Comic Book / Who is Superwoman?

By Gates and Igle

My mother sent me on a mission to Earth to find my father's killer. The man with the Kryptonite touch, Reactron. I'm supposed to be in Metropolis right now, tracking him down. Instead, a woman I barely know is doing her best to stop me and send me home. I'm Supergirl. This is my life.

— Kara Zor-El

Who Is Superwoman? is a Supergirl 2009 storyline penned by Sterling Gates and drawn by Jamal Igle. It was told in Supergirl (2005) #37-42.

Supergirl has been tasked by her mother with apprehending her father's murderer, Reactron. However, her attempt to capture Reactron is thwarted by Superwoman, a mysterious woman who had previously pretended to be a friend.

As Supergirl looks for a new trail that might lead to Reactron, and deals with her mother's verbal abuse, she finds out that Superwoman has murdered a hero known as Agent Liberty, which makes the police believe Supergirl's family is implicated in the murder due to Superwoman wearing a "S"-shield. To make matters worse, Kara learns Superwoman is working in cahoots with Reactron.

As Supergirl tries to fight both villains, she learns Superwoman's part of a conspiracy to destroy the House of El. Who is Superwoman? And who is behind her?

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Tropes:

• Abusive Parents: Alura In-Ze is cold, domineering, manipulative and emotionally abusive, to the point she doesn't shy away from using her husband's death to guilt-trip Kara into complying with her orders, and then treating her as an incompetent, dumb soldier rather than her own daughter.
  Kara: I told you, this isn't my fault! There was a Kryptonian woman—
  Alura In-Ze: Enough. One more chance. Bring me Reactron. You owe it to your father's memory. [...] I warn you. Do not return to [Kandor] empty-handed, Kara. [...] If you pass this test, you will prove to me that you are not as useless a soldier as some would lead me to believe—
• Alien Invasion: Invoked when Lucy Lane declares Supergirl and her family are spearheading a Kryptonian invasion.
• And This Is for...: As Supergirl pummels Superwoman savagely, she names each person murdered or injured by the super-villain.
• Anti-True Sight: Superwoman's cowl and suit are impervious to both Kryptonian X-Ray and microscopic visions. After seizing Superwoman's cowl, Kara is able to scan it and checks it's normal fabric, which suggests the discs attached to the rest of the costume emit some kind of disruptive force field.
• Avenging the Villain: Superwoman's death prompts her father Sam Lane to seek revenge against Supergirl.
• Badass Boast: Kara delivers one before taking off for Kandor...
  Lana Lang: Kara, take care of yourself over there. And don't let your mother push you around. Don't forget. You're Supergirl. Strongest girl on the planet.
  Supergirl: Pfft. More like both planets.
  Lana Lang: Ha. Don't push your luck, kiddo.
• Bad Boss: Alura is Kandor's harsh, cold and unforgiving leader who threatens with punishments or dismissals at the slightest screw-up. She frequently puts her own security chief down until Thara quits, and abuses Kara emotionally for not being "good enough of a soldier".
• Batman Can Breathe in Space: Kara's capability to subsist without oxygen allows her to fly up to the Sun, and it is the reason that she survived being dunked in the Atlantic Ocean.
• Batman Gambit: Lucy Lane tricked Kara via false evidence into believing that her friend Thara helped Reactron murder her father and is Superwoman's real identity. Then Lucy put on her Superwoman suit and paraded Reactron around Metropolis, goading a very emotional Kara into attacking them.
• Big "SHUT UP!": It happens twice:
  • After spending several minutes enduring her mother's relentless emotional abuse, Supergirl finally snaps and tells Alura to shut up as smashing her comm device to bits:
    Alura In-Ze: I warn you. Do not return to [Kandor] empty-handed, Kara. Do not let anyone or anything keep you from your task. If you pass this test, you will prove to me that you are not as useless a soldier as some would lead me to believe—
    Kara Zor-El: Mother. (smashing her comm device to bits) SHUT UP!
  • Supergirl Later shouts a good, big "SHUT UP!" when Reactron gloats about leaving her fatherless.
    Reactron: And lemme tell you— It felt so good putting that hole in your daddy's ches—
    Supergirl: (bludgeoning him) SHUT— UP!
• Body Horror: When Superwoman's suit gets ripped apart, Lucy's body becomes hideously stretched out and deformed before falling apart and exploding.
• Brought Down to Badass: After luring her into trap, Reactron nullifies Supergirl's powers, expecting an easy kill. He soon finds out the hard way that Kara was already a pretty good martial artist before leaving Krypton, and she has been trained by Wonder Woman and Batman since her arrival.
  Supergirl: I trained with Batman. With the Amazons. I know first level Klurkor. Just because I can't use heat vision doesn't mean I'm helpless.
