Supergirl Episode Guide: Season 4, Episode 5 - Parasite Lost

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




Plot

Colonel Haley - the US Army officer placed in charge of the DEO - begins to throw her weight around as Kara's efforts to profile a noted alien healer make him the target of anti-alien bigots. Meanwhile, Agent Jensen is transformed into a new Parasite, as part of Agent Liberty's efforts to create a soldier who can turn aliens' powers against them, while James struggles with Guardian's newfound popularity among anti-alien bigots.


Influences

The movie Ghostbusters (Alex is armed with a literal proton pack) and The Matrix (Brainy says something about entering The Matrix in reference to his force-field Matrix)


Goofs

It's somewhat aggravating and oddly sexist that Elizabeth Hawkins' mother is never given an actual name in the episode, despite largely being the villain. She's also never given any real motivation for turning on Amadei Derros beyond his apparently impregnating her and cutting off contact, but we only have her word for this and she is... not exactly reliable. At least until he confirms breaking her heart, but no reason is given for why he did this.

It isn't really explained just how Amadei Derros' amulet will let Parasite keep the powers he drains.

Why did Elizabeth Hawkins' mother save all the letters that Amadei Derros sent her if her entire goal was to make her daughter believe she'd been abandoned and to hate her father?

Why are The Children of Liberty suddenly being treated like a secretive dark-web group when Agent Liberty was holding a public rally, in costume, two episodes ago?

If Col. Haley is trying to avoid starting a riot, sending DEO soldiers in black uniforms carrying large guns into a crowd of nervous aliens is a curious way of trying to do it.

How did Guardian get inside the dome area?

As a civilian police agent, Alex is not required to salute a military officer even if they do have authority over her.

The lesson about Col. Haley not being as unreasonable as Alex thought is completely undercut by the end of the episode, where it is revealed that Col. Haley is the military-minded hardass Alex was afraid she would be and an unrepentant alien-hating bigot who seems to want all aliens put into concentration camps, based on her comments about the DEO needing to capture aliens instead of employing them.

Why did nobody think, in regards to Supergirl confronting The Parasite, to use the sealed armored suit she was wearing last week?


Performances

It's a small thing, but there's something so awesome about David Harewood slipping on his fedora as he ponders that he's become a true detective hero.


Super Trivia

The first Parasite in DC Comics history was a man named Raymond Maxwell Jensen, who first appeared in Action Comics #340 (August 1966) A low-life who lacked the intelligence to be a competent criminal, Jensen got a job as a plant worker in a scientific research facility with the intent of casing the firm so he could rob it. Mistakenly believing that the company's payroll was concealed in one of the metal containers used for storing hazardous materials, Jensen was exposed to strange energies that mutated him into the energy absorbing Parasite, allowing Jensen to gain the mental and physical characteristics of any being he touched.

Agent Jensen is transformed into a new version of The Parasite in this episode, possessing the same energy absorption powers as Dr. Rudy Jones in 206.

Ben Lockwood has a video blog on a right-wing fringe channel called The People's Veritas. This is quite likely a nod to Project Veri tas - a real-world right-wing group known for their efforts to frame liberal groups and politicians for crimes with faked hidden camera exposes, much like Ben Lockwood's efforts to fake an alien attack in the last episode.


Technobabble

Uranium is less stable atomically than plutonium and runs the risk of creating a larger explosion.

An electric force-field can contain the radiation of a uranium explosion.

An improvised spherical ionic containment field would create the optimal distribution of electrons.

Force-field discs can be linked to make a force-field matrix.

Brainy is capable of outfitting a gun that can blast protons.

Brainiac calculates that the output of the proton pack must be increased at least 550% to fight Parasite when he has the amulet.


Dialogue Triumphs

Brainy: Nia Nul!
(There is a long pause as Kara glances between the two of them.)
Kara: You two know each other?
Nia: Well, we met once at a pizza place.(To Brainy) You know, you never found me...
Brainy: But of course I did! Your address is 775 Gladiola Drive, second floor corner apartment. Your phone number is 555-8010. You stop at Bob's Diner every morning and order an extra super large coffee, milk. No sugar.
(Everyone is wincing as Brainy is describing this.)
Alex: Okay. Yes. That - he's not nearly as stalkery as that came out as.
Nia: (laughing nervously) Well, why didn't you call me?
Brainy: (confiused) You told me to find you. Not call you.

