SUPERGIRL Is No More "Girly" Or "Teen Drama" Than ARROW or THE FLASH
Let's be honest, Supergirl had a lot more to prove than all of the new DC live action series combined. It was a show based on the world's greatest superhero's cousin...and she's a girl. I was going through comments and fan complaints from posts before release and I came across some of the following...
Wow this looks awful I almost forgot I was watching a superhero tv trailer and thought I was watching another annoying American sitcom.
Seeing the preview only confirms my decision to not watch this show
Awful, awful, awful! It's like they've tried to tailor or to a female audience, but just wound up insulting them. Ditzy, dumb blonde routine was particularly annoying.
Why does she look like Supergirls mom?
Action looks good. Everything else looks like its target audience are 12 year old girls. Quite bizarre mix come think of it.
Hey look, I'm no SJW or anything like that but damn you guys were wayyyy harsher on this than I ever saw when Arrow and The Flash were making their way out. Those who made those comments likely are not watching the show now, and they're missing out. We're two episodes in and Supergirl is looking solid alongside its DC counterparts, and while it's not entirely similar, it's different in many good ways. It's also similar in every bad way Arrow and Flash can be.
Yeah, Kara Zor-El can occasionally be bubbly, but she's a hero who, for the first time, is able to use her powers. She has every damn right to be bubbly! Thus far I have not thought Melissa Benoist's portrayal of The Woman Of Steel has ever been unjustified or over the top. In fact, in two episodes, she's far more dialed down than Felicity Smoak ever will be.
Let's address the "girl teen drama" argument as well. Teen dramas are ANNOYING. They contain...well, I won't just make up a definition to fit my own agenda, so let's search Google.
The popular alpha-female leader: Kara Zor-El
The popular alpha-male leader - good at sports, highly intelligent: Oliver Queen/Barry Allen
The nerd - clever, socially incompetent: Felicity Smoak/Caitlin Snow/Winn Schott
Token black/ethnic girl/guy - angry/cool: John Diggle/Cisco Ramon/Jimmy Olsen
The misunderstood guy/girl that is an individual and has better morals: Roy Harper...yeah, Roy.
You are watching a series created and developed for television by the same guy who made Everwood and Dawson's Creek, and you really think one's different than the other? Guys, the superhero genre may be the cheesiest and most cornball genre of them all. It's still damn good, and you shouldn't be ashamed, but those who dismiss Supergirl saying it's a "teen drama" are flat-out dismissing that this is true across the board.
C'mon, guys...we have fan videos that look like this with tens of thousands of views...
Why was Oliver laying pipe any chance he could get the first two seasons? Why was Barry so consumed with his love for Iris and drama when he just discovered he's the fastest man alive? WHY DOES LAUREL DO 90% OF THE STUPID S*** THAT SHE DOES?! We are watching because it's engaging, it's dramatic, and while it may walk like a teen drama, talk like a teen drama, and employ the same actors as a teen drama, we still love it. That's fine!
Another factor is that it's been awhile since we've had a female superhero front and center. I find it hilarious that it's acceptable for a woman superhero to be brash, cold, sexy, angry...but if she's cute and bubbly, Jesus, someone stop the presses. I'm not saying anything is wrong with the former stereotyped female character (in fact I'm stoked for Jessica Jones), but not all women (or men) are cut from the same cloth. It's welcome to see a different take on female heroes.
For those who are willing to give it another shot, let me tell you what I love about Supergirl. First off, I love the fact that we are getting an alternate look into the Superman mythos. This show is already going above and beyond in doing its best to inform us on the world of Krypton. This isn't Supergirl saving the world, this is aliens vs. humans who just realized they have a newfound weapon in Supergirl.
Another thing I'm really a fan of is the production value. If you like the meta powers in The Flash, this show is that on steroids. Everything looks a lot cleaner, and the increased budget over its predecessors shows.
In the name of fairness, the constant references to Superman are as forced as they are unavoidable, but I'm hoping with time they'll begin to fade. Other than that, I'm plugged in and I love the direction this show is heading. Give it a shot if you haven't yet...I think you'll be surprised.