written by Cara Russell
SPOILER WARNINGS ARE IN EFFECT
I was hesitant to watch this week’s episode, as last week’s was such a fresh breath of air that surely this one was a trap. Fortunately, if there is a trap, it’s not in this episode (at least, not for the viewers).
When last we met, Brainiac 5 and Nia were being held by intergalactic zookeepers looking for new attractions. Kara’s quick arrival on the scene causes enough of a distraction for our dynamic duo to escape and capture their hunters, then arranging for them to appear on the other side of the world where the DEO can collect them and restore the timeline. They say their goodbyes to the home team, with Kara and Kenny preparing for the prom and Nia and Brainy settling in to wait for the meteor that will injure Kara and get them the DNA sample they originally came for.
Unfortunately for all, kitten!Grant has found the malicious alien ship. She releases the hunters so they can continue to capture the local extra-terrestrials. They snag Kenny instead and add him to CJ’s cell, with the subsequent rescue attempt landing most of the group in the crosshairs of a police raid. Brainy and Nia take the repaired Legion ship back in time again to fix the timestream, but end up with Kara stowing away for the ride. Nia manages to head off CJ and gives her the new nickname of “Cat” Grant, and Brainy sends the enemy aliens off to their date with the DEO. Kara gets in her own place in time to be hit with the Kryptonite meteor, but with a less severe injury this time. It still lets the time travelers collect the DNA sample they needed.
And now for the truly excellent stuff: Kenny and Kara also finally have their heart to heart, where Kara admits that she won’t be staying in Midvale for college, but she’d like Kenny to go with her to National City. Kenny isn’t in a place to go with her, because while he’s inspired by Kara to be a stronger and better person all the time, he still has his own personal growth to do and needs to learn how to save himself. Though they’ll remain friends at least, the timeline is restored and Kenny didn’t have to die this time.
Brainy and Nia bond further in a truly sweet scene, moving further along in repairing their relationship that was damaged during Brainy’s dark “having attachments makes me weak” phase. They return to the future, and when Nia asks how he feels, Brainiac says “hopeful.” Which truly is one of the touchstone messages for this series, and it warms the dark recesses of my soul to see these themes back in this series – themes of hope, help, justice, and being stronger together. They resonate with the cast even when Supergirl isn’t on-screen. It’s a nice change from the last few episodes, even though it’s preparing us for a return to the Phantom Zone, which will surely be filled with the stuff of nightmares.
Supergirl airs Tuesday nights at 9 Eastern/8 Central on the CW. Cara can be found on Twitter @virtualcara.