• By the Hair: Reactron grabs a handful of Supergirl's hair to keep her still while he irradiates her with Gold Kryptonite.
• Catapult Nightmare: It happens to Kara in issue #38 after having a nightmare where crowds of angry humans and Kryptonians demand she chooses a side.
• Cement Shoes: At the beginning, Superwoman attempts to dispose of Supergirl by freezing her unconscious body into a block of super-hard ice and dropping her in the middle of the ocean.
• Chekhov's Gun: In issue #38, someone sends Cat Grant a Supergirl doll. Twenty issues later Cat would realize it was the key to find a child kidnapper.
• Chest Blaster: Reactron's suit shoots Golden Kryptonite-powered energy beams out of his chest that can rip concrete walls apart.
• Child of Two Worlds: Supergirl feels conflicted between the world where she was born and raised and the world where she's living for a while.
  Supergirl: This is my home. One of two that is. If I'm going to live on both, I'm going to have to learn to shoulder the problems of two worlds. Shouldn't be too much of a problem, right? After all, I'm Supergirl.
• Clear My Name: When Superwoman frames Supergirl for Agent Liberty's murder, Supergirl must figure out her enemy's real identity to prove her innocence.
• Clothes Make the Superman: Superwoman's a baseline human whose costume gives her Kryptonian-like powers. However, her suits suffers a malfunction during a battle with Supergirl, and alien DNA become grafted into her genetic makeup, giving her natural powers.
• Coincidental Broadcast: Kara and Lana switch on the news to find Reactron escaped from police custody.
• Come Out, Come Out, Wherever You Are: Supergirl is depowered by Reactron in midflight and forced to crash-land into a rooftop. As she's hiding behing a wall, looking for something she can use as a weapon, she can hear Reactron searching for her and taunting her by reminding her that he already murdered her father.
• The Commissioner Gordon: Supergirl gets introduced to Inspector Mike Henderson, member of Metropolis Metacrimes Division, who helps her solve the case of Superwoman.
• Conservation of Ninjutsu: Reactron killed dozens of Kryptonians when he and Metallo wreaked havoc on Kandor. But when he ambushes Supergirl she is able to fight back and drive him away single-handedly.
• Cop Killer: Superwoman murders Agent Liberty and then kills several more cops to cover up her crime. Inspector Henderson, who was attempting to capture her, only survives thanks to Supergirl's timely arrival.
• Crime After Crime: Superwoman attempts to murder Supergirl and Inspector Henderson to cover up the murder of Agent Liberty.
• Crystal Spires and Togas: Kandorians wear brightly-colored robes and live in shiny, metal skyscrapers.
• Curb-Stomp Battle: When they fight for the second time, Supergirl stops holding back and trashes Superwoman until she's pleading for mercy.
• Dark Action Girl: Superwoman's super-suit's alien abilities combined with her military training allow her to fight super-powerful opponents. Too bad she's an amoral monster driven to murder innocents by her obsession to please her genocidal father.
• Deceased Fall-Guy Gambit: Superwoman intends to frame Supergirl for Agent Liberty's murder after murdering her.
• Deconstructed Trope: Two tropes are deconstructed:
  • Clothes Make the Superman. Lucy Lane dons a super-suit which replicates the powers of several alien races thanks to a combination of magic and technology, and with which she attempts to kill Supergirl. Though, it turns out that a super-suit isn't enough to take down an experienced, prepared meta with natural powers and a volatile temper. Supergirl swiftly guesses what is Superwoman's power's source, and proceeds to easily -and furiously- rip her costume off, meaning Lucy is now helpless against someone who can bench-pressing a whale. And worst of all, her suit being damaged unleashes the magic energies woven into it, destroying Lucy's body.
  • "Well Done, Son" Guy: Superwoman commits abhorrent crimes in order to earn her genocidal and xenophobic father's approval. As long as she gets Sam Lane's attention and love, Lucy doesn't care who gets hurt or killed.
• Dénouement: In the final issue, after the climatic battle Kara explains how she figured Superwoman's real identity out. Then, the epilogue reveals how Lucy Lane found herself working for Sam Lane and how she became Superwoman.
• Destroy the Evidence: Superwoman burns the hard drive image that proves she murdered Agent Liberty.
• The Dragon: Superwoman is Sam Lane's most important minion, tasked with various important jobs such like spying on Kryptonians, keeping Lane's subordinates in line and eliminating Supergirl before she discovers his plans.
• Dramatic Irony: At the start of the story, Superwoman insists that she's conspiring against Kryptonians only because she wants to help her family. As readers are aware, though, her sister Lois married Superman; hence, Superwoman doesn't know she's trying to murder her brother-in-law and his cousin.
