Batgirl Should Join Supergirl on The CW

It's time for The CW's Supergirl to form a dynamic duo of its own. The Arrowverse series -- which is midway through its third season -- has largely kept the show's cast of characters within the family, focusing on Superman staples like Jimmy Olsen, Cat Grant, General Sam Lane and the big blue Boy Scout himself. Now that the show has established its cast and tone, though, it may be time for Supergirl to branch out to include other characters from DC's expansive canon -- and we know someone who would be a perfect fit: Batgirl.

Over the past three seasons, Supergirl has established Batman and his crime-ridden city of Gotham as part of her universe. In Season 2, Kara offhandedly mentioned that her cousin Superman worked with a "crazy" vigilante with a lot of gadgets. The show has also namedropped Gotham on several occasions. What's more, Batman exists across the Arrowverse's established multiverse; in the first season of DC's Legends of Tomorrow, Rip Hunter mentioned “Dark Knights” in the first season of the show, clearly referencing Batman. As such, the series has laid the groundwork for parts of Batman's world to bleed into Supergirl, even if the Dark Knight himself doesn't show up. Plus, if Supergirl can make it a whole season without Superman, Batgirl is more than capable of managing without Batman.

Additionally, Batgirl and Supergirl have a lengthy history of teaming up with one another. They got a whole crossover episode to themselves in the Batman: The Animated Series episode "Girls' Night Out." In Super Best Friends Forever, a series of animated shorts by Cartoon Network, the two were joined by Wonder Girl for a brief series of madcap adventures. Most recently, Batgirl and Supergirl joined forces in 2017's Batgirl Annual #1 for a case that continued into Supergirl's solo series. DC Comics even has a whole page -- including some additional comic recommendations -- dedicated to their friendship on its blog.

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Of course, Kara has dealt largely with Barbara Gordon's Batgirl throughout the years, but that doesn't have to be the case on Supergirl. As with the Robins, Batman has fostered several Batgirls, including Cassandra Cain and Stephanie Brown. Seeing as Warner Bros. has a movie featuring Barbara in the works, Cassandra, Stephanie and perhaps the short-lived Tiffany Fox may be a better fit for The CW series, especially seeing as Warner Bros. has a tendency to prevent characters they intend to use on film from appearing on the Arrowverse shows.

Let's break it down by character. Cassandra Cain, for instance, may be the the best choice for a traditional Super-Bat team up within Supergirl's world. Cain was raised to be an assassin and became a martial arts prodigy with the ability to precisely predict her opponent's next move through their body language. During that time, though, she wasn't taught to speak -- something that would probably befuddle Kara and also foster some sympathy. In the comics, Cain became Batgirl to make up for her past crimes and her dark history, which sets her up to be a nice foil to the bubbly, pure-hearted Kara. The two characters would likely have a lot to teach one another, in a way that would force Cain to lower her walls and Kara to accept a different perspective. Plus, the addition of Cain would add some much-needed Asian representation to the Arrowverse, whose only other Asian superhero is Arrow's Katana.

On the other hand, Stephanie Brown is often portrayed as young, niave and a little green. In Stephanie, Kara could find a sort of protege, someone who needs some mentoring to reach her full potential. This would flip the script for Kara, who has spent much of the series being mentored by female characters like Cat Grant and her sister Alex. Kara is known to inspire heroism in others, as she did recently with Livewire, but working with Stephanie could show a different side of this; after all, Stephanie is stubborn and has a tendency to land herself in trouble, which could force Kara to learn some patience and humility along the way.

As for Tiffany Fox, there hasn't been much done with her Batgirl. The character has only ever appeared in two issues: Batgirl: Futures End #1 and Batwing: Futures End #1. As such, Tiffany an open book for the Supergirl writers; they could mold her into whatever character best fits the story's needs. However, as the daughter of Lucius Fox, there is plenty of potential to develop this character and ground her in the DC Universe. Like Cain, Tiffany would also add some much-needed representation to Supergirl's cast.

Is a Batgirl-Supergirl team up likely to happen on The CW? If we're being honest, probably not. Most of Batman's rogues gallery have ended up on Fox, which airs Gotham. Since Gotham is a prequel show that shows Bruce Wayne as a teenager, though, it's highly unlikely that it will ever introduce any of the Batgirls. Plus, Warner Bros. has a history of yanking characters off of the Arrowverse when they are scheduled to appear in the films, as was the case with both Deathstroke (Justice League) and Katana (Suicide Squad). With Batgirl being eyed for a film, however low priority that may be, she may be ruled out for the Arrowverse altogether. Nevertheless, there is a lot of storytelling potential just waiting to be tapped if the character were ever able to join the Arrowverse, particularly Supergirl.

Over the past three seasons, Supergirl hasn't really had the opportunity to work alongside other women superheroes. She has teamed up with her cousin Superman, of course, and occasionally with James Olsen's Guardian; she also worked with female villains like Psi and Livewire when she had to. However, she has never worked with a true female superhero. Should Warner Bros. allow it to happen, Batgirl would be the perfect remedy for that. Since there are a variety of Batgirls to chose from, the show could even cherry pick whichever character -- Cassandra Cain, Stephanie Brown, Tiffany Fox or perhaps even Barbara Gordon -- suits its storytelling needs. Either way, it's past time for Batgirl to join Supergirl on The CW.

Returning Monday, April 16 at 8 p.m. on The CW, Supergirl stars Melissa Benoist as the Girl of Steel, David Harewood as Martian Manhunter, Mehcad Brooks as Jimmy Olsen, Chyler Leigh as Alex Danvers and Jeremy Jordan as Winn Schott, with appearances by Calista Flockhart as Cat Grant and Tyler Hoechlin as Superman.