Worlds Finest

For other uses, see World's Finest.
"Worlds Finest"
Supergirl episode

A promotional poster for the episode, inspired by the cover of Superman #199 (1967)
Episode no. Season 1
Episode 18
Directed by Nick Gomez
Teleplay by Andrew Kreisberg & Michael Grassi
Story by Greg Berlanti
Production code 4X7618
Original air date March 28, 2016 (2016-03-28)
Guest actors

"Worlds Finest" is the eighteenth episode in the first season of the CBS television series Supergirl, which aired on March 28, 2016. The episode's teleplay was written by Andrew Kreisberg & Michael Grassi, and directed by Nick Gomez.

The episode features a crossover appearance by the title character of the CW series The Flash (also developed and produced by Greg Berlanti and Kreisberg), marking the first episode of the series to feature a character from the DC Universe that appears on another show, and the first character from a CW series to cross over to a CBS series.

The episode reunites Melissa Benoist with her former Glee recurring co-star Grant Gustin, who portrays the Flash. The episode title was inspired by the World's Finest Comics series, in which Superman would team up with various other DC superheroes, including the Flash.

Plot

At the DEO, Siobhan Smythe is being treated after surviving her fall, but can't offer a explanation for her new powers. The doctor tells Winn and Kara that Siobhan let out a sound wave so powerful that it cushioned her fall, but she is still human. Siobhan is upset at the doctor's lack of insight and that Winn never told her about having known Supergirl or the DEO. As she storms off, Siobhan hears Leslie Willis, a.k.a. Livewire, talk about Cat and Supergirl while being interrogated by Lucy. Suddenly, Siobhan starts seeing images of a banshee and abruptly walks out.

As Cat tempts Kara with cupcakes during a conversation about her relationship with James, Siobhan walks down the street when she sees the visions again. She abruptly storms into CatCo Plaza, and Cat orders Kara to call the police. Winn tries to reason with Siobhan, but she doesn't listen and pushes him aside. As Kara tries to slow Siobhan down, Siobhan sonic screams and sends Kara flying out the window. Before Kara can hit the ground, a dimensional breach opens and someone rushes out at high speed and catches Kara in free-fall, stopping in an open field to let her down. As Kara reveals herself as Supergirl, the speedster introduces himself as Barry Allen, a.k.a. the Flash, a superhero from another universe (see Arrowverse). The two return to CatCo, where Kara introduces Barry to Winn and James, and Barry gives a explanation of the multiverse and how he reached their universe when testing a tachyon device designed by Dr. Christina McGee fastened to his suit, with S.T.A.R. Labs' scientists Harrison Wells, Caitlin Snow and Cisco Ramon prior to his dimensional travel. Fascinated with Barry, Kara befriends him and learns more about the multiverse and his speed as well as offering to help him find a way to return home. In turn, Barry is intrigued by Kara's Kryptonian origin due to there being no such extraterrestrial visitations on his Earth, as far as he knows. Winn shares Kara's fascination with Barry, but James becomes jealous of Barry due the attention he receives from Kara. Before they can leave for lunch, Cat calls the four into her office and demands they get insight on the new superhero, though she rejects Barry's idea of calling him the Flash.

Meanwhile, Siobhan goes to a magic shop owned by her Aunt Sinead to ask about the visions she has been seeing. Sinead tells her that all women in their family were cursed generations ago by a banshee. If wronged by others, Smythe women are possessed by the banshee's spirit. They develop a powerful sonic scream, and the only way to keep the power from taking over their souls is to kill the person who wronged them. Siobhan concludes she needs some help to get Supergirl out of the way so she can get a free shot at Kara, unaware they are the same person. With this in mind, she uses her scream to destroy Livewire's cell, allowing her to escape. The two take up refuge in a warehouse as they plot their revenge on Supergirl, Cat and Kara. When Kara tells Cat that Livewire has escaped, Cat refuses to go into hiding, believing Supergirl will be there to stop her. Kara then turns to Barry to help and both head to the DEO. Revealing his identity and his expertise as a CSI to gain Lucy's trust, Barry uses Alex's lab to pinpoint Livewire's location, and both Supergirl and the Flash immediately take off.

