A Gross Imperfection

Once and a while you come across a comic book character who's creators clearly had no idea what to do with. Sometimes that character dresses like a hawk or is a teenage Amazon or-in this case-is The Girl of Steel. It's time to highlight a low point in Supergirl's history with the character Matrix.

In the 80's, the status quo over at DC Comics was that Superman was strictly the only Kryptonian. However, writer John Byrne looped around this rule and created a new Supergirl in "Superman #16" in 1988, a Supergirl who was neither Kryptonian or Superman's cousin. Okay, try to follow me on this. So on an alternate world-stay with me-where Superman died as a child and was not present to protect Earth from General Zod and his two Kryptonian goons, Lex Luthor created an artificial life-form he described as a protoplasmic matrix. He based this life-form's appearance, personality and memory off his deceased wife Lana Lang. Lex also gave her a physiology similar to Superman along with a Superman-themed costume and sent her to fight Zod, but she failed to match Zod's strength. So Lex decided to send Matrix to the mainstream DCU to recruit Superman. Still with me? Superman and Matrix were able to defeat Zod, but unable to save the alternate Earth. With nowhere to go, Matrix travelled with Superman back to the mainstream DCU. She lived a double life for a time, being both Mae Kent living on The Kent Farm and fighting crime as Supergirl. She had even fallen in love with the mainstream Lex Luthor. Oh, by the way at this point in comics Lex Luthor had faked his death, grown red hair and was publicly claiming to be Lex Luthor's estranged son, Alexander Luthor Jr. Genius! Needless to say, Superman and The Kent's were rightfully pissed Supergirl was dating Lex Luthor. As any parent would be, right? As if it's not bad enough your daughter-who looks like a teenager but is probably a year old in science years-is dating a man in his late thirties, but she's also dating you're archenemy and one of the greatest villains in the DCU! Crazy kids. After Superman died at the hands of Doomsday, Matrix used her shapeshifting powers to pose as Clark Kent to protect her mentor's identity. She also put Lex in a coma after she found out he had made an army of Supergirl clones, fused with a girl named Linda Danvers, became "The Angel of Fire" and then became a fallen angel in the depths of hell. And that's it, apparently.
After "Infinite Crisis", writer Dan DiDio claimed Matrix was wiped from all DCU history, but writer Geoff Johns contradicted this by saying Matrix was still in continuity. It was only in 2008's "Reign in Hell" that she was used again, but after that her existence went back to being a question. After The New 52 rebooted the DCU, another Supergirl-more similar to the original-appeared with no mention or reference to Matrix, leading fans to believe Matrix and her history had been wiped off the table. After sending Matrix through so many questionable stories, it's no surprise to me that DC would want to scrap this mess of a character. Just because her abilities and behavior are unique doesn't mean they fit the Supergirl image. It's fine if you want to make a relatable rebellious teenager, but factoring in alternate worlds and angel fusions only clouds the framing you try to lay down for your character. And this is Supergirl we're talking about, next to Robin she's one of the most recognizable sidekicks in comics and has held her own as a solo superhero. The last thing you want to do is complicate a flagship character. Or give her a CBS show. And by the way honey, shapeshifting is Miss Martian's thing! Thanks for reading!

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