Melissa's been working out?

Anyone notice in the Season 5 trailer that Melissa seems to have been working on her shoulders and neck (and probably everything else) to build more muscle?

Here's an unretouched image from the trailer... you can tell a lot about someone's muscularity from their shoulders and neck. Almost looks PG-like. 

 

Shadar

That's a lovely upper body profile for a Supergirl. Or a vel. At least, in my mind most vels have broad shoulders and visible trapezoid, although not hyper-defined, muscles.

shadar wrote: Anyone notice in the Season 5 trailer that Melissa seems to have been working on her shoulders and neck (and probably everything else) to build more muscle?

Here's an unretouched image from the trailer... you can tell a lot about someone's muscularity from their shoulders and neck. Almost looks PG-like. 

 

Shadar

She's possibly been munching on Circes Cup's fruit from through the caves. Of course it wouldn't have any effects on a human on earth, but a Kryptonian under a yellow sun? A different matter altogether...

Like most actors, I'm sure Melissa has a trainer and has been working out hard for years. But perhaps this year she's leaned out a bit and we can see the results of her hard work. IMHO, A Kryptonian should be noticeably muscular. After all, superstrength is her main thing. She certainly shouldn't look like an anorexic supermodel or whatever, and Melissa most certainly does not. 

Of course, we can rationalize anything with comic book science, but I vastly prefer it when the actors playing superstrong charaacters look really strong. Should Thor or Superman look wimpy and soft and underdeveloped? No way anyone would consider that. Should Lady Thor or Valkyries look anorexic? No way. 
(Don't get me started on Natalie Portman.)  

The interesting thing in that brief trailer scene was that she wasn't lifting anything. Just standing there, arms hanging as she talked to J'onzz. That's pretty good definition of traps and neck given just normal movements. 

She's looking more like my idea of Supergirl this year. Hopefully, Season 5 will be worth watching, which for me means Melissa spending a lot of time doing super stuff and on the friggin' screen. Maybe this season will be the magic we've all been waiting for. 

I know... I'm an incurable optimist about this time every year. <grin>


Shadar

Judging from this behind the scenes image, she'll be putting her muscles to use at least a little bit.

 

Perhaps Melissa's new muscularity is how Lena Luthor learns her secret?

She already has.  Lex told her at the end of the last season.

Yeah, sorry about that, a bit behind the times here in the uk. I'd just read about the season 4 finale here -

comicbook.com/dc/2019/07/21/supergirl-se...kara-confrontation-/

(S5 looks good)

shadar wrote: Like most actors, I'm sure Melissa has a trainer and has been working out hard for years. But perhaps this year she's leaned out a bit and we can see the results of her hard work. IMHO, A Kryptonian should be noticeably muscular. After all, superstrength is her main thing. She certainly shouldn't look like an anorexic supermodel or whatever, and Melissa most certainly does not. 

Of course, we can rationalize anything with comic book science, but I vastly prefer it when the actors playing superstrong charaacters look really strong. Should Thor or Superman look wimpy and soft and underdeveloped? No way anyone would consider that. Should Lady Thor or Valkyries look anorexic? No way. 
(Don't get me started on Natalie Portman.)  

The interesting thing in that brief trailer scene was that she wasn't lifting anything. Just standing there, arms hanging as she talked to J'onzz. That's pretty good definition of traps and neck given just normal movements. 

She's looking more like my idea of Supergirl this year. Hopefully, Season 5 will be worth watching, which for me means Melissa spending a lot of time doing super stuff and on the friggin' screen. Maybe this season will be the magic we've all been waiting for. 

I know... I'm an incurable optimist about this time every year. <grin>


Shadar

Exactly, I absolutely agree. Helen Slater, although beautiful as she is as a Supergirl\Supermodel, I feel didn't have the right build for all that superstrength. Melissa and the producers seem to be going for the right lines here. (Looking forward to Season 5)

Supergirl and the Charmed sisters compare powers   (this appeared in a search for supergirl season 5 earlier today)

slim36 wrote: Supergirl and the Charmed sisters compare powers

  (this appeared in a search for supergirl season 5 earlier today)

A nice reminder that there are Kryptonians, and then there is every other kind of Super. 

