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Season 1 x 20 Spoilers and Discussions Better Angels

13 May 2016 05:15 #47808 by ArgentDragon
Replied by ArgentDragon on topic Season 1 x 20 Spoilers and Discussions Better Angels
I've been rather busy the past few weeks, so I only recently got a chance to sit down and finish Season 1 off.

In my opinion...it was a decent first season. Not perfect, but certainly better than, say, Season 1 of Arrow. Long term stoylines were set up, the cast got more comfortable in their roles, the writers got better in developing the characters. So, I'm pleased and cautiously optimistic for Season 2 on the CW.

Now I know Streaky, Krypto, and Kara Zor-L are the popular choices for who's in the pod. I have another theory...

Brainiac 5

We know that the Brainiac computer system originated on Krypton, here. And we have Indigo as an evil Brainiac. It's entirely possible that Brainiac 5 was created as a way to preserve all of Krypton's knowledge. It also opens up the possibility of a love triangle between Kara/Jimmy/Brainy, which helps keep the romantic tension in the series going.

On the Kara Zor-L possibility, there's rumors going around that Power Girl will be appearing on Earth 2 at some point, possibly gearing thins up for an Earth 2 series?

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19 May 2016 20:02 #48006 by d_k_c
For every mistake they make on this show, I can forgive. Different writers have different ideas, those ideas will eventually come into conflict with one another and there by contradict previous episodes. But, not being able to Survive in space? wtf? Every movie we've ever seen of Superman has him in space....And the explanation that Super girl can't generate thrust in space? We've got some imaginative people here, so using your wildest imagination, can someone explain to me how gravity generates thrust?

Look, i'm going to end up watching this show no matter what..But...If I had a chance to pass on a message to the writers of the show it would be a short one

"Try harder"

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19 May 2016 20:25 #48007 by shadar

d_k_c wrote: For every mistake they make on this show, I can forgive. Different writers have different ideas, those ideas will eventually come into conflict with one another and there by contradict previous episodes. But, not being able to Survive in space? wtf? Every movie we've ever seen of Superman has him in space....And the explanation that Super girl can't generate thrust in space? We've got some imaginative people here, so using your wildest imagination, can someone explain to me how gravity generates thrust?

Look, i'm going to end up watching this show no matter what..But...If I had a chance to pass on a message to the writers of the show it would be a short one

"Try harder"


Yeah, that "can't survive" and "can't generate thrust in space" thing was horrific. Says the writers don't have any concept of the most basic forms of superhero physics, let along real physics.

Clearly someone came up with the need to have her fall and crash and be rescued (which is kind of OK for this show), but they didn't put enough time in to come up with a plausible way to do it. Idiots.

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20 May 2016 00:06 #48011 by Brad2
I disagree that its "kindof OK" that they took away her ability to breathe in space so someone would have to rescue her. Nerfing her powers and having her be unable to save the day on her own are two of the WORST aspects BY FAR of the show for me.

To put it another way: Kreisberg: When Supergirl has to be rescued by others twice in the same episode (and especially a season finale), that means, contrary to what you said in your interview, she MOST DEFINITELY DID NOT prove that she was a capable heroine and could save the world and all that.

Right now, if I were mayor of a city, I would trust the shark from the movie "Jaws" as the protector before I'd trust Supergirl. Of course, that idiot Kreisberg probably thinks Jaws 2-4 are timeless classics like Jaws 1 was. "More must be better", which is why season 2 has 22 episodes when it should have 10-15 at most.

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20 May 2016 00:42 #48012 by pansardum

Brad2 wrote: I disagree that its "kindof OK" that they took away her ability to breathe in space so someone would have to rescue her. Nerfing her powers and having her be unable to save the day on her own are two of the WORST aspects BY FAR of the show for me.

To put it another way: Kreisberg: When Supergirl has to be rescued by others twice in the same episode (and especially a season finale), that means, contrary to what you said in your interview, she MOST DEFINITELY DID NOT prove that she was a capable heroine and could save the world and all that.

