‘Arrow’/’The Flash’/’Supergirl’ Producer Andrew Kreisberg Discusses ‘Supergirl,’ Comics, Past Adaptations

Supergirl, the newest little comic book adaptation that could, seems to be having a rough time finding its place. Supergirl brought CBS into the seemingly crowded fray of TV comic book adaptations, a place that every network has either tried to get into lately or are preparing to very soon. CW comic book adaptation all-star Andrew Kreisberg, also known as the producer of Arrow and The Flash, is also leading the most recent DC Comics adaptation effort. Kreisberg was asked by Comicbook whether or not there was any temptation to incorporate anything from the Helen Slater Supergirl film or the very early comics, especially since Helen Slater is part of the cast. He reminded fans that he and the other writers are “conscious of what’s come before.”

“Yeah, look, that’s partially why we had Helen on the show as Eliza Danvers. We’re always incredibly conscious of what’s come before us. Between Greg and I and now Ali, we consider ourselves blessed that we get to be the stewards for this leg of these characters’ journeys. We don’t feel a sense of proprietariness to these characters; we know we have them on loan. so having nods to the past — casting John Wesley Shipp on The Flash and having Amanda Pays on and really even having Matt Ryan on Arrow is always paying back what’s come before. So having Helen Slater and having Dean Cain — because honestly that Supergirl movie obviously has its many flaws but when I was a kid, I didn’t realize those flaws as much and I used to watch it all the time.”

Kreisberg was naturally asked about comic book inspiration because it is a comic book adaptation, after all. He referenced Arrow and The Flash to explain just how he and other writers and producers pick what will show up on anyone of the aforementioned shows.

“As always, we kind of look at the totality of the work. I mean, we read Supergirl comics from the ’50s and the ’60s where all she was is man crazy. There’s even bits we’ve cherry-picked from the movie. Just like with Arrow and just like The Flash, Arrow isn’t a direct adaptation of The Longbow Hunters and The Flash isn’t a direct adaptation of Rebirth. We sort of cherry pick parts from every era and throw them into the grinder with our own ideas, and what comes out is what you see. Obviously Sterling’s run and his love for the character really shines through from us and there are certainly parts that came from there. But if you look, you’ll see there’s just as much Donner Superman in there as there is Sterling’s Supergirl run.”

Andrew Kreisberg was even kind enough to directly answer a Supergirl Season 1 rumor that has cropped up in recent weeks, though as usual, he was not giving it all away. The rumor of Hank Henshaw secretly being Martian Manhunter was addressed with a reference to Tom Cavanagh’s secret portrayal of Reverse-Flash.

“I think we’re borrowing a page out of our own playbook with the way we treated Tom Cavanagh’s character. We had somebody where you weren’t sure who they were and people started to speculate. There were early fan theories that Tom was actually Barry from the future. I think it’s fun for people to try to guess at some of these surprises. Obviously we don’t want to give spoilers away but I think speculating on that stuff is part of the fun of being a fan. Certainly none of us here are interested in taking that away from people.”

The DC Comics cousin of Superman has not hit it off quite like its fellow DC shows Arrow, Gotham, The Flash, and iZombie. Supergirl has a IMDb rating that is less than the cancelled DC Comics show Constantine. Despite its rough start, as Arrow certainly had as well, it might have finally hit its stride in the last episode. Supergirl producer Andrew Kreisberg remains unabashedly optimistic.

Unfortunately for Supergirl, the Monday night episode was pulled. However, TV Series Finale reported that it was pulled in response to the Paris terrorist attacks, it led many fans and casual watchers to believe it was cancelled. Only Supergirl fans, as proof positive by Constantine fans as one example, can truly determine the fate of the show.

The Inquisitr reported back in August that the typically optimistic “Never say Never” producer Greg Berlanti said there were no crossovers in sight for Supergirl. Andrew Kreisberg has not specifically commented on this, but one would think that some crossovers with Arrow and The Flash, or Legends of Tomorrow, could certainly aid the fledgling show.

[Image via CBS]