Please, for the Love of All Things Good and Holy, Watch 'Supergirl'

When Supergirl premiered on CBS in fall of 2015 it got fantastic ratings that quickly dropped off.  Over a few weeks the number of viewers dropped while the quality of the show shot up.  The seventh episode "Human for a Day" had less than three fifths as many viewers as the pilot despite being one of the best hours of SuperTV ever made, and I say that as someone who has seen every single episode of Lois and Clark, all ten record-breaking seasons of Smallville, and a few dozen 50's era Adventures of Superman.  (Speaking of which, Supergirl should at least get a chance to retell the "Panic in the Sky" episode, something of a right of passage for Superman adaptations.)  By the season finale Supergirl had less than half of the viewers of the first episode.  Numbers like that made a renewal seem unlikely but yesterday the second season was confirmed along with a move from CBS to the CW, home of sibling shows The Flash, Arrow, and Legends of Tomorrow.  The networks have given Supergirl another chance and now I'm asking that viewers do the same, not just because I might like a third season, but because I think you'll find that you will, too.

Like all recent adaptations of Superman, Supergirl faced the challenge of putting a fresh spin on a cultural icon nearly eighty years old.  The solution was to shift the focus from Earth's greatest champion to his younger cousin, the fantastic Melissa Benoist as Kara Danvers, a modern Mary Tyler Moore type trying to make her way in a Superman's world.  Kara was sent as a thirteen year-old by her parents to protect her infant cousin Kal-El, but she took a detour in space and time, winding up on Earth years after Kal-El had grown into Clark Kent and taken the mantle of Superman.  Making Kara the protagonist allows the show to meta-embrace the looming shadow of the Metropolis Marvel and explore all the same themes as a typical Superman story, like idealism, alienation, and hope, while putting more emphasis on the growing cultural conversation of feminism than Lois Lane alone can provide.

Speaking of gender, one of the early criticisms of Supergirl was its similarity to romantic comedies, specifically The Devil Wears Prada.  The comparison is fair, but only because Clark Kent has always been just one chromosome away from a clumsy, wide-eyed, adorkable rom-com protagonist.

Makeover!

The real problem is that so many people think The Devil Wears Prada is a romantic comedy.  It's much more accurate, even if slightly more sexist, to call it a "chick flick" since it treats its main character's personal relationships, platonic and romantic alike, as an afterthought, which is kind of the whole point of the movie.

Let's go back to the "Human for a Day" episode.  Stories about superheroes losing their powers are a common occurrence.  It seems like Smallville had two for every Tom Welling ab muscle and Supergirl's sibling show The Flash has just ended one as it nears the end of its sophomore year.  Still, Supergirl handled it better than most, turning a tired trope into an opportunity for insight and poignancy.  One scene, likely inspired by an issue of the Superman comic book released several months earlier, sees Supergirl suit up and stop an armed robbery despite being every bit as bullet proof as you or I.  She does it not with her fists or her fiery eyes but with conversation and compassion.  The image of her hand shaking like a leaf, due in equal parts to fear and a broken arm, is more powerful than a thousand Kryptonian haymakers.

The back half of the season got a slight ratings bump from a crossover with CW's The Flash.  The writers had to know it was coming and they made the most of it, turning out another of their best episodes for slightly different reasons than "Human for a Day."  It isn't quite as subtle or heart-wrenching but it's possibly one of most delightful episodes of TV in years, rivaled only by Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt.  When Barry "The Flash" Allen suddenly appears from another dimension he becomes fast friends with Kara.  They then spend the better part of "Worlds Finest" reveling in each other's adventures and oddities.  "You're an alien?  That's so cool!"  "You're from another dimension and you time travel sometimes?  That's so cool!"  Cue the vomit of cynics while everyone else massages their aching smile muscles.  The lovefest isn't entirely devoid of meaning, though.  Barry also moves the story along by giving Kara some advice that prompts her to go for it with her love interest, Jimmy Olsen, who is cool for some reason.  In the climactic battle (one of 2016's few instances of heroes fighting villains instead of each other) Kara manages to prove herself and win back the affection of the public she lost a few weeks earlier thanks to some brainwashing Red Kryptonite.  It couldn't be more heartwarming or uplifting if all the extras were replaced with puppies.

Look at that!  I got this far without talking trash about Zak Snyder!  That was nice while it lasted.  The reason I resent the director so much is that his depictions of Superman are severely lacking in hope and optimism, the tent poles of the character's appeal.  There's a line from the classic 1978 Superman movie that defines the Man of Tomorrow to me.  His biological father, who sent him to Earth to save him from Krypton's destruction, among other reasons, tells him from beyond the grave "[humans] can be a great people, Kal-El, they wish to be.  They only lack the light to show them the way."  If Zak Snyder insists on snuffing out that light, we are fortunate that Supergirl is up to the task.  The CW is willing to let her shine, but are you ready to come out of the darkness?