Supergirl Episode Guide: Season 6, Episode 20 - Kara

For a summary of the episode guide layout & categories, click here.

Plot

Familiar faces return to National City to help stop Lex and Nyxly for good, as Alex and Kelly prepare to walk down the aisle. Meanwhile, Kara wonders what to do with her life now that she's left CatCo to focus on protecting the planet as Supergirl.

Influences

Marvel's Infinity War (the hunt for the Totems mirrors the search for the Infinity Stones, Nxyly now has a gauntlet to hold the totems)


Goofs

The headlines on the TV showing that Supergirl just restored humanity's hope appear seconds after it happened.

It isn't explained just why Lex's portal to the Phantom Zone closes when he says it can't be closed.


Performances

Melissa Benoist and Jeremey Jordan get a great duet together at the wedding.

Honestly, the entire ensemble nail it in the show's final hour.


Artistry

The use of music in this episode is perfect.


Super Trivia

The episode makes a blatant reference to the 1984 Supergirl movie, with Helen Slater, who played Kara Zor-El in the original film and plays Dr. Eliza Danvers in the Arrowverse, commenting that you'd think she was a Kryptonian in another life as she joins in the fight against Lex Luthor and Nyxly. 


Technobabble

Brainiac-5's Legion crown allows him to psychically communicate anything he sees and hears with as many people as necessary. However, he can only use this to share the message. He cannot use it to make them take in the message.

Lena has a spell that can enable people to hear a message with an open heart, but it doesn't last long.

Lena casts a spell to trap and unmake the garbage monster.


Dialogue Triumphs

Supergirl: I've been driven by this idea that people need to be rescued. That it was my job, my mission... to save them. I've believed it was my calling to be... Earth's hero. It's just so clear to me now. We don't need to be heroes. We need to be partners. And we need to actively empower every single person to be the hero of their own life.

Supergirl: At this moment, villains are tapping into your collective life force. They're trying to siphon your truth, hope, courage, dreams, your humanity. They're trying to vanquish your destiny. They think that you're helpless. What they don't realize is that your power is innate. It's always been within you. I know there are so many factors that can cause people to not feel their power but I'm here to remind you that none of those things hold a candle... to the power every single one of you possesses within. I thought I was supposed to save everyone. But I see now, there's only one way for this world to heal and flourish: By all of us working together as a team. When each of us contributes our unique gifts to the world with a full heart, together, we will shine. The power of one individual is enough to move mountains. If we can all tap into the deepest truths of our soul, and own our magnificence, together, we will defeat the powers of darkness. Together... we will be unstoppable. Together... we will create a better world.

Supergirl: People all over the world were inspired to empower themselves and each other. But that wasn't an all-purpose cure for the problems on this planet. Good feelings don't last forever. So we have to do the work every day. We can't let this recent victory go to waste. But if we do keep the fight up, we can accomplish the best in all of us. Not as vigilantes... but as civil servants. Not as superheroes... but as friends.

Brainiac-5: You'll be in my dreams, Nia. You've always been the girl of my dreams. I love you, Nia Nal.
Nia: I love you, too. 

(Kara tells Alex about her job offer from Cat Grant.)
Alex: Kara, that's your dream job. I mean, I'm so excited for you.
Kara: I'm not gonna take it. I'm not taking it.
Alex: Wait, wait, wait, wait. What? What? What am I missing here?
Kara: Ever since we defeated Lex and Nyxly and started the work of empowering people, I've been amazed at how you and all of our friends are flourishing. You guys are living your dreams. Somehow I feel... deflated.
Alex: Accept Cat's offer. Maybe that'll give you a sense of purpose.
Kara: Alex, I quit CatCo because my attention was split. I was never able to really do my best because I was always sneaking off to be Supergirl, and that hasn't changed. If anything, it's gonna be worse because I will have much more responsibility now.
Alex: Your responsibilities as Supergirl have changed because you're no longer shouldering that burden of protecting the planet on your own. Maybe there's a world where you can do both.
Kara: Doing both will always require me to lie about who I am and where I'm going. Who am I now? Everybody is so empowered. And I feel less powerful than ever.
Alex: Well, I wish that I could give you all the answers, but unfortunately, you are the only one that can figure this out. But I, for one, I'm not worried. Because you are amazing. And every time you've come to a crossroad you have always chosen the right path.
Kara: What would I do without you?

(Nia is looking sad. Suddenly, a familiar voice calls out from behind her.)
Brainiac-5: Excuse me, miss? You don't happen to have a plus-one to this event, do you?
(Nia turns around. Brainiac-5 is there in a suit.)
Nia: What are you doing here? What about the...
Brainiac-5: Space-time continuum? The Big Brain? Yes, yes, these are valid concerns. Logical concerns. Sprock logic. I love you, Nia. I love you more than I've ever loved anything. I've devoted my entire life to the pursuit of protecting people, but when I returned to the future, I realized that the pursuit felt hollow. The most important thing to me is devoting myself to you.
Nia: But what about the future? What if us being together does destroy the future?
Brainiac-5: That's the thing about the future. It hasn't been written yet. 

(Cat Grant has called to ask why Kara hasn't taken her job offer.)
Kara: Actually, I'm at my sister's wedding right now, and her life is just blossoming. She's fully at home with who she is, and what she stands for, and it's amazing. You can feel it. - I just feel...
Cat: Bifurcated?
Kara: Yes.
Cat: Inauthentic?
Kara: Well, yeah.
Cat: You know, it reminds me of a quote from an old English lord. "Secrecy is the badge of fraud." And he should know, by the way, because he used to feed his hunting dogs these little baby foxes for lunch. He was a monster. But nevertheless, there is no mystery here.
Kara: What do you mean?
Cat: That it doesn't take Freud to see that you have a secret and it's obstructing your life. And it's not serving you anymore, so screw it.
Kara: Not that simple, Ms. Grant. You can't understand. I don't...
Cat: Oh. You're Supergirl. La-di-da.
(Kara's jaw drops.)
Kara: You... You knew?
Cat: Please, those spectacles disguised you as much as a pair of Groucho Marx glasses, and you should have just added the bushy eyebrows and the moustache. Well, I heard your speech here, in Colombia. Well... "Supergirl's" speech. And "Supergirl" told the people that they should become empowered and that they should take care of themselves. And I'm wondering why that message doesn't apply to you?
Kara: You have a good point.
Cat: Oh, Ker-rah, I always have a point. Now, let's take a look at everything that Supergirl and Kara Danvers have accomplished separately. And then let's imagine what you could do if you became one integrated, authentic being.
Kara: I don't know if I'm ready.
Cat: Ker-rah, you need to stop making excuses, and you need to decide what your course will be. Now, there is important work to be done, and I hope you'll join me. But more than that, I hope that you will choose to become your full self, because that would really be something to see. And it would be interesting because this is boring.
Kara: (breathes deeply) Thank you, Ms. Grant. I really needed to hear that.
Cat: I believe in you, I always have. 

Lena: Hey, what's wrong?
Kara: I'm supposed to be the strongest person on earth, but I think I'm actually the weakest.
Lena: What are you talking about?
Kara: Ms. Grant... My glasses... I give speeches inspiring people to live their best lives. But she's right. I am too afraid to live my own.
Lena: No, that's not true, Kara.
Kara: It is. My entire life, I've hid behind these glasses. It's gotten in the way of every job I've ever had, everything I've ever wanted to do, every relationship, every friendship.
Lena: Maybe we did have a bit of a bumpy road.
Kara: I think hiding who I am is the reason I couldn't pass the courage Gauntlet. I created Supergirl that night because the thought of saving my sister as myself was too terrifying.
Lena: Look, you've had your entire life, people telling you who you're supposed to be and that if you didn't hide your true self then the people would get hurt. I mean, it's tough to move beyond those type of core wounds. When Lillian told me she basically programmed the magic out of me as a child, I felt devastated. But I was devastated because I realized I didn't have a chance to grow up to be the person I was supposed to be. And I think it's the same for you. For me, it was always about protecting the Luthor name. You know, I went from trying to make that name stand for something good to try to be my true mother's daughter. My life was always framed by someone else. It wasn't until Lillian told me the truth that I realized I haven't been living my own life. And finally, now I am. And it feels amazing.
Kara: I don't even know what that would feel like for me. Connecting with someone as my whole self. To not be afraid to just be who I am.
Lena: It sounds like it could be empowering.
Kara: But what if I let myself just be who I am and someone gets hurt?
Lena: You can't always be our savior, Kara. You shine your light and inspire others to shine theirs. Your words, not mine. If somebody does come, if they try to mess with this family, then we will take them on together. El mayarah.
(Kara begins sobbing.)  
Lena: Hey, hey. It's okay.
Kara: Of all the friends I have ever had, you have pushed me the most. Challenged me the most.
(Kara hugs Lena tightly. Lena begins crying too.)
Lena: You've made me a better person. Thank you. 

Cat Grant: Hello, National City. You know her as Kara Danvers. CatCo's ace reporter and new editor-in-chief. But tonight, it is my great honor to introduce to you... Supergirl.
(The camera cuts to reveal Kara. She is not wearing her glasses. She smiles wide, whole and happy.)

Dialogue Disasters

Eliza: You'd think in another life I was a Kryptonian.
Alex: Only in the movies.

Continuity

As the episode opens, the color leaching from hopeless people problem is growing worse around the world.

Lex and Nyxly have not been identified as the two titans battling in National City.

Lillian says she is dying but she's at peace with that, but first she has to tell Lena that she knew what Lena and her mother were and that she pushed Lena towards science and had talismans put in the Luthor home that would blunt her natural powers. At the time she thought she was helping Lena.

Lilian says she wants to set Lena free and that she needs to fully own her power and forget about her and Lex and live her life the way she wants to.

Kara says she was driven by the idea that people needed to be rescued but now she sees they need to be partners. She says they need to empower people to help themselves - not wait for heroes to rescue them.

J'onn suggests that causing people to feel empowered may drain the power from the AllStone fragments Lex and Nxyly are wielding.

Kara says she'll make a speech to inspire people, but Brainiac-5 says they'll need to reach every person in the world at once for that to work.

Kelly points out that many traumatized people won't be able to work through their issues to 

Lena says that Lillian is dead and that she found closure with her before she passed.

Lex and Nyxly crash into National City Terminal. J'onn says this is an ideal place to contain them while Lena works her spell with Kara and Brainy.

Andrea, Secretary Brown, Mitch and Al are among the people shown hearing Supergirl's message.

