Supergirl Trailer Teases New Version of DC Villain Parasite

The trailer for the latest episode of Supergirl teases a new version of the Parasite - the classic Superman villain who has the power to absorb the abilities of any metahuman or alien he touches. What makes this reveal so interesting is how this version of the Parasite was created and how Supergirl has already used this concept once before.

First appearing in Action Comics #340 in August 1966, the first Parasite was a petty crook named Raymond Maxwell Jensen, who got a job working at a scientific research center so that he could case and rob the facility. Wrongly believing that the center's payroll was hidden inside one of the containers used for storing hazardous materials, Maxwell accidentally exposed himself to strange energies. This transformed him into a monstrous being who could absorb the knowledge and physical properties of anyone he touched. A similar accident at STAR Labs' facility in Pittsburgh in Firestorm Vol. 2 #58 would transform janitor Rudy Jones into the second Parasite.

The trailer for the upcoming episode "Parasite Lost," which can be viewed below, reveals the new version of the Parasite that will be plaguing Supergirl. This time the Parasite is Agent Jensen - a rogue DEO agent, who betrayed the agency by helping anti-alien terrorists Mercy and Otis Graves escape custody. Agent Jensen was also responsible for stealing the DEO technology the Graves siblings later used to seed the atmosphere with Kryptonite in the episode "Fallout."

Jensen's apparent transformation into the new Parasite occurred at the end of the most recent episode, "Ahimsa." It was here that the Graves siblings, their ally Agent Liberty and Jensen attempted to stage a series of alien rampages, using an abducted alien empath named Fiona, a pair of violent convicted alien criminals, some old LexCorp technology and a parasitic alien worm. Though Supergirl and the DEO were able to thwart the scheme, Agent Jensen was able to get away with the alien worm. The episode concluded with Agent Liberty inserting the worm into Jensen's ear canal, assuring him that he was about to "make something of himself" for their cause.

This alien worm seems to be identical to the one that created the first version of the Parasite in the Arrowverse, which appeared in the season 2 episode "Changing." It was here that climatology professor Dr. Rudy Jones became infected by some manner of alien worm, which had been hibernating inside of a wolf's body for thousands of years after becoming trapped in the ice. Much like the symbiote in Venom, the alien repressed Dr. Jones' self-control even as it gave him the ability to drain the life force from other creatures with a touch. Dr. Jones was ultimately transformed into a giant purple monster, similar to the Parasite from the comics, after he attempted to drain the powers from Supergirl and Martian Manhunter at the same time, apparently taking too much power and becoming stuck in a new shape while reflexively mimicking Martian Manhunter's shapeshifting powers.

It remains to be seen if Agent Jensen will undergo a similar metamorphosis in the upcoming episode "Parasite Lost." However, the reintroduction of the Parasite suggests that the showrunners of Supergirl realize they made a mistake in killing off the Rudy Jones version of the Parasite after only one outing. Whatever the reason for the return, the battle between Supergirl and this new Parasite is sure to be a memorable one.