The Girl of Steel took her final flight with Supergirl season 6, but she’s left an indelible mark on the CWVerse. Despite see-sawing ratings and some comic book readers’ general apathy towards the show, Supergirl has always tried its best to make a difference in the world of genre television.
Debuting in 2015, the show starred Melissa Benoist as Kara Danvers/Supergirl, Chyler Leigh as Kara’s sister and second-in-command of the Department of Extranormal Operations Alex Danvers, and David Harewood as DEO Director Hank Henshaw, who later revealed himself to be J'onn J'onnz/Martian Manhunter. The first few seasons also included Jeremy Jordan as Kara’s friend and colleague Winn Schott and Mehcad Brooks as James Olsen.
We have written about why the show was one of the CWVerse’s boldest series, and that assessment still stands after six seasons. The series has been inconsistent, with some seasons being more successful than others. If the unpredictability in quality steered you away from watching the series or continuing to tune in, then perhaps this ranking can help you change your mind and give this series another shot.
6) Season 3
Even the most ardent Supergirl fan (like myself) will admit that the show’s third season was a mess. We knew we were headed for troubled waters when it was announced that Floriana Lima, who had joined the show as Maggie Sawyer, would be returning as a guest star and not a series regular. This meant that Alex Danvers’ brand new queer romance was already in peril. The entire season handled #Sanvers (the romantic pairing between Alex Danvers and Maggie Sawyer) poorly. Suddenly Alex was broody and that took over her entire personality. Even Alex and Kara’s sisterly bond came apart.
The change of season villains didn’t help either. It seemed like Morgan Edge (Adrian Pasdar) was going to be a stand-in for corporate greed, but then his arc fizzled out and a new threat, Reign (Odette Annable), stepped in. Both villains were underbaked.
The second half of the season was bolder—the show acknowledged that Mon-El (Chris Wood) was a toxic boyfriend for Kara and even made a strong stand on gun control. If only we could have erased the first half of the season! The third season was strongest when it leaned into the emotional dynamics of the characters and real-world themes. Beyond that, it struggled.
5) Season 5
If Supergirl Season 5 was a person, it would be the dorky younger kid who is never as smart nor as successful as their older sibling. The writers tried so hard to capture the power of Season 4 but struggled to find one central theme. They never quite found the right balance between sending a message about the freedom of the media and just being a superhero show and that’s why this season languishes so low in this ranking.
Leviathan, as the central villainous organization, simply didn’t have sharp enough teeth to make viewers quake in our couches. On the other hand, the unpredictable and manipulative nature of Lex Luthor (Jon Cryer) kept us tuning in every week.
Driving a wedge among the Super-friends was another poor move. Lena Luthor (Katie McGrath) and Kara were on opposing sides for most of the season, but the season immediately became more cohesive when the two had to work together again. Brainiac-5 (Jesse Rath) and Nia Nal/Dreamer (Nicole Maine) drifting apart because of Brainy’s secret mission didn’t work either. Brooks left the show before even half the season was over, but Nia was a highlight, especially in her spotlight episode tackling transphobia, ‘Reality Bytes’. And the show added more diversity to its roster with the addition of new cast members Julie Gonzalo and Staz Nair.
4) Season 6
Ah, season 6, we needed you to do better! This was the final season of a show that has always deserved more but hasn’t necessarily received enough credit. We can see the spark of something brilliant simmering beneath the convoluted story of magic and alien imps, but it’s not enough. Admittedly, the pandemic definitely affected the overall story structure of this season. The cast was spread out throughout the first half of the season, with Supergirl stuck in the Phantom Zone and the Super-friends desperate to save her.
Despite the limitations placed by the pandemic and the ticking clock of the series finale, the showrunners still attempted to pepper the season with important themes like humanity’s devastating impact on the environment, the impact of a deadly virus, and most importantly, systemic racism. I know a lot of people hate how blunt and unsubtle Supergirl can be, but the last few years have proven that subtlety doesn’t work. I think we can all learn some important lessons in how to be an ally from this season’s "Blind Spots." The trouble is, episodes like "Blind Spots" and "Welcome Back, Kara" make us wish the season had kept its ear to the ground and concentrated on real-world topics, rather than lean into the fantastical elements of the source material. That’s what Supergirl has always been best at. The sixth season’s squandered potential is the reason it couldn’t make it into the top three ranking.
