‘Supergirl’ Post-Show Analysis: Season 1 Episode 19: ‘Myriad’

Welcome to Supergirl Guys, our regular feature breaking down the highs and lows of CBS’s Supergirl TV show starring Melissa Benoist in the super smiling title role. Your travelling companions on this journey are Superman super-fan Chris Haley, andFlash recap veteran Dylan Todd.

This week, Non’s plan is finally unleashed, and a lot of the cast barely had to bother showing up! Also, some guest villains, and we almost see Superman, way in the distance! “Myriad” was directed by Adam Kane and written by Yahlin Chang and Caitlin Parrish.

Dylan: Here we are, the penultimate episode of season one! Non and Indigo have launched Myriad! Alex and J’Onn on the run! Everybody is a mindless zombie except for Kara, Cat Grant and Maxwell Lord! And Max Lord wants to fix it by blowing everything up! It’s all happening… next week!

You know, had this been a two-part episode, I’d have been fine with it, but it being a standalone episode that is supposed to lead into next week’s finale, I was more than a little let down by this episode. It was all setup with nothing resolving even a little. What did you think, Chris?

Chris: So, what makes it not a two-parter? Is it just that the names don’t say “Part 1” and “Part 2”? Because this definitely felt like a two-parter to me, especially with the cliffhanger ending there. Having said that though, this episode was kind of disappointing on its own, and especially a let down from the heights of last episode’s Flash team-up.

Dylan: Yeah, it’s ostensibly its own episode, and it has a beginning and a middle and, well, that’s about it. And even the stuff in the episode feels stretched. Just a real weird episode, this one. Let’s not get off on the wrong foot, though; what about the episode worked for you?

Chris: Uhh... can I pass? I guess I liked that Max had a fairly interesting turn this week. It was nice to see Helen Slater as Mom Danvers again. Kara’s hair looked great this episode. Am I forgetting anything?

Dylan: No, it was a remarkably low-key episode for something that was supposed to set up a (hopefully) big finale. I will say that Cat Grant not managing to notice that every single other resident of National City is a mindless drone was kind of hilarious and also a little sad. And yeah, Maxwell Lord managed to be halfway interesting.

I did like the moment when Kara was all, “Why didn’t you take this ion blocker and give it to the DEO?!” Because apparently she completely forgot when they held him in a cell for no lawful reason, indefinitely, mere days ago in-universe. Yeah, I wonder why he wouldn’t trust the DEO. It’s a real mind-boggler.

Chris: I mean, I'm pretty sure he was up to some illegal stuff, they just couldn’t tell the feds because he said he’d tell everyone who Supergirl was, right? I know that’s not really the point, but I have a hard time letting things go. Also, was there any part of this episode that wasn’t lazy and ridiculous, but not “fun” ridiculous?

Dylan: I can’t come up with anything, to be frank. I did like that unintentional hilarity of Kara standing on the balcony, pointing at her cousin and going, “Oh, here he is. He’ll fix everything,” only to have Superman join the throngs of Myriad-brainwashed citizens. I mean, we’ve all been there, expecting this thing to fix our problems only for that thing to also become a problem. Also, wonderful trolling on the part of CBS to get us thinking that we were gonna actually see Superman on this show.

Chris: From the start of the episode, I was like, “Okay, I know this is Supergirl’s show, but surely this is finally cause to bring Superman in.” And when they had her go to the Fortress and Kelex told her he was off-world, I was fine with it, but then having him show up only to not actually show up just seemed cruel… or dumb. Max’s explanation that Superman growing up on Earth had changed his brain? You already had an out with him being in space, just leave it at that.

Dylan: Kansas messes up your brain, dude. Another high point for me was Indigo, who still looks so dumb, but the Terminator-style bits with her and J’onn were actually pretty great. Her walking out of the burning wreckage to stab him with a super-long finger was A+ television.

Chris: I may be losing my mind here, but that is making me lolfrirl. I loved that this is a multi-million dollar show and every time they’d cut to close ups of Indigo, you could see how the blue makeup was coming off around her mouth. That’s kind of charming to me, so maybe it’s not all bad. She certainly seemed to be having a good time with the character though, so that’s something too.

Oh, and Maxima was in this episode for two minutes! Played by former WWE Diva Eve Torres! I hope that she’s going to show back up in the finale and that they didn’t bother bringing her in for that one little fight scene.

