You know what's great about Supergirl? It's not afraid to be progressive in a time when the world seems to hate progress. I don't like discussing politics on this forum because it's not my area of expertise but also because I prefer to keep this blog positive and fun.
In my opinion, it certainly feels like America might be taking a few backwards steps in terms of progress. When I think about what we're going through as a country I think about Supergirl. Supergirl is able to hide touchy topics under the banner of outer space aliens and fun adventures, but it's tackling them nonetheless.
Just cuz it looks like a monster doesn't mean it IS a monster
(Although this one actually is)
One of the things that Supergirl does so well is tell the story of being a hero in difficult times. It's one of the things that Superman has always stood for. It's encouraging to see that the Supergirl TV series is equally as interested in building up a quality hero in trying times rather than deconstructing the hero. The hero is challenged each and every week, but a lot of the stories that have been done this year have felt much more topical than ever before. I'd like to throw out some specific examples I noticed that struck a chord with me.
A PRESIDENT WILLING TO ACCEPT ALIENS
America has always been a country of immigrants. People from all over the world have come to our country hoping to start a new life or build a better life than where they came from. That's how America was founded in the first place. It's a wonderful dream and America has always been synonymous with immigration. Supergirl took that real world notion just a step further and included immigrants from other planets and other galaxies. Most of these immigrants want nothing more than to just live on Earth peacefully and go about their business unnoticed, such as the case with M'Gann M'Orzz (Miss Martian).
However, just like in real life, there are people that come to this country that want to start trouble. They either want to spread fear and hate or prove that they are the superior race. Their logic is flawed and dangerous, but it's loud. Unfortunately, what one group of radicals does tends to override the quiet or otherwise good that the other immigrants are doing. Like I said, they're loud and therefore get more attention. Fear spreads fast and then it turns into hate. We see it every day on the news and social media. These are hot button topics in today's world. There's talk of a ban, a wall, and general hate crimes just because a handful of a certain people are causing trouble.
In Supergirl, the President, played by Lynda Carter, understands that a few radicals does not mean an entire race is bad. She recognizes that there are more good aliens than there are bad ones. There's a great conversation where J'Onn talks about understanding fear and hate not only as a Martian but as an African American. It was a line that might get over looked but truthfully it struck a chord with me. I liked that the show was willing to discuss real life racism. These characters are not immune to real life problems outside of fighting alien threats and crossing different dimensions. It shows that the producers and writers, just like the comic books have always done, are willing to tackle real life issues thinly disguised as fantastic adventures.
In the show, the President is going to sign a bill allowing for alien immigrants to come to Earth peacefully, but she's opposed by a radical group of humans, Cadmus, that believe all aliens are dangerous and shouldn't be allowed on Earth. It's similar to what's happening in America right now, except it's our real life President that is less accepting and wants to close off borders. One could argue that he's just looking out for American safety and security, a noble notion, another could argue he's going about it the wrong way. Either way, it's interesting to me that Supergirl is willing to have a similar discussion in a very positive, respectful way.
COMING OUT OF THE CLOSET
Homosexuality has always been a hot button topic. Truthfully, I don't know why. I've met many gay, lesbian, bisexual people in my life, some in my family, and it's never impacted how I thought of them as a person. I've met nice, mean, annoying, friendly, quiet, angry, happy, etc gay people just like I've known straight people that were nice, mean, annoying, friendly, quiet, angry, happy, etc. The simple truth of the matter is that their lifestyle is not much different from anyone else's. The difference is that they are a minority and therefore suffer unwarranted hate and discrimination. As I said, I don't understand the hate/discrimination, I'm not offended by their lifestyle, but people like to make other people's choices and lives their business (especially when it has no effect on them).
Supergirl has been praised for its depiction of a woman coming out of the closet in a very realistic, respectful way. Kara's adopted sister Alex, met a NCPD detective named Maggie Sawyer, an out of the closet lesbian, and started to develop feelings for her. This led Alex down an emotional and painful journey inside herself where she started to come to terms with the fact that she wasn't "weird" or "wrong" for never focusing on a relationship, but on work instead, she just wasn't being honest with herself about who she really was. I was very impressed by the decision to have Alex come out of the closet. While it's not a new concept to have a main character have a major revelation like this (think Willow from Buffy the Vampire Slayer), it is still a hot button topic and a brave decision from the producers and the actor, Chyler Leigh, to go through with it.
