Supergirl

[Andy Turnbull]

It looks quite breezy and fun.

Andy

[Shockprowl]

It made me do a little vomit in my mouth, but I've seen worse.

[Andy Turnbull]

May 13, 2015 23:26:46 GMT Shockprowl said:

It made me do a little vomit in my mouth, but I've seen worse.

Really? I liked it, bright and breezy and exactly what it should be, pisses all over the travesty that was Man of Steel.

Andy

[Toph]

I LOVE it!
Really excited!

Will be interesting to see if they work it into the CWverse with Arrow, Flash, and Vixen.

[Grand Moff Muffin]

I like it!

Martin

[The Doctor]

Good grief. A DC thing that doesn't look dark, depressing or sexploitation. Even the lights are switched on.

-Ralph

[Toph]

May 14, 2015 7:04:41 GMT The Doctor said:

Good grief. A DC thing that doesn't look dark, depressing or sexploitation. Even the lights are switched on.

-Ralph

To be fair, iZombie is bright and upbeat, and while Flash goes into dark places, it still maintains a really positive vibe.

[legios]

I have to say that I really like that promo. It is bright, cheery and sunny (both meanings of the term). Kara seems like a likeable person who it would be fun to spend time with. The flying sequences have a lovely sense of joy to them- especially the "You don't believe me? Then just watch me blow your mind" moment.

There was a distinct lack of portentousness. None of this "your father sent you here for a reason, you have a special destiny that you must fulfill." Instead it is underlined that this is something Kara has chosen to do, she realises that she has these powers and they allow her to do good in ways other people can't and she enjoys it. There isn't a sense of the terrible burden of being special - it's all about the power fantasy and about Kara empowering herself. I'm hoping that they can keep that up for a full season, it'll give the show a proper distinct flavour.

It's only a promo, final judgement awaits seeing the first episode, but I get a sense that they are on the right track with this one.

(The DC Movies and their TV shows really couldn't be on more divergent paths it feels like. Can't decide if that is a good thing or a bad thing.)

Karl

[The Doctor]

It's the first DC thing I have seen that I actually want to watch. I like the breezy tone and that Supergirl is not overly sexualised. Of course it's a promo summary of a pilot so we shall see but I think I will check it out.

RE: Flash. I haven't seen any footage from that yet. I watch very little TV so most things go under my radar unles puy in front of me!

-Ralph

[Fortmax2020]

This looks good actually. I'm sure DC will put a dark filter on it if 'need' be...

Flash has taken a little while to grow on me and its scripting habit of introducing something important 10mins before it is a crucial story element annoys, but overall it is a bit of fun.

Gavin

[Bogatan]

Liked that.

Though having seen it I almost feel like I dont need or want to watch the pilot. I've got all the important characters and info and a full episode is going to seem like a bloated 800% longer directors cut in compairson.

I can't see it being connected to Arrow or the Movies so unless its linked to Gotham that means DC are going to have 4 live action continuities on the go at the same time. (Plus any other non core DC stuff like iZombie.). This is all relatively new territory so I don't know if its a good or bad idea, but its certainly different from Marvels approach.

[Bogatan]

I can finally see why they cast the lead, the promo shots hadn't convinced me at all.

[Shockprowl]

May 13, 2015 23:29:38 GMT Andy Turnbull said:

May 13, 2015 23:26:46 GMT Shockprowl said:

It made me do a little vomit in my mouth, but I've seen worse.

Really? I liked it, bright and breezy and exactly what it should be, pisses all over the travesty that was Man of Steel.

Andy

It just seemed a bit too sugary-sweet. Not bad though, I want to see more.

On Man of Steel, I liked the serious tone. He has all that power, it should be taken seriously. What I didn't like was the utter lack of interest Superman had over the VAST collateral damage going on. Oh and the ending of course, which should have been very different.

[Stomski]

May 14, 2015 15:17:11 GMT Shockprowl said:

On Man of Steel, I liked the serious tone. He has all that power, it should be taken seriously. What I didn't like was the utter lack of interest Superman had over the VAST collateral damage going on. Oh and the ending of course, which should have been very different.

Wanna have this discussion in the Dawn of Justice thread, but since you raised it here - could be a decent character ark if part of the next movie was Kal-El regretting the part he played in the destruction and the lengths he felt he had to go to to protect the Earth. Given some of the content of the teaser trailer for DoJ, perhaps there is a little glimmer of hope here.

This on the other hand - hrm. I think the "quirkiness" may grate on me.

[Andy Turnbull]

The pilot episode has been leaked online.

Managed to not watch it, would rather see it properly when it comes out.

Andy

[Stomski]

And it aired on Sky 1 last Thursday.

It's OK. Feels very ambitious for a TV show, supporting female actress not convincing in her role, setup a little contrived, Ally McBeal terrible as Cat Grant. But enjoyable all the same.

