“Pilot” is episode one of season one of Supergirl.
This, being a pilot episode, starts with some background. The narrator starts by saying that her name is Kara Zor-El and that, 24 years ago, her planet, Krypton, was in serious trouble. Her cousin Kal-El was sent to a planet called Earth for his protection – and you may know his story. But this is the story you don’t know. Kara was sent to Earth to protect her cousin; he was a baby but she was older. Kara was told by her parents that on Earth she would have extraordinary powers.
Things did not go to plan. Kara’s pod was hit by the shockwave when Krypton exploded (in a planar explosion; before the Death Star exploded in Star Wars that was not a thing). The shockwave knocked Kara’s pod off course and into the Phantom Zone. 23 years later Kara’s pod left the zone and crashed on Earth. She was still a 13 year old girl but her cousin had grown up and revealed himself. Superman himself helped Kara out of her pod and placed her with an adopted family, the Danvers, scientists who helped Superman understand his own abilities. He wanted Kara to have the same human childhood he did. The Danvers had a daughter about the same age as Kara, Alex. Kara had all the same powers as Superman, but she decided that the best thing to do was to fit in as Earth did not need another hero.
Now an adult, Kara works for CatCo Worldwide Media, an online and print empire run by Cat Grant. Kara’s boss and the most powerful women in National City. For the next few days. Kara works as an assistant and her best friend at work would seem to be Winn – who clearly has a thing for her. He also believes in aliens; Kara tells him they don’t exist. Which is clearly untrue. Winn tries asking Kara out but she has an online blind date that night.
Cat Grant would appear to be a difficult person to work for. She tells Kara that she is downsizing the Tribune; Kara doesn’t like this idea. She tells Cat that they don’t downsize at the Daily Planet. Cat tells her that Metropolis has a person who wears a cape and flies around performing heroic acts. The Planet puts that superlative man on its cover 54% of the time; if Kara wants to save the Tribune, Cat tells her to find a hero.
Sent to get layouts by Cat, Kara stumbles across a new guy, who says that he will be with her in a minute. He doesn’t think that Cat will fire him so soon after hiring him. Kara recognises a Pulitzer-winning photo of Superman – and the new hire reveals that he took it. For he is James ‘Jimmy’ Olsen. James comments that Kara looks a little like Superman (although it seems like Superman is never mentioned explicitly by that name in the episode) and asks if anyone has ever told her that.
Kara asks for Alex’s help picking an outfit to go on her date with (Alex says when in doubt, go with blue; it’s Kara’s colour). Kara also says she sometimes feels she isn’t really making a difference. She has all the same powers as Superman; she can fly too – she thinks, she hasn’t done it in years. Alex tells Kara that she has plenty to be happy about, but Alex is getting on a plane to Geneva.
Kara’s blind date does not go well. Her date walks out on her – not realising she can hear him (he sounds like a jerk) – when she hears a news report about Flight 237 to Geneva which has suffered engine problems. Kara realises that this is the aeroplane that Alex is on, so decides to do something. One of the plane’s engines is already on fire, then another catches fire too. On the other wing, which is odd. So Kara discovers that yes, she can still fly, and manages to save the plane.
Afterwards, Kara is rather hyped by the experience but, when Alex comes home, her sister tells her that she has exposed herself to the world and she can’t take it back. People may figure out who Kara is, what she is, and it isn’t safe. Kara shouldn’t do anything like that again. You would have thought the conversation might have started with ‘Thank you for saving my life.’
The flying woman is all over the news and Cat says that they need stuff on her. After the meeting, James comments that this was the first thing he – Superman – did. Saving a plane. Kara is still buzzed and has to tell someone about what she did. So she tells Winn.
Someone else is watching the news and he does not seem happy. In fact, he seems to be carving chunks out of a diner counter with his fingertips. The man leaves the diner and goes to a tanker truck. And he climbs into the tanker and removes his hat, showing that he does not appear to be human. The man activates a device and communicates with someone (Faran Tahir; Warehouse 13‘s Mr Kosan) who calls him Vartox. The other man tells Vartox that he was ordered to bring the plane down and Vartox says that the bombs activated as planned, and the D.E.O. agents would have been killed, except for the interference of the girl. Vartox is told to eliminate Kara, as the general is arriving, and it seems they both know exactly whose daughter she is.
Kara, with Winn’s help, comes up with a suit, and starts practicing at stopping crime. On the way to a fire she is knocked out of the sky by some sort of tranquiliser darts and captured. When Kara comes around, she is strapped to a table and a man introduces himself as Hank Henshaw. And Alex works for him. Henshaw is the director of the Department of Extra-Normal Operations, and Alex was one of the reasons the plane was targeted.
The D.E.O. was set up to deal with aliens, once it was known they existed. The arrival of Kara’s cousin showed a need for its existence; her arrival caused it to be formed. For Kara’s pod, when it left the Phantom Zone, dragged Fort Rozz with it. Krypton’s prison, full of beings with powers from all over the galaxy. The worst scum of the universe is now on Earth, and they seem to be planning something soon. Kara is told by Henshaw that people fear aliens; plenty fear her cousin but they keep quiet about it.
Alex told Kara to keep her powers hidden so that she didn’t get dragged into this (and other reasons). Henshaw does not have a very high opinion of her. Kara is still trying to believe in herself too. She’s also not entirely happy with Cat naming her Supergirl.
So, a start to the series. Lots of setup and a fairly minor battle to start with. Some relationships and alliances are started and plot threads start opening up with the escaped criminals from Fort Rozz.