Kara's speech causes the power of her AllStone fragment to drop to 20%

The SuperFriends confront Nyxly and Lex.

Nyxly summons a dragon (613) and the garbage monster from 608.

Lex summons the Parasite (206), Red Tornado (106), Ubergirl (last seen in L308) and Metallo (212).

Mon-El shows up and shields Kara from an energy-blast. He tells her that her speech made the history books.

Winn shows up in a Legion ship and defeats the dragon.

James Olsen shows up in his Guardian armor and helps Kelly fight Metallo.

Andrea uses her shadow powers to save Lena from Lex.

Brainiac-5 and Sentinel team to stop the Red Tornado and Parasite.

Nyxly summons a swarm of owls to fight Dreamer, but Eliza Danvers destroys them with a shotgun.

Mitch shows up with an alien gun... on the side of the heroes.

Kara takes out the Ubergirl.

Lex opens a portal to the Phantom Zone - one he says he can't be closed.

Orlando leads a mob of people to confront Lex. This causes the All-Stone fragments to lose even more power.

Lex sends the phantoms into the crowd, but they are attracted to Lex and Nyxly as they are the most afraid of everyone there. They are dragged into the Phantom Zone and the portal closes.

Brainiac-5, Dreamer, Kara, Andrea, Alex, Lena, Winn, J'onn, Kelly, Jimmy, and Mon-El attend William Dey's funeral. 

Jimmy is shown to have grown a goatee.

Andrea says she's going to set up a journalism award in William's name. She is later shown having established a journalism school named in his honor.

J'onn says he got a call from the President and Secretary Brown and that they've been given permission to reimagine the DEO as they see fit, with a focus on Extra-Normal rather than Extra-Terrestrial. 

Alex and Lena are worried about the bureaucracy the DEO involved, but Kara says it's a good idea.

Lena is shown establishing a new Lena Luthor Foundation.

Alex, Supergirl and J'onn are shown with Secretary Brown at the announcement of a new DEO.

Dreamer is shown opening an LGBTQ youth center with Orlando and Kelly.

Winn promises to return for Alex and Kelly's wedding. 

Mon-El says he won't be able to make it back due to the Legion having a lot on their plates due to the Big Brain situation. In fact, he says he doesn't think he'll ever return to the past again.

Mon-El says that Kara's speech changed the future inspiring people to be their own heroes.

Brainiac-5 says he can't stay for the wedding either, but tells Nia she will be in his dreams.

Three weeks after Winn, Mon-El and Brainiac-5 return to the future, Kara is shown preparing flowers for Alex and Kelly's wedding, which is said to be tomorrow.

Kara is ready to act to save a cat stuck in National City's oldest tree which is reported on the news but the situation is under control according to the reporter on the scene almost before Kara can take off her glasses.

Cat Grant calls Kara to rant about how selfish people are and how sunscreen is destroying the coral reefs. She still mispronounces Kara's name as Care-ah rather than Car-ah. 

Cat is on a Colombia beach saving sea turtles from garbage.

Cat called Kara to tell her that she just bought CatCo back from Andrea and that she's making Kara her new editor-in-chief. She says she'll be back to National City in two weeks and they will only be working on hard news from now on.

Alex says her caterer broke her arm and they just had to get a replacement at the last minute.

Kara says she doesn't want to take the job because she has to focus on being Supergirl and she was never able to do her best work as a writer because of her split focus.

Alex suggests that maybe there is a way Kara can do both and she believes in her.

Eliza says that Alex has already proven herself a wiser mother than she ever was.

James gives Kelly an upgraded signal watch with teleportal powers so they can watch each others backs if they have to. He asks her not to tell their mom, however, because otherwise she'll want family dinners every night.

Brainiac-5 shows up for the wedding. He decides to come back because his love for Nia is more important than logic and the future isn't written yet.

Winn and Kara sing We Belong by Pat Benatar at the wedding.

J'onn gives away Alex.

Esme is the flower girl.

James gives Kelly away at the wedding. 

J'onn also officiates the wedding.

Kelly says in her vows that she knew Alex was the one after 612 because Alex just supported her and didn't try to fix her.

Kara and Esme worked together on making bird houses as gifts for the wedding.

Winn says the new DEO will be a place of peace, at least according to M'Gann and J'onn's son.

James gives Esme the camera his father gave him.

Kelly and Alex ask Lena to be Esme's godmother.

Mr. Mxyzptlk sends his regards through Winn, who says he still shows up around Legion HQ in the future. He also promises the brides one free wish, worth $40 or less.

Winn, James and Kara talk about the private room they had hidden at CatCo back when they first got started. They also make reference to the events of 118 and meeting Barry Allen before the universes merged.

Cat Grant calls Kara again asking why she hasn't signed her contract yet. Kara says she never really felt whole and has different sides to herself and the two parts don't go together.

Cat quotes an old English Lord - "Secrecy is the badge of fraud." (The lord in question is Sir John Chadwick.) She says it is clear Kara has a secret and it isn't serving her so she should get rid of it.

Cat tells Kara she knows she is Supergirl. She also tells her that her message about people needing to be their own heroes applies to her too. 

Nia catches the bouquet when Kelly tosses it.  Brainy says there is a 100% chance he will marry her.

Lena sees Kara looking depressed and asks her what is wrong. Kara says Cat has a point about her hiding behind her glasses and how she needs to give up her secret identity. She also says the reason she failed the Courage gauntlet because she was afraid of revealing herself to the world.

Lena says she is being true to herself now after her talk with Lillian and is happier and she wants to see Kara be as happy. 

Kara says Lena has challenged her the most out of all her friends. Lena thanks her, in turn, for making her a better person. 

Kara takes her glasses off and leaves them behind as Alex and Kelly leave for their honeymoon in J'onn's car.

The Super Friends are shown enjoying a game night together sometime later.

Cat Grant does an interview revealing Supergirl is Kara Danvers to the world and finally pronounces her first name correctly.


Location

Nuqui, Colombia.


Untelevised Adventures

Lillian Luthor dies off-camera.


The Bottom Line

A fitting capstone for the series. The fight with Lex and Nyxly is rushed, true. Not everything is logical, but as Brainy says, "Sprock logic." The final half hour hits all the emotional high-notes and the ending leaves you wanting more. The cruel irony is that seeing Kara trying to live her life with an open identity is a far more daring and interesting idea than anything we've seen this season. Still... if it must end, it ended well. 

Supergirl Episode Guide: Season 6, Episode 19 - The Last Gauntlet

For a summary of the episode guide layout & categories, click here.

Plot

When Lex and Nyxly kidnap Esme, an unlikely ally steps in to help the Super Friends save her.

Influences

Marvel's Infinity War (the hunt for the Totems mirrors the search for the Infinity Stones, Nxyly now has a gauntlet to hold the totems), Beauty and the Beast (the love totem losing its petals symbology)


Goofs

How did Alex get to Prague or retrieve the Totems from the Fortress of Solitude? (Presumably she could get a portal watch from Lena, but it never is explained.)

Even by the standards of comic book science, it beggars belief that a satellite could drain the sun and be used to super-charge Supergirl.

Despite the bridge being said to be a dead zone for tech and superpowers, nobody has trouble during the climactic fight scene.

The CGI fight between Lex and Nyxly opening the final scgment looks like something from a Playstation 2 era video game.

Lex and Nyxly briefly changing into snake people is not explained.

The idea that the All-Stone can permanently drain all the seven elements from the Earth seems to contradict the idea of the individual Totems always reforming so the elements are never lost.


Performances

Melissa Benoist shows her skill as a performer, selling the hell out of some truly terrible dialogue in this episode.


Artistry

The fight for the Allstone is well-choreographed.


Super Trivia

The Destiny Totem is revealed to be in the thread of destiny held by Clotho in a statue of the Three Fates. Clotho, who had adopted the alias Charlie, was a member of the Legends of Tomorrow in season 4 and 5. 


Technobabble

Lena has a spell that enables her to track people.

One of the first rules of professional chess is that if you touch a piece you must move or capture that piece if legal to do so.

Brainiac-5 suggests that they could use an experimental satellite used for enhancing crop growth and repurpose its output after adjusting its orbit to filter yellow sunlight directly into Supergirl, enhancing her powers. This would allow her brain to process information more quickly, her super-hearing to increase 50-fold and she would become invulnerable to magic. This process would take four minutes, however, this process would reduce the sun's power for six months. Lena adds that it could disrupt the sun's orbit, which would throw the whole solar system out of balance.

Lena casts a spell on both Lex and Nyxly that wraps them in blinding mist.

Using the Allstone drains the world of all the elements it is meant to represent. This equates to people watching the fight between Lex and Nyxly with total indifference and the color being drained from them. Brainiac-5 estimates that all the seven elements will be drained forever in 72 hours. Yet the one-third of the the AllStone is not powerful enough to open a dimensional gateway.


Dialogue Triumphs

(Brainiac-5 fits Dreamer with a gauntlet that draws on the Dream Totem power.)
Brainiac-5: See? It fits perfectly. Like Cinderella. Without the gender inequality through patriarchy. And sexual objectification.

Nyxly: From the moment I met you, I knew you shouldn't be trusted. You're nothing but a foul little man who lies and cheats and plays mind games to get what he wants. You're just like my father. I could say I hate you, but the truth is I pity you. No one will ever love you. Goodbye, Lex.


Dialogue Disasters

Lena: The sun is responsible for ocean currents, for climate, for plant life!


Continuity

Lex leaves a recording ransoming Esme for the five Totems the Super Friends have and tells them to find the Destiny Totem.

Lex wears a baby Truth Seeker, so they know he isn't lying.

Lex confirms that the Love Totem has merged with Esme.

Lex suggests they meet at a bridge near the Fort Rozz crash site, where the Omegahedron exploded in 120 which is a dead zone for technology and metahuman/alien powers. The exchange is scheduled for noon the next day.

Brainy starts scanning the globe for any sign of Lex, Nyxly, Mitch or Esme.

Lena starts searching every place Lex has access to with one of her mother's tracking spells.

Dreamer starts trying to find the location of the Destiny Totem.

Brainy offers to make Dreamer a shield that will let her tap the Dream Totem safely, like he did with the Courage Totem for J'onn and the Humanity Totem for Supergirl.

Alex suggests making a decoy Destiny Totem with Lena's magic, but Brainy says magic won't work in the dead zone either.

Kara wants to use the Totems to power herself up so she can save Esme.

Lex and Nyxly retreat to a bunker where Lex's butler Philippe (last seen in 603) is waiting with Mitch.

Esme is afraid she'll never see her moms again because nothing good in her life has ever lasted.

