CW
Season Air Date:
- Season 5: October 6th 2019 – May 17th 2020
Reviewed by: Joshua Andre
Supergirl (Season 5)
Starring: Melissa Benoist, Chyler Leigh, Mehcad Brooks, Katie McGrath, Jesse Rath, Nicole Maines, David Harewood, Jon Cryer, Andrea Brooks, Azie Tesfai, Julie Gonzalo, Staz Nair. LaMonica Garrett, Phil LaMarr, Mitch Pileggi, Cara Buono, Thomas Lennon
In what is probably one of the most memorable and unexpected years of recent memory, 2020 had it all. Bushfires, floods, COVID-19, the Black Lives Matter protests, movies being delayed, music concerts and touring cancelled, sports games cancelled or having no crowds- the world has seemingly ‘gone to bits’- some could say we are entering the end times- but one thing we all can agree on, is that this year is one of the worst economic periods of recent history. Yet as all of us are stuck in our homes and are wondering when life can return to ‘normal’, a funny thing has happened. We are all becoming probably a bit kinder to each other- more so than maybe any other point in history. I know, that’s a bold statement for me to say- perhaps it’d be better to say that we’re all leaning on each other and are relating to each other because of all of us virtually in the same situation- and I don’t know if our kindness and nice words right now have been the most in history… but it certainly feels that way. While we are all hanging out with each other on Zoom, and finding creative ways to stay in touch with people in general, some of us are finding new hobbies and past times and just generally new things to do to keep us all occupied and not bored out of our brains. For musicians who have home studios, well making an album is in fact possible. For business people in the office, working from home is possible and Zoom meetings and working towards deadlines is very possible too. Youtubers are having tons of success now more than ever- with the turnaround to make videos that are enjoyable and confronting… well the turnaround is quicker than ever. Netflix has also churned out the new TV series, and we all have more time on our hands to talk with our family and deepen our relationships there.
However there is one sector of the economy whom I reckon the whole world has taken for granted- a sector that is in limbo and will forever be until however long. And that is the entertainment industry of movies and TV shows, which have all been placed on pause, and are postponed indefinitely as well. I feel for these guys- you know; because they’re obviously in the midst of working in the middle of a movie or a TV season- and they’ve got a deal for x amount of $ depending on how many seasons they finish or when they finish a movie on this particular date… and now with COVID-19 all bets are off. And because of unfinished TV seasons and unfinished movies, well the common man and woman on the street won’t have their daily or weekly ‘fix’ of ___ show or ___ movie… which I reckon we all are addicted to movies and TV shows more than we’d like to think or even admit. Yet while I feel for these actors who are now at home like the rest of us, wondering like the rest of us; assurance is here as I realise that actors are in the same boat as the rest of us, and they’ll settle back into normalcy whenever it is safe to do so, like all of us as well. So while we cannot watch our favourite TV shows and our favourite movies… let us watch some other TV shows and movies while we wait. Yep, let’s sub one show out for another… and hopefully we can all find new favourites to binge on given that we have more than enough time to do so.
You may have guessed from the paragraph above that I just quoted from (my review of Supergirl Season 4 last year)… that I am indeed delving into my thoughts on season 5 of Supergirl today- with this my first recommendation to you to watch during lockdown and quarantine no matter where you are in the world. Just briefly, let me expand upon my line of thinking. Supergirl has been one of my favourite shows of late (and you can read my reviews of Seasons 1-3, 4, and the season 4 premiere!), and even though season 5 seemed to be a bit over the place, the last batch of episodes and the massive cliffhanger alone make me more than interested and intrigued for what’s to come in season 6. For those of you who aren’t up to date with Supergirl… then quarantine means that you do have time to catch up, and you should. Actually, you should watch the entire Arroverse (because all the shows are connected in one way or another!)- starting with Arrow, then The Flash, and then go from there. Because I for one cannot think of another TV universe like the Arrowverse with as much heart, emotion, honesty and vulnerability, as well as touching upon relevant messages, and a bit of action thrown in for variety as well. Could Dick Wolf’s Chicago franchise compete with the Arrowverse on all of those facets? Maybe, possibly. But that series isn’t for me… and that’s fine, we all have preferences. So if you’re not a fan of superhero shows, then back out now. If you are a fan- then read on.
