Spoilers, doh?!? Read this only after watching the shows!
SUPERGIRL SEASON TWO EPISODE ONE “The Adventures of Supergirl”
Finally, for the first CW Supergirl episode, Superman, the Man of Steel – Supergirl’s cousin, lest we forget – turns up in National City properly (played by Tyler Hoechlin). The super-cousins have to investigate the explosion of the Venture spacecraft and the plot to assassinate Lena Luthor (Katie McGrath).
There is a fascinating setup here – Lex Luthor is in jail (thanks to Superman) and his adoptive sister attempts to reinvent Luthor Corp as L-Corp. But predictably, it’s Lex Luthor who is behind the assassination plot and the story fizzles out somewhat as Kara takes on a new vocation (followed by a pep talk from Cat Grant) and resolves her relationship with James (Olsen gets friend-zoned).
Oh! Remember that unknown Kryptonian ship that crash-landed at the end of Season One? Well, a mystery comatose man is discovered inside and we have a strong feeling that Supergirl is going to take on board one of our favourite superhero characters. Here’s a clue – he will ultimately become a member of the Legion of Super-Heroes!
A somewhat run-of-the-mill storyline but with the addition of Superman and our mystery man, there is great potential here (not to mention the prospect of Metallo). Fingers crossed.
THE FLASH SEASON THREE EPISODE TWO “Paradox”
“There are consequences to time travel”
This quote from the Earth-3 Flash (aka Jay Garrick) has become a prevalent theme across various superhero/scifi based series this current TV season. Perhaps it’s the time travel version of “with great power comes great responsibility” – delivered by the doppelgänger father-figure to our hero, Barry Allen/Flash.
So it has taken two whole seasons and the first episode of season 3 for Allen to realise what a fuck-up he has been thus far and what a dick he has been to people he considers his family and friends. Basically, the alteration of his timeline in unintended ways, shakes Allen out of his selfishness but it’s much too late to reverse the effects.
However, that does not stop Allen from repairing the rifts within Team Flash almost instantaneously in this episode, which is really too convenient. Surely, some residual tension and resentment would have been in order.
On the villain front, The Rival becomes the latest speedster bad guy but he does not last long enough as Doctor Alchemy assumes the main baddie mantle. Oh and the arrival of Alchemy coincides with the appearance of Allen’s nasty colleague, Julian Albert (Tom Felton) and already fans are speculating that they are one and the same BUT remember how we thought last season that Zoom was Jay Garrick?
More twists and turns to come but at least it appears that the main villain is NOT a speedster this season.
ARROW SEASON FIVE EPISODE TWO “The Recruits”
It’s only the 2nd episode but already Season 5 feels like a mess and it’s difficult to see Arrow surviving beyond this season. There’s just too many plot lines!
Let’s see – Green Arrow trying to recruit a new team, Mayor Queen working to revive the city, Felicity’s mystery boyfriend, Thea helping Quentin get over his alcoholism, Diggle (now re-enlisted in the army) is in Chechnya, Ragman’s appearance, Tobias Church’s sinister plans, another Archer villain and of course, the utterly superfluous flashback story of Queen in Russia!
Enough already!
LEGENDS OF TOMORROW SEASON TWO EPISODE ONE “Out of Time”
Season One was a disaster, it’s fair to say. Main villain Vandal Savage was horribly written and played and the characters were simply the wrong DC characters. But somehow out of the blue, the series pulled a rabbit out of the hat in the finale with Rex Tyler (Hourman) and the promise of the Justice Society America turning up in the 2nd season.
Well, the first episode of Season Two basically sets the new tone – a playful, lighter version where despite the stakes, every participant treats the battle as a joke. Apparently, with Savage gone, the series decided to remove Rip Hunter as well and replace him with historian Nate Heywood.
Now, Heywood enlists the assistance of Oliver Queen to locate and salvage the Waverider from the bottom of the ocean, where they discover Heatwave in stasis, who then proceeds to tell the story of what happened to his colleagues.
Most of the logic is as usual thrown out of the window (how did the Waverider survive an atomic bomb blast?) but it’s a fun ride for what it’s worth, as “Out of Time” feels like mere setup before the anticipated JSA appearance at the very end. At least we are also introduced to this season’s villains viz Damian Darhk and the Reverse-Flash (with Malcom Merlyn & Captain Cold to come), which should keep things interesting.
Wait and see.
… still there’s more …