Nyxly tries to activate the Love Totem by holding Esme's hand and saying the magic word. This causes the rose petals on her tattoo to begin falling off. Lex theorizes the Totem will find a new host when that happens.

Lex suggests trying to cut the Love Totem out of Esme but Nyxly refuses to hurt an innocent girl and says Lex should know she'd never agree to that if he truly knows her.

Lex says that Nyxly's death in the future came about because of how she came to possess the Love Totem while assembling the AllStone. Originally, she used her magic to end-run the Love Gauntlet.

Lex suggests that maybe he should get the Love Totem but Nyxly says she must do it herself because she won't have any man do what she can do herself. She decides to try and win Esme's trust and hope that restores the Love Totem.

Andrea travels into the Watchtower using her shadow powers to observe where William died. She is discovered by Lena.

Andrea says she's a monster and that William was right about her standing for nothing.

Lena says there is still time for Andrea to be a better person because Lena was able to redeem herself.

J'onn and Kara discuss the pain of losing a loved one, after Kara searches the globe for Lex several times.

Kara says that she's ready to do whatever it takes to stop Lex and Nyxly forever, even if it means taking the All-Stone for herself. 

Lex is playing chess against himself when Lillian Luthor shows up.

Lillian notes that Bobby Fischer made the same mistake as Lex did in a match in Buenos Aires in 1960, playing Unzicker.

According to Lillian, the press is now reporting that Lex Luthor killed William Dey and kidnapped Esme.

Lex makes reference to Lillian trying to poison him on another Earth in 422.

Lillian tells Lex to abandon Nyxly, turn himself in and plead insanity.

Lex tells Lillian that he chooses Nyxly over her.

Nyxly promises Esme that she will see her moms again.

When Nyxly was Esme's age, her favorite thing was drawing until her father had all her colored pencils destroyed. He thought art was useless.

Nyxly tells Esme that just because things get scary that doesn't mean they will always be bad. 

Nyxly tries the magic word again, but it doesn't work.

Lex watches Nyxly with Esme over a security camera and then notices her crystal ball is unattended.

Alex has a breakdown in the Watchtower armory while looking for weapons that might work in the dead zone.

Kelly tries to calm Alex down and tells her its because of how much they love Esme that the Love Totem bonded to her.

Dreamer worries that she might foresee bad news but Brainiac-5 reassures her that too much knowledge is never a bad thing.

Brainiac-5 agrees to travel into the Dream Realm with Dreamer so they can face whatever visions she has together.

Dreamer is able to find the Destiny Totem at the ruins of St. Vassily's Catherdal in Prague. She also senses that Esme is safe, but can't sense where she is. He believes the Totem is in a famous statue of the three Fates located there, specifically the spool of thread held by Clotho.

The gauntlet of Destiny requires one to face their destiny without the power of the totem. This gives Kara a glimpse of the future and a battle with Lex and Nyxly and the world suffering before the totem reshapes itself into a purple gem.

Alex, in her Sentinel costume, shows up and takes the gem from Kara, saying she's going to use it to get Esme back by taking the Totems to Lex.

Kara says that in her vision Lex and Nyxly were all powerful and the world was in shambles. The only way to prevent that is to use the Totems against them.

Kara lets Alex leave with the totem when she admits that she isn't 100% she can save Esme and Alex says she will never forgive Kara if Esme is hurt by her plan.

Nyxly recognizes Lillian when she returns to their lair.

Lillian insists that Lex is incapable of loving anyone but himself and that Lex is using Nyxly. 

Nyxly refuses to believe her.

Alex takes the first five Totems from the Fortress of Solitude.

Brainiac-5 suggests that they could use an experimental satellite used for enhancing crop growth and repurpose its output after adjusting its orbit to filter yellow sunlight directly into Supergirl, enhancing her powers.

Lena and Dreamer go with Alex and Kelly while Brainy and J'onn try to celebrate the satellite. 

Brainiac-5 notes the satellite is jointly owned by the United States and South America, so Secretary Brown and the US Army will be all over them.

Lex asks Philippe to distract Nyxly while he tries to extract the Love Totem from Esme himself.

Mitch overhears Lex give Philippe this instruction.

Lex frees Mxyzptlk from the crystal ball, thinking the sudden release of 5th Dimensional magic would grant him access to the Love Totem gauntlet.

Nyxly says Lillian was right about Lex and says there is no longer a "we" between them. Her acting to protect Esme when Lex draws a knife causes the Love Totem to manifest in her hand, as her love for Esme as an innocent proved her worthy.

Lex insists that his releasing Mxyzptlk is what freed the Love Totem.

Nyxly says that she pities Lex and says he's a small, petty man who will never truly be loved.

Philippe called Lillian and told her that Nyxly dumped him.

Lillian returns to Lex's lair to find him playing chess alone.

Nyxly tells the Super Friends she is done with Lex as Alex prepares to hand over the Totems.

Lex arrives with Lillian and blows up the bridge as the AllStone is formed.

People begin freaking out as the sun dims and the army rolls out one minute after Brainiac-5 starts feeding the sun into Supergirl.

Supergirl hears all the people freaking out because of what is happening to the sun.

Secretary Brown asks the President to call in an air-strike on Supergirl.

Kara tells J'onn and Brainiac-5 to cancel the solar flare blast.

Lex calls Kara "The Brat of Brawn."

Esme breaks the AllStone into three pieces.

Kara, Nyxly and Lex each wind up with a piece, but Kara is blasted by both of them.

Nyxly works free of the mist first and tries to blast Lex, but Lillian takes the blast meant for him.

Nyxyly and Lex both develop green scaly skin, before Nyxly tries to escape through a portal and Lex chases after her.

Lillian is said to be stable, but not looking good.

Lena starts searching for a spell to save her.

It is suggested that Kara could use her piece of the All-Stone to fight Lex and Nyxly, but Kara says matching them power for power has only hurt people so she needs to think of something else.

Brainiac-5 suggests they call in reinforcements. 

Kara flies above the city and listens to the people of National City suffering. She is drawn to the sound of Orlando giving a speech to a crowd of hopeless people telling them they have to fight. As Orlando speaks, he restores the color to people.

Listening to Orlando's speech also encourages Kara and she calls J'onn to says she knows what to do now.


Location

St. Vassily's Catherdal in Prague
A bridge near the Fort Rozz crash site.


Untelevised Adventures

Alex journeys to the Fortress of Solitude and takes the Totems being stored there.


The Kryptonite Factor

It beggars belief that Kara wouldn't stop to think about how a plan that weakens the sun might be seen as a bad thing by the public, even in the face of Lex Luthor destroying the world.


The Bottom Line

One of the weaker episodes of the season, if not the worst. Contradictory in its characterization and featuring some of the worst junk science in Arrowverse history, it would be forgettable if it weren't part of the series finale. Only the charisma of the cast makes it work at all, but it seems clear that this one was hastily rewritten on the fly to set up the series finale.

Supergirl Episode Guide: Season 6, Episode 18 - Truth or Consequences

For a summary of the episode guide layout & categories, click here.

Plot

With Lex and Nyxyly joining forces, Kara is more determined than ever to protect her friends and doubles down on patrolling National City so that Alex and Kelly can enjoy their engagement party, though Alex still feels torn between her duty as a hero and her new family. Meanwhile, as Brainy receives some heart-breaking news, William clashes with Andrea over her newfound efforts to brand Lex Luthor as a criminal in the press without any real evidence. 

Influences

Marvel's Infinity War (the hunt for the Totems mirrors the search for the Infinity Stones, Nxyly now has a gauntlet to hold the totems)


Goofs

While William gets some amazing moments here giving Andrea the dressing down she's needed to get for the better part of two seasons, I can't help but feel this should have been Kara's speech to give instead of his and that she should have been the one standing up for Truth and Journalism. 

The CGI of the Super Friends falling through the Dream Realm looks cheap.


Performances

It has to be said that Staz Nair shines in this episode. It makes you wish the writers had given us THIS version of William before now.

Again, the interactions between Peta Sergeant and Jon Cryer as Nyxly and Lex are the best part of the episode.


Artistry

Most of the effects work during the fight scenes is good.


Super Trivia

At one point a reporter refers to Lex Luthor as "The Man of Tomorrow." This is a title that is more often applied to Superman in the comics, but which Lex has just as often applied to himself.


Technobabble

Lena says that she can create a data interception program that can track Lex through his Lexosuits.

Lex modifies Nyxly's new Lexosuit by planting the Hope Totem in the left arm cannon and the Truth Totem in the chest plate.

Lex uses 31st century nanobots to take apart Supergirl's armored suit.


Dialogue Triumphs

(Lex has just seen the news report about his love poems for Nyxly.)
Lex: I'll nail gun their drivel-spouting tongues to their pinheads.
Nyxly: (laughing) Looks like someone should have hidden his diary a little better. What is it they called you? The Man of Tomorrow? Quite a lofty title. Did you give yourself that name?
(She pauses and smiles softly.)
Nyxly: Truth be told, I actually quite like the part about... the burning oceans. 

William: I became a journalist to tell real stories, to report the truth. Your "ends justify the means" excuse makes you just as bad as Lex. You both have no ethical code. I was hoping that you'd wield CatCo's power and influence for good, but instead, your pathological obsession to be number one made you selfish and shortsighted. What's important is what you stand for, what you contribute to make the world a better place. And you, Andrea Rojas, stand for nothing.

(Lex and Nyxly are searching for the Truth Totem in a room full of rare antiques.)
Nyxly: Why would someone collect all these trophies just to store them where no one can see them?
Lex: It's not about flaunting what you've got. It's about having it and knowing no one else does.

(Nyxly uses the Truth Totem on Lex.)
Lex: What are you doing?
Nyxly: Making sure of your intent. I can't risk giving my heart to a dishonest fool. But luckily, I have the powers of the Truth Totem, so... Tell me, your poems, did you mean what you wrote?
Lex: Every word. My only desire is to rule by your side while destroying everyone who gets in our way.
Nyxly: And after we've rebuilt the AllStone, you're going to betray me?
Lex: Betray you? Betraying you is... inconceivable. I've spent my whole life believing no one was worthy of me, until you. It's why I came back to find you at this time. I want to help you achieve everything you want and deserve. And I know I can do this for you, because I have. It is my only desire.
(Nyxly releases Lex.)  
Lex: Did I pass?
Nyxly: (smiling, in imitation of the Totems) You have performed admirably.