• Evil Counterpart: Superwoman (Lucy Lane) is another female with super-powers and complicated family issues. Nonetheless, she's a human with a super-powerful costume, where Supergirl is a Kryptonian with natural-born powers. And while Supergirl stands up to her mother when she crosses one line, Superwoman would do anything to earn her father's approval, no matter how atrocious.
• Evil Gloating: It happens when Supergirl unmasks Superwoman and demands answers. Superwoman isn't dumb enough to confess why or on whose orders she murdered Agent Liberty, but she still gloats about killing Supergirl and then framing her for the crime. Kara proceeds to beat the older woman to the ground.
  Superwoman: Now that you're here on Earth someone else can play the role of Agent Liberty's Kryptonian murderer.
  Supergirl: But the hard drive image—
  Superwoman: Was easily dealt with, along with records of its existence. And with the good Inspector counting feathers on his wings in Heaven no one will be able to point the finger at me. I'll make sure that you are the one who's blamed. Unfortunately for you, you won't be able to tell them otherwise as you'll have suffered a "mysterious disappearance".
• Evil Overlooker: The cover◊ for the trade has Superwoman watching over a worried-looking Supergirl.
• Evil Plan: Superwoman and Reactron conspire to murder Supergirl: Reactron out of revenge for being defeated, and Superwoman out of needing a scapegoat whom frame for her own murders committed to carry forward Sam Lane's plan for genocide.
• Extreme Mêlée Revenge: When Supergirl has the chance to finally confront Superwoman with no distractions or interlopers, Kara shows Lucy how she feels about being lied to by the same person who aided her parent's murderers and attempted to frame her for her crimes: Kara lays a devastating beat-down on Lucy, tears down her super-suit and rips off her S-insignia. From that point on, all battles between Supergirl and Superwoman would result in a curbstomp battle on favor of Kara.
• Eye Scream: Inspector Henderson puts a bullet through Reactron's left eye when Reactron and Superwoman are about to kill Supergirl.
• Facepalm of Doom: In issue #41, Reactron clutches a cop's head as burning him to a crisp.
• Fall Guy: Superwoman murders Agent Liberty and attacks Inspector Henderson, and intends to take advantage of two facts (the police knowing Liberty's murderer is a super-powerful woman who wears a S-shield, and Supergirl had been seen talking to Henderson just before the attempt on his life) to frame Kara for her crimes.
• Fate Worse than Death: Invoked by Sam Lane. After Superwoman is apparently killed in action, Sam Lane declares he intends to do to Supergirl something worse than killing her.
  General Lane: We're not going to just kill her, Drew.
  Codename: Assassin: Sir?
  General Lane: She killed a Lane today. No, we're not going to just kill her. I've got something in mind that's far, far worse.
• Final Boss Preview: When they fight for the first time, Superwoman beats Supergirl into unconsciousness, encases her in a block of solid ice and dumps her into the ocean.
• Frame-Up: Superwoman intends to frame Supergirl for the murder of Agent Liberty via falsified evidence.
• Friend on the Force: Inspector Mike Henderson, member of Metropolis police, Metacrimes Division helps Supergirl discover the identity of Superwoman.
• From a Single Cell: Thanks to her altered DNA, Superwoman subconsciously manages to regenerate her entire being from some few scattered specks of flesh.
• Gas Leak Cover-Up: Superwoman murders a witness who spotted her and Reactron by deliberately creating a gas explosion which burns down the victim's apartment so "her death looks accidental".
• Genesis Effect: Kryptonian scientists used Brainiac's technology to lift Kandor into space and grow an ice world underneath the city's foundations. Nevertheless, terraforming attempts have been unsuccessful so far.
• Get Out!: Lois firmly tells Kara to leave her apartment after the Girl of Steel tells her sister Lucy was a super-villain whom Kara unintentionally killed in self-defence.
• Giving Someone the Pointer Finger: Lucy Lane points at Supergirl as accusing her from murdering Agent Liberty.
• Glass Cannon: Superwoman can use powers of various alien races, including Kryptonians: super-strength, flight, heat beams... However she proves to be a total pushover when it comes to a physical brawl, being outpunched by Supergirl when Kara gets serious (and angry).
• He Knows Too Much: Superwoman murders Reactron's ex-girlfriend so that she can't tell anybody that Superwoman and Reactron are working together.
• Heroic BSoD: As Supergirl and Superwoman are fighting, the former tears the latter's power costume apart, causing it to malfunction. Superwoman's body quickly falls apart and explodes due to the energies unleashed, and Kara falls down to her knees and cries, thinking she has just killed someone.
  Supergirl: "I— The suit— I couldn't— Did I— Did I just— Did I just kill Lois's sister?"
• Heroic Second Wind: Reactron and Superwoman gang up on Kara after nulllifying her powers. Kara is hurt and exhausted but she manages to stall them long enough to get her powers back, the point at which she power-dives Superwoman and beats her up.
• Hologram: Supergirl owns a comm device which projects a holographic image of her mother when she needs to talk to Alura.
