Welcome to Supergirl: the Life and Times of Kara Zor-El — a sideways look at the origins of one of the world’s most iconic comicbook heroines.
With Melissa Benoist inheriting the familiar red and blue uniform to become the latest Maid of Might in CBS/CW’s big budget television series, it was surely about time for the internet to offer up a few detailed scribblings on precisely how this landmark female hero came into being. Scribblings with sufficient fun that they will entertain and inform new fans coming to Supergirl for the first time through the CBS show, yet scribblings of sufficient insightfulness that even seasoned Supergirl fans might find occasional pearls of original wisdom buried within the irreverent prose. That’s just what this site hopes to provide..!
But a word of warning: I don’t do stodgy, dry, heavy-handed text. So expect to find amidst the storytelling a lot of tongue-in-cheek humour, plus the occasional detour off to explore the wackier side of classic comicbooks from bygone eras.
Enjoy…
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Contents
- Part One: The Lunch Hour that Changed the World
Kara Zor-El lands on Earth and begins a lifelong relationship with brunette wigs and red boots. Covers: May 1959. - Minor Detour: Cars, Cliffs, and Kryptonians
Supergirl discovers that it’s true: flying really is statistically the safest form of transport. - Part Two: The Invisible Girl
Kara learns how to keep a secret, acquires a cat, and demonstrates the patience of a saint with her super-pedantic cousin. Covers: June 1959 to February 1962. - Minor Detour: Wait… If You’re Me, Then Who Am I..?!
Supergirl learns all about identity theft… At least, we think it’s Supergirl. Might be Lois. - Part Three: Family and Friends… and Enemies
Kara swooshes and swoons her way through the Swinging Sixties. Covers: March 1962 to May 1969. - Minor Detour: A Dedicated Follower of Fashion
Supergirl saves the world from fashion disasters. - Part Four: No Sex, No Drugs… Some Rock ‘n’ Roll
Kara gets a new job, a new boyfriend, a new costume, a new enemy, a new attitude… and misplaces her superpowers. Covers: May 1969 to September 1972. - Minor Detour: Everyone’s a Critic
Supergirl fans have their say, and DC editors prevaricate and fib (just a little). - Part Five: A Strange Romance
Kara goes back to school to learn some lessons in love… the hard way. Covers: November 1972 to August 1974. - Minor Detour: Two Heads Are Better Than One
Supergirl gets super-freaky, all thanks to some magic and a red rock. - Part Six: The Fall and Rise of the Girl of Steel
Kara gets restless, fails to lead a normal life, and deals with some issues from her long lost past. Covers: March 1974 to August 1982. - Minor Detour: Who’s Your Daddy?
Supergirl forgets who she is, then remembers who she is but forgets where she was born. - Part Seven: All Good Things
Kara strives for some work/life balance, but fate has other ideas. Covers November 1982 to October 1985.
The Pre-Crisis Supergirl Chronology
How many Supergirl issues of Action Comics featured the Legion of Super-Heroes and Clark Kent together? Where can you find reprints of Supergirl’s debut from Action Comics #252?
The answers to all your questions are just a few clicks away…
The Pre-Crisis Supergirl Chronology is an interactive next-gen (Web 3.0) page, documenting every known issue of Kara Zor-El’s run from 1959 to 1985 and beyond. If you want an overview of how Supergirl evolved over her formative years, this is the place to start. The chronology is designed to be the ultimate resource for dedicated fans and beginners alike, pulling together all the stories, character appearances, key locations, reprints, and far far more, into one interactive scrolling timeline. It’s easy-to-use interface allows readers to effortlessly drill down into its contents: filter, search, and analyse, across 25+ years of Kara Zor-El’s adventures.
The chronology was built up alongside this site as a parallel project, and is the result of many months of research, checking and re-checking every issue that Supergirl is known to have appeared in (yup, even the single panel cameos!) to build up all the data and cross-references.
Legal stuff
The images on this site are for illustrative purposes only. Unless otherwise stated, all artwork remains the copyright of its original artist or publisher. Photographs are used on the understanding that they are either in the public domain, or are available for public use without licensing.
Supergirl: the Life and Times of Kara Zor-El 