I went into Supergirl with mixed expectations. Not because I don’t like the character, but because DC has spent the last several years asking audiences to forget one universe, accept another universe, forget that universe, and now trust James Gunn to build a completely new one.
That’s a lot to ask from fans.
But I have to give credit where credit is due. Supergirl is a good movie.
It may not be the DC movie I personally wanted, and I still have major questions about the direction of this new DC Universe, but Milly Alcock absolutely delivers as Kara Zor-El.
THIS IS NOT THE SUPERGIRL WE ARE USED TO
The biggest difference between this version of Supergirl and the versions we have seen in the past is simple: Kara is angry.
She drinks. She parties. She’s sarcastic. She’s reckless. At times, she doesn’t even seem interested in being a hero.
And honestly, it works.
The movie takes Kara across the galaxy with Krypto and eventually pairs her with Ruthye, a young girl seeking revenge against Krem after the murder of her father. What starts as a revenge story slowly becomes a story about grief, trauma, and the difference between justice and vengeance.
The interesting part is that Kara spends much of the movie trying to stop Ruthye from becoming consumed by revenge while clearly struggling with those exact same feelings herself.
That’s what makes this version of Supergirl interesting.
She isn’t standing on a rooftop giving inspirational speeches.
She’s damaged.
She’s carrying the memory of Krypton.
Unlike Superman, Kara actually remembers her home. She remembers the people. She remembers the destruction. Clark Kent grew up in Kansas with loving parents and a life on Earth. Kara watched her world disappear.
That difference matters.
When the movie puts Kara on a planet where the sun prevents her from using her powers, we finally get to see who she is without the cape. She gets hurt. She struggles. Ruthye is captured. Krypto is in danger. Kara can’t simply punch her way out of every problem.
Then, when Kara finally gets back under a yellow sun and her powers return, the payoff is worth it.
This is the Supergirl we were waiting to see.
MILLY ALCOCK IS THE BEST PART OF THE MOVIE
Milly Alcock owns this role.
Helen Slater’s Supergirl in 1984 had the innocence and classic superhero charm of that era. Melissa Benoist gave us the hopeful and inspirational Kara Danvers that worked perfectly for television. Sasha Calle brought a darker and more intense Supergirl to The Flash and, in my opinion, deserved another opportunity to play the character.
But Milly Alcock does something different.
She makes Kara feel unpredictable.
You don’t always know if she’s about to save someone, punch someone, take a drink, or tell everyone to leave her alone.
There’s an edge to her performance that separates her from every previous live-action Supergirl.
Even Helen Slater has praised Alcock’s strength, fierceness, and comedic timing, and after watching the movie, it’s easy to understand why.
Alcock doesn’t play Supergirl like a female Superman.
She plays Kara Zor-El.
There’s a difference.
THE MOVIE ACTUALLY HAS SOMETHING TO SAY ABOUT REVENGE
The relationship between Kara and Ruthye is the heart of the movie.
Ruthye wants Krem dead.
Period.
She isn’t looking for therapy. She isn’t looking for closure. She wants the man who destroyed her family to pay.
Kara understands that anger more than she wants to admit.
Throughout the movie, she warns Ruthye about revenge and what it can do to a person. But the closer Kara gets to Krem, the more we see her own darkness coming to the surface.
The final confrontation is where the movie makes one of its biggest changes and one of its biggest statements.
Kara ultimately takes responsibility for dealing with Krem herself rather than allowing Ruthye to carry that burden.
Whether you agree with how the movie handles Krem’s fate or not, the message is clear.
Kara sees something in Ruthye worth protecting.
Not just her life.
Her innocence.
That is the moment Kara finally starts becoming the hero everyone expects Supergirl to be.
KRYPTO CONTINUES TO BE A DC MVP
We also have to talk about Krypto.
At this point, DC might need to start putting this dog on the posters by himself.
Krypto brings humor to the movie without completely turning the film into a comedy. His relationship with Kara also shows us a softer side of her personality.
When Krypto is in danger, Kara’s entire energy changes.
Those moments help remind us that underneath the drinking, sarcasm, and anger, Kara still cares deeply.
She just doesn’t always know how to show it.
JASON MOMOA AS LOBO IS EXACTLY WHAT YOU EXPECT
Jason Momoa showing up as Lobo is one of those moments DC fans are going to talk about.
Let’s be serious.
This role fits Momoa almost too perfectly.
He’s loud.
He’s aggressive.
He’s ridiculous.
And he looks like he’s having the time of his life.
The appearance is brief, but it immediately makes you want to see more of Lobo in this universe.
DC finally realized Jason Momoa might have been born to play this character.
BUT I STILL MISS ZACK SNYDER’S DC
Now here’s where some DC fans are going to disagree with me.
I enjoyed Supergirl.
I liked Milly Alcock.
I think James Gunn is building an interesting universe.
But this still isn’t close to what Zack Snyder was creating.
I’m sorry.
Snyder’s DC movies felt like events.
When Superman appeared, he felt larger than life.
When Batman walked into a room, there was weight to his presence.
Wonder Woman’s entrance in Batman v Superman is still one of the greatest superhero entrances we have seen on the big screen.
The music.
The cinematography.
The slow-motion shots.
The darkness.
The mythology.
Snyder made DC characters feel like gods walking among humans.
James Gunn’s DC feels like comic books coming to life.
Zack Snyder’s DC felt like mythology coming to life.
Those are two completely different approaches.
Gunn loves humor, strange characters, colorful worlds, and heroes with personality flaws. You can see that DNA throughout Supergirl.
And there’s nothing necessarily wrong with that.
But sometimes I don’t need every superhero to be funny.
Sometimes I want to sit in a theater and feel like I just witnessed something epic.
That’s what Snyder understood about DC.
I still believe Warner Bros. made a mistake by completely abandoning that universe instead of finding a way to finish the story.
Give me the Snyderverse as an Elseworlds universe.
Let Gunn build his DCU.
Let Snyder finish his Justice League story.
Fans are smart enough to understand two different universes.
Marvel has already trained audiences to understand multiverses. DC literally built its comic book history around alternate Earths.
So why can’t we have both?
FINAL VERDICT
Supergirl is a win for Milly Alcock.
She gives us a version of Kara Zor-El that is damaged, angry, funny, reckless, and surprisingly emotional.
The movie isn’t perfect. The third act gets a little too comfortable with the typical CGI superhero battle, and some of the humor reminds you very quickly that this is James Gunn’s DC Universe.
But the heart of the movie works.
The relationship between Kara and Ruthye works.
Krypto works.
And most importantly, Milly Alcock works.
I walked into Supergirl wondering if we really needed another version of this character.
I walked out wanting to see where Milly Alcock takes her next.
That’s a win.
