#*the ball (02x05)

[vinylattes]

My partner, Lindsay, has gone.

Was it my fault?

What? No. Not really. That night was the last straw of... it's been coming for a long time.

[whumpty-dumpty]

Strike Back

(2011 - 2015, Season 2 - 5)

Michael Stonebridge (Philip Winchester) + Damien Scott (Sullivan Stapleton)

Julia Richmond (Michelle Lukes), Rachel Dalton (Rhona Mitra)

Kim Martinez (Milauna Jackson), Philip Locke (Robson Green)

Whump list

02x01 –

Scott: cage fight, knocked down, dizzy, bloody nose, thrown against a wall

02x02 -

Scott: shot in the leg, field medicine, bloody, limping, hit non the gead, bloody wound, captured again, manhandled

Stonebridge: held hostage, held at gunpoint,

02x03 –

Scott: drugged, injection, unconscious, kidnapped, restrained, bomb tied to chest, struggle, angst, caught in explosion

02x04 –

Scott: unconscious

Stonebridge: death of a loved one, grief

02x05 –

Scott: shot, cared for, field medicine

Stonebridge: held at gunpoint, knocked out, worried

02x06 –

Scott: hospital, dizzy, collapse field med. in hospital,

Stonebridge: shot in the leg, field medicine

02x07 –

Scott: kidnapped

Stonebridge: kidnapped

02x08 –

Scott: held captive, fled

Stonebridge: held captive, fled, self sacrifice, captured again, covered in blood, unconscious, bound to a gurney, struggle, frees himself, limping, weak, disoriented, collapses in Scott’s arms, draagged, treated in hospital

02x09 –

Scott: caught in explosion, under heavy gunfire

Stonebridge: caut in explosion, under heavy gunfire

02x10 –

Richmond: shot in the shoulder

Scott: in a fight

03x01 –

Scott: caught in explosion, captured, beaten up, tortured, held captive, tied wrists, cardd for, spitting blood, rescued

03x02 –

Stonebridge: forced to shoot someone he cares about, crying, comfort, hug, death of a loved one

03x03 –

Scott: worried about Stonebridge, arrested, restrained, caught in explosion, under heavy gunfire

Stonebridge: grief, smashing his head in a mirror, caught in explosion, under heafy gunfire, flashbacks, in a fight, struggle, kicked in the balls

03x04 –

Scott + Stonebridge: under gunfire, caught in explosion, held at gunpoint,

03x05 –

Scott + Stonebridge: caught in explosion, flashbang, disoriented

03x06 –

Stonebridge: caught in explosion, unconscious, helped walking, bleeding, spitting blood, field med.

03x07 –

Sinclair: held captive, beaten up, death

03x08 –

Scott: in a fight

Stonebridge: caught in explosion, disoriented, weak, writhing in pain, held hostage, gagged, bloody, caught in explosion again, rescued

03x09 –

Scott + Stonebridge: caught in nuklear explosion, tested, worried

03x10 –

Dalton: shot,

Scott: remembering trauma, crying

Stonebridge: in a fight

04x01 –

Dalton: bloody, wounded, treating her own wounds, shaken

Rebecca: drowning, cpr, spitting water

04x02 –

Rebecca: shot in the head, bloody, death

Scott: death of a loved one, shaken, grief, crying,

Stonebridge: shot in the west

Scott + Stonebridge: captured, under gunfire, knocked out, restrained, tied to each other, tortured, electrocuted with a cattle prod, fight, bloody

04x03 –

Stonebridge: falling through a roof, cutting himself on a barrel with chemicals, bloody cut,

04x04 –

Dalton: shot in the shoulder and the leg, blood, death

04x05 –

Stonebridge: caught in explosion

Locke: captured, manhandled, bag over head

04x06 –

Locke: manhandled, beaten up, bloody, sho in the shoulder, held at gunpoint, tied up, hit in the head, rescued

Richmond: caught under rubble, bloody, field med

04x07 –

Scott + Stonebridge: getting arrested, in prison, beaten, forced shower

Stonebridge: in a fight, sick/ poisoned, dizzy, in pain, paralyzed hand,

Scott: worried about Stonebridge, knocked out, unconscious, kidnapped,

04x08 –

Stonebridge: still sick, fever, in a lab to be experimented on, dizzy, weak, manhandled, restrained, rescued, hospital

