Changing (Supergirl)

"Changing" is the sixth episode of the second season from the The CW television series Supergirl, which aired on November 14, 2016.

Plot

In Norway, a pair of scientists examine a frozen wolf, only to discover it is still warm; something inside the beast attacks them. Meanwhile, in National City, everyone is having down time at the bar. Mon-El tempts Kara to drink as part of a bet, J'onn and M'gann are talking about being the only Martians on Earth, and Alex learns from Maggie about coming out to family. Winn receives a distress signal from Norway, and J'onn and Alex bring back the only survivor, a professor named Rudy Jones. Rudy refuses to stay for observation and leaves, unaware he is infected by a slug.

Kara and Mon-El are training in the DEO when Alex pulls her away to reveal that she has realized she is gay and has feelings for Maggie. Initially shocked, Kara supports Alex. At National City University, Jones' devotion to his work leads to him being fired by the chancellor; but Jones won't take no for an answer, saying "We" are ready to take over, before killing him. After viewing footage from Norway and realizing Rudy is the murderer, Kara and Alex find the chancellor's body before Jones surprises them, absorbing Supergirl's strength and crushing Alex's gun. Winn traces it to a parasite that's using Jones as a feeding source. James and Winn discuss if the suit is ready and Winn dissuades him from acting before it's ready. Supergirl discovers Mon-El is using his powers to work for a loan shark, beating up an innocent alien.

Winn pinpoints Jones' next target, Rand Riley, at the University. Supergirl confronts Jones to stop him from killing Rand, who is actually J'onn in disguise. J'onn and Supergirl battle Jones, but he drains their powers and transforms into a mutant creature before escaping. Kara and J'onn are kept in the infirmary to recover; Alex convinces M'gann to do a blood transfusion to save J'onn. Initially reluctant, M'gann agrees and secretly asks J'onn to forgive her. Winn finishes the suit for James and gives it to him. The Parasite catches up to Rand and is ready to kill him when Mon-El stops him long enough for people to get out of the crossfire. He grabs Mon-El when an armored individual, calling himself The Guardian and receiving help from Winn in a van, distracts the creature. Supergirl figures out a way to stop him and flies toward a nuclear power plant and arrives on the scene with a ball of plutonium. She gives Parasite one last chance to stop; he attacks her and ends up absorbing the plutonium. However, the plutonium contains more energy than he can handle, and disintegrates him. Supergirl thanks Mon-El and Guardian; she attempts to X-ray him, but finds his suit is lead-lined. Guardian cryptically states he is "a friend" before riding off.

At CatCo, James and Winn are watching news coverage of Guardian and agree to keep it a secret from Kara. J'onn wakes up and as he thanks M'gann, his hand begins to shake. At the bar, Alex confesses her feelings to Maggie and kisses her; Maggie, surprised, isn't ready to start a relationship and wants to be friends. Kara comforts an upset Alex. Mon-El comes across a homeless man and offers help. However, the man is actually from Project Cadmus and after knocking Mon-El out, loads him into a van as Lillian Luthor looks on.

Reception

This episode received positive reviews. Caroline Siede of The AV Club gave the episode a B+.^[1]

Jesse Schedeen of IGN gave the episode a 8.4/10, stating "This was a solid episode of Supergirl, even though James Olsen continues to be a frustrating character whose presence causes more problems than he solves. Parasite proved to be a visually impressive and relatively fleshed-out villain. Mon-El made a significant leap forward. And the interaction between the Danvers sisters resulted in some of the most humorous and most heartfelt moments of the week. If only this show could simply jettison its one weak link."^[2]

References