Cat Grant, the Unsung Hero of Supergirl

While Supergirl’s name is in the title, Cat Grant is quickly becoming my favorite character on this show. I’m five episodes in. Between viewing episodes from Green Lantern: The Animated Series for the first time.

Calista Flockhart as Cat Grant. Courtesy of The CW.

• She impressively built her CatCo empire from the ground up.
• She was “brilliant in business” before becoming a “brilliant mother” instead of “trying to do too much” all at once. “How do you juggle it all? You learn that’s how.”
• She defends her branding of Supergirl: “And what do you think is so bad about a girl? Huh? I’m a girl. And your boss, and powerful, and rich, and hot and smart. So if you perceive Supergirl as anything less than excellent, isn’t the real problem you?”
• Recognizes the bull plop double standard and has still succeeded. “He, he, he. Him, him, him. I am so sick of hearing about the Man of Steel. Every woman worth her salt knows that we have to work twice as hard as a man to be thought of as half as good.” “I started out as Perry White’s assistant. I worked my ass off until one day I finally had the chance to write an article for the gossip column. Every step of the way, I had to fight, to work hard, to get better, to come out ahead.”
• She tries to right her own mistakes. Admits to turning Leslie Willis into a “monster” long before her Livewire transformation, pays for a hospital room for Willis after she ends up in a coma by being inside the Catcopter during nasty weather, risking her own life to help Supergirl defeat Livewire, and genuinely expressing “I’m sorry” to Kara after hearing about the death of her parents as she opens up about her own life.
• Her mother isn’t proud her daughter’s accomplishments, so, thus Cat isn’t ever satisfied with herself (To the point where she schedules a therapist session after having lunch with her). Which is why she keeps “pushing”. And why Cat pushes other people she cares about.

Originally posted by Shawn Churchill on the SuperMOOC: Gender Through Comic Books group on Facebook.