SUPERGIRL Recap: Alien Nation

Superman and Cat Grant are gone. So we finally got our first glimpse of what the new season of Supergirl will look like without them. And it looks a lot like the X-Men saga. But instead of mistreated mutants, there are a whole lot of mistreated aliens. And apparently, these aliens are hiding among the population, afraid to show themselves because of persecution and prejudice. Wow, who knew our little blue planet was such an intergalactic safe-haven. And speaking of Aliens, remember Mon-el, the catatonic shirtless stud that arrived in a Kryptonian pod at the end of Last season? Well he finally wakes up, catching Supergirl by surprise, and this dude is hostile. He throws Supergirl for a loop, literally. Mon-el’s obviously super strong. And he escapes the DEO, shirtless of course. After all, this is the CW.  This episode does a lot of world-building. We’re introduced to new characters, new situations, and new locations.

The President arrives in National City. Former Wonder Woman, Lynda Carter, is the President.  And at 65, Miss Carter looks great, though she’s either wearing a ton of make up, or she’s had some cosmetic surgery. Anyway, the President is here to sign into law the new Alien Amnesty Act, which would give aliens, or off-worlders, the same human rights as humans. But not everyone is thrilled about the Amnesty Act. In fact, Lena Luther’s company is developing an alien-detection devise that would give true humans the ability to discover and expose any down-low aliens hiding in their neighborhood. And Hank Henshaw, an alien himself, doesn’t trust other aliens. That’s why he was so hard on Supergirl when they first met. Oh yeah, and someone attacks the president with heat blasts. And they think it was Mon-el.

Kara Danvers, aka Supergirl, is a racist. It’s harsh, but true. When Winn tracks down Mon-el, who is trying to broadcast a distress call to his home planet, Daxam, Supergirl turns cold and judgmental. Daxam is a planet that was in the same solar system as Krypton. And the Kryptonians and Daxamites hated each other enough to go to war. Now the Kryptonians believe that he Daxamites attacked them first, while the Daxamites believe the Kryptonians were the original aggressors. It’s kind of a planetary ‘he said, she said’ thing. So when Supergirl tracks down Mon-el. She assumes he’s a bad dude because he’s from Daxam. But in reality it’s another alien altogether that’s the real villain. And when Alex, and her new friend, Maggie Sawyer, find the real threat. Supergirl realizes that she was wrong to judge Mon-el so harshly, just because of his race. So she apologizes to Mon-el, which is good, but sadly, she has to tell him that when Krypton went boom, his planet was destroyed as well.  It’s a difficult conversation.   And oh yeah,  Supergirl defeats the real villain, an alien with heat powers.

Hank realizes that he was wrong as well. The DEO was all about catching renegade aliens, so he began believing that all aliens are a threat. And he even began to deny his own alien identity. So when all is said and done, he goes to this speakeasy that Maggie Sawyer told Alex about. It’s a place where aliens go to relax, unmask, and be themselves. So Hank goes there in his true Martian form, and he’s surprised by everyone’s non-reaction. Almost everyone in the bar is an alien of some kind. But the bartender freaks out when she sees him, and he’s surprised, because she reacts as if she knows him. And when pressed, she transforms and reveals that she’s a Martian too. Her name is M’gann M’orzz.

Now in the comics, and in the animated TV show Young Justice, M’gann is the superhero known as Miss Martian. AND, it’s later revealed that she’s really a white Martian, the sworn enemy of the green Martians. Hank Henshaw, aka J’onn J’onzz, ran into a white Martian in season one, and it was revealed that they killed all the Green Martians, including J’onn’s family. And that white Martian tried to kill Hank Henshaw. But will that scenario play out with this version of M’gann? Is she friend or foe? And we also see that Lynda Carter, The President, has a secret too. She’s also a shape-shifting Alien in disguise. So is she a Martian too? And what’s her real agenda? STAY TUNED!!!!

EASTER EGG HUNT: When Supergirl tells The President she was impressed by Air Force One, Lynda Carter replies that she should see her other jet.  AN obvious nod to Wonder Woman’s invisible plane.

LAST WORDS: James Olsen is the new head of Catco. But he lets Snapper Carr walk all over him. Carr is the gruff journalist that is Kara’s new boss. But after a pep talk from Kara, James stands up to Snapper Carr, regaining the Alpha position… And who is Maggie Sawyer? Maggie is a detective in the National City Police Department. And she’s in charge of everything extraterrestrial. That’s how she runs into, and befriends Alex. Now in the comics, she worked in Metropolis, and was one of the first gay characters in the Superman comic book series. And here, in Supergirl, she’s out and proud as well.  I think that Maggie and Alex might become more than friends at some point. But we’ll just have to wait and see.