Originally Posted by
Powerboy
I just watched the third episode of the fourth season on Netflix, the one that goes into the history of Agent Liberty.
I certainly agree that what is happening in the real world right now is ridiculous. Trump has taken something that was and is a minor problem at best and escalated it- in people's minds- into some kind of major crisis in order to win the election. In the process, he has fanned the flames of ethnic, cultural and religious bigotry. However, I'm dubious about how it's working in the world of Supergirl.
When the first X-Men movie came out, Roger Ebert said that while we understand that mutants are a metaphor for all victims of bigotry, the problem is that, in the world the X-Men live in, it's not all bigotry. We understand that, when the Senator says, "Do you want a mutant moving into your neighborhood?", the metaphor is, "Do you want a black family moving into your neighborhood?" Sheer bigotry. Or, "Do you want mutants teaching your children?" really means, "Do you want someone who is gay or a Muslim teaching your children?" Again, sheer bigotry. BUT, in the world of the X-Men, it's more like, "Do you want an atomic bomb moved into the house down the street? Oh, it means well. It's a decent atomic bomb. But were it to lose it's temper for one instant, it's not just going to punch a wall. It's going to flatten the entire neighborhood and probably the entire city." That's where the Mutant metaphor breaks down. It's a very rational and justified fear.
That's the only problem I have with Supergirl where aliens are taking the place of mutants. There have been two invasions, countless damage and loss of life and most of the aliens seem to have powers and abilities that make humans look like nothing. The resentment of aliens in the world of Supergirl is simply not comparable to the real world situation. Yes, some of it is bigotry but a lot of it is very justified fear.