Though not a smash hit, 2025’s Superman did reasonably well. That set up hopes that the next DC superhero flick would find a solid audience.

Alas, 2026’s Supergirl pretty much bombed at the box office. It didn’t deserve that fate, though, as it brings a pretty good adventure.

Haunted by her past as the only survivor of the Kryptonian location Argo City, Kara Zor-El (Milly Alcock) drinks too much to numb the pain. Because she enjoys superpowers under Earth’s yellow sun, she goes offworld to planets with red suns so she can feel the impact of the alcohol.

After brigands led by dastardly Krem (Matthias Schoenaerts) poison her dog Krypto and steal her ship, Kara has 72 hours to track down the culprits and retrieve the antidote. Young Ruthye (Eve Ridley) comes along as well to get revenge because Krem murdered her family.

As mentioned, the 2025 Superman didn’t turn into a blockbuster, but it launched the “new look” DC cinematic universe under the stewardship of James Gunn on a positive note. With mediocre reviews and iffy ticket sales, though, Supergirl crushed any potential momentum.

If you ask me why audiences rejected Supergirl, I couldn’t tell you – well, at least in terms of why the movie got such blah reviews. Though it reinvents no superhero wheels, the film does offer a quality adventure.

As far as I can tell, the biggest complaint from potential viewers about Supergirl seems to relate to the manner in which it presents a drunken, depressed Kara. We’re used to Supergirl as essentially a female twist on Superman: cheerful, noble and virtuous.

Though this take on Kara came from previously issued comics, it brings a different version of the role than the one audiences know. Apparently this didn’t appeal to the masses.

However, I like it because Kara should seem very different than Kal-El due to their roots. Because he came to Earth as a baby and barely lived with his birth family, Kal-El/Clark grew up without bad memories and he experienced an idyllic childhood.

On the other hand, Kara departed as a teen and thus experienced trauma before she hopped into that spaceship. Kara watched her family die and lives with the painful memories as she navigates a planet that doesn’t really feel like home.

Whereas it appears many viewers just want a Kara who’s a duplicate of Clark/Kal-El, that version never made any sense given their differing backgrounds. Of course, when DC introduced Supergirl in 1959, they did so in a comic book environment not really oriented toward “heroes” who worked through trauma.

I suspect Supergirl came into existence a) as a way to expand the Superman universe after 20 years of stories and b) as a way to potentially attract female readers. The truth remains that while Supergirl could appear in enjoyable efforts, she really did seem awfully similar to Superman for most of her existence.

While I do understand why Dark ‘n’ Sullen Kara might turn off some viewers, I like the choice, especially since it gives her an actual arc. With Superman, the character at the start of a movie will change little – if at all – by the end, so I appreciate the chance to view real maturation.

And make no mistake: Supergirl does evolve Kara, though not in an unrealistic manner. Her adventures here don’t suddenly erase her pain but they prompt her to grow up and move toward acceptance that with great power comes great responsibility.

Character domains aside, I also think Supergirl simply offers a lively flick. It moves at a brisk pace and gives us a good mix of comedy and action.

Granted, the movie can feel awfully episodic at times, and I get the reason many think Krem brings a lackluster villain, at least from the POV that he feels derivative. We’ve seen many other baddies in the same vein and he also goes MIA for too long to become a persistently intimidating presence.

That said, Krem seems suitably evil and threatening. Schoenaerts plays him in a creepy and sadistic manner that allows for Krem to fill the role as Primary Antagonist just fine.

Other criticisms relate to Kara’s motivation, as some don’t think “saving a dying pet” justifies all the hardships she endures to rescue Krypto. As someone who’d do anything for my dogs, I disagree, and I suspect millions of other pet owners would agree.

Besides, Krypto exists as more than just her buddy. Krypto offers a connection to a home that no longer exists, so as long as he lives, she can still feel bonded to that now-deceased family.

Krypto does become a mild weak link just because the CG rendition of the pup never seems terribly convincing. I’ve certainly seen worse CG animals but he just never quite becomes “real”.

Still, Krypto’s “real enough” that we care about him. Like I said, he exists partly as a symbol anyway, not unlike the dog in the first John Wick flick.

In terms of human performances, Alcock handles a mix of character demands well and allows Kara to grow in a convincing manner. She manages to make Kara’s evolution seamless and unforced.

Young Ridley’s role ensures that Supergirl can feel like “True Gritin Space” but she holds up well. She brings spirit and depth to a challenging part.

As I noted at the start, none of this makes Supergirl into a great superhero adventure, and I probably like 2025’s Superman a bit more. Nonetheless, it provides a worthy follow-up that I enjoyed.

Supergirl appears in an aspect ratio of 2.39:1 on this 4K UHD Disc. A native 4K source, the Dolby Vision image looked great.

Sharpness looked solid. Virtually no softness materialized in this tight and concise image.

Neither jagged edges nor moiré effects created concerns. I witnessed no signs of edge haloes or print flaws.

Though Supergirl went with some of the usual orange and teal, it broaded its palette with lots of reds and greens and blues as well. These looked lively and HDR added impact to the hues.

Blacks came across as deep and firm, while low-light shots presented clear imagery. Both whites and contrast got a boost from HDR. The movie brought us a solid transfer.

