Supergirl Pilot Moves Faster than a Speeding Bullet

When 6 minutes of 'first look' footage was released, to get fans excited about the upcoming SUPERGIRL series on CBS, people wondered if they had watched the entire pilot. While a lot is still to be revealed by watching the pilot, it felt like I had seen it all before.

The pilot moves fast.

VERY fast.

Keep in mind the pilot needs to provide enough material to give us an idea of how the show is going to run. It also needs to give some background on the charcter. So in order to cover it all, they need to cram as much story and action into a small amount of time. Jumping from one scene to the next, you are getting bombarded with information, characters and events that will play a large part in the upcoming series.

But it still comes off as explosive, charming and fun.

Melissa Benoist is completely 'a-dork-able' and you'll fall in love with her quickly. There are many layers to her character. The awkward Kara Danvers working at Cat-Co is a contrast from the energetic playfulness she displays as a younger sibling. When she's in the suit, she becomes confident, assertive and tough. The dynamic that exists between Kara and her sister, Alex, explores all the sisterly moments, including the 'feels'. Alex only wants what's best for Kara and the show takes a beat from 2013's MAN OF STEEL by suggesting exposing her powers to the world could be too dangerous.

Mehcad Brooks as James Olsen serves as the voice of Superman. Offering advice and assistance to Kara when needed. And Calista Flockhart as Kara's ego-maniacal boss, Cat Grant, steals every scene she's in. I love that we're getting a Supergirl tv series, but if this show spent a lot of time at Cat Co. I won't be overly disappointed. The interactions between Kara and Cat were some of my favorite moments. The showrunners nailed the character element.

Because the transition from zero to hero is so quick in the pilot, the looming threat seems more like an afterthought. Although it serves as an effective set-up for future encounters. The axe-wiedling Vartox may have been just a pawn in the overall picture, but he was a big enough threat to show Supergirl's shortcomings as an amateur hero. The showrunners have built-in a steady supply of baddies for Supergirl to square off with, which will be necessary to keep the show moving along. Smallville's 'freak-of-the-week' formula could be on full display during the first season, but the way they set it up wasn't a stretch.

While there was mild violence, the material isn't so bad that you'll regret watching it with your young daughters. Or sons for that matter. It's really a show that appears to work for the whole family. There are a lot of positive messages delivered amidst a good mix of action and humor. The show does carry some mysogonistic moments (Vartox lays it on pretty thick), it's not meant to be insulting to women watching at home (although it will have us all looking forward to seeing him get punched through a wall). It's more about reminding us that those people exist and watching Supergirl put those people in their place is fist-pumping, feel-good fun!

The Supergirl pilot was a huge success in explaining the backstory, introducing characters and setting up the season. So while it was fast-paced, it worked well and accomplished a lot in a short time. The Supergirl pilot airs on October 26th on CBS. Will you be watching?