The Pre-Crisis Supergirl Respect Thread

Started by bluewaterrider14 pages

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Source: Daring New Adventures (Supergirl v2, #6)
Writer: Paul Kupperberg

Naturally, as the cape was adept at containing missile blasts, it would more than suffice when Kara needed to protect people from stray gunfire...

Source: Daring New Adventures (Supergirl v2, #17)
Writer: Paul Kupperberg

It gets a little difficult to rate the Metal Age strength feats once they reach a certain point. Hard to interpret, too.

For this next, I'll need to provide some context...

(from the Google Cache "Supermanica" page with the same title)

Supermanium

A rare metallic element (S No. 68/1, Jan/Feb 1951: "The Six Elements of Crime!"; and others) that is discovered by Superman in July-August 1949 and named in his honor by the members of The Super-Saved Club. Superman refers to it as "the hardest substance in existence" (WF No. 41, Jul/Aug 1949: "The Discovery of Supermanium!"😉 and as "my invulnerable new element" (S No. 68/1, Jan/Feb 1951: "The Six Elements of Crime!"😉, and the texts describe it as "the strongest metal known" (Act No. 289, Jun 1962: "The Super-Practical Joker!"😉 and as "the strongest metal known to science" (S No. 167, Feb 1964: "The Team of Luthor and Brainiac!" pts. I-III: ”"The Deadly Duo!"; "The Downfall of Superman!"; "The Hour of Kandor’s Vengeance!"😉.

Luthor's failure demonstrates the extraordinary resistance of the metal called "Supermanium"...

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Supermanium

In Pre-Crisis continuity, Supermanium was a highly durable metallic alloy used to construct the giant gold-colored door and arrow-shaped key for his Arctic Fortress of Solitude.

(Look up "Supermanium" in DC Wikia to get the above. For whatever reason, that particular link cannot be properly reproduced here.)
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(description of Fortress of Solitude, entrance, construction, etc)
http://dc.wikia.com/wiki/Action_Comics_Vol_1_241
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Information regarding the weight of the key allows an added measure of appreciation for what we see here:

Source: Superman Family #190

Writer: Paul Kupperberg
Penciler: Ken Landgraf
Inker: Romeo Tanghal

...but revealing what the Fortress door is constructed of, not to mention showing the greatest portable flame-cutting technology of Lex Luthor failing against it, makes the following a steel-bending feat several leagues above most others...

Supermanium Vault Tearing

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Story Title: "Kandor vs. Supergirl!"
Source: Superman Family #188
Writer: Jack C. Harris
Penciller: Jack Abel
Inker: Joe Giella

In the general "Respect Pre-Crisis Kryptonians" thread, the greatest strength feat I saw was the following, which I suppose would rank about 900 on my scale. It's the hefting and dumping of a gigantic mountain onto Bizarro World. Even though the event is recorded in that thread, I'm going to include it here because

1) it is so far uncredited
2) the images there are going through a Photobucket account and therefore smaller than I like
3) Photobucket links are notorious for breakage and it is thus a good idea to have alternate forms of the info to guard against loss
4) the feat is a natural and essentially unavoidable marker on the scale I've established
5) it will help provide context and meaning for several other showings in this thread

Alright, without further ado:

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Story Title: "The Forbidden Fortress of Solitude!"
Source: Action Comics #336
Writer: Otto Binder
Artist: Jim Mooney
Date: April 1966

Just for the curious, Supergirl looks a little bit different in that mountain lift-and-toss for Bizarroworld feat, because she was exposed to disfiguring radiation in the previous Action issue.

Transforming a heroine's face into something monstrous seemed, for whatever reason, to be a common story plot in the Silver Age.

(I seem to remember Kara becoming a Super Wolf-girl and a Super-Mermaid that same year too...)

At any rate, the effect was only temporary, and did not affect her strength at all, as you can probably see...

I've actually got some showings in my collection that exceed that Action 336 post. I intend to share them before too long, but I've already shown enough for the average reader to get that Supergirl rarely came across any physical problem she couldn't literally flex her way past.

But there were SOME problems that couldn't be handled with that approach, and they give us the chance to see that Supergirl also had a pretty good head on her shoulders to figure out a solution.

Occasionally, such required the assistance of others, but, what hero hasn't needed a helping hand at least once in their career...?

Recall that our heroine was left INTANGIBLE after her first encounter with one Karl Draper.

Mini saga of the Master Jailer. Part 2.

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