• House Fire: After helping Reactron murder his ex-girlfriend, Superwoman burns the woman's house down in order to destroy any evidence that could connect them to her death.
• I Didn't Mean to Kill Him: Supergirl tearing Superwoman's suit apart triggers a chain reaction which causes the suit to explode and obliterates its wearer. Seeing she has accidentally killed Superwoman, Kara falls to her knees and has a breakdown. Later, when she recounts the story, she swears she did not mean to kill Lucy.
• I Have No Son!: After Lucy comes back to life and demonstrates natural superpowers, Sam Lane coldly withdraws his hand from hers even as she pleads for him and states the kryptonians made her one of them.
• I Know Karate: Supergirl warns Reactron she is a Klurkor practitioner before proceeding to kick his butt.
• I Miss Mom: The story opens up with a scene where Supergirl dwells on her father Zor-El, who was murdered by Reactron several weeks earlier.
  Supergirl: I came out here the first time to cry. It's next to impossible to feel like you have any privacy in a city where everyone has superhearing. In space, though, no one can hear me grieve. My tears would boil, then instantly freeze in the vacuum. No evidence of weeping for anyone to see... I miss my dad.
• Improvised Parachute: Supergirl's powers get nullified when she's flying over Metropolis' streets, so she grabs her cape and parachutes her way to a nearby rooftop.
• Inner Monologue: As prowling around Kandor at the start of the story, Superwoman tells herself she is doing what she must for her family and her people's sake.
  Superwoman: I want to help my people. My family. No one can know who I am. Or what I have done.
• Insignia Rip-Off Ritual: In issue #41, Kara rips the "S"-shield off Superwoman's clothes shouting a murderer doesn't deserve to wear her family's crest.
  Supergirl: You're asking for mercy? Like Agent Liberty got?! Like poor Mister Henderson!? Like my father!? You don't deserve mercy, you deserve a beating! And this? You don't deserve to wear this.
• Insistent Terminology: Alura was NOT spying on the USA army. She was merely "monitorizing" them.
  Thara Ak-Var: On your mother's orders, my team was monitoring certain human military channels before we left Earth.
  Kara: You were spying on the military?
  Lyra Kam-Par: Monitoring them.
• It's Personal: Superwoman not only killed and hurt innocent people but also helped Zor-El's murderer escape justice. Supergirl doesn't hold back at all when she gets her hands on Lucy.
• It's Personal with the Dragon: Kara has not even meet General Sam Lane, even though he is plotting against her race's last survivors... but his Co-Dragons Superwoman and Reactron are personally responsible for her father's death, hence they are who she really hates.
• Just Between You and Me: After being unmasked by Supergirl, Superwoman starts monologuing about her plan to kill Kara and frame her for her crimes.
• Karmic Transformation: Lucy Lane uses magically-enhanced Powered Armor to attack Kryptonians, not caring if they are good like Superman and Supergirl -her main target- or bad like General Zod. However, her super-suit gets destroyed during a battle, causing her body to get destroyed and reconstructed as a Kryptonian/human hybrid, meaning her father and former allies now hate Lucy or regard her as a guinea pig.
• Kick the Dog: Reactron goes out of his way to murder one woman who broke up with him in the past, disregarding his superior's orders to lie low.
• Kill It with Fire: Reactron sets on fire several guards unlucky enough to spot him.
• Kryptonite Factor: During their fights Reactron uses his Gold Kryptonite to nullify Supergirl's powers. It becomes a plot point when Superwoman whitstands Reactron's Kryptonite-fueled blasts, thus revealing she's not Kryptonian.
• Laser Cutter: Kara uses her heat vision to cut a fabric sample off Superwoman's cowl in order to get it analyzed.
• The Law of Diminishing Defensive Effort: Superwoman becomes so cocky and overconfident after gaining superhuman invulnerability she believes she can stand still and endure an enraged Kryptonian's blows. She learns otherwise when she's punched across a street and through a building.
• Leave No Witnesses: The titular villain is ordered to leave no witnesses during her mission to bring Reactron back to headquarters. Since Reactron is harassing his ex-girlfriend when she catches up with him, Superwoman murders the woman, making it seem like an accident.
• Made Out to Be a Jerkass: General Sam Lane and his minions Reactron and Superwoman harass Supergirl and try to murder her, and when Kara defends herself she's accused from committing aggravated assault and battery, as well as attempted murder.
• Make It Look Like an Accident: Superwoman murders Reactron's ex-girlfriend to eliminate a potential witness, making it look like the woman died because of a fire caused by a gas leak.
• The Man Behind the Man: It's revealed that everything Superwoman does -spying on Kryptonians, plaguing Supergirl, eliminating any embarassing witnesses...- is at the behest of General Sam Lane.
