Supergirl
Genre: Superhero, drama
Number of seasons: 1 (renewal pending)
Best episodes:
-Pilot
-Red Faced
-Human for a Day
-Falling (definitely the best of the season)
-Worlds' Finest (crossover with the Flash!)
Thoughts:
I'm so conflicted over this show. There are aspects of it that I genuinely love: Melissa Benoist is absolutely perfect as Supergirl; the reveal of Martian Manhunter was brilliant and definitely one of the most consistently intriguing parts of the show; Cat Grant, while at first seemingly a cardboard-cutout stereotype of the b*tchy boss lady, became the show's secret weapon in that she evolved into a sympathetic and complex character, while still dishing out a ton of great one-liners. I also love Kara's relationship with her sister Alex; that, as well as Kara's bond with Cat, is the real heart of the show. In fact, this show has so much heart; it focuses on hope and compassion as the means to save the world, and, while DC Comics characters on the big screen are currently solving their problems by beating the crap out of each other and destroying whole cities, that's refreshing to see.
Having said that...there are definitely things the writers need to work on. For one thing, the show needs better villains. Astra and Non were such a non-threat throughout the series, the finale felt anticlimactic. The other villains, like Vartox, the Helgrammite, Reactron, Jemm - does anyone even remember them? Maybe Supergirl needs to go to a serialized format instead of procedural, because villain-of-the-week plots just aren't working. Also, please no more soapy relationship drama. I kind of expect it from the CW, because it's the CW, but you would think CBS would be a bit better about it. If anything, just make Kara's love interests more interesting - James Oleson is the most boring man on the planet, and it reflects badly on Kara when she's continually attracted to someone so dull. The Flash had more chemistry with Kara in one episode than James had with her the entire season!
Needless to say, Supergirl's status for renewal is uncertain right now. I wouldn't say I'd be heartbroken if it didn't get a Season 2, but I would be sad; whatever its flaws, this show has potential, and I would love to see what the writers could do once they fix the missteps from this season.