When we last saw Supergirl at the end of season 4, we saw Kara having game night with her friends (Alex, J’onn, Brainy, Nia, Kelly), while Lena killed Lex, but not before he blew the biggest bombshell to Lena as he was dying out- that Kara Danvers was Supergirl and that she didn’t trust a Luthor with her secret. In between season 4 and 5, we all were waiting with abated breath as to how Lena should confront Kara with her secret. Should she call her out forcefully, or pretend that nothing was wrong and let Kara tell her on her own terms in her own time? We all were also shown The Monitor at the end of season 4, setting free J’onn’s brother Malefic (Phil LaMarr) from the Phantom Zone- and again we all waited to see what would come of this, particularly as Malefic blamed J’onn for his sustained imprisonment. But we as the audience never knew that J’onn has a brother at all. Why was this guy seemingly popping out of nowhere- was the character of J’onn and his past retconned to serve a plot device?
One of the reasons why Season 5 was so ‘over the place’ was because it dealt with so many things at once. Much like season 4 did with the Children Of Liberty and Manchester Black, season 5 had so many plot points in the air (and some still not resolved yet due to COVID-19!) that one could say that it’s their weakest season yet. I for one don’t agree with that sentiment (as I reckon season 1 was when the show was trying to find its footing and its identity!), although Season 5 did have many parallel stories. One of those was that the first half of the season was set up for the greatly hyped crossover Crisis Of Infinite Earths. While we will write a separate review for the cross over, you can read about it on Wikipedia– or watch the full 5 episodes (maybe on Netflix or the CW app?). Because while it’s not perfect, there’s so much heart, emotion and vulnerability here, as well as character growth for many of the characters from virtually every show. Now that you all have read the synopses of Crisis Of Infinite Earths and seen the episodes, what do you think of them?
With one of the storylines being Kara’s love life with new reporter William, another storyline was about Lena’s friendship with Andrea Rojas, new owner of CatCo. Brainy and Nia’s relationship took a toll this season as Brainy worked with Lex (who was alive due to Crisis Of Infinite Earths!) to battle a common enemy in Leviathan, while Lena’s experiment in Non Nocere (do no harm in Latin) stretched throughout this season also. Many other characters grew in spades also- Alex grew in confidence away from the DEO, while Kelly settled into her role at Obsidian Tech working under Andrea. We also found out what happened with Eve Tessmacher, while later on in season 5 we also found out that Lex was- surprise, surprise- pulling all of the strings and was once again the puppet master. J’onn had to battle his demons while reconciling with his brother; while sub plots such as Jeremiah’s death and Winn coming back to the past to clear his name because of a maniac doppelganger all meant that this season we were pulled into many, many different directions. Despite all of that, season 5 also contained one of my favourite episodes of the show ever, as Mister Mxyzptlk visited Kara in the 13th episode of season 5, giving her a ‘do-over’- the chance to make things right with Lena, giving Kara the chance to tell Lena her secret earlier. What eventuated was one of the most enjoyable episodes- with plenty of returning cast-members and revisited storylines and plot points. It made season 5 seem somewhat cohesive, even though it wasn’t.
With TV shows being paused and postponed, who knows the future landscape of entertainment in 6 months, a year, even 5-10 years from now. When will Supergirl debut back again? We know that Melissa is pregnant, thus maybe May 2021 is the earliest that we’d see new episodes. But with people still dying in the U.S. at a steady rate, who knows when filming will be back to the same levels as before? Could it be possible that we see no new episodes of Supergirl, and in fact of anything in the coming months? Maybe… But whatever the case, let us remember that Supergirl is a show that delves into a myriad of issues, bringing them to the fore that we all may not have examined had it not been for that show. And while season 5 is only 19 episodes, and with many interfering storylines (especially Brainy acting extremely out of character for much of the season), let’s not lose heart. You may resonate with this season, but you may not. Yet if you want to watch Crisis, then at least the first part of Supergirl Season 5 is extremely necessary. So take a watch and let me know what you think, and stay tuned over the next little while as we dive deeper into the rest of Arrowverse, learning things about life, and what it means to be a real superhero, along the way.
Did all 106 episodes of the Supergirl leave a lasting impression on you? Did any themes in the episodes speak to you, and which was it? What elements of the show are you enjoying- Kara and Lena on the road to recovery, Brainy’s no-win predicament he finds himself in, Lex’s nefarious ploys and schemes, or the similarities and differences between Earth-38 and Earth-Prime? Will you be tuning in for Season 6 in 2021 sometime? Let us know in the comments.
RIYL: Smallville, Agents Of Shield, Arrow, Daredevil, Marvels The Runaways, Believe, Heroes, The Gifted, Alphas, The Cape
Rating: 4.5/5 (based on 5 seasons aka 106 episodes)
Supergirl airs in the midseason 2021 (presumably May) on CW. You can now buy the DVD/Blu Ray of the 5th season at digital and physical retailers everywhere!