Kara: Most people only have one way to fight for justice, but luckily, I have two.

Ben: You know, I was just talking about you on my show recently-
James: So I heard. And just to be clear, you and I do not represent the same things.
Ben: Hmm. Far be it for James Olsen to listen to an opinion that is not his own.
James: I listen to opinions that are not my own. But what I heard in your show was full of discrimination and hate. And that's when I stopped listening.
Ben: (smugly) I see. So this is the part where you and others like you start making crass generalizations based on ignorance and stereotypes-
James: And you forgot the part where people like me walk away.
(James does so.)

Ben: Do not shut these people out, James. Can't you see?  The people who think this way, they're not crazy - they're scared. And they need those fears acknowledged. And when they are not? When they get shut down, like you're doing right now?  It just... drives them deeper into darkness.
James: (firmly) Let me be very clear about something, Professor. You will not lay this at my feet.

(Col. Haley has just complemented Alex for saving lives, but also criticized her for not following orders mindlessly.)
Col. Haley: Still, I have to say it is much better to have you in charge than that impostor, J'onn J'onzz.
Alex: ... excuse me?
Col Haley: When we at The White House learned about your former director's true identity, I recommended his removal. He was trying to erode the DEO's mission - employing aliens instead of catching them. All while pretending to be someone he's not. I am glad that order has been restored and we're heading to more civil, honest times.
Alex: (evenly) J'onn J'onzz is the one who recruited me. Trained me. Promoted me. And taught me everything that I know. He's my family. And he's the best director that this organization has ever seen!


Continuity

Kara repaired the roof-garden at her apartment complex in one day.

Brainiac 5 had no idea that mojitos were alcoholic and drank 12 of them.

Kara gets an interview with Amadei Derros - a famous alien healer who has not given an interview in 20 years.

J'onn is a friend of Amaedi Derros.

Brainiac 5 claims to have a superhuman capacity for recovering from excessive alcohol consumption. A two minute nap is all he needs to regain his sobriety.

Brainiac 5 was able to find out Nia's address, phone number and morning routine. He did not call her, however, because she asked him to find her - not to call her.

The alien worm that transforms Agent Jensen seems to be exactly the same as the one that changed Dr. Rudy Jones in 206.

Infernians are an alien species capable of generating fire and surviving intense heat. Scorcher, the alien assassin who tried to kill President Marsdin in 203, was an Infernian, as is the first alien whom Jensen drains as the new Parasite.

Amadei Derros is part of an unidentified alien species. He has the power to heal others with a touch. It is unclear if this is a natural ability of his species or a power unique to him. His abilities do not work on humans because he cannot access their "frequency" as of yet. His life force is tied to an amulet.

Jensen attacks a street performer - an alien shapeshifter who amuses crowds by changing into the people in the crowd. He kills the alien and uses his powers to escape after touching Supergirl.

J'onn continues running Fiona's support group.

J'onn reads Amadei Derros' mind and gets an image of a woman identified as Elizabeth Hawkins.

J'onn and Kara later determine that Elizabeth Hawkins is Amadei Derros' illegitimate daughter. She claims to have never met him in person and to have never communicated with him, despite sending him pictures and reaching out to him several times.

Elizabeth Hawkins' mother is revealed to have been lying to her daughter about her father. He apparently did try writing her several times, but the letters were all intercepted.

Elizabeth Hawkins' mother is revealed to be the one who stole Amadei's amulet and gave it to a Child of Liberty, who in turn gave it to Jensen. Somehow, it enables him to keep the powers he steals.

Kara, J'onn and the DEO learn about the existence of The Children of Liberty.

Col. Haley orders Alex to shoot Jensen despite the fact that it will kill hundreds of civilians.

Amadei Derros is healed and meets his daughter face-to-face for the first time.

