Spoilers Supergirl - Season 1

[Christopher]

Or...getting out of his shadow could help her to grow.

No. No. That just plays into sexist assumptions, as I've explained time and time again. The whole blamed point is that a woman shouldn't need a man to get out of her way before she can "grow" on her own. The very idea is condescending.

I mean, for Pete's sake, she's clear on the other side of the continent. She's already out of his shadow.

 

[The Old Mixer]

You're insisting on seeing it as a sexist thing when it's a common life experience and storytelling thing. Step out from behind the podium.

 

[Christopher]

You're insisting on seeing it as a sexist thing when it's a common life experience and storytelling thing. Step out from behind the podium.

I'm saying that people who are sexist would see it as affirmation of their preconceptions, which is why it's good to challenge those preconceptions. Supergirl's unapologetic feminism is one of my favorite things about it. When Siegel and Shuster created Superman, it wasn't about settling for the status quo, it was about aggressively challenging it and standing up against injustice. Very few later adaptations of Superman have had that activist spirit, but this show does. I don't want to see that watered down.

 

[Tosk]

I too, personally hope for Supergirl to be transplanted to a Superman-less Earth, but I agree it's a long shot. But just because one person is adamant that Superman must exist just off camera in her show, doesn't make it so.

 

[DigificWriter]

Legends of Tomorrow just introduced aliens, so no problem there.

Bringing in the Thanagarians doesn't have any effect on the fact that, on Earth-1 of the Arrowverse, Superman doesn't exist (whereas he's existed for over 3 decades on "Earth-S"); merging "Earth-S" with the Arrowverse proper would require a massive restructuring of everything that Arrow and The Flash have spent a combined total of 6 seasons building up.

 

[DigificWriter]

I too, personally hope for Supergirl to be transplanted to a Superman-less Earth, but I agree it's a long shot. But just because one person is adamant that Superman must exist just off camera in her show, doesn't make it so.

The show was specifically developed to INCLUDE Superman on the periphery and as part of its conceptual groundwork; moving to another network and filming location isn't going to suddenly change that.

 

[Tosk]

The show was specifically developed to INCLUDE Superman on the periphery and as part of the series' conceptual groundwork; moving to another network and filming location isn't going to suddenly change that.

The show was specifically designed to do well in the ratings and stay on CBS. Moving to another network may not suddenly change anything, but on the other hand why would they think that just transplanting the show and continuing to make it exactly the same would help with the ratings? I don't know anything at all about the decisions they're making, but I'd bet real money there are discussions going on about the direction of the show.

 

[sojourner]

Bringing in the Thanagarians doesn't have any effect on the fact that, on Earth-1 of the Arrowverse, Superman doesn't exist (whereas he's existed for over 3 decades on "Earth-S"); merging "Earth-S" with the Arrowverse proper would require a massive restructuring of everything that Arrow and The Flash have spent a combined total of 6 seasons building up.

I didn't say it would be easy, but it does "open the door" to the possibility of kryptonians. Maybe in the Arrowverse Superman's rocket got delayed. Kara could find herself in the role she was meant for of helping to raise and protect a young Kal-El.

 

[DigificWriter]

The show was specifically designed to do well in the ratings and stay on CBS. Moving to another network may not suddenly change anything, but on the other hand why would they think that just transplanting the show and continuing to make it exactly the same would help with the ratings? I don't know anything at all about the decisions they're making, but I'd bet real money there are discussions going on about the direction of the show.

The show is moving networks and shooting locations to cut costs, not because of ratings.

 

[Commander Richard]

But just because one person is adamant that Superman must exist just off camera in her show, doesn't make it so.

I'm not sure if this is a response to my post but in any case, I think it would be nice to see Superman on the show, I'm just saying that his absence isn't unusual given how TV works and that under the circumstances, they've handled it well, in my opinion.

 

[sojourner]

The show is moving networks and shooting locations to cut costs because CBS wasn't impressed by the ratings.

FTFY.

 

[DigificWriter]

I didn't say it would be easy, but it does "open the door" to the possibility of kryptonians. Maybe in the Arrowverse Superman's rocket got delayed. Kara could find herself in the role she was meant for of helping to raise and protect a young Kal-El.

Supergirl moving networks and shooting locations makes it easier for them to bring in Earth-1 or Earth-2 "doppelgangers" of the Supergirl cast should they feel so inclined, and to bring in "Earth-S" doppelgangers of characters from Earth-1 or Earth-2, but that's a different thing from suddenly abandoning Supergirl being set on an entirely different Earth in and of itself and "merging" it with Earth-1, because it would fundamentally alter the way that the Arrowverse itself has been set up for the past 6 combined seasons (4 seasons of Arrow and 2 seasons of The Flash).

 

[sojourner]

Supergirl moving networks and shooting locations makes it easier for them to bring in Earth-1 or Earth-2 "doppelgangers" of the Supergirl cast should they feel so inclined, and to bring in "Earth-S" doppelgangers of characters from Earth-1 or Earth-2, but that's a different thing from suddenly abandoning Supergirl being set on an entirely different Earth in and of itself and "merging" it with Earth-1, because it would fundamentally alter the way that the Arrowverse itself has been set up for the past 6 combined seasons (4 seasons of Arrow and 2 seasons of The Flash).

Huh, sort of like how suddenly superpowers and magic were introduced in the Arrowverse? Just gives Ollie more flashback fodder.

 

[DigificWriter]

FTFY.

You can "fix" my post all you want, but it doesn't change what's actually behind the show's move to Vancouver and The CW, which is budget and cost-cutting.

 

[DigificWriter]

Huh, sort of like how suddenly superpowers and magic were introduced in the Arrowverse?

Suddenly saying that Superman has publicly existed in the Arrowverse for close to 3 decades even though the Particle Accelerator accident and The Flash's emergence marked the very first time superpowered people were seen on Earth-1 is a far different matter than either of the things you're talking about, and that's what would have to happen to suddenly "merge" the two realities into one.

 

[Saga]

You can "fix" my post all you want, but it doesn't change what's actually behind the show's move to Vancouver and The CW, which is budget and cost-cutting.

and why did they need these cost cutting measures? because the ratings did not justify an automatic renewal from CBS.

 

[DigificWriter]

As far as I know, CBS was fairly happy with the ratings, but it came down to ratings vs. budget, and budget considerations ultimately "won out", precipitating the move.

At least that's the impression I've gotten from reading all of the reporting on the decision to move the show to The CW and the production to Vancouver.

 

[sojourner]

So your saying the budget didn't support the ratings? Hmmmm.

You do know that ratings justify how much they charge for ads during the show? Which is used to pay for the cost of the show (and hopefully make a profit). Sp if CBS feels that the budget is too high it's because they aren't getting the ratings to justify charging a higher price for ad space.

 

[Dick Whitman]

I am happy keeping Supergirl on her separate Earth with the occasional crossovers.

it would be fun to see another Earth for a single story in which all the characters from the various shows exist together. Always have.

 

[DigificWriter]

@sojourner My impression is that it was the high cost of the licensing fee more than anything else that was the major "stumbling block" in terms of cutting the budget relative to the ratings that the series was pulling in.