Supergirl’s origin is based in tragedy. That much is obvious, given that, like Superman, she was rocketed from a dying homeworld. Kara, however, has a few extra layers of grief. For one, she grew up on Krypton, being a young adult when it died, meaning that she got to experience enough to grieve her people. After that, her city managed to survive just long enough for Kara to watch them all die, meaning she lost her home twice. When she was finally sent to Earth, she was given the mission to watch over and protect her baby cousin, Kal-El. The only remnant of her home, her only purpose to keep going, was to raise him.
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Of course, we all know how that story ends. Kara finds Kal, but by that point he’s already a man, even older than her, meaning that she has to find her way in an alien world without the one tether she had to her past life. This reality has informed her character for years, and fans have always wondered what it would look like if Kara actually managed to find her cousin when he was still a child. As of the time-bending “Kingdom of Zod” event, specifically in Superman Unlimited #16, DC has finally shown us what that would look like in the mainline universe, which draws even more attention to one of the most-requested Elseworlds of all, Supergirl: Survivor.
The Super-Reunion of a Lifetime
After Superman’s disappearance, Booster Gold, Martian Manhunter, and Mary Marvel traveled back in time to find his younger self, hoping it would lead them to him. Superboy wound up joining them and saving his future self, to which they decided to reward him with a trip to his future. Unfortunately, the group emerged smack dab in the middle of El Caldero’s Kryptonite incursion. Desperate to keep him out of Zod’s reach, the team ordered Superboy to fly away, but he, of course, stopped to help someone in need. That person was Supergirl, and she finally met her much younger cousin.
Supergirl seeing Clark when he’s still young and very much in need of her guidance is one of the most heartwarming, incredible scenes you could ask for with these two. It was exactly the catharsis that they both needed. Kara got to meet a Clark who still needed her guidance, fulfilling the one goal she set for herself as the way to live up to her family. For Clark, it was the chance to learn that he wasn’t alone in the universe. This duo’s hug was heartwarming in a way that it could only be because of how much trauma both characters have faced, knowing that this is what their relationship should have been. It also gives us a much different perspective than the Elseworld that tackled a similar topic.
The Elseworld We’ve Always Wanted to See
Supergirl: Survivor is an Elseworld that, instead of splitting Kara and Kal up, has them escape the dying Krypton together. These two aren’t rocketed to Earth, either, and have to make their way across a universe that seems endlessly harsh and filled with danger. This series is a wonderful read that focuses on Kara’s endless love for her baby cousin, and the determination that has allowed her to survive endless horrors. She’s never had an easy life, but this comic finally gives her the chance to fill the one role she’s always wanted. She loves her younger cousin, and will stop at nothing to keep him safe.
This comic is a love letter to Supergirl and finally gives us the perspective that we’ve always wanted, but because it’s an Elseworld, it also plays loose with other established canon. It’s the adventures of Kara and Kal through space, but not the story of them growing up on Earth together, which is something fans have also been asking about for years. Still, even if this comic isn’t a perfect exploration of that idea, it is a wonderful, charming story that is equal part heart-warming and heart-pounding. The House of El has always been bound by love, and whether it be in the ruins of Krypton or on Earth decades later, Kara and Kal will always find each other.
What Superman storyline would you like to see explored in an Elseworld? I’d love to see a story where Kara met Superboy, not Superman.
Superman Unlimited #16 is on sale now!
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