End of the world rallying speeches aren't hard to come by in film and television. Good ones, however, are more difficult to find. Stacker Pentecost pulled it off in Pacific Rim with the whole canceling the apocalypse bit, and President Thomas J. Whitmore did a solid job in Independence Day (which Winn referenced). In news that won't surprise anyone who knows the character, Cat Grant stepped up to motivate the residents of National City with an end of the world pep talk. She called upon them to resist the Daxamite invaders, and she did one heck of a job. It's hard to look Cat in the eyes, even through a TV monitor, and not feel inspired to take action.
Action was at the core of the latest episode of Supergirl, "Resist." Rhea used her work with Lena to open the door to a not small number of Daxamite ships and invaders. They want to occupy Earth and like Cat says, "make our world great again." Rhea's arrogant enough she probably imagined everyone on Earth would immediately back down and hand over a new home to the Daxamites without putting up a fight. She was so very wrong. The people won't give up.
The force on the front line against the Daxamites is formidable and female. When Cat goes toe to toe with Rhea, she says, "The future is female." And yes, by the way, I'm probably going to keep quoting Cat Grant for obvious reasons. The future might be female, but in Supergirl, so is the present. Rhea's leading the Daxamites. President Olivia Marsdin takes point for the humans. Alex and Supergirl are at the head of the charge for the DEO because J'onn was injured by Rhea; Alex is acting director of the organization at the moment. Lillian Luthor comes back into the picture and offers valuable assistance. And have I mentioned Cat Grant?
We have female characters from across the spectrum and in a variety of capacities playing a huge role in stopping an alien invasion. That's no small thing.
In the middle of this stressful time, President Marsdin shows her true colors. She's an alien refugee who's been on Earth for decades—she went to college with Cat. Olivia's home world was invaded and her people were enslaved. It's no wonder she's been so supportive of alien rights and causes; she's protecting those in the same boat as her. Olivia could have kept her big secret under her hat until a more suitable time, or at least tabled the conversation for later, but she came clean during the middle of an invasion. It's true she was among people who would be understanding, but it's still a big deal.
I'd say Cat was practically on equal footing with Olivia in this episode. She was with Olivia when the invasion happened and communicated directly with Rhea. I don't know if it's proper protocol for a civilian to be interacting with an alien invader like she did, but it's Cat. She bolsters Olivia’s comments, but also calls for both Olivia and Rhea to be better than "testosterone gas bags" because they're strong women and above bickering. Rhea is put off (and probably a little impressed), but she doesn't listen.
Cat doesn't stop doling out her priceless advice. When she caught up with Supergirl, she explained she went on a quest for happiness in the Himalayas. Because of course she did. But really, a yurt in some remote location isn't going to provide anyone with the magic solution to happiness—that's a pro-tip from me to you. Anyway, Cat gives Supergirl the encouragement she needs to get Lena and Mon-El out of Rhea's grasp even though Supergirl's not supposed to.
So, in some ways, we're back to Supergirl breaking the rules. This time she doesn't blow in without telling anyone. She actually talks through her concerns with Alex and expresses how much she needs to get her loved ones out of harm's way. Alex gets it and instead of shutting Kara down, she helps her formulate a plan—despite how said plan could get her in serious trouble with the president. I'm not saying the Danvers sisters should stick to the playbook or that I disagree with their decisions in "Resist," but they bend rules into guidelines on a regular basis... and apparently haven't learned from past punishments.
Over in the realm of #DCTV Secrets, the episode had a nod to the classic Adventures of Superman TV show and, well, Superman in general. After they formulate a plan to get Lena and Mon-El off the Daxamite ship before they destroy it, Alex tells Kara she'll have to be faster than a speeding bullet. The description has been used for Clark, especially in the Adventures of Superman opening.
And while it's not specifically tied to the world of DC Comics, I have to point out Kara's new nickname for Cyborg Superman. She jokingly called him Artoo, as in R2-D2 from Star Wars. I have a hunch Cyborg Superman has no idea what Kara meant.
Did anyone else do a fist pump when Cat showed up? Did you come across other #DCTV Secrets in the episode? Tell me everything 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.