Right now, if I were mayor of a city, I would trust the shark from the movie "Jaws" as the protector before I'd trust Supergirl. Of course, that idiot Kreisberg probably thinks Jaws 2-4 are timeless classics like Jaws 1 was. "More must be better", which is why season 2 has 22 episodes when it should have 10-15 at most.


I think you are a bit hard on her... As I saw it she did save the world by sacrificing herself. I mean they set it up so she could do the ultimate sacrifice. But I had some problems to really be in suspense for what felt like 2 seconds she floated in space.

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20 May 2016 00:44 #48013 by shadar

Brad2 wrote: I disagree that its "kindof OK" that they took away her ability to breathe in space so someone would have to rescue her. Nerfing her powers and having her be unable to save the day on her own are two of the WORST aspects BY FAR of the show for me.

To put it another way: Kreisberg: When Supergirl has to be rescued by others twice in the same episode (and especially a season finale), that means, contrary to what you said in your interview, she MOST DEFINITELY DID NOT prove that she was a capable heroine and could save the world and all that.

Right now, if I were mayor of a city, I would trust the shark from the movie "Jaws" as the protector before I'd trust Supergirl. Of course, that idiot Kreisberg probably thinks Jaws 2-4 are timeless classics like Jaws 1 was. "More must be better", which is why season 2 has 22 episodes when it should have 10-15 at most.


I wasn't trying to say it was OK to make her normally vulnerable and flightless in space. That was unforgivable. What I meant was that it was OK to have some drama regarding tossing Ft. Rozz into space. Perhaps an explosion that knocks her out or a blast of Green-K powder is used as weapon against her while in space. Something plausible in the DC universe.

In other words, it was OK to have the "Kara has to be saved by her sister again" scene (to make Alexa heroic again). It wasn't OK how the did it.

Shadar

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20 May 2016 01:32 #48015 by Brad2
I disagree that 'it was OK to have the "Kara has to be saved by her sister again" scene'. On many episodes, we see Supergirl saved by others (on episodes 2 and 12 with Alex, for instance), and on most we see either Alex or Hank telling Supergirl what to do to be a good heroine. I've seen only two where Supergirl was able to win by herself when she was working with Hank or Alex. This is where my comments about wanting to see a more competent Supergirl come from.

Why does Alex have to be heroic in each episode? She's not the main character. There were plenty of episodes where Supergirl isn't seen as heroic or competent. Alex doesn't have to be in each episode either.

As for them presenting it as Supergirl's ultimate sacrifice, the fact that she was so willing to sacrifice her life without looking for a better solution (such as using a slingshot maneuver that astronauts use to gain velocity, for instance) suggests either a lack of imagination or a disturbingly suicidal impulse on the heroine's part. Neither are qualities that I can respect, especially not when the character is held up as role model for kids.

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20 May 2016 04:24 #48021 by shadar

Brad2 wrote: I disagree that 'it was OK to have the "Kara has to be saved by her sister again" scene'. On many episodes, we see Supergirl saved by others (on episodes 2 and 12 with Alex, for instance), and on most we see either Alex or Hank telling Supergirl what to do to be a good heroine. I've seen only two where Supergirl was able to win by herself when she was working with Hank or Alex. This is where my comments about wanting to see a more competent Supergirl come from.

Why does Alex have to be heroic in each episode? She's not the main character. There were plenty of episodes where Supergirl isn't seen as heroic or competent. Alex doesn't have to be in each episode either.

As for them presenting it as Supergirl's ultimate sacrifice, the fact that she was so willing to sacrifice her life without looking for a better solution (such as using a slingshot maneuver that astronauts use to gain velocity, for instance) suggests either a lack of imagination or a disturbingly suicidal impulse on the heroine's part. Neither are qualities that I can respect, especially not when the character is held up as role model for kids.