3) Season 1
I don’t know if I’m in the minority, but I sat through the credits of the Supergirl pilot bawling my eyes out. Finally, there was a female superhero headlining her own property, dressed in an almost practical outfit (the skirt was… not great, but we’ve seen worse) and she was surrounded by complex and exciting female characters who were unafraid of being their best selves. James Olsen was proudly played by a Black actor (Brooks) and the show leaned heavily into feminist themes. Season 1 of Supergirl was bold and brave.
The first season of the series was vibrant and fun and captured the lightness of its source material. There was a silly love triangle, shocking twists, a plethora of female villains, and plenty of family drama. The season was also extremely entertaining. Buoyed by Melissa Benoist’s earnest take on Supergirl, the season also set up the central message of the series: Hope.
The best parts of the season, though, were two unlikely characters. Peter Facinelli as Maxwell Lord was a compelling inclusion in the show. He was morally ambiguous, yet his chemistry with the other characters made you wish for his redemption. Calista Flockhart as Kara’s boss and "The Queen of Media" Cat Grant, however, remains one of the most memorable characters on the show. Her scene-stealing performance was enough to make viewers tune in again and again. She was the perfect mentor for Kara and Supergirl’s biggest and most unlikely champion.
2) Season 2
Let’s get the negative stuff out of the way—Calista Flockhart leaving the show was a huge downer and there’s a sense among some fans that the show hasn’t recovered since. She was a delight whenever she reappeared in season 2. Also, the whole Mon-El subplot was awful. Chris Wood did his best to play a character that was a walking stereotype, but there are only so many ways you can redeem a male character who disrespects his girlfriend—who is literally Supergirl—at every turn. Yet there was still much to love about the second season.
Despite Superman’s presence looming large in the show’s first season, he made his first physical appearance in season 2. Tyler Hoechlin brought a winning combination of adorable dorkiness and optimistic hero to the role, though he never eclipsed Benoist’s position as the show’s primary hero. This season also saw James Olsen become a superhero in his own right when he became the first iteration of Guardian. James and Winn Schott’s friendship, after being rivals for Kara’s affection, was unexpected and charming. The season also leaned into the idea of found family with J’onn J’onzz acknowledging that Alex and Kara were like daughters to him. Having lost their father as teenagers, J’onn had become the perfect father figure for the sisters.
Of course, the most memorable aspect of the second season was Alex Danvers’ touching and nuanced coming-out story. It was a genuine surprise for the showrunners to not only introduce a full-fledged queer character, but also one who discovers her sexuality as an adult. Not only that but there was little to no drama surrounding Alex’s coming out because, of course, Kara would be completely cool with it! The good outweighed the bad in this season, enough to propel it to the runner-up spot.
1) Season 4
The Supergirl showrunners had their work cut out for them after the third season, and they came back swinging.
At a time when the US was reeling from xenophobia, an immigration crisis, and horror stories about the treatment of Black people, people of color, and queer communities, the show’s creators wrote season 4 as an allegory for many of the ills plaguing the country and the world. In Agent Liberty (Sam Witwer), the writers created the personification of a hatemonger. His target: literal aliens. People like Kara and J'onn J'onzz/Martian Manhunter (Harewood) were the show’s stand-ins for actual victims of persecution.
The season also introduced two new Black characters. Kelly Olsen (Azie Tesfai), James’ sister and a queer military veteran, was introduced as Alex’s new love interest and the voice of reason for the superhero team. Manchester Black (David Ajala) made his live-action debut in this season as the vengeful vigilante who tries to take on Agent Liberty and his Children of Liberty. Three of the series’ best villains (according to us, anyway) made their CWVerse debuts in this season.
As I’ve mentioned before, Supergirl has always tried its best to be ahead of the curve in terms of representation and inclusion. In Season 4, the show introduced the first transgender superhero played by a transgender actor, creating the brand-new character Nia Nal/Dreamer (Maines). Nia’s trans identity was central to her character, but it wasn’t all of it, and that’s what made her addition to the cast even more inclusive.
The fourth season of the show remains its boldest take on real-world issues and it impressively found the balance between adapting a comic book property and addressing current events.
Supergirl probably has a lot more stories left to tell. But considering the show has felt like it’s been on life support for most of its run, we can be happy we got six seasons. In a genre that has, for so long, given viewers only one type of hero, Supergirl was a show that made a larger demographic of people feel seen, and it was only the start of the CWVerse’s step towards greater representation for racialized and queer communities.