Love was front and center in this week’s Supergirl, where Kara found herself the object of a crazy man’s affections and dealing with her new romance with Mon-El while Alex and Maggie conquered their first fight together.
While Supergirl has made it a tradition to tackle serious real world issues on a consistent basis, it doesn’t always have to play the serious card. It’s nice when we get episodes like “Mr. & Mrs. Mxyzptlk” where Supergirl can have fun with the ridiculous and still manage to drive home important, emotional lessons.
Supergirl continues to prove why it’s the class of DC television this season. It continues to deliver on what it’s promised – from the romantic relationships to the presence of a strong, empowered hero who doesn’t need a man to save her. A hero that is strong in her convictions and forgiving in her heart.
Let’s break this down:
Mxy Wreaks Havoc in the Name of Love
Supergirl thrives off its outgoing, lighthearted tone. Even when it’s tackling serious issues it still manages to never fall too deep into Arrow-level darkness. Supergirl has been known to have its fun over these past two seasons. But “Mr. & Mrs. Mxyzptlk” was perhaps one of its most out-there episodes that thrived off the ridiculous nature of Mxy’s appearance. And you know what – it totally worked.
Not every show could this kind of episode off, which is a good indication of why The CW feels it appropriate to have a Supergirl/Flash musical crossover event next month. It’s crazy. But crazy works for those shows.
It wasn’t really fair to Mxy coming into this episode because I was already harboring intense feelings of anger towards him after he interrupted a “moment” between Kara and Mon-El. Like that automatically puts you in the dog house. But he further cemented his stance as “enemy” as he continued to thwart attempts to propel Kara and Mon-El’s relationship forward. Basically, he was a big nuisance, which is his intended nature after all.
Mxy hails from the fifth dimension and exerts a certain power over our Earth akin to that of magic. Names like leprechauns and genies were thrown into the mix to describe this mystical-like being that could make things happen – except love, death, and orange juice – with the snap of his fingers. But the one thing he couldn’t get – no matter how hard he tried – was Kara’s love.
Mxy had a fixation on Kara and went to dangerous lengths to try and win her over. From the moment he put her in a wedding dress – Vera Wang, btw – it was evident that this guy was nuts. But that’s in his nature. He’s willing to do whatever – and I mean whatever – it takes to get what he wants. And what he wanted was Kara.
Mxy’s arrival brought us an interesting love triangle as Mon-El tried to help rid their world of this fifth dimensional parasite. While Kara was never really interested in Mxy – even though she brilliantly tricked him into saying his name and thus sending him back to his dimension – it brought forth a new emotion for Mon-El, which nearly threw a wrench into Karamel’s relationship before it had already begun. More on that below.
It’s interesting because Mxy was an interesting kind of villain. He didn’t manifest the way these other villains had – intent on destroying Kara to take control. This villain (and yes you can call him that because he threatened to rip the world in half and set loose a parasite on the city) acutally craved the affections of our hero. It’s unlike anything we’re used to. But it made for a really interesting storyline that taught us that we shouldn’t stereotype villains. They’re not all hell-intent on destroying the hero. Sometimes they just want to marry, love, and rule with them.
Jealously Thy Name is Mon-El, Hotness Thy Name is Karamel
I’ll be the first to admit that Mon-El is not perfect. He has messed up. He’ll continue to mess up. Because that’s what happens when you’re learning to do better; to be better. While it hasn’t been confirmed officially, given the tease that Mon-El was actually the Prince of Daxom it gives me a new appreciation for him and what he’s going through. He’s owned up to the fact that he used to be a womanizer (he referenced objectifying women and not caring back on Daxom in this episode). But he’s also owned up to the fact that he’s trying to become a better person. And I’m sorry, but that’s not something that happens overnight. Or over a course of several episodes. Every day we – including Mon-El – are aspiring to be better in some aspect of our lives.
But I’ll also be the first to say that Kara needed to call Mon-El out for his ego. Because the way he was behaving – trying to treat Kara as this damsel in distress and going against her wishes with an infuriating male ego – is not the way that a man trying to win a woman over should behave. Once again, Mon-El is far from perfect. And that’s why I love him. I love that we get to see the imperfections. I love that we get to see that Kara still cares about him despite those imperfections. I love that we get to see Mon-El continuously evolve as a good person as he seeks to be worthy of Kara’s love. I love to see a representation of someone who’s trying to be better is worthy of that redemption.
After everything was said and done – after Kara and Mon-El had their arguments and it looked bleaker than bleak – Mon-El did one of the most important things he could’ve done: he apologized. He owned up to his egotistical behavior and admitted that he was in the wrong. He showed growth in taking that responsibility, which was something that I don’t think he ever did as Prince back on Daxom. And while it wasn’t an excuse for his behavior, he told Kara why this jealously was so hard to contain:
“I’ve realized that you’re my kryptonite…my feelings for you.”
Mon-El opened up – which is something that I doubt he’s done before either – about how he’s never felt this way about someone before. How he’s never experienced this many feelings before. How the way he feels about Kara almost scares him it’s so intense.
And I’m sure we all know the feeling. Love, deep like, feelings have a way of turning even the sanest of people insane. Love – and its surrounding emotions – is the most powerful feeling in the world. You really can’t control how you respond to it. And seeing Mon-El, who has never experienced this before, go through that was as real as it gets.
