The best (and worst) Supergirl episodes from all 6 seasons of The CW show
Best and worst Supergirl season 2 episodes
When Supergirl headed into its second season, it had a few major changes. The show was moved from CBS to the CW, and the production moved from Los Angeles to Vancouver, both of which helped connect it more directly to the rest of the Arrowverse. Significant plot changes included the introduction of Katie McGrath's Lena Luthor and Chris Wood's Mon-El, both of whom became major fan favorites.
Best: Season 2 Episode 1, "The Adventures of Supergirl"
As Kara herself put it in this episode, "Last year was all about figuring out how to be Supergirl, and now it's time I figure out how to be Kara." While season one occasionally suffered from just throwing random aliens at Supergirl to fight, season two did a much better job blending new threats with Kara and her friends' personal journeys.
In "The Adventures of Supergirl," Superman finally showed up as a character, but rather than undermining Kara, he helped highlight her strengths and limitations. While Clark was inherently suspicious of J'onn and Lena Luthor, Kara approached both with trust and a desire to understand their perspectives.
The character dynamics in this episode are some of the best in the show up to this point, with Kara and Cat's relationship being a particular highlight. Rather than just being a Miranda Priestly-esque bully, Cat has become a real mentor for both Kara and Supergirl. The action sequences are great, but "The Adventures of Supergirl" is the top of the season because it shows off Kara trusting her instincts, which will go on to be one of the best parts of the show.
Worst: Season 2 Episode 10, "We Can Be Heroes"
Despite the title, not every character in a show can be a hero without it getting over-complicated, which is pretty much exactly what happened in "We Can Be Heroes." Kara tried to force Mon-El to not just be a hero but to be her version of a hero, which doesn't work. In contrast, she turned on James for wanting to be a hero, simply because he didn't have superpowers.
This episode highlights Kara's hypocrisy, but it doesn't seem to know it's doing that. Instead, the other characters are expected to fight to earn her support. By throwing too many plots into one episode, none gets the screen time it needs to land properly. The resulting conflicts feel weak.
Where there could have been interesting discussions of how different upbringings influence personal morality, "We Can Be Heroes" shys away from that idea, instead focusing on whether Kara (and J'onn) personally find a person's actions unforgivable. The character arcs suffer for that, and the episode as a whole feels incomplete.