This week featured a full slate of Valentine’s Day themed programming from DC on The CW. While only Supergirl called out the holiday explicitly, Tuesday night’s offerings brought out Julian’s feelings for Caitlyn on The Flash and, in a twist on the myth, Merlin/Stargirl’s feelings for King Arthur on Legends of Tomorrow. The week was capped with the return of Cupid (among others) to Arrow. We talked about the episodes to varying degrees on the GeekDad Facebook page. Here are some of the highlights.
Joey: Mxyzptlk doesn’t look like he’s from the 1960s RB group The Fifth Dimension…
Corrina: Are they really going to fight over Kara? Did they just say that? She’s going to read them the riot act over this, right?
Corrina: Oh, spacebro, why do you have all the wrong answers to problems? Also, are all those flowers from Lena or our Imp?
Joey: Who robs a jewelry store in National City? Or Central City or Star City… just seems like a bad idea, what with the superheroes running around and all. Joey: Hope Clark’s cool with the moving of the statues in the Fortress.
Joey: And the shattering! Oh, the shattering. Corrina: Eh, well...
Joey: That was an episode. I think they were going with a fun, irreverent, sometimes sappy episode that is about relationships and how we drive one another crazy sometimes, but I just didn’t feel it. Maybe it’s just me, but I didn’t feel like they hit those beats they were aiming for. It just left me wondering at the end of the episode, “Is there a through line for this season? A big-bad? Some season-long arc?” Because if there is something more to this season than character X loves character Y and Mon El’s eventual outing as the wayward prince, then I’ve completely forgotten it.
Corrina: This goes back to what we talked about on how the Berlanti show writers generally have trouble with male/female relationships. Mon-El is an immature jerk constantly in this episode, as he has been in the past and Kara's speech was on point--until it was revealed she'd done it to fool Mxy. ARGH. Mon-El can't be a good boyfriend because he doesn't see Kara as an equal. Corrina: Meanwhile, unable to default to gender stereotypes, Alex and Maggie's conflict worked because it was about them specifically and their issues. Mxy/Kara/Mon-El played on basic gender tropes of two guys fighting over a girl and there was nothing specific in how anyone approached each other. What silly little things does Kara like in her romance? Alex and Maggie know each other that way. But we never see that kind of connection with Kara and Mon-El. Or even Kara and James from season 1. Joey: Very much this. Kara and Mon El or Kara and Jimmy before them feel forced, like there is this idea in the writers' room that there should be some sort of romantic entanglement for Kara, but no real reason or chemistry. No getting to know the person before attempting to become romantic with the person. That's why Alex and Maggie feel more genuine, because it feels like a real relationship between two people, not a forced plot point.
We didn’t have a lot of interaction on Facebook this week with regard to the first part of The Flash two-parter about the aftermath of sending Grodd into exile on Earth-2 last season. A few of the talking points included:
- I’m loving Draco’s enthusiasm (and wardrobe) for this little excursion. Have I mentioned how much I love the dynamic that Tom Felton brings to this cast?
- Flash VFX for gorillas are so much better than anything they do on Supergirl.
- Once again, Barr’s meddling with events is causing him to create the timeline that he is trying so desperately to avoid.
Was there something going on last Tuesday night that I wasn’t aware of? Again, there was very little chatter on Legends of Tomorrow, which is a shame because the episode was an interesting send up of Arthurian mythology. A couple of the talking points included:
- When the episode opened in 3,000, did anyone else get a modified version of the Conan O’Brien bit “In the year 2,000…” stuck in their head?
- Very Star Warsy duel with Darhk, Ray, and the light sword (and in-joke about not being able to get the rights to call it a lightsaber). I like how Legends is really letting its geek flag fly this season.
- Capture the bad guy and put him in a glass box. Did we learn nothing last season with Vandal Savage? Especially a bad guy with voice control over Gideon.
Joey: I like the adventures of Ollie and Anatoly much better than the flashbacks the past two seasons.
Joey: So, the whole ladies bust out of prison was a setup to get the Green Arrow right where Prometheus wanted him for the ACU to arrest him for killing Malone. I like that we’re seeing the long game, but I need more of Prometheus in order to get him/her as a villain. I understand keeping him all mysterious. But, you can make him a menace and still give the audience something to sink our teeth into. We knew that Slade Wilson was the season two big bad for a good part of that season and it didn’t diminish him at all. If anything, it made him more menacing. Surely there is a sweet spot somewhere between the two extremes where they can give us a little something more about Prometheus.
Mordechai: Prometheus is clearly going to be Talia. Joey: I agree. At this point, she almost has to be.
This week, we have new episodes of Supergirl, The Flash, and Arrow. Join us in the discussion on the GeekDad Facebook page and your comments may be selected for next week’s DC on The CW. You don’t have to be a GeekDad or GeekMom to comment, so jump in with your thoughts and check back to see if your comments made the cut!
