“Gentlemen, it’s time we talk about your destiny,” says Monitor (LaMonica Garrett) to Oliver (Stephen Amell) and Barry (Grant Gustin) as they stand before him in the cosmos in The CW’s Supergirl episode of the superhero crossover event, “Elseworlds.
Supergirl season four episode nine begins right where “Elseworlds, Part 2” left off. Barry and Oliver are now known as the Trigger Twins after Dr. Deegan (Jeremy Davies) rewrites reality again. They stand before Superman, whose outfit is now black, and quickly this Superman is really Dr. Deegan. It seems he’s made himself into The Man of Steel and his headquarters is S.T.A.R. Labs.
Oliver takes a shot at a teetering crane that sends it headed down from the roof toward children huddled below. Barry and Oliver tell the fake Superman he can either be a hero and save the kids or catch them. SuperDeegan goes after the crane while Oliver and Barry escape.
SuperDeegan (Tyler Hoechlin) returns to S.T.A.R. Labs upset Barry and Oliver got away. Killer Frost (Danielle Panabaker) and Diggle (David Ramsey) assure him that next time he’ll crush them. (In this new reality Frost and Diggle are SuperDeegan’s lieutenants).
SuperDeegan pays a visit to his prisoner in the pipeline, Kara (Melissa Benoist). He informs her the book that lets him rewrite history didn’t have anything about her in it. Kara assures SuperDeegan she’ll stop him but then sees her sister, Alex (Chyler Leigh), is now one of his soldiers. Kara tries to talk to her but Alex won’t listen, believing Kara to be the worst criminal on Earth. As she walks off, SuperDeegan warns Kara if she isn’t a good prisoner, he’ll kill Alex.
Meanwhile, Barry and Cisco are hunting for Cisco (Carlos Valdes) for help when they get transported to face Monitor somewhere in the cosmos. He congratulates them on being able to outsmart a super man and Barry corrects him, “It’s just one word – Superman.” Monitor is both impressed and intrigued that both Barry and Oliver are willing to die for the greater good. Barry replies, “Is this a pep talk because I’ve had better?”
Oliver grows impatient, telling Monitor that if they’re being tested he should let them get back at it. Monitor sends them back to Earth and they immediately head to the nightclub looking for Cisco. Barry’s convinced since Deegan altered reality again, Cisco is most likely a criminal. He’s right. In fact, Cisco’s now the boss of a criminal organization.
Barry and Oliver find Cisco counting money and attempt to speak with him but he has his enforcer Jimmy Olsen (Mehcad Brooks) rid of them. Barry brings up Cisco’s brother, Dante, which gets him to stop Olson from the ass-kicking he’s giving Oliver and Barry. Barry suggests to Cisco that Dante would want him to listen to their proposition. Oliver chimes in asking if Cisco would like to get rid of Superman. Intrigued, Cisco listens and as Barry tells him they need him to breach them to another Earth.
Back at S.T.A.R. Labs, Killer Frost checks in on Alex and suggests she go home because she’s overworking herself. Alex declines, saying she’s okay. Frost leaves and Alex hears Kara trying to use her freeze breath to get out of the pipeline. Alex uses a zapper device that causes Kara pain in the ears. Kara begs her to stop and promises she won’t try to escape again. Alex stops the pain and Kara tells her a story about Alex when she was seven. Alex shares these memories and wants to know how Kara is privy to them. Kara explains on her Earth they’re sisters. Kara tells her how strong Alex is and how she’s a leader of the forces of good on her Earth, always ready to do the right thing. Kara describes Alex as being unafraid of who she is, adding that Alex wants a family and a wife. Inspired, Alex starts to believe Kara.
Over on Earth-38, Superman and Lois Lane (Elizabeth Tulloch) are spending time at the Fortress of Solitude when Cisco, Barry, and Oliver breach in. They tell Clark about the book and he reveals he’s familiar with how books like that work. He believes he can change reality back for them, so off everyone goes.
Back at the pipeline, Kara believes Alex realizes deep down that SuperDeegan is a fraud. If she lets her out, she’ll expose him. Alex agrees and as they’re headed out they’re confronted by SuperDeegan, Killer Frost, and Diggle. Just as SuperDeegan’s about to kill them, a breach opens and Superman, Barry, Oliver, Lois, and Cisco arrive to save Kara and confront Deegan.
“Nice suit,” says Superman, snarkily, before he and SuperDeegan fly off fighting. Oliver rushes Diggle and Frost catching them off guard. As the elevator doors close with them inside, he yells to Barry, “Find the book!”
Alex, Kara, and Barry head to the time vault and do indeed find the book. However, when they try to open it Kara discovers she’s too weak from the pipeline to handle its power. Barry explains Clark said he knows what to do with it, so she flies off to deliver it to him.
Superman and SuperDeegan are still fighting when Kara shows up. She hits SuperDeegan with her heat vision and gives Superman the book. He opens it and starts putting things right. Barry becomes The Flash again, Oliver’s back to being Green Arrow, buildings return to their original purposes, and the sky turns blue.