04x09 –

Martines: shot in the leg

Scott: in a fight, thrown from a train, unconscious, bitten by a dog

Stonebridge: held at gunpoint, manhandled

04x10 –

Scott + Stonebridge: held at gunpoint, manhandled, hands tied behind their backs, bag over head, kidnapped, in a car accident

Richmond: knocked out,

Martinez: in a fight, infected

05x01 –

Scott + Stonebridge: in a fight, beaten up,

Stonebridge: dislocated shoulder

05x02 –

Locke: caught in explosion, bloody

Stonebridge: dislocated shoulder,

05x03 –

Scott: car accident, death of a loved one, crying,

Richmond: shot, death

05x05 –

Finn: kidnapped

Scott + stonebridge: giving themselves up for Finn

05x06 –

Finn: threadened, angst, shot, carried, treated in hospital

Scott + Stonebridge: chained to the wall, manhandled, restrained

Scott: waterboarding, psychological torture, terrified,

Stonebridge: beaten, bloody, hit in the head

05x09 –

Locke: shot, death

05x10 –

Scott + Stonebridge: helicopter crash, unconscious, in pain, bloody, a bit shell shocked, hunted, under heavy gunfire, caught in explosion, flashbang, disoriented

Scott: shot, field medicine, cauterizing wound, comfort, unconscious, shot again

Stonebridge: worried, stabbed in the hand, shot,

I made this list and discovered afterwards that @whumpslist already made a list (see here). But because it took me so much work to make this list I thought I'd post it anyway.

[rachels-nightwing]

Liveblog: 02x05

“I'm so sorry. Please don't tell Dick.” It’s so cute how determined Rachel is not to disappoint Dick.

“Can't you do that thing where you touch them and find out what's going on?” // I'm not a magic 8-ball.” That exchange between Gar & Rachel made me uncomfortable for some reason.

I’m sensing an energy between Rose & Gar, Am I seeing things?

That fight between Gar & Rachel hurt so much. They were both so vicious.

“Let's talk in the training room.” // “It's bad. I can tell.” I love that Dick & Rachel have grown so close as to be able to read each other’s body language so well.

“Dick isn’t lying to us.  Dick isn't lying to us. He doesn't want us to get involved. He's protecting us.” Rachel’s so certain. *hearteyes*

“Dick will make sure you're safe. I promise.” Such faith she has.

The fight between Rose & Rachel was awesome.

Oh my god, did Rachel just kill Rose?

Oh no.

Oh good.

I’m a little worried Rachel is suicidal; they need to keep watch on her.

And Dick rewards Rachel’s faith in him by making the right call regarding Rose, just like she asserted.

The fight scene of Dick/Kory/Deathstroke was badass!

Oh no, Jason! *cries*

[dracox-serdriel]

Ezekiel Jones

I’ve been seeing theories that Ezekiel is naturally resistant to magic (or at least, some forms of magic).

[Related posts: Flynn Carson, Eve Baird, Jacob Stone, Cassandra Cillian, Jenkins, and Other Characters]

I thought I’d make a post about times when he was/was not affected by magic.

Times Magic Got Ezekiel

01x03 And the Horns of a Dilemma - Ezekiel experienced the Labyrinth’s effects (the “lingering curse” that bamboozles people that escape the physical place so they’ll wander back inside) just as much as the others.

01x04 And Santa’s Midnight Run - Ezekiel is clearly affected by Santa’s Hat (a totem for Santa’s current incarnation). Note: In this same episode, Ezekiel also made a “Christmas Wish” about experiencing Christmas Spirit as a “good guy.”

01x08 And the Heart of Darkness - Ezekiel is shrunk and teleported by the House of Refuge inside its dollhouse replica (to protect him).

01x09 And the City of Light - Eve Baird, as a quasi-ghost/being trapped in an energy field possessed Ezekiel’s body to help him win a fight against multiple opponents.

02x05 And the Hollow Men - Ezekiel falls under the spell of Pan’s Flute just as easily as anybody else. Note: Technically, we didn’t see Pan’s Flute knocking Ezekiel out... Stone walks in and finds him on the ground. However, he does wake up in the next scene with no sign of injury/trauma, so it was likely Pan’s Flute.

02x06 And the Infernal Contract - The magic of the Infernal Contract messes with Ezekiel’s abilities, getting him nearly caught during their heist and nearly killing him along with the others.

02x09 And the Happily Ever Afters - Ezekiel was pulled into the “happily ever after” story he and the other Librarians (and Eve and James Moriarty) were trapped in by Prospero via a powerful spell and matching totems.

