ali adler

While the the first female-led superhero film to arrive in theaters is still a few years off, the vacuum will be filled this coming Monday in TV land. Yes, Supergirl will soon beat the likes of Wonder Woman, Captain Marvel, Black Widow and even Jessica Jones to the punch as the first female superhero to get her own live-action starring vehicle this century. DC Comics and Warner Bros. have had some success in the serialized drama arena with Arrow and The Flash, but even from the earliest marketing you could tell Supergirl was carving a different path, and not just because she's on another network. This week we were given an early look at the upcoming pilot for Supergirl, and it's clear the series will be taking a much lighter approach to its hero's journey than the more gritty street-level action of Arrow or even the sci-fi turmoil of The Flash. While that's a fresh approach given the recent climate of superhero fare, the first episode isn't without its flaws. After viewing it, we took part in a conversation with producers Ali Adler, Greg Berlanti and Andrew Kreisberg (both also responsible for Arrow and The Flash), as well as the new Supergirl herself, Melissa Benoist, to discuss the show, where it's headed, and the challenges of making a nigh-invulnerable lead vulnerable.

Last week there was talk that a Supergirl TV show was in development from Arrow and Flash executive producer Greg Berlanti. This week CBS has jumped straight to a series order for the show, meaning Supergirl is just about guaranteed to make it to air (or else the network pay a hefty kill fee) -- and we can all start wildly speculating about who they'll cast as the lead and which version of the character will make it to the screen.