An exception to that would be the beautiful handling of M’rynn’s Alzheimer-like disease, which was touchingly presented and portrayed within the shows established structure. First season episodes subtly wove social issue stories into the storylines such as feminism and prejudice, but those messages began to drown out Supergirl’s story in later seasons. While there is a long history of comics and comic book shows tackling social issues, what Supergirl did was shoehorn in the issues without tying them believably to the context of her story as they did with Alex’s frank discussion on racism with J’onn and M’Rynn. Supergirl also did not do social justice issue stories well.
The show also made it a bad habit to have significant plot moments happen off-screen, Alex telling Kelly her sister was Supergirl in season 6 being one of the most egregious examples of this. When a new crop of writers joined the show in Season 4, the Danvers Sisters, their bond, and their now iconic couch scenes began appearing less and less and were replaced by a Luthor obsessed overload. Another consequence of the rivalry with Lex is that in later seasons the show did not recognize, respect, or take advantage of the Danvers Sisters and their status and the heart and soul of the show. By doing that the show often forgot how to keep the title character and her story the focus of the show. What the show did not do is pay respect nor honor the long and rich comic book history of the title character, choosing to make her a female version of Superman, complete with Superman’s most notorious adversary, Lex Luthor. And the show will forever be given thanks for casting the amazing Calista Flockhart as Cat Grant.
The show should also be praised for paying its respects to the comic book heroes who paved the way for Supergirl by casting such former heroes as Helen Slater, Lynda Carter, Teri Hatcher, Laura Vandervoort, Kevin Sorbo and Dean Cain in recurring or guest starring roles. It should also be noted the show should be soundly applauded for its LGBTQ+ representation, bringing to the screen in six seasons a later in life coming out story, a lead queer character’s two main relationships depicted to be with two queer women of color, an interracial relationship that resulted in both a wedding and an adoption, and the introduction of the first transgender superhero on television. Sadly, a crowded cast in later seasons reduced time spent on this bond. The show was at its best when it focused on family, both those born in blood and those that were chosen. The Danvers Sisters were instantly established as the heart, soul, and foundation of the show. Supergirl will also be recognized for bringing to life, one of the most realistic portrayals of a sisterhood/sibling relationship in television.
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