The long-awaited grand spectacle that was Supergirl season 2 finale is finally here. And I have to say that it definitely measured up of what the season 1 finale was. It was what a superhero show season finale should be and then some. We’re talking huge battles, life-or-death stakes and a cliffhanger that makes you excited for the next season. So without further ado, here is my recap of Supergirl season 2 episode 22.
Warning, spoilers ahead!
Baddie of the week
Same as in episode 21, on Supergirl season 2 episode 22 the villain of the episode was Rhea, who was trying to do everything in her power to stop Supergirl and turn Earth into new Daxam. And in some sense, she succeeded in that, because Kara had to make a lot of really tough decisions during this Supergirl finale episode, in order to save Earth.
The episode started with an epic battle between Supergirl and Superman. Rhea used silver kryptonite on Clark to make him think that Kara is General Zod. So Clark didn’t hold back when he punched Kara, thinking that he is punching his biggest and most feared foe. And it went on for quite some time until Kara was able to overpower Clark and knock him unconscious. But it wasn’t an easy feat, and after the fact, Kara was left weak and barely made it to The Fortress of Solitude with Alex and unconscious Clark before passing out.
After waking up, Superman suggested that they look through the Kryptonian archives to try and find something that could help them stop Rhea. And they stumbled upon something called “Dakam Ore”, which essentially is a winner-takes-it-all duel between two parties. And, when Rhea was about to attack the Earth again, Kara didn’t hesitate to use it, by challenging Rhea to a fight for the Earth.
Many would think that Supergirl instead of Superman fighting Rhea was set up that way just because the show is called Supergirl. However, the beginning battle between Kara and Clark wasn’t just a visually-stunning fight sequence. It actually made an important point, that, since Kara beat Clark, Supergirl is the ultimate champion of Earth, not Superman. And therefore she had to be the one fighting Rhea, not Superman.
Pre-fight
But before the fight began there were a couple of things to do.
Firstly, Kara and Clark had to convince Cat Grant to stop all the extensive coverage of the fight. J’onn knew, that the fight will not only be tough, but it will also be destructive, so he instructed the cousins to talk to Cat and make her spread a message for people to stay away from the fight. It, of course, came with an awkward flirting and some funny quips from Cat. But ultimately she agreed to Kara and Clark’s plea, so Kara had one less thing to worry about during the fight.
The second thing that Kara needed to do was to have a training session and a heart-to-heart with Clark. Since Rhea gave Kara only four hours to prepare, they didn’t have much time to talk, but Kara did manage to confess to her cousin that she doesn’t know if it is possible to have everything you want. It is an idea that people have been struggling with for centuries, so it was nice to see Kara also acknowledging it. And it also had a much bigger meaning, giving what happened next on the Supergirl season 2 finale.
The Luthors
While Kara, Clark and the rest of the team were preparing for Kara’s showdown with Rhea, the Luthor women were working on a device, which had the potential to eradicate all Daxamites.
At the beginning of Supergirl season 2 episode 22 we saw a little of what Lena was feeling after being kidnapped and by Rhea and almost force-marrying Mon-El. Which was a nice touch to the fight-heavy episode. But then Lilian Luthor made an entrance and declared that she had a way to banish Daxamites from Earth. One of Lex Luthor’s old inventions that was initially created to kill all Kryptonians, but that Lena could modify to kill Daxamites instead. So they got to work, and Lena, with Winn’s help, managed to finish the device just in time.
Supergirl versus Queen of Daxam
Now for the main event. The fight started out with Kara facing Rhea on a National City rooftop. Mon-El was by Kara’s side, while Rhea had her trusted General as her second. And so the woman started fighting. At first, it looked like Kara might actually win and that Rhea might actually honor her word if that happens. But pretty soon it became clear that Rhea likes to fight dirty. Her Daxamate army started to attack the city and Mon-El left Kara alone to go help civilians. However, that wasn’t the only trick Rhea had up her sleeve.
Since Rhea was present when Krypton fell and got exposed to a lot of kryptonite, her DNA absorbed some of that green element, meaning that when she bled, she bled the kryptonite. And it weakened Kara to a point where it looked like Rhea will win this combat. Additionally, National City was taking huge hits from the Daxamite army, and not even Mon-El, J’onn, M’gann and her White Martian friends were enough to stop this attack. Luckily, Supergirl also had some tricks on her own, because she was the one who had the remote to Lena’s weapon.
