Supergirl in Emperor Joker...?

[RubberLotus]

I've recently re-read the trade paperback of this storyline (I read it years ago, but back then, I barely knew a quarter of the cast), and overall, I found it to be a fun ride.

There is one thing that bugs me, though: What is with Supergirl being an angel? Is it part of some throwaway gag? Try as I might, I just couldn't figure out what the hell her subplot was about (this also goes for the church thing seen in Adventures of Superman 582).

So, could someone who did get it please explain it to me?

[Kai "the spy"]

That was the Matrix-Supergirl introduced after the 1986 reboot of the Superman titles. In that continuity, Superman really was the one and only last Kryptionian, so they couldn't have Supergirl be his cousin. They introduced her as a creature created by the good Lex Luthor of a parallel universe (and that shortly after the CoiE, what were they thinking?!). She was a shape-shifter with some kind of energy shield powers. When she got her own title in the 90s and Peter David was assigned to it, he did what he usually does with characters he has a long-term assignment to: He made constant changes to the nature of the character. One of 'em was to make Supergirl become an actual angel with flaming wings. Several years ago, the title was canceled with Supergirl walking off to some walk-about. To my knowledge, that's the last we ever saw of that version of the character.

Not too long afterwards, Jeph Loeb and Michael Turner reintroduced the cousin-of-Superman version on the Superman/Batman book. Normally, we should have wondered at that point what the deal with the former Supergirl was, but with the Infinite Crisis rebooting the Superman lore again, to a larger degree than the Birthright reboot, I guess the Matrix-Angel-Supergirl is supposed to have never existed.

[Slaughter]

Actually, Geoff Johns said she's still exists, and it seems she was in a recent mini-series, Reign in Hell, I think. Maybe he's keeping her on his sleeve in case he has a idea?

[WorstThingUS]

That was the Matrix-Supergirl introduced after the 1986 reboot of the Superman titles. In that continuity, Superman really was the one and only last Kryptionian, so they couldn't have Supergirl be his cousin. They introduced her as a creature created by the good Lex Luthor of a parallel universe (and that shortly after the CoiE, what were they thinking?!). She was a shape-shifter with some kind of energy shield powers. When she got her own title in the 90s and Peter David was assigned to it, he did what he usually does with characters he has a long-term assignment to: He made constant changes to the nature of the character. One of 'em was to make Supergirl become an actual angel with flaming wings. Several years ago, the title was canceled with Supergirl walking off to some walk-about. To my knowledge, that's the last we ever saw of that version of the character.

Not too long afterwards, Jeph Loeb and Michael Turner reintroduced the cousin-of-Superman version on the Superman/Batman book. Normally, we should have wondered at that point what the deal with the former Supergirl was, but with the Infinite Crisis rebooting the Superman lore again, to a larger degree than the Birthright reboot, I guess the Matrix-Angel-Supergirl is supposed to have never existed.

Few things:

Matrix Supergirl merged with human named Linda Danvers who was being corrupted and was dying to become the Earth Angel, but at the end Matrix and the Angel aspect separated itself from Linda leaving her Supergirl.

DiDio says that entire run of Supergirl never happened. Geoff Johns says it did. Peter David's Vertigo title, Fallen Angel, was essentially that character, but he hedges around admitting it because he owns Fallen Angel, while DC owns Supergirl, Linda etc. A character named "Danvers" with supernatural powers has appeared in the DCU.

And Emperor Joker is an awesome read. Unlike any Superman story you'll ever see.

[Damiean Dark]

Hated Emperor Joker it had tremendous promise but has far to cartoony art and just goes on and on.

[Lorendiac]

DiDio says that entire run of Supergirl never happened. Geoff Johns says it did. Peter David's Vertigo title, Fallen Angel, was essentially that character, but he hedges around admitting it because he owns Fallen Angel, while DC owns Supergirl, Linda etc. A character named "Danvers" with supernatural powers has appeared in the DCU.

As far as I know, it would be more accurate to say: "On the same day Infinite Crisis #7 came out, about three and a half years ago, DiDio said -- just once -- that Matrix Supergirl had now been removed from the DCU's continuity."

To the best of my knowledge, he has never repeated that position in any venue at any later time. On the other hand, I don't know that he's ever retracted that statement by saying "she definitely still exists -- I goofed," either.

"Fallen Angel" wasn't a Vertigo title. I vaguely remember once seeing a quote from Peter David in which he said that if anyone had offered him the chance to switch it over to the Vertigo imprint, he would have jumped at it -- but that didn't happen; instead, after sales were weak, DC pulled the plug and he had to take his creator-owned Fallen Angel project over to another company and try again! You're quite right about the legal situation, though -- if David ever said in plain English: "One of the characters in my 'Fallen Angel' series is Linda Danvers, the same one I created for DC, moving on with her Post-Supergirl life in a different setting," then he could promptly be sued for copyright infringement by DC.

[Michael P]

Fallen Angel isn't Linda. We know this because Linda has guest-starred in Fallen Angel.

[WorstThingUS]

Fallen Angel isn't Linda. We know this because Linda has guest-starred in Fallen Angel.

First he strongly hinted it was, then he had a character named "Lin" show up who'd been in limbo. Get it?

[Alan2099]

Hated Emperor Joker it had tremendous promise but has far to cartoony art and just goes on and on.

I don't think it would have worked nearly as well without the cartoony look. THis is Joker reshaping the world after all.

[Damiean Dark]

I don't think it would have worked nearly as well without the cartoony look. THis is Joker reshaping the world after all.

If the reshaping scenes where drawn differently and the reality scenes where more realistically drawn it would have been good i suppose but the story is just bland its too predictable what would happen really joker doesnt really work against Superman imo.

[dupersuper]

So, to sum up the answer to the original question, Supergirl was an angel in her own title at the time, though that was a different character than the current Supergirl.

[WorstThingUS]

I don't think it would have worked nearly as well without the cartoony look. THis is Joker reshaping the world after all.

I agree. That scene with the super-pets just doesn't work any other way.