03x01 And the Rise of Chaos - Ezekiel is just as affected by Apep’s Chaotic Radius Power as the other Librarians. (Though we see/hear very little of his belligerence.)

03x02 And the Fangs of Death - Ezekiel is injured by a werewolf and goes through the transformation process, nearly becoming one. Even after Jenkins prevents the transformation and reverts the changes, Ezekiel still shows some after-affects of the bite (e.g. “fetching” the ball Stone threw at the end of the episode).

03x04 And the Self-Fulfilling Prophecy - Ezekiel’s future can be predicted via Prophecy Glass--both by himself and by other people. Also, his memory was messed with just like Stone and Eve.

03x05 And the Tears of a Clown - Ezekiel was turned into a “Snake Charmer” for the Carnival Sideshow and his memory was messed with.

04x05 And the Bleeding Crown - Ezekiel is clearly in pain as his Librarian Juice is sucked by the Bleeding Crown.

04x02 And the Steal of Fortune - Something happens to Ezekiel when Fortuna “kisses” him. (Either his luck was stolen, OR he somehow was driven to fixation on gambling/winning that isn’t normally present in his character.)

Times Magic Tried to Get Ezekiel and Failed

01x05 And the Apple of Discord - Ezekiel is not effected by the Apple, which is supposed to turn you into the worst version of yourself.

01x06 And the Fables of Doom - When all the Librarians are turned into Fairy Tale characters by the reality-warping storybook, Ezekiel was “turned into himself,” aka The Jack, the character that gets by on his wits and survives the tales unscathed. He doesn’t even get a wardrobe change or a pet owl out of it!

03x07 And the Curse of Cindy - Ezekiel was unaffected by the “Love Spell Perfume” for Cindy even though everyone else exposed to it was affected by it.

04x04 And the Silver Screen - Ezekiel isn’t affected by any of the movies that drag him in, even though both Stone and Cassandra are are least get caught up as their characters in the Western. Ezekiel is likewise unaffected by the scifi film they get stuck in next... the only thing that gets affected is his costume/wardrobe.

Other Suspicious Magical Stuff

02x03 And What Lies Beneath the Stones - The hokolonote doesn’t duplicate Ezekiel. Correction: The hokolonote does turn into Ezekiel very briefly but doesn’t use him to impersonate/confuse anyone--just to antagonize the Librarians while locking them in the hokolonote’s prison.

02x04 And the Cost of Education - Ezekiel deliberately provokes the tentacled monster and manages to escape its grasps with little more than a golf cart. (And the noble sacrifice of Stumpy the Gargoyle.)

04x03 And the Christmas Thief - The Saint of Thieves chooses to make Ezekiel’s mother speak, despite it being obvious that Ezekiel knows more. According to the rules, The Saint of Thieves should have just as much power over Ezekiel as he does over his mother, since they’re both thieves.

I hesitate to draw conclusions without doing a similar list for the other Librarians and Eve. However, at first glance, Magic Gets Ezekiel far more often than he escapes it.

At second glance, Ezekiel seems “resistant” to magic that affects people via warping reality (e.g. the storybook in And the Fables of Doom and the films in And the Silver Screen) and to magic that attempts to manipulate their personality (e.g. the golden apple from And the Apple of Discord). Also, Ezekiel has been affected by magical totems twice: Santa’s Hat and the totem Prospero used on him in And the Happily Ever Afters.

Longer analysis coming soon.

[vinylattes]

[dracox-serdriel]

Supergirl Meta: Mon-El (again)

I originally posted ananalysis (Supergirl: Mon-El) for Supergirl, but I want to expand on it to address two major arguments against Mon-El. The first is that he’s a “magical unicorn” or Mary-Sue character, and the second is that he’s an annoying, abusive frat-boy.

(I also want to write about the relationship between Kara and Mon-El (aka Karamel) in relation to where Season 2 is going, but due to length, that will be a separate post.)

Under the cut for spoilers of all episodes of Supergirl through 02x15 Exodus and for length.

Argument #1: Mon-El is a Mary-Sue

A Mary-Sue/Magical Unicorn character is a character who is added to an existing narrative that reads too good to be true. There are a number of articles out there that identify Mon-El as one such character, and to illustrate, here’s an excerpt from one of them:

I once read a 400,000 word Buffy and Angel and Highlander and X-Files crossover with a self-insert lead character who magically woos Buffy and is super rich and best friends with everyone and super good at fighting and stuff and it was more believable then the nonsense Supergirl has delivered unto its audience with Mon-El.

