Linda Danvers: Supergirl Appreciation 2020

[HandofPrometheus]

New thread for Linda Danvers!

[HandofPrometheus]

Currently re-reading "Many Happy Returns" and Linda was full of personality and character. Man I miss her

[Digifiend]

"Earth Angel"? Is that Matrix?

[walk]

Short answer, she's both.

[walk]

I actually had the pleasure of reading Linda run last year and despite it taking a while to get past everything that comes with her convulted origins and the general weirdness of the series I'm glad I did as it was unique and engaging run with a suprising amount to say about faith, forgivness, redemption and just religion role in general in our modern society (despite it now being almost two decades old).

I was just bummed when I finished because not only does it end on a rather dower note to Linda's journey but I knew this character I had become attached to and her world have been stuck in limbo for years with little chance of ever returning.

I think the image above is a prime example of why Linda been completely forgotten, most people today simply aren't aware she ever existed, it's likely the artist themselves solely had DCAU Kara in mind when drawing that pic, if only they'd simply let her fly around in her natural brunnette bob she might at least get a mention in the occasional comic trivia related vid on Youtube as the other Supergirl.

I had an idea of how they could revamp and streamline her origin if they ever brought her back, keep her as a tearaway youth who fell in with the wrong crowd but instead of Matrix have it be the Kryptonian spirit of Flamebird that merges with her and revives her granting her powers. It lets her keeps her unique ablities of flame-wings, flame vision and teleportation without having to go into a bunch of Earth-Born Angel nonsense, gives her a more direct link to the Superman mythos and still ties into the relgious/supernatural elements of her original series.

I'd even be open to them changing her race to someone of possibly Islamic faith, Peter David already explored all the angles of Christianity pretty throughly and the goal should be to make her as visually distinct form Kara as possible so she can finally stand on her own.

[Factor]

That would essentially make her a new character, thought.
I love the Earth angel thing, as it's a very different concept when compared to the rest of the Superman family.
I really think Linda could have a solid niche as the Super character that's more connected to the supernatural. That's usually one of Superman's biggest weaknesses and currently there are no characters in his supporting cast that fill that role.
I hope Linda's time as Supergirl gets reinstated into continuity and that she gets a solid new identity and role in the future.

[Agent Z]

I proposed an idea on what to do with Linda when bringing her back.

If she were returned I guess there could be some way to go with the "angel on Earth" idea. Maybe make her a Nephilim to simplify things. Alternatively, she could be a girl who dies and becomes a guardian angel to atone for past crimes (I believe Peter David's Fallen Angel had this premise and it was even implied to be Linda Danvers reborn). Another is having her be a runaway who was kidnapped and subjected to experiments by scientists trying to grant angel powers to humans. A result is a clone hybrid of angel and human (that's the most "superhero" one I'd go with).

https://www.reddit.com/r/DCcomics/co...a_danvers_the/

Putting her in a book with Zauriel is also something I'd like to see.

[Ilan Preskovsky]

I really hate that they stopped collecting her series mid-run. I currently have the beginning and end of her run (from #60 or thereabouts) but am missing the bits in the middle.

[HandofPrometheus]

"Earth Angel"? Is that Matrix?

Basically its both of them.

I actually had the pleasure of reading Linda run last year and despite it taking a while to get past everything that comes with her convulted origins and the general weirdness of the series I'm glad I did as it was unique and engaging run with a suprising amount to say about faith, forgivness, redemption and just religion role in general in our modern society (despite it now being almost two decades old).

I was just bummed when I finished because not only does it end on a rather dower note to Linda's journey but I knew this character I had become attached to and her world have been stuck in limbo for years with little chance of ever returning.

I think the image above is a prime example of why Linda been completely forgotten, most people today simply aren't aware she ever existed, it's likely the artist themselves solely had DCAU Kara in mind when drawing that pic, if only they'd simply let her fly around in her natural brunnette bob she might at least get a mention in the occasional comic trivia related vid on Youtube as the other Supergirl.

I had an idea of how they could revamp and streamline her origin if they ever brought her back, keep her as a tearaway youth who fell in with the wrong crowd but instead of Matrix have it be the Kryptonian spirit of Flamebird that merges with her and revives her granting her powers. It lets her keeps her unique ablities of flame-wings, flame vision and teleportation without having to go into a bunch of Earth-Born Angel nonsense, gives her a more direct link to the Superman mythos and still ties into the relgious/supernatural elements of her original series.

I'd even be open to them changing her race to someone of possibly Islamic faith, Peter David already explored all the angles of Christianity pretty throughly and the goal should be to make her as visually distinct form Kara as possible so she can finally stand on her own.

That's nice you read her run and liked it. Like you said, no one knows shes exist so anyone that comes across her makes me happy.

The religious aspects of this run was very surprising but welcomed. It was also very interesting watching the personality of Matrix absorb Linda's life and vice versa.

I also agree with artist trying to at least make her more known when drawing but they probably don't even know her.

That would essentially make her a new character, thought.
I love the Earth angel thing, as it's a very different concept when compared to the rest of the Superman family.
I really think Linda could have a solid niche as the Super character that's more connected to the supernatural. That's usually one of Superman's biggest weaknesses and currently there are no characters in his supporting cast that fill that role.
I hope Linda's time as Supergirl gets reinstated into continuity and that she gets a solid new identity and role in the future.

I proposed an idea on what to do with Linda when bringing her back.



https://www.reddit.com/r/DCcomics/co...a_danvers_the/

Putting her in a book with Zauriel is also something I'd like to see.

Like all the ideas presented. Keeping her supernatural in the Supes family differs her from Kara and gives her own niche.

