Crisis on Infinite Earths #7 Fallout: Superman #414

Last week, I reviewed the Crisis on Infinite Earths #7 sections of the George Perez Tribute issue of Back Issue. It reminded me of just how in depth my coverage of COIE #7 has been on this site over the last 15 years. By now, I thought I might have covered almost everything. I even have a subset of posts called Crisis on Infinite Earths #7 Fallout, deeper looks at books reflecting closely on the events of that famous book.

So I was shocked, truly, to realize that over the time of this site I have never covered Superman #414, a Crisis crossover issue in the immediate aftermath of Crisis on Infinite Earths #7. This issue came out in September of 1985, 2 months after Supergirl's death in the Crisis.  In many ways, it is an epilogue to Supergirl's life although it takes a long time to get there.

Writer Elliot S! Maggin clearly had a tale to tell, of Superman mourning Kara's death and returning her body to Rokyn, New Krypton and her family. But to get there, he needs to tell a very padded tale of the Superman Revenge Squad causing some havoc. There are a lot of needless splash pages, aerial fights over Rokyn, and home scenes of Van-Zee. In fact, if you removed the Revenge Squad story you could have a tight 8 pager showing the aftermath of Kara's death with a bit more dignity. I get that you need action in comics, especially then, but I would have preferred a 22 pager showing that aftermath. While I am glad we got this epilogue, it still feels like Kara got short shrift here.

To make things maybe a touch worse, the art is a bit muddy. Curt Swan's usual magnificence is rendered crudely by co-artist (inker?) Al Williamson. Even the lettering by Ed King feels a bit wonky. I do like the cover by Eduardo Barreto. Barreto drew the back end of the 1980's Supergirl title. So seeing his take on the iconic COIE #7 cover is a nice touch here. 

On to some details.

Maggin opens up with his eulogy for Supergirl. 'A valiant young woman who loved and was loved -- who hated and was hated -- who struggled, ached, and strove in the shadow of a man of mythic proportions ... and who died defending him. ' Anyone who DC thinks should be writing a Supergirl book should read this opening and only if it resonates should they be allowed to pen a Kara story. 'Struggled, ached, and strove' in the shadow of Superman ... perfect.

And Curt Swan's take on the cover of COIE #7! More fallout.

You would think that the universe/multiverse being in peril might give the Superman Revenge Squad a moment of pause. But they are hell-bent on revenge even if it means their own potential disintegration in the Crisis. 

Still, what better time than head to Earth and destroy some stuff than this moment when Supergirl is dead and Superman is off-world. As the title says 'Revenge is life -- Death to Superman'.

With Superman off world, two random Revengers break into the Fortress of Solitude, vandalize the place, and tap into his super-computer for some nefarious plans. They even 'kill' MacDuff the last functioning Superman robot and sort of butler to the place. I guess MacDuff can no longer lead on. 

Now there is a lot these guys could have done in the Fortress. So I was wondering just what they gleaned during their time (over a day!) in there.

In a nice coincidence, Rokyn is not in the interdimensional pocket it usually resides in. It is in the current DC Universe.

So somehow, from the Fortress, an important message is sent to Van-Zee and his Earth wife Van-Zee. 

Now obviously this will play a key part to the story. But it is really that one tidbit that matters. Around that Maggin gives is a couple of pages of Van-Zee's kids hooting and hollering, Sylvia sounding nervous about a lecture she is giving, and even half a page of seeing the robot maid pick up the mess.

Now maybe Maggin knew the writing was on the wall and Rokyn stories were going to be gone soon. But this seems like wasted space.

There is a fair amount of tight continuity here. Superman is off world because he is on Earth Prime, meeting the Superboy there from DCCP #87. Maggin doesn't have use for Superboy so the convenient Crisis vortex whisks Superboy-Prime away. I do like that Superman comments that it is similar to the one that snatched up Luthor in the Crisis (of course that was Brainiac consolidating the villains.

With little muss or fuss, the Revengers show up, shoot Superman, and knock him out. 

If it was this easy, if they had such a weapon, why wait?

And if revenge is their motive, why not just kill him right now??

As the Revengers mummify Superman (another odd touch), Jimmy Olsen is reporting on it via newscopter.

Somehow Jimmy is talking to Clark. But it turns out that Clark has some pretty advanced AI , even form the eighties. As Jimmy 'talks' to Clark, the computer responds appropriately as Clark. This is also a bit of a foreshadow.

But remember, for me this is chance for Maggin to mourn or respect Supergirl. So I like that the story of her death isn't known 100% to the population. Jimmy is only hearing rumors and wants to know if it's true. She was important. 

But it does make me wonder where, exactly, we shove this story. Somewhere between the latter pages of COIE #7, a point where Supergirl has died but there hasn't been the funeral.

The Revengers fly to Rokyn and again we get some story padding. We get 6 pages of a futile air battle above the cities with the Kryptonian air force being useless against villains' ships. And even odder is that they have the real Superman inside the ship while still hauling around a mummified Superman dummy as seen in the panels above. I don't get it.

And then, the Revengers' real plot. 

They used the super-computer's prediction powers and AI to find out what would 'demoralize' Superman even more after the death of Kara and it was the 'mortification' of New Krypton. So they fly here with a mind control device which enslaves the Rokyn citizens. 

Now you think they'd want ... you know ... the literal mortification of Superman. Kill him on the red sun Rokyn! And if it mind controls the Kryptonians, why isn't Superman controlled??

We then get more pages ... 5 pages! ... of the controlled citizens beating up Superman at the Revengers' commands and then serving them like lords. We have a courtly scene of the Rokyn people peeling them fruit and dancing around them.

But then, the twist.

Sylvia isn't Kryptonian. She isn't effected by the mind control. She slips Superman a handheld Phantom Zone projector and he sends them away. This breaks the spell.

I suppose Superman needs to be the hero in his own book but you'd think that Sylvia could have ended this a little earlier and maybe with less nonsense. 

That message from the earlier part of the story that Van-Zee and Sylvia got was from the same AI/prediction computer the Revengers used. It tells Sylvia to have a a hand held PZ projector on her at all times. You'd think warning them about the Revengers might be a bit more effective. 

Anyways, this is a 23 page story. I feel at least half of the panel space could have been trimmed. There is a lot of fluff here. 

But finally we to the true epilogue. I'd love to ask Maggin if this is really the story he wanted to tell.

With Rokyn in true space, Superman heads back to Earth. He picks up Supergirl's body which he left in lunar orbit after her death in Crisis. 

And then this sad and rather depressing page.

He flies back to Rokyn and brings Kara's corpse into Zor-El and Alura's home. We get an off-panel scream, the only mourning we readers get.

Am I glad that Maggin did this? Yes. Supergirl deserved to be mourned by her family, buried by her people in their tradition, celebrated for her life. I think this is a pretty important book for a Supergirl historian as we see this scene with her final resting place.

Am I sad about this? Yes. Because maybe instead of 5 pages of an inane plane fight in the middle of this story, we could have got more about the impact of Kara's death on this world. We could have seen Alura and Zor actually mourning. We could have got more about Supergirl. She deserved it. 

Still, I shouldn't curse the darkness. I should light the candle. It is better that I have the opening page and this epilogue than if I didn't. 

Is this the last bit of COIE #7 ephemera that I will cover? I doubt it. It seems just when I think I am done I find something new.

Overall grade: C+