Downconverted to Dolby TrueHD 7.1, the movie’s Dolby Atmos soundtrack delivered the expected dynamic material. With tons of action, the soundscape used all the channels on a frequent basis. This led us to an exciting sonic experience from start to finish.

The various speakers provided lots of information that filled out the movie and blended together in a seamless manner. Weapons, explosions, vehicles – you name it and it blasted all around us. This formed a dynamic soundfield with a lot to offer.

In addition, audio quality seemed strong. Music was bold and full, and even with a lot of looped lines, dialogue remained crisp and natural.

Effects appeared lively and vivid, with clear highs and deep lows. I felt pleased with this impressive soundtrack.

When we go to extras, we find a slew of featurettes. Flying Off the Page spans 11 minutes, two seconds and brings notes from executive producers Lars P. Winther and Chantal Nong, producers James Gunn and Peter Saffran, writer Ana Noguiera, director Craig Gillespie, comic writerTom King, comic artists Bilquis Evely and Matheu Lopes, and actors Milly Alcock, Eve Ridley and Jason Momoa.

We learn about the Woman of Tomorrow comic and its adaptation into a movie as well as characters and story and cast/performances. It comes with a few insights but tends to feel puffy.

Girl’s Best Friend occupies five minutes, 25 seconds. We find remarks from Nong, Gillespie, Alcock, Noguiera, Gunn, visual effects supervisor Geoffrey Baumann, visual effects producer Nicole Rowley and director of photography Rob Hardy.

This one examines how the production brought Krypto to the screen. Despite a couple good touches about the techniques used, the reel largely lacks substance.

Next comes A Practical Legacy. It lasts 11 minutes, four seconds and gives us info from Alcock, Ridley, Gillespie, Noguiera, Nong, Saffran, Winther, Momoa, Baumann, Legacy Effects founder Shane Mahan, mechanical designer Rick Galinson, studio manager Damon Weathers, lead character artist Savannah Suderman, actor Matthias Schoenaerts, co-costume designers Michael Mooney and Anna Sheppard, senior special effects technician Christopher Clarke and makeup/hair designer Peter Swords King.

As implied by the title, "Legacy" covers the use of practical effects in the movie and other factors related to cinematic aliens. Once again, we get a combo of facts and fluff.

The DC Dream: Lobo runs six minutes, 43 seconds. We locate comments from Momoa, Gunn, Saffran, Gillespie, Noguiera, Winther, Nong, Mahan, Mooney, Ridley, Alcock and Sheppard.

Unsurprisingly, "Dream" covers the Lobo character's use in the movie. Unsurprisingly, it offers the standard blend of worthwhile thoughts and bland praise.

After this we find Showdown at Evely Square. An eight-minute, 30-second show, it involves Alcock, Ridley, Winther, Gillespie, Momoa, supervising stunt coordinator Rob Inch, stunt coordinator Florian Robin, stunt performer Mickey Facchinello, and fight coordinator Trayan Milenov.

Via "Showdown", we take a gander at stunts and action. Some of it informs but a lot of it just praises.

Space Is a Bad Neighborhood, Babe takes up 10 minutes, 34 seconds. We discover thoughts from Gunn, Saffran, Gillespie, Alcock, Baumann, Hardy, Winther, Nong, Rowley, Sheppard, production designer Neil Lamont, assistant art director Marcus Levers-George, assistant set decorator Roxy Stapleton, production sound mixer Chris Munro, language creators Hessie and David Peterson, and actors David Krumholz and Emily Beecham.

This piece digs into sets and locations as well as other elements related to alien worlds. Despite some of the usual happy talk, "Space" manages to offer more meat than usual.

From there we go to Mixtape For a Hero. It fills five minutes, eight seconds with statements from Noguiera, Saffran, Gillespie, and composer Claudia Sarne.

The film's score becomes the focus here. Expect another decent but unmemorable featurette.

The Making of Supergirl runs 25 minutes. This reel involves Alcock, Gunn, Saffran, Nong, Noguiera, Gillespie, Ridley, Winther, Hardy, and actor David Corenswet.

We hear about casting and performances, photography, sets/locations, stunts/action, and other production areas. Not much depth arrives here, as "Making" doesn't use its 25 minutes well.

With You Are Here, we find a four-minute, 22-second “Supergirl Map of the Galaxy”. Narrated by Ridley, it gives us a general recap of the movie's planets and becomes a passable summary.

A cartoon called Coastal Catastrophe takes up five minutes, 31 seconds and gives us a Krypto-focused adventure. A mix of action and mainly comedy, it entertains.

Finally, we get two Deleted Scenes: “Extended Shopping Trip with Map” (1:51) and “Knoll Family” (2:57). Neither offers anything memorable that needed to make the final cut, though “Knoll” lets us get to know Ruthye’s clan a bit better.

A box office disappointment, Supergirl deserved a better financial fate. While not a top-level superhero film, it offers a lively mix of action, comedy and drama to become a vivid adventure. The 4K UHD comes with strong picture and audio as well as a long but spotty selection of bonus features. Hopefully Supergirl will find an audience on video, as it turns into a good flick.