Back Issue Review: Action Comics #262

Over on the Supergirl television show,  Supergirl has had a sometimes overly emotional response to the very existence of Kryptonite on Earth. She wants it destroyed, controlled, and out of the hands of people like Lena Luthor. She describes the pain it inflicts quite eloquently as the skin being ripped from her bones and nails coursing through her veins.

With that complete fear of Kryptonite and any exposure in mind, I thought I would review Action Comics #262, an early story of Supergirl's in which she intentionally exposes herself to Kryptonite, all in hopes of finding a cure for K-poisoning.

It is a pretty classic Supergirl story for the time with a little bit of Midvale orphanage, a recap of her origin, some concern about Superman's thoughts about her, and some wild Silver Age coincidences. This could be a primer for this era in her life. You get a sense of the formula writer Otto Binder followed. And you see a lot of the classic art tropes that legendary Supergirl artist Jim Mooney brought to the table.

I'll also point out this cover by Curt Swan with a cool coloring error, showing how slick this costume looks with a red skirt as opposed to the blue skirt she wore at the time.

So settle in for a fun story.

"Supergirl's Greatest Victory" opens with a tremendous splash page of Superman weakened and dying near a Kryptonite meteor. Using x-ray vision, he spies Supergirl in another cavern standing next to another Kryptonite meteor. She seems fresh as a daisy, pushing over a stalagmite with one finger. How could she have acquired such immunity to Kryptonite?

We'll find out1

As was often the template, we start out with some minor super-heroics happening at the Midvale Orphanage.

As Linda Lee, Supergirl uses her xray vision to soften concrete to be smooth so some roller skaters don't take a tumble. She also uses her super-breath to get some kites into the air.

The staff has to wonder if there is a 'good fairy' watching over the place. I'll remind people that Supergirl saying she was going to be a guardian angel over Midvale in her first appearance was an impetus for Peter David's Earth Angel arc in his run.

Later, in her room, Linda writes about her history in her secret diary. She talks about how vulnerable she and Superman are to Kryptonite and how finding a cure is of the utmost importance. It was just last issue (Action Comics #261) that her experiments led to the creation of X-Kryptonite which powered Streaky.

This quest for a cure was a thread that went through the early parts of this Action run.

And, as was the custom back in those early days, we get a pretty in-depth review of Supergirl's origins. We see Argo fly off into space. We see the lead sheets applied to the Kryptonite ground, and we see the meteors come through the dome prompting Kara's rocket.

It is interesting that because Argo survived, life went on, and Kara was born years after Superman. Thus she is truly younger. It is only later that the 'rocketed at the same time but in suspended animation, technically older' wrinkle in her origin was added.

I'm a fan of simplicity. So I like this original take on Supergirl's age more.

It's then that Supergirl comes up with a brilliant idea. Maybe by slowly exposing herself to Kryptonite she can gain some acquired immunity. It would be akin to a vaccination like the polio vaccine. (I guess ... sort of?)

Of course Superman had tried that but it didn't work. Still Supergirl wonders if her young age might make it a viable solution. Finger to her cheek, a sure sign she is thinking hard, she decides she might proceed.

With her mind still on the experiment, Superman takes her on a tour of his Fortress. He shows her some fancy flowers and wild beasts.

Of course, this being the Silver Age, she knocks something over allowing one of the metal-eating aliens to temporarily escape. In a fascinating revelation, it turns out these things love Kryptonite. It is lured back into it's cage with a tasty K-tidbit. Of course, a fact like that can't be random ... can it?

I'll also point out the second panel where Supergirl is kicking herself for causing the ruckus. Superman seems like he couldn't care less over something so silly. But this is Silver Age Supergirl, wary of banishment and desperate for Superman's acceptance and pride.

Later, a Kryptonite meteor lands on Earth and Supergirl is able to safely guide it from a distance into a secluded cave. With it resting against a wall, she can begin her experiment.

Each day she goes to the cave and approaches the Kryptonite. And, over time, incredibly, she is able to get closer and closer.

Even Superman, creepily spying on her with his vision is intrigued. If this is true, Supergirl will be without weakness and therefore more powerful than Superman!

And that's some serious progress. In the end, she can actually walk right next to the chunk of green K without barely a tingle and with all her powers intact!

And thank goodness she is immune!

Because in a nearby cave,  Superman stumbles across a huge chunk of Kryptonite and succumbs.

Luckily, Supergirl spies him with her xray vision and speeds to the rescue, tunneling underground to reach him. (If you read these early Action stories, she always burrowed underground. Remember, she was a secret weapon and couldn't be seen!)

Once exposed to this Kryptonite however, Supergirl immediately falls ill. What happened to her acquired immunity??

Then we get the most Silver Age of escapes I can recall. The two heroes use their xray vision on a vein of gold in the Earth above the meteor. When bathed in the radioactive vision waves, the gold undergoes an alchemical reaction to become lead! And now, the radioactive Kryptonite encased in a protective lead sheen, the heroes recover.

But what about Supergirl's experiments?

Well it turns out the meteor in Kara's cave was being eaten from the inside out by a metal eater! Remember they find Kryptonite a delicacy. And there appears to be a dose response to Kryptonite. With only a thin rind of green K left, of course the radiation dose is much less and Kara would be uneffected.

As in many Silver Age stories, a ton of coincidences need to line up for this explanation to make sense. The metal eater that escaped was pregnant. It laid its egg when it briefly escaped. The egg hatched and slowly made its way underground where, lured by the delicious K, it took up residency in Kara's cave. That's some journey! We had seen the rescued metal eater sitting in the cage forlornly earlier. She missed her baby.

And so it was learned that Kryptonite immunity cannot be obtained through slow exposure. I do like that Supergirl had such a noble mission in mind and was willing to risk herself to accomplish it. And the other Silver Age tropes make this a solid read of what you get in those early stories.

So there we have it, a Supergirl who willingly exposes herself to Kryptonite, a far cry from the television Kara.

Hope you enjoyed this peek back.

Overall grade: B+

Posted in: Reviews