I think we vehemently agree on one thing -- the writing damn well better improve. A lot.

The writers lack a leader who is committed enough to the mythos, or empowered enough to keep the writers in line. But these producers are big girls and boys. They clearly decided to give their writers a very big room to work in. And it isn't working. Either change the writers or put someone in charge that knows something about the mythos.

Most fans don't mind bending the mythos a bit, but to act as if it doesn't even exist, or not to care, is just wrong.

Shadar
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20 May 2016 10:18 - 20 May 2016 10:21 #48027 by Woodclaw

shadar wrote:

Brad2 wrote: I disagree that 'it was OK to have the "Kara has to be saved by her sister again" scene'. On many episodes, we see Supergirl saved by others (on episodes 2 and 12 with Alex, for instance), and on most we see either Alex or Hank telling Supergirl what to do to be a good heroine. I've seen only two where Supergirl was able to win by herself when she was working with Hank or Alex. This is where my comments about wanting to see a more competent Supergirl come from.

Why does Alex have to be heroic in each episode? She's not the main character. There were plenty of episodes where Supergirl isn't seen as heroic or competent. Alex doesn't have to be in each episode either.

As for them presenting it as Supergirl's ultimate sacrifice, the fact that she was so willing to sacrifice her life without looking for a better solution (such as using a slingshot maneuver that astronauts use to gain velocity, for instance) suggests either a lack of imagination or a disturbingly suicidal impulse on the heroine's part. Neither are qualities that I can respect, especially not when the character is held up as role model for kids.


I think we vehemently agree on one thing -- the writing damn well better improve. A lot.

The writers lack a leader who is committed enough to the mythos, or empowered enough to keep the writers in line. But these producers are big girls and boys. They clearly decided to give their writers a very big room to work in. And it isn't working. Either change the writers or put someone in charge that knows something about the mythos.

Most fans don't mind bending the mythos a bit, but to act as if it doesn't even exist, or not to care, is just wrong.

Shadar


Just tossing in my two cents in saying that, while I agree that the writing need some polishing, I have to disagree on two basic premises.

First of all the mythos of Supergirl, I'm sorry to say isn't solid enough to build a TV show around, in my mind: from the lack of a proper rogue gallery to use, to a characterization that dwindled over the years in many different directions, she's a character that often lacked a defined identity in pop culture aside "being somewhat, somehow related to Superman".
Depending on the writer and the time period she has been many, many things: in her earlier appearences Kara was more or less, I'm sorry to say, a non-character, bending to the whim and the need of Superman based on the need of the current story, more or less like the early Robin was to Batman; later on she became a lonely girl, unable to connect with humanity; then a young ambitious woman moving some uneasy steps toward the future. After Crisis we had Matrix -- which I'm going to ignore -- and Linda (or Kara In-Ze if you go with the animated version) who was pretty much the punk sidekick; before Kara returned, now an ungodly powerful badass, cocksure and horribly overpowered; later she was soft-retconned into a more human character that went on trying to connect with her new home.
The issue here is that each writer, in my eyes, had one or two of these images in mind and tried to pour them into the TV show with various degree of success, explaining the dwindles in characterization and power level she went through.
The second point nad the pivotal element in this first season was that they tried to transition from Kara to Supergirl in a proper way. This season had an overabundance of mentor figures floating around Supergirl: Cat Grant, J'onn, Alex, even Jimmy in the pilot. All these characters were helping to shape Kara into something that she wasn't at the start: a proper Supergirl. Because even if she was good-intentioned at the start she didn't have the skill, nor the confidence or the perspective to be the hero people expected her to be.


My point is that they spent this first season to establish her, with various degree of success, now I want to see where are they going now. Now that Supergirl has a slightly clearer identity, I hope other elements will get consistent, or thing are going to tank, badly.
Last edit: 20 May 2016 10:21 by Woodclaw.
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20 May 2016 10:50 #48028 by Markiehoe
This is a case where one guy or gal in charge on top with vision and a team of writers can create something special.

