflicted over whether its the true Mon-el; Kara could have still been torn by his caring more about pod people than her; there still would have been a wife at the end of this episode, but I would have been less annoyed by everyone and everything.
Also, what about the remainder of the pods? Are they just leaving all of those alone and letting them drown?
B-Story - Reign:
Her backstory is stupid.
How old is she supposed to be? (Assuming Ruby is about 10-ish, and she had Ruby as a teenager, is she really running a L-Corp type of corporation in her mid-20s? Presumably without a college degree and/or MBA or did she get those while living on the street and raising a child?)
During the first 16 or so years of her life, she really never once went into her garage and looked under the big tarp. Not once? That takes a monumental level of incuriousness (and is incompatible with the type of person who could run L-Corp in her mid-20s).
Where exactly is her “Fortress-of-whatever”? And how does the government not notice a big thingy showing up in the desert? (The Fortress of Solitude is at least in the North Pole and away from stuff. This is inside of the US)
How do the Kryptons know anything about her at all? Kara’s version of the crystal thingies are basically tape recordings. Are hers supposed to be a portal? And if they could trigger her whenever, why not right after Ruby was born?
C-Story: J’onn:
I get that J’onn’s life is the DEO, but he really didn’t have an apartment?
When Sam’s foster mother explained where she had found Sam, I had this vision of her saying “it’s not discussed very much, but in fact, 1 in 20 Earth children are adopted after having been found in space pods.”
I turned to my daughter and explained that the only reason she doesn’t have powers is because we don’t have a shed out back with a little sunlight slanting in.
Kara about to spin drill (a la Superman in Superman The Movie) and J’onn stopping her was very cute.
Although it was another instance of being careless with the secret identities. Right there on the street, with people walking by within a few feet, she declares, “I saw Clark do this once.” Not “Superman,” not “my cousin,” not even “Kal El,” but “Clark.”
At this point, why are they even bothering to pretend anyone has a secret identity any more? 
He did, at one point, I thought.
What’s bothering me a lot is the clear telegraphing that Martian Grandpa is going to reconnect with J’onn and either turn evil or die.
I don’t want him to. I like Martian Grandpa.
Also, it occurred to me that that douchebag Snapper is gone and the show is far better because of it. Now if only they’d get rid of fake-Jimmy Olsen*, we’d have a pretty strong cast.
*Race isn’t the issue. Jimmy isn’t a strong, competent 40-something. He’s a kid or at most, early 20s. Have Fake-Jimmy give his camera to a newly introduced nephew who’s like 17 or so and then hit Fake Jimmy with a bus.
He’s not evil, those were the red lectroids.
Don’t make him into a copy of Jack Larson, though. I know he was beloved for his character of Jimmy Olsen, but he always made me cringe. I liked Justin Whalin, the second Jimmy on Lois and Clark.
S03E09: Reign
Where did Reign’s costume come from? (Really, when did she have time to make it? And from what?)
I can’t see J’onn’s father without thinking “need see Buckaroo Banzai in person.”
Hey, look, it’s Agent Vasquez! Is she going to be be spending more time in National City now that S.H.I.E.L.D. is in space and in the future?
So Jimmy and Lena are going to be a thing. That’s great for Jimmy, but I think Lena could do better. Problem is, they don’t have any chemistry together. Jimmy doesn’t have any chemistry with anyone. Good job, though, breaking out the Guardian shield. I thought they had forgotten all about it, the same way they’ve forgotten about Winn’s alien girlfriend.
Supergirl vs. Reign was an absolutely brutal fight. Reign holds absolutely nothing back. Best bit was them crashing into an office Christmas party and duking it out with cheerful Christmas music playing in the background.
Addendum: Apparently Earth-38 never developed time travel technology nor will develop it until at least the 31st century since Mon-el and company were traveling back to the future the long way.
If only Supergirl knew someone with a ship that could travel like riding the waves of time. Nah, never happen. The Legends already broke time in one universe. No telling what they’d fuck up in Kara’s universe.
But boy would i love to see them try.
I know this is way late, but if I said “I saw Scott do this once”, who would I be referring to? Your first thought would be reporter on a newspaper on the other coast? I used ‘Scott’ because he is actually a reporter on a coastal newspaper - any idea on his last name and/or the paper he works for?
That said, I think she should have referred to him as ‘Kal’ - since that seems to be her default when in Supergirl mode.