No, I’m not kidding. CW’s Supergirl/Kara Zor-El really does take off her skirt in a new promotional image for the upcoming Season 5 of Supergirl, as shared by Melissa Benoist on her personal Instagram page.

The image showcases Kara Zor-El’s brand new costume for the first time since the very first season initially debuted in 2015. Supergirl’s sleek new look replaces her traditional iconic skirt with a pair of pants, similar to Superman’s. Besides that, she now has a revised golden belt and her gauntlets now extend all the way to cover her knuckles.

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A post shared by Melissa Benoist (@melissabenoist)

In an interview with EW, Benoist explained that the showrunners and her have wanted to apply this change for a long time.

“We’ve been talking about pants since season 1.

Every time a writer from the show has come up, and it’s freezing cold in Vancouver, I’m like, ‘Guys, please can I not wear tights?’

I love [Kara’s old costume]. I haven’t changed it because it so works, and I think it is very Kara. I’ve always felt that — until recently, I’m like, ‘Something’s gotta give.’”

It’s a natural part of her evolution as a character, after five seasons that have pitted the Girl Of Steel against threats like other Kryptonians and even Lex Luthor himself.

She continued:

“I just think it’s more adult.

Part of my goal in this whole series for whenever the show ends, I just want there to be a very clear arc for this character that she evolved as a woman and found her femininity and her adulthood, just a self-discovery.”

In fact, I personally think that Supergirl’s Season 5 costume is very similar to the second Superman Rebirth costume, which only debuted a few years ago in Superman Issue 20 (2017).

Supergirl Season 5 is set to premiere on 6 October 2019.