Dylan: I was wondering if that was a wrestle lady. I mean, her blustering on about how much she wanted to marry Superman, and Superman being mind-controlled by Non now, sort of seems like a set-up, but who knows?

Chris: Wanting to marry Superman was at one point Maxima’s main characteristic.

Dylan: And yeah, I enjoyed Indigo more this time around, even if she looks like a Smurf cosplaying as Bo Derek in 10. (Very timely references around here.) She’s trying to have fun with a pretty ridiculous character, but her being paired with the largely dull Non sort of kills anything interesting she has going on. What do you think, is J’onn dead, or are Martian hearts in their knees or whatever?

Chris: Another timely nerd reference I’m sure everyone will get, and I wouldn’t have it any other way.

My first guess was that he faked his death so Alex would get taken to Non’s hideout, and then they could spring their trap, but since she showed up later in a Kryptonite powered Elysium suit (which seems to be a really popular recurring theme in comic shows lately), maybe that’s not the case. Either way though, I doubt he’s dead.

Dylan: Here hoping you’re right. My other highlight of the episode was Kara refusing to let Max detonate his mumbo-jumbo bomb on the city, choosing to instead find some other solution for reversing Myriad through radio waves or something. We’ll find out next week, I guess. How’d you like that part, Chris?

Chris: I guess I’ll decide how much I like it after I see what their plan at UHF Channel 62 involves. I bet it’s really eye-roll-y! But also, I’ll probably appreciate the sentimentality of it. Because it will almost certainly be very sentimental and involve Supergirl being a beacon of hope.

Dylan: I’d be okay with that, because that means something would have happened as opposed to what we got this week. Oh, also, I really hated that the writers did that thing again where they backed Kara into a corner, making her try and save James, Winn and some rando who died. Like the guy who blew up on the train earlier in the season, I don’t like these no-win scenarios for Superpeople.

Chris: Yeah, I really hate that if only because then dummies say, “Well what would you have had them do then?” as if it’s not fictional and you don’t have to put superheroes in “no-win” situations.

It’s fun how this show will completely forget about some of Supergirl’s powers for plot convenience's sake. She has powers besides being able to fly. Super-speed for example. I refuse to believe she couldn’t catch her two goofy friends, sit them down, and then catch that red-headed red shirt. Have 100 people jump if you want to make it so she can’t save everyone. Have them jump out of buildings all over town, not three people right next to each other.

She’s got super-strength too, so why not stack two of them over one shoulder potato sack style and then grab the third with your free hand. That’d be “complicated” to film, though, so nope, just one in each arm and that poor lady dies. Man, I’m starting to get sour.

Dylan: Yeah, I mean, we saw a similar scene in Iron Man 3 that felt really great and hopeful, but this just seems a little mean. Should we end on a high note? Because I really like the “Second Act Feels” portion of the evening, with Cat and Kara talking about feelings and stuff.

Chris: What was the jist of that exactly? Supergirl inspired Cat to like her assistant?

Dylan: Kind of? Just the idea of Cat not-so-gently nudging Supergirl to come up with a better plan than “drop a bomb on them.” Also, her point of not allowing yourself to be driven by fear, of choosing hope instead, was really well-done. And Kara admitting that her mom maybe wasn’t the perfect person she’d built her up as was was one of the more real moments for me in this season.

Chris: Okay, thank you for the memory jog there, that part was pretty resonant for what I think the heart of this show is. Would you agree that this show is way more about Kara’s relationships with Alex and Cat than her relationships with anyone else on the show?

Dylan: Yeah, and I feel like when it manages to do those without getting too bogged down in the superhero stuff, it’s really strong. This and the Red K stuff with Alex felt almost too real to me, getting into these relationships and figuring out how they work is just as interesting to me as Non’s (kinda dumb) plan or whatever villain they pulled from an old Superman issue for this week’s threat. Not that I wouldn’t mind more goofy villains and less Astra and/or Non. The sooner we can put this Kryptonian blowhard back in the Phantom Zone, the better.

Chris: Yeah, I guess we’ve got a lot to look forward to next week as far as “seeing how this all plays out” goes. See, that’s pretty positive!

Dylan: The Enthusiast strikes again!