Similar to what DC animation does.
Remember DC Animation created Harley Quinn.
Arguably the only breakout NEW character created by DC or Marvel in the last 25 years.

Since DC reboots every couple years anyway why not create your own Supergirl universe?
Create a show bible that spells out Supergirl's strengths and weaknesses.
You can bend those rules every now and then but stick to them.

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20 May 2016 14:11 #48031 by shadar
The issues on the mythos are simple ones and don't require inventing anything new. Despite all the incarnations and variations of Supergirl in the comics, there are some basic tenets of the Kryptonian-origin SG (so I'm not talking Mae or her derivative here) that have never changed:

1) She's bulletproof
2) She's invulnerable to extreme heat and cold, including hard vacuum and can fly and live in space for some period of time (if not forever)
3) She can fly using some kind of anti-gravity, forcefield thingy that does not involve thrust
4) She's extremely strong
5) She has enhanced vision and hearing
6) She can burn things with her eyes
7) Kryptonite is her weakness

There are other nuances, but this is the core of her abilities. Those have NEVER changed since the 1950's for a Kryptonian-based Supergirl. It is not a long or complicated list. Writers can bend these in various ways, or even make her package of abilities come and go, but not eliminate any of them if she's truly supposed to be Kryptonian.

This is not complicated and not hard. A comics origin character has to abide by the core tenets of their mythos, or else the writers need to create a new and unique character. The tenets of character leave a LOT of room for storytelling, so they really aren't hard to follow.

In the season ending episode, if they really HAD to have a final "Alex saves her sister" scene, then they should have had a part of Fort Rozz (reactor or whatever) explode in space to give off a burst of Kryptonite particles (which would be very plausible given its Kryptonian origin) that temporarily weakened her so Alex had to save her. Simple and consistent with mythos and no harder than what they actually wrote.

This is where they need someone among the writers who understands the simplest rules of the Kryptonian character they are supposed to be writing about.

Shadar

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20 May 2016 14:58 #48033 by lfan

Brad2 wrote: I disagree that 'it was OK to have the "Kara has to be saved by her sister again" scene'. On many episodes, we see Supergirl saved by others (on episodes 2 and 12 with Alex, for instance), and on most we see either Alex or Hank telling Supergirl what to do to be a good heroine. I've seen only two where Supergirl was able to win by herself when she was working with Hank or Alex. This is where my comments about wanting to see a more competent Supergirl come from.

Why does Alex have to be heroic in each episode? She's not the main character. There were plenty of episodes where Supergirl isn't seen as heroic or competent. Alex doesn't have to be in each episode either.


I don't understand the big deal. Supergirl is not portrayed in this show (at least Season one) as "all-powerful" and "invincible". If that is/was the case, they are gonna run out of story ideas really fast! And while you want her to be more competent, she is far from incompetent. The premise of "Supergirl & Friends" was established early on with the "Stronger Together" episode and it was the resonating theme throughout the season. She was raw and NEEDED help to achieve her destiny. That is gonna come with having to be helped/saved a few times. It's not like she hasn't saved anyone. I don't see the incompetence thing shining through honestly as much as you say. If anything, they show her to be FAR more competent than her more experienced and revered cousin -- SHE was able to defeat Reactron when he never could (though she needed help from him at the beginning) and SHE wasn't simply zombie-fied by Myriad like he was.

As for Alex, another underlying theme is the relationship of big sister looking out for little sister, eventhough little sister can throw a tank into orbit and is bulletproof. Alex saving Kara (I think 3 times) is part of that "plan" and doesn't bother me all too much. It's not like Kara never saved Alex also (from plane in Pilot, Toyman's bomb, throwing Fort Rozz before it exploded) and is ALWAYS needing her help.

