Supergirl: Lena Luthor’s Season 5 arc comes full circle

Lena Luthor has gone down a dark path on this season of Supergirl but her moment of truth has finally come. Lena has chosen her side, but did she choose her brother Lex or the Super Friends?

It certainly hasn’t been an easy season for Supergirl‘s Lena Luthor. After her brother Lex revealed Kara’s secret to her the younger Luthor spiraled. Her sense of betrayal led her down a dark path that is hard to come back from.

Lena’s sense of hurt and pain led her down an almost villainous path, causing her to do things like lock Kara up in the Fortress of Solitude, try to use a device called Myriad to mind control the world, and work with her famously evil brother Lex. Her pain blinded her and throughout all of it she truly believed she was doing the right thing and helping humanity.

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Kara tried to apologize to her former friend over and over but to no avail. She finally reached her breaking point in the show’s 100th episode and told Lena that if she continued to act like a villain then she would have no choice but to stop her, just like any other villain. That seemed to be the first major crack in Lena’s armor as being called a villain had a visible effect on her.

Lex did his best to pull Lena farther away from the Super Friends but in the latest episode, he could no longer disguise his true intentions. After a visit to the inmates they were using as subjects Lena began to realize that her Non Nocere program to fix humanity had always been doomed to failure. What’s worse, she realized Lex had always known.

When Lena confronted him Lex snapped and it is possibly one of the most terrifying scenes on Supergirl to date. Jon Cryer’s performance as Lex became unhinged was terrifying, but it was Katie McGrath’s reactions that really stole the show. The nuances in her acting and the slight trembles and tremors really let the audience feel what Lena was feeling and your heart actually broke for her. Finally, she came to the realization fans have been waiting for and told Lex that just because he was a monster didn’t mean she had to be.

Her confrontation with Lex and the realization of what she had been doing let Lena ultimately open her eyes to what had been going on. This lead to a scene that Supergirl fans have been waiting for all season. Lena got up the courage to go to Kara’s apartment and give a heartfelt apology and make amends.

Lena admitted to her pain and her mistakes and took full responsibility for her actions. She knows now that she went down a dark path and all she desperately wants is to make up for it. She wants to stop Lex and Leviathan before they can hurt anyone. After all, Lena has always wanted to do good and has never wanted anyone to get hurt, especially not by something she helped create. As Lex said, she will always fall into the light and her final scene with Kara proves this.

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Katie McGrath’s acting this episode was nothing short of stellar. Showcasing Lena’s fear and anger with Lex, her self realization, and remorse with Kara, she really took the audience on a journey. She manages to make you feel for Lena despite everything that’s happened and with just one look can remind you that Lena’s heart was always good, even if her actions were misplaced. It may have taken all season to get here, but now that we’re finally here it’s worth it.

Plus, it is nice to see McGrath, who famously portrayed Morgana in BBC’s Merlin series, play a character who goes down a dark path but comes back to the light rather than dying in the end. It would have felt like a poor resolution to the season-long arc if Lena had not returned to the light and the Super Friends in the end.

It may likely take a while for Lena and Kara to fully mend their friendship after everything that’s happened, but the final scene in this episode was a good start. With only one episode of Supergirl left in a shortened Season 5, we will have to wait until next season to see this play out, but it will be nice to have Lena rejoin the team and really be a part of the Super Friends now that she’s in on the secret.

Are you glad Lena and Kara have finally made amends? Did you always know Lena would come back to the side of good? Let us know!

Supergirl airs Sundays at 9pm on the CW.