The thing that I’ve seen people saying is: How can Kara forgive Mon-El after a simple apology? Here’s how: When you care about someone, when you want to be – or are in – a relationship with someone, if you quit after every fight there would be no relationship. An apology goes a long way. It’s not “just an apology.” An apology is owning up to one’s mistakes, it’s saying: I know I screwed up and I probably don’t deserve you, but I still hope that I can make it up to you.
Watching how Kara accepted Mon-El’s apology it made me realize that she’s not looking for perfection. And that’s good because relationships aren’t perfect. There are difficulties; there are arguments; there are times when you just want to give up. But if it’s worth fighting for, you keep fighting for it. You allow your significant other the chance for redemption. For as long as we’ve known Kara, if there’s one thing she believes in it’s that there’s good inside of everyone. Sure, she was pissed at Mon-El (I admit I was, too), but that doesn’t mean she’s going to throw away an entire relationship over it. Sure, there are certain things that might require a break-up as a response, such as infidelity, but Mon-El just got doused with the jealousy bug.
No relationship is smooth sailing – and if it is then something isn’t right. It’s natural for there to be conflicting feelings and judgments about certain things. It’s natural to argue about the silliest of things (as we saw Kara and Mon-El do in this episode.) It’s natural to feel like you’re going crazy in a relationship. That means that you care. That means that there’s something there worth fighting for. And that’s what Kara and Mon-El have discovered.
A Relationship Worth Fighting For
When it comes to relationships the one thing we know is that while two people might be perfect for each other, the relationship is far from perfect. To quote Arrow, “Nothing worthwhile ever comes easy.”
One of the things I really applaud Supergirl for this season is not only giving us a lesbian relationship but exploring that relationship. We’ve seen the will-they-won’t-they stuff enough to last a lifetime. What we don’t get enough of on television is getting to watch a couple be in a relationship. Novel concept, I know. But that’s exactly what Supergirl is delivering on. We get to see the good, the bad, the hopeful, the real.
In our Valentine’s Day themed episode, we saw Alex and Maggie clash on an issue that went much deeper than the issue. While Alex and Maggie disagreed about their feelings regarding Valentine’s Day, the issue was more about being open with their feelings. It was about taking the other’s feelings into consideration. It was about communication and what goes into a healthy relationship.
While we’ve gotten to see Alex and Maggie go about their daily lives as a couple, this is the first time we’ve seen them tackle a real issue that almost left Maggie running away scared. Maggie had been hiding something deeply personal about how she “came out” to her parents and their feelings regarding it. It’s something that she still carried with her into her present relationship, and it’s something that explains her hesitation. She’s afraid to get close. She’s afraid of opening up and being rejected.
And while it would’ve been easy to run away like Maggie did, it was Alex who put her foot down and told Maggie that she couldn’t run away from this. That’s not how relationships work. Relationships work because people are open and honest with each other. They lean on each other even when they’re terrified. They have a deep enough trust to be that open and honest with someone without fear of getting hurt. Relationships are about facing the world – and the issues along the way – together.
It took Maggie some time, but she eventually realized that she couldn’t make this all about her. Now that she’s in a relationship with someone she genuinely cares about, she has to remember that there’s someone else she has to look out for now. Especially when that someone could potentially be the love of her life.
Alex and Maggie bring out the best in each other even when they’re at their worst. There’s a genuine openness and trust that they exude with their relationship. It’s the kind of relationship that gives you hope. It’s the kind of relationship that reminds you that love is worth fighting for.
Winn Craves a Connection
With love at the center of this hour it was nice to see Winn get in on the Valentine’s Day love. While it came completely out of nowhere, there was a certain novelty to it. How a Valentine’s Day fling might actually evolve into something else.
While having a drink at our neighborhood alien bar, Winn found himself being wooed as a beautiful blond alien named Lyra saved him from a couple of rowdy aliens. We’ve seen that Winn has fallen for an alien before – cough Kara cough – so it’s not a surprise here that we saw some sparks fly.
I don’t know where this relationship is going – if anywhere – but it was nice to see Winn have some romance in his romance-less life on Supergirl. I loved the focus on looking at the beauty within. Winn really wants to find a connection, which is something we all crave. Even if this isn’t his true love story, it’s nice to see him actively pursuing love as a means to find that connection he’s been looking for all his life.
Five Things…
- This episode was so much fun! Supergirl is most always fun, even when it’s tackling serious issues, but the presence of Mxy made this episode something special. Supergirl got to be even more playful than usual as it went with the ridiculous in such a fun way!
- The Hamilton references were perfection! I cannot stop thinking about that moment between Mon-El and Mxy (or Hamilton and Burr, as Mxy said). The “don’t throw away your shot” line had me fist pumping. God bless the Hamilton references!
- I am so glad that Kara told Mon-El off about his ego. I love Mon-El, but he isn’t exactly experienced when it comes to treating a woman right. So I’m glad Kara told him off. He needed to hear it in order to grow as a person. He’s far from perfect, but we’re seeing that he’s trying to be the best version of himself for Kara.
- Kara and Mon-El have some serious fire. Good lord their chemistry is off the charts! That kiss. That make-out sesh on the couch. Karamel ignited my heart tonight! I cannot wait to see more of these two as they navigate the waters of a relationship moving forward.
- The Sanvers feels were on overdrive tonight! I’m glad we got to see a fight between Alex and Maggie as we really got to see them handle it as a couple. Relationships aren’t drama-free. There are issues, and those issues must be handled as a couple. They’ve only grown the stronger for it.
Supergirl airs Mondays at 8/7c on The CW.