Jensen is eventually talked into removing the amulet, which kills him, when it is pointed out he is endangering humans. Before he dies, he says it doesn't matter becuase "he's still out there." in reference to Agent Liberty.

Col. Haley is revealed to be an anti-alien bigot who slams J'onn's performance as DEO director. She becomes quite cold and starts demanding to be saluted according to military protocol after Alex stands up for J'onn.

Jensen's brain-scan flatlined after The Parasite was removed from him. He was still alive and transferred to the DEO's desert facility.

A woman named Mara Nalbeck looks for J'onn at the alien bar. Apparently her store was vandalized and she trusts J'onn to solve the case more than the NCPD.

James plans to use his reputation as Guardian to help him get to the people running the anti-alien hate-groups and hopefully talk the people who are scared rather than hateful into changing their hearts and minds.   He starts off by calling Ben Lockwood and asking him to talk.


The Fridge Factor

Samantha Hawkins' mother doesn't even merit a name of her own.


The Bottom Line

Quite possibly the dumbest episode of Supergirl since the last story with The Parasite. The villain is completely wasted and gone after a single episode again. Amadei Derros' powers and his connection to his amulet are barely touched upon except in so far as the episode needs a MacGuffin. Samantha's mother has no real motivations and just happens to fall in with a group of anti-alien bigots because of a bad break-up 20 years ago. The whole plotline with J'onn and Kara is just weak and poorly written overall. Still, if it sets up more Martian Manhunter detective stories, I can live with it. Still, it says a lot that the scenes with James - usually the weakest parts of any Supergirl episode - are actually the strongest this time around. Still, this episode needed a lot more rewriting before being filmed.

Supergirl Episode Guide: Season 2, Episode 6 - Changing

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




Plot

James Olsen assumes his new superheroic identity as The Guardian. And none to soon! For an alien parasite is loose in National City and has drained Supergirl of her powers! Meanwhile, Mon-El ponders what he wants to do with his new life on Earth as Alex Danvers considers an equally momentous change of her own.


Influences

The film The Thing (alien creature attacks remote scientific research station in a cold location), the classic Captain Marvel comics (alien parasite resembles Mr. Mind), the film Alien 3 (The Parasite opens his mouth to reveal another, smaller mouth), the Bloodlines mini-series (mention of Angon, similar M.O. in how The Parasite empowers a host here), various Spider-Man comics (The mutated Parasite looks like a purple version of Venom and speaks of itself in the third person), various Superman comics dealing with Jimmy Olsen taking on a superheroic identity, the villain known as The Parasite and Superman: The Movie (James line about being a friend when Supergirl asks who he is.)


Goofs

Nobody in the DEO notices Rudy Jones staggering or hears him gagging as he coughs up his alien worm buddy?  There were a LOT of extras in that hallway...

Rudy Jones' boss at National City University is awfully quick to go from asking if he should be working so hard in his condition to firing him for his "erroneous obsession with climate catastrophes." As in 0-60 in 3.5 seconds fast.

Despite having the strength and invulnerability of Supergirl, The Parasite still has to pick up a stool to smash a glass window before walking through it.

Hopefully all Martians share a single blood-type regardless of species. Otherwise, the odds of M'gann being a compatible donor for J'onn would be considerable.

With its gaping maw of teeth, the mutated Parasite is pretty much Venom painted purple, right down to the "We are Parasite" dialogue. It even climbs walls...

Why doesn't The Parasite drain Mon-El's energy when it picks him up by the head just before Guardian throws a bomb onto it?

So Supergirl just kills The Parasite... and nobody has an issue with this?


Performances

Chris Wood is the comedic VIP of this episode. All the funny bits involve him.

Even ignoring the subplot involving Alex Danvers coming out, most of this episode's action sequences are firmly focused on her character. Cheryl Leigh proves more than capable of carrying the weight of the episode. The dialogue in her coming out to Kara scene isn't particularly well-written but her performance sells it.


Super Trivia

The alien parasite depicted in this episode appears to be modeled - both physically and in terms of power - on the classic Superman villain The Parasite, who first appeared in Action Comics #340 (August 1966). There were several versions of The Parasite over the years, but the most famous is probably the second one - the Post-Crisis incarnation, Rudy Jones, who first appeared in Firestorm #58 (April 1987).