-- Excerpt from article “Supergirl has a Mon-El Problem”

This article is particularly good because it lists a bunch of things that Mon-El has done that make him out to be one an unrealistic character insert. I thought I’d use it as a place to start a counter-argument. (To see the full list, check out the source.)

1. Magically appeared just after the heroine inexplicably dumps the guy she’s been crushing on for a year for no reason.

Kara doesn’t pursue a romantic relationship with James for a lot of different reasons. There we so many, in fact, that I made an entirely separate post for it: Supergirl: Kara/James Meta.

As to why the Kryptonian pod crash landed now, thirty-seven years after it departed Daxam... that’s still a bit of a mystery right now. Maybe we’ll find out why in 02x16 Star-crossed.

2. Immediately integrated with all the characters.

Untrue. Mon-El had considerable conflict with Alex, who calls him a coward (02x06 Changing) and tells him she doesn’t believe in him at all. He doesn’t have much of a relationship with J’onn or James. The only friends he has seem to be Winn (who helps assess his abilities) and Kara, though he seems to make acquaintances easily while “living at the alien bar” (02x07 The Darkest Places).

Mon-El has spent remarkably little time with J’onn. I say this because J’onn also lost his entire race and wound up stranded on this planet. J’onn could’ve also been a solid ally in a number of situations, such as dealing with a fifth dimensional being in 02x13 Mr. & Mrs. Mxyzptlk and handling Jeremiah’s return in 02x14 Homecoming. These are both times when Mon-El could’ve gone to J’onn with his concerns (about Kara not taking Mxy as a serious threat, about Jeremiah possibly being compromised). J’onn is the leader of the DEO, and he cares about the Danvers sisters. So why hasn’t he gone to J’onn?

Whatever the reasons, Mon-El and J’onn aren’t exactly fast friends, though it’s clear Mon-El respects him (as he gives up to save J’onn’s life in 02x07 The Darkest Place).

For the most part, Guardian/James seems to tolerate Mon-El, as does Alex, though he seems to be growing on her (though his issues with Jeremiah in 02x14 Homecoming might have ruined that progress entirely, only time will tell).

In short, he has friends in Kara and Winn, but everyone else? Ehh, not really.

3. Proven to be the “cool” one that teaches everyone to drink and has zero issue with gay people.

I think it’s quite apparent that 02x04 Survivors that Winn is more than capable of drinking on his own, as he beats Mon-El during every drinking game we see on screen. The only person he “teaches” to drink (if you can call it that) was Kara, who he dares/makes a deal with her to drink something that would be poisonous to humans but harmless to Kryptonians/Daxamites (02x06 Changing).

He might be “cool” with zero-issues with gay people, but he’s also from a hedonistic planet, which might be why he indulges in alcohol/lives at the alien bar (02x07 The Darkest Places).

Also, this overlooks his constant slip-ups with the English. For example, calling Kara’s mother “a babe,” (meaning, beautiful woman) admitting his own confusion over the phrase “chillax for five,” and saying “awe and some” as if it were two separate words (02x04 Survivors). And that’s only in one episode. No matter how extroverted/socially inclined he might be, he doesn’t just magically fit in this world upon arrival.

Part of being “cool” is making everything seem easy, making it appear as if stuff doesn’t matter to you. If you geek out over something (for example, characters in a superhero shows), you tend to lose “cool credit.” But the fact remains that his desire to drink/socialize in a bar scene is related to how he handle’s grief and inner turmoil. He covers his feelings by drinking after seeing Supergirl and J’onn super-sucked by Parasite (02x06 Changing). He likewise wants to forget about the somber thoughts of his lost planet by indulging in fun and games and/or drinking (02x04 Survivors). 

He’s got a cool exterior, but he’s a giant spazz.

4. Been revealed to be super strong and super fast and generally a badass.

Okay, yes, Mon-El is super-strong and fast. But he’s also a giant spazz. Consider the outcome of... well, every single fight he has had so far:

Mon-El vs. Supergirl. His coma wake up gave him an element of surprise that enabled him to “win” this particular fight and escape the DEO, though arguable, it’s beginners luck (02x03 Welcome to Earth).

Mon-El vs. Supergirl, take two. Supergirl kicks his ass and says, “Stay down Daxamite!” He no longer has the element of surprise. He loses. Big time (02x03 Welcome to Earth).