[Toph]

The problem with the pilot, is that it absolutely felt like a 2 hour movie distilled and condensed into a one hour episode. It worked, but they were too focused on getting into the action and the "I am Supergirl!" endgame, that it was all rushed and hard to feel strong emotions for Kara and Alex.
It really desperately needed to slow the pace down and expand on character building moments.
Aside from that, it was great!
And the second episode is a significant improvement, and almost confirms (to me, at least) that the pilot WAS intended as a two hour movie (or a two part epidode, which is basically the same thing).

I love it! Not as much as Flash, but it may equal it when it gets going.

[Bogatan]

May 14, 2015 14:12:15 GMT Bogatan said:

Liked that.

Though having seen it I almost feel like I dont need or want to watch the pilot. I've got all the important characters and info and a full episode is going to seem like a bloated 800% longer directors cut in compairson.

Yup, the pilot really added very little to the trailer. Yet it still seemed to be rushing through things way too fast.

On the whole I do prefer superhero shows once they get everyone on board, character hiding super powers from friends becomes tedious after a while, but you dont need to do it all in 40 minutes. Likewise a decade for Clark to get his cape was at least 2 years too long in Smallville, but what was it four costumes in the first show?

Cast was fine except for Alley McBeal, she was the worst thing about the show named after her and doesnt seem any better here, maybe my bias is showing.

[Andy Turnbull]

Not seen it yet, recorded on the planner so might give it a go tonight.

Andy

[Pinwig]

Just having a look at the first couple of episodes over a spot of lunch. I've virtually no interest in DC stuff, Christopher Reeve and Lois and Clark has been about it for me, but that connection led me to want to check this out and I agree, this is fun! I'm not entirely sure I'm the intended audience, but it feels like an old fashioned 80s action show with suped up effects. It's got that humour mixed with cheesy plots. Action TV series fail for me these days because they take themselves too seriously, which just makes the scenarios ridiculous. The films have the gravity to carry it off, but stuff like Shield is just laughable to me whereas Agent Carter had humour and that 40s noir feel of pulp fiction that made it work.

Kat Grant has changed a bit since Tracy Scoggins was playing her!

[Pinwig]

Are all of the DC TV shows from the same production companies? Are arrow and flash going to turn up in this?

[Bogatan]

No, DC is all over the place. I get a seperate TV and film continuity, but having 4 or 5 different continuities on TV is confusing. DC have Arrow and Flash together. Supergirl despite being created by some/most of the Flash/Arrow team and being on the same channel is seperate from them. Gotham is completely seperate. Constantine? also seperate, but since being cancelled has appeared in Arrow.

And then theres also Izombie also on its own.

The new show legends of tomorrow is part of the Arrow/flash series.

But it wouldnt surprise me if Supergirl does appear in arrow/flash (or vice versa) at somepoint in the future. There was a rumour that Smallvilles Superman might appear in Flash(season 2 has a convenient way of doing such crossovers), I'd love that if only because Smallville never got around to showing Superman proper.

[Pinwig]

That's alright then. I don't much fancy being dragged into Flash just to keep up with peripheral stories.

Smallville I really liked, I was hooked on the first series and then my circumstances changed and I lost track of it. In my head I'm still waiting for the resolution of the cliff hanger, what was it? some sort of tornado that had got hold of Lana? Then all of a sudden there were ten series and I had no hope of catching up. Superman I like. Never 'got' Batman or anything else DC.

[Bogatan]

Never been a DC fan, my sum total of reading is Death and Return of Superman and Dark Knight Returns, never felt any need to go beyond those.

Love Christopher Reeves Superman, but dont like any of the films, his or later ones. But Smallville I got in to largely due to the lack of any other comic based TV at that time and just about stuck with it, I think I lost track slightly in the middle.

I kind of feel bad for it, it was on a long time but people have never been kind about it. Yet I'm sure a lot of the modern comic TV series have been successful because they learned their lessons (good and bad) from Smallville.

[Toph]

Nov 28, 2015 15:21:48 GMT Bogatan said:

No, DC is all over the place. I get a seperate TV and film continuity, but having 4 or 5 different continuities on TV is confusing. DC have Arrow and Flash together. Supergirl despite being created by some/most of the Flash/Arrow team and being on the same channel is seperate from them. Gotham is completely seperate. Constantine? also seperate, but since being cancelled has appeared in Arrow.

And then theres also Izombie also on its own.

The new show legends of tomorrow is part of the Arrow/flash series.

But it wouldnt surprise me if Supergirl does appear in arrow/flash (or vice versa) at somepoint in the future. There was a rumour that Smallvilles Superman might appear in Flash(season 2 has a convenient way of doing such crossovers), I'd love that if only because Smallville never got around to showing Superman proper.

