Tag Archives: Anna Musky-Goldwyn

James Olsen is Pretty Darn Heroic in Supergirl S2E20 “City of Lost Children”

Posted on by

Of Supergirl”s main cast, James Olsen (played by Mehcad Brooks) has probably seen the least screen time and had the least amount of storylines centered around him. Sure, he became the Batman/Arrow-esque vigilante Guardian around midseason and is good for the occasional action scene, but we’ve rarely gotten to see what makes the man behind the silver mask click. Luckily, writers Gabriel Llanas, Anna Musky-Goldwyn, and Robert Rovner change that as James discovers a more inspirational brand of heroism that doesn’t include putting alien weed dealers in the hospital. The main plot of “City of Lost Children” is about the telepathic and telekinetic alien race, the Phorians, losing control as wreaking havoc in National City. James ends up bonding with Marcus, the young son of the woman that is responsible for the destruction and starts to find out that they are peaceful, and someone else is behind the chaos.

James Olsen has a fantastic arc in “City of Lost Children”, and part of that is due to Ben Bray’s directing style. The opening scene of the episode made think that possibly Arrow had been moved to Monday’s with tight angles, plenty of shadows, and bone breaking fight choreography. Guardian’s heavy duty costume (That is the utter opposite of Supergirl’s maskless one.) and his blunt force approach to superheroing causes a woman he saves to run away in fear. Bray lingers on Guardian’s eyes in the mask to show that he thinks it’s time to change his methods. (Kara agrees and makes a couple great Batman jokes with Winn.) So, for the rest of the episode we get to see Mehcad Brooks’ smiling, charisma-filled face as he shows Marcus his camera and tells stories about how he was bullied by racist people as a kid and was afraid to open up to people. When James talks about Superman (Without mentioning the name.), Supergirl gains a little more gravitas as we can see in his eyes how this superhero/mild mannered reporter changed his life. Also, kudos to the young actor Lonnie Chavis (This Is Us), who plays Marcus with a sadness and silence that is heartbreaking. You can tell by the twinkle in his eye that he really looks to James too.

Although the Phorians barely get fleshed out beyond being super powered refugees who are are reacting negatively to Rhea and Lena Luthor’s matter transporter experiments, they help James have his All-Star Superman moment. At first, it seems like Winn’s anti-telekinesis MacGuffin is going to stop the group of Phorian refugees (Who live underground) from flipping out. However, it’s actually James’ bond with Marcus that saves the day. They haven’t exchanged many words, but James never treated Marcus like a criminal even when his telekinesis was ripping apart the Catco building. Just being there for Marcus creates a friendship between them, and the simple phrase “You’re not alone” calms him and the other Phorians down. And Ben Bray makes room for a little bit of light to hit the frame even though they’re deep underground. He doesn’t have heat vision, freeze breath, or is a member of the House of El, but James Olsen can bring hope to people in his own way.

It’s kind of inconsequential to the plot, but the interactions between the Martian Manhunter and James Olsen were some of the most enjoyable parts of the “City of Lost Children”. James isn’t a part of the DEO and is a violent vigilante so he and Martian Manhunter don’t normally see eye to eye. However, J’onn relaxes for a second and sees that James wants to be a hero just like him and Supergirl and also has a connection with Marcus. He doesn’t have the same paternal relationship with James that he does with Alex and Kara, but Martian Manhunter takes James aside and tells him about the birth of his daughter gave me purpose to become a police officer (or “Manhunter”) on Mars to protect them. Their conversations definitely push him closer to a less violent and more empathetic brand of heroism as the episode progresses.

Again, Lena Luthor and Rhea have a big, bad B-plot that chugs along throughout the episode, causes the Phorians to lose control, and flips to being the A-plot as it looks like the Daxamites are the final Big Bad of Supergirl Season 2. What makes this more compelling than your typical alien invasion plotline is the dynamic that has been developed between Lena and Rhea over the past few episodes. Although she is a successful CEO and genius scientist, Lena knows that her mother will always love Lex more than her. Throughout the season, she has been reaching out for a mother figure, and Rhea seems to fit the bill until she flat out lies about the experiments they’re running. Teri Hatcher can be super maternal and super evil at the same time as she talks about Lena using her own personality on the transporter and then steals her personal phone to taunt/attempt to guilt trip Kara. Lena’s continuing reaction to the metaphorical knife twisted in her fact will definitely be one of the more compelling subplots to check out in the final two episodes. (Will she go to the dark side?)

