Since the CW just continues to load itself up with DC comic book shows – Arrow, The Flash,Legends of Tomorrow and now Supergirl – it seemed to just make more sense to recap them all in one fell swoop rather than stretch ourselves thin with the separate shows.
Apologies for another break on the writing, I was at Sundance, which sadly didn’t have any superheroes, because we could really use some.
Supergirl 2.10 “We Can Be Heroes”
It’s a fun time to see Livewire return. She’s always been a fun, campy villain. Fun quote: “You know what I love? Little boys who think they can do a better job than the woman who is an actual superhero.” Never stop taking shots at Trump. What’s even better is that they set up Livewire as a recurring villain. Supergirl and Livewire create a deal similar to what The Flash and Captain Cold did. Flash lets him run free as long as he keeps it out of Central City. Supergirl has given Livewire a head start to get on the run.
Kara discovers James “professionally handsome desk person” is The Guardian. Listen, having The Guardian in the Arrowverse is tight, I love the Guardian. But at the same time, I wish it wasn’t James. With him as The Guardian, it brings Supergirl one step closer to the damning decision of the “everyone has a superpower” trope – one of many things that made season 4 of Arrow as bad as it was. We’ve still got a lot of season left, but I do have my doubts about the creative longevity of this decision.
It’s difficult to get lost in the escapism and heightened realities of superheroes with all that’s going on right now. In literally two weeks of office, Trump and other villains like Bannon and Pence have stripped away core values of our country with little regard for the impact on everyday people. One of many damning decisions made by this administration has been the Muslim Ban, closing the door on countless refugee lives. Supergirl is of course herself a refugee of sorts, she’s an alien from another planet. Earlier in the season, the show dealt a lot with immigration issues, seeming to be prescient about our climate. It’s backed off the last few episodes, but I hope it goes back to that driving theme. With all that’s going on, Supergirl has the chance to be the most relevant show on television. I just hope it realizes that.
The Flash 3.11 “Dead or Alive”
Kid Flash is really lighting up the city, and it’s nice seeing Barry as a mentor of sorts, even as young as he is. It adds another dimension to the evolution of Barry as this show progresses. Gypsy, an interdimensional bounty hunter of sorts known as a Collector who can also vibe, comes to collect Hipster Wells as interdimensional travel is outlawed on his Earth. The punishment is death. Cisco is immediately smitten by Gypsy and it’s hilarious, commenting “Who is this gorgeous intruder?”
Now here’s the moral dilemma. Barry knows Hipster Wells is with him in the future, but in their efforts to change the future, do they let Gypsy take Hipster Wells? Because Barry is the nicest person on earth, of course they’re not going to let Gypsy take Hipster Wells. Cisco challenges Gypsy to a trial by combat, while still trying to hit on her. Shoutout to Carlos Valdez for consistently being the show’s MVP, delivering on all the humor. Their fight goes between different earths, including a brief visit to CatCo. Cisco just barely manages to win the fight, sparing Gypsy’s life in the act.
One of the exciting things about this season of The Flash is just how much they’re fitting in here. Flashpoint? Yes. Kid Flash? Hell yeah. Flashpoint but in the future? Why not. It should be feeling like it’s all getting crammed into too little show, but they’re handling it all extremely well, cherry-picking the most appealing aspects and translating them to the show’s emotional core of family and friends. The Flash just keeps on getting better with each season.
Times I cried:
- When Barry tells Cisco he’s in his corner.
- When Cisco tells Hipster Wells why he decided to fight for him.
Legends of Tomorrow 2.10 “The Legion of Doom”
This episode is a delightful one as it focuses solely on the boy band the Legion of Doom. One of the great things about having these villains is that each actor is trying to out-ham each other. And keep in mind, these are maestros of ham. Neal McDonough and John Barrowman know how to giddily overplay a scene. But alas, there’s tension in the boy band as each one deals with the fact that there can only be one Justin Timberlake in each group. Somebody’s gotta sing backup right?
BLACK FLASH. Thawne has been pursued by Black Flash ever since Barry pulled him from the timeline in flashpoint, which is why he has to remain in the speedforce to not get caught. This is amazing for multiple reasons. First of all, it’s Black Flash. Second of all, it confirms the speculation that we would eventually get Black Flash after Zoom became him at the end of season 2 of The Flash. The appearance of Black Flash opens up so many possibilities for not only this show and The Flash, but the whole Arrowverse.
Then it ends with Rip killing George Washington in 1776? Alright, sure, why not? Legends of Tomorrow is easily the most ridiculous show of the bunch, but thankfully it knows it.
Arrow 5.11 “Second Chances”
As this season’s main theme has been legacy, it makes sense in that respect for team Arrow to find themselves a new Black Canary. The best way to honor Laurel’s legacy is to continue it. They find their candidate in Hub City, where a mysterious vigilante is exacting revenge. Given her powers during the particle accelerator explosion that gave The Flash his powers, Tina Boland was a former cop now turned vigilante. But Tina was her undercover name, her real name is Dinah Drake (wink wink).
In the flashbacks, we finally get Talia Al Ghul when she rescues Oliver from the Bratva. Turns out, Yao Fei was one of her students. It’s a nice little tie-in to season one. A particularly impressive action sequence finds Oliver going full John Wick on a bunch of Russian bodyguards with close quarter gun-fu. Having Talia enter now, after all the time we’ve spent with the League is pretty interesting, it gives them an open canvas to decide where she fits into Oliver’s story.
The real highlight of the episode is when at one point Oliver shoots an arrow to hook onto a helicopter and still manages to punch out several henchmen while it slings him around. Keep in mind they all have guns and he’s still just flying around delivering uppercuts no problem. He then shoots another arrow that makes the helicopter crash and explode. This sort of bonkers action hero storytelling is what keeps me coming back each week.
