We haven't talked enough about Lena Luthor, and it's time to fix that. We've seen enough of her and Kara spending time together to know they're friends, but tonight’s episode "Ace Reporter" did more to cement their relationship. When Lena and Kara hang on screen, it's usually at Lena's office or on the scene of some dangerous situation. I've been wanting to see them in more everyday friendship situations—getting coffee together, going to dinner—and I got what I was hoping for when Lena stopped by Kara's apartment.
Being okay with inviting someone into your space denotes a certain level of comfortability, and I like Kara having someone outside the DEO to bond with. Lena's not exactly separated from Kara's super hero life because of her surname and…uh, interesting family members, but she has a more "normal" perspective of the world than, say, Alex or Winn. Unfortunately, Kara can't entirely be herself with Lena, which is a sticking point for me. Whenever it is Lena finds out about Kara's heroic alter ego, she's going to be ticked at Kara for keeping secrets from her.
I won't blame her. How close can they truly be with such a big cape-shaped lie between them? Discovering the truth about Supergirl from some other source besides Kara could be the trigger that sends Lena over the edge.
And Lena is poised to fall over the side. She's experienced a significant amount of loss and hardship—I'll go over the latest in a minute—so it's not a surprise for her to feel like she can't catch a break. I hardly expect her to face the world with bright eyes and an overly optimistic attitude after what she's gone through, but she's swinging to the opposite end of the spectrum. She believes she'll go to a bad place because of her last name. The path for other Luthors has ended in criminal action, and she doesn't think she can go another direction. Because Lena expects a negative outcome, it's more likely to happen. Her focus will determine her reality.
The latest blow to Lena's world came from the reappearance of an ex, one Jack Spheer. He came to National City to present a discovery capable of revolutionizing human medicine and it involved nanobots. I've yet to meet a nanobot that didn't end up causing some sort of problem for humans. They become sentient, they're uncontrollable, someone evil gets their hands on them (though, to be fair, take overs aren't really the nanobots' fault)... It's always too good to be true.
In this case, the nanobots weren't ready for human application. Jack tested them on himself, and when it didn't go just right, the CFO of his company took control of the nanobots and therefore took control of Jack. In order to kill and stop the nanobots, Lena had to kill her ex-boyfriend. So, not only does she have to mourn Jack's death, she has to reckon with her role in it.
Lena told Kara loss does strange things to her family, and she's afraid of who she'll be. She's letting herself be pushed by fate and the past rather than taking control. Lena's too grounded and strong for that sort of behavior, but she thinks she can't overcome her past. Queen Rhea isn't a bumbling fool. She's going to home in on Lena's worries and prey upon them. I hope Lena stands up to her; I expect her to given her actions in the past. But Rhea's an unknown quantity. There's no reason for Lena to be automatically suspicious towards her. Rhea might be able to work her way into Lena's good graces. And then... well, we'll see.
Let's flip our attention to some #DCTV Secrets! When Winn and Guardian (and Lyra) were working on stopping a robbery, they went to Fifth and Siegel. The latter street matches the last name of writer and Superman co-creator Jerry Siegel. He was responsible for the creation of a number of characters in the DC Comics universe, but the one most relevant to this episode? Lena Luthor. She was introduced by Jerry Siegel and Kurt Schaffenberger in SUPERMAN'S GIRLFRIEND LOIS LANE #23.
The next #DCTV Secret is a two-for-one. We've mentioned Jack Spheer's role in the episode. First of all, he was played by Rahul Kohli, who also portrays Dr. Ravi Chakrabarti on the Vertigo comic inspired series iZombie. Secondly, Spheer has a history in the comics. Also known as Biomax (the name of his snazzy new program in the episode), Spheer was introduced in POWER COMPANY #6 in 2002. As the CEO of Biospheer Technologies, Spheer was developing a plasma to control organic tissue; it involved manipulating food processing and growth. His work had unfortunate results and through an accident, Spheer fell into Biomax formula and mutated into a humanized version of the material. So, he became what he ate? Kind of?
What other secrets did you notice in the latest Supergirl? Do you think Lena's experienced way too much bad luck? Share your thoughts with me in the comments!
Amy Ratcliffe covers Supergirl as a part of the #DCTV Couch Club. Look for Amy on Twitter at @amy_geek. Supergirl airs Mondays at 8 p.m. (7 p.m. CST) on The CW.