[walk]

That would essentially make her a new character, thought.
I love the Earth angel thing, as it's a very different concept when compared to the rest of the Superman family.
I really think Linda could have a solid niche as the Super character that's more connected to the supernatural. That's usually one of Superman's biggest weaknesses and currently there are no characters in his supporting cast that fill that role.
I hope Linda's time as Supergirl gets reinstated into continuity and that she gets a solid new identity and role in the future.

For me as long as they kept her personality and the general concept and spirit of her alive it'd still be Linda.

The thing is Linda lends herself to such a radical reboot as her very existence started in a similair way where she was literally a fusion of a previous Supergirl with someone else to create a whole new hero/persona, so it sort of works in a meta level.

The problem with Earth-Born Angel from the begining is that it has simply nothing to do with Superman and is confusing concept in general that more allienating than welcoming, the benefit of hindsight is we can look back at the things that didn't work and seek out ways to update and improve them.

[Frontier]

Happy New Year to Linda Danvers !

[Adekis]

I kind of liked the Earthborn Angel thing, but it was clearly a little more "Hellblazer" than it was "Superman," to be honest. I still kind of like it. But she lost that element by the time she had the white crop-top, right? It was in her backstory but not her present, wasn't it? Or I could be wrong, I know little about the white t-shirt period for her.

Either way, I agree that if Linda came back and got to keep the Earthborn Angel element, it'd set her apart from the rest of the Super-Family, as the only Magic One. I like that better than giving her Mae's shape shifting or "just" Linda's Golden Agey limited powers, iirc.



I like the fire wings.

What would we call her? I'm pretty confident "Supergirl" is Kara's for keeps now; even if Linda-Mae came back, she wouldn't be called Supergirl if I had to guess.



To me, Linda's the peak and pinnacle of complex post-Crisis character retcons, along with Valor, who is equally convoluted to me if not moreso, but maybe easier to sum up.

[walk]

I kind of liked the Earthborn Angel thing, but it was clearly a little more "Hellblazer" than it was "Superman," to be honest. I still kind of like it. But she lost that element by the time she had the white crop-top, right? It was in her backstory but not her present, wasn't it? Or I could be wrong, I know little about the white t-shirt period for her.

Either way, I agree that if Linda came back and got to keep the Earthborn Angel element, it'd set her apart from the rest of the Super-Family, as the only Magic One. I like that better than giving her Mae's shape shifting or "just" Linda's Golden Agey limited powers, iirc.



I like the fire wings.

What would we call her? I'm pretty confident "Supergirl" is Kara's for keeps now; even if Linda-Mae came back, she wouldn't be called Supergirl if I had to guess.



To me, Linda's the peak and pinnacle of complex post-Crisis character retcons, along with Valor, who is equally convoluted to me if not moreso, but maybe easier to sum up.

Yes after issue 50 she lost her Earth Angel powers and was left with limited super strength, super leap, no flight and her telekinesis. Book also became more of road-trip affair as she left Leesburg with Buzz in search of her other half.

Like I said in my first comment I still feel her powers should remain fire themed and supernatural in origin just cleaned up so it's not such a mess to understand.

In general I feel all heroes should be able to be summarised in single sentence and "Girl empowered by the Kryptonian Firebird Goddess" is a bit easier to follow than "Girl fused with the artificial protoplasmic shape-shifting lifeform from an alternate dimension who bonding also caused both to become an ancient celestial being known as an Earth born Angel, the female side of God that resides on Earth which is one of three this being the one of fire hence the the flame wings.. etc"

Also you can easily now call her Flamebird, it makes sense and I'm pretty sure Bette Kane not using it anymore.

Pretty much all characters who are brought back from a long stint in limbo are revamped or changed up in someway because well if there wasn't something lacking with them they wouldn't have been shelved for so long in the first place and with Linda it was always just basic coherency.

As much as people beget Geoff Johns for retconing Conner I imagine he could've suffered a similar fate to Linda had he not streamlined his origins and strengthen his ties to Superman. At very least he wouldn't of gotten into so many adaptions because there was no chance a production was going to touch the whole Paul Westfield, a clone but really a clone of Superman, TTK fiasco.

[Shamrock Holmes]

Yes after issue 50 she lost her Earth Angel powers and was left with limited super strength, super leap, no flight and her telekinesis. Book also became more of road-trip affair as she left Leesburg with Buzz in search of her other half.

Like I said in my first comment I still feel her powers should remain fire themed and supernatural in origin just cleaned up so it's not such a mess to understand.

In general I feel all heroes should be able to be summarised in single sentence and "Girl empowered by the Kryptonian Firebird Goddess" is a bit easier to follow than "Girl fused with the artificial protoplasmic shape-shifting lifeform from an alternate dimension who bonding also caused both to become an ancient celestial being known as an Earth born Angel, the female side of God that resides on Earth which is one of three this being the one of fire hence the the flame wings.. etc"

Also you can easily now call her Flamebird, it makes sense and I'm pretty sure Bette Kane not using it anymore.

1. She did get flight back after Twilight took over from her as an Earth Born Angel, but otherwise correct.
2. Any objection to using "Linda as Flamebird" in a fanfic I'm writing?
3. Bette Kane is pretty much retired AFAIK, but at her last cameo was going by Hawkfire rather than Flamebird.

[walk]

1. Yeah I know she got flight back eventually, I was just literally referencing how she was after issue 50.

2. Hey you do you, I've come across far stranger fanfiction.

3. Kind of feel bad for Bette at times, she was the OG Batgirl but she bottom of the hierarchy, Harper Row a more popular character than her.