Brad2 wrote: As for them presenting it as Supergirl's ultimate sacrifice, the fact that she was so willing to sacrifice her life without looking for a better solution (such as using a slingshot maneuver that astronauts use to gain velocity, for instance) suggests either a lack of imagination or a disturbingly suicidal impulse on the heroine's part. Neither are qualities that I can respect, especially not when the character is held up as role model for kids.


Oh c'mon! The first thing you though of when she decided she might have to sacrifice herself was that she had "suicidal impulses"? Setting a good example and being a role model is showing bravery and courage in the face of danger. Being a good role model is trying to "do the right thing" sometimes when the right thing isn't the easiest (or smartest) method. The clock was ticking (although she DID seem rather chatty for that) and she had to do SOMETHING, so she chose to (possibly) sacrifice herself for the good of other. I think that's pretty "heroic" but that's just me, I guess......

ElF

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20 May 2016 23:16 #48041 by d_k_c
I'm going to agree with Shadar. But it's like I said, mostly everything in the show I can forgive. It's just when you damage future plot's by incorporating lazy writing is when I get concerned. Now, Supergirl and/or Supeman will need a space suit to travel in space. Nor can they fly into space without a jet pack? If Braniac decided to park a ship and launch projectiles from Earths orbit....What could Superman or Supergirl do about it? Remember, the show primarily deals with Aliens. Technology that's more advanced than our own and are capable of intergalactic travel. Don't get me wrong, i'm not discussing realism, this is a comic of course. But I'm irritated because you've taken about a million great story lines and thrown them into the trash cause guess what? Supergirl cant survive or fly in space......Ouch.

Again Shadar nailed it on the head, with having kryptonite being a factor....Or have Fort Roz explode and Supergirl is unconscious and floating back to earth. Could she survive re-entry into earth's atmosphere and the ensuing collision with earth while she's unconcious....Maybe, maybe not....Better go get her.

I'd love to be a fly on the wall for that writers group discussion. Cause I am pretty sure someone had to have spoken up and said....."Wait, i'm pretty sure Superman can fly in space"

I bet you that person was fired on the spot

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21 May 2016 01:30 #48043 by Brad2
First point: On the scene where Supergirl hurled the Fort Rozz station into space, I said suicidal or lack of imagination. As I've suggested, using a "slingshot maneuver" to gain some velocity while Supergirl was still in atmosphere (and able to breathe) might have allowed her to hurl the station into space WITHOUT risking her life in the process. Thus, her "heroic sacrifice" might not have been needed in that scenario. I'm not opposed to sacrifice, but she seemed to consider sacrifice as a first alternative, and not a last one. THAT is where the suicidal/lack of imagination comment comes from.

As for Supergirl being green, she seemed to do better in episodes 3-5 than she did in later episodes. If she just needed to gain experience, she should have been improving over the course of the season. She didn't. She even regressed at times (being able to beat Alex in green kryptonite conditions in episode 8, but not in episode 20, for instance).

As for them saving each other or Supergirl being competent, she drained her powers against Red Tornado (even though she could have used super breath to freeze him and immobilize him) at the end of that episode, she failed to see that Astra let herself get captured, she never asked about getting any kryptonite shielding for herself even after knowing that Astra had some, she let herself get exposed to kryptonite by Hank on the Martian Manhunter episode (she could have learned to stay out of range), she failed to take down Bizarro Girl, let herself get captured by the Jailer, needed Hank's advice on defusing Indigo's bomb, forgot how to take down Livewire, wasn't able to talk down or beat Alex (on episode 20), and needed to be saved by Alex when destroying Fort Rozz.

I'm not saying Supergirl should be all powerful, but it does seem like she got her ass kicked a lot despite being able, on occasion (such as Toyman or Livewire) to come up with brilliant ideas, even by herself.

Oh, and this is very relevant to season 2. What would Supergirl do if Hank or Alex weren't around or one or both of them turned on or deserted her? If they are hunting for Jeremiah Danvers, there might be long periods when Supergirl has to manage without them.

