But that's not the only possible explanation. It's just the one you want to be true. Maybe they just didn't want their lead character to be defined by the pursuit of romance, because that's a cliche for a female lead. Heck, they basically said as much when Kara gave her reasons for breaking up with James -- that she wanted to focus on figuring out who she was as a professional.
Who said it was about time? That was never the issue. What they said is that it didn't feel like the right direction for the characters.
Also, her development as a superhero was the focus for season 1. The focus for season 2, again, is on her development as Kara Danvers, professional woman (reporter, as it turned out).
But that's a plot the producers decided to develop themselves. It's not something that was pushed on them by the network. That's the difference. Kara-James didn't feel right to the show's staff, because it wasn't their idea. Now they have more freedom to go where they wish, so whatever romance they decide to give Kara is their own choice.
I dunno... The contrast between Superman's high-flying alien powers and Batman's street-level, gadget-based vigilantism has been an ongoing dynamic in the comics for longer than probably any of us have been alive. So it's not so unreasonable to give Supergirl a vigilante foil. And having James Olsen become Guardian is kind of a suitable choice in an offbeat way, given that Guardian -- along with Cadmus -- was introduced during Jack Kirby's run on the comic Superman's Pal Jimmy Olsen (where he also debuted Darkseid, the New Gods, Intergang, etc.). They're sort of merging that with Jimmy's own Silver/Bronze Age history of becoming a superhero in his own right at various times.
Except that this is the one adaptation that's really played up the idea of Jimmy as "Superman's pal" (most screen versions make him Clark's pal, Lois's sidekick, or Perry's protege). Implicitly, he worked alongside Superman on a lot of his cases and provided him with a lot of help, presumably in the same way he did for Kara in season 1. So it's not like he's completely devoid of experience. And he pursues superheroics instead of police or DEO work because that's the example of heroism he grew up with and aspires to emulate. It's not about ego or inferiority, it's about admiring Superman's example and wanting to do good in the same way. It's the same reason that somebody whose role model growing up was, say, a firefighter might choose to become a firefighter instead of a doctor. They both save lives, but people often prefer to follow their role models' examples.
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