The nice thing about Supergirl, and particularily Kara in the TV show, is that despite being essentially a goddess compared to anyone else, she doesn't let it go to her head. She's a young woman who punches way over her head, but an be convincingly human when she wishes. 

Which is the challenge of putting a Kryptonian into any kind of action movie or TV show.  The writers have to find ways (not always believable ones) to make every week a physical challenge for her. They should have focused more on the bad guys working on her head and on the people around her, or coming up with other Supers who an stand up to her. 

The Lex Luthor segments of last season did it mostly right. The Luthors have always been able to face down a Kryptonian.

I'm supposing we'll see Lena getting very good at this in Season 5. It'll be interesting to see Lena go into full Luthor mode. 

Shadar

A real challenge for Kryptonians would be the mental challenge and self control needed to maintain cover as a human.  To wait in a long line when you could easily leap over to the front, or even superspeed without leaping.   Put up with insults and bad behavior without using heat vision..  Maybe revenge comes in mysterious unexplained ways at a random time in the future..


Could such superpowered aliens be here now? If so we'll find out if they want us to know.

slim36 wrote: A real challenge for Kryptonians would be the mental challenge and self control needed to maintain cover as a human.  To wait in a long line when you could easily leap over to the front, or even superspeed without leaping.   Put up with insults and bad behavior without using heat vision..  Maybe revenge comes in mysterious unexplained ways at a random time in the future..


Could such superpowered aliens be here now? If so we'll find out if they want us to know.

I thought it was charming in the opening scene of Episode 1, Season 1, when Kara is carrying coffee for Miss Grant and she bumps into some guy on the crowded street and sends him flying but doesn't spill the coffee. And that's despite the fact that she tried to yield a bit to soften the blow.  But, of course, she's very apologetic after.. "Sorry, sorry...!"

I'm sure the guy she sent flying remembers her as the most solid woman he'd ever run into. But he didn't automatically assume she was Superman's cousin or anything. So yeah, could Kryptonian-like people hide in plain sight in the real world?  Most definitely. 

Shadar

shadar wrote:

slim36 wrote: A real challenge for Kryptonians would be the mental challenge and self control needed to maintain cover as a human.  To wait in a long line when you could easily leap over to the front, or even superspeed without leaping.   Put up with insults and bad behavior without using heat vision..  Maybe revenge comes in mysterious unexplained ways at a random time in the future..


Could such superpowered aliens be here now? If so we'll find out if they want us to know.

I thought it was charming in the opening scene of Episode 1, Season 1, when Kara is carrying coffee for Miss Grant and she bumps into some guy on the crowded street and sends him flying but doesn't spill the coffee. And that's despite the fact that she tried to yield a bit to soften the blow.  But, of course, she's very apologetic after.. "Sorry, sorry...!"

I'm sure the guy she sent flying remembers her as the most solid woman he'd ever run into. But he didn't automatically assume she was Superman's cousin or anything. So yeah, could Kryptonian-like people hide in plain sight in the real world?  Most definitely. 

Shadar

Also, at that time only a select few knew that Superman even HAD a living cousin. She'd been trying to live a normal life with no heroics(I think there may have been a communication breakdown between the cousins regarding that. Superman thought Kara would go into heroics if she wanted to, while Kara thought Superman would tell HER when he thought it was OK for her to take a crack at heroics) then then Alex's flight lost an engine and Kara had to shake the rust off in a hurry to save the airliner from a disastrous crash. A little after that, Winn helped Kara put together her first costume, and a false start or 2 later, Supergirl had made her debut

I think you have your answer Shadar: www.looper.com/166183/how-melissa-benois...ipped-for-supergirl/

Now, I've noticed Melissa's delts before so I don't personally think this is season 4/5 specific but I do respect the effort to get in shape for the character.