Mon-El accidentally injures two people in a bar. Not really a fight, but this counts as a loss because he doesn’t know what he’s doing and doesn’t mean to do it (02x04 Survivors).

Mon-El attempts to intervene on Supergirl’s behalf during Lena Luthor’s ball, and in turn he gets blasted across the room with an alien gun, leaving him down for the count for the rest of the episode (02x05 Crossfire).

Mon-El faces off against Parasite. While he does save one child by catching a car, he spends the rest of the fight getting his ass kicked by Parasite until Guardian shows up and saves him (02x06 Changing).

Mon-El is attacked and abducted by Cadmus (02x06 Changing).

Mon-El manages a sneaky escape from his Cadmus prison, only to be duped into staying behind to “save J’onn” (02x07 The Darkest Place).

Mon-El nearly dies and admits he’s terrified (02x07 The Darkest Place).

Mon-El, thinking he sees J’onn, follows Hank Henshaw out of the Alien Bar and gets his ass kicked by Cyborg Superman (02x08 Medusa).

Mon-El attempts to step in to help Kara defend the captured humans on Maaldoria and gets hit in the face/knocked to the ground for his trouble (02x09 Supergirl Lives).

With the help of the other humans, they overcome their captors on Maaldoria, who are focusing their firepower on Supergirl, and he takes over one of the guns to help them all escape -- which he seems decent with, until it gets shot from his hands (02x09 Supergirl Lives).

He faces off against the faux-live-wires and nearly gets electrocuted--but redirects the energy elsewhere (02x10 We Can Be Heroes).

Mon-El tries to take down Livewire’s captor, but instead gets captured (02x10 We Can Be Heroes). He does okay when Supergirl shows up... but only with an assist from Guardian.

Mon-El loses every fight against Mxy... very, very badly. (02x13 Mr. & Mrs. Mxyzptlk)

So, yes, he’s powerful, but let’s be honest, as a superhero he kind of sucks. To date, he’s saved one child (02x06 Changing) and has lost nearly every single fight he has been in. The only exceptions are his very first fight (element of surprise) during his escape from the DEO, and during the successful escape on Maaldoria.

Every other time, he has either lost, required someone (Guardian, Supergirl) else to save them, or required assistance to achieve anything. 

He’s got superpowers, but he’s still a giant spazz.

5. Is secretly the prince of an entire world.

Okay, this is probably true, but Daxam is gone. Being the prince of a dead planet doesn’t really count for much. He can’t go home. There’s no home to go to.

6. Fallen madly in love with the titular character.

Conceded. He did. I have no argument against this at all.

7. Had titular character return those feelings even though she is incapable of giving one reason why she likes him besides "he tries hard" and is attractive.

Besides J’onn, Mon-El is the only character who can truly relate to Kara in terms of losing his planet (after having grown up there). J’onn has been a parental figure, not a love interest, and her relationship with Mon-El has been evolving since he woke up: enemies, reluctant acquaintances, mentor/mentoree, friends... and so on.

Kara and Mon-El have also had a number of conversations that even she and Clark could never have had, such as talking about certain planets they visited and the kinds of dancing they had on their home worlds.

She’s got lots of reason to connect with him and to reciprocate his feelings. Thought I’m sure the fact that he tries and is attractive are part of that.

8. Immediately determined a long lost father was evil while everyone around him went FULL stupid and walked right into evil dad's trap.

Part of being prince of a dead planet would be a basic conditioning for life at court, which (assuming it’s anything like the monarchies of earth) means constant suspicious of everyone around them.

Not to mention the fact that Jeremiah Danvers, before being modified, wouldn’t have a hope to win in a fight against J’onn. So it’s not like no precautions were taken...

9. Saved the day because he was calm and collected and persistent about evil dad while the ladies were too weepy to notice the obvious bad guy in their midst.

Actually, no he didn’t. The only time he’s saved the day was on Maaldoria, when the Dominator let him and the others go when he put himself between the escaping humans/Supergirl. During 02x14 Homecoming, Mon-El was with Alex and Kara searching for the “bomb” Jeremiah had guided them to... If anyone saved the day, it was Winn, who hid a tracker on Jeremiah so they could pursue him into the woods. And even that didn’t really work out.

IN SUMMARY... Basically, Mon-El isn’t a very successful Superhero. He hasn’t integrated with everyone on the team/show. He’s not a magical unicorn. He is, in fact, a giant spazz still adapting to this world.

Argument #2: Mon-El is an annoying, abusive frat-boy

I can’t speak to the annoying bit, as that is a matter of opinion, but I can speak to the “frat boy” comment that came from Kara herself.

