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Supergirl: Chris Wood on Mon-El's hero's journey - SciFiNow

Supergirl: Chris Wood on Mon-El’s hero’s journey

The Supergirl star on what’s next for the dashing Daxamite

Of all the questions facing Kara (Melissa Benoist) in the returning Supergirl, one of the most intriguing is how her relationship will develop with Chris Wood’s Daxamite character Mon-El, who would seem be on something of a hero’s journey that will have him emerge in the form that comics fans are familiar with: the similarly superpowered Lar Gand.

Through much of the first half of the season, Kara has been trying to teach him what it means to be a hero — a lesson that hasn’t always gotten through to him as he pushes back against the idea of using his super powers to help others. Wood, whose past credits include The Carrie Diaries, The Vampire Diaries and Containment (so tempting to add the word ‘diaries’), while not offering up spoilers, refuses to pretend that Mon-El isn’t on a hero’s journey.

“We know where it’s going,” he smiles. “Everybody knows that it’s moving towards a suit eventually. What it’s going to look like, who knows? That is his story. He’s finding the part of him that’s based on who he was on Daxam, and part of that is the bias that you see come out with he and Kara when they have their differences, and they resent aspects of each other because of where they’re from. She struggles with it more than he does, which I think is a brilliant thing, to bring more of a human quality to her so that she’s not just perfect. So she’s got biases, too. She works through them quickly, which is nice.

Mon-El (Chris Wood) has been one of the breakout success stories of Supergirl Season 2.

“He’s got a lot of stuff from his background, and he’s new to this planet. The rules are different,” Wood continues. “When he was there, it seemed like he was just living his life for himself, based on what he’s told her so far. He hasn’t been completely honest about everything, I can give you that. He has left some details out that she’ll find out soon, and that will obviously change their dynamic.”

It is safe to say that Mon-El has been a little bit of a cad in his life, but that’s something that is likely to change. “He’s now here, and we’re starting to see him respond to someone who’s trying to actually help him and make him better. At first he’s resisting it, because he doesn’t feel the same impulse to go save the world that she does.

“So, his story’s going to become one of how does he gain that need? Where does that come from? It’s something with the Clark Kent story that you don’t really get, because he was already there when we met him. There’s got to be a moment like the one in the pilot for Kara when she’s like, ‘I have to do this.’ He’s going to have one of those moments at some point, where he is self-motivated to pursue this as a purpose.”

Supergirl will return to Sky1 on 31 January 2017. For all the latest TV news, pick up the new issue of SciFiNow.