In Search of Supergirl 

Everyone wishes to have extraordinary powers, to be unique and to be the hero of thousands of people, but little do they know that superhero’s life comes with many challenges and unexpected situations. Supergirl is one of the superheroes that went through many phases throughout her life which effected public’s view of her. Since 1959, when Supergirl was first created by Curt Swan, she has seemed to be a “derivative, uninteresting, and an inferior and instrumentally complicit kind of Wonder Woman,” (Link) however the recent action TV Show of Supergirl published in 2014 reveals Kara (played by Melissa Benoist) as a superheroine to be admired. Even though her earliest adventures helped to identify her as a troublesome cousin to the audience and as a superheroine without a purpose, throughout the years Supergirl’s character evolved into a role model and the public’s view of her changed. 

The “Girl of Steel” was launched during comics’ Silver Age from 1956 to 1970, side by side with the Cold War. In that time of terror, people were afraid that they would not be able see another day and were waiting for a nuclear bomb to explode in front of them at any time, comics showed a connection to the real world’s political and social atmosphere of the war. Even though the Cold War was present, it faded to the background of Marvel books which indicated that superheroes can stop everything that threatened America, and Supergirl stood as a symbol of hope, future and safety during the war years.  

Early comic books viewed Superman, the most famous superhero of the Golden Age of comics, as a dominant character over the “Girl of Steel” who controls her life. The “Boy of Steel” wanted to hide Supergirl’s identity and her abilities but “neither robot nor Supergirl stay inactive the way Superman would wish” (Link). By not obeying to Supermen’s orders Supergirl was viewed as a difficult character who would only create troubles for her cousin and as a selfish person. However, Superman played a huge role in her life in early comic books, but in the most recent show of Supergirl he has a small impact on her. In the comics Superman influences every decision Kara makes, even the ones over her identity, but in the show he appears to be very supportive and lets her make her own decisions. This implies that Supergirl is matured and able to handle everything by herself without the help of her guardian, Superman, and that he believes on her.  

During the Silver Age, Supergirl was always overshadowed by the presence of her cousin, but the Flash is another character who left her in dark. The Flash, the fastest man alive, was the most famous and admired superhero from the Silver Age, who’s success was unlimited. With the Flash having the audience’s main attention and love, led Supergirl to be a secondary superheroine because people would not recognize her goodwill actions. In the Flash’s TV show third season episode 8, “Invasion!” the Flash’s Earth is attacked by aliens and the first person he thought to ask for help is Supergirl. With her incredible powers and strength, Supergirl trains the Flash and helps him to become stronger and faster. The Flash needing Supergirl’s help implies how things have changed, and how powerful and strong she has become. By helping the person considered as her “superhero enemy” who had once overshadowed her existence, the “Girl of Steel” highlights her maturity and her will to help others. It also indicates women’s empowerment and shows a shift between “standard gender strengths,” men described as immensely strong and women as weak and delicate human beings. 

It’s been half a century since Supergirl’s first debut, and she successfully resisted the time. Even though there are a few differences within the show compared to the comics, the main theme of her story has been kept the same throughout the years. In the TV show Kara was adopted by a scientist, Jeremiah Danvers, who took care and protected her from other outsiders. Whereas, in comics “Kara spent the first years on her new planet in the Midvale Orphanage” (Erao). The loneliness, lack of love from her family and being rejected by her cousin made her seem as a reckless character in need of attention. In her early adventures she was known for causing more problems than solving them. Some would argue that the troubles were intentional because she wanted people to recognize her. Whatever reasons she had for her actions the audience disliked her and didn’t understand her role as a superheroine. She was unable to maintain a large audience which led to Supergirl’s disappearance from DC’s comics for nearly 20 years (Eury). 

From a role model for young girls during the Silver Age, Supergirl became a feminist superheroine in the Modern Age of comics from 1985 to present. The recent TV show is taken to a political level by discussing current social issues such as feminism. In the show the “Girl of Steel” tries to make the audience aware of the social issues, and to enforce the role of women in society. In the first episode of the show Kara states, “If we call her Supergirl, something less than what she is, doesn’t that make us guilty of, of being anti-feminist?” (28:23) Being called a “girl” not a “woman” makes her feel underrated and worthless. The idea of being called “Supergirl” emphasizes someone who is not taken seriously and doesn’t have too much influence. What she doesn’t understand is that it doesn’t matter if you’re called a girl or a woman if you’re recognized for your work because both represent females and their authority and her boss, Cat Grant played by Calista Flockhart, makes her realize it when she tells her, “I’m a girl. And your boss, and powerful, and rich, and hot and smart. So, if you perceive Supergirl as anything less than excellent, isn’t the real problem you?” (28:49) It suggests that women can be anything they want and that they are unstoppable. By being a symbol of victorious women, Supergirl teaches women that embracing who they are can change the world. 

Comic books and superhero movies are a field dominated by males, and there’s a small percentage role for women. This dominance of masculine gender roles in superhero movies conducts the idea that women are weak not only emotionally but also physically which “reinforce as well as create gender stereotypical expectations.” (Pennell, Behm-Morawitzz) This genre of movies is mostly contemplated by boys and girls of a young age and being introduced to such gender stereotypical at a young age affects how women are observed and treated in our society. The presence of women in superhero movies changes people’s beliefs on women’s roles in society. 

