How Does She Do It?
| "How Does She Do It?" | |
|---|---|
| Supergirl episode | |
| Episode no. |
Season 1 Episode 4 |
| Directed by | Thor Freudenthal |
| Written by |
Yahlin Chang Ted Sullivan |
| Production code | 4X7604 |
| Original air date | November 23, 2015 |
| Guest appearance(s) | |
| |
| Episode chronology | |
"How Does She Do It?" is the fifth episode in the first season of the CBS television series Supergirl, which aired on November 16, 2015. It was written by Yahlin Chang and Ted Sullivan, and directed by Thor Freudenthal.
The episode centers on Kara dealing with babysitting Cat Grant's son while on vacation while tackling a series of attempted bombings that threatens National City.
Plot
As Supergirl flies around National City, a drone follows her; after spotting it, she out races and destroys it. She suspects Hank is watching her, but he denies it and Alex, believing him, tells Kara to trust him. At CatCo, Kara discovers Cat has received an award, except she has to go to Metropolis for the event, and her mother refuses to babysit her son Carter for her. Kara volunteers to watch him instead. James asks Lucy her intentions of coming to National City, and he is displeased when she says it was to see him again. Kara and James discuss Lucy, just as an explosion goes off. Supergirl races to a skyscraper and saves it from collapsing using her heat vision to weld the girders back together, unaware that another drone is watching her. Alex tells Hank that the drone belongs to Lord Technologies. Kara races to Carter's school to pick him up during Cat's call to check in on him. At Lord Technologies, Alex and Hank confront Maxwell about the drone and the bombs, but Maxwell is uncooperative due to not trusting the government. Hank instructs Alex to keep on eye on Maxwell, who explains his dislike for Supergirl.
At CatCo, the news of Supergirl saving the building gets Carter's attention. James is attempting to juggle running the company while also dealing with Lucy, and Kara calms him down. At Lord Technologies, Maxwell learns there is a bomb in the building and insists on defusing it; the timer only speeds up, so Alex calls Supergirl, who takes the device out into the atmosphere, where the blast knocks her into the ocean. Kara wakes up back at the DEO, not knowing Hank had glowing eyes when she came to, and realizes she forgot about Carter. Kara stops to get lunch where she sees Lucy, who asks her if James is seeing another person. Kara tells her no; Lucy reveals she broke up with James because of Superman. At CatCo, Kara attempts to convince James to fight for love. Lucy returns to see James, and after the two talk it over, they kiss.
The DEO learns that an ex-Lord Technologies employee, Ethan Knox, is behind the bombs. When Max learns that his rail launching is the next target, he refuses the DEO's help because his parents, who were scientists, were killed due to poor safety conditions. Kara leaves Carter in Winn's care so she can keep an eye on the train station; Carter leaves behind Winn's back and Winn assumes he is at the event. A second bomb is planted at the airport, which the DEO track down. Kara is fixated on finding Ethan as Carter is pushed onto the train, looking for Supergirl. After they find the airport bomb, Hank orders Alex to clear the room and leave, and uses his eyes to defuse it. The crowd cheers for him and Hank tells Alex that it was a decoy. Supergirl confronts Maxwell when she finds him with Carter, and orders everyone else to another train car after she spots Ethan. She tries to reason with him, but Ethan claims he is doing it for his daughter and starts the countdown. Supergirl disconnects the car from the rest of the train, saving everyone, just before Ethan blows himself up at the bridge crossing. At the DEO, Kara helps Alex defuse the fail-safe in the other bomb.
Back at CatCo, Cat learns that Carter met Supergirl, and when Kara asks to watch him again, Cat says no and lectures her. Kara then catches James and Lucy kissing. After seeing Maxwell on television and having Winn check hospital records, Supergirl pays a visit to Maxwell's penthouse. She suspects he had been paying Ethan's daughter's medical expenses, and used the bombings and drones to test her. Maxwell denies this, but Supergirl says she will be watching him.
Production
This episode was originally scheduled to air November 16, 2015, but due to the November 2015 Paris attacks, it was pulled because the content in the episode was similar to the events.[1] As a result of this move, CBS moved the episode "Livewire" up to November 16, 2015.[2]
Reception
Jeff Jensen of Entertainment Weekly called the episode a "dud".[3]
Cliff Wheatley of IGN gave the episode a 4.5 out of 10, saying, “'How Does She Do It?' is a pretty dull episode of television by any standard, and unfortunately Benoist and a few funny lines aren’t enough to save it. There are too many characters getting a lot of screen time (and Cat not getting enough) without enough presence to keep them interesting, storylines that we’re not invested in, and action that’s not exciting. This episode would have been better left unaired".[4]
Stacy Glanzman of TV Fanatic gave the episode a 4.5 out of 5 stars.[5]
References
- ↑ Ausiello, Michael (November 15, 2015). "CBS Replaces Monday's Terrorism-Themed Supergirl, NCIS: Los Angeles Episodes in Wake of Paris Attacks". TVLine. Retrieved November 15, 2015.
- ↑ "About this Show: SUPERGIRL (CBS)". The Futon Critic. Retrieved November 25, 2015.
- ↑ "Supergirl: How Does She Do It?" from Entertainment Weekly (November 23, 2015)
- ↑ Wheatley, Cliff (November 23, 2015). "SUPERGIRL: "How Does She Do It?" REVIEW". IGN. Retrieved November 23, 2015.
- ↑ "Supergirl Season 1 Episode 5 Review: Fight or Flight" from TV Fanatic (November 23, 2015)