Review: Action Comics #258 - Supergirl meets Krypto, Sent Into Space

Marc Andreyko has sent Supergirl into space with Krypto to investigate Rogol Zaar. Here at the site, I am continuing my unofficial and somewhat random look at adventures with Supergirl in space. And what better issue to look at than Action Comics #258, Supergirl's first adventure in space and the story where she first met Krypto! I strive to have these back issue reviews have some bearing on current arcs. So this seemed perfect.

This story also plays into the Silver Age theme of Supergirl being extremely worried of letting Superman down and kowtowing to his various demands and rules. It also shows Superman to be a rather nasty individual, putting Kara through the wringer for reasons that don't warrant such harsh treatment. Supergirl was truly cringing in his shadow back then.  Remember, we are only 6 issues into her very existence.

Once again the creative team here is the legendary team of writer Otto Binder and artist Jim Mooney. And it pushes the Supergirl narrative forward a fair bit, not only with this ongoing theme of needing to prove to Kal that he can trust her but also by introducing her to more of the Superman universe.

I wish I owned the issue itself. Scans come from the Supergirl Archives, volume 1.

Onto the story!

"Supergirl's Farewell to Earth" opens with a splash of Kara on a bizarre alien planet. She is building a thatch covered hut, has a two-headed parrot for a pet, and a variety of odd vegetables ready to be eaten. The whole thing looks bizarre.

As if we needed a reminder, the Earth looms in the background. This is definitely someplace unearthly. The opening caption sets the stage. She has disappointed Superman who has turned against her. How often we will see this!

I always like cultural references in comics like these. Would a child today reading this comic know who Robinson Crusoe is? Is that name still common knowledge? Or has that been lost to time?

The book starts with Linda Lee walking in the woods where she sees two kids about to be crushed by an dying tree which is falling.

With some aplomb, she sheds her disguise, tunnels below the ground, and nudges the tree in another direction so it falls without killing the kids. When you read these early stories, you see just how often Supergirl tunneled below ground like Bugs Bunny. She dare not fly for fear of being seen and discovered. Remember Superman forbid this. She needed to remain hidden in the orphanage, a secret weapon.

Still, she has been doing some sly good deeds in these early days, acting as Midvale's Guardian angel. And she keeps hoping that some day cousin Superman will deem her worthy of being able to act in the open. Heck, at this point he hasn't even told her his secret identity or anything about his life.

That is so Batman of him!

And he hasn't even told Krypto about her. He just happens to be flying by and sees her.

She is thrilled to meet the dog and the two become fast friends, playing tag, digging through mountains, and just sharing affection.  I love how happy Kara looks in that first panel. She finally has a playmate.

Of course, Superman arrives and is none too happy. How dare she reveal her existence to Krypto! She must remain hidden and unknown.

Ugh ... Superman in this time in Supergirl's life is such a pill.

I am also amazed at how Mooney is on point with the Superman house style. That last panel looks like Wayne Boring drew it.

And he isn't going to let Kara get away with this. How dare she play with Krypto? What if he followed her back to the orphanage wanting to play more? She would be exposed.

It is too big a sin. So Superman decides he needs to banish Supergirl from Earth for a year! I mean, why keep the one other surviving member of your race, and your blood relative, near you when you can send her to an asteroid for daring to play with your dog.

Even Krypto knows this is a terrible move, wanting to save her. But Superman is determined to teach her a lesson. And Kara, being the obedient girl she is and wanting to please her cousin, obeys.

She finds herself on a distant asteroid where she needs to survive.

I mean, this is abuse. Superman should be reported to family services for this treatment. While Supergirl tries her best to make do, even performing a long long long distance rescue by throwing chunks of ice at Earth to douse a fire, she is still crestfallen and sad.

We see her looking on longingly at kids doing fun things all across America while she has to sit alone.

Thankfully, after a week of solitude, Krypto beings Kara a note. A wave of Kryponite energy is approaching the asteroid. She will be allowed to return to Earth for one day but then she will need to return to complete her sentence. (At least he didn't let her die?)

Arriving on Earth, Supergirl returns to her Linda Lee identity but then realizes she needs to make up a story to explain why she was missing for all that time. She muddies up her clothes and says she was lost in the Dismal Swamp.

You would think that perhaps she would just spend the day hiding somewhere as Supergirl. But she probably is craving some human contact. So why not return to the orphanage.

Everyone is grilling Linda about how she could have survived for a week in the swamp. Even a big time reporter (shown initially from behind) is asking her the tough questions. What did she eat? Why isn't she covered in insect bites? How is she still so healthy?

Brazenly, she takes off her Linda wig and dress and tells this reporter that she is Supergirl, Superman's cousin.

It is then we see that the reporter is actually Clark Kent and he seems crestfallen that Supergirl would reveal herself this way. It was a test of some sort.

In a nice little turn of the tables, Supergirl says she knew it was okay to reveal herself to Kent because she knows he is, in fact, Superman. She tried to melt his glasses so he couldn't inspect her skin anymore and when they didn't melt, she surmised they were Kryptonian lenses.

A bit of a leap, I know. But at least Clark got a bit of a comeuppance. It shows just how smart Supergirl is.

Then Clark stammers his way through explaining this whole horrible episode. He needed to test her to see if under grueling cross-examination if she would keep her secret. The best way to do that was exile her in space for a week, then make her return as Linda to face the fire.

Surely there must be some other way he could have made sure he could trust Linda other than this cruel space punishment and then the third degree.

But that wasn't Superman back then. He was just outright mean to her.

Now that she has passed the test, she wonders if it is time for him to reveal her to the world. But he again says she needs more training and needs to lay in wait as his secret weapon.

Look at him stammer while she asks him the tough questions. He has to explain away this horrible plan. He has to deal with the fact that she figured out he was Clark before he could reveal it. I think he is pausing and sputtering because he didn't expect this to turn out this way. He needs to figure out what he is going to say to keep her stuck in that orphanage instead of cramping his solo style.

So Supergirl comes across as smart and self-reliant here, if a bit too innocent and subservient. But Superman comes across as a control freak and something of a jerk.

All that said, I would declare this a pretty important issue for a Supergirl collector and historian. She first meets Krypto here. She learns Superman is Clark here. These are pretty big moments. This is one I keep my eye out for, hoping to find it at an affordable price.

And from the view of the current book, we see her playing with Krypto and off in space for a bit.

Overall grade: B+

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