Brainy: Never thought I'd say this, but... I really could use my personality inhibitors. All this happiness is making me quite sad. I can't stop thinking that soon I'll have to leave everyone. Especially you.
Nia: Don't think about that. Right now, you're here with me. See? Do you feel your hand in mine?
Brainy: I do.
Nia: And my head on your shoulder?
Brainy: Yes.
Nia: That's all that matters. Tonight's not the night to be Debbie Downer. We're here to celebrate Alex and Kelly.
Brainy: (sighing)You're right. I do not intend to be this... Debbie with a sad surname. You know, actually, I am grateful... to feel so much love and loss... because then I know... it all truly meant something. And that you'll always be with me, Nia Nal... no matter where I go.

Continuity

William tells the Super Friends that Lex is building a new Lexosuit army  - a fact he learned from Otis Graves, who agreed to go on the record with him.

The VIP suite at Club Rialto is booked that evening for Alex and Kelly's bacelorette party.

Esme reportedly gets into trouble at school.

Andrea publicly publishes Lex Luthor's love poetry and credits William as having broken the story.

William reads Andrea the riot act for using his name on her story, not only for the breach of journalistic ethics but also because now people are laughing at Lex and Nyxly and treating them like a celebrity couple instead of being afraid of them.

Winn chats with Brainiac-5 and tells him that Lex traveled to the future and fell in love with Nyxly.

The Super Friends recover the Dream Totem after tracking the Lexosuits to a location near National City's waterfront.

The Super Friends affirm that the Totems cannot be destroyed and will eventually reform if their physical form is destroyed.

Dreamer says she can use the Dream Totem to try and track Lex and Nyxly while Lena tracks the Lexosuits.

Nyxly still doesn't trust Lex and suspects he may have sabotaged her crystal ball, until it detects the Truth Totem.

Lex confirmst that Nyxly conquered the Fifth Dimension and killed her father before they met in the future.

Esme's trouble at school was losing control of her powers after a mean girl made fun of her chocolate roulade at a school bake sale, saying it looked like an ugly log.

Alex notices an odd rose-shaped tattoo on the back of Esme's neck.

Brainiac-5 talks with one of the variant Brainiac-5's sharing his body and tells him that Winn informed him that the Big Brain powering the Coluan hivemind in the 31st Century has suffered greatly due to the AI plague last mentioned in 323. As such, Brainiac-5 has been asked to return to his own time and merge with the Big Brain to save it. This will cause him, and the other Brainiac-5 doppelgangers, to cease existing.

The other Brainiac-5 says he will try to figure out a way that they can stay in the present, but he doesn't see how it will be possible.

Brainiac-5 does not want to return to the future because of his love of Dreamer and his sense of duty to his friends in this moment. He resolves to stay until the fight with Lex and Nyxly is resolved.

The Truth Totem is an old camera, apparently of some historical importance.

The gauntlet of the Truth Totem requires the wielder to confess all the truths they would rather not admit. In Nyxly's case she has to confess that she's afraid she's too much like her father, that part of her still wants his approval despite his abuse and treachery and that she wants to be close to someone again and not be afraid of her loved ones betraying her.

Kara assures Esme that she used to have trouble controlling her powers when she was young.

Kara suggests that they could find something like a pair of glasses that Esme could use as a focus, like she did. Alex prefers to run some tests to make sure Esme is healthy and not encourage her to hide her powers.

Alex and Kara have a fight because Alex wants to raise her daughter as she sees fit and Kara says she doesn't think Alex understands what it's like to be an alien on Earth struggling to control your powers.

Dreamer has a vision of Brainiac-5 and an hourglass. She immediately concludes that his time is running out, somehow, and that he's hiding something.

When confronted, Brainiac-5 admits that the Legion ordered him to return to the future once Lex and Nyxly were defeated and that he was trying to find the words to tell her.

Dreamer offers to come to the future but Brainiac-5 says she has to stay in the past for the sake of the timeline.

According to Lex, Nyxly develops a sweet tooth in the future and butterscotch sticky buns are her favorite.

Nyxly uses the Truth Totem on Lex and forces him to honestly tell her how he feels. He honestly does want to win her heart and rule the universe with her.

Andrea calls Lena and asks her if she's a bad person. Lena says she isn't, but she has to be careful to not cross the line in trying to do good.

J'onn tells Kara she should back off of telling Alex how to be a parent, because despite her good intentions that isn't her job.

William is revealed to be the one who taught Esme how to make chocolate roulade.

William tells Esme his Aunt Bindu's secret for baking with chocolate - add a pinch of cardamom, a touch of turmeric and a sprinkle of cloves.

Kelly gets a call from the school saying that one of Esme's new classmates is a Tattamite - an alien species with short fuses whose skin can manifest distinctive skin markings, which they use as camouflage. Alex accepts this as an explanation for Esme's tattoo and losing control of her powers more easily than normal.

Lena is able to track Mitch's ship and suggests a raid on it.

Kara goes to the ship in her Kryptonite-proof suit. It barely protects her when Nyxly hits her with the Truth and Hope Totems.

J'onn and Kara are able to claim the Hope and Truth totems just before Mitch's ship self-destructs. This leaves Lex and Nyxly with no totems and no Lexosuit Army.

The Totems are moved to the Fortress of Solitude for safe-keeping.

Esme won her school's baking contest.

Alex and Kelly's babysitter gets the stomach flu, so it looks like Kelly won't be able to go to the party.

William offers to babysit Esme in the Watchtower so the rest of the Super Friends can go to Alex and Kelly's party.

Kara apologizes to Alex for being pushy about Esme. Alex likewise apologizes for reacting so harshly.

Lex, Nyxly and Mitch take refuge in the Dolemites in Italy. 

Mitch is confirmed to have survived the ship blowing up.

Nyxly admits she is starting to fall for Lex.

As she says this, her crystal ball begins glowing and reveals the Love Totem.

J'onn encourages Kara to relax, as the tower computers are autoscanning for any sign of Lex or Nyxly and he's running psychic scans subconsciously.

Brainiac-5 and Dreamer agree to enjoy whatever time they have left and not worry about their conflicting destinies. 

William notices a proximity alarm in the Watchtower go off and tells Esme to go hide in J'onn's office.

William sets his phone up to record the room.

Lex and Nyxly teleport into the Watchtower.

Nyxly finds where Esme is hiding and convinces her she's a friend of her mothers.

Lex shoots William as retribution for publishing his journal and tells him that he intentionally set up the meeting with Otis, allowed Lena to track his Lexosuits and set it up so that her scanning the Lexosuits activated a Trojan virus that delayed Esme's test results. This prevented Alex from discovering that the Love Totem formed within Esme.

William sends the footage to Andrea just before he dies, with the subject in the e-mail being "Here's your real story."

Andrea watches the video of William's death and Lex confessing to his murder and setting him up.

The Super Friends discover Esme is missing and William is dead.

Location

The Dolemites - Italy


Untelevised Adventures

William details his meeting with Otis Graves, which was teased at the end of 617.

According to Winn, Nyxly and Lex conquered the known universe in the 31st century and ruled as King and Queen until the AllStone began to fail. The Legion of Superheroes attacked in that moment and Nyxly died.


The Fridge Factor

William is killed purely to give the Super Friends angst about relaxing for a night and to add an edge to Esme's abduction.


The Kryptonite Factor

Alex, usually the most observant of the Superfriends, doesn't notice that Esme's rose tattoo matches the design of the Love Totem.


The Bottom Line

Largely satisfying, though surprisingly dark at the end. It's a shame the show couldn't find anything better to do with William before now but at least he gets to go out a hero and shames Andrea one more time in death. It's also odd that he gets all these great moments now when Lena and J'onn barely seem to have any screen time at all. Still, not a bad episode all things considered.

Supergirl Episode Guide: Season 6, Episode 17 - I Believe In A Thing Called Love

For a summary of the episode guide layout & categories, click here.

Plot

With Lex Luthor and Nyxly joining forces, the Super Friends must face their two greatest enemies together as the hunt for the Love Totem begins. Meanwhile, Alex tries to plan the perfect proposal to Kelly, but work keeps getting in the way.

Influences

Marvel's Infinity War (the hunt for the Totems mirrors the search for the Infinity Stones, Nxyly now has a gauntlet to hold the totems)

Performances

The interactions between Peta Sergeant and Jon Cryer are easily the highlight of the episode.


Artistry

The effects work is generally good.


Super Trivia

The episode title comes from a 2003 song by The Darkness.


Technobabble

The Nyxly AI is revealed to have been made from a future variant of Nyxly whom fell in love with Lex Luthor. 

Lena uses her magic to create a fake Love Totem by replicating the energy signature of the totems the Super Friends control. 

According to Lena, magic is heavily influenced by the caster's emotions so if she tries to cast a spell while angry, the magic will reflect that, assuming she is able to maintain the focus to complete the spell at all.

Brainiac-5 identifies the weapons Lex used to save Nysly as 31st century technology.

Reversing the Totem energy signatures can theoretically create a baseline for protecting against the Dream Totem.

Lena claims that the Totems are most effective when used as weapons and that while they can be used defensively, there's no way one Totem can protect against the power of two Totems used offensively. This also makes it impossible for her to create a defense based on using the Totem energy against one another. 

Despite this limit, Lena does come up with a way to protect Kara from the effects of the Humanity Totem.

Lex is able to fix Nyxly's crystal ball without magic, thanks to his studies of magic and science being melded together in the 31st century.

Lex claims that while the Totems' physical forms can be destroyed temporarily, the power inside them will flow into something else. This means that the destroyed Hope Totem was bound to be reborn, allowing him to claim the Hope Totem.

Dialogue Triumphs

(Lex is trying to convince Nyxly they are fated to be allies. Suddenly, Mitch enters the room.)
Mitch: Sorry I'm late. What is Lex Luthor doing here?
Nyxly: You're Lex Luthor, the madman who sent Supergirl to the Phantom Zone.
Lex: That was some of my best work.
Nyxly: Do you know what I really, really loathe? Men who send women to Phantom Zone!

