Supergirl: Review: Series 1 Episode 1: Pilot

Sent from Krypton to protect her cousin Kal-El, Kara ends up arriving rather late to the party on Earth – and isn’t sure that the world needs another superhero…

I loved this pilot episode when I saw it in the summer, and it holds up well to a second viewing as the launch for the series. Melissa Benoist carries the show well, with an appropriately ditzy Kara with the necessary core of steel for the superheroics, as well as displaying a genuine pleasure in the character’s abilities that is sorely missing from the big screen adventures of the Man of Steel. (Who makes exactly the right cameo appearance in this opener…)

Greg Berlanti and his team have wisely surrounded Benoist with a strong core of actors;  even though their characters are all a little two-dimensional in this opener, I’m looking forward to watching her interact with them all. The wise friend who could be something more, who knows her secret; the colleague who wants to be something more, who also knows her secret; the boss who would spit blood if she knew the truth about her PA; the sister whose own secret is rewriting their relationship; the military man who doesn’t want her involved… yes, they’re none of them particularly original, but are played with the right level of commitment so that you can enjoy the escapism.

The effects work well, Blake Neeley’s score is fun (although there are times when it definitely feels like a Murray Gold composition!), and there’s enough set up to draw you back for the second episode…

Verdict: A strong start. 8/10

Paul Simpson