In the original DC Comics Universe, Rudy Jones was a janitor at STAR Labs' Pittsburgh location. A lab accident transformed Rudy into a being that drained the life energy and memories of any living being he touched. In the case of ordinary humans, this reduced them to a smoldering skeleton if Rudy touched them for too long. In the case of superhumans, Rudy could absorb their powers as well as their memories, but the affect was only temporary.

The DCTVU version of Parasite has the same powers, but his origins are slightly different. Here, Rudy Jones is a university professor and climatologist who is infected by a worm-like alien parasite.

The idea of an alien worm taking over a host body as seen in this version of The Parasite resembles the classic Captain Marvel villain Mr. Mind, who first appeared in Captain Marvel Adventures #22 (March 1943). A mutant from a race of Venusian worms, Mr. Mind was super-intelligent and possessed tremendous telepathic powers. Unfortunately, his small size and lack of hands limited his ability to manipulate larger beings unless he was inside their head.

When we first see the DCTVU version of Rudy Jones, he is working at the Thorul Arctic Research Center.  Thorul is an anagram for Luthor and in the original comics Lex Luthor's family used "Thorul" as their last name in order to hide their connection to the world's most famous criminal mastermind. This may hint at a connection between the work being done there and Project Cadmus.

On that note, in Geoff Johns' retelling of Superman's early years - Superman: Secret Origins - Rudy Jones was a lazy janitor at The Daily Planet who was selected by Lex Luthor as part of his daily "LexCorp Lottery" to pick a random person and improve their life. While in Lex's lab, Rudy ate a donut that had been splashed with some purple liquid derived from one of Lex's experiments with Kryptonite. Somehow, this transformed him into The Parasite.

Later in the episode, Winn identifies the alien parasite as being from The Angon System. Angon was the name of an alien villain who first appeared in Lobo Annual #1 (January 1993). Angon was a member of a species of parasitic aliens - seven of whom were responsible for creating a number of new superheroes during the Bloodlines event.

As mentioned last week, the idea of Jimmy Olsen operating as a costumed crime-fighter is not a new one. Numerous Silver Age stories involved Jimmy Olsen temporarily acquiring super powers and trying to use them to help out Superman or trying to operate as an undercover agent or powerless crime-fighter. In one of the more prominent cases, Jimmy gained stretching powers and was made an honorary member of the Legion of Superheroes as Elastic Lad. He also teamed with Superman in the Bottle City of Kandor, where they adopted the aliases of Nightwing and Flamebird.

The Guardian was created by Joe Simon and Jack Kirby and first appeared in Star-Spangled Comics #7 (April 1942). Comparisons to Captain America are inevitable, given Joe Simon and Jack Kirby also created Captain America and both heroes make use of a shield as their primary weapon and defense.

The first Guardian was a man named Jim Harper. Born and raised in the rough Metropolis neighboorhood known as Suicide Slum, Jim Harper turned his life around thanks to the mentorship of an ex-boxer named Nat Milligan. Milligan trained young Jim to hone his body in an effort to turn the boy into an Olympian. Years later, Jim returned to Suicide Slum to find out his childhood best friend had become a gangster. After witnessing the death of said friend, Jim resolved to become a police officer and take back his neighborhood from organized crime. When the crime bosses he went after proved to beyond the reach of the law, Jim adopted a costume with an armored helmet and shield. Since his goal was to safeguard Suicide Slum and the good people who lived there, Jim dubed himself The Guardian.

Later, Jim adopted a quartet of homeless orphans who shared a similar heroic impulse. Dubbed The Newsboy Legion on account of their working as newspaper sellers among other odd jobs. The four boys became scientists as adults and became part of The DNA Project, which would later evolve into Project Cadmus. They would later create a clone of the original Jim Harper with all the memories and abilities of the original.

Jim Harper had no super-powers but was in the peak of human physical conditon. He was both a skilled marksman and hand-to-hand combatant, able to hold his own in a fight against Batman.