Supergirl’s character was “created with the intention of attracting female readers,” (Eury) becoming the role model for young girls. It may be a coincidence but the creation of Supergirl occurred at the same time as the rise of women’s movements for equality in the late 1950s. Having a female superheroine in this movement period for females inspired many women to fight for their rights and make their place within society. They saw Supergirl as a representation of their lives, struggling to make her place in the superheroes field but never giving up, which motivated them to continue what they started. Despite the fact that the Supergirl of the Silver Age had an audience dominated by females, the recent TV Shows attracts the attention of a much older audience dominated by the masculine gender. The article “‘Supergirl’ soars with women as well as men” written by Gary Levin displays that, compare to The Flash and Gotham, Supergirl attracts the oldest audience with an average age of 56 and 51% of the audience is dominated by males. This article suggests that Supergirl’s success goes beyond gender classifications and ages, pointing out her strong character who can compel various types of audience. 

Supergirl is known as the strongest woman alive, with a strength of steel, equal or much more than average men. Because of her physical strength and power, she is referred as a “masculine character” (Link). Usually superheroines “are presented as hypersexualized in order to balance their traits of physical capabilities.” (Pennell, Behm-Morawitzz) It has become a norm for female superheroes to have big breast, small waist, and big hips, not only to represent their feminity but also to capture the attention of male audience. What’s more important than having a large male audience is the way how the superheroines’ bodies impact women to love their appearance. While many argue that it may cause low self-esteem to women by watching their role models with perfect physical structure, statistics show the opposite. “Female participants who view the superhero films will report greater perceived importance of body competence.” (Pennel, Behm-Morawitzz) By having masculine strength but attractive physiques, female superheroes emancipate women and inspire them to accept their bodies and who they are. 

On the other side, a part of the audience dislikes Supergirl and thinks that the TV show is a cliché film. In the article “CBS’s New ‘Supergirl’ Show Is Pissing Some People Off – And That’s A Good Thing!” Meredith Woerner states, “Oh no, someone took the Black Widow SNL sketch and turned it into a real series. CBS just released its first trailer for the Supergirl show and it is so depressingly paint-by-numbers we had to list the clichés off” (O’Keefe). However, I respectfully disagree with her opinion because Supergirl is the least cliché movie. It is one of the few TV shows and films which is concentrated on women’s power and tries to increase their role in society. Supergirl devotes herself to keep her city safe, loves her adaptive family and friends unconditionally and sacrifices her personal life to protect others, making her the best role model not only for young girls and women but for everyone who watches the show. Supergirl is the “Superman” and superhero we all need. 

It took Supergirl’s creators half a century to perfect her character and persuade her to the audience. Her character went through many obstacles and phases which made her unwanted by the public for a long time, but the TV Show Supergirl returned her stronger than ever as an inspiring superheroine and feminist. She gained a huge audience of different ages and genders by making her the most admired female superhero of the Modern Age. It is crucial to emphasize that she came a long away and made her place in the society, but she has still a long way to go and better her superhero self because she has a long path to go through and there is always space for improvements. 

 

 

Works Cited 

Adler, Ali, and Greg Berlanti. “Pilot.” Supergirl, season 1, episode 1, 26 Oct. 2015. Accessed 3 

Nov. 2018. 

Erao, Matthew. “Supergirl: 15 Biggest Differences Between the TV Show and The Comics.” Screen Rant. 14 Oct. 2016. Accessed 14 Nov. 2018. https://screenrant.com/supergirl-cw-tv-show-comics-biggest-differences-best-worst/. 

Eury, Micheal and Peter Sanderson. “Supergirl.” 250 Britannica Academic. 4 Nov. 2015. 

Accessed 20 Nov. 2018, https://academic-eb-com.ccnyprocyl.libr.ccny.cuny.edu/levels/collegiate/article/Supergirl/624557   

Johns, Geoff. “Invasion!” The Flash, season 3, episode 8, 29 Nov. 2016. Accessed 15 Nov. 

Levin, Gary. “’Supergirl’ Soars with Women as Well as Men.” USA Today, Gannett Satellite Information Network, 8 Nov. 2015. Accessed 12 Dec. 2018. 

www.usatoday.com/story/life/tv/2015/11/08/superhero-tv-series-male-female-viewers/75218606/. 

Link, Alex. “The Secret of Supergirl’s Success.” The Journal of Popular Culture, Wiley-Blackwell, 28 Jan. 2014. Accessed 13 Nov. 2018, onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/jpcu.12083. 

O’Keefe, Meghan. “CBS’s New ‘Supergirl’ Show Is Pissing Some People Off – And That’s A Good Thing!” Decider, Decider, 15 Sept. 2015. Accessed 5 Dec. 2018, decider.com/2015/05/14/supergirl-not-for-everyone/. 

Pennell, Hillary, and Elizabeth Behm-Morawitz. “The Empowering (Super) Heroine? The Effects of Sexualized Female Characters in Superhero Films on Women.” SpringerLink, Springer, 11 Mar. 2015. Accessed 13 Nov. 2018, link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11199-015-0455-3.