• Martial Arts Staff: Kara is in fact a very competent staff-wielder. When Reactron nullifies her powers she grabs a metallic rod, drives him back and points out how stupid is thinking someone who has been mentored by Batman and Wonder Woman hasn't been trained to fight without powers.
• Mistreatment-Induced Betrayal: Downplayed example. Thara Ak-Var spends weeks putting up with Alura's cold shoulder treatment and "Step out of line and be fired" threats. Kara just telling her to quit if she doesn't like her job is the last straw which makes her leave Alura.
• The Mole: Superwoman infiltrates the city of Kandor and poses as a Kryptonian in order to spy on the House of El per General Sam Lane's orders.
• My Master, Right or Wrong: Alura In-Ze, leader of Kandor, orders her daughter Kara to apprehend Reactron, her husband's murderer, and bring him to her. Kara has many issues with the idea of getting someone illegally and forcefully extradited to a planet where everyone is out for his blood but she reluctantly agrees, unlike her friend Thara who is her mother's Chief of Security and quits in disgust because Alura wants revenge, not justice.
• Mythology Gag:
  • Lyra Kam-Par is daughter of a Kryptonian who made his single appearance in Superman Family #207
  • In issue #41, Kara calls Superwoman a "murderous babootch". A babootch is a Kryptonian three-eyed monkey, mentioned every so often in Pre-Crisis comics.
• My Way or the Highway: Alura bluntly tells Thara she'll do what Alura says or she will not be her chief of security for much longer.
• Never My Fault: Lucy Lane donned an experimental suit, took up the Superwoman identity and engaged Supergirl in combat per her father's orders and wishes. Yet still, when Lucy apparently dies because of her malfunctioning suit, which gets torn apart in a battle caused by Lucy herself, Sam Lane blames Supergirl.
• No One Could Survive That!: Superwoman's body falls apart and explodes when Supergirl rips her suit off. Everybody believe she's dead (including Supergirl, whose Super-Senses allow her to analyze matter at the atomic level), but the spells and alien DNA respectively woven and grafted into her costume reconstruct her body fully.
• No-Holds-Barred Beatdown: Supergirl delivers a brutal beating to Superwoman after unmasking her.
• No-Sell: Reactron fires a Gold Kryptonite-powered blast at Superwoman point blank. His blasts have been known to punch holes through brickwork and steel, but Superwoman smiles, says it tickles and reveals she isn't Kryptonian, hence she isn't affected by Kryptonite.
  Superwoman: "It's time for us to go."
  Reactron: "Oh, no, Kryptonian. Me and my little Gold Kryptonite friend here—" (Shoot an energy blast) "We say it's time for you to fry."
  Superwoman: (smiling) "Hn. Tickled."
  Reactron: "H-How? Gold Kryptonite shuh— shuts off Kryptonian powers."
  Superwoman: "Why, Reactron— Whoever said I was Kryptonian?"
• Not Good with Rejection: Reactron attempts to murder his ex-girlfriend Lori Murphy because she dared to break up with him.
• Not Enough to Bury: Subverted. After Superwoman's body explodes, all that is left of her is tiny scraps of flesh and hair scattered over the ground. However, Lucy's cells had been altered with DNA alien and imbued with magic when she was turned into Superwoman, which lets her unconsciously regenerate her entire body from those little flesh bits.
  Codename: Assassin: We've gone over the area six times, sir. We've found tiny bits of flesh and hair that match her DNA, but... Nothing substantial.
  General Lane: Of course not. If Supergirl disrupted the field, the suit would've overcompensated. It would've practically vaporized her.
• Not Quite Dead: At the end, Superwoman's powered magitek suit suffers a malfunction which causes it and its bearer to explode. Everyone believes Lucy is dead, but several chapters later she shows up alive again. It turns that the spells woven into her suit, combined with the DNA alien grafted into her cells, allowed Superwoman to regenerate her entire body.
• Playful Cat Smile: Alura In-Ze's chief of security and secretary -Thara Ak-Var and Lyra Kam-Par, respectively- are having an argument which lasts until Alura tells Thara off. Lyra leaves the room, but not without first turning around and giving Thara a cat-like "You're in hot water now" smirk.
• Power Crystal: Sunstones. It's revealed those multi-purpose glowing rocks are also hard and sharp. Supergirl keeps a communication device made from Sunstones. During a heated argument with her mother, Kara smashes it to pieces, and cuts her hand on the shards.
• Power Loss Makes You Strong: During a fight Reactron nullifies Supergirl's powers with Golden Kryptonite. He thinks he has already won when Kara rises up and beats the crap out of him◊, as saying she has trained with Batman and the Amazons, and she is a first level practitioner of Klurkor- a Kryptonian martial art.
  Supergirl: I trained with Batman. With the Amazons. I know first level Klurkor. Just because I can't use heat vision doesn't meant I'm helpless.