In the comics, Jim Harper was the great-uncle of Roy Harper a.k.a. Speed/Arsenal/Red Arrow.

The second Guardian was a teenager named Mal Duncan, In the original comics, The Teen Titans helped Mal fight off a street gang and were impressed enough by how he handled himself to ask him to join them. Mal assumed the identity of The Guardian, using Jim Harper's old costume and shield as well as an exo-skeleton that increased his strength.

Mal Duncan also took up The Guardian identity in the Young Justice animated series.

The vehicle Winn uses as a mobile base for helping James is disguised as a van for the Star-Spangled Delivery Company. This is a nod to the comic book in which The Guardian first appeared - Star-Spangled Comics.  The side of the van reads "Established 1941." This is indeed the year Star-Spangled Comics was first published, though The Guardian did not appear until Issue #7 in 1942.

In the original comics, The Guardian's vehicle of choice was a motorcycle.  The same is true of The Guardian in the DCTVU.

The opening scene takes place in Svalbard, Norway - a real-world city, notable for being one of the north-most inhabited settlements in the world and home to numerous scientific research stations.

Dr. Rudy Jones notes - when told about the stone spearhead - that he is not an archaeologist. This is likely a nod to another Dr. Jones who IS an archaeologist - Dr. Henry Jones Jr. a.k.a. Indiana Jones.

Mon-El and Kara have Aldebaran Rum at M'Gann's bar. Aldebaran is a real-world star - Alpha Tauri. In the reality of Star Trek, Alderbaran is a star system, part of The Federation and most famous for exporting Alderbaran Whiskey, which has inspired a real-world mixed-drink.

The evil climate-change denier responsible for getting Dr. Rudy Jones fired in this episode is named Rand O'Reilly. This may be in tribute to Objectivist founder Ayn Rand (whose philosophy on selfishness being a virtue would be in keeping with the character's behavior) and political pundit Bill O'Reilly (a noted climate-change denier).

Near the end of the episode, Winn refers to himself and James as The Super-Friends.  Superfriends was the name of a long-running cartoon in the 1970s' and 1980s' based on various DC Comics heroes.


Technobabble

Dr. Jones notes that the rate of permafrost decay in Svalbard is already so high that Helsinki will be underwater within a decade.

The stone spearhead found in the frozen wolf dates back to 3000 BC. This means the wolf was trapped in the ice for over 5000 years.

After one hour out of the ice, the wolf body is warm to the touch, with soft tissue and a normal core body temperature.

Aldebaran rum is deadly to humans but quite enjoyable for Kryptonians and Daxamites.

The organism Dr. Rudy Jones is exposed to absorbs his red blood cells, rewriting his DNA into something new, making them one distinct being rather than two separate ones.

Dr. Jones mutates after draining both Kara and J'onn simultaneously for reasons Alex can't explain beyond his body not being able to cope with more than one kind of alien DNA at a time.

The DEO uses yellow sun lamps to empower Kara after she is drained to near-death by The Parasite.

Kara uses Plutonium-239 to kill The Parasite.

The Guardian costume is lead-lined to prevent Supergirl from being able to see through it.


Dialogue Triumphs

(Kara is trying to talk Mon-El into letting her train him.)
Mon-El: I can control things.
Kara: That's dangerous! You have to know how to-
(Suddenly, the glass in Mon-El's hand breaks.)
Mon-El: This was not a prime example of that.

(Two DEO guards are standing in a hall. Suddenly, the metal door behind them collapses outward with Mon-El on top of it.  He  groans in pain.)
Mon-El: Okay. (looks at the guards) I slipped.

(James asks Winn for whatever he has finished for his super-suit so he can go after Parasite.)
Winn: Are you serious? No-no! I'm not taking orders from you.
(James starts to protest but Winn cuts him off.)
Winn: Dude, I'm not your assistant! I'm not the IT guy! I'm the guy who knows what he is talking about! In fact, I am better at this kind of stuff than anyone else you will ever meet! And until I finish making it all... fancy, it's just going to be a glorified Halloween costume! So when I tell you the suit is not ready, that means that if you go out there, right now, you're going to die. You. Will. Die. And then what? You're not going to be helping anyone.

