Mari McCabe’s homecoming has been anything but pleasant. Then again, Mari’s life in general hasn’t been very pleasant.

An orphan bounced from foster home to foster home, Mari’s never really felt at home anywhere.  Her quest for identity sent her overseas to Africa in search of something… anything that might tell her about her birth family.

Alas, she didn’t find the answers she wanted.  All she has to show for her efforts is an odd necklace. A family heirloom, or so she tells the police as it is returned to her once her bail is posted.

Yes, Mari spent her first night back in Detroit in lock-up. This was the end result of her assaulting a job interviewer after he proved to be less interested in the aspiring fashion designer’s work and more interested in how she’d look without any clothing at all!

So yeah – bit of a rough week all around.

Little does Mari suspect that her family heirloom is more valuable than she realizes. That by the time the night is ended, she will be given a chance to be a hero and discover the amazing powers that her family stewarded for generations. Or that three days in the future she will be on the run from two superheroes… and holding her own against them!

The first episode of Vixen proves an interesting introduction to a relatively obscure heroine. Fans of Mari from the comics will be glad to know her background seems to be largely intact. Indeed, the only difference I noticed is that this version of Mari is an aspiring fashion designer rather than a model.

The script for this episode proves a strong one. Mari establishes herself quickly as a no-nonsense woman who suffers fools poorly. She is well played by Megalyn Echikunwoke, who finds the right note of world-weariness for Vixen’s voice without making her sound bitter about her rough life.

The animation for the series is top-notch, being reminiscent of the late lamented Young Justice. The opening sequence – while presented without context – is a thrilling one, made all the stronger by the reworked themes from both Arrow and The Flash in the soundtrack.

All in all, Vixen seems to be another fine contribution to the DCTV Universe. The writing and acting equal what we’ve come to expect from The CW’s superhero series thus far. And the animation looks amazing.  This show is a must-see for all superhero fans.