"Supergirl" on CBS (now on The CW)*

Discussion in 'Visual Arts' started by HGN2001, Oct 27, 2015.

  1. I thought the pilot had promise, looked spectacular (for the visuals) except for the opening (which given that it's going to be on TV every week for the next year--they might have wanted to spent a bit more on the visual look). Clearly this isn't designed to fit in with the Warner movies--the TV shows seem to be pocket universes in and of themselves related to the movies but not beholden to them (whereas "Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D" is clearly more integrated).

    I enjoyed it although I thought her character blurting out her secret to everyone (there are only three other people who know, then there were five, then seven, etc.--what is this going to become telephone where they tell the next person and so on--knowing who Supergirl IS could become a club...on the other hand, it DOES work with "Arrow" even though I had my doubts about that--and this is from the same team.)

    I hope that the production team for "Arrow"/"Flash"/"Supergirl" don't spread themselves too thin.

    It has promise. Not everything was there but it was promising.

    As with the other series, they have done some nice casting against type for the characters--Jimmy Olson isn't the small nerdy kid as in the comics and this is twenty years removed from that time allowing for there to be differences. A pity that this is on a different network as I'd love to see a Arrow/Flash/Supergirl styled cross over and, perhaps, story arc THAT would break big ground but I doubt it will happen. Ever.

    The plane crash sequence was very impressively done. It wasn't too cartoony.

    The casting was exceptionally good although--My God!--Calista Flockheart (I thought that was one of the most artificial names I'd ever heard for an actress right up with there with Rock Hudson, etc.) looks almost as artificial as she sounds playing the cold hearted bitch of a boss. I swear her face didn't move once (well, ok, her lips moved and they expressed all of the emotion when her face failed to comply). I'm against youth by botox when it is to that extreme.

    I thought that they brought a lot of good stuff into play and the introduction of a S.H.I.E.L.D. like organization was a good one. Introducing it early and making clear a lot of the objectives was a good one as well. No beating around the bush or waiting to announce what their intention was to Supergirl.

    Not so sure about the Aunt of Supergirl thing is going to play out although it is a fairly typical approach for the team that did this when it comes to developing the series. Never read the comic book so don't know if all of these elements were in the comic book or if they were introduced at different ways. Thank god there isn't a Superdog. I mean, really! If they do introduce it, I may be out of the building by the time that happens.

    I did enjoy the indigent moment where Kara expressed her dissatisfaction at being called Super GIRL.

    I'll give it a chance. The pilot was fairly well produced and the writing, while ho-hum at times, stuffed an awful lot of exposition into a small amount of time which was one of the reasons that the dialog and plotting didn't always quite work.
     
  2. ampmods

    ampmods Forum Resident

    Location:
    Boston, MA, USA
    As far as the Jimmy (um James) character goes... what do you mean about '20 years removed from that time allowing for there to be differences?' What function does having a character be so radically different from what they are known to be serve for the story? I mean aside from him being Superman's messenger (although how that makes sense I don't know as Superman could easily zoom to where Supergirl is and tell her himself).

    In the Superman world, Jimmy often served as the dorky dude who called on Superman to help when he found a situation that called for him... or often got into trouble himself where he needed Superman to save him. I'm not sure I get what purpose he serves here.
     
  3. I'm referring to him being older, more of an adult and allowing a young guy to blossom into beef cake.

    The idea of Olson acting as Superman's messenger was spelled out in the pilot. I don't know that I buy it completely nor do I necessarily believe he doesn't have his own agenda.

    The fact that he ISN'T the dorky kid is a big plus for me--the twenty years gap allows for a sense of trust with the character and having him act as a liaison without having to bring in Supes (since the actor that plays him clearly isn't going to be on the show--yet).

    I also think that having Superman do the job himself would have been distracting frankly and would have pulled away from Supergirl.
     