When they arrive, Flash tries to overwhelm Livewire with lightning, but this only gives Livewire a fresh charge and she blasts Flash to the ground. Supergirl tries to use a sprinkler to short out Livewire, but she is disoriented by a scream from Siobhan, now calling herself Silver Banshee. Realizing they cannot win this battle, the two heroes retreat. Kara apologizes to Barry for going in without a plan, being overeager to save the day in hopes of earning back the city’s trust. Barry recalls his own experience with a similar situation (referencing the events of "Flash vs. Arrow" when he was under Roy Bivolo's influence), telling her that she will be able to solve her problems as long as she's patient.

Barry develops custom ear buds to dampen the effects of Silver Banshee's scream, similar to those he used to counter Pied Piper's ultrasonic weapons in his world. Meanwhile, Livewire and Silver Banshee appear at CatCo Plaza. Winn pleads with Silver Banshee one last time to give up her vendetta, but she screams him to the ground as she and Livewire kidnap Cat. James informs the two heroes what has happened just as Livewire appears on the DEO screen demanding the two come to National City Park.

Livewire wreaks havoc at the park before turning her attention to Cat, who is chained to a bench and begging for mercy. Supergirl and the Flash arrive; the latter's ear buds works. Supergirl frees Cat before engaging Silver Banshee and Flash tackles Livewire, but Livewire manages to knock the Flash out. As spectators look on, Livewire fires a bolt of lightning at a passing helicopter, but Supergirl jumps up and takes the blow, preventing it from crushing the people below. As she falls to the ground, the crowd surrounds and shields her from the villainous duo. When Livewire decides to electrocute the crowd, the firefighters Supergirl saved before her Red Kryptonite exposure blast her with water, causing her to lose control and shock Silver Banshee in the process, defeating them both. A later news report confirms that National City once again hails Supergirl as a hero. With the Flash's help, the National City Police develop a means of containing metahuman criminals, and Livewire and Silver Banshee are imprisoned.

As Kara leaves to see Barry off, Cat reveals that she had known Barry was the Flash all along. At the field, Barry determines if he and Kara both run at top speed while the tachyon device is active and she throws him forward, he should move fast enough to create a breach for him to go back home. As the two bid one another farewell, he also advises Kara to pursue James. The plan succeeds, and Barry leaves Kara's world (revealed later in the episode "Versus Zoom" to have reached his universe in the exact moment when he left).[1][2][3] Later that evening, Kara invites James to her apartment and confesses her feelings, kissing him. However, James does not react and emotionlessly walks out. Kara follows him out and sees that all of National City is acting the same as James, marching down the street in synchronicity. Elsewhere, Non is revealed to be behind these events, as the Myriad project takes effect.

Reception

The episode received excellent reviews.

Cliff Wheatley of IGN gave the episode an 8.6/10, stating "After the grim 'n' gritty Batman v Superman, Supergirl's "Worlds Finest" offered a fun, upbeat palette cleanser and one of the series' strongest episodes to date. Instead of the usual "beatdown" introduction, Supergirl and the Flash went straight to being superfriends, which was refreshing. Not only did Barry Allen fit perfectly in Kara's world, but actors Grant Gustin and Melissa Benoist had fantastic chemistry together onscreen. While the city's turnaround on Supergirl's Red K incident was a little sudden, overall, "Worlds Finest" was delightful."[4]

Stacy Glanzman of TV Fanatic gave the episode a 5.0 out of 5 stars.[5]

Caroline Siede of the AV Club gave the episode an A-, stating "My biggest fear going into “World’s Finest” was that the episode would be a fun one-off designed to convert Flash fans into Supergirl fans (and vice versa, I suppose) while ignoring the compelling narrative Supergirl has been exploring since Kara went bad in “Falling.” Instead “World’s Finest” relies heavily on Supergirl’s long-term storytelling, pulling together threads from the entire season into one jam-packed episode. And it does so while introducing the most enjoyable superhero team-up this side of The Avengers. For better or for worse, “World’s Finest” represents Supergirl in a nutshell: Fun, clunky, cheesy, and more intelligent than it seems at first glance."[6]

References

This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the Friday, May 06, 2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.