Sat Jul 5, 2008 7:46AM13 comments ›
Sat Jul 5, 2008 — by Martha Thomases
Supergirl Power, by Martha Thomases
Brilliant Disguise
At Wizard World Chicago last week, I was struck by how many girls came dressed as Supergirl. Grown up girls wearing the new version of the costume, showing off their toned abs, to be sure, but also lots of girls younger than 12 wearing the classic outfit.
Supergirl was my first favorite super-heroine. Wonder Woman was awesome, but she was so powerful, so confident, that I could only aspire to be like her. Invisible Girl was too passive. She seemed to fade away in a fight, not nearly as active as Invisible Kid in the Legion. From the moment Kara first flew out of that rocket and introduced herself to her cousin, Superman, I wanted to be her.
Superman, being older, more experienced, and male, decided he was the one to tell Supergirl what to do. She would be placed in an orphanage, and no one would know she had super powers. She would disguise herself with a mousy brown wig, even though no one was to see her with blonde hair. She would wear drab clothes, even though her mother had made her the cute outfit with the S-shield so her cousin would know her.
As Linda Lee, Kara learned about American life in a small-town high school, as an orphan. Later, she was adopted by the Danvers, but had to keep her secret from them as well. By some amazing coincidence, I, a young girl on the verge of adolescence, found myself suddenly needing to keep secrets about my thoughts and feelings from my own parents. I might have been more open with them if they’d found a way to get me a super-cat for a pet.
In her ground-breaking and controversial book, The Beauty Myth, Naomi Wolf posits that, because girls see only positive images of thin, symmetrical, usually white and often blonde able-bodied women in ads, movies, television and other media, they think this is they only kind of woman who is able to be successful and happy. Men may earn their success and happiness through hard work, intelligence, manipulation or luck, but women need all these things and beauty, too. My sister-in-law, Cyndi Tebbel, wrote a book with a similar thesis, The Body Snatchers. Supergirl was blonde, thin, and able to fly, but as Linda Lee, she was gawky and unpopular. From her, I learned that I could have secret powers, too.
The current version of Supergirl doesn’t seem to have a secret identity. She doesn’t have parents, and, when she needs parental advice, the Kents are there to help her. She doesn’t pine after Dick Malverne, nor does she want for male companionship. Her past torments her, up to a point, but she has plenty of friends in whom she can confide and find acceptance and understanding. I’m sure it’s much more fun to be her, but I find it much more difficult to identify with her.
And then there’s the outfit.
My mom sewed a Supergirl costume for me to wear at Halloween when I was in third grade. She used the pattern for a skating outfit, found blue, red and yellow corduroy, and added the S-shield. I wore that costume until I was 13 and thought I was too fat for it (the fact that I had grown at least five inches, and also breasts, didn’t stop me form thinking that). She would never have made the current version, not only because of its lack of modesty but because it would have been too cold to wear trick-or-treating in Ohio in October.
There were at least a half-dozen Supergirls in the audience at the “Comics are for Kids, Too” panel in Chicago (and isn’t that a bizarre turnaround from the “Comics Aren’t Just For Kids” meme of 20 years ago?). Their moms had questions for the panel, including a plea for more strong super-heroines. “But with their clothes on,” they specified.
Martha Thomases, Media Goddess of ComicMix, would also like a super-powered horse to go with her super-powered cat.
Jump to comments (13) 
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Comments (13)
John Tebbel (9:33 AM on Sat Jul 5, 2008)
This will have to do until Wear Your Supergirl Costume To Work Day is organized by the National Comics Foundation. And, by the way, the Supergirls in the illustration are shiny enough to be "sculpted" by Jeff Koons and his helpers.
Russ Rogers (1:59 PM on Sat Jul 5, 2008)
Part of the fun of Supergirl has always been that her costume was never finalized. Her look would change, sometimes from issue to issue. The costumes always played about with just a general theme, The "S" and usually Blue, Red and Yellow. That was a major selling point of the 70s incarnation of Supergirl. It was part hero comic, part fashion comic! The only other female character that redesigned her costume more often was "The Wasp."
The more recent incarnations of Supergirl have taken than "fashion show" element of the comic and turn it more into a "Peep Show." The costumes are more revealing. The poses are more salacious. This is true of all super-heroines, not just Supergirl.
"Their moms had questions for the panel, including a plea for more strong super-heroines. “But with their clothes on,” they specified."