• Power Nullifier: Reactron and Superwoman use Gold Kryptonite to depower Supergirl for several seconds in order to kill her more easily, and find the hard way that "powerless" is not synonymous with "helpless".
• Pre Ass Kicking One Liner: In issue #41:
  Superwoman:And don't bother trying to put up a fight, girl. I'm just as invulnerable as you are.
  Supergirl: Good. That means I won't have to hold back, you murderous babootch.
• Primary-Color Champion: Subverted. Superwoman wears red, blue, white and golden and she portrays herself as a hero when she introduces herself to Supergirl, but before long she shows her true colors.
• Punched Across the Room: Superwoman confesses she intends to murder Kara after framing her for her own murders, and she adds Kara shouldn't bother resisting. Kara punches her across the street and into a condemned building.
• Punctuated! For! Emphasis!: Done by Kara during her battle against Reactron when the villain gloats about making her an orphan.
  Reactron: And lemme tell you— It felt so good putting that hole in your daddy's ches—
  Supergirl: (bludgeoning him) SHUT— UP!
• "The Reason You Suck" Speech: Superwoman asks for mercy when she's getting beaten up by Supergirl but she only gets an enraged retort in return:
  Supergirl: You're asking for mercy? Like Agent Liberty got?! Like poor Mister Henderson!? Like my father!? You don't deserve mercy, you deserve a beating!
• Red Herring Mole: Several clues seemed to point to Thara Ak-Var being Superwoman. Thara was Kandor's chief of security but she was missing when Reactron rampaged across the city; Superwoman helped Reactron escape from Kandor; Superwoman's comment regarding Kara not listening to her mother is similar to another previously uttered by Thara. And Thara has a grudge against Alura. They turned out to be false clues, some of them planted by Lucy Lane.
• Relative Button: When Reactron ambushes and depowers Supergirl, he starts to gloat about killing her father. Kara swiftly picks a metal staff and bludgeons him.
• The Resenter: Lucy Lane hated the fact that she worked hard to earn her father's approval, whereas her sister Lois, who was the obvious daddy's girl, couldn't care less for Sam Lane's affection. Ultimately, Lucy's envy and resentment lead her to join Sam's genocidal conspiracy so he loved her more than her sister.
• Restraining Bolt: Superwoman wears a special costume which gives her super-powers thanks to a combination of magic and technology. A series of metalic flat discs keep in check the magical energies the suit is infused with. If those discs were removed or ripped off, the unleashed power would tear Superwoman's body apart.
• Revenge: Reactron is obsessed with taking revenge against Supergirl for breaking his special life-support armor suit, nevermind she was trying to survive his assassination attempt. In turn, Supergirl wants to make Reactron pay for murdering her father.
• Revenge by Proxy: Reactron gloats over killing Kara's father to punish her for beating him down and wrecking his radiation-containment suit.
• Revenge Myopia: Reactron attempts to kill Kara several times because she wrecked his radiation-containment suit... which happened because she was stopping him from killing her when he assaulted her, completely unprovoked, the first time they fought.
• Save the Villain: Superwoman's power suit power suit breaks down during a fight, unleashing energies which tear Superwoman's body apart. Supergirl still tries to help the villain who has just attempted to kill her, but she can't do anything to stop Superwoman's suit from exploding.
• Shadow Archetype: Superwoman is pretty much Supergirl's complete opposite: she's an adult woman whose powers are artificial and who is willing to do anything -no matter how abhorrent- to earn her surviving parent's approval.
• Short-Range Long-Range Weapon: Reactron has nullified Supergirl's powers, but she's a good enough fighter to drive him back. Still, she's armed with an iron rod, and he's geared with energy blasters. So what does he do - rushes towards Supergirl to fight her at close quarters.
• Single-Biome Planet: Justified. Kandor's planet is a frozen world because it's an artificial planet made from ice.
• Slasher Smile: Reactron sports a wide and absolutely insane grin when he's going to murder his ex-girlfriend. And when he's attempting to murder Supergirl. Generally, he always smiles when he's looking to kill someone.
• Slippy-Slidey Ice World: Kandor's new location is an uninhabitable ice planet. Kryptonians can survive in that deadly environment, but for everybody else it's a frozen death world.
  Superwoman: "[Kandor]. This is our home how. Because of arrogance, the Kryptonian people have left the Earth. The capital city of Kandor sits atop of a planet of ice. Early efforts to begin terraforming have proven unsuccessful."
• Smug Snake: Reactron's Kryptonite-powered suit and his army training make him dangerous and formidable enough to kill dozens of Kryptonians. However he treats everyone -including his would-be allies- as dirt, he always underestimates his enemies, is prone to wasting time gloating and playing cat-and-mouse games, and proves to be a dirty coward when push comes to shove. Hence, he gets humiliated by Superwoman when his Kryptonite blasts prove to be ineffectual against her, and loses against Supergirl because he's eager to fight her hand-to-hand instead of using his energy blasters from afar, even after she's shown to be a good melee fighter.
