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“Supergirl” Recap 2.19: ‘Alex’

Maggie is working a hostage negotiation on the phone at the scene of a crime, and she’s close to talking her perp down when Supergirl swoops in to save the day. Visibly annoyed that all of her work was useless up to that point, Maggie makes some prickly comments during dinner at Alex’s house that creates tension between the two couples. Kara walks out after Maggie tells her that she’s only getting in the way of police work when she interferes, and Alex chases after her to mediate the situation. Do I sense a cat fight here? Alex has been bound to get caught in the cross hairs of Kara’s petty desire to always be the most important person in a room. Hopefully the two don’t damage the girl they both care about in the process.

Rhea and Lena discuss the business proposal, and Rhea makes dinner reservations for the two of them to continue revealing the details. Maggie finds Supergirl the next morning about Alex’s whereabouts, but she receives a phone call from her sister’s phone from a man who claims to have kidnapped Alex. The mysterious man on the phone sends Kara a picture of Alex, telling her she has 36 hours to break a man named Peter Thompson out of prison before Alex dies. And just like that the game begins. The threat to Alex’s life is either going to bring everyone together or create a permanent wedge somewhere in this power struggle.

Awaking disoriented in captivity, Alex realizes she knows who her captor is and threatens him over the camera that’s watching her. Back at the DEO J’onn refuses to negotiate with the captor on his terms, so the group scrambles to try and find Alex’s location. Maggie, always the voice of reason, chimes in by informing everyone that the first step is to find out how the ‘Ghost’ is connected to Peter Thompson.

Sometimes it’s easy to forget how sharp Maggie is when she’s pushed to background support and that focus lies on her relationship with Alex rather than her depth as a singular character. It’s refreshing to watch an episode that full invests itself in this trio of strong female characters who can hold their own as equals. Now here’s to hoping they can figure out how to work together, because the last thing this show should do is constantly pit feminist figures against one another.

During dinner, Rhea relentlessly flatters Lena and brings up Lena’s mother issues with a breeze sense of snarky humor. Rhea, in turn, brings up her estrangement with her son, claiming that she lost both him and her husband. After the two bond, Rhea hands over the key concepts she had been withholding from Lena in the original proposal. Here we have to more strong women who could potentially be a lethal combination. Come on Lena, hold your own here and cling to your conscience just like you did against your mother!

J’onn, Maggie, and Kara head to prison to interrogate Peter Thompson, and Kara makes a dent in the table as she loses her temper after Peter has no answers for them. With perfect timing as usual, Winn calls in revealing that Peter Thompson has a son named Rick Malvern. Supergirl shows up at Rick’s last known residence where Rick nonchalantly confronts her with the terms of his deal. Rick allows her to see Alex on camera, but stands steady on his demands.

The group brings Rick in for interrogation, and Maggie volunteers to interrogate him as he reveals that he’s known Kara was Supergirl since the day Kara saved that baby in the car crash at the beach. Determined to get his father released from prison, Rick refuses to cooperate as Kara loses her temper yet again, but Maggie continues to keep her cool. How much longer is Maggie going to be able to hold it together here?

Back at the Luthor offices, Lena gives Rhea what appears to be access to her office, but in actuality she has caught on to Rhea’s motives and has her removed from the building. Alien queens never stay away for long, and Rhea shows back up to apologize and persuade Lena to help her build a portal to allow Rhea to return to her own world. The trickery appears to be having an effect on Lena, who says she’ll consider the proposal. Lena attempts to call Kara to get her perspective, but she’s shut down by Kara’s distractions. Since Kara is evidently the only person who can keep Lena’s morals in check, she decides to make a deal with Rhea after missing the chance to discuss the situation with her friend.

Reminding anyone who had forgotten what a badass Alex Danvers is, she shows us that she’s not just any kidnapping victim. Alex digs out her own tracker and wires it to the security camera, giving the DEO capability to find her whereabouts. Supergirl is really firing on all cylinders this week, taking advantage of every opportunity to showcase the abilities and importance of these women. This timely themed episode arrives on the same day the title of the finale is announced to be “Nevertheless She Persisted”. Girl power is in the air people, and Supergirl is leading the charge on the entertainment front. Alex, Maggie, and Kara have their individual differences, but if there’s one thing this episode brings to light, it’s that they are all three women who persist.

After Rick doesn’t seem phased by Kara’s revelation that they know where Alex is, she and Maggie argue over what the next move should be. Supergirl arrives to where the signal is coming from, but she inadvertently trips a trap that shortens the timeline on Alex’s life. Furious, Supergirl races back to the interrogation room to confront Rick, who allows her to talk to Alex yet again.

Alex insists that Supergirl not give in to Rick’s demands and asks to speak to Maggie privately. Just as Alex begins to say her goodbyes, Maggie finally loses her cool and insists that it isn’t over for the two of them. The tension rises to a boiling point as Kara storms in the two argue over the validity of Maggie’s requests in the investigation. Maggie insists that her status as Alex’s girlfriend makes her opinions on the steps that should be taken to save her just as valid as Kara’s. I can’t help but be reminded of the fight for marriage equality during this heated conversation, and how hard members of the LGBTQ community have fought and continue to fight to have an equal voice when it comes to their partner.

As Supergirl finally realizes that she isn’t the only one who cares about Alex and should be making decisions about her, Maggie slips back in to see Rick. In a last ditch effort to convince Maggie to release his father, Rick tells Maggie how much he has observed her affections for Alex and appeals to that love to create a connection between them. It works, and Maggie sneaks through the prison and disables the cameras as Alex begins be overtaken by the rising water.

Supergirl catches Maggie’s attempt to release Peter and takes a page out of Maggie’s book by using her words to persuade him to be a father and protect Rick from doing something he can’t come back from. Just as time runs out, Peter gives the girls Alex’s location. Punching does work in this case, and Supergirl releases Alex just as she’s drowning in the water.

At the hospital, Alex wakes up and tells Maggie she wants to finish what she was trying to tell her over the camera. During the most tender moment in the show’s two season run, the two both drop the L word (not lesbian, you know the word). I’ll admit it, I cried when they were talking about how many ‘firsts’ they have yet to experience together. As a bisexual woman who recently married her partner and is buzzing over the idea of all of our future ‘firsts’, this scene gave me every feel that exists. You go Sanvers, love each other and get your puppy named Gertrude, buy that Subaru, and bring in the U-Haul. These two are serious couple goals.

The DEO brings Rick through to wipe his mind, and Alex gives him a punch of her own. After they take him away, Maggie and Kara make amends and bond over their mutual love for Alex. These two balance one another out, with one’s preference for logic and words, and the other’s tendency to act first and talk later. If only we could all learn the lessons those who are different from us have to offer.

What did you think of this episode? Where do you think Alex and Maggie are headed as a couple? Are you excited for the finale? Let us know in the comments!

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