(Kara has just found out that Mon-El is working as hired muscle for an alien bookie.)
Supergirl: Are you kidding me?! This is how you're using your powers? As muscle for hire?!
Mon-El: It's a living. A temporary living.
Supergirl: You're supposed to help people! You cannot use your powers for money!
Mon-El: Why? Don't you?
Supergirl: Absolutely not!
Mon-El: Well, that's a missed opportunity, because-
Supergirl: This goes against EVERYTHING that we stand for!
Mon-El; Uh - everything YOU stand for. I never said I wanted to save the world. Things in this world cost money, and if I can make a few bucks using my powers, why shouldn't I?
Supergirl: Okay. I get it.
Mon-El: What?
Supergirl: No. You are so selfish!
Mon-El: Oh, okay.
Supergirl: I don't know what else I should have expected from a -
(Kara cuts herself off.)
Mon-El: From what? From a Daxamite?
Supergirl: I didn't say that!
Mon-El: Yeah, but you were going to, Kara! Okay? And I may have your powers but I don't have this... innate desire to go leaping into trouble. But that doesn't make me a bad person, all right?
Supergirl: It kind of does.
Mon-El: No, it doesn't!  And you're no saint, Kara Zor-El!
Supergirl: Excuse me?
Mon-El: You fly around rescuing people, like you're just pure of heart. But that is crap. Because you love that attention.  You love people loving you. You are not selfless!
Supergirl: And you are no hero. I thought you could be but I was wrong.

Winn: Before you open it, I need you to make sure you're sure. Alright? This will be the end of James Olsen. Full stop. You do this, you are someone else. But there's a cost. Are you sure?
James: I have been ready to do this since the day I found out the truth about Clark Kent. This is who I am. I can't hid behind my camera anymore. If there's a cost, I'll pay it.
Winn: That's... a pretty good answer.

(Supergirl tries to look through Guardian's mask but finds that she can't.)
Supergirl: Lead?
Guardian: Couldn't make it too easy on you.
Supergirl: Who are you?
Guardian: A friend.

(James and Winn watch a news report on The Guardian.)
Winn: You wan't to keep on doing this, don't you?
James: Yeah. (pauses and looks at Winn) So do you.
Winn: Yeah, I do. (chuckles) What's wrong with us?!
James: Nothing. We're heroes, man. Just like Kara. We have no choice in the matter. It's who we are.
Winn: Hmm. You uh - you really think we should keep this a secret from Kara? It just feels kinda weird lying to her.
James: Yeah, I know what you mean. But I think we should. At least until we get a handle on it. Otherwise all she's going to do is try to stop us.
(They both laugh.)
James: And she could.
Winn: Long live the Super-Friends then.
James: To the Super-Friends.


Dialogue Disasters

It's a close thing which is more painful - Dr. Rudy Jones' unsolicited speech about the dangers of climate change to Alex and J'onn or Rand O'Reilly's practicing his speech about how climate change is a hoax. I will give the show credit for this much - it makes both characters appear equally awful.

Alex: You've been through a lot in the last 24 hours I would like to keep you for observation.
Dr. Rudy Jones: Global Warming isn't taking a break. Our planet is being destroyed - not by any invader or army but by us - just taking it for granted.

Jones' Boss: Jones! You should be at home! Resting. After what you have been through.
Dr. Rudy Jones: What I have been through is extraordinary. It has energized me to continue my work with new fervor!
Jones' Boss: Well, the world's not going to end overnight.
Dr. Rudy Jones: Not today. But one day soon. I'm right about this. The world is changing and not for the better.
Jones' Boss: Perhaps you'd better take more than a day off, Dr. Jones? Your erroneous obsession with climate catastrophes might be better indulged at a different institution!
Dr. Rudy Jones: You're firing me?
Jones' Boss: It's not the first time I've had cause.
Dr. Rudy Jones: No. No, we don't accept that.
Jones' Boss: We? You and who else?
Dr. Rudy Jones: We.

Rand O'Reilly:  Gentlemen... gentlemen... the Earth is in peril. Not from climate change but from misguided scientists and the liberal news media with its Chicken Little pronouncements about the end of the world.