Speaking of metaphors, there is also a political element to the Daxamites being the main bad guys at the end of Supergirl Season 2. From what we’ve found out over the show, the Daxamites are the extraterrestrial version of white supremacists with their disdain for other alien races, like using the predominantly POC Phorians to power a portal to get to Earth. And they are definitely authoritarian with their monarchical government and the continued existence of slavery on their planet. They represent a side of humanity that unfortunately still holds power in the world with the rise of far right nationalism in the United States and U.K. through Trump’s election and Brexit, which adds an extra layer to what could just be cool overhead shots of alien spaceships from Bray.

“City of Lost Children” does the genre TV show equivalent of walking and chewing bubblegum by developing an underutilized character (James Olsen) and also setting up Supergirl Season 2’s endgame with Rhea and a host of Daxamites ready to turn Earth into a space tyrant planet.

Overall Rating: 8.0

Supergirl S2E17 “Distant Sun” is an Intergalactic Escapade

Posted on by

So, writers Gabriel Llanas and Anna Musky-Goldwyn and director Kevin Smith (If it’s not obvious from the quite clever Star Wars reference in the third act.) achieve the impossible and make a Mon-El-centric episode compelling thanks to some royal intrigue, bounty hunters, and super fun action scenes. Smith lines up some great sequences from a cold open pitting Supergirl against a fellow heat vision alien; Supergirl, Guardian, and Winn teaming up to take out a bald, mind control alien, and a Big Kahuna of a final brawl featuring Martian Manhunter. Other highlights, include Rhea, played by an icy and intimidating Teri Hatcher, rising up to true villain status, a strong subplot featuring Alex and Maggie working out some emotional baggage with Maggie’s ex-girlfriend Emily (Hayley Sales), and Martian Manhunter continuing to be a great father figure and even standing up to the president of the United States herself. There’s even a decent plot twist, and Llanas, Musky-Goldwyn, and Smith set up the pieces that will likely be knocked down after a month hiatus.

After spending the last episode tangling with Mon-El drama and showcasing her golden pipes in “The Duet” The Flash crossover episode, Melissa Benoist is back to being moral, a little bit goofy, and well super as Supergirl. (And Mon-El knows his place: the kitchen.) Smith shows this early on as she immediately leaves a scrumptious breakfast spread to save some innocent citizens from a heat vision wielding alien bounty hunter and shields them with her own body. When it’s revealed that someone has put a bounty on Supergirl’s head, she constantly bristles to go back into action, but decides to lie low and play Settlers of Catan so no one gets hurt in the crossfire. Supergirl will even fight a close quarters battle against her boyfriend’s kryptonite sai wielding mom to save the man she loves and protect Earth from the threat of a xenophobic alien monarchy that put out a bounty just so their crown prince would return to their ship. There have been plenty of Mon-El saying Kara is great speeches throughout this season, but I almost bought the one where he talked about admiring her as a hero. Maybe, it’s because it’s after a battle where they helped each other out and not a last ditch pity apology.

Speaking of relationship issues, Llanas and Musky-Goldwyn tell an Alex and Maggie story that falls outside the main plot, but ends up showing why their romance works so well. Maggie’s ex Emily is in town, and Alex is the best girlfriend ever and invites them all out to dinner because she doesn’t possess a jealous bone in her body. The first appearance of Emily causes a lot of strain in the usually unflappable Maggie Sawyer’s face with Floriana Lima conveying that there’s some darkness in their past. Alex finds out that Maggie actually cheated on Emily, but instead of going the soap opera route and breaking up with her, she is empathetic and understands that it’s hard for Maggie to trust people after  Instead of going for the easy pre-hiatus drama route, Llanas and Musky-Goldwyn double down on relationship development via talking and even steal some adorable smooches and flirting along the way.