Flash, Arrow, and Constantine are the same continuity. Supergirl may, or may not be the same continuity, but it is *not* the same channel.
Flash, and Arrow are CW shows.
Constantine was NBC, but since cancelation (and nothing done to contradict established continuity) has been rolled into CW continuity at the behest of Stephen Amill, who fought like crazy to save the show (even volunteering to NBC executives to guest star as Arrow).
Supergirl is by the same team as Arrow/Flash (unlike Constantine), and will be in the same continuity if NBC and CW allow it to be. I've a feeling they're being ambiguous specifically if it doesn't make it passed it's first season. If NBC cancels it, ambiguity would make it easier to roll over and intigrate. If not, then I think the second season will go farther in seperating it from the pack, and any crossovers will come from the 52 portals in Flash.

So four different networks:
CW- Flash, Arrow, Legends of Tomorrow, iZombie
NBC- Constantine
CBS- Supergirl
Fox- Gotham

Three different continuities, and one ambiguous:
1- Flash, Arrow, LoT, Constantine
2- iZombie
3- Gotham
Ambiguous- Supergirl

Everything that happened before Arrow are definately their own thing.

[legios]

I'd say that Supergirl, having a very established and publically known Superman, probably isn't in the same universe as Flash and Arrow as things stand (I think if Big Blue was a factor it'd have been noted previously.

But, as you observe, there is nothing to stop it being in the same Multiverse/Brane Sheaf/area of the flow/arm of the snowflake if all concerned decide they want it to be. And to be honest, given where they are taking Flash and Arrow on the "craziness comicsometer" they wouldn't need more than a handwave and the audience would just shrug and go "ok, fine". (One of my favourite things about the DC TV Universe is that they have decided not to be shy or retiring about the mad stuff anymore. They just shrug and go "here's a telepathic gorilla. Next year we're doing a slightly super-science parallel world" or "oh, by the way. Magic is totally a thing, and astral quests happen sometimes". And they are doing this at the same time as basically giving Arrow a thinly disguised Detroit metaphor this year. S'great)

Watching this weeks episode over lunch - the one with Red Tornado. I had to laugh when the ad-break came up in the on-demand thing and it was for...Android 'phones...

Karl

[Shockprowl]

DC Live Action clearly need to do a big 'event', a reshuffle of sorts to tidy up and unite their various multiverses. They could cal it, I dunno, 'Crisis' or something....

[The Doctor]

Does the geneal audience really care if these shows fit together?

-Ralph

[Toph]

Dec 5, 2015 9:25:09 GMT The Doctor said:

Does the geneal audience really care if these shows fit together?

-Ralph

Nope.

(From here on is just a generalized rant, and not directed at anyone specific)
And making sure everything fits together in a multiverse just creates a headache.
Gotham for instance DOES NOT WORK in a multiverse. It's it's own thing and needs to be. It's grounded in a reality that's very different than Flash and Arrow.
Smallville is it's own thing. Futhermore, it's finished, and has been for the better part of a decade. It was important for building the groundwork needed for the modern superhero era, but it's so different from the current sensibilities, that having them come through some portal into Central or Star Cities would serve to make the Smallville setting feel campy. Just by the fact that Flash and Arrow are so much more true to the source materials and handles them better.
I mean, good lord, Flash has a psychic gorilla and a ten foot talking shark man, and still makes Smallville feel campy.

Shared continuities are great, when they're designed to be, or even when there's minimal (supergirl) or no contradicting materials (constantine). And I love these kinda of crossovers.
But Crisis was the single stupidest concept event in DC history. There's no need to make sure all DC cinematic realities are merged in a crisis-like event, and there is no need to make sure all DC realities are connected in a multiverse.
Maybe it's just me, but I really do not get the appeal of multiversal crossovers. I really don't care how Gotham's Jim Gordon and Penguin would handle Flash's Gorilla Grodd popping out of a portal, and I don't care how Green Arrow who followed him may influence Bruce into becoming Batman. Because all that would be a disaster for the Gotham narrative.

I also don't care to see Captain Kirk, Han Solo, and The Doctor team up to stop the Borg/Cybermen alliance from taking over the Death Star.

[legios]

Dec 5, 2015 9:25:09 GMT The Doctor said:

Does the geneal audience really care if these shows fit together?

-Ralph

Nope, not really. Heck, there are plenty of comics fans who don't care either. Plenty of folks who watch Flash only ever watch the crossover episodes with Arrow and don't bother with the latter the rest of the time.

Could the various shows be brought closer together? Sure. Is there any good reason to? Nope. It is much more enjoyable for them to each go their own way and develop their own mythologies independently of each other as far as I'm concerned.

It is also why I am hoping that we never properly see Kara's cousin on Supergirl - like she says in the opener, this isn't his story, its hers.

Karl