In the excellent “Supergirl” episode, “Welcome to Earth,” an attempt is made on the President of the United States and all signs point to Mon-El, the escaped alien from the Kryptonian pod. Alex butts heads with Maggie Sawyer, a secret agent who turns out to have inside connections to the alien underworld.
With Cat Grant no longer a regular, “Supergirl” is certainly doubling down on making sure there are plenty of strong women in the show. This week, we meet the President of the United States, played by former “Wonder Woman” Lynda Carter, who plans to sign an Alien Amnesty Act that J’onn disagrees with. One of the great things about the show is how every issue is balanced to include both points of view. J’onn’s argument to why the Act is a bad idea is valid- evil aliens would be granted protection- but the President’s argument that it makes America progressive is also legitimate. Of course, this takes a darker turn when the ending reveals Madame President may not be human…
Speaking of progressive, Maggie Sawyer was introduced and at first seemed like an annoying rival to Alex. Turns out she’s an alien supporting lesbian who manages to hold her own against a fire-wielding alien assassin. Reversing audience expectations is always fun and Sawyer truly kicked ass. Clearly, she’s sticking around for a while, and her dynamic with Alex hints a potential relationship between the two. If so, pretty damn ballsy for a lighthearted comic book show to have a main gay couple.
Kara also faced Mon-El and immediately wrote him off as a killer when she discovered he’s from Daxam, a planet that waged war with Krypton. In keeping with the theme of the episode, Mon-El was vindicated in the attempt on the President and Kara got to know him more. So far, Mon-El hasn’t had the biggest chance to make an impression, but a grander mystery about why he was in a Kryptonian pod should promise more story.
“Welcome to Earth” was a fantastic episode, featuring fun new characters- including the introduction of Miss Martian in the stinger- awesome action and some great comedy, including Kara’s girl crush on the President. Even with Superman and Grant gone, season 2 is holding up amazingly.
“Supergirl” airs Mondays at 8pm on The CW.