“Why does every article of clothing need to have our family crest on it? It’s like we’re sewing our name into our underwear as a family.“
This week’s episode of Supergirl is an homage to one of the most popular stories in Superman history, “For the Man Who Has Everything,” by Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons. In “For the Girl Who Has Everything,” we get to see Kara’s heart’s desire as the DEO scrambles to save her from the Black Mercy. Welcome to Episode 13 of Season One of CBS’ Supergirl!
**THIS IS A RECAP – SPOILERS ARE PART OF THE TERRITORY.**
S1, Episode 13 – The Basics
- Kara wakes up in a strange bed and to a strange flying robot. The robot says it’s a doctor (show me your Robot Doctor credentials, bub!). Kara notices an article of clothing belonging to her mother on the bed. Then, her mother walks in. She’s back on Krypton! Or is she … ? Needless to say, Kara is severely weirded out.
- At CatCo, Cat is wondering where Kara is. Winn suggests Kara might be incommunicado because of the solar storm happening, but Cat—being Cat—makes it all about her, and is sure that Kara’s late, because she doesn’t want to face Cat after chasing her son away. Both Winn and James are concerned about Kara, so they call Alex.
- Alex, Winn, and James go to the Danvers’ apartment and find Kara on the ground with a huge plant wrapped around her. Alex calls the DEO for medical assistance.
- At the DEO, Alex is convinced that Maxwell Lord must be behind this, so she goes into his cell and violently threatens him. He insists he has nothing to do with it, and (with a little begrudging help from Hank) Alex backs off. For now.
- As it turns out, Lord isn’t responsible (for once). The Kryptonians are behind this one, using the solar storm to stage a plan called “Myriad.” And since Astra insisted that Kara not be killed, Non took Kara out of the equation by putting her under the thrall of a Black Mercy—a plant that can apparently give Kara “everything her heart desires.” Astra doesn’t look thrilled about what Non has done, but at least Kara’s not dead, right?
- But Kara could be. Because if anyone tries to forcibly remove the Black Mercy from her, she’ll die.
- Meanwhile, Kara-on-Krypton doesn’t believe that this is real for a second, despite her longing looks at objects and people from her past. She’s determined to figure out what’s going on and get back “home.”
Next time you see Clark, you can totally make fun of him for being such a dork when he was a kid.
- James and Winn return to CatCo, worried as hell about Kara back at the DEO, but determined to cover for her. Cat confronts Winn about Kara’s whereabouts, and Winn tries to come up with an excuse—something about ticks—but Cat is not having it. If Kara doesn’t show up, she’s fired.
- At the DEO, both Alex and Hank are on edge as they try to figure out how to help Kara. Alex tells him that James called her saying that Kara will be fired if she doesn’t show up for work. Alex stresses how important CatCo is to Kara—that it’s more than a job, it’s the place where she has friends and can have a normal life. Then, she tells Hank that it’s the DEO’s responsibility to help her preserve that normal life until she can get back to it. Cut to …
- … “Kara” walking in to CatCo—it’s Martian Manhunter, natch. James and Winn run up to her, thinking it’s Kara, but “Kara” explains that she’s a DEO agent sent to fill in until Kara can return. The guys warn “Kara” that being Cat Grant’s assistant might not be as easy as all that. And they’re right. “Kara” goes into Cat’s office having gotten her coffee, and Cat proceeds to lay into her over and over again. By the time “Kara” leaves, Martian Manhunter says to himself, “That woman makes me miss my alien prison.”
- At the DEO, Alex is desperately questioning the Alura hologram about how to help Kara, but the hologram doesn’t have enough information to go on. Alex then proceeds to break down, feeling guilty about not having been kind enough to Kara when she first arrived on Earth, and determined to be there for her now. But the hologram can give her nothing, and Alex leaves frustrated.
- On Fake Krypton, Kara is struggling to figure out how this all happened, and she’s slowly losing her memory of Earth. Every time a new element of her Kryptonian life is introduced—her toy box, Kal-El, her father, Aunt Astra—she loses a bit more of Earth.