• Son of an Ape: Supergirl calls Lana a "murderous babootch", a babootch being a Kryptonian three-eyed monkey.
• Start of Darkness: Since she was a child, Lucy sought her father's approval and was jealous of her older sister Lois, who was clearly Sam's favorite. Determined to follow his footsteps after his apparent death, and feeling growing resentment towards Lois, Lucy joins the army. Shortly later Lucy finds out her father is alive and wants her help, and she has become so obsessed with getting "favorite daughter" status she's willing to do anything for him: becoming a voluntary guinea pig, murdering innocent people... anything. By the time she's ordered to kill Supergirl, she's become a completely amoral psychopath.
• Strong and Skilled: Reactron learns the hard and painful way that Supergirl has the full Kryptonian powerset and has been trained by Batman and the Amazons.
• Stunned Silence: Lois tells Supergirl and Lana to get out of her apartment when they reveal the villain Superwoman, who apparently died fighting Supergirl, was her sister Lucy. Kara and Lana are leaving when Lois renders both women speechless by suddenly asking for a sample of Superwoman's costume to get it analyzed.
• Super-Senses: Kara's mycroscopic vision reveals Superwoman's identity when Supergirl examines the villain's cowl and scans several hair follicles stuck to the fabric.
• Talking to the Dead: The story opens up with one scene where Kara's conversing with her dearly missed father as floating near from the Sun.
• Tempting Fate: As Supergirl is fighting Superwoman for second time, General Sam Lane refuses to send reinforcements because "[his daughter]'s a professional", "she won't let that teenage hussy get the better of her", and "[he] raised a soldier [...]. She'll be fine". Said "teenage hussy" pummelled Superwoman to the ground, ripped her powered suit to shreds and almost killed her.
• Terms of Endangerment: Reactron calls Supergirl "Sweetcheeks" while attempting to murder her. For extra creepy points, he's a lecherous middle-aged man and she's a teenager.
• Terraform: After moving to [Kandor], the Kryptonians try to turn the planet into a inhabitable world. Unfortunately they've failed so far.
  "[Kandor]. This is our home how. Because of arrogance, the Kryptonian people have left the Earth. The capital city of Kandor sits atop of a planet of ice. Early efforts to begin terraforming have proven unsuccessful."
• There Was a Door: In issue #40, Supergirl violently smashes through several walls to save Inspector Henderson from Superwoman. Thanks to her hyper-destructive approach, she arrives just in the nick of time.
• These Hands Have Killed: During their final battle, Supergirl rips Superwoman's super-suit into pieces, accidentally unleashing mystical energies which appear to blow Superwoman up into nothingness. Believing she has killed her cousin's wife's sister, Kara collapses on her knees, feeling horrified.
  Supergirl: "I— The suit— I couldn't— Did I— Did I just— Did I just kill Lois's sister?"
• Too Dumb to Live: Reactron's ex-girlfriend is warned that her abusive bastard of an ex-boyfriend is going to pay her a visit. So, she calls the police? No. She goes to a shelter? No. She stays with a friend, at the very least? No. She remains in her home all alone. Reactron finds her easily and there's nobody around to help her. She gets murdered, and Superwoman makes her death look like an accident.
• Took a Level in Jerkass: After her husband's death, Alura has become harsher, more callous, more unreasonable and more unpleasant. She snaps at everyone and becomes emotionally abusive to her own daughter, treating Kara as a reckless, undisciplined kid or an incompetent, useless soldier.
  Kara: Lana, what's wrong with her? Why is she so horrible to me? I do what she asks. I try so hard to help her, and all I get is her anger. Her disapproval. She wasn't like this when dad was alive.
• Twisted-Knee Collapse: Supergirl falls on her knees when Superwoman's body falls apart and explodes at the end of their battle.
• Underestimating Badassery:
  • Reactron brought golden kryptonite (which nullifies the powers of a Kryptonian) to the fight, thinking he'd kill Supergirl easily. It turns out that Supergirl has been trained by both Batman and Wonder Woman and knows Klurkor (a Kryptonian martial art).
  • General Sam Lane declares that his daughter is a soldier who will not be bested by a "teenage hussy" two minutes before Supergirl mops the floor with Superwoman.
• The Un Favourite: Lucy Lane resented her older sister Lois because Lois was their father's most beloved daughter. Said resentment has driven her to support Sam Lane's mad plans.
• Unfinished, Untested, Used Anyway: Superwoman wears a powered suit, made by a combination of technology and magic, which hadn't been properly and fully tested before she was deployed because Sam Lane was confident that it'd do the job. Its creators believed it would held against Kryptonite blasts, but they weren't sure until Reactron fired at Superwoman and his blasts were nullified. Ultimately, her suit proved to be ineffectual and unreliable when she finally fought a superpowered individual.
