SPOILER WARNING: This article contains major spoilers for "Stand and Deliver," the latest episode of Supergirl.
The latest episode of Supergirl left James Olsen's life hanging in the balance. Just as "Stand and Deliever" ended, an as-yet unidentified person broke into CatCo and shot James, leaving him bleeding out on his office floor.
In the face of a peaceful protest against Ben Lockwood's attempt to repeal the Alien Amnesty Act, James made the spur-of-the-moment decision to accompany his reporter as a photographer. As tensions escalated between the protestors and Lockwood supporters, Manchester Black arrived to turn the event into a riot. Despite the violence raging around him, James seized the opportunity to document the event.
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James' photos added some much-needed humanity to the proceedings. His snapshots of peaceful aliens helping one another in the wake of violence from Lockwood's cronies led to wide-spread support of the alien protestors. As a result, Lockwood and President Baker decided to postpone the repeal of the Alien Amnesty Act, giving Supergirl and her friends more time to fight the motion.
Basking in the afterglow of his good deed, James put in a late night at the office, staying well after everyone else had gone home. As he left, his phone rang. He turned to answer it, only to encounter the intruder. The intruder -- dressed all in black and hidden behind a deceptive camera angle -- shot him point blank in the chest. He collapsed to the floor, blood pooling underneath him.
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On the eve of Lex Luthor's arrival, the list of suspects is long. Indeed, the shooter may even be Luthor himself; if he has it in for Superman, he must also hold a grudge against Superman's best pal. However, seeing as he won't appear on the series until next week and may not even be released from prison yet, he is an unlikely candidate.
The most obvious suspect would be Lockwood, albeit indirectly. After all, he has the most to lose in the face of James' photography. It's possible, then, that he ordered one of his Children of Liberty to send James a message. If that's the case, though, there wouldn't be much reason to hide the suspect's identity. Lockwood has a sea of nameless followers with a proclivity for wearing masks, so that wouldn't make for much of a reveal.
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James' shooting could also have to do with his investigation into Lena Luthor's research. After one of his reporters discovered L Corp's "black budget," he called Lena's assistant Eve Tessmacher into his office to ask her about it. She refused to reveal the nature of the project and told him she'd approach Lena about it. The episode never shows this moment, since Lena waved Eve off when she tried to tell her. Eve could take matters into her own hands and try to silence James herself; after all, she was originally introduced as a villain. Likewise, if the DEO's Colonel Haley were to discover their secret project was about to be outed in the press, she could have ordered James killed; she certainly hasn't shied away from violent methods before.
Airing Sundays at 8 p.m. ET/PT on The CW, Supergirl stars Melissa Benoist as Kara Danvers, David Harewood as Martian Manhunter, Mehcad Brooks as Jimmy Olsen and Chyler Leigh as Alex Danvers.