  4. ampmods

    ampmods Forum Resident

    Location:
    Boston, MA, USA
    Yeah I guess. It just seems somewhat unrealistic that a dorky type would become a big muscle dude and not retain some of that dorkiness. Just seems too confident and really out of character. I mean most of the dorks I knew growing up are still dorky decades later (including myself :) ).
     
    wayneklein likes this.
  5. Whether or not this I terpretation of the character will succeed it's too early to tell.
     
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  6. tommy-thewho

    tommy-thewho Senior Member

    Location:
    detroit, mi
    Supergirl is cute and the show is entertaining.

    I liked it and plan to continue watching it.
     
  7. theoxrox

    theoxrox Forum Resident

    Location:
    central Wisconsin
    I was kind of tired, and it didn't prevent me from catching up on my sleep.......
     
  8. sixtiesstereo

    sixtiesstereo Senior Member

    Location:
    Wisconsin
    Expecting it to not be very good, I must say I was really impressed. For a TV series, it seems to
    have pretty good production values/FX. She seems to be a good choice...cute and hot at the same time.
    The opening and the plane rescue were very well done, and I really liked her heat vision scene.
    I'll keep watching.........
     
  9. Squealy

    Squealy Forum Hall Of Fame

    Location:
    Vancouver
    They're going to have constantly write around the inability to use Superman as a direct presence in the story. I felt like they should come up with some scenario where he's indisposed or captured or away from Earth, because just in that one episode I was constantly asking "Why doesn't Superman help her" or "Why doesn't Superman care about this" or "Why doesn't she talk to Superman about how to be a superhero." Especially considering there's a truckload of villains from their home planet to deal with, not just bad humans.
     
  10. malcolm reynolds

    malcolm reynolds Handsome, Humble, Genius

    Location:
    Oklahoma
    I liked the pilot. Kind of goofy with just the right amount of fun. Plus I didn't need to call my therapist after watching it like most of the current dark and depressing DC movies and TV shows.
     
  11. Lonson

    Lonson I'm in the kitchen with the Tombstone Blues

    I watched the pilot, but I don't think I'm going to continue. Arrow has grit, Flash had some interesting personal relationships and some nice science fiction and a lighter tone, this has more of an air head tone and not much going on of real interest to me. I watch enough shows, no need to add this one. Glad it wasn't totally the fluff I feared it might be, and I'm sure many will enjoy it and I wish it success.
     
  12. I'll admit to being one of those who downloaded the leaked pilot, and while I had a few minor complaints (such as the CGI on Kara's home planet being a little cheap-looking, not to mention the horrible "Superwoman" discussion), overall the first episode was a great start. In fact, I'd even rate it higher than both of the last two Superman movies - at least this isn't embarrassed to honour certain traditions, including having a transformation that was at least in focus or there at all, as in the case of the most recent effort! Some other small gripes I have are related to Supergirl's costume, which appears to be worn under her civilian clothes, yet she's often seen in short dresses and with nothing on her legs to cover those awful, unnecessary thigh-length boots. Also, it's clear the writers and producers are looking to establish their own take on her story, based on a spoiler I've read about one of the later episodes. Still, for all its flaws, I can't wait until the whole series is on Netflix so I can watch the whole lot in a marathon session. Until then, I'll just have to avoid any major plot elements being discussed online, as I don't always have the time to catch shows when they are first broadcast...
     
  13. yesstiles

    yesstiles Senior Member

    Not bad. Yes, she's very cute. I bet though that she really wishes she hadn't picked that chicken pox scab off her forehead some years ago. It's a really noticeable and unsightly scar, especially for a pretty girl who is now on national tv doing extreme close-ups every week.
     
  14. Ken_McAlinden

    Ken_McAlinden MichiGort Staff

    Location:
    Livonia, MI
    It was very "piloty", but it has potential. It's got that slightly soapy, occasionally corny, vibe of the other Greg Berlanti DC superhero shows, but a little earnestness is not such a bad thing in a world full of irony and snark.
     
  15. Texastoyz

    Texastoyz Forum Resident

    Location:
    Texas, USA
    She certainly was more revealing on Homeland than she'll ever be on Supergirl.
     
