There is a certain thrill to seeing two superheroes come face-to-face for the first time. This past weekend, audiences showed up in record numbers to see Warner Bros.' current Batman (Ben Affleck) and Superman (Henry Cavill) come face-to-face -- and then fist-to-fist -- in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice. On Monday (March 28), a similar meeting of minds is going to take place on television: The CW's The Flash (Grant Gustin) is going to accidentally find himself on the same Earth as CBS's Supergirl (Melissa Benoist).

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It's the different ways in which these two properties bring their characters together that highlights why The Flash / Supergirl crossover is a breath of fresh air coming off the doom and gloom of BvS.Batman v Superman might have made droves of money at the box office, but its reception -- both from critics and fans -- was divisive. Part of that was the way in which Batman and Superman eventually did come together and fight: what started as a conflict of differing ideologies turned into a knock 'em, sock 'em battle royale masterminded by Lex Luthor. While there undeniably is a thrill to seeing Batman and Superman (and the scene-stealing Wonder Woman, of course) fight together for the first time, it's a huge moment that had been played out over and over in the movie's marketing campaign, which undermines its impact.Contrast that with The Flash and Supergirl's crossover, which airs tonight on CBS. This episode has also been heavily promoted, but having seen an early screening of crossover, there is no one moment that "makes" the episode that could have been spoiled by a trailer; the entire 42 minute-odd runtime is a joy to behold, from beginning to end. The Flash and Supergirl are lighter properties inherently (Arrow is the closest DC TV comes to dark and brooding) but given the proximity of their releases, it's impossible not to compare how these two big crossover properties treated their title characters coming together.In BvS, Batman and Superman never get to know one another in the movie's 2 hour and 33 minute runtime. Much of the time that they spend together as superheroes is fighting, either each other or the film's big bad, Doomsday. (This is to be expected, considering the "versus" in the title.) By the end of the movie the seeds for the Justice League have been set, but grown from tragedy, and with no time for conversation or understanding between Batman and Superman.On the opposite end of the spectrum is tonight's Supergirl episode, "Worlds Finest," which brings together two superheroes who don't even exist in the same universe, but have an immediate meeting of minds. It helps (and is necessary) that this episode serves as a solid entry point for both DC TV series; a Flash fan who never caught an episode of Supergirl can easily follow the episode as it unfolds, and vice versa. There's no sense of competition between these two, no hiding of identities from one another; just an excited swapping of hero stories as they -- and the audience -- get a thrill from finding out yet another person like them exists.Heck, there's even going to be a superhero footrace to determine who is faster, inspired directly from Superman and The Flash's various races in the DC comics.It's interesting that "Worlds Finest" picks up with Kara Zor-El in a similar situation to what Clark Kent finds himself in during Batman v Superman. After an exposure to Red Kryptonite turned her into a twisted, dangerous version of herself, National City turned against its heroine, deciding it no longer needed her. When Barry Allen accidentally speeds through the multiverse and finds himself in National City, it's at a time when Kara is desperate to find a way to win back the trust of the people she wants to protect.How she goes about doing that underlines just how vastly different Warner Bros. TV's approach to bringing the DC universe to life is from the WB Films side. While conflict and tragedy weigh down the events of BvS, it's through positivity and teamwork that Kara (with Barry's help) tries to find a resolution on Supergirl. He's able to offer advice to her in a way similar to how Oliver Queen (Stephen Amell) once helped him, and the passing of the torch spreads a message of teamwork that Batman v Superman often lacked -- it was the Dawn of Justice (League), after all.Superhero stories don't need to be "fun" to be successful, but seeing two superheroes come to life and be brought together should be a joy to behold. Love or hate Batman v Superman, the coming together of The Flash and Supergirl on the small screen offered a refreshing alternative to superhero pairings that is universally accessible and appealing. These two characters might be from different networks, but they fit well together, and after watching "Worlds Finest," it's hard not to be excited for future crossovers between Supergirl and The CW's DC shows -- no doom, gloom or tragedy involved.

"Worlds Finest" airs Monday at 8 p.m. ET/PT on CBS.Terri Schwartz is Entertainment Editor at IGN. Talk to her on Twitter at @Terri_Schwartz