PART ONE: FRAT BOY Everyone deals with grief and misery in their own way. Some people brood. Other people try to bury themselves in work or to forget it with drinking/carousing/anything that can do to make themselves forget.

It’s pretty clear that Mon-El favors the latter.

MON-EL: Yeah, I know it's a long shot, but any chance there was a response to that signal I sent to Daxam? I mean, I can't be the only one left, right?

ALEX: I'm sorry, but, no. 

(long pause)

MON-EL: Right, uh... Anyway, enough of those... Those dreary thoughts, right? So, what do you guys do for fun around here? Do you drink or dance or... Oh, hey, do they play Garata here?

ALEX: What's Garata?

KARA: It's like soccer, with dragons.

WINN: No, not that. Uh, we have PlayStation.

MON-EL: Great. So, when do we get out of here and do that... That thing you just said?

-- Episode 02x04 Survivors

His first reaction to learning his planet is gone (and, indeed, there was no response to his distress signal, which cements this idea) is to “go out and have fun.” While this might seem like evidence of him being a “frat boy,” a lot of people handle grief/pain/sorrow like this. For those of us who handle it in other ways (such as brooding/throwing themselves into work), this seems impossible. How can you go out and have fun when you’re feeling so horrible? How can you laugh and smile when you’ve lost everything?

Nevertheless, it is a common copping mechanism, and just as valid as any other someone might use to pull themselves up after a tremendous loss.

Chances are, Mon-El earned his reputation of “frat boy of the universe” from this particularly coping strategy. It also implies that he was deeply unhappy with his life as it was on Daxam. That might be because he opposed institutions like slavery but had no means by which to end them (even though he was going to be king and therefore would be - in theory - the most powerful person on the planet, it’s likely that his true power was limited by factions--including major factions that supported slavery).

We also know that on Daxam, marriages are arranged from birth.

“On Daxam, we had arranged marriages, chosen for you at birth. You reach a certain age, boom. You're latched to that person.”

-- Mon-El in episode 02x07 The Darkest Place

This suggests that Mon-El, even as the Prince of Daxam, had no choice when it came to who he spent the rest of his life with, which is pretty restrictive compared even with the monarchies of earth. He can have all the power of a monarchy, but he had no choice in any of the major life-choices anyone on earth might have.

However, while Mon-El says their marriages are arranged, there are a number of things that imply that there is some wiggle room on this notion.

MON-EL: I've come to challenge you, Mxyzptlk.

MXYZPTLK: A Daxamite duel? I never had one of those before. For Kara's hand?

MON-EL: Yes.

MXYZPTLK: To the death?

MON-EL: Yes.

MXYZPTLK: I accept.

MON-EL: Good.

-- Episode 02x13 Mr. & Mrs. Mxyzptlk

Daxamite duels for someone’s hand are known my Mxy, which suggests that not everyone on Daxam had such strict arrange marriages. It’s likely something that those in the Royal Court had, but those outside of royalty didn’t have to deal with. It’s likely that a lot of his personal choices (who to marry, how to behave) were dictated entirely by his position.

He also says that his parents “weren’t exactly role models” (02x04 Survivors) and his father “wasn’t a good man” (02x14 Homecoming). He specifically mentions that he disagreed with certain things happening on Daxam, too.

JO: Slaving is a big business on Maaldoria.

MON-EL: Wait, this is Maaldoria?

KARA: You know where we are?

MON-EL: The locals call it Slavers' Moon. The royal family on Daxam used to buy their slaves here.

KARA: I forgot they had slavery on Daxam.

MON-EL: There were a lot of things there I didn't agree with.

-- Episode 02x09 Supergirl Lives

So while Mon-El hasn’t come out and said it directly, it’s been heavily implied that he was very unhappy on Daxam, despite whatever power a planetary prince might wield.

In fact, when he does comment on things on Daxam, he says very little in terms of who he was or how he lived. The sole exception was a backhanded comment he made after an argument with Kara:

“Things were a lot easier on Daxam, when I objectified women and didn't care about anyone.”

-- Mon-El in episode 02x13 Mr. & Mrs. Mxyzptlk

I’m guessing he didn’t care about anyone because caring for people was dangerous - it gave people leverage over him. I have to guess because we know precious little about his life on Daxam.

We have further evidence that Mon-El tends to drown his sorrows when he faces off against something overwhelming when he sees what Parasite has done to Kara and J’onn.

