Martin Carr reviews the sixth episode of Supergirl season 5…
Finally an episode which moves with confidence, exudes swagger and pulls together various threads across numerous time periods without dropping the ball. There are logical choices, revelations and back story aplenty all dominated by Katie McGrath and Julie Gonzalo. Seguing between past and present to give audience context, we veer between Indiana Jones-style escapades and personal betrayal. Suddenly Andrea and Lena mean something, facts are revealed which change everything including this season as a whole.
Other characters who receive a much needed boost include Russell Rodger who is injected with humility and understatement by Nick Sagar. Romantic moments make sense for once and are played as part of the larger storyline, giving interactions meaning and emotional heft. For a majority of Confidence Women both Leigh, Harewood and Benoist take back seats. Thankfully the writers here have used them with care whilst giving McGrath and Gonzalo solid dramatic meat to tackle. Villainy is rife yet this wrongdoing comes through necessity rather than inherent malice.
Andrea is able to establish herself as an individual separate from all those that have come before, as school years are explored, decisions examined and family loyalties tested. There is evidence of a clever shorthand in play which interlinks past and present storylines without grandstanding. Leviathan finally gets a decent introduction as both world threatening organisation and mystical race of established origin.
Set pieces also feel more thought through and outcomes are neither obvious nor easy. Urgency has returned hard and fast to this superhero series just when things looked dire. Storylines had become unengaging, a defined threat was nowhere in sight and everything felt padded. What has happened here is nothing short of a miracle as things have begun falling into place. DEO infiltrations, female empowerment and an episode which literally crackles with energy mark Confidence Women as a return to form.
By going back over a decade with Lena and Andrea whilst dissecting that dynamic and giving these actors something worthwhile to work with, season five just got a new lease of life. Solid from start to finish and engaging like nothing else this season, Supergirl may have reached the turning point audiences had hoped for.
Martin Carr