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21 May 2016 02:46 #48044 by Brad2
As for the whole "sisters" relationship, this is again problematic. Sure, I get that Alex wants to protect younger sister Kara. This is partly out of caring, and partly to keep their mom off her back.

Then again, Kara turning into Supergirl, using her powers, saving others, and working with the DEO has to be a MAJOR change for Alex, as well. Suddenly, her world is invaded by someone who has great powers, and who she grew up with. The prospect of jealousy was mentioned in episode 1, but not mentioned again until episode 16. Both times, Kara brings it up.

The show seems to treat Alex as this professional robot who does as she's told: Her mom says to keep her sister safe, so she does, and Hank says to fight against alien threats (such as the Fort Rozz escapees), so she does. There are exceptions, but usually one of these two orders seems to motivate Alex. She completely buries the jealousy.

This is interesting, because one would think that Alex would want to not have to protect her sister. After all, Kara has super powers, and Alex doesn't. Also, their mom isn't around, so she doesn't have to know. If it weren't for how they wrote the character, I could see Alex "testing" Kara by sending her into dangerous situations to see how she does. Then, when confronted, she reviews the situation with Kara and offers her tips on how to get better (and masks her envy). Given how Supergirl is written, I'm not even sure she'd be smart enough to tell that Alex was testing her unless the latter told the former to her face.

As for Supergirl being more competent than Superman, this isn't true. Again, Supergirl needs help to save the day, while Superman can do so alone. This point goes to the man of steel. In terms of saves, Superman saved Supergirl from Reactron on episode 3 (though he didn't defeat Reactron), and someone other than Supergirl brought him to the DEO hospital on episode 19 or 20. See, I think in terms of up close and personal saves, not "Supergirl saved the city, and by extension Superman or Alex or Hank" (this wouldn't work anyway, I'm not sure if Alex or Hank live in National City, so saving it might not save them).

The central problem of the show is that far too much attention is focused on Hank or Alex being heroic (Hank's "heroism" in episode 20 was him killing Indigo, and he was reluctant to use his powers for violence in the past, so this isn't exactly a slam dunk, either), and not on Supergirl being heroic. They seem to think that her having powers and assume the role of protector is enough. It isn't. She needs to get smarter in how she goes about protecting others.

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21 May 2016 04:10 #48045 by shadar

Brad2 wrote: As for the whole "sisters" relationship, this is again problematic. Sure, I get that Alex wants to protect younger sister Kara. This is partly out of caring, and partly to keep their mom off her back.

Then again, Kara turning into Supergirl, using her powers, saving others, and working with the DEO has to be a MAJOR change for Alex, as well. Suddenly, her world is invaded by someone who has great powers, and who she grew up with. The prospect of jealousy was mentioned in episode 1, but not mentioned again until episode 16. Both times, Kara brings it up.

The show seems to treat Alex as this professional robot who does as she's told: Her mom says to keep her sister safe, so she does, and Hank says to fight against alien threats (such as the Fort Rozz escapees), so she does. There are exceptions, but usually one of these two orders seems to motivate Alex. She completely buries the jealousy.

This is interesting, because one would think that Alex would want to not have to protect her sister. After all, Kara has super powers, and Alex doesn't. Also, their mom isn't around, so she doesn't have to know. If it weren't for how they wrote the character, I could see Alex "testing" Kara by sending her into dangerous situations to see how she does. Then, when confronted, she reviews the situation with Kara and offers her tips on how to get better (and masks her envy). Given how Supergirl is written, I'm not even sure she'd be smart enough to tell that Alex was testing her unless the latter told the former to her face.