  16. Jack White

    Jack White Senior Member

    Location:
    Canada
    Surprisingly, I enjoyed it. But ... I think this show could easily slide into being very cheesey.

    And Kara is not very good at keeping her secret identity a secret. Almost everyone [except her boss] seems to know she's Supergirl.
     
    Vidiot likes this.
  17. I thought it was a cheesy piece of crap with mediocre writing and acting. It's a teen CW like show. I guess I'm just not the audience
     
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  18. Vidiot

    Vidiot Now in 4K HDR!

    Location:
    Hollywood, USA
    Man, I thought this was just a corny, predictable, cliched, generic kind of action/adventure show. Cute non-sexually-threatening sidekick... check. Mean, sarcastic boss... check. Government conspiracy... check. Reluctant hero... check. Unexpected villains with several motives... check.

    The surprise to me is that they seem completely unwilling to say the word Superman out loud. I'm assuming there's some kind of weird corporate problem where the film division of Warner Bros. won't let the TV division use "their" character while films are still being made. (We have to ignore Lois & Clark, Smallville, and so on.) I'm also kind of bewildered at all the changes made to the Superman comic book legend: in the comic, Kara (no last name) was from Argo City, which was a chunk of Krypton that managed to survive when the planet blew up. All of this has been changed in recent years, but I grit my teeth whenever they throw out 40+ years of fictional history.

    I'll say this: they're trying to make the show fun and upbeat, and I much prefer that to the grim, depressing feel of Man of Steel from a couple of years ago. Melissa Benoist is an appealing actress and I think she's doing her best. Exec producer Greg Berlanti is clearly trying to keep the same kind of lighthearted attitude as with The Flash, which has been fairly successful. (And let me say I was shocked to see a commercial for The Flash on the CW Network during a CBS show.)
     
  19. Vidiot

    Vidiot Now in 4K HDR!

    Location:
    Hollywood, USA
    Yeah, that was some of the most frightening plastic surgery/Botox I've seen on TV in a long time. What's even more troubling is that Ms. Flockhart is only 50. If it were me, I'd say "light her very well, use some filtration on the lens, and let's defocus the hell out of her in post." She would've still looked human that way. But she looks bizarre now; she's one step away from Michael Jackson land.

    There was quite a bit of griping from critics and the press around the time the show was announced, and I think they threw that line in just as an answer: Supergirl didn't name herself -- she was named by a haughty, annoying media corporation owner.

    BTW, I thought it was nice but a little sad to see former Superman Dean Cain and former 1980s Supergirl Helen Slater as the new Supergirl's parents. Cain has really put on weight, but they look OK. I think it's nice that Berlanti throws a bone to these former stars and kind of acknowledges the past.
     
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  20. Holy Diver

    Holy Diver Senior Member

    Location:
    USA
    Girl power!
     
  21. The Panda

    The Panda Forum Mutant

    Location:
    Marple, PA, USA
    Harrison Ford sees that every morning.:shake:
     
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  22. Mark

    Mark I Am Gort, Hear Me Roar Staff

    It's not Shakespeare In the Park, but it had a fun, escapist vibe to it.
     
  23. gotityet0

    gotityet0 vinyl nut

    Location:
    earth
    Super Girl is a Colorado Girl:edthumbs:
     
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  24. jriems

    jriems Audio Ojiisan

    Finally got around to watching the first episode. I like the lead actress, but the show was hokey, and forced, and boring, and eye-rolling. My wife agrees. We regularly watch Flash, Arrow, S.H.I.E.L.D., Gotham, Daredevil, and pretty much anything "superhero" that comes along.

    Supergirl may be the one we finally take a pass on completely. We'll watch a couple more episodes to give it a fair shake, but that's it if doesn't improve.
     
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  25. joefont

    joefont Senior Member

    I generally enjoyed it. I did get a kind of Buffy The Vampire Slayer vibe out of it.
     

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