Supergirl Sees Winn Put Away “Childish Things” And Become Interesting

Supergirl comes back after a week hiatus and it’s like the show was listening to my and others’ consistent complaints about Jeremy Jordan’s Winn (I know they weren’t, but it’s fun to imagine). Because this episode finally dispenses with the boring unrequited love business and sees Winn confess his feelings to Kara and deal with the unwanted legacy of his father, the Toyman (Henry Czerny). It leads to a powerhouse performance by Jordan who really sells Winn’s lifelong pain and finally gives this dweeb a reason for existing.

But before that, “Childish Things” opens with J’onn Jonzz in full Martian garb teaching Kara how to fly and Kara trying to get him to acknowledge that flying is fun. It’s a nice little charmer of a scene, immediately undercut by the horrific way in which Toyman escapes prison.

In DEO news, Alex wants Hank to use his Martian powers to get the lowdown on Maxwell Lord and what he’s planning in “Room 52” where he beat James up last time. Hank refuses because he doesn’t want to go too far and make any more trouble for his adopted world. Fed up, Alex takes matters into her own hands by arranging a candlelit dinner with Lord.

At CatCo, Cat’s a bit subdued this week but she offers Lucy Lane (Jenna Dewan Tatum) a job as her corporate counsel. This would see her and James work on the same floor, something that Jimmy seems uneasy about.

So slightly smaller stakes this episode but that’s fine; Kryptonians can’t threaten the world every week. Besides, Czerny is adept enough at getting to the creepy human heart in Toyman to make his stabs at reconciling with Winn all the more gripping. Chyler Leigh holds her own this week with Peter Facinelli during the dinner scene and David Harewood gets to play many different sides as J’onn shows off his shapeshifting which is fun.

A neat surprise this week that I hadn’t been made aware of: the head FBI agent charged with arresting Toyman is none other than Cameron Chase (Emma Caulfield). She doesn’t have much to do but her inclusion is interesting; in the comics, Chase works for the D.E.O. under Director Bones (he’s what he sounds like and he’s awesome) so reinventing her as a typical FBI agent is neat. Though I can’t help but wonder if Chase will eventually get back to where she belongs.

So a smaller-scale episode but an interesting one nonetheless. Next week’s episode looks to crank things back up and I can’t wait.

Tom Speelman is a contributor to Comics Alliance, The Mary Sue, Strange Horizons and other websites. He is available for hire and blathers on Twitter @tomtificate.