Series: Supergirl
Episode: 110 "Childish Things"
Previous Episode Review: "Blood Bonds"
REVIEW
For those who are unaware, I was doing episode-by-episode reviews of Supergirl back when the series was originally airing on CBS. Due to my busy schedule, I was unable to finish watching the season. However, with the CW airing the entire first season in preparation for Season 2, I figured this would be the perfect time to pick up where I left off. To summarise my feelings on the first ten episodes of the series, the season so far has been very mediocre. Supergirl is far too on-the-nose with its political commentary, characterisations, and over-acting, which are exaggerated to the point of cartoonishness. It has been very apparent that the series wants to be a comic-based series in the same vein as Batman: The Animated Series and Superman: The Animated Series. I honestly feel like they should have cut the political aspect completely from the show and released it on another network in an animated format, to potentially more successful results.
"Childish Things" features the Toyman as its antagonist. Toyman has always been one of my favourite Superman baddies, as he is easily one of the creepiest villains in the Man of Steel's rogues gallery. The episode attempts to replicate that creep factor, but fails miserably. Instead, the Toyman just comes across as silly in all of the wrong ways, buried deep in a web of cliches. That having been said, I must wonder if Winn will ever become the Dollmaker, like
Toyman's son did in the comics. Toyman did try to convince Winn to murder innocent civilians, after all.
In this episode, we finally see the relationship and interaction between Supergirl and Martian Manhunter unfold. The series does an excellent job portraying Martian Manhunter and his reluctance to reveal himself to the human race. Dare I say Martian Manhunter is perhaps the current highlight of the series.
"Childish Things" manages to balance its themes and parallelism surprisingly well, which is uncharacteristic of what has been seen from the series thus far. Cat Grant sees an element of herself in Lucy Lane, and Lucy's resentful relationship with her more iconic sister parallels that of Grant's connection with her mother. Winslow hates his father for his murderous tendencies, while Supergirl must cope with having a militant aunt. Then there's the struggling romance shared by Jimmy James Olsen and Lucy. Even Winn and Supergirl's relationship is strained by an un-mutual feeling of love. However, at this point, I doubt that this level of storytelling will remain consistent in the remainder of the season. Though I must admit, the episode cliffhanger does make me interested to see what comes next...
VERDICT
Score: 7/10
One of the occasional good episodes in a so-far unstable television show.