Back Issue Review: Supergirl #5

At the end of Supergirl Season Three, Kara exposes herself to Harun-El, a proxy for black Kryptonite. The last episode closes with a clone/copy of Supergirl wandering in the icy plains of Siberia

This isn't the first time we have seen a version of Supergirl split off after Black Kryptonite exposure. It certainly isn't the first time that we have seen a 'Dark Supergirl' emerge as a personality or doppelganger. Heck, on the show itself we have seen evil Red K Supergirl as well as Earth-X Overgirl.

I know the show runners have talked about Mark Millar and Dave Johnson's Red Son as a template for next season. But I try to look back at Supergirl history as it pertains to the character's current continuity. And that means I should look back at a Black K created Supergirl identity.

Unfortunately, that means looking back at Supergirl #5 from the 2005 series. 

Now I am going to be up front. This isn't a good comic book.

It certainly isn't a good Supergirl story. And there are a lot of things about it that I loathe. In fact, it was the bananas approach to this volume that prompted me to start the blog lo so many years ago. I couldn't stand by and think that there were people who only knew *this* Kara. So buckle up for a bumpy ride.

You need to remember that in 2005, Supergirl was a hot commodity. Jeph Loeb and Michael Turner had brought her back in Superman/Batman. Turner was a red hot artist and his lengthy, all torso, waif of a Supergirl was vivid, grabbing the attention of people. This was the return of Kara Zor-El, cousin of Kal. Her book exploded onto the shelves, initially selling a ton.

The title was helmed by Loeb as writer for the first arc. Ian Churchill had a cleaner line than Turner but brought the same aesthetic to the art, a sort of prurient peep at an ultra-thin, barely dressed Supergirl, pouting and punching her way through the DCU. Loeb had her angry at the world.

Supergirl #5 ended the first arc and had two initial covers, with Turner and Churchill swapping classic and dark Supergirl figures. It sold well enough to get a second printing, all Turner. And it rather muddily ended the story in which an evil Kara emerges from Supergirl to attack anyone who crosses her path.

Are you still here?

Okay, onto the events of the book.

In Supergirl #4, Lex Luthor uses his Infinity Kryptonite Gauntlet to blast Supergirl with Black K. A black garbed Supergirl emerged.

In the opening of Supergirl #5, the Dark Supergirl tells Supergirl all the history that she has forgotten. Zor-El wanted Jor-El dead. He rocketed Kara to Earth to kill the helpless baby Kal. And Kara is more than happy to comply.

In flashback, we see the teenage Kara waltzing around her father naked, barely covered by mist and a sash to keep this semi-clean.

So just so we are clear. The story asked for a 15 year old girl prance naked in front of her insane, murderous father while promising to kill a baby. That was Supergirl.

And yes, Churchill's art has Kara look like she was pulled in a taffy machine.

The 'real' Supergirl came to Earth without much memory. This was one of the main reasons Batman didn't trust her. The Dark Supergirl was saying that these 'mad Zor-El, kill Kal-El' memories were the true ones.

On the moon, the two square off. And Dark Supergirl is pretty emphatic. She is the truth.

Yes, Ian Churchill has the mini-skirt be about the size of a napkin.

And then the question is raised. Who is the 'real' Supergirl? Did the Black K release the actual Kara Zor-El.

This idea that Kara is inherently evil and violent is one that keeps cropping back up. We have seen it in all incarnations. But this Loeb version (and subsequently Joe Kelly version) and the early New 52 version delved a bit too far. It never works.

The JLA show up and Dark Supergirl is ready to mop the floor with her. Supergirl knows that the best thing to do is to get the two of them away from the heroes before Dark Supergirl hurts or kills them. (You may remember that this Supergirl beat up the JLA earlier in the book!) So Supergirl grabs her evil doppelganger picks her up and flies her off. She heads to Gotham because she knows Batman, at this point, has the Kryptonite ring.

And yes, Batman is sporting a cape that must be 100ft in diameter.

Batman doesn't pull out the ring. Instead, the rest of the Trinity shows up to try and get control of the situation.

Remember, the Dark Supergirl's mission is to kill Superman. So she is thrilled by their appearance, saying in Kryptonian (here and on the next page).
"How like your father, Kal-El! You arrogant buffoon!"
"I am so going to enjoy killing you!"

And yes, I have no idea how that tiny little skirt doesn't fall off.

It is clear that the Trinity can't figure out who is who or what is what.

What's worse is that during the battle the black-clad Supergirl says she is the other Supergirl. Dark Supergirl switched their clothing at super-speed. So even we don't know who is actually who.

So the right thing to do is for Superman to pummel both into submission. Even Wonder Woman gets into the mix, swinging free.

One of the things that had been posed early in the Supergirl stories was that she possibly was stronger or faster than Superman. I don't think it was met favorably. I suppose Loeb read the tea leaves that this wasn't going to fly and so this was his way of putting a pin in that idea once and for all. He emphatically states he could overpower and outrun her. Now he looks angry.

Still, the Dark Supergirl (now dressed as Supergirl ... maybe) still wants to test the theory.

I don't think those rib cages are physiologically sound.

Finally, Batman dons the ring to slow things down.

Now I honestly don't understand this ending. But Wonder Woman wraps the Lasso of Truth around both Supergirls and asks 'Who is Kara Zor-El?'

Ironically both choices in the internal dialogue don't sound nice. An evil person pretending to be good? Still evil. A good girl gone bad? Still bad. Where is the 'hero who believes in Hope, Help, and Compassion for all?' Years away.

But one of the copies of Supergirl simply disappears.

Did they merge? Did one go away? Are the memories of Mad Zor-El true? Is Kara still thinking all the evil thoughts?

Did you honestly think we'd get an answer?

A classic colored Kara appears from the magical haze.

She obfuscates things a bit. She is Kara Zor-El. All that happened on Krypton doesn't matter anymore.

Does that means she was sent to Earth to kill Kal-El? Maybe.
Is she evil? Maybe.
Should she be monitored? Maybe.
Should the Trinity, her Earth 'parents' watch over her? Maybe.

Sort of a non-ending.

And then Loeb gives up a semi-meta end page. He is leaving the book. This vision of Supergirl may be ending.

So he has her say that she will discover the truth over time. But no matter what happens, there is only one version of Supergirl. I suppose he is trying to say that his version is the actual Supergirl.  A bit haughty, especially given how the cracks in this foundation of a Supergirl history ultimately led to a complete collapse until Sterling Gates and Jamal Igle began to rebuild her from the ground up.

I think I have commented on the art enough. This is why bike shorts were necessary.

Thanks for sticking this out with me. I know I shouldn't curse the darkness. I should be lighting a candle. But this reminds me very much of Swamp Thing's talk about aphids in Swamp Thing #50.

Perhaps we needed all this decay and destruction so that a purer vision of Supergirl could grow out of that fertile loam.