ALEX: Thirsty?

MON-EL: Not particularly. I've just found that drinking is the fastest way to get drunk, so...

ALEX: This city could really use a hero right about now.

MON-EL: Fighting rampaging creatures isn't on my resume.

ALEX: Oh, that's right... but beating people up for money is though, right?

MON-EL: Hey, here's an idea. Why don't you go believe in somebody else, Alex? Thanks.

ALEX: I don't believe in you, Mon-El. I suspect you're a coward, and that you would run at the first sign of danger... My sister, she's the one who believes in you. That's why she's so upset with you all the time. She thinks you have potential. To make a difference, like she does. To be hero.

MON-EL: I don't know how.

ALEX: You can start by standing up. Like the rest of us.

-- Episode 02x06 Changing

Mon-El eventually ends up working at the Alien Bar (02x09 Supergirl Lives), a place where he supposedly spends most of his time (02x07 The Darkest Place), after the Medusa virus is unleashed there. He spends a lot of time drinking and socializing, but it’s less about him being a frat boy and more about him struggling. He covers his sorrow with glibness and comedy. He drinks his pain away. He’d rather drink himself under the table than face off against Parasite.

He runs and hides when he’s overwhelmed. That doesn’t make him a bad person or a “frat boy,” it means he’s in pain and trying to cope.

PART TWO: HE DOESN’T LISTEN One of the “annoying” issues with Mon-El is that he frequently doesn’t listen to those around him, especially Kara. While this is true, he has been learning from his mistakes. For example, when he accidentally harmed two humans in a bar:

MON-EL: It's not Winn's fault. Hey, I... I tricked him...

KARA: Winn will be fine. And those guys you hurt will recover. But you shouldn't have been out there.

MON-EL: Hank told me I needed to stay here because it wasn't safe. But he didn't mean for me. He meant it wasn't safe for humans. From me.

KARA: After I first got to Earth, I went to my junior prom. And Scott Klein asked me to dance. I stepped on his foot and I broke three of his toes. It's just gonna take some time to get used to having these abilities and... And living in the world.

-- Episode 02x04 Survivors

Mon-El immediately takes responsibility for his actions and does his best to protect Winn from any fall out. He hadn’t realized that other people were the ones in danger - he thought he was the only one in danger. Once he recognized this, he says, “I promise that I will do as I'm told from now on” (02x04 Survivors).

During their unintended jaunt into Maaldoria, Mon-El constantly suggests that they save themselves, yet he follows Kara’s lead, down to walking into the lion’s den and surrendering to capture when he could’ve continued to hid with Jo (02x09 Supergirl Lives).

When facing Faux-Livewires for the first time, he “leaves his post” to help Kara fight them off, leading to a cop and Guardian being injured (02x10 We Can Be Heroes). However, at the end of this episode, when Supergirl instructs him and Guardian to take down the Faux-Livewires while she saves the original, he doesn’t question her or leave his post (02x10 We Can Be Heroes). This suggests he can and does listen to Kara - and, more importantly, that he learns from him mistakes.

Of course, in 02x13 Mr. & Mrs. Mxyzptlk, he doesn’t react well to Mxy’s sudden appearance. He withholds what little he knows about fifth dimensional beings, suggests that they kill Mxy, and challenges him to a duel. Given that we didn’t see much of him in 02x11 The Martian Chronicles or in 02x12 Luthors, the audience can easily conclude that Mon-El has not, in fact, learned from his mistakes with Faux-Livewires in 02x10 We Can Be Heroes.

However, when it comes to Mxy, Mon-El is more aware of how dangerous the imp is. He also has to deal with a cultural norm established on Daxam - that is, that fighting a duel for someone’s hand is an acceptable norm.

While Mon-El is repeating his mistakes/not listening to Kara, Kara is likewise not listening to him. Last time it was far more “Mon-El is wrong and should’ve listened to Kara,” but this time, both of them are wrong. This is something Kara admits, just not to Mon-El:

J’ONN: Where is Mxyzptlk now?

KARA: I don't know. He snapped away. I thought he was just after me, but he almost killed those guys. He's a lot more dangerous than I thought.

J’ONN: Agreed.

-- Mon-El in episode  02x13 Mr. & Mrs. Mxyzptlk

Mon-El had already said that imps were “dangerous, very dangerous” and that Daxam had a “a zero tolerance policy,” even though they “knew how to party.” J’onn described their abilities - down to moving an entire mountain range - and Kara doesn’t seem to worry about it.