- Alex returns home only to have Astra show up. Alex tries to shoot her, but Astra has arrived wanting to help Kara. While Alex doesn’t trust her as far as she can throw her, she also knows she has no choice, as the DEO has zero information on how to stop a Black Mercy. Apparently, there’s a way for the DEO to help Kara, but ultimately, Kara has to reject the fantasy life herself.
Weirdest. Family reunion. Ever.
- At Team Supergirl HQ, James, Winn, Alex, and Hank are gathered, and Hank has just explained to them who he is and how he was “Kara.” Alex wants to modify the DEO’s virtual reality tech to allow her to go into Kara’s consciousness and convince her to reject the fantasy. Since they’ll be “pulling her out of Heaven,” they know she’ll need lots of support when she emerges. Alex insists that James and Winn be allowed to be by her side, since they are also “her family,” but Hank doesn’t need much convincing. His time with them in the trenches dealing with Cat Grant showed him why they’re so valuable to Kara. So, they’re off to the DEO!
- Well, first “Kara” has to get out of work. She first tries reason, then tries crying until eventually Cat has no choice but to let her take the day off just so she doesn’t have to look at her anymore!
- At the DEO, Winn is at Kara’s side as James and Alex look on. Hank brings up the fact that this all seems to be timed with the solar storm, and that the Kryptonians will likely make a move soon. Alex has had Lord brought to them from his cell, and she asks him to help with Kara. At first, he tries to make a deal—which Hank has no intention of honoring—but Alex tells him that the aliens who attacked him are coming back for more: “the enemy of your enemy, right?” Lord agrees to help.
- Meanwhile, at the Kryptonian lair, Astra is talking to her soldiers about their plan. There are six packges going to six different locations, and they will help them finish what they started on Krypton. When the soldiers have gone, Non asks where she was earlier, questioning her loyalty. But Astra lies her face off, and he eventually apologizes for questioning her.
- Just before attaching herself to the VR tech, Alex asks James to make sure that Hank doesn’t pull her out of it until she’s rescued Kara. He agrees that he will.
- Lord puts the modified VR helmet on Alex, and switches it on. Suddenly, Alex is on Krypton!
Best video game ever?
- While Alex is under, the DEO is having problems with their satellites, which are out because of the solar flares. Winn suggests to Hank that this might be part of Non’s plan. Seeing potential in Winn, Hank lets him help his team figure things out. Winn: “Point me at a computer.”
- On Fake Krypton, Alex finds Kara with her family, but Kara has completely forgotten her. After Alex tries to explain, Kara knocks her out with the sculpture she made her father. Ouch.
- Alex is in distress on the table at the DEO, and Hank is about to pull her out, but James convinces him not to, reminding him of the fact that, as much as he wants to help Alex, if he pulls Alex out without Kara, Alex will never look at Hank the same way again.
- On Fake Krypton, Alex has been arrested, and is about to be banished to the Phantom Zone. Kara stands by as her mother sentences Alex, seemingly unfeeling at first. But as Alex reminds her of their bond, of Winn and James, of the Earth that needs her—of Supergirl—Kara slowly comes around, softening. Eventually, she rejects the fantasy, though she wishes she could stay.
- When Alex comes out of Kara’s consciousness at the DEO and sees Kara still on the table, she assumes someone pulled her out ahead of time, and she’s furious. But then, Kara starts to regain consciousness. And she is Not. Happy. Colder than we’ve ever seen her before, Kara asks “Who did this to me?” Alex tells her: “Non.” Be afraid, Non. Be very afraid.
No. WORST video game ever.
- Winn finds a hidden transmission in the satellite signals pointing to a virus in Lord tech. Lord mentions that he has six satellite farms, and so the DEO rolls out to cover each of them and try to head Non off at the pass.