And once Lena finished the device, Kara had no choice but to turn it on, since Rhea admitted, that even if she loses, the Daxamite invasion won’t stop. So Kara watched all the Daxamites leaving and Rhea dying. But she also saw her boyfriend fighting for his life. So not knowing how to save him, she asked Alex to bring out the Kryptonian pod in which Mon-El arrived, Kara used it to send Mon-El away from Earth.
Happy endings for (almost) everyone
After Mon-El left Earth everyone was celebrating the victory. Everyone but Kara. Clark returned to Louis. Alex proposed to Maggie. And J’onn and M’gann shared a long-overdue kiss. But Kara couldn’t shake her heartbreak over Mon-El having to leave. And not even Cat’s pep talk and new crisis to fight could cheer Kara up.
I loved the tone that the episode took after Kara sent Mon-El away. Often TV shows, especially their season finale episodes, don’t properly explore what it would feel like for someone to lose the person they love. And to do it willingly. But at the end of Supergirl season 2 episode 22 we really got to see the toll that that took on Kara. Everyone tried to console her, but ultimately there really isn’t anything anybody can say to make you feel better in a situation like this. And the final scenes of the episode really encompassed that.
Kara was hurting, and although it might get better eventually, to her it felt like the worst thing that could ever happen at that moment. So it will be interesting to see what Kara’s mind state will be like when the first episode of Supergirl season 3 airs. Hopefully, they won’t just skip over Kara’s grief and will make that a part of who she is in season 3. Kara, just maybe a little darker.
Last thoughts on Supergirl season 2 episode 22
Lastly, can we talk about the fact that Cat knows that Kara is Supergirl? And how criminally underused James was in this episode?
That little tidbit at the very end of the episode where Cat says “Go get them, Supergirl” was really well-placed. It made me feel like everything is going to be okay. Even though for Kara it probably won’t be for a long time. As for James, it feels like they are slowly phasing out his character. Which is a shame, because I loved James in season 1. However, if he continues like he has in season 2, it might be a good thing to write him out of the story and give other characters bigger story arcs.
Episode highlights:
• Supergirl and Superman’s fight sequence at the beginning
• Kara beating Superman
• all the Clark and Kara scenes
• Kara’s dream about Mon-El
• Clark approving of Mon-El
• Winn geeking out over Superman, again
• Mon-El not wanting Kara to fight his mother
• Clark and Kara trying to convince Cat to stop the fight coverage
• Cat flirting with Clark, again
• Kara’s reaction to Cat flirting with her cousin
• Lena telling Supergirl that Kara is dating Mon-El
• Kara and Clark’s heart-to-heart
• Lena working together with her mom and Winn to make the device work
• Rhea and Kara’s fight
• Mon-El’s bad-ass fight moves
• J’onn and Superman burying the hatchet and working together
• M’gann’s return and her bringing back-up
• Mon-El and Kara’s goodbye
• Clark saying that he is humbled by Kara and the fact that she did the right thing even if it meant losing Mon-El
• J’onn and M’gann’s kiss
• Alex saying that she is proud of Kara
• Cat’s pep talk to Kara
• Cat knowing that Kara is Supergirl
• the flashback scene at the very end of Supergirl season 2 episode 22
Episode low points:
• Rhea admitting that the Daxamite invasion won’t end with her defeat
• Kara having to use the device and send Mon-El away
• Alex proposing to Maggie, because it is way too fast
• Mon-El’s pod getting sucked into a black hole
Quote of the episode:
Cat Grant: “I need you to talk some sense into your friend, James Olsen.”
Clark Kent: “Aaaa, Jimmy?”
Cat Grant: “He’s been parading around like Darth Vader, punching out villains. And I for one do not want to watch some space invaders slay him with their lifesaver.”
Clark Kent: “I think you mean light-saber.”
Kara Danvers: “Yeah, and Darth Vader actually punches out the good guys.”
Clark Kent: “Right!”
Cat Grant: “Oh, okay, whatever. I’ve never seen Star Wars.”