Supergirl Review: The Bottle Episode (Season 5 Episode 10)
Supergirl Season 5 Episode 10, “The Bottle Episode,” dives deeper into a post-“Crisis” National City. This new version of National City features an unlikely alliance or two and a ton of Brainys. “The Bottle Episode” is definitely a slow entrance into a post-“Crisis” world, but it moves the larger plots of the season forward.
“The Bottle Episode” answers a lot of post-“Crisis” questions; however, some of those answers leave things more confusing than they were before the multiverse collapsed. It is revealed on “Crisis On Infinite Earths: Part 5” that J’onn has the ability to restore people’s memories of the pre-“Crisis” world.
Supergirl clarifies why J’onn cannot do this for everyone on Earth-Prime. The restoration of those memories would cause minds to literally explode, so J’onn only restores the memories of the heroes who helped save the day during the crossover event.
Supergirl sets up an easier alternative for memory restoration through Lex Luthor. Who’s to say Lex won’t tell someone everything about the events of the crossover, like he does with Lillian, again but on a larger scale? Lex can use his Paragon-status memories as leverage for his evil schemes.
Now that he is working with Lena to further Non Nocere, Lex can threaten to tell humanity, or at least National City, about the pre-“Crisis” world to get what he wants. After all, Lex admits that he will turn against Lena when their project doesn’t convenience him anymore.
It is a good thing Lena has her memories because Kara and Lena should not have a clean slate on Earth-Prime. It would be in direct conflict with the rest of the season. Kara needs to be held accountable for the hurt she caused her best friend, and Lena surely needs to be held accountable for every detrimental thing she has done so far.
Kara’s fight to save her best friend is more difficult in a post-“Crisis” world. Lex admits that he wants to work with Lena because he doesn’t want to be alone. Lena is not much different in that sense, and this is likely a result of their upbringing. Lena agrees to work with Lex because she doesn’t want to be an island.
Optimistically, Lena’s work with her brother will allow her to stop Lex, save the city, and reunite with her friends. It would be so pleasing to see Lena realize the error of her ways and turn the tables on her brother when he least sees it coming.
“The Bottle Episode” leaves many questions unanswered about Lena and Kara’s friendship, so only time can tell how it will all play out. Hopefully, Supergirl will lean into Kara’s journalistic talents again as she joins William Day in his search for the truth about the Luthors and a way to stop Lex.
After William tells Kara about his plans, Kara clarifies by saying, “Not the Luthors. Lex.” This is nerve-wracking because it posits that Kara is still hesitant to believe that Lena is capable of doing terrible things. Lena is not Lex, but she has done wrong.
It will do Kara well to realize this before it’s too late. That’s the only way she will really be able to help Lena, with the honesty she denied her friend in withholding her identity.
It is quite smart that Lena learns she can’t be an island if she wants her plan to succeed just as Brainy learns that he must do the opposite to save the world.
Jesse Rath shines in this episode. He plays each and every Brainy with such a compelling range. Brainy finally gets some backstory he’s deserved for many years.
However, it does feel a bit out of place in the first post-“Crisis” episode. This could be because it is tied to NSYNC’s “It’s Gonna Be Me” playing over the big showdown. This disrupts the tone of the episode. A catastrophic threat to the new Earth is an odd time to play a song like that.
This scene would not be an issue if it happened on Legends of Tomorrow because that’s where goofy things like this work. It feels weird on an episode of Supergirl, which is having a predominantly serious season so far.
The best scene of “The Bottle Episode” is a heartfelt moment between Supergirl’s Brainy and a female Brainiac-5 from another Earth. She tells Brainy, “Love is not meant to minimize you,” which leads Brainy to removing his inhibitors and becoming his true self.
Brainy’s honest reveal of himself is reminiscent of Nia’s moving interview with Kara on Supergirl Season 4 Episode 19, “American Dreamer.” Brainy’s personal arc in “The Bottle Episode” reminds viewers of one of Supergirl’s common themes.
Supergirl reminds people of the good they can do when they are truly themselves. Although it takes a lot of work, standing in your truth and realizing the good that comes from that is more powerful than it seems.
This theme will remain prominent as Kara and the Super Friends attempt to remind Lena that her project although born out of good intentions, could be detrimental to the free will of humanity. Lena’s loved ones need to remind her that there is goodness in her that leads her astray from the rest of the Luthors.
Ideally, this mission to help Lena won’t minimize the things that did happen in the past between Lena and Kara. The only way for these characters and National City to move forward is to learn from the past and do everything they can to not repeat it.
What did you think of this episode of Supergirl? Share your thoughts in the comments below!
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Supergirl airs Sundays at 9/8c on The CW.
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Shelby Elpers
Shelby is a TV enthusiast and pop culture writer. She's an avid podcast listener, green tea drinker, and soccer fan. Her brand can be summarized in rom-coms, superheroes, teen dramas, and workplace comedies.