Continuity

Alex Danvers is almost 30.

Maggie Sawyer's family was comfortable with her coming out.

Alex comes out to Kara.

Alex's best friend in high-school was a girl named Vicki Donahue. Alex thinks she may have first had romantic feelings for a woman regarding her after a sleepover.

Winn thinks the parasite was originally from the Angon System and got trapped on Earth during the last Ice Age.

M'gann donates blood for J'onn's transfusion, despite her knowing he would not want White Martian blood in him, even though they are compatible.

Martian blood is red.

Alex kisses Maggie. Maggie tells her she wants to just be friends for now. Alex does not take this well.

At the end of the episode, Mon-El is abducted by Cadmus.


Location

The Thorul Arctic Research Station in Svalbard, Norway


The Kryptonite Factor

Kara's attempting to punch The Parasite is uncharacteristically stupid given that she knows he can drain the life from people. To say nothing of her "That's my job!" reaction when The Parasite speaks about saving the world. Whatever happened to the Supergirl who tried to talk things out with villains and make them into allies?

Given that he knows The Parasite can absorb the super powers of an alien after what it did to Kara, why does J'onn go after The Parasite at all, much less try to fight it in close quarters?


The Bottom Line

Possibly the most painfully awful episode of Supergirl ever, despite simultaneously having some great scenes. Cheryl Leigh gives her best performance ever and teaming Winn and James to bring The Guardian to life was a masterstroke on the part of the writers. All of these elements make up for the absence of Melissa Benoist for most of the episode, which is fortunate because the show's worst episodes have always been the one in which she's been sidelined to a supporting role. This show has a strong ensemble and this is one of the few episodes that has given them all a chance to shine.

Unfortunately, that doesn't quite make up for a Venom-esque Parasite that rips off The Thing and Alien in equal measure or a totally forced environmental message with an even more ludicrous human villain. Rand O'Reilly is barely in the episode and what little we see makes him look less nuanced than a Captain Planet villain. Honestly, what was wrong with Rudy Jones just becoming a monster who is in pain unless he is feeding on the people around him? And why does nobody make a big deal about Kara killing The Parasite?

Injustice: Gods Among Us - Year Five #3 - A Review

Superman receives some unexpected help in his fight against Doomsday from the criminal mastermind known as Bane. It seems The Man Who Broke The Bat wishes to prove his worth to The Man of Steel and proposes an alliance to deal with their mutual enemy. It is an offer Superman has little time to consider, however, because The Parasite is also on the loose and about to destroy Hal Jordan and Cyborg!


This issue will probably be the one that marks the turning point for Injustice. Both as the moment when Superman passed the point of no redemption and the point where the series itself became more focused on serious drama with little comedic contrast. In any case, while there's little of the humor that has made this series a fan favorite in this chapter, Brian Buccellato's writing remains as strong as ever.


The artwork this time around proves serviceable but not quite outstanding. Tom Derenick's inks are a little too heavy at times, though his character designs as well as his command of visual storytelling and panel placement remain excellent. And Rex Lokus' colors are as well-chosen and as skillfully applied as ever.

Injustice: Gods Among Us - Year Five #2 - A Review

The sudden escape of every captive super-villain on Earth has led to wide-spread chaos and new opportunities for Batman's Resistance. So as Catwoman and Batman discuss the organization of their new army in a Parisian cafe, Superman faces Doomsday. At the same time, a desperate Hal Jordan calls for back-up in fighting an out-of-control Parasite and only Cyborg is free to help him.


As I noted in my review of the first issue of this series on Kabooooom.com, it seemed certain that this issue would make up for the lack of action in Part One. My prediction proved accurate. Apart from the opening scene with Batman and Catwoman, this issue is all action. And it is great, well-paced action with an honestly surprising final page. Well done, Brian Buccellato!

This is Iban Coello's first issue on Injustice and it's a promising start. Coello's character designs are wonderful, with clear pencils and think inks that enhance the artwork perfectly. The colors by J. Nanjan are up to the usual high level of quality, with the final artwork looking amazing.