- Kara finds Non first and beats the ever-living snot out of him. Meanwhile, Alex and Astra fight, and Alex calls her on the fact that she couldn’ve killed her and Kara many times, but hasn’t. Alex flat-out asks her to help them. She insists she’s still passionate about her cause. Then Martian Manhunter shows up and IT IS ON! Supergirl fights Non, Alex and Martian Manhunter fight Astra. POW! BIFF! BAM!
- Non tells Supergirl that their plan is already in place, then he hits a satellite dish with his heat vision, causing it to collapse, knowing that Kara would try to save the people it could land on, and he escapes.
- Meanwhile, as Astra fights Martian Manhunter, Alex comes up from behind and STABS HER WITH A KRYPTONITE MACHETE!
- As Supergirl deals with putting the fallen satellite dish somewhere, Alex calls her and tells her to come to them right away. She does, and arrives to find Astra dying. Hank tells her that he killed her because there was no alternative, lying to cover for Alex.
- Kara tells Astra that she saw her in her fantasy life as family under the Black Mercy. Astra seems pleased to hear that. She warns Kara that Non cannot be stopped, and that if she tries, Non will kill her. Kara begs her to tell her about their plan “before it’s too late,” but Astra assures her that it already is too late. She dies.
- Later, Non mourns over Astra’s body at Kryptonian HQ. A soldier assures him that the General died a hero’s death, not in vain, as their plan is under way. REVENGE IS COMING.
- At the DEO, Alex asks Hank why he lied for her. “You’re Supergirl’s hero,” he says, and he doesn’t want that to change. Alex seems to have mixed feelings about telling Kara.
- That evening, at the Danvers’ apartment, Team Supergirl is all gathered together for dinner, and Kara tells them that, while she might have fantasized about Krypton, she came back, because these three are her family, and “there’s no place like home.” Winn commends her on quoting a movie, and they all settle in for dinner, ice cream, and alcohol. Alex starts to tell her the truth about how Astra died, but changes her mind and doesn’t.
Worst. Uncle. Ever.
The Review Bit, Wherein I Express OPINIONS:
I loved the decision to give Supergirl her own version of this classic story. The best part of this episode, hands-down, was Melissa Benoist’s performance. From being Kara dealing with the loss of her Earth memory, to being “Kara” as she plays herself via David Harewood, to being saved from the Black Mercy furious at Non and pursuing him with ice running through her veins, Benoist tackled each element of the episode flawlessly. This was by far her best episode to date performance-wise.
This was also a great episode for Alex, who had a lot to deal with throughout. Chyler Leigh rocked this episode, and I thought it interesting that Hank brings up Alex being “Supergirl’s hero” on the day that she’s pretty much done the worst thing ever. I’ve always loved how complex and real Alex and Kara’s relationship is, and this new development will certainly complicate things further. And for the record, I have zero problem with what Alex did.
However, despite loving the character work, and the juxtaposition of Kara on Fake Krypton with Alex at the DEO trying to save her, I could’ve done without all the stuff at CatCo. Yes, I know allowances have to be made for Kara’s job, and yes, I love watching Benoist pretend to be Hank pretending to be her. Still, the scenes with Cat in this episode really didn’t move it forward at all, and had they been shortened or removed, the stuff on Fake Krypton could’ve been a slower burn and way more intense and psychological.
I have to say, though, that I’m glad Astra’s dead. Much though I love Laura Benanti, that character was going nowhere fast. Non is where all the action is, and I cannot WAIT to see Supergirl beat the shit out of him again soon!
Still, I loved the galvanization of Team Supergirl in this episode. It’s to the point now that Hank really likes James and Winn, and they now know that he’s an alien. These four are going to be a great team, and I look forward to seeing how that dynamic continues to play out!
What say you, Supergirl fans? What did you think of this week’s episode? Tell me in the comments below!
Supergirl airs Mondays at 8PM ET/PT on CBS. For more Supergirl fun, check out The House of El—January’s video is available for viewing now!—and subscribe to my podcast, Supergirl Radio!
(Images via Darren Michaels/Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc.)
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