“Distant Sun” is a generally well-structured episode of Supergirl with Gabriel Llanas and Anna Musky-Goldwyn centering the action of the plot on the strained relationship between Mon-El and his parents in a battle between heroism and an easy life of comfort. Mon-El is pretty darn heroic in this episode and talks with his father about establishing a democracy in Daxam. Lar Gand (Kevin Sorbo) acts as kind of a buffer between Rhea’s hardline stance of wanting her son back at all costs and has a quiet, misguided nobility to her ruthlessness. (If you’ve watched or read Game of Thrones, you know how these things turn out.) Teri Hatcher is fantastic at Rhea with her unflinching devotion to getting what she wants and provides an upper crust, extraterrestrial foil to Brenda Strong’s Lillian Luthor as a Big Bad this season. If you’re a mom, it’s a good bet you’re really evil if you appear in Supergirl Season 2.

Kevin Smith helps with “Distant Sun’s” strong structure by making each setpiece a little bigger than the other culminating in an extended sequence of Martian Manhunter in his green form beating down Daxamite royal guards. There aren’t any Daredevil-style one takes in this episode, but Smith lingers on the punches, kicks, and holds creating some truly epic moments like Supergirl pushing back five guards with one of their staff weapons. This longer shot technique combined with searing glances from David Harewood makes a psychic battle between Martian Manhunter and a telepathic bounty hunter believable without wasting any of the CGI budget on the CW’s Legion. Unfortunately, it hinders some of the suspense towards the end of the episode, but the action more than makes up for it.

“Distant Sun” has yet another nuanced Maggie and Alex subplot, a likable Mon-El, the addition of interplanetary intrigue to Supergirl‘s season long arc, and rock solid action scenes from Kevin Smith, which means this reviewer will be going into the hiatus as satisfied as Kara Danvers after devouring a plate of hashbrowns and poached eggs.

Overall Rating: 8.0

Kara and J’onn are Kinda Lonely in Supergirl S2E11 The Martian Chronicles

Posted on by

martianchroniclesfi

Supergirl is definitely at its best when all of its various plots flow together with a single theme that permeates everything from the character’s interpersonal drama to the main villain. This theme is loneliness as Kara is having issues juggling her feelings for Mon-El and not seeing much of her sister, Alex, because she’s dating Maggie Sawyer. But Supergirl and her amazing friends definitely have quite the foe in “Martian Chronicles” as Miss Martian’s ex-husband (In an arranged marriage.) Armek and a White Martian comrade come to Earth to bring her back to Mars and try her for treason. Writers Gabriel Llanas and Anna Musky-Goldwyn build off the relationship between Miss Martian and J’onn in the previous episode that pays off super emotionally even if they don’t get the happiest of endings while director David McWhirter gets to shoot a lot of dark corridor action scenes. The shapeshifting, telepathic nature of the White Martians also leads to a rift between the characters as J’onn, Miss Martian, Supergirl, Alex, Winn, and two redshirts fall into Secret Invasion “who can you trust?” mode albeit in an enclosed CW budget friendly space.

In the action scenes against the White Martians, Supergirl is total powerhouse punching and heat visioning any bad guys in her path. However, when the costume is off and the glasses are on, Kara Danvers is really feeling the struggle. Before the Supergirl logo drops, Kara is in deep water, and she doesn’t completely recover by the time Lego Supergirl pops up after the closing credits. Melissa Benoist plays Kara with awkwardness galore in the opening scene at the alien bar where she utterly fails at letting Mon-El down easily questioning the character of a man, who is smitten with her. I’m not a fan of a romantic relationship between Kara and Mon-El, but she is still pretty tactless around him.

This awkwardness extends to her inviting Alex to go country line dancing with her to celebrate her “Earth birthday” instead of the usual cupcake, which doesn’t work because she is going with Maggie to a Barenaked Ladies concert. (I didn’t see that coming, but Tegan and Sara maybe would have been to much of a stereotype and awesome.) Sadly, Kara is insecure and makes a big deal about it because she thinks Alex is leaving her. Benoist nails the “trying to be cool” face when they chat about Alex missing the dance thing at the DEO headquarters and eventually vents the full force of her anger on a White Martian masquerading as Alex. In classic Supergirl fashion, the episode ends in cupcakes and understanding, but Benoist’s look in the episode’s final seconds as Alex is with her girlfriend, and Mon-El is on date with her co-worker Eve Teschmascher had this sad, forever alone vibe. Kara might be an awesome superhero and an up and coming journalist, but sometimes finding romance is difficult. This goes into fan fiction territory, but she and Lena Luthor would make a great couple. (And Lena is back next week.)

