Seeing Myself in Supergirl

First off, I’m not even going to go into why her name Supergirl isn’t an issue. It just isn’t to me. I still call myself a girl.

There’s not that much to write about the show since it first started, but since my activism requirement will end soon, I wanted to get an entry about the show in soon.

I decided to give the show a chance when I saw my musical theater goddess, Laura Benanti, was cast in it. I can’t pass up an opportunity to see her on tv and then combine that with the fact she plays the villain, Astra? Thank you to the casting director who made her part of my comic book nerd world! My Astra cosplay is already in the works.

The show is a lot more complex than the original comics were from what I've read. It's not just the female version of Superman. It's about a young woman who is trying to figure out her life and so desperately wants to get everything right.

There is just so much to love from this show with just the few episodes we have seen. First, I love that our superhero is so young and in the same place in her life that I basically am. She’s trying to figure out who she wants to be in life and I can certainly identify with that problem. Even though I know I want to be a cop, it’s still scary and I’m not always so sure I can do it. Just like Kara, I am always having to face my own self doubt that I’m not ready to do what I’m meant to do. I’m meant to be a cop, I believe that so deeply, but I’m still so scared I’m going to mess up this opportunity. Like Kara, I know the frustration of never feeling like you’re quite good enough for everyone around you. She’s a superhero but try as she might, she’s still getting plenty of criticism. But she has so many amazing people that remind her she’s not alone and I love that.

I also love Kara’s relationship with her sister, Alex. Sister relationships are incredibly tricky. Alex is trying to deal with some jealousy issues she’s clearly having about her sister being the superhero. What sister hasn’t dealt with insecurities their sister is going to be the one that outshines them? But Kara clearly can’t be a superhero on her own and she needs her sister’s support. Even if Alex isn’t the one with the super powers, she’s part of the reason why her sister can be National City’s savior.

It’s also pretty cool to see a woman, Cat Grant, as the person running the National City Tribune. And maybe you could argue it’s a little cliche to have the typical scary woman boss, but what’s the alternative? The sweet, demure female boss? No, I like that Cat is so self assured and knows how to run her newspaper. To quote Tina Fey “Bitches get stuff done”. Not to mention she gets drunk at brunches with Ruth Bader Ginsburg.

Overall, I think this show is really promising. I think there are a lot of young women out there who can identify with a character like Kara. Plus, Laura Benanti.