To me, the important part of the revelation was Kara's reaction. For a moment, she saw her sister as a totally different person and that scared her. Kara had to come to terms with Alex's struggle and learn to accept that her sister was the same person she's always been, gay or straight. Alex has accepted who she is now and is a much happier person. Kara sees that and it's made their relationship stronger. This particular story has given the characters a stronger arc and more to do rather than discuss Kara's love life, the alien of the week, or how much their mother bugs Alex sometimes. Alex has much more dimension to her now and it's strengthened the overall show.
RACISM - GREEN VS WHITE
I mentioned before about how easily hate and fear can be spread by a few radicals. In the case of J'Onn J'Onnz and the other Green Martians, the radicals are the majority and have all but wiped out the Green Martians. J'Onn finds a young woman claiming to be a Green Martian named M'Gann M'Orrz. It's not until a few episodes later he discovers the truth that she is actually a White Martian that has defected from her people. She's come to Earth to start over and repent for her crimes. J'Onn is furious when he discovers who she really is, claiming that all White Martians are monsters and killers. He locks her up in the DEO simply because she's a White Martian and refuses to acknowledge her as anything but a monster. In the most recent episodes, M'Gann was under psychic attack and fell into a coma. Alex was able to convince J'Onn to enter her mind and rescue her. Once he saw her for who she really was, he began to accept her and even love her like he loved his family back on Mars. She helped him realize that not all the White Martians were evil. This past episode, The Martian Chronicles, she decided to leave Earth and find other White Martians that were compassionate to the Green like herself.
Comic books have always tackled social commentary in the most colorful way possible. Luckily the TV shows and films lately have followed that trend. Whether it's a corrupt, deranged man running for political office like in Gotham or the racial tension shown in Supergirl, these shows aren't afraid to hold up a mirror to real life. J'Onn is quick to dismiss M'Gann simply because she's a different Martian from himself and his experience with White Martians was never pleasant. He's never known a White Martian to be kind and compassionate. He assumes they are all evil and will always be his enemy. It's not until he literally steps inside her mind that he realizes she's a good person. If only we could all be so lucky to have that experience in real life.
I found J'Onn and M'Gann's story very touching. In fact, it was my favorite subplot from this season so far. Although it's being told with alien characters, you can't deny that there is truth to the story. How many Muslims, African Americans, Latinos are the victims of hate crimes and wrongful persecutions simply because they are not white? It's a sad fact. And yes, there is racism toward white people as well, but it's nothing compared to what other ethnicities suffer on a regular basis. In J'Onn's case he believes his racism is justified, after all he literally watched his family die at the hands of White Martians. There are similar stories in our real world. Look at 9/11! A radical group of terrorists were responsible for death and destruction. However, those men do not represent all of Islam. Just like in the show where J'Onn learns to accept a White Martian as his friend, there were reports of New Yorkers rallying against President Trump's ban at JFK international airport. These were the people most affected by 9/11 and those Islamic radicals but they know the difference between the radicals and the men and women that only want to spread peace. That's heartwarming to me because it shows that there are good people in our world that understand the difference between labeling an entire religion and race as dangerous and the good people that are negatively affected by the racism.
Politics is not my strong suit. I admitted that up front. However, I do see America in a decline due to hate and fear. My goal here is to spread positivity, excitement, and fun to my readers. I do believe that love trumps hate, but it's a lot harder to love. Don't get me wrong, I get where the fear comes from but it doesn't excuse violence and hate being spread across the world. That's one of the reasons I love Supergirl so much. The show is all about hope and courage in the face of trying times. Kara Zor El is an excellent role model for all of us to look up to. She's brave, kind, compassionate, but most of all she's a woman that is tested time and time again. She could easily turn to hate but she chooses to love and protect everyone that needs her. She's the hero that we all need right now and I can't wait to see where the show goes next!
Till Next Time!
JJ - the Comic Junkie!
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