Otis: Oh, I missed you, boss!
(Otis tries to hug Lex, who deftly ducks under his arm and keeps walking down the hall.)
Lex: Now, why couldn't Nyxly have given me that kind of reception?
Otis: So what if she rejected you? You're Lex Luthor! And your timing couldn't be better. Luthor Corp's returns are through the roof this quarter! Your mom gave me a board seat! 
(Lex freezes up. His face remains neutral but his eyes betray his shock and horror at this.)
Otis: And the way you left everything covered, I think I'm the only one who noticed you were gone. My point is, you don't need that imp.
Lex: See, the thing about that imp is she's the only thing I want. Nyxly is the love of my life.
Otis: I'm sorry, what?
Lex: I know. Me? In love? (scoffs) I've always shouldered this world alone. I've never known what it meant to have a true partner. Who could possibly match my wit, my flair, my unfiltered genius? But when I met Nyxly, I knew. She was the one. This was supposed to be so easy. Come to this time, help Nyxly get the Love Totem before the Super Friends find it, and then return to the future where my Nyxly would still be alive. I can't save her if she doesn't trust me. And she won't trust me if she doesn't even like me. And if she doesn't like me now, how will she love me in the future?
Otis: I did not understand a word of that. But if she loved you before, why don't you just do that again?
(Lex spins on Otis. Otis cringes, expecting to be hit or yelled at. Instead, Lex grins manically.) 
Lex: You big, beautiful idiot. That's exactly what I should do!

Nyxly: How did you know where I was? (sees the small drone hovering above her) What is that? Is that a surveillance drone? Are you stalking me? Creep!
Lex: I was protecting you. If I hadn't shown up when I did, you would be powerless in a prison right now.
Nyxly:You claim to be on my side. But I am no closer to finding my Totems. So get out!
Lex: Uh, this is my home.
(There is a brief pause as Nyxly realizes this.)
Nyxly: Fine!

(Otis suggests Lex brainwash Nyxly into loving him.)
Lex: Otis, my good man, forcing women into loving you is the underpinning of a toxic relationship.
Otis: But you love toxic relationships?
Lex: Not as much as I love Nyxly.

(Lex regards a tied-up Mitch.)
Lex: (mock cheerful) Hello, courier minion.

Kara: I'm not afraid to become that phantom. I've been letting Nyxly convince me that if I stoop to her level, I'd become a monster just like her. But you know what? I have something she doesn't. This team, this family. And no matter what happens, I know you all will pull me back from the edge, which is why I need your help now.
Lena: If I use my magic, I could end up hurting you.
Kara: You've been afraid to become the worst version of yourself because for so long, Lex was the only family you had. He wanted you to be a monster, and there was no one around to pull you back when you went too far. But he's not your family anymore. We are. Focus on the good. On your real family. Use that to fuel your magic... and you won't lose control. 

Nyxly: You had a clean shot at the Love Totem. And you abandoned it to save me. Why?
Lex: Did I? I must not have seen it.
Nyxly: Tell me the truth. What do you want from me?
Lex: You want the truth? The truth is I love you. I love you so much that when you... died, part of me died too. And you don't understand. I don't love anybody. In fact, I hate everyone. From a very young age, I knew I would move through this world alone, riding that solitary high-speed train towards progress and greatness all by myself. But there you were. This radiant, powerful being, vibrating with your own brilliant madness. I never thought anyone could match my ambition, my genius, but... Then I met you. In all the timelines, in all the dimensions, in all the universes, you... were the only one that could match me. But of course, you don't know any of this, 'cause you weren't there. Yet. You haven't met me yet, and I sound insane.
Nyxly: No one has ever selflessly sacrificed something for me like you did tonight. So, no, I wasn't there. But... If what you say is true and you really are here to help me succeed... Well, I don't see why we can't be friends.

Continuity

Lex explains that the AI in the suit he gave Nyxly in 615 was based on her future self and that it used the Dream Totem to manifest him in the current time.

Lex claims that, in the future, he and Nyxly became allies after she assembled the All-Stone, but the All-Stone eventually killed her because she didn't assemble it the right way. Thankfully, he was able to preserve her mind as an artificial intelligence and send her back in time to try and do it right.

Nyxly is not impressed and tells Luthor she will never work with him.

Kara works with J'onn to come up with a strategy to disarm Nyxly once they draw her out.

Nia, Lena and Kelly head to the Watchtower lab to work on the scientific aspects of their plan.

Alex just got the ring she plans to use to propose to Kelly. She wants to do it on the next evening, which is the anniversary of the night she realized she truly loved Kelly. This occurred when the Super Friends were at Al's Bar arguing about what was the best movie ever and they both said Die Hard.

Alex takes Esme with her to set things up at Al's Bar, but Al informs her that they booked the bar for a private event the next evening. Shockingly, Alex didn't think to ask Al if he did private bookings.

According to Otis, LuthorCorp returns for the past quarter have gone through the roof and Lillian Luthor gave him a chair on the Board of Directors.

Otis suggests that Lex do what he did to make Nyxly fall for him in this time so the present day Nyxly will trust him.

William agrees not to publish any new Super Friends stories until their next plan succeeds. 

The Super Friends conferred with the witch hologram to determine the next totem Nxyly needs is the Love Totem.

The Super Friends plan to use a fake Love Totem to lure Nyxly into a secure location where they can ambush her.

Ironically, the location they choose is on Lover's Lane Road.

Lena loses control of her magic when she sees Lex, who shows up to save Nyxly and helps her escape.

Kara is knocked out for several hours thanks to the Kryptonite energy of Lex's weapons. When she wakes up, Lena informs her that she'd rather not try and use her magic until she's sure she's able to do so without Lex interfering with her emotional state. 

Andrea pushes William to write a full expose on Lex Luthor working with Nxyly and refuses to listen to William's reminder how badly going after Lex worked for CatCo, even when they had evidence of Lex's wrong-doing, back in 602.

Andrea gives William until the end of the day to find proof of Lex's wrong-doing or she'll run a story about him anyway.

The Super Friends decide to use the Courage and Humanity Totems as shields from the Totems Nyxly controls, rather than trying to weaponize them.

It is suggested that Brainiac-5 contact the Legion of Superheroes to see if they know what Lex was doing in their time, but Brainiac-5 is reluctant to do so given that the last time he acted on future knowledge it led to his working with Lex Luthor behind his friends' backs.

Lena tries to create a shield against the Dream Totem.

Dreamer tries to forsee where the Love Totem is.

J'onn undertakes the gauntlet of the Courage Totem and is forced to relive the moment he was separated from his children in the concentration camps on Mars. 

J'onn is able to claim the power of the Courage Totem after fighting back against the White Martians to try and save his daughters.

Lex claims that in the future he and Nyxly had matching surveillance drones so they could track each other at all times.

Lex dismisses the idea of mind-controlling Nyxly as creepy. Instead, he kidnaps Mitch and gives him the location of the Love Totem one hour before the Super Friends found it in the original timeline.

Lex also says he can't just tell Nyxly they fall in love, as he believes admitting your feelings to a woman will only scare them off.

Mitch lies to Nyxly, claiming he found the Love Totem in a book, Tale Of An Object Infused with Love, which described Ines De Castro, the Corpse Bride of Portugal and a famous tomb belonging to a pair of lost lovers.

Dreamer also divines the Love Totem as being located in Lisbon, Portugal.

Nyxly is able to keep Supergirl at bay with a waking nightmare that causes her to hallucinate being attacked by Phantom Zone Phantoms and then being turned into a Phantom herself.

The Love Totem vanishes before Nyxly can take it. She also makes her escape.

Legends of the Love Totem say that, unlike the other totems, it has disappeared and reappeared repeatedly throughout history and that it gravitates to people in love or locations associated with love. It is likewise repelled by people who are hateful.

It is theorized the Love Totem teleported itself away when Nyxly got too close to it, as her reasons for seeking the All-Stone are hateful.

Nyxly goes to Lex and asks for his help, but insists that it is strictly business and they will never be friends.

J'onn apologized to Kara for not being able to shield her effectively, blaming the fact that his courage faltered when he saw Kara get hurt by Nyxly's Dream Totem attack.

Kara talks Lena into trying to use her magic to protect Kara from the side-effects of the Humanity Totem, so she can use it against Nyxly.

Alex talks with William about how Kelly was engaged once before and how Alex's attempt to propose to Maggie Sawyer ended badly. (Alex proposed to Maggie in 222, but they broke up in 305.)

William advises Alex to go ahead and propose to Kelly because there's no guarantee they could be alive tomorrow with Lex Luthor on the loose.

Lex tells Nyxly about how they learned to work her magic and his technology together to create "beautiful things." He also says that she glowed whenever she talked about acquiring the All-Stone and how she did ultimately get the revenge she sought. Lex guesses this is why the future her was more receptive to a friend like him.

It turns out that Kelly was the one who booked Al's Bar because she had the same idea as Alex. She sets up a surprise engagement party with the help of Esme, William and Al, who were all in on the plan.

Alex reaches for the ring in her pocket but finds the Love Totem there instead, just as Lex and Nyxly show up to steal it.

Kara is able to use the Humanity Totem to incapacitate Nyxly while Lena's magic keeps her from losing her own humanity.

Lex deflects the blast of the Courage Totem into the Love Totem, seemingly destroying it as he moves to teleport himself and Nyxly away.

Alex says that it doesn't matter if the Love Totem was destroyed because she still feels the love for her friends and family that she did before. In fact, after what Kelly did, she feels more loved than ever.

Lex tells Nyxly the truth about why he is helping her. While she is still cynical about him loving her, she does admit that his saving her is the first time anyone did something selfless for her and she thinks they can be friends now.

Dreamer suggests that they should all chip in and get Kelly and Alex matching motorcycles as an wedding gift.

Brainiac-5 thinks there's something odd about Lex's behavior, having noticed that he risked everything to save Nyxly rather than grab the Love Totem for himself.

Dreamer tells Brainiac-5 to all the Legion and see what they know about Lex in their time.

Lena thanks Kara for pushing her, because she is now sure that she is free of Lex's influence.

William has a secret meeting with Otis Graves in a dark alley.

Andrea uses her Acrata powers to break into Luthor Manor and sneaks a peak at Lex Luthor's diary. It is full of love poetry about Nyxly. 

Lex gives Nyxly the Hope Totem, which he was able to recover after it recontituted itself. He says they can do the same with the Love Totem.


Location

Luthor Manor
Lisbon, Portugal.


Untelevised Adventures

Lex Luthor traveled to the future and fell in love with a future version of Nyxly. It was working with her that allowed Lex to learn how to blend magic and technology together. 

Lex must also have done something to inspire great hope somewhere to acquire the Hope Totem.


The Fridge Factor

Andrea continues to be stupid and journalistically amoral  for the sake of pushing artificial drama.


The Bottom Line

Surprisingly solid, as the series enters the home stretch before its finale. More of Jon Cryer as Lex Luthor is always welcome, and his interactions with Otis are the comedic highlight of the episode, but Cryer also proves to have considerable chemistry with Peta Sergeant and there's just enough of the sly, sinister Lex to make his sudden change of heart believable. It's just a shame that all the other subplots and emotional moments (particularly J'onn confronting his daughter's deaths) don't get as much time. . 