As for Supergirl being more competent than Superman, this isn't true. Again, Supergirl needs help to save the day, while Superman can do so alone. This point goes to the man of steel. In terms of saves, Superman saved Supergirl from Reactron on episode 3 (though he didn't defeat Reactron), and someone other than Supergirl brought him to the DEO hospital on episode 19 or 20. See, I think in terms of up close and personal saves, not "Supergirl saved the city, and by extension Superman or Alex or Hank" (this wouldn't work anyway, I'm not sure if Alex or Hank live in National City, so saving it might not save them).

The central problem of the show is that far too much attention is focused on Hank or Alex being heroic (Hank's "heroism" in episode 20 was him killing Indigo, and he was reluctant to use his powers for violence in the past, so this isn't exactly a slam dunk, either), and not on Supergirl being heroic. They seem to think that her having powers and assume the role of protector is enough. It isn't. She needs to get smarter in how she goes about protecting others.



In this area, I suspect the writers were told (or decided) that they didn't want to make Kara TOO powerful or they'd have plot issues. They wanted her to need other people. To be interconnected to the lives of the other people on the show, and that means being a but vulnerable.

Also, they wanted us to remember that her developed personality is that of Kara, not Supergirl. Her first reaction to most things is as Kara, not Supergirl. But she's working through that.

While the "don't make her too powerful" thing was basically good advice for a CBS show, given they need the "family working together" thing, they went overboard in strange ways. Sometimes they kind of had it working, with SG behaving much more stronger and decisively than Kara ever would, but then they'd slide back into softening her by making her stupid or incompetent or whatever. She had trouble fighting off someone with strength only several times that of a human, and the next thing we know she's lifting a million tons. I think the writers had the right concept, but they sucked at realizing it, so they wrote stupid scenes.

But its very clear that people can be strong and be emotionally available, especially women, but that takes both acting and writing skill to portray. I don't think the Season 1 show was up for this.

But that said, Melissa has improved as an actress in the role, and if we can get some good writing behind her, she might be able to pull off the strong, decisive but also emotionally available thing. In other words, we can get there, but not if they keep most of the Season 1 writers. Or at least a strong leader who can direct the writers to take the show where it needs to go.

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21 May 2016 05:32 #48046 by Brad2
Actually, I don't have a problem with Melissa Benoist's portrayal of either Supergirl or Kara. And I will admit that there are moments (even whole episodes) where the show's portrayal of her was spot on.

In terms of viewing, I have two objections:
1: I came to the Supergirl show hoping to see a strong heroine. I get that she starts out inexperienced, but sometimes she seems like she's learning, and sometimes not. Seeing her needing to be saved (and so frequently) and/or relying on others so heavily reminds me of the way Supergirl is portrayed in a lot of peril films (though I would admit that the show is a lot better than most peril films, for the most part) that I got bored with.
2: There is a need for her to be a heroine in her own right. Hank has used kryptonite on her (twice), and the DEO often engages in unethical behavior. What happens if Supergirl needs to stand up to them or strike out on her own? More to the point, what happens if others (the city at large or villains) find out she depends on others for ideas? What if Alex or Hank is in trouble, and the villain is smart enough to hide from Supergirl? Or, what if they're gone?

We already know that the hunt for Jeremiah Danvers is supposed to be a part of season 2. I would love to see Hank and Alex leave Supergirl alone for a while during this part. We could then watch as the girl of steel is forced to deal with villains without help, and gets smarter as a result. Seeing her forced to help Hank and Alex could be fun. And/or when they return, seeing Supergirl suggest (or figure out) ideas for taking down villains that actually work would be awesome.

I'll admit that I'm in favor of seeing a strong Supergirl. But seeing a Supergirl that is strong and smart would be even better. We see this happen occasionally in season 1, but it doesn't happen often enough.

Oh, and Superman was often forced to use his brain. Just look at the Fleischer episodes. I'll admit there were some that were racist and idiotic (and I wouldn't recommend). But in others, he wasn't able to do things one way, so he had to figure out another way to do them. This approach might work for some Supergirl episodes.

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