The theme of loneliness extends on a more dramatic level to the characters of J’onn and Miss Martian, who are the only members of their species left on Earth. During the scenes that don’t involve them shapeshifting and punching things, David Harewood and Sharon Leal pour out the feels with their performances and blur the lines between romantic and familial. J’onn wants to keep Miss Martian safe, but doesn’t pull the overprotective father and is cool with her helping the DEO find the White Martians. This is smart because of one of them is her ex-husband. They look out for each other in battle and execute some cool team-up moves to help defeat the enemy. Then, Miss Martian decides to mix things up and twist the knife of loneliness even deeper into J’onn’s heart and declare that she is leaving for Mars to show other White Martians a better way that doesn’t include death and genocide. It’s a natural end to her arc where she went from hiding who she was to being downright heroic and saving J’onn’s life while also showing him that White Martians can change their ways. She is inspired by both J’onn and Kara’s example to become a hero on her own world, but this doesn’t stop David Harewood from having sad eyes. Sharon Leal’s passionate performance as Miss Martian will also be missed on episodes to come.

Some of the CGI and lighting is awkward for the DEO/White Martian lockdown scenes, but David McWhirter ekes out a lot of tension with smart cuts, hesitations, and placements of not one, but two red herrings. The obvious choice for a shapeshifter is a character we haven’t seen before, but McWhirter, Llanas, and Musky-Goldwyn defy expectations and choose Winn before revealing Alex as one right after a dramatic scene. McWhirter alternates between long takes for the relationship building scenes between J’onn and Miss Martian and quick cuts for the action sequences giving the episode a watchable rhythm. He also adds some nice frosting to the theme cupcake of loneliness by having lingering shots of J’onn and Kara alone in the frame as they watch the ones close to them get in romantic relationships or teleport to other planets.

“Martian Chronicles” doubles down on both Kara and J’onn’s innermost feelings and relationships to those closest to them (Alex, Miss Martian), which leads to a memorable return to form for Supergirl. The hard hitting action and bursts of special effects of the battle between against the White Martians adds to the entertainment value while also slipping in a metaphor that this group of people are basically extraterrestrial white supremacists. Thankfully, they get punched a lot.

Overall Score: 8.0

TV Review: Supergirl S2E5 “Crossfire” showcases the show’s robust relationships

Posted on by

supergirl25fi

If there is one word to describe Supergirl Season 2, Episode 5 “Crossfire”, it is meaty. Writers Gabriel Llanas and Anna Musky-Goldwyn intertwine the relationships between characters with a shared theme of identity. They exhibit this through James Olsen coming to grips with being a lifelong sidekick, Mon-El completely failing at being the Catco intern Mike Matthews (He would make an excellent male stripper though.), and Alex Danvers struggling with coming out as queer as an adult as well as her romantic feelings for the newly single National City cop Maggie Sawyer. And along the way, they deepen the legitimate friendship between Kara Danvers and Lena Luthor in light of mercenaries with alien weapons attacking her big gala while making the mysterious Cadmus Doctor (Brenda Strong) an even more deadly foe. She is a family woman and is more menacing in an Uber than Non and the Myriad gang were all last season.

“Crossfire” is really the episode for Mehcad Brooks to shine as James Olsen deals with the insecurity of always being a “sidekick” even though he is currently the acting CEO of Catco. But he wants to be more than an editor of a gossip magazine; he wants to be a superhero like his close friends, Superman and Supergirl. Director Glen Winter carefully shows the bumps and bruises that James takes when he foolishly goes into action against soldiers with extraterrestrial weaponry. Winter doesn’t go full Arrow with the fight choreography letting him throw a few good punches and a kick or two, but showing that he has a long way to go as a superhero.

jameshero

Llanas and Musky-Goldwyn also revive James’ friendship with Winn because there is so much more to their relationship that being two vertices on a love triangle with Supergirl. Winn isn’t afraid to bring the truth by punching James in the ribs after he makes a half-assed excuse about a basketball injury and telling him that he isn’t prepared to be a superhero. However, he also listens to why James want to be a hero. James want to live up to the example of his father, who was killed in war as well as Supergirl and Superman and not just be “behind a camera”. Winn sees a little bit of himself in James because he felt lost and listless as Cat Grant IT’s guy and feels much better doing more meaningful work in the DEO. Llanas and Musky-Goldwyn avoid temptation to turn James into a total badass in his first episode as a crime fighter and craft his journey slowly drawing on his feelings and relationships as well as Brooks’ presence as an actor that has been underutilized this season even with his “promotion”.