Supergirl Episode Guide: Season 6, Episode 16 - Nightmare in National City

For a summary of the episode guide layout & categories, click here.

Plot

A nightmare monster attacks National City, as Kara finds herself landing a story she always dreamed of. As Dreamer leads the battle against the monster and turns to her estranged sister for help, Nxyly meets her secret admirer and an unholy alliance is formed!

Influences

Under the Dome by Stephen King (the dome the Super Friends use to trap the nightmare monster is similar), Ancient Greek Mythology (dream totem in a Minoan Labyrinth) and Kaiju movies in general. (giant monster, feeds on radiation.)


Performances

Nicole Maines has a fantastic turn as Dreamer in this episode.


Artistry

The CGI for the battle between Dreamer and Nyxly is quite good.


Super Trivia

Kara makes reference to "World Diplomacy Live," a 1995 interview conducted by Larry King between King Hussein of Jordan, Israel Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin and PLO leader Yasser Afrafat.

Andrea makes reference to Kara's interview as being like Oprah Winfrey's interview with "the Royals." This is a reference to a March 2021 interview with Prince Harry and his wife which was a major ratings grabber at the time.


Technobabble

The Lexosuit given to Nxyly creates an artificial intelligence based on her mind.

The Dream Totem is said to give the possessor the same powers that Nia Nul inherited.

Dr. Pavoni with the Dream Institute of National City built a device capable of allowing people to access the Dream Realm without metahuman powers.

The Lexosuit is able to replicate the function of Dr. Pavoni's machine after a few moments connected to it.

Lex Luthor designed a satellite-based force-field that could wall off an entire city. Lena uses this to trap the nightmare monster temporarily. Unfortunately, this also cuts off half of National City from the outside world.

Nuclear energy and dream energy are similar enough that a nuclear power plant acts as a beacon to Nightmare Monsters.

The Oracle of Delphi placed a ward on the Dream Totem so that it could only be claimed by one who is pure in heart, mind and sight

Dialogue Triumphs

(The Dream Totem has declared Maeve unworthy of its power.)
Maeve: It was supposed to be mine. I worked my entire life towards becoming the Dreamer. Studying, preparing... Every decision I ever made was for that. It was my purpose, my identity. (to Nia) And you took it!
Nia: I didn't have a choice. I tried to transfer the powers to you, I told you that. But I couldn't. So what do you want me to say? That... That you should be the Dreamer? That I don't know what I'm doing most of the time? That I'm in over my head?
Maeve: (bitterly) Honesty, finally.
Nia: Oh, you want honesty? Okay. I have no pity for you! I'm sorry that you wasted all of those years reading all of those books, assuming with no cause, by the way, that you'd be the Dreamer. But look at yourself, Maeve. You were willing to put the entire universe at stake so you could take the powers. Are you really that selfish? Do you think that's what the Dreamer would do? You don't think I deserve these powers? You don't think I'm a real woman? Well, I don't care. I know who I am. I am the Dreamer. The question is who are you? Because you are clearly not the sister that I thought you were.

Continuity

According to Nia, her father took her side in the argument with her sister Maeve from 411. This caused Maeve to take all of her mother's notes and research with her before disappearing.

Brainy suggests that Nia try and use her powers to find a clue of where her sister is.

Nia has a vison of an address at Crispin University.

Brainy hasn't been using his image inducer since William began working at the Tower, but Nia tells him he should keep his natural look.

When Nxyly was 10, she had a crush on Duke Nzykmlk - a cousin of Mister Mxyptlk. This fact convinces her that the AI in her Lexosuit really is her.

Alex brings drawings of each of the Super Friends that Esme made to the Tower.

Kelly has taken Esme to visit James in Calvintown.

It has been at least one week since the events of 615, as Kara makes reference to Kaznia and Corto Maltese agreeing to a truce within the last week. The official peace treaty is due to be signed in National City within the next few days.

Kara was somehow able to watch Larry King's "World Diplomacy Live" interview while trapped in her pod in the Phantom Zone.

Kara asked Cat Grant to pull some strings to arrange for her to meet with Prime Minister Perez of Corto Maltese and President Zakharov of Kaznia.

Andrea considers Kara's idea of trying to show the peace process in action boring, but thinks CatCo can hype it as being like their version of "Oprah and the Royals."

Nia discovers that Maeve changed her name to Dr. Reeve and that the address in her vision was for Maeve's new office at Crispin University.

Maeve tries to apologize for saying Nia wasn't a real woman but Nia cuts her off, saying she doesn't want to talk about that.

Maeve has heard of the Dream Totem and has several books which discuss it and where to find it.

William offers to help Kara prepare for the interview, having written big articles on both Kaznia and Corto Maltese in the past.

Nyxyly's creation of a dream portal unleashes a nightmare monster from the Dream Realm.

The Nightmare monster becomes invisible after it is pinned-in by the Super Friends' forcefield. This also causes its energy signature to become undetectable. 

According to Maeve, the Dream Totem was once housed with the Oracle of Delphi's temple but was relocated to the Dream Realm after the Dorians invaded. It is also suggested that the gauntlet to claim the Dream Totem might have inspired the legends of the Labyrinth. 

Maeve also has a tapestry which depicts the Oracle's directions to the Dream Totem. The first part says the Totem is warded so that it can only be claimed by one who is pure of heart, mind and sight.

Maeve recognizes one of the symbols in the tapestry as the Naltoran symbol of purity, which matches the symbol on a necklace her mother gave her, telling her that it would light up her dreams.

Maeve and Nia guess the tree in the tapestry may be a link to the forest in Nia's dreams of late.

Maeve made a scrapbook of news stories about Dreamer.

Nia invites Maeve to join her in the Dream Realm in finding the Totem.

Nia texts Brainy to tell him what she's discovered. He relays to the other Super Friends that the Dream Totem is in the Dream Realm, which explains why Nyxly was trying to get back into it.

The Super Friends work to combine Dr. Pavlov's machine with Lena's portal tech to create their own pathway into the Dream Realm.

William calls Kara and reminds her about their appointment to do a mock interview. J'onn tells her to go ahead as the rest of the team has things under control.

Maeve makes reference to a writer named M.K. Nessler who wrote a book called Of Dreams Beyond which was about navigating the dream realm.

Maeve's necklace glows near one particular tree. This opens the way into the wider Dream Expanse beyond Nia's personal dreamscape.

William advises Kara not to let her subjects duck any direct questions.

Andrea is able to arrange an off-the-books meeting with the chief Kaznia treat negotiator later that day at 2 PM.

The governor of California demands the Super Friends remove the dome.

Nyxly spies Nia and Maeve and follows after them.

The governor gives the Super Friends 12 hours to complete a portal device to get rid of the Nightmare monster. 

People begin rioting trying to escape the dome.

Kara misses the meeting with the Kaznia negotiator because they came and left while she was out stopping the rioting as Supergirl.

Nia uses her powers to create a floating platform - a trick she learned on her own. This enables them to get a birds-eye view of the forest and find the glowing spire that contains the Dream Totem.

Amdrea calls and threatens to fire Kara if anything goes wrong with the interview. 

The Governor calls out the Air Force and the National Guard to try and take down the dome.

Willaim comes to the tower to get a statment on the current disaster, saying that Supergirl is needed to calm people down, as Kara is getting ready to leave for her interview. 

Maeve tries to take the Dream Totem but it denies her, saying she is not pure and that she's a traitor to her family who wanted to try and use the Dream Totem to take away Nia's powers.

Nxyly tries to use her gauntlet to break the ward on the Dream Totem.

Maeve gives Nia her necklace thinking the extra dream power might help. Unfortunately, Nxyly is able to get away with the Dream Totem.

Kara is forced to leave the interview to help push the Nightmare beast back into the Dream Realm.

When Kara leaves, the diplomats have already left the site of the interview.

Kara decides to quite her job as a reporter at CatCo and tells Andrea to let William do the interview instead.

Maeve tries to apologize to Nia again Nia refuses to forgive her but does agree to give her a second chance.

Maeve gives Nia her necklace.

Supergirl makes the inspiring speech William suggested.

Lex Luthor reveals himself to Nyxly.

Location

Crispin University
The Dream Realm


Untelevised Adventures

Kelly and Esme are said to be visiting James in Calvintown.

Kara asked Cat Grant to pull some strings to arrange for her to meet with Prime Minister Perez of Corto Maltese and President Zakharov of Kaznia.

The Bottom Line

A great Dreamer episode but everything else seems rushed, especially Kara's exit from CatCo. Still, if this means no more (or at least fewer) scenes of Andrea being the world's worst news editor, I'll take it.

Supergirl Episode Guide: Season 6, Episode 15 - Hope For Tomorrow

For a summary of the episode guide layout & categories, click here.

Plot

When Nxyly takes William Dey hostage, Kara realizes she must become more proactive in her hunt for the Totems. Meanwhile, Alex faces the biggest challenge of her life, in what becomes a test of the whole team's ability to inspire hope in one young girl.

Influences

Superman IV: The Quest For Peace, Arthurian Legend (the Hope Totem is stuck in a stone), Harry Potter (the magic connection between Kara and Nxyly resembles that between Harry and Voldemort), Marvel's Infinity War (the hunt for the Totems mirrors the search for the Infinity Stones, Nxyly now has a gauntlet to hold the totems) and Dragonball (the idea of magic artifacts that can alter reality that exist on each planet sounds a lot like the Dragonballs)


Goofs

Given that has been shown of Corto Maltese and Kaznia in previous Arrowverse series, it seems unlikely either one would have nuclear weapons or be close enough to each other to get into a war over resources. 

How did Alex have access to a Truth Seeker after the destruction of the DEO? (Perhaps it was in the desert facility?)


Performances

The scene between Chyler Leigh and Azie Tesfa as they discuss how to handle Esme is perhaps the best scene so far between the two actresses and the first time they felt like a real couple in a long time.


Artistry

The special effects work is quite good.


Super Trivia

The basic plot of this episode (and several story elements) were taken from the movie Superman IV: The Quest For Peace. These include the threat of a nuclear war, the hero needing to appeal to a worried child and nuclear missiles being thrown into the sun.

Mitch makes mention of an alien race called the Almeraci. This may be a reference to the world of Almerac, which is a technologically advanced society with a proud warrior tradition. The heroine Maxima was the Queen of Almerac.

