Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 8.5/10

Cast: Melissa Benoist, Mehcad Brooks, Chyler Leigh, Jeremy Jordan, David Harewood, Calista Flockhart, Laura Benanti, Dean Cain, Jenna Dewan-Tatum, Peter Facinelli, Brit Morgan, Glenn Morshower, Grant Gustin, Emma Caulfield, Italia Ricci, Helen Slater.

Whilst Marvel has done a sterling job in promoting the female superheroes of its comic book archive, it perhaps has not done quite enough to capture the same feeling of warmth and inclusion generated by the television shows that house the most valued possessions of it main rival, D.C. Comics.

The success of Wonder Woman at the cinema and the characterisation of Harley Quinn in the same vein and on television has set a precedent to which must be maintained, and emulated by Marvel at all costs; and even though the poorly delivered Batwoman felt as though it had taken a step back, the first season of Supergirl is one in which the dynamic and future of graphic novel heroes must be represented, powerful and passionate in its delivery, but able to highlight the compassion to which we must all aspire, which we must see the beauty in the darkness and not be overwhelmed by it.

There is more to Supergirl than the appearance of giving the younger female viewer a hero to look up to, and whilst that is ultimately the point, of seeing young women being given them a person on screen that can represent them, it is to the ideals first set out in the creation of Superman that we can find enlightenment, just with a greater emphasis on the modern-day world to which we have created.

Truth, justice, and the American way…that was always the mantra, viewers would have that drilled into them, young audiences would want to hold that as a mantra to the point up till recently such a phrase might even still come forth from the Generation X crowd who remembered seeing George Reeves in black and white and who lovingly introduced their own children to the magic of Christopher Reeve’s portrayal of the Man of Steel. That dream has arguably long since faded, but instead the audience can take heart in the application of a new belief brought out by the superb Melissa Benoist as Kara Zor-El/Kara Danvers/Supergirl and the surrounding players who make the first season of Supergirl an intriguing proposition to immerse themselves in.

With consummate performances by Calista Flockhart as Kara’s demanding boss Cat Grant, Britain’s David Harewood as Hank Henshaw/The Martian Manhunter and the tie-ins to other D.C. comic heroes adding authenticity to the overall arc of the show, Supergirl is a achievement fulfilled, a creative headline that lives up to the main structure of the show with ease.

You can never have too many heroes in life, you just have to make sure they are the right ones to have hold up a torch of truth in your name.

Ian D. Hall