Mon-El tries, twice, to get Kara to take Mxy as a serious threat. Both times she says she’ll handle it and shuts him down with little indication that she has heard Mon-El’s warnings. Yes, it was stupid of Mon-El to go off and try to handle Mxy on his own terms, but part of this was his reaction to Kara’s dismissing his warnings. He should’ve gone to J’onn with his concerns; instead, he runs off and essentially loses the DEO’s only weapon against fifth dimensional beings in the fray.

However, he does apologize for what he’s done and admits to his own jealousy.

Furthermore, he follows Kara’s lead on the bomb situation despite his suspicions of Jeremiah, joining her and Alex on the mission to recover “the bomb,” which he does not believe exists (02x14 Homecoming). He’s right there with them, backing them up, even though he thinks they should be wary of Jeremiah.  This shows that his lessons from faux-Livewire and Mxy have both left a lasting impression. He’s new to the superhero thing, so it’s important to listen to those with more experience. Even when he thinks he knows better--and even when (as it turns out) he’s right.

So, no, he doesn’t always “listen,” but he has learned from those mistakes and has shown recently that he can - and will - listen to others despite his own perceptions/concerns.

PART THREE: HE’S ABUSIVE I’m not following this logic. Every time that Kara has rejected Mon-El (which, BTW is A LOT), he has always respectfully walked away from the situation. Consider the following:

Admitting he protected her in faux-Livewire attack because he has feelings for her (02x10 We Can Be Heroes)

When Kara tells him she would never be with him because “It's... It's the way you are,” he tells her he’s going over there and leaves the very, very uncomfortable situation (02x11 The Martian Chronicles)

He supports her judgement of Lena after her rejection, even though he has already given up on changing her mind (02x12 Luthors).

When he can’t persuade Kara not to marry Mxy and he discovers that she also won’t be his (superhero) partner anymore, he leaves once she insists he does so by opening the door (02x13 Mr. & Mrs. Mxyzptlk).

When Kara asks him not to leave yet, he says that he understand that she thinks they’re not a good match and he respects it -- thus, he is prepared to leave the apartment and no longer poke at this painful subject (02x13 Mr. & Mrs. Mxyzptlk).

It would be so easy for anyone to lose their temper in these situations and say something ugly, but instead he verbally accepts what she’s said and does his best to leave on as friendly of terms as he can.

So why do people read him as abusive? He has only made a choice few comments to Kara that are admittedly quite mean:

KARA: You are so selfish.

MON-EL: Okay.

(Mon-El attempts to leave but turns back when Kara speaks)

KARA: I don't know what else I should have expected from a...

MON-EL: From what? From a Daxamite? KARA: I didn't say that. MON-EL: Yeah, but you were going to, Kara. Okay, I may have your powers but I don't have this... This innate desire to go leaping into trouble. But that doesn't make me a bad person, all right? KARA: It kind of does. MON-EL: No, it doesn't. You're no saint, Kara Zor-El! KARA: Excuse me? MON-EL: You fly around, rescuing people, like you're just pure of heart. But that is crap. Because you love that attention. You love people loving you. You are not selfless. KARA: And you are no hero. I thought you could be, but I was wrong.

-- Episode 02x06 Changing, emphasis mine

Of the things he says to her, this is the worst. Namely, she’s not a saint. She loves the attention of being a superhero.

You know, as far as insults go, I’ve heard better. Add that to the fact that she has insulted his (deceased) planet/race quite a lot, and I’d say he’s given her a ridiculous amount of respect, given her attitude towards Daxam. Heck, even when he remarks about Krypton, the worst he says is “self-righteous” (in regards to the glyph on her chest - 02x03 Welcome to Earth) and a “planet of snobs” in jest (02x04 Survivors).

Yes, he does argue with Kara. He argues with her the entire time on Maaldoria, saying they should go back. Yet he willingly goes into the lion’s den despite his reservations, follows her plan, and even submits to capture (02x09 Supergirl Lives). He also argues with her on how she handles Mxy as well as how she apparently gives Mxy a free pass on his behavior, yet she acts like Mon-El is to blame because he didn’t tell her about getting the trickster to say his name backwards is key to making him leave (02x13 Mr. & Mrs. Mxyzptlk).

Arguing with someone isn’t the same thing as abuse, and the arguments between Kara and Mon-El aren’t abusive at all. They disagree. They squabble. With respect.

So, no, not abusive, either.