Supergirl 2.01 “The Adventures of Supergirl”

Supergirl has started its second season with a move to the CW and a simple title for its premiere: “The Adventures of Supergirl.” The title suggests a “back to basics” approach for the series. Gone are the painfully awkward romantic moments between Kara and James as well as the odd, generic references to Superman. Season 2 obliterated these annoyances that have plagued fans by breaking up the ill-matched couple and introducing Superman/Clark Kent (Tyler Hoechlin) as a major part of the episode’s plot, while promising to include him in the future.

Other than the inclusion of Superman, Winn being formally hired by the DEO, and Kara being upgraded to a reporter for CatCo, the series seems to be continuing with the overall cast, look, and feeling of the show that was established last season. Whether it was moved due to ratings, costs, demographic, or a combination, CW has become a formidable force with its lineup of DC shows and characters. It has made a shift from Tween/High School goth-romance dramas and is riding the Geek Chic wave all the way! While it always seemed to be a square peg in the CBS lineup of sitcoms and cop shows, Supergirl has found her home.

In this episode, Kara finds a man lying unconscious in a pod from space and takes him to the DEO. Later that evening, James and Kara are settling down for a date night in with takeout and live footage of Venture, a commercial space shuttle, being launched into space when it suffers engine failure and descends back to Earth. The broadcasters in Metropolis and National City both hope that their respective superheroes are tuning in just as we see Superman and Supergirl rushing to save the day. It was refreshing and exciting to see the two working together. While the DC films and Batman franchises remain dark and gritty, this show is bright and colorful, reinforcing the theme of hope that the Super “S” shields symbolize.

Superman and Supergirl along with their actors Hoechlin and Benoist seem to enjoy sharing the spotlight. Neither tries to showboat or overshadow the other. It seems that they enjoy saving the day and sharing the screen together. The two actors seem to get along well enough, although not as playfully as when Supergirl was paired with The Flash last season, however, this seems to be a reasonable depiction.

The Venture’s engine failure is revealed to have actual been collateral damage while the main target was Lena Luthor (Katie McGrath), Lex Luthor’s sister and the new CEO of  Luthor Corp. She was made the new CEO when her brother Lex was convicted. She moved to National City and changed the name of Lex Corp to L-Corp in order to distance the company from her brother and to change its image. From prison, Lex has hired John Corben (Frederick Schmidt) to kill Lena, who was supposed to be on the space shuttle. Initially, Superman and Supergirl think that Lena is behind the space shuttle crash because of her last name and the fact she was the only scheduled passenger that did not board. Corben tries unsuccessfully to kill Lena two more times. Lena finally proves herself when she saves Alex Danvers who had saved her first and was being held hostage. While Corben is being transported to the hospital due to the gunshot wound, he is intercepted by Project Cadmus and turned into Metallo, who is typically depicted as a villainous cyborg with a kryptonite power source. Metallo originally appeared in Action Comics #252 from May 1959.

Much to my relief James and Kara decide that their relationship is not working out and that they are better suited to stay in the Friend Zone. This is an odd switch for Kara who had spent most of last season pining away unconvincingly while James pretended to be aloof. The two were an awkward couple and they lacked any passion and chemistry. I did not buy that Kara would throw away her chance at dating James so quickly, but, perhaps she discovered it was just a crush.

There is a little tension and bad blood between Superman and J’onn/Hank. Hank reveals that he kept kryptonite at the DEO as a safeguard in case Superman goes rogue. Superman worries that if the president gives the command or someone else runs the DEO, the kryptonite could be used to kill him and/or Kara. The idea of humans keeping kryptonite as a precautionary measure is recurring throughout the DC universe. My personal favorite is Batman keeping some in the Justice League (2001) animated series. I trust Batman a lot more than a secret government agency. In the past, government agencies have proven to be quite fickle in superhero stories.

Hoechlin really nailed the character of Clark Kent. He was the perfect clumsy, goody-two-shoes nerd. When Kara commented that he nailed the pretending to be clumsy act, he responded that it was not an act! He seemed to channel Christopher Reeves’ Clark Kent. Hoechlin was believable enough as Superman, but he did not blow me away. He looked the part and seemed to fit the character, but he seems SO young. He did not seem seasoned and mature enough to be Superman. There was just something that did not fit about him as Superman, but, then again, Supergirl/Kara is the star of the show, and he could not upstage her.

Overall, I am looking forward to seeing what this season brings. I feel much more optimistic this season instead of feeling apologetic like I did last season.