If you thought Mon-El was going to end up being a derivative of Superman or gender swapped Supergirl, “Crossfire” easily puts that to rest beginning with a funny musical montage. Like most parts of Supergirl, this scene of Kara making up Mon-El to be just like her is on the nose, but it connects into the sub plot of her choosing an identity for Mon-El instead of letting him be his own person on Earth. Mon-El has a much different personality than Kara and is frankly a party bro with a side of adorkableness rather than a hard working, yet slightly awkward, driven person like her. Seeing him utterly fail as an intern is hilarious, but slightly sad as well, but  through a well-timed conversation with Alex about how she let Kara become her own person on Earth, Kara lets Mon-El find his own path just like Winn helps James become a superhero. (He would be great as a guest star on No Tomorrow.)

alexmaggie

Winter continues to show the power of eye movements and shots of them in creating romantic tension and chemistry between Alex and Maggie in Supergirl in a manner similar to Todd Haynes in Carol. (But without the age gap.) True love definitely comes through in the eyes. Alex genuinely has feelings for Maggie and wants her to be okay after her breakup and spend time with her. But she doesn’t straight up ask her out or come out as lesbian or queer because “intimacy” and dating has not been a good thing for her in the past. Llanas and Musky-Goldwyn make her coming out process gradual and rooted in her emotions instead of going for a quick kiss to boost ratings. It also shows that there is room for all sorts of queer characters in the CW’s DC Universe from the flirtatious, yet occasionally vulnerable Sara Lance in Legends of Tomorrow to the happily married Mr. Terriffic in Arrow, and now Alex, who is battling with coming out as an adult. Llanas and Musky-Goldwyn aren’t quick to label Alex’s personality, but let her articulate it at her own pace while Maggie watches longingly and listens to her strive to put her feelings to words. The relationship between Maggie Sawyer and Alex Danvers is easily the best example of queer representation in a superhero TV show, and Chyler Leigh plays her scenes with great pathos.

Two other characters with great chemistry are Kara Danvers and Lena Luthor. Lena shows her dedication to being the “good” Luthor in deeds as well as action as she rigs a special device to destroy the alien weaponry than Miner and his men are using to rob wealthy guests at her party. Katie McGrath is gamely up for spouting out technobabble alongside Jeremy Jordan, who plays Winn, but the weapon’s goal as well as the final moments of the episodes continue to paint her as an anti-alien chess player. Plus Kara does a terrible job of concealing her secret identity around her. Nonetheless, Kara and Lena share a real tenderness, and Llanas and Musky-Goldwyn continue to align her on the side of the angels. (For the most part.)

lenakara

Even though Miner is a one-dimensional greed obsessed, gun toting NRA wet dream, Llanas and Musky-Goldwyn are self-aware of this fact and make him the object of constant criticism from the Cadmus Doctor, who is shaping up to be the real Big Bad of Season 2. The broadcast that Cadmus sends out are pretty generic and Anonymous-y, but the Cadmus Doctor herself gets some real personality this episode. There is even a touch of Amanda Waller in her as she uses a special gadget to remotely doing the network television of head explosions on Miner and his men when they are about to rat on her to the D.A. There isn’t a hint of fear in her voice when she stands up to him and his alien machine gun and says that attacking Lena Luthor is a bad idea.

The Cadmus Doctor is a perfect supervillain for a day when politicians, like Donald Trump, create an atmosphere of racism, sexism, hate, and xenophobia with their speeches to win elections and rally supporters. Through Miner’s attacks, she hopes to get the Alien Amnesty Bill repealed and whip the people of the world into a frenzy against them so she can make it “great again” for her children and humanity. Even if her goons are a little on the dumb side despite possessing Supergirl KO-ing weaponry, the Cadmus is terrifying, and Brenda Strong plays her with the perfect blend of distant coolness and almost maternal warmth. Definitely watch out for her down the road.

“Crossfire” and Supergirl Season 2 as a whole understands that what makes serial superhero fiction great isn’t just the plot twists and surprise character deaths, but the bonds between characters that can be developed over time. This is what makes Alex’s questioning her sexuality so potent as we have seen the stalwart soldier and caring sister, but now we get to see her slowly have the romantic relationship that she has always wanted.

Overall Rating: 9.0