"While comic book titans DC and Marvel have both made noise about introducing more diversity to their products, one thing that all superheroes have in common are incredible abs. "

Read More: www.looper.com/166183/how-melissa-benois...l/?utm_campaign=clip

pretty slick.  copy/paste automatically added the hyperlink credit above to the copied text

Random321 wrote: I think you have your answer Shadar: www.looper.com/166183/how-melissa-benois...ipped-for-supergirl/

Now, I've noticed Melissa's delts before so I don't personally think this is season 4/5 specific but I do respect the effort to get in shape for the character.

Lynda Carter went through a similar regime in the seventies to get into shape (not that she wasn't already) for her Wonder Woman stunts.

Monty wrote:

Random321 wrote: I think you have your answer Shadar: www.looper.com/166183/how-melissa-benois...ipped-for-supergirl/

Now, I've noticed Melissa's delts before so I don't personally think this is season 4/5 specific but I do respect the effort to get in shape for the character.

Lynda Carter went through a similar regime in the seventies to get into shape (not that she wasn't already) for her Wonder Woman stunts.

Lynda never had shoulders like Melissa’s rather amazing traps.

Lynda had a model’s body except for her big boobs. Melissa is more athletic and solid. Totally different body shapes. Melissa looks more like what I’d expect of a superheroine.


Scroll down to beginning of thread.

Shadar

Tks, Fats. Good to hear from you.

Melissa appears to be a lot blonder now than previous seasons, and the bangs that were kind of distracting in the promo picts are covered in this hairdo.

I like this look. More Kara Zor-El like, but who knows what they'll do with her hair when she's in costume. 

Bangs don't work with her face, IMHO. I think they were trying to make her look younger. Hazards of a long-running series.

But I'm perfectly happy with a late twenties Kara. I've partially written a story where Kara is older and has lots of kids. The perspective is from an ordinary guy who is dating Kara's oldest daughter (who is away at college) and she's brought him home to get to know the family. Which turns out to be kind of mind-blowing.

I mean, there is only so much you can do to prepare for being immersed in a large family of Kryptonians. 

Hope you are starting to feel better, Fats.

Shadar

She does look more in shape in that photo then she has been on the show imo.

Now if only they would reconsider her hairstyle for this season.  It just does not suit her at all.

Peace.

/K

kikass2014 wrote: She does look more in shape in that photo then she has been on the show imo.

Now if only they would reconsider her hairstyle for this season.  It just does not suit her at all.

Peace.

/K

It looks like they did consider it - and decided to go with Melissa's personal choice in hair style.

"They were going to put her in a wig and hold on to the old cut, but then once they saw it, they thought it was a nice freshening."

www.insider.com/cw-supergirl-costume-des...nts-interview-2019-9

I guess I can kind of understand the "going with a more mature/sophisticated angle/look" for this season.

We'll see how that fits in, in terms of themes and quality of the writing.

Peace.

/K

kikass2014 wrote: I guess I can kind of understand the "going with a more mature/sophisticated angle/look" for this season.

We'll see how that fits in, in terms of themes and quality of the writing.

Peace.

/K

I'm not going to turn on or off the show based on hairstyle or costume. I mean, those are gripes but they're nits. I've grown to really like Melissa in the role, and that won't change if she's wearing a hijab or naked (assuming both of those states of dress were part of a good story). 

For me, it's all about the writing, script and actors abilities. We have some people on the show who can act, but the writing (as discussed here ad infinitum) has sucked at a conceptual level and also at the execution level as well as preachy and overly PC..  Kind of hard to salvage anything else when the story line is dumb and dumber. 

So if the writing is much improved, I'm a fan again. I guess we'll see soon enough. 

Shadar