Esme is identified as a Dyralian. This is a unique alien species created for the Arrowverse, not to be confused with the Dyrilans, who are a orange-skinned race.


Technobabble

Mitch modifies a gauntlet he says Naxim took from an Almeraci that was designed to absorb and repel energy to hold the Courage Totem. Affixed to the magic-draining cuff, it allows Nyxyly to use her magic somewhat and channel the power of Courage.

The security system in the Watchtower scans every available public camera worldwide.

While Brainiac-5's computer is capable of processing billions of bits per data every second, he is still beholden to 21st century upload/download speeds.

Esme's alien race is identified as Dyralian. Brainiac-5 confirms they have the ability to mimic the special abilities of other alien races. This includes alien animals, like a Truth Seeker.

Brainiac-5 makes reference to the Winathians, saying they have the ability to nullify gravity. In the comics, this was only true of the Legionnaire Ayla Ranzz (aka Lightning Lass), whose powers were altered by an experiment conducted by Dream Girl. Most Winathians had the power to generate electricity.

Lena tries to modify a charm so that it will protect the Humanity Totem from outside magical influences.

Dyralians can recognize other aliens if they have encountered someone with the same powers before. This leads Esme to recognize Kara in her Supergirl costume, because Kara had the same powers as Supergirl.


Dialogue Triumphs

(Brainiac-5 has been tasked with helping Esme learn to control her powers.)
Brainiac-5: (To Esme) Lucky for you, I used to be old friends with a Dyralian. This one time, the Dyralian and I were socializing with a Winathian friend of ours, and the Dyralian unknowingly taps into the Winathian's ability to de-power the gravity in the room. It took us three hours to get down from the ceiling.
Esme: (chuckling) He's funny.
Brainiac-5: (walking away with Esme) Tell me, how familiar are you with Coluan quantum mechanics? Hmm? Have you been trained in hand-to-hand combat? 

J'onn: With all due respect, Secretary, you're dealing with a magical energy source. My psychic abilities can keep things calm. Besides, if she comes back, I'm the best defense you'll have.
Secretary of State: Fine. Just don't get in my way. And change into something, so you don't upstage me.

Kara: I don't know what I'm gonna do. When I accessed the Totem's gauntlet at The Hague, it said I needed to inspire a hope that burns longer and brighter than the sun. But it didn't give me a starting point like last time, and I can't afford to try and fail. I mean, you saw how bad things got when I didn't pass the Courage gauntlet. I try to provide people with hope all the time. What can I do differently now?
Lena: On the bright side, if it's a race between you and Nyxly to provide hope for a Hope Totem, I know where my money is going.

Kara: It was awful. The look on Esme's face, the fear in her eyes only hearing this... frightening, horrible stuff. (sighs) If I can't help inspire hope in one little girl, how am I supposed to do it for the whole world and pass the Hope gauntlet? And this world? How is any of this hopeful?
Lena: Things escalating at The Hague, maybe you should just wipe those countries of their nuclear weapons. That'll bring out lasting peace and hope.
Kara: I wish I could, but unfortunately, I am forbidden from interfering in human history.
Lena: Weren't you the person that convinced me to use magic to make people just a little bit violent in order to draw out Nyxly and the Humanity Totem?
Kara: Yeah, but that was different. That was in pursuit of stopping a villain. And it was temporary. Unilaterally changing the world stage, getting involved at that level, that is not for me to do. People, nations should be self-determining, that's freedom. That's what we're fighting for. 

Alex: I really screwed up, Kelly. When Kara's powers overwhelmed Esme, I should have realized that she needed a break, but I just kept pushing her to keep going. It was like these instincts took over, and all of a sudden I'm acting more like a DEO drill sergeant than I am a mother. And it was exactly the wrong thing to do. Growing up, my mom with Kara, she was so kind and understanding, and it was exactly the mom that Kara needed. And that's everything that I want to be.
Kelly: You're being really hard on yourself. Your mom and Kara fought all the time. You even told me that once Kara got so angry with Eliza that she almost burned the house down with her heat vision.
Alex: Kara was a teenager, okay, not some innocent little ball of cuteness.
Kelly: My point is, they worked it out and Kara thrived. And even your mother needed that grace period. So cut yourself some slack. And this morning, when Esme was scared, I wanted it to be about her powers because that would have been an easier fix. But it's not about that. It's us.
Alex: Okay, so I was right.
Kelly: No. (sighs) She just told me that she thinks it's best if we take her back. And it wasn't because you pushed her. I think she is terrified of getting close to us because she thinks we're gonna abandon her like everyone else did. And I'm a therapist. I should have realized that this morning.
Alex: Mmm-mmm. I just... I want to do better for Esme.
Kelly: I know you do.
Alex: I just wish we could make her see that.
Kelly: We can figure this out. We just got to figure out a way to get her to see the truth.
Alex: (thoughtfully) The truth... 

Continuity

This episode takes place three days after the events of 614. (This is revealed when Brainiac-5 detects Nxyly's first trip to The Hague.)

As the episode opens, Kara, Kelly, Alex and J'onn are setting up a room in Kelly and Alex's home for Esme, whom Kelly and Alex are fostering for six months before their petition to adopt her is approved.

Alex paints a guardian spirit, resembling a Martian, on the wall of Esme's bedroom, as part of a mural representing hopes and dreams. J'onn says his father painted something similar in his daughter's room.

Kara retrieved all the stuffed animals and blankets she was given by Eliza Danvers when she first came to Earth.

Esme has a stuffed zebra named Lovey.

Kara tells Esme that she's adopted too.

Esme accidentally phases through the wall after accidentally mimicking J'onn's powers.

Esme is immediately scared she'll be sent back to the group home for using her powers.

Nyxyly reads William Dey's story about her.

Mitch creates a gauntlet which can hold the Courage Totem, allowing Nyxyly to tap its energy and regain some of her power.

William prepares chocolate roulade, Jaffa cakes and hobnobs as gifts for Esme. He says the hobnobs are his Aunt Millicent's specialty.

Brainiac-5 intends to get Esme a building blocks set, but is uncertain whether or not to get the castle, theme park or train set. He is told to get the train set.

Brainiac-5 still hasn't found Nxyly using his scanners and reports that Nia hasn't had any luck finding the Dream Totem using her powers or doing research in the town of Parthas.

Brainiac-5 detects footage of Nxyly trying to enter The Hague in 614 and says it came from three days earlier. Coincidentally, the cameras catch her trying to enter the museum at the same time.

Kara and J'onn are able to chase Nxyly away, but not before she drains the courage from the lead diplomats for the delegations from Kaznia and Corto Maltese that are meeting at The Hague for a peace conference.

Esme is brought to the Watchtower and introduced to William, Lena and Brainiac-5.

Brainiac-5 says that one of his friends is a Dyralian and that he once accidentally got stuck on a ceiling for three hours after his friend accidentally replicated the gravity-nullifying powers of a Winathian.

Kara tries to activate the Hope Totem, which is a sculpture called The Hand of the Flower which was carved out of a throne said to belong to Elpis, the Green goddess of Hope.

The gauntlet of Hope is to "inspire a hope that burns longer and brighter than the sun."

Kara is unable to pull the statue out of the rock holding it.

Corto Maltese built an artificial island in the Kaznian Sea without permission to drill for oil. This has led to a conflict which the United States is attempting to resolve.

Thanks to the Totem of Courage draining their courage, the diplomats are distrustful and paranoid, which is hurting the peace talks.

J'onn agrees to stay at The Hague and use his psychic powers to pacify the diplomats and guard the Hope Totem until Kara can pass the gauntlet.

Esme becomes overwhelmed trying to emulate Brainiac-5's intelligence and solve the Coluan equivalent of Einstein's theory of relativity.

Alex introduces Kara as Supergirl to Esme, but Esme recognizes her as Kara because she has the same powers Kara did earlier.

Esme once again becomes afraid she did something wrong after Alex tells her how important it is to keep Kara's secret identity.

Esme tries to copy Kara's super-hearing, but becomes scared by the loud noises. She says Alex is horrible for making her try to listen to the bad things she heard. (i.e. sirens, gun fire, people screaming.)

Nyxly decides to wait for Supergirl to pass the gauntlet for the Hope Totem and steal it from her once it is activated. 

Nxyly decides to kidnap William and trade him for the Hope Totem.

The US Secretary of State, a woman with the last name Brown, asks J'onn to use his telepathy to make the diplomats sign a peace agreement. He refuses to do so.

Lena asks why Kara just can't get rid of all the nuclear weapons in the world. Kara says she's forbidden from interfering in human history and that kind of abuse of power is exactly what she tries to fight against.

Kara senses that Nxyly is happy.

Kara has the idea that maybe she should try and pass the gauntlet as Kara rather than as Supergirl and use her reporting to inspire people.

Alex is afraid she's driven Esme away trying to help her work through her powers.

Kelly says Alex needs to cut herself some slack and that they will work through this together.

Kara writes an upbeat story on everything Martian Manhunter is doing to help with the peace talks. Andrea rejects it because she only wants William writing about the Super Friends (for some reason) and she doesn't believe the world is good.

Nxyly shows up at CatCo and kidnaps William, telling them to report that she will kill William if Supergirl doesn't bring her the Hope and Humanity Totems before sunset.

Kara tries to save cats from trees and people from crime and flies all over Corto Maltese and Kaznia telling people she will protect them, but this still does not enable her to claim the Hope Totem.

Lena gets her protective charm to work, but it's very short-term.

Alex and Kelly show Esme a Truth Seeker and, once she copies its power, they promise to never abandon her.  They also reveal that they are Sentinel and Guardian.

Kara plans to remove all the nuclear missiles from Kaznia and Corto Maltese, after deciding that since the nuclear war was caused by Nxyly's manipulation of the Courage Totem, she's justified in acting this time.

With Brainiac-5 and Martian Manhunter helping, Kara stops all the missiles and throws them into the sun.

Kara retrieves the Hope Totem and goes to meet with Nxyly.

During the meeting, William trips Nxyly and steals the Courage Totem.

The psychic connection between Kara and Nxyly is erased.

The Super Friends discuss destroying the Totems so Nxyly can't use them. However, it is pointed out there's no way of knowing what effects that could have given all the damage done by the Courage Totem being broken. In the end, Kara decides to throw the Hope Totem into the sun.

Esme feels much better and tells Alex and Kelly she loves her new room.

Nxyly figures out what Kara has done with the Hope Totem through her crystal ball and despairs, Suddenly, a portal opens and a package containing a watch drops through the hole. The watch has a note telling Nxyly not to lose hope, which came from "A secret admirer." 

