In the Supergirl episode “Falling,” Kara turns against National City after being affected by Red Kryptonite, lashing out at her friends and forcing Hank to make a life-altering decision to save her life.
Who knew “Supergirl” could be so dark? Double entendre aside, this was a surprisingly heavy episode for a premise that most comic book shows turn into entertainment. The first half of the episode starts innocently enough, with edgier, sexier Kara having some fun, albeit getting Siobhan fired. It’s clear the writers were trying to play the sympathy card here, but technically, Siobhan was violating journalism ethical codes by selling a story to Perry White under Grant’s nose, so if you think about it, Kara was in the right.
Of course, Kara got nastier and nastier as the show went on, throwing Grant off a rooftop, badmouthing Lucy in front of James and driving Alex to tears. This all came to head when Hank outed himself as a Martian in the public view to protect Kara and Alex. Obviously, all of this will have serious repercussions for the last four episodes, as Supergirl was branded a villain by episode’s end.
And of course, this episode was Melissa Benoist’s chance to shine and she owned it. This episode throws her through practically every angle she could play this character and she leapt over all of these hurdles like they were nothing. (On a side note, this article is being written on Benoist’s birthday, so consider this her present!)
“Falling” was yet another turning point for the season and it showed. A darker tone with a downer ending and several hanging threads turned out to be highlight of the season.