SuperDeegan manages to grab Barry and threatens to kill him if they don’t give him back the book. Oliver aims an arrow to kill Deegan, but Barry asks him not to shoot. He believes maybe this is part of the test and Oliver doesn’t have to kill to stop Deegan. Oliver appears to agree and lowers the arrow. SuperDeegan tosses Barry aside and hurtles himself at Superman, grabbing the book and determined to put things back the way he wants them.
Barry comes up with a plan to stop him. He and Kara will race around the globe in opposite directions so their combined forces will slow time. Clark believes they’ll both die and reveals that when he was putting things right with the book, he saw that they do indeed die doing it. Barry uses his classic line, “We have to try,” and then speeds off with Kara before any more discussions of his plan can take place.
Oliver instructs Superman to go after the book, which he does.
Oliver visits the cosmos and informs Monitor that it’s not him he needs for the big threat that’s coming it’s Barry and Kara. “They inspire hope. They inspire people because they are the best of us,” says Oliver. Monitor warns Oliver if he rewrites their destiny, he would need to maintain balance in the universe. “One change requires another. How would you propose I keep the balance?” asks Monitor. (The answer is not revealed.)
Back on Earth, Barry and Kara speed in opposite directions and their plan actually begins to work. While they’re sprinting around the globe, more Super friends show up to help! Brainy (Jesse Rath) takes on a robot with Superman’s powers created by SuperDeegan, and Martian Manhunter (David Harewood) works to protect the people. Lois wields the Solar hammer and slams it onto the ground, briefly knocking the book from Deegan. Unfortunately, he grabs it and hits Superman with its power.
Barry and Kara increase their speed to their limits, with the effort taking a toll on their bodies. Lois is blasted into the air by the book and as she falls toward the ground, time slows to a crawl. Oliver arrives with his glowing arrow and shoots it right into the book. Superman speeds over to Lois and catches her. Barry and Kara can sense it’s over and start to slow their speed, and their bodies quickly heal. Deegan changes into a zombie-looking entity. Oliver closes the book and Brainy defeats the robot by removing its motherboard.
Now that everything’s back to normal, Cisco breaches his favorite Kryptonian and her group back to Earth-38. Back in Smallville on the Kent farm, Clark confesses to Kara that he’s hanging up his cape for a while because Lois is pregnant. They’re going to Argo to have the baby, but he knows the world is in good hands with Supergirl.
Later at the Fortress of Solitude, Clark squeezes charcoal into a perfect diamond and gets down on one knee to propose. Before he can finish asking, Lois says yes!
Back on Earth–1, Oliver and Barry are relaxing by having a drink. Oliver admits he’s happy to be able to feel the effects of alcohol again. Barry thanks Oliver, realizing he convinced Monitor to change their destinies. Oliver gets a call from Batwoman (Ruby Rose) who says Deegan has made a friend at Arkham Asylum.
In Arkham, a masked man in the cell next to Deegan tells him, “Everything is as it should be. The stage is set. Worlds will live. Worlds will die and the universe will never be the same.” As the episode ends a title card arrives announcing “Coming Fall 2019: Crisis on Infinite Earths.”
Supergirl Season 4 Episode 9 Review – “Elseworlds, Part 3”
Action-packed, Supergirl season four episode nine was an ambitious (and over-crowded) finale to the epic “Elseworlds” crossover event. The fight scenes were impressively staged, especially for a television budget. However, it did feel like the introduction of Martian Manhunter, Brainy, the second robot, and a solar hammer that turned out to be an ineffective tool against SuperDeegan added too many characters way too late in the three-part crossover.
“Elseworlds, Part 3” did a great job of paying homage to the superhero movie that started it all – the original Superman The Movie – with not only the look of the Fortress of Solitude but also the dress Tulloch wears as Lois in the scene. It also borrowed from the film’s ending with Barry and Kara flying around the Earth in opposite directions to slow time. (In the film, Superman flew faster than the speed of light to turn back time).
The standout performance this time goes to Melissa Benoist as Kara, in large part because of the scenes in which she tried to reach her reality-rewritten sister, Alex. She delivered just the right amount of emotion in her speeches to make the moments touching without going overboard.
With “Crisis of Infinite Earths” set to be next year’s crossover, deep concerns are sure to rise among fans. In the famous graphic novel, two superheroes die and weren’t brought back until DC Comics did the rebirth series a few years back. Fans are left wondering if next season’s crossover will spell the end of The Flash and Supergirl. Or, did Oliver’s arrangement with Monitor include exchanging his life to save his two superhero friends? Either way, it could mean the end to one if not more of The CW’s superhero shows. Or, maybe not. The Flash, Arrow, and Supergirl writers have worked themselves out of many corners in the past, and teasing the possibility of the end to one or more shows this far in advance is a great way to renew interest in the network’s superhero lineup.
GRADE: B
