This week’s Arrowverse episodes were Supergirl 2×19 “Alex,” The Flash 3×20 “I Know Who You Are” and Arrow 5×20 “Underneath.” We recap the week in CW superheroes!
‘Supergirl’ 2×19 ‘Alex’
When Alex is kidnapped, Kara and Maggie butt heads over the best way to rescue her. The kidnapper is a guy named Rick; Alex went to school with him, and he was there the day a newly-arrived Kara performed an amazing rescue feat. He put the pieces together and realized she’s Supergirl. So, with his father in prison, he spent a year planning how to get National City’s hero to break his father out.
Kara’s the type to punch first and ask questions later. This is a flaw the show has touched on multiple times. Meanwhile, Maggie is annoyed because Kara broke up 17 hours of hostage negotiation, and Kara isn’t seeing the problem with jumping headfirst into the issue.
The two butt heads repeatedly, especially since at every turn it seems like Rick has out-thought them. But the answer ends up lying with Rick’s father. Maggie takes a page out of Kara’s book and attempts to break him out of prison, but Kara arrives and uses her words to convince him to tell them where Rick would take Alex.
He does, and Kara and Maggie arrive just in time to rescue Alex before she drowns in a water-filled cell.
Despite being kidnapped, Alex is hardly inactive. She proves her worth as a DEO agent, doing her best to send her team messages and hold on long enough to be rescued. Watching her cut open her shoulder with a broken graphics card from a camera is both cringe-worthy and amazing.
Supergirl has been uneven this season, and the titular character has often been reduced to little more than a love interest in her own show, but “Alex” put the focus exactly where it needs to be for the show to succeed.
‘The Flash’ 3×20 ‘I Know Who You Are’
Savitar has been unmasked, and he’s Anakin Skywalker another version of Barry.
Wait, let’s rewind. Barry and co. look to recruit Tracy Brand, the physicist future Barry worked with to lock Savitar away. In 2017, however, she’s a frustrated grad student whose work has lost its funding.
Killer Frost has been sent by Savitar to take Tracy out, though, and after multiple attempts on Tracy’s life are thwarted by Team Flash, she’s brought into the fold. After some self-doubt that H.R. helps her through, she comes up with an idea for trapping Savitar with his own Speed Force.
At the end of the episode, Barry has an epiphany when he puts all the clues the show has been giving us together and realizes that he is Savitar. He runs out and confronts Savitar, who reveals himself to be Barry with an ugly scar.
Meanwhile, Cisco is having issues confronting Killer Frost since Caitlin is his best friend. He’s afraid of accidentally killing her with his powers. Julian keeps trying to talk to him about it and finally encourages him enough for Cisco to fight Killer Frost and come out on top.
Cisco even manages to take a vial of her blood before Savitar whisks her away. Perhaps a cure is in her future, especially now that the future has been changed by Barry figuring out Savitar’s identity and Tracy being catapulted into her scientific future.
Oh, and Cecile tells Joe she loves him. Joe has a cliched freakout about telling loved ones about being involved with superheroes. He tries to break up with her but when she’s kidnapped by Killer Frost, the truth comes out. After Cecile is rescued, the couple is reunited.
Why does no one on superhero shows watch the superhero media of their world and learn some lessons?
‘Arrow’ 5×20 ‘Underneath’
Adrian Chase’s EMP has knocked out the power to the Arrow Cave, and that includes the chip that allows Felicity to walk. She and Oliver are forced to confront the issues that broke them up as well as try to escape the bunker before they suffocate.
We get flashbacks to an evening between seasons 4 and 5 in which Curtis plays matchmaker with Olicity, leaving them in the bunker with some Chinese food and wine. A bit A lot of booze and some salmon ladder later and Oliver and Felicity hook up. However, it doesn’t change anything between them because there are lingering trust issues.
The trust issue, of course, reared its head again with Felicity helping Helix in the previous episode.
Between chats, Oliver and Felicity make some escape efforts, but those lead to Oliver being impaled on a screw and inhaling methane — you know, after surviving an explosion. So he’s struggling to stay conscious, and he admits to Felicity what his captivity at Chase’s hands taught him: that he likes killing.
For some reason, that is why he didn’t back her play with Helix. That didn’t really make sense, but whatever. Felicity encourages Oliver, saying the fact that he hasn’t turned into a monster after everything he’s been through shows the kind of person he is.
Eventually, Team Arrow, aided by Lyla’s A.R.G.U.S.’s resources, rescue Oliver and Felicity. Curtis temporarily fixes Felicity’s spinal implant while Oliver has successful surgery. He and Felicity exchange apologies and encouragements, so they’re on good terms.
The reason for the EMP, however? To keep Oliver busy while Chase tracks down William. You know, Oliver’s son.
Meanwhile, Diggle and Lyla continue working out their differences. Lyla asks for as much support as Diggle gives Oliver, even when Diggle disagreeing with Oliver. She gives Diggle an audit of the black ops she’s signed off on as head of A.R.G.U.S. because she doesn’t want secrets between them. They look to be on their way to patching things up as well.