Supergirl Recap: Ace Reporter

By:  David Carner (@davidcarner)

 

<h3>Spoilers to follow!</h3> 

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Welcome back!  It’s been a month.  We open in the DEO, where there is nothing to do.  Kara finds herself trying cooking while the others take care of DEO business (she’s not very good).  Lena shows up, and she bares her soul about the CEO of another company(Jack).  She wants Kara to go with her to the press conference to have her back.  At the press conference, she runs into Trapper, they have a pleasant conversation (that’s sarcasm).  He’s created some fancy-smancy balls that can heal wounds using nanobots.  Kara gets the first question to Trapper’s delight, he tries to cut her off, and Kara jumps back in.  After the event, Jack finds Lena, and Kara scurries away giving them time.  She’s stopped by some guy who screams conspiracy nut and he walks off.  Jack asks Lena out to dinner, but she leaves before she gives an answer.  We cut to Guardian, who is beating up baddies and then he returns to the Guardian van, which is arockin (no seriously, it’s rockin).  Inside Wynn and Lyra are making out (that’s it) but James is upset.  Lyra knew James was Guardian because of his smell.  Lyra wants to help, and James is not happy with that.  James refuses to work with her, and they go back and forth, and he finally caves.  At the pier, Kara shows up to talk to conspiracy guy, Joe Watkins.  He worked for Jack’s company, and as he talks, they nanobots head for the car.  He says the human tests were faked, and the car explodes, Kara flies up with the coolest imagery of her coat on fire, and ask she turns her shirt is burnt and we can see the symbol. 

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We cut back to KatCo, and Kara asks James to request info from the DEA.  Trapper walks in, sees Kara and asks if she forgot her scruncy.  She tells him what she’s doing and the three go back and forth until Trapper reminds James that’s a conflict of interest.  Kara changes her mind and leaves.  Kara overhears Trapper telling James about a test subject and she leaves.  Over at Lexcorp, Jack walks into Lena’s office and again tries to get a date.  They talk, at length, and he asks again.  We cut to the van, and Guardian taking down a kid.  Lyra shows and kicks the young man’s rearend.  Guardian stops her.  We cut to Snapper meeting the subject, and Supergirl is outside listening.  The nanobots show and Kara saves them.  The nanobots kill the test subject, and come for Trapper, but Supergirl freezes them.  They escape.

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At Kara’s apartment, Mon-El is reading, and Kara begins to freak out.  Mon-El tells her Lena is having dinner with Jack and she rushes off after her.  They join the two for dinner.  Kara begins to chat about the Nanobots, and he dodges most question, until Lena wants to know how he figured it all out.  Jack and Lena have a moment, and Lena basically kicks them out.  Mon-El gives Jack a bro hug, and wants them to hang out.  Kara asks him what he was doing and Mon-El shows her the security badge he lifted off of Jack.  They leave and Jack and we cut back to Lexcorp.  Jack apologizes for making her choose.  Kara and Mon-El break in (by use of key card).  Kara uses his computer and finds the truth, Jack is the human trial.  Mon-El plugs in the flash drive into the computer.  Back at Lexcorp, Lena is about to kiss him when Jack realizes what is happening and leaves.  As they are downloading, they hear the Nanos and run.

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Next morning at Lexcorp, Kara drops in on Lena.  Kara apologies for last night, and Lena offers for them to double.  Kara tells her that Biomax is dangerous and is covering it up.  Kara shows her the video.  Lena asks to go talk to him before Kara publishes.  Kara tells her that if she does he’ll kill her.  Lena promises not to go.  Kara apologizes and leaves.  At the bar, Lyra and Wynn meet, and Wynn tells her she went a bit overboard and that she can’t be a part of the van team.  Lyra breaks a beer with her bare hand.  She thinks James hates her, and tells Wynn to leave.  At Catco, Kara walks into Trapper’s office.  After their normal back and forth, Kara gives Trapper the story, and tells him that her giving it to him will get the story to more people, and she apologizes for disobeying his order from a few episodes back where he fired her.  (She looked ready to spit as she said it.)  Trapper says finally, and Kara walks him through everything.  Trapper tells her that the CFO may be involved.  Kara leaves.  Lena confronts Jack.  She accuses him of killing people, and he has no idea, but the CFO is behind him, controlling Jack.

