DVD REVIEW: SUPERGIRL Season 1

Shane | 27 July 2016 | Reply

DVD REVIEW: SUPERGIRL Season 1
Roadshow
27 July, 2016
Reviewed by Shane Pinnegar
7/10

Despite some average reviews online, the first handful of episodes of the new SUPERGIRL reboot is actually pretty good, even if it can tip towards an over-earnestness which seems more pitched to tweens and teens than adults.

Melissa Benoist plays Kara Zoe-El, who is evacuated from the dying planet Krypton just after her cousin, Superman. Waylaid on the trip to Earth, when she finally arrives her cousin is well-established as the protector of Metropolis, and Kara lays low with her adoptive family the Danvers in nearby National City, working as PA to the bitchy head of the CatCo media empire, played with cold aloofness by Ally McBeal’s Calista Flockheart.

Supergirl finally shows her powers to save a plane from crashing into the city, saving hundreds of lives. With the help of Superman’s old friend James Olsen (Mehcad Brooks in perhaps the standout performance of the show), her adoptive sister Alex (Chyler Leigh) who works with the Department Of Extra-Normal Operations, and geeky work colleague Winn (Jeremy Jordan), Supergirl protects National City from a dizzying array of aliens and super criminals.

Despite the ridiculous premise that a pair of spectacles can act as a complete disguise from anyone recognising Kara as Supergirl, the show is uplifting, positive and full of action. Although the flood of superhero television from both Marvel and D.C. Comics is threatening to reach tipping point, for now there’s fun to be had in the suspension of the uncertain and scary reality we live in, and the belief in not only super powers, but also that people (and Kryptonians) can be inherently good, selfless, and protecting us all from danger.