Kara comes around, and she explains her own hesitation to her sister, who she accepts. Alex sucks it up, she gives herself a bold shot of confidence and makes a move on Maggie, who rejects her, who pushes her away, fearing the chaos of entering a relationship with someone fresh out of the closet. Now, like I said above, this is a TV show that blends soap and superpowers, so fans would be foolish to think this ends here. We’re in for a longer storyline that may or may not lead to a happy ending for Alex and Maggie, but right now, right in this moment, Alex has her first moment of heartbreak, versus years of numb detachment. (Author’s note: the show’s storyline has updated since this piece was written)

Coming out was one of the best things I ever did,

…and I firmly believe that all LGBTQ+ people who aren’t in danger from doing so should come out, it’s better out here. But such is the nature of the closet, of having had to spend any significant part of our lives hiding away who we are from the world, afraid they’d recoil if they saw, or worse, do us true harm. The closet makes us pack part of ourselves away, which means that even those who know us best don’t even know us at all, and that can include ourselves as much as our sisters.

Alex is getting to know herself for the first time in her life, and as beautiful as that can be, it also can be painful and that’s a narrative that we don’t often see on television, mostly because we’re still fighting just to have our stories on there at all. But I just know out there right now are queer kids who can find a kindred spirit in Alex Danvers, and when they go through the turmoil of coming out and still might face their first heartbreak, hopefully having seen her struggle with it will help them to know that they’re not alone, and they’re doing just fine.