I guess that leaves out "The White Viper." ;)
Seriously, I think the White Viper should be as naked as she (or her writers) wants to be. GrimJack should be able to say, "Fuck!" But, with the popularity of "Diary of a Wimpy Kid," it's obvious that kid-friendly web comics can not only be popular, but also profitable and have artistic merit. Does a separate"ComicMix FOR KIDS" web site make sense? I think it's a no-brainer. All the content would be kid-friendly and kid-safe, even the ad links. Would "ComicKids" dilute the ComicMix brand? Would "ComicMix FOR KIDS" overtax an already busy ComicMix staff?
Obviously you could wait, put this idea on the back burner until ComicMix is better established. After all, there are the HUGE revelations coming later this year about new Creators and a new web design here. ComicMix staff have a full plate. The risk is in letting somebody else getting a foothold as the GO TO web site for On-line Kids Comics.
mike weber (6:58 PM on Sat Jul 5, 2008)
About twenty years ago, i was at the former big atlanta con, whose name i just discovered i can't recall, and i met a young woman in a Suergirl costume - the more-or-less "classic" one.
She was about five-ten with straight long naturally blonde (she assured me) hair, early tewenties (i think) ... and her real name was Kara.
She assured me that she had had no problem deciding what costume to wear to the con.
Rick Taylor (9:44 AM on Sun Jul 6, 2008)
Although I will forever love the Jim Mooney days, I LOVED the Oskner Adventure days where Linda had the 'Mary Richards' career in San Francisco.
Loved the costumes the readers came up with, the hot pants being a fave. They dated real quickly but the were wacky looking.
SuperYenta (12:30 PM on Tue Jul 22, 2008)
Yo Rick! How are you? Please visit my new venture: www.superyenta.com
MellissaLynn (11:22 PM on Sat Jul 5, 2008)
There were a few adults who were wearing the classic costume also...I was one of them! (.^_^.)
Vinnie Bartilucci (11:00 AM on Mon Jul 7, 2008)
Coming soon we'll be seeing not only another new interpretation of Supergirl by Sterling Gates and Jamal Igle, we'll be treated to a Johnny DC title "Supergirl, Adventures in the Eighth Grade" by the folks that did Kid Gravity and Little Gloomy for Disney Adventures.
DC knows Supergirl is one of their most recognizable characters, and they will continue to find a way to make the comic live up to its potential.
Chad Anderson (1:23 AM on Thu Jul 10, 2008)
Hi Martha,
My name is Chad Anderson and I work with Marvel. I wanted to ask you a question about your past work. Is there an Email address I can reach you at? Please let me know at hellochadman@yahoo.com. Thanks :)
SuperYenta (12:29 PM on Tue Jul 22, 2008)
SuperYenta (who wears a nylon sweatsuit and rhinestone-encrusted glasses) sends a shout out to you Martha! Check me out at www.superyenta.com. Hello Rick Taylor!
Martha Thomases (12:49 PM on Tue Jul 22, 2008)
It's a cute idea, Ms. SuperYenta, and I'm sure you are great at what you do. But I'm spoken for (and at, and from).
Rick Taylor (4:58 PM on Tue Jul 22, 2008)
Aunt Meg?
Is that you?
Rick Taylor (6:25 PM on Tue Jul 22, 2008)
Yo, Aunt Meg.
From the sounds of the sweatsuit you've shopping with Renee Taylor in southeastern Florida!
Yeesh!
Russ Rogers (6:34 PM on Tue Jul 22, 2008)
I checked out the "SuperYenta.com" It's a cute idea. But, so far, SuperYenta has fixed up THREE couples. Yenta, maybe. Super? Not so much. And if SuperYenta is going to run with the caprice of calling herself "SuperYenta," she needs a better way of making herself look SUPER than VERY amateurishly altering photos with a Bic Pen and 5 minutes in front of a Paint Program. Especially if she is going to try to shamelessly self promote through a comics website. I suggest SuperYenta invest at least $25 in an airbrushed T-shirt with her logo. I suggest she be more original and do more than spoof the Superman logo, if she wants to take her professional SuperYenta career beyond the hobby stage. Seriously, she needs to get a PROFESSIONAL to make her a SUPER costume with a mask, cape and completely ORIGINAL logo. This might cost several hundred dollars, maybe more. Then she should pose with all three of her Super Success Story Couples in the full Super Costume! If you are going to pretend you're a superhero, you can't be Half-Assed about it. You have to be prepared to make yourself look fully like an Ass! Then SuperYenta can look into the expenses of Trade Marking the name and logo! That might take more than a few hundred bucks.
Yours truly-- The SuperKibitzer