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So what’s the point of this site?
So what’s the point of this site? Super. Girl. is intended to study Supergirl’s importance in and influence on pop culture. It’s an ever-expanding collection of information on Supergirl and other Superman-affiliated female characters, both in the comics and as they appear in the real world. Hopefully this information can shed some light on how our culture views women and what exactly it means to call someone a “Supergirl.”
Aren’t comic books kids’ stuff? What makes Supergirl so important? Where have you been? Comic books today are, for the most part, not aimed at children, thanks in part to the extreme violence and sexual content of them. But because of the collaborative nature of their creation and their existence over the past 70 years or so, they act as an excellent mirror of their times. Superman and his compatriots are the stuff of our “modern mythology,” as DC likes to say. They are pop culture, and pop culture is America. Supergirl has been around in some form or another for decades. She’s one of the most easily-recognized names in comics; the only other female characters who can be said to have the same widespread fame are Wonder Woman, Catwoman, and Lois Lane, and none of them have the same immediate connection to as recognizable a franchise. If Superman is the quintessential superhero just by virtue of his name, Supergirl is the quintessential superheroine. If it strikes you as interesting that the quintessential superhero is a man and the quintessential superheroine is a girl and not a woman, I suspect you’ve come to the right place. For more on the importance of analyzing pop culture, particularly from a feminist perspective, check out Andrea Rubenstein’s excellent Debunking the Myth of Frivolity.
Who are you, anyway? What do you know from comics? The short version: My name is Jessica Plummer. I’m an English major at Barnard College. I have absolutely no connection to DC whatsoever, but I have been reading comics avidly for about five years now and have been a feminist for far longer, which is more than enough credentials to talk about stuff on the internet. The long version: I hated superhero comics for some unknown reason as a kid (I suspect because I often turned on the TV looking for Tiny Toons and found Batman: The Animated Series instead), but about five years ago while researching Poison Ivy for the purposes of making a Halloween costume, I found myself utterly fascinated by her and her world. Ivy led me to Gotham, Dick Grayson led me to the Titans, and after a long and complicated trip through the DCU I found myself eventually focusing on the JLI, the Arrowfamily, and the Superkinder, though I dabble in a bit of everything. Supergirl interests me because she fascinates me on a far more archetypal level than any other character (Green Arrow comes close, but that’s mostly the Robin Hood buff in me). My studies at college have been rather focused on fantasy, film, and the classics, all of which tie into comics nicely, as a visual narrative medium with mythological themes and usually at least one foot in the fantasy genre. My lifelong fascination with warrior women and American pop culture tie in nicely as well. Really, superhero comics were pretty much made for me. I really regret wasting my time being angry at them for so long. Oh, and in case you were wondering, the costume came out fabulously.
I agree. Very few of these characters make any sense. Thorough biographies for pretty much every Supergirl under the sun are forthcoming, but until then, check out the Quick and Dirty Guide to Supergirls and the Timeline for basic information.
You missed a song about Supergirl, lazy. I am only human! And there are nine frillion songs that mention Supergirl (hence the collection here). If you know of one I missed, please let me know!
Are Supergirl and Jimmy Olsen totally meant to be? Does Superman wear his underwear on the outside? (But if we’re talking post-Crisis, Linda, not Kara. Let’s keep it uncreepy, please.)
What’s this Girl-Wonder.Org business? Girl-Wonder.Org is a proactive collective of websites dedicated to fighting misogyny in comics and encouraging respectful treatment of female characters. It’s super cool and you should definitely check it out. Bear in mind that though Super. Girl. is a part of Girl-Wonder.Org, it by no means represents Girl-Wonder.Org’s views on feminism, comics, or Supergirl. Girl-Wonder.Org is maintained by quite a few people, and there is no hive mind going on behind the scenes. Promise!
I have a question that isn’t answered here. How can I contact you? Email me at poisonivory@gmail.com.
Disclaimer: This is a non-profit website dedicated to exploring the importance of Supergirl in pop culture from a feminist perspective. Supergirl and related trademarks are the property of DC Comics and Time Warner and are used without permission. No copyright infringement is intended and no affiliation with the copyright holders is implied.
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