SUPERGIRL follows cousin of Superman, Kara Danvers (Zor-El) as she navigates being a superhero and an assistant to a Media Mogul, Cat Grant, with help from her friends. Once she used her powers to save her sister, after years of staying hidden, Kara decides to become Supergirl and help National City the same way her cousin does.
Kara learns that when she arrived to Earth in her pod, she brought the alien prison Fort Roz with her and worlds with a government agency, the DEO (Department of ExtraNormal Operations) to catch them and other threats to National City.
The most current threat they have, that has lasted most of the season, is discovery of Kara's aunt Astra being alive. After she is killed in defense by Alex (which Kara eventually found out), Astra's husband, Non, continues on with their plan to take over earth using some unknown device called the Myriad. Another lesser threats is a of a scientist called Maxwell Lord, who has tried to kill Kara several times due to his distrust of aliens. Currently, they let him go with the threat of prison should he tell anyone who Supergirl really is.
Rundown of the main characters
Kara Danvers: Cousin of Superman, who become Supergirl after rescuing her adoptive sister, Alex, from a plane crash. Her day job is as an assistant to her boss Cat Grant, but as Supergirl, she works with the DEO to stop alien threats to the city. Through a hologram of her mother’s, that is kept at the DEO, Kara often goes to her for advice concerning aliens from Fort Roz that have escaped or even her own family.
Alex Danvers: Kara's adoptive sister. She works for the DEO as a scientist and a skilled field agent. Kara eventually found out about her work with the DEO while fighting an alien and since then they have worked together. Although she is fiercely protective of her sister, they have learned to work alongside each other as equals.
Hank Henshaw/J'onn J'onzz: Originally thought to be simply director of the DEO, it turns out that the human Hank Henshaw died while hunting an alien with Kara and Alex's father. Being a shapeshifter and Martian, he took over Hank Henshaw's identity and his role as director of the DEO to watch over the two sisters.
Cat Grant: Kara, Winn’s and James’ boss at Catco is founder of the Media Conglomerate. She initially comes off as being superficial, but has a soft spot for Kara and her two sons, who she works on building a relationship with. She believes that since she is the one who branded Supergirl that she has the main right over Supergirl related news.
James Olsen: Yes, Jimmy Olsen, but he prefers James. Coming over from Metropolis to work as a photojournalist at Catco, but also to keep an eye on Kara for Superman. Their relationship comes much deeper then that. He admitted he loved her to an alien and his girlfriend broke up with him because how obvious it was he loved her, so let’s stop beating around the bush and get on with it.
Winn Schott Jr: Winn, another close friend of Kara and one of the first people to find out about her alias as Supergirl, works with her at Catco as an IT expert, who often helps Kara, as well as the DEO with their alien missions. After initially having a crush on Kara, Winn seems more comfortable being her friend after she didn’t reciprocate his feelings.
The fighting style has grown increasingly better over the season. In the beginning, the fighting choreography was a little clunky while trying to incorporate Kara's flying and other powers, but there's a definite improvement in these fighting scene as the show seems to have found its groove.
One issue that SUPERGIRL has is the too much talked about and not enough showing feminism. As much as I love our fabulous Cat Grant, she speaks too much about it, but actions speak louder than words. Viewers don't need to be constantly told about gender or race inequality, but showing the differences of Cat and her other male counterparts or Jimmy and other employees is more likely to emphasize the difference without spending time on monologues about lack of equality.
This show definitely has promise. While it is slightly less campy than THE FLASH, it’s not as dark and brooding as ARROW. Melissa Benoist brings Kara alive and makes her likable with her realistic, but hopeful portrayal of Supergirl. I’m looking forward to see the crossover with THE FLASH's Barry Allen and how these two shows will collide on the crossover episode in two weeks.
Next new episode is Monday at 8pm on CBS.
Written by Carly B., SUPERGIRL Beat Writer -- Click to read Carly's posts.
[Editor Note: Daily SuperHero writer Carly B. has transitioned from the conclusion of AGENT CARTER Season 2 onto the weekly coverage of SUPERGIRL, and this is her first post recapping everything so far.]
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