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The CFO made Jack kill everyone (she has this Bluetooth thing in her ear that reminds me of a little of Lobot from The Empire Strikes Back).  Jack has no free will.  The two women trade insults, and the CFO tells her the plan, Lena smiles and says you’re going to kill me that’s why your telling me all of this (See this is so meta, well done)  The CFO send Jack to kill Lena and Supergirl shows up at the last second.  Lena tells Supergirl to keep Jack occupied, and goes after the CFO.  She kicks Lena telling her she’s a blackbelt, and Lena hits her, responding, did I mention I was a Luthor.  The Bluetooth thing goes flying.  Supergirl is trapped, and Lena breaks the Bluetooth thingy, causing Jack great pain.  He tells her to get to the mainframe.  The nanobots are killing Supergirl, and the CFO tells her if she overrides it she’ll kill Jack.  Lena hits the CFO with an elbow to the nose, apologizes to Jack, and saves Supergirl.  (I’m still waiting for her to go full on Luthor, but not today it appears.)

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At Lexcorp, Kara brings Lena some flowers.  They talk, and Lena talks about feeling cold and calm.  (I think it’s coming)  She admits to Kara she’s afraid of the person she might be.  Kara tells her she is there for her, and Lena asks promise?  (Pretty sure it’s coming)  Kara talks about how she will protect her, as Lena stares off, tears in her eyes (Full on Luthor is coming)  Cut to the van, James tries to talk to Wynn about Lyra, but Wynn is still upset.  James tells him he’s his best friend and his brother.  Of course, Lyra is there, invited by James.  James tells her she has to listen to everything.  She agrees.  At Katco, Trapper is bellowing about a Danish, and Kara lays a present on his desk.  She has finally cooked something correctly.  They talk about sea salt, and Trapper hands her the latest magazine.  The story has both his and her name in the byline.  Trapper says she did good, and looked very uncomfortable saying it.  Trapper says he needs to work on the cover, and she starts to leave.  Trapper asks her now that she has a byline is she too good to work late.  Kara stammers and stutters, and Trapper gives his truth, justice, American Way, Apple pie, and baseball speech (okay, I might be exaggerating).  She’s back!  And perhaps the Danish wasn’t that good.  Back at Lexcorp, Lena has a visitor.  It’s Mon-El’s mother.  (Ruh Roh!)

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<h3>Quotes</h3>

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“Wow, they’ll let anyone into these events now.” – Trapper

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“And, I was worried only people born before 1980 read your magazine.” – Kara

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“I’m going to powder my nose.  DO NOT BE HERE WHEN I GET BACK!” – Lyra

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“Did you say thank you?” – Kara.  “Once, to a divorce lawyer.  It was uncomfortable to everyone involved.” – Trapper

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“Behind every great man is a strong woman.” – CFO “Oh, I wouldn’t know, I’ve never stood behind a man.” – Lena. “You just cleaned up after your brother.” – CFO

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“What’s this about a cat stuck up in a tree?  I’m starving.” – Lyra.  “She’s kiddin’, right?” – James. “You know I’m not sure.” – Wynn.

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<h3>Little Things</h3>

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We always knew Kara would be back at the paper, but that was done very, very well.

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I always feared Lena would go to the dark side, and if she does, it was also done very well, but it was set up in a way where she just might not.

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No Alex and Maggie this week, but it appears a very Alex intensive episode next week.

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I hope you enjoyed the review.  If I missed an Easter Egg, please let me know and if I can confirm it, next week I’ll give you all the credit. 

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If you haven’t today, please take a second to open the Donate a Photo app by Johnson & Johnson.  When you donate a photo, $1 is given to the charity of your choice, and Operation Smile is one of those charities.  There are several other charities on there as well.  Come on back in next week and we’ll talk “Alex.”  (That title worries me a bit) (After seeing the previews it really worries me)

Matt Goodman
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http://www.nerdhq.com/supergirl-recap-ace-reporter/

SUPERMAN Is A 'New Person' After 'Reborn' According To ACTION COMICS Writer

And the fate of Ma and Pa Kent revealed.

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http://www.newsarama.com/34245-superman-is-a-new-person-after-reborn-according-to-action-comics-writer.html

Best Shots Advance Reviews: THERE'S NOTHING THERE #1, ALIENS: DEAD ORBIT #1

Two new #1s.

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http://www.newsarama.com/34246-best-shots-advance-reviews-there-s-nothing-there-1-aliens-dead-orbit-1.html

BATMAN & FLASH Dust-Off the COSMIC TREADMILL in THE FLASH #22 Preview - 'The Button' Part 2

Plus some other interesting artifacts in the Watchtower's 'Hall of Lost and Found.'

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http://www.newsarama.com/34244-batman-flash-dust-off-the-cosmic-treadmill-in-the-flash-22-preview-the-button-part-2.html

GEOFF JOHNS 'Extremely Excited' For TITANS Show, Hints at Fourth Team Member

The one-time TEEN TITANS writer has a favorite.

