ACTION COMICS 264 (1960)
by Jerry Siegel & Jim Mooney
This story doesn’t feature Superman, but it’s a clear indication of why he’s The Worst.
The story begins with Supergirl saving a plane. It doesn’t have anything to do with the rest of the story, but not that when she has to fill a page she saves people without taking credit. When Superman needs to fill a page he does stuff like obsessing over the possibility that his neighbor’s dog suspects his secret identity or something.
The story proper begins with her orphanage welcoming some potential parents.
I don’t know much about 1960s adoption, but somehow I doubt it was as simple as showing up and saying “hello, we would like to buy a child”.
Supergirl has been mentally manipulated Superman into thinking she MUST NOT be adopted.
Her foster parents single her out because she sounds like their daughter. (!!!)
And thanks to Superman, she’s miserable at the very idea of having a new family!
You just can’t help feeling bad for Supergirl. She’s basically been blackmailed.
Turns out that her new father is a police officer, which you bet will factor into the story.
The fact that her new mother knits is significantly less important…
…but it does lead to a cute scene.
Unfortunately she hears that her father is in danger, and since she has to keep her existence a secret she has to resort to hypnotism and crossdressing.
Hey, better that than seeing Superman wearing Supergirl’s costume.
Also: if Superman knows how to use hypnotism the same way, why does he EVER have any trouble keeping a secret identity!?
But enough about action. Let’s go back to Supergirl suffering because her cousin is The Worst.
You can tell this was an experiment to see if Supergirl stories would work in a domestic setting, and I’d say that she certainly does because this is just wholesome.
Her father being a policeman also works to come up with new ways to start subplots.
Although MAYBE we’re overdoing this a little.
This story was published in 1960. If they’d kept this level of angst, they would’ve beaten Spider-Man by two whole years!
But it’s not meant to be, because the new parents decide not to adopt Supergirl.
Here we are, folks. Do you want to know why Superman is The Worst? Because without him THIS WOULD NOT HAPPEN:
Yep! If Superman hadn’t warp Supergirl’s mind:
1) The parents would have a new daughter
2) They would never suffer the pain of losing a child again, whether they knew about Supergirl’s powers, because she’d be invulnerable
3) Supergirl would have parents AND we could get plots about her father’s work
Thanks to Superman, instead we get this:
1) The parents will probably never adopt another child, considering they thought they came very close to losing a girl who looks a lot like their dead daughter
2) IF they later change their mind and adopt a different girl… she might get killed because she doesn’t have powers
3) Supergirl will eventually be adopted and by the looks of things she’ll be quite happy… BUT since her parents will have unremarkable jobs, we will lose any potential plots about them
Run from that horrible man, Supergirl, run!
Or in your case fly.
Historical significance: 0/10
Like I said, she’ll be adopted by someone else entirely.
Silver Age-ness: 2/10
Just because of the random super-hypnosis and because she uses super-ventriloquism at one point.
Does it stand the test of time? -5/10
This is a first, but even Supergirl gets a negative score this time for the horrible message.
Interesting letters: this is quite wholesome, but I wonder what they thought of this issue’s story.
Supergirl would have parents AND we could get plots about her father’s work.
I really enjoyed your analysis of this story and how it could have elevated the quality of the Supergirl series. I couldn’t agree more.
I read “Supergirl Gets Adopted” when it came out, and it was one of the few Supergirl tales of the era that stuck in my memory. Most of them were quite disposable. I was struck by the scene in which Captain Wilkins threw his body over the bomb to save Linda’s life and by her acknowledgement of his courage and devotion. Even as a kid, I realised that Wilkins’ intention to sacrifice his life his life for his foster-daughter’s was a level of heroism that Supergirl could never equal. Or, at least, it was almost impossible for her to do so, given that she was invulnerable to 99.9% of everything.
My other strong memory of the tale is of Captain and Mrs. Wilkins’ tearful explanation of what befell their first, natural daughter. This was unusually grim and tragic for DC at the time, when ordinary folks rarely got hurt, let alone killed. (For example, Superman catching a collapsing office building was usually accompanied by a thought balloon to the effect of “Whew! It’s a good thing everyone got out of the building before it fell!”)
But I never stopped to ponder, as you did, how this story, handled differently, could have been a logical development in the life of Supergirl and her series.
Most of what I’m about to say was triggered by your observations and probably has already occurred to you.
First, I have no problem with Superman’s insistence that Supergirl’s existence on Earth be kept secret until she masters the use of her super-powers. That’s a real concern. It took Jonathan and Martha Kent years to teach their son how to use his powers without unintentionally causing disaster. And, until then, they required that he conceal them from the world behind his identity of Clark Kent.
But nothing in the scenario of Linda being adopted precludes that.
I’m sure it was Mort Weisinger who insisted that status quo of Supergirl at Midvale Orphanage be restored at the end of “Supergirl Gets Adopted”. But, after reading your review, I can’t help thinking how much better it would have been if the story had gone this way:
After the Wilkins tell Linda of their intention to return her to the orphans’ home and their reason why, it deepens her reluctance to hurt them. She already knows how much her foster-father loves her by his willingness to die to protect her from the bomb. Super she may be, but she’s still an emotional and impulsive teen-age girl, and in the face of the Wilkins’ anguish, her cousin Superman’s orders would fade in importance. Thus, Linda reveals her true identity to the Wilkins, assuring them that she is safe from harm. Then, she calls Superman to the scene, explaining what she did and why.
The Man of Steel as usually depicted in the Supergirl tales is pissed at her for disobeying his instructions; he questions the safety of her decision and the viability of her living with foster-parents. Until the Wilkins make an impassioned plea (Mostly Mrs. Wilkins, who didn’t get much to do in the story so far, and she would show her emotions more readily than her police officer husband) to remain Supergirl’s parents. Their love for Linda is obvious, and Superman can’t help be reminded of his boyhood with the Kents and their love and guidance. He realises that even a teen needs the support of loving parents. And he consents.
Supergirl’s existence on Earth is still kept hidden. But now she has the help of the Wilkins to keep her secret. (“Just as Ma and Pa Kent used to help protect my identity,” Superman reflects.) And, as you noted, there is a wealth of plot ideas created by her having a cop for a father.
Such an approach certainly would have been more entertaining than the interminable stories of Jerry the Merboy, red-kryptonite transformations, and Midvale Orphanage (“the most dangerous place on Earth”).