While Supergirl may have ended in 2021, its impact hasn’t, as Nicole Maines’s character Nia Nal has become part of the comics world. Dreamer was part of DC Pride, as well as joining Jonathan Kent in Superman: Son of Kal-El #13. She is one of many characters to start on a TV series before moving into the comic world, demonstrating how much shows can influence comics.
One major change Supergirl made from the comic canon is Supergirl’s secret identity. In the comics, this has been a complicated point for Kara, who has gone by several monikers. In Supergirl, however, she sticks to Kara Danvers, the name most characters first meet her as. Perhaps the most significant moment in her relationships with other characters is when (and how) they discover her secret, which says a lot about how much she trusts them and what role each person has in her life.
Winn Schott
Season 1, Episode 1
After deciding to become a superhero in “Pilot,” Kara immediately rushed to tell her best friend, Winn. She told him her identity on the roof of Cat-Co, falling off the edge and flying back up to prove she was telling the truth. Once he got over the panic, Winn was extremely excited to have an alien for a friend, particularly a heroic one.
Winn loved all things alien and was a tech genius, so he was a great resource for Kara to have on her side. He ended up making her suit, setting up a base of operations, and eventually joining the DEO. Her enthusiasm to tell him her secret, along with his help later on, proves that she was a great judge of character, finding exactly the right person to join what would later be known as the Super Friends.
Lucy Lane
Season 1, Episode 17
Lucy Lane was James Olsen’s long-term on-and-off girlfriend, but his friendship with Supergirl caused problems. While Kara reluctantly permitted James to tell Lucy the truth, they broke up before he could. Kara did reveal her secret in “Manhunter,” but only because Lucy was brought in to investigate J’onn and implicated Alex in his deception.
Kara was pushed to reveal her secret to Lucy by force, which shows that she didn’t trust the other woman. Lucy was very critical of the idea that aliens kept secrets at all, and while that tension might have been good for the show, the character disappeared after season 2, though some of her controversial beliefs were taken on by Lena Luthor.
Maggie Sawyer
Season 2, Episode 9
In Maggie’s seventh episode, “Supergirl Lives,” she was able to correctly guess that Kara was Supergirl based on how worried Alex got when Supergirl went missing. Knowing Kara’s secret made it easier for Maggie to do her job effectively, and she kept the secret to herself despite the messy breakup with Alex.
Kara revealing her secret was frequently compared to “coming out” in Supergirl, so it only made sense that Maggie would know what to look for in a character who had to hide a major part of herself. Other characters were trusted enough to be told or sneaky enough to discover the truth themselves, but Maggie figuring it out herself proved how insightful she was as well as how clearly she understood Alex.
Lillian Luthor
Season 2, Episode 21
Lillian may have begun suspecting Kara of being Supergirl when Kara described herself as Lena’s friend in “The Darkest Place,” but audiences didn’t know what she knew until “Resist,” when she called Kara by name as she asked for help saving Lena from the Daxamites.
In this case, it was more significant how Lillian revealed that she knew than how she had figured it out. “Supergirl” was an alien and the enemy, but Kara was a real person who loved Lena. By calling Kara by her name, Lillian acknowledged her humanity and gave away one of her future trump cards, sacrifices which proved that Lillian truly did love her step-daughter.
Cat Grant
Season 2, Episode 22
Cat Grant suspected Kara was Supergirl in season one, but J’onn used his powers to allow Kara and Supergirl to be in the same room together. Seemingly, that ended her suspicions, but audiences learned that she knew the truth by the end of season 2 in “Nevertheless, She Persisted.” Kara, however, only learned that Cat knew the truth in the series finale.
Cat Grant was such an important figure in Kara’s life because she seemed to know how to navigate the world infinitely more than Kara did herself. She was a critical mentor for both sides of Kara, so it made sense for her to also know how those sides fit together. Though Cat initially insisted that Kara be Supergirl full-time, she gradually learned how important being Kara was too.
Nia Nal
Season 4, Episode 11
Nia first met Kara at Cat-Co, but her narcoleptic episodes caused tension until she admitted her heritage and abilities to Kara. While they continued to bond from that point forward, Nia complained in “Blood Memory” that Kara couldn’t understand her difficulties. In response, Kara pulled over the car, took off her glasses, and flew.
Nia reminded Kara of herself from years before, so she had tried to be Cat Grant to the younger woman. However, Nia needed both sides of her, prompting Kara to reveal her secret and become her mentor at work and in the superhero business.
Lex Luthor
Season 4, Episode 16
It’s unclear when Lex Luthor learned who Supergirl was, but it happened at some point during his incarceration, perhaps soon after his mother figured it out. However, audiences only learned that he knew her identity in “The House of L,” where they saw him show Red Daughter various facets of Kara’s life.
No other villain who knew her secret weaponized the information in quite the way he did, which hurt Kara more deeply than physical wounds. Thankfully, Lena ended up erasing Lex and Lillian’s memories of Supergirl’s identity in the season 6 premiere, “Rebirth,” taking away his most dangerous advantage.
Lena Luthor
Season 4, Episode 22
One of the most-anticipated plot points in Supergirl was Lena learning that Kara was Supergirl, and the show dragged it out as long as they could before having Lex taunt Lena with the information as he died in “The Quest for Peace.” Though Kara told Lena herself only an episode later in “Event Horizon,” the damage was done, sending Lena down a season-long villain arc.
Lena’s relationship with Kara was deeper than nearly any other character, but Kara never really let herself be honest with the woman she claimed was her best friend. Though she could test out various reveals in the 100th episode, “It’s A Super Life,” it was eventually revealed that there was no ideal moment for Kara to tell Lena the truth.
Kelly Olsen
Between Season 6, Episodes 1 and 2
After how badly Lena reacted to Kara’s identity, the question of when to tell people became even more important. In “Rebirth,” Lena urged Alex to tell Kelly the truth, so she could have a more open relationship. J’onn agreed, and by “A Few Good Women,” Kelly was able to console Alex when she failed to get Kara back home.
While Alex telling Kelly the truth was a deliberate show of trust, it also suggested that Kelly wasn’t as attuned to Alex as Maggie was. Even so, it was a big step for Alex to take in a relationship and was an especially important one when they took in Esme, who figured out Kara’s secret herself.
Everyone
Season 6, Episode 20
After six seasons of secrets, Kara was struggling to manage both of her identities, especially when Cat Grant offered her a job as Editor-in-Chief of Catco. However, Cat suggested she stop living a double life and Lena agreed. In the final scene of “Kara,” Cat presented a familiar face to the world as both Kara Danvers and Supergirl, finally merging the two identities and letting everyone in on the secret.
This felt like the inevitable conclusion to the show, as Kara had been struggling to maintain both sides of herself from the moment she became a hero. While there are many dangers to publicly sharing a secret identity, fans can hope that it gave Kara the inner peace she deserved.
