6 Times Supergirl Improved DC Mythology (& 4 Times It Failed)

4. Has Shone A Spotlight On C-Listers

Supergirl Manchester Black
The CW

Mon-El. Agent Liberty. Manchester Black. Reign. Maxwell Lord. Indigo. Eve Teschmacher. Mr. Mxyzptlk. Would anybody but comic book die-hards have ever even heard of these characters if it were not for the Supergirl TV series? Likely not.

Those seven characters are just a small sample of C-list – or even D-list – characters who have been afforded a spotlight thanks to Supergirl. And not just a brief, one-off appearance opposite Melissa Benoist’s Maid of Might, for those characters were all given at least a multiple-episode arc – with most of those villainous sorts getting a full season to let their own personal stories be fleshed out. Well, apart from Mon-El, for he's not a villain and actually had a couple of seasons as the on-off love interest of Kara.

In that regard, Supergirl has vastly improved the mythology of DC Comics in how it has made people aware – and, for the most part, care – about characters who they otherwise wouldn’t know even existed.

Sure, everybody knows the Lex Luthors, the Jokers, the Reverse-Flashes, the Ra’s al Ghuls, and the General Zods of DC Comics. But for Supergirl, it decided to allow other lesser-known villains to stand front-and-centre in a way that brought new awareness to the world of DC Comics.

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Once described as the Swiss Army Knife of WhatCulture, Andrew can usually be found writing, editing, or presenting on a wide range of topics. As a lifelong wrestling fan, horror obsessive, and comic book nerd, he's been covering those topics professionally as far back as 2010. In addition to his current WhatCulture role of Senior Content Producer, Andrew previously spent nearly a decade as Online Editor and Lead Writer for the world's longest-running genre publication, Starburst Magazine, and his work has also been featured on BBC, TechRadar, Tom's Guide, WhatToWatch, Sportkskeeda, and various other outlets, in addition to being a Rotten Tomatoes-approved film critic. Between his main dayjob, his role as the lead panel host of Wales Comic Con, and his gig as a pre-match host for Wrexham AFC games, Andrew has also carried out a hugely varied amount of interviews, from the likes of Robert Englund, Kane Hodder, Adrienne Barbeau, Rob Zombie, Katharine Isabelle, Leigh Whannell, Bruce Campbell, and Tony Todd, to Kevin Smith, Ron Perlman, Elijah Wood, Giancarlo Esposito, Simon Pegg, Charlie Cox, the Russo Brothers, and Brian Blessed, to Kevin Conroy, Paul Dini, Tara Strong, Will Friedle, Burt Ward, Andrea Romano, Frank Miller, and Rob Liefeld, to Bret Hart, Sting, Mick Foley, Ricky Starks, Jamie Hayer, Britt Baker, Eric Bischoff, and William Regal, to Mickey Thomas, Joey Jones, Phil Parkinson, Brian Flynn, Denis Smith, Gary Bennett, Karl Connolly, and Bryan Robson - and that's just the tip of an ever-expanding iceberg.