Last weekend at New York Comic-Con I was able to participate in a group interview with Supergirl showrunner Ali Adler. During the extended interview, the executive producer talked about the tone of the show compared to Arrow and The Flash, the arc of the first season, if it’ll be a villain-of-the-week series, what it means to have a woman as the lead, how we’ll see Krypton flashbacks, if they’re aiming at a younger audience, and a lot more.

Here’s what she had to say followed by more on the upcoming CBS show:

-


supergirl-poster

Ali Adler:

  • Talks about the tone of the show compared to Arrow and The Flash.
  • Talks about the casting process.
  • Will the show be a villain of the week and what is arc of the season?
  • Any additional responsibility with a woman being the focus of the show?
  • Is the show being aimed at a younger audience?
  • Talks about the upcoming villains.
  • Reveals we will see flashbacks to Krypton.
  • How she is a fangirl at heart and geeks out behind the scenes.
  • Are they already thinking about sweeps months and having bigger special effects?
  • Any additional pressure since the show airs on CBS?
  • What it means to have a woman leading this show.
  • How they will address what it means to have another “super” person on the planet and why Superman won’t be a character on Supergirl.
  • Merchandising talk.
  • Crossover talk

If you’re not familiar with the upcoming show, Melissa Benoist stars as Kara Zor-El, Superman’s cousin, who is discovering her burgeoning superhero skills while maintaining her civilian identity as an assistant to media mogul Cat Grant (Calista Flockhart). The show comes from the creative team behind The CW’s mini superhero-verse (Greg Berlanti and Andrew Kreisberg executive produce). The series also stars Mechad BrooksDavid Harewood, and Chyler Leigh.  As the official synopsis says:

“Supergirl is an action-adventure drama based on the DC Comics character Kara Zor-El, Superman’s (Kal-El) cousin who, after 12 years of keeping her powers a secret on Earth, decides to finally embrace her superhuman abilities and be the hero she was always meant to be. Twelve-year-old Kara escaped the doomed planet Krypton with her parents’ help at the same time as the infant Kal-El. Protected and raised on Earth by her foster family, the Danvers, Kara grew up in the shadow of her foster sister, Alex, and learned to conceal the phenomenal powers she shares with her famous cousin in order to keep her identity a secret.”


I’ve seen the pilot and think the show is loaded with potential. Like Arrow and The Flash, Greg Berlanti and his team knows how to cast as Melissa Benoist is perfectly suited to lead the show, and I think she’s going to help bring in a new generation of fans to the superhero genre.

Supergirl premieres on CBS October 26th.

supergirl-melissa-benoist-image
Image via CBS
supergirl-tv-series-calista-flockhart
Image via CBS