‘Supergirl’ Pilot was Almost Super

Monday, at the strange time of 8:30 to 9:30, CBS aired the pilot episode of the newest series from the DC comics-to-TV powerhouse Greg Berlanti, the show Supergirl. Berlanti has two major TV hits on his hands with both Arrow and The Flash on the sister network of CBS, CW (a joint operation of CBS and Warner Bros., the latter of which holds the media rights to DC content).

Supergirl‘s premiere was preceded by much hype, with a big splash at San Diego Comic-Con this past summer. The question is, did the first episode live up to the hype? The answer — without getting into any spoilers — is a qualified yes. For the reason for the yes and the things that keep it from being a resounding yes, I will have to get into some spoilers, so stop reading if you haven’t watched the episode and don’t want any surprises ruined.

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First, let me get this out of the way. I have no problem with using creative license with anything being converted from one medium to another, if it works and fits the vision of the primary creator of the new medium version. So it doesn’t bother me that James Olsen is only called Jimmy by his mom and Superman, that he doesn’t wear a bow tie or any kind of tie or that he is black, not a dorky ginger.

Seriously, people get so upset about these things, but how many different versions of Supergirl have there been in the comics? Not counting the really alternate universe versions (like Power Girl, who is Kara Zor-L), there have been two other primary versions of Supergirl aside from Superman’s cousin Kara Zor-El — a synthetic organism made by Lex Luthor called Matrix and the human Linda Lee Danvers after merging with Matrix. All of which took place while DC had the Kara Zor-El Supergirl killed off during one of its many entire universe reboots. So let James Olsen grow up a bit and ditch the bow ties while he takes on the role of the art director for a national publication.

Now that I have that out of the way, let’s look at what works the best. First is Melissa Benoist, Supergirl herself. She is adorably, believably charming and earnest. She inhabits Supergirl with real emotion, without reaching the heights of mania or depths of emo angst. Her reaction, both as written and as acted by Benoist, to experiencing pain for the first time in her life, hits the right note between shock and awe (to find a new use for the hackneyed phrase).

Second is the action. It is exciting and mostly grounded in night-time believable fights with lots of explosions — very much like Arrow or The Flash. As a superpowered alien that has been hiding her powers for more than a decade, Supergirl fights like an amateur, not like the seasoned pro her cousin is, which adds to making the otherwise crazy fights seem more realistic.

Third, Calista Flockhart as Cat Grant, owner of the media conglomerate CatCo. Sure she may not be as young as her comic book version, but she still fits the bill of a beautiful power player. Flockhart eats up her scenes as a knockoff Meryl Streep from The Devil Wears Prada, without making Grant a caricature from Horrible Bosses.

Fourth, setting up the season-arcing bad guy storylines. While Supergirl winds up working with the agency DEO (Department of Extra-Normal Operations), which has been employing Kara’s human step-sister Alex for years without Kara knowing it, it is clear that the head of the group, Hank Henshaw, will become a problem for her down the road. Also, we find out that the Kryptonian criminals that inadvertently escaped from the Phantom Zone when Kara got out are being masterminded by Kara’s aunt Astra, a general like Zod in the movie Man of Steel that was imprisoned for an attempted insurrection.

Fifth, the costume. It is a very well-thought out mix of the patterned fabric material with darker colors like the uniform in Man of Steel and the sectioned top like in the New 52 uniform, all while being very similar to the version Helen Slater (who plays Kara’s human mom, Eliza Danvers, along with Dean Cain of Lois and Clarke as Jeremiah Danvers) wore in the movie Supergirl. The one difference from any of those versions — the tights underneath the skirt. While the way the skirt pleats with a big front panel makes it drape in such a way to almost make a Britney wardrobe malfunction impossible, adding the tights is a nod to both realism and physics. Not that I minded the very quick fan service showing the rejected disco hot pants version in the image to the left.

Now, some misses. First, the CGI was occasionally way off the mark. At the end of the first time Kara uses her powers to save a jet coming down with her sister Alex on it (turns out it was an assassination attempt against Alex and DEO), there are very quick moments in which the CGI looks like bad video game quality. This surfaces again in Kara’s first fight with the alien villain Vartox (and his space axe).

Second, Vartox himself. I know it sucks to be that first bad guy that has to do all the exposition about why all the bad guys hate the hero, but even so, in this case he became little more than a good soldier and enthusiastic misogynist. There was very little sense of real danger from him.

Third, the preachiness. Let me be clear — I loved the way the producers and writers dealt with the issue of the name Supergirl itself and how it can be seen as belittling the power of someone who is — in the comics at least — somewhat more powerful than Superman himself. Kara asks Grant when her boss labels the new female hero “Supergirl,” “Why not Superwoman?” While Grant’s explanation is clearly contrived to explain why the creators didn’t change the name of the series, it is also logical and is likely to be the last word on the subject. Alas, it wasn’t the last time the “girl power” hammer came down on our heads with zero subtlety in the one hour show. Let’s hope the show keeps up the mission of female empowerment, and like Buffy the Vampire Slayer before it, does so with story, not speeches.

When the first episode was over, I was left wanting to watch more of Supergirl’s story and adventures, and that is ultimately what the producers of the show want. Was it as strikingly good as the first episode of Arrow, or, long before that, the first episode of the original series Heroes? No, but neither was The Flash, and that is still a must-watch show for me. Supergirl should be for you as well.