• Ungrateful Bastard: Superwoman apparently saves Reactron's ex-girlfriend from her murderous ex, and the woman slaps her would-be savior because Superwoman calls her "his girlfriend" in passing. The subversion comes from the fact that Superwoman stopped Reactron from murdering the woman because Superwoman herself intended to kill her in a way that couldn't be traced back to him.
• Unstoppable Rage: While fighting Superwoman for the second time, Supergirl finally snaps and furiously hits, bludgeons and stomps Superwoman to the ground until the formerly cocky villain is begging for mercy. Kara replies she's not getting it.
• Villains Want Mercy: At the end, Supergirl and Superwoman square off. The latter gloats over framing the former for her own murders after killing her. When the Girl of Steel proceeds to pummel her, Superwoman pleads for mercy. Supergirl replies -rightly- that she doesn't deserve any and keeps bashing her.
  Supergirl: You're asking for mercy? Like Agent Liberty got?! Like poor Mister Henderson!? Like my father!? You don't deserve mercy, you deserve a beating!
• Villain Episode: "Second Born: The Secret Origin of Superwoman" describes the events of the story from Lucy's perspective.
• Villain Forgot to Level Grind: Superwoman defeats Supergirl pretty easily and quickly the first time they fight. Nonetheless, Supergirl is already familiarized with her tricks when they battle again, and she nearly kills Superwoman. When they square off for the third and final several months later, Superwoman has not mastered her powers or developed some new ability or fighting technique, whereas Supergirl has gained greater combat experience, and she defeats Superwoman off-panel and with no visible struggle.
• Villain Opening Scene: The story beggins with Superwoman going over her instructions to cause mayhem and destroying the heroes.
• Villain Team-Up: Sam Lane forces Superwoman and Reactron to work together in order to kill Supergirl.
• "Well Done, Son" Guy: Superwoman commits crime after crime in order to earn her genocidal and xenophobic father's approval. Sam Lane's attention and love is all Lucy cares acout. In contrast, Kara is growing weary and sick of trying to please her mother only to get psychologically abused in return.
  Kara: Lana, what's wrong with her? Why is she so horrible to me? I do what she asks. I try so hard to help her, and all I get is her anger. Her disapproval.
• Wham Line: At the end of issue #38, Reactron fires a Gold-Kryptonite blast at Superwoman, who shrugs it off completely. Then she utters the first hint to her real identity:
  Reactron: H-How? Gold Kryptonite shuts off Kryptonian powers.
  Superwoman: Why, Reactron— Whoever said I was Kryptonian?
• Wrong Genre Savvy: You need more than a super-costume and several months worth of army training to face up to a Physical God who has been trained by the world's greatest heroes and is both mad and fighting for her life. As it happens, a powered costume doesn't really give an edge over a metahuman because costumes tend to get torn during battles to death. And unlike Superwoman's powers, Supergirl's don't go away when her suit gets ripped.
• You Killed My Father: Reactron killed Kara's father and Superwoman helped him out. Kara craves for laying a beatdown on them.
  Supergirl: You're asking for mercy? Like Agent Liberty got?! Like poor Mister Henderson!? Like my father!? You don't deserve mercy, you deserve a beating!
• You Should Have Died Instead: After putting up with Alura's cold, harsh and constant mistreatment for weeks, Kara reaches her breaking point and asks why Reactron couldn't have killed her mother instead of her father.
  Supergirl: "Lana, what's wrong with her? Why is she so horrible to me? I do what she asks. I try so hard to help her, and all I get is her anger. Her disapproval. She wasn't like this when dad was alive. I can't help but wonder, Lana... Why cuh—" (whispering) "...Why couldn't [Reactron] have killed her instead of father?"
• You're Nothing Without Your Phlebotinum: Reactron nullifies Supergirl's powers and then gloats she has become an easy prey. Supergirl proceeds to use her fighting skills to kick his butt.
  Supergirl: I trained with Batman. With the Amazons. I know first level Klurkor. Just because I can't use heat vision doesn't meant I'm helpless.
• Your Makeup Is Running: Kara flew up to the Sun when she wanted to mourn her father in private without one entire city worth of people listening. She stopped going, though, when she noticed her tears were ruining her makeup.
  Supergirl: I came out here the first time to cry. It's next to impossible to feel like you have any privacy in a city where everyone has superhearing. In space, though, no one can hear me grieve. My tears would boil, then instantly freeze in the vacuum. No evidence of weeping for anyone to see... I miss my dad. Last week, I caught a glimpse in the mirror as I made my way back to the city. The boiling tears were wrecking my makeup, so I stopped making the trip up.

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