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Civil War - Mark Millar & Steve McNiven

Civil War Mark Millar & Steve McNiven Genre: Graphic Novels Price: $12.99 Publish Date: February 21, 2012 Publisher: Disney Publishing Worldwide Seller: Disney Publishing Worldwide

The landscape of the Marvel Universe is changing, and it's time to choose: Whose side are you on? A conflict has been brewing, threatening to pit friend against friend, brother against brother and all it will take is a single misstep to cost thousands their lives and ignite the fuse! As the war claims its first victims, no one is safe as teams, friendships and families begin to fall apart. The crossover that rewrites the rules, Civil War stars Spider-Man, the New Avengers, the Fantastic Four, the X-Men and the entirety of the Marvel pantheon! Collects Civil War (2006) #1-7.

get it now at https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/civil-war/id504163881?mt=11&uo=2&partnerId=11&at=1010ldoE

Gifted Movie Review

By: Andrew Clarke (@AwaitingAndrew)

Gifted stars Chris Evans as the uncle and caregiver of a seven-year-old prodigy named Mary Adler (McKenna Grace). Evans’ character, Frank, is determined to give his brilliant niece the normal life he believes his deceased sister would have wanted for her daughter, despite others – namely the girl’s grandmother – trying to take her away to a school for gifted students.

Directed by Marc Webb (The Amazing Spider-Man, (500) Days of Summer), the film takes off right from the start, as the rising action of the plot is bundled with the exposition of getting to know these characters at home. We begin the film as Mary is preparing for her first day of first grade. Frank had previously been homeschooling his niece so as to shield her brilliance from the public, but has decided she should get out and interact with other kids her age. This is much to the dismay of their neighbor, Roberta (Octavia Spencer), who keeps Mary every Friday night until Saturday afternoon, and worries what might happen once school officials get light that Mary is the brightest kid her age.

And that doesn’t take long. On the first day, Mary mocks her teacher, played by Jenny Slate, over the simple addition problems she’s posing to the class – and then solves complex multiplication in her head. And from that point on, the film is a sort of character story posed around the question of what’s best for the child – ultimately in the hands of a court judge, as two lawyers pose their cases on behalf of both sides, one trying to keep the child with Frank in the life she currently knows and the other with intent to take her away and put her in a school for gifted students.

While the film’s plot doesn’t necessarily bring anything new to the theater, the way Gifted is told and the people behind it bring it to incredible life. If your familiarity with the film career of Chris Evans begins and ends with Captain America or perhaps only extends to Fantastic Four a decade prior, fix that now. With Steve Rogers, Evans has brought life to a character that I otherwise might not be so invested in among the other Marvel heroes, and that’s a testament to his performance time and time again in the role. But I would say my favorite performance of his comes from his 2015 directorial debut, Before We Go, a simple story at the surface but acted and directed in such a way that it is a near phenomenal film. The same is largely true for Gifted.

Evans puts his all into this role, truly diving deep into his character and finding the emotion needed to make such a character as interesting as he possibly can. Frank’s not perfect. He knows it and never shies away from that fact. But he loves his niece above all else and despite his doubts and fears that whatever choice he makes will ruin Mary’s life, he believes giving her a chance at normal life at home with him and attending a regular school is what’s best.

Evans is tremendous as always, and that does a lot for the film. But as the title Gifted suggests, the film is about the girl, Mary, and not necessarily her uncle. Thankfully, the casting director found a girl, McKenna Grace, who shines alongside Evans on the big screen. It’s a powerfully believable performance from a child actor and one of the best performances I’ve seen so far this year. I’m pleased to see yet another great performance from a young actor in the early months of 2017, following in Dafne Keen in Logan and Sunny Pawar in Lion. I only hope she continues her career along this path so audiences can see more from her, rather than falling alongside other brilliant child performances where critics unfortunately often point to their one defining role when they don’t continue on in other films.

I personally thought Marc Webb did a great job with The Amazing Spider-Man films – any issues lie with the studio. That being said, they don’t hold a candle to the incredible work on (500) Days of Summer, so I was quite excited to see him return to an original work with Gifted. There are some awe-inspiring shots in what is, on the surface, a seemingly unremarkable film, namely a sunset beach conversation between Frank and his niece as she ponders on the existence of God. (Frank’s response in itself is equally noteworthy.) Webb’s involvement helps to bring this film to a higher level.

Overall, Webb handles directing the script about a brilliant young girl and her uncle like a master, and, along with impressive work from Evans and Grace, quickly gets the audience invested in thinking about the dilemma at hand. Should the next potential Albert Einstein have a normal childhood where he or she can interact with regular people of the same age, or should the focus be on the potential for great things to come, even if it means the child will never have a normal life?

admin
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