When Nxyly puts the watch on, a Lexo-Suit forms around her. This suggests her secret admirer is Lex Luthor.

Location

The Hague
Kaznia


Untelevised Adventures

Alex and Kelly were given provisional custody of Esme following an emergency hearing between episodes.

Nia visits the town of Parthas as part of her search for the Dream Totem.


The Bottom Line

A surprisingly good story which improves on the plot of Superman IV on every level and gets political without being preachy.

Supergirl Episode Guide: Season 6, Episode 14 - Magical Thinking

For a summary of the episode guide layout & categories, click here.

Plot

The hunt for the second Totem is on, but Lena doubts she can use her newfound magical powers to help the team. Meanwhile, as William struggles to write a story that will satisfy Andrea's demands for dirt on the Super Friends after being embedded within the team, Kelly is forced to step in when one of her charges faces trouble in her new home.

Influences

Harry Potter (the magic connection between Kara and Nxyly resembles that between Harry and Voldemort), Marvel's Infinity War (the hunt for the Totems mirrors the search for the Infinity Stones) and Dragonball (the idea of magic artifacts that can alter reality that exist on each planet sounds a lot like the Dragonballs)


Goofs

The team discuss the need to keep Lena's connection to the Super Friends a secret from William, but he's later seen interacting with her without issue even before they let him in on the secret and he agrees not to report on it.

J'onn phases his hand through a window to attack a car-jacker, only to break the window pulling the car-jacker through it, causing needless damage to the car.

The NCPD appear to be completely AWOL during the rioting.

It was previously said that the Totems have to be acquired in a certain order. That rule seems to have been abandoned in this episode, with Nxyly looking for the Hope Totem and the Super Friends searching for the Dream Totem.


Performances

Katie McGrath and Melissa Benoist's interactions as Kara and Lena are the episode highlight.


Artistry

The special effects of the Super Friends protecting National City are pretty good.


Technobabble

Dreamer notes the Watchtower can patch into the NCPD's CompStat and track crimes in real-time.

Lena found a spell in her mother's book that can find lost things, which she thinks she can use as a tracking spell to find the Humanity Totem using the discharged energy signature from when Nxyly activated it. 

Lena says the air from within 30 feet of where Nxyly activated the Humanity Totm would be hyper-ionized and she can use that air for her tracking spell.

Lena determines her tracking spell requires fresh Sheep Laurel seeds and must be cast on-site.

Sheep Laurel is a flowering shrub unique to the Limestone Barrens of Newfoundland.

The kitchen in the Watchtower has a coffee maker which Brainiac-5 picked up on Corvon-4.

Lena says that all the Totems radiate the same form of ionized particles and that she can use the sample of one to track the energy signature of another. However, she only has another particles to track one.


Dialogue Triumphs

Dreamer: Patching into the NCPD's CompStat technology, we can track real-time crime incidents represented by the blue dots.
(Everyone just stares at Dreamer. She's not usually the one to use that kind of terminology.)
Dreamer: Well, don't look so surprised. I'm smart too. You guys are just showoffs.

Supergirl: I can't believe you would not help.
Lena: Not if it means losing who we are in the process because then we're no better than she is.
Supergirl: I know that you are still processing the fact that you can use magic, and I know that I've been pushing you out of your comfort zone. But that's only because I believe in you, and... I'm... I'm terrified. She makes me feel powerless. Nyxly's magic is unlike anything I've ever faced. I feel like I don't know how to beat her, and if she gets all seven Totems, I won't be able to. You can do something I can't. I need your help, Lena.
Lena: From everything you've told me about Nyxly, she's more than just her magic. She is cunning and manipulative and cruel. Who does that remind you of?
Supergirl: Lex.
Lena: You've beat him before and you will beat Nyxly too, but not by doing whatever it takes to win. By doing the right thing. My mother hurt people with her magic. Unintentionally, but... She hid the truth of what happened, and that secret destroyed lives. I'm so sorry. Nyxly has caused so much pain. And I don't wanna hurt anybody with my magic or deceit.
Supergirl: You're right. Mmm, you're right. We can't cross lines in darkness, however good the reasons. Secrets are hard to hide in the light of day. But maybe... But maybe the light of day is just what we need.

Nxyly: How can I be expected to get anything done when there's so much suffering on this planet? If only I didn't have this damn cuff, I could snap away poverty, disease, hunger. I could save the snow leopards from extinction. Am I the only one that cares?


Continuity

The Super Friends play Jenga at their latest game night.

As the episode opens, Brainiac-5 is on the Legion ship scanning for Nyxly.

Lena is still going through her mother's spellbook but she's having a hard time grasping how magic works since it is based more on instinct than logic.

Dreamer comments this sounds like her problems with interpreting her dreams and offers to help Lena with her book.

The Super Friends agree to let William Dey observe them in the Watchtower, but within certain parameters.

Kelly says she won't be able to hang around the Watchtower as Guardian, as she needs to spend the next morning checking on Esme, one of the orphans from the same group home as Joey Davis.

Esme, who appeared in 609, was just placed in a new foster home with a couple named Dana and Joe Ford.

Kara starts laughing randomly, as she senses that Nxyly is happy.

Nxyly is happy because Mitch just detected the next Totem in National City.

Esme is doing well in her new home and likes her foster parents because they make pancakes for dinner if she wants them.

J'onn reveals his secret identity to William, as does Alex. They do this after William asks how Kara and Nia developed a close connection to the former Martian head of the DEO.

William learns that J'onn's PI office is the front for the Watchtower.

The conditions of William being allowed to work with the Super Friends are that he can't disclose the location of the Watchtower, identify the Super Friends whose secret identities he knows and he can't try to figure out who the ones that maintain their secret identities (like Supergirl) are. J'onn says that he he tries it, he will wipe his mind. William also has to agree to run any story he writes by them first, in exchange for them not telling him what he writes.

The next Totem is revealed to be at an MMA Festival in National City.

The next Totem is revealed to be necklace, worn by one of the fighters, which is made of the same wood as a tree under which the Buddha meditated to achieve oneness with Humanity.

Nxyly is able to activate the Humanity Totem easily, with a voice telling her to use the Totem wisely after asking her if she is of ready heart and she says that she is.

As Nxyly activates the Humanity Totem, a wave of energy washes over the people at the MMA Festival and they all start fighting.

It is noted that the people who are fighting are depraved, but not cold or unfeeling. They are also described as being gleeful and reveling in theft, destruction and violence. These stand opposite the power of Humanity, which is defined as equating to compassion and empathy. This leads Kara to guess that the Humanity Totem is the one Nxyly just got.

Martian Manhunter, Guardian and Sentinel are said to be fighting the crowds.

It is estimated that Nxyly could have drained the compassion and empathy from 10,000 people but only a few hundred seem to have been infected.

William wants to write about Nxyly, but Supergirl is afraid people knowing about Nxyly might make them panic. She eventually persuades William to go ahead and write about Nxyly, but not to mention Lena or that the team has access to magic.

Esme made Kelly a friendship bracelet as a thank you for everything she did for her.

Andrea threatens to fire William after he refuses to write about what the Super Friends know about the weirdness in National City.

Lena's first attempt at casting her tracking spell leaves Nia unable to tell her right from her left. Lena guesses this effect will wear off after an hour.

Nyxly shows uncharacteristic compassion for Mitch when she notices he's hurt.

Mitch detects the third Totem at the Hague in the Netherlands.

William talks with Lena about her spellbook and says that it reminds him of his father's recipes.  Like William, his father was a baker, and William realized he couldn't follow his father's recipes literally because the ingredients had to be chosen with care, like fresh-picked berries over store-bought. This leads Lena to the revelation that magic has to be approached in the same way.

Esme breathes fire when she and her mother are confronted by one of the berserker fighters. She seems surprised that she had this ability.

J'onn accidentally reveals that the Super Friends have access to spy satellites, which they are using to track Nxyly's ship.

Lena has to retrieve a sample of Sheep Laurel seeds from the Botanical Gardens.

The National City Botanical Gardens are close to the Arena.

Mitch determines that the third Totem (i.e. the Hope Totem) is a sculpture called The Hand of the Flower, which is on display in The Hague. He tells Nyxly how to get to it, but it will require killing one guard silently.

Nxyly finds herself unable to kill the guard, after she suddenly starts thinking about how sad his family and friends will be.

Lena's spell accidentally amplifies the effects of Nxyly's energy wave and makes the berserkers even more angry.

Mitch guesses that the reason the Humanity Totem didn't have a test like the Courage Totem is that the Totem itself is the test and that whoever wields the Humanity Totem has to bear the suffering of everyone around them.

Kara feels Nxyly being overwhelmed by emotion and guesses what Mitch did about the Totem overwhelming her sense of empathy.

Kara suggests Lena keep casting her spell so they can overwhelm Nxyly. Lena refuses, saying she won't let Kara ever do something just because the ends justify the means.

Lena ultimately agrees to Kara's plan, but only if William will honestly report on what they are doing and why.

William agrees to keep Lena's involvement a secret, but insists on writing about Nxyly, the search for the Totems and the role of magic in all the craziness in National City.

The rest of the Super Friends keep the peace in the city, as Kara and Lena try to work the spell again and track down Nxyly.

Esme's foster mother locks her out of their home and tries to force her to fight the berserkers.

Esme is saved by Sentinel and Guardian.

Mitch takes Nxyly back to National City, where she deactivates the Humanity Totem and throws it out of their ship.

Kara recovers the Humanity Totem, but Nxyly and Mitch escape.

Dreamer suggests they use the particles Lena recovered to track the Dream Totem next.

Andrea is pleased by William's article, but demands he write about which Super Friend has magic powers. William refuses and threatens to go to the Daily Planet if Andrea keeps telling him how to do his job. She says fine, but moves him to the desk next to the bathrooms.

Lena and Kara get pot-stickers to celebrate.

The Fords give Esme up and Kelly and Alex both show up to escort Esme back to the group home. It is hinted, however, that the two are thinking of adopting her themselves.

Mitch and Nxyly begin plotting a new plan to get the Hope Totem from the Hague.


Location

The Hague - The Netherlands


Untelevised Adventures

Brainiac-5 is off-camera trying to track Nxyly's ship for the entire episode.


The Kryptonite Factor

Kara is running at less than peak efficiency through the episode and pushing Lena (who is also not at her best) to focus on using her magic.


The Bottom Line

Not the greatest episode of Supergirl, but far better than most of what has come in Season 6 thanks to a high-action quotient and some great dialogues between Kara and Lena.