The Ghost of Supergirl Past

 

Welcome to a very special Christmas edition of Super Blog Team-Up. 

Super-Blog Team Up is a event where pop culture and comic book blogs team up to tackle one topic.  This time out, we’re celebrating the most magical time of the year.  Between the Pages is looking at a classic Supergirl Christmas Story.

If this is your first time visiting Between the Pages, THANKS for stopping by. Between the Pages is a blog about pop culture and the world’s greatest cakes. I hope you enjoy your visit and come back again.  If you’re hungry, don’t worry,  I serve dessert on every single post. This time out, I’ll have some great comic book themed cakes.

 

This cute Supergirl Costume Cake was made by Aleshia Harrison Cakes.

Today, I’m looking at the classic story “Should Auld Acquaintances Be Forgot” from DC Comics’ Christmas With The Superheroes #2.  If you have not read this story yet, do not read this post because I am going to spoil the ending.

 

 

To fully understand this story, there are two things that I need touch on briefly.  First, I’ll introduce Deadman, a classic DC Comics character that a lot of readers may not be familiar with.  Then, I’ll summarize the famous story Crisis on Infinite Earths.

 

 

Deadman is one of DC Comics’ major supernatural characters.  He was a circus performer who was murdered. (There is a lesson to be learned from Robin and Deadman – In DC Comics, working at a circus is murder )  The god Rama curses Deadman to remain on Earth as a ghost.  But, Rama gives him the ability to possess / take control of people.  Believe it or not, the character was inspired by the classic TV Show – The Fugitive starring David Janssen.  Deadman is searching for his murderer – a man with a claw for a hand.  Each story starts in a different location with different supporting characters.  And in each story, Deadman gets involved in the lives of the people in the town he is visiting.Do you watch the Flash TV Show?  If so, you’ve heard of Earth 2 and Earth 3.  And, you know that there are at least two flashes – Barry Allen and Jay Garrick.  All of this comes from old Flash comic books.  DC used to have ton of Earths:  Earth 1 was the classic characters everyone knows.

 

 

These cool Justice Society of America Cakes were baked by Annette.

 

Earth 2 was the home of DC’s golden age characters and the Justice Society of America. 

 

 

Earth 3 was a world where Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Flash, and Green Lantern were villains. 

 

This cool Captain Marvel Cake was created by Cakes by Tali.

 

Earth S was the home of the Captain Marvel Family. 

 

 

Earth X was a world where the Freedom Fighters still fought World War II. 

 

 

DC Comics decided this was too complex for new readers and decided to simplify their universe in the classic story Crisis on Infinite Earths.  In this story, DC kills Barry Allen and Supergirl. 

 

This terrific Wonder Woman Cakewas made by Danielle Lechuga from Cup’N Cake.

Right after Crisis, DC Comics restarted / rebooted Superman and Wonder Woman.  Suddenly, none of their old adventures had occurred.  Superman and Wonder Woman had never been members of the Justice League of America.  Superman and Batman weren’t best friends who’d had hundreds of adventures together.  Supergirl and Superboy had never existed.  They’d never traveled to the future and joined the Legion of Superheroes.

 

 

 

On to the main story, Should Auld Acquaintances Be Forgot.  It was written by novelist and TV writer Alan Brennert and drawn by the legendary Dick Giordano.  The story is only 10 pages long, but those ten pages pack a wallop.

Christmas time is here and it stinks to be a ghost.  Deadman tries possessing someone and enjoy the holiday, but he realizes that he is stealing that person’s Christmas. So, he leaves the person and he is sad and lonely.  He is complaining out loud.  He is a ghost, so he figures that no one can hear him.  Deadman has done good all year and all he gets in return is loneliness and solitude. 

 

 

Suddenly, a blond haired woman walks up to him and begins talking to him.  Deadman is amazed because no one can see him or hear him.  The woman overheard Deadman and asks him if the reason he does good is because he wants recognition and glory.  The woman then gives him this WONDERFUL speech.

 

 

“We don’t do it for the glory.  We don’t do it for the recognition. We do it because it needs to be done.  Because if we don’t, no one else will.” 

“And we do it even if no one knows what we’ve done. Even if no one knows we exist.  Even if no one remembers that we ever existed.”

 

 

Deadman realizes that she is right and starts to feel better about everything.  She turns to leave.  As she turns away, Deadman asks her name.  She says “My name is Kara.  Though I doubt that’ll mean anything to you.”

The story ends with Deadman saying “Merry Christmas, Kara.  Whoever you are…”

The story is dedicated “with respect and admiration for the works of Otto Binder and Jim Mooney.  We still remember.”

Wow! What a powerful story.  It is amazing how much is packed into those 10 pages.  I even left out a few scenes in my summary.

I love Kara’s speech – “We don’t do it for the glory.  We don’t do it for the recognition. We do it because it needs to be done.  Because if we don’t, no one else will.”

I watch Doctor Who, Star Trek, Star Wars, Batman ‘66, Batman: The Animated Series, Justice League and Justice League Unlimited, Flash, Supergirl…. I’m hooked on Star Wars audiobooks.  I read comics. I love the Marvel Superhero movies.  All of these have one common thread, they’re about heroes.  Kara’s speech sums up perfectly why I love stories featuring heroes.  Heroes are uplifting.  They’re roles models.  They make us better people.  This is why I run a cake blog with a pop culture slant.  I love these characters and the fact that even though they aren’t real, they make the world a better place.

 

This Green Lantern 6th Birthday Cakewas made by Jo Takes The Cake.

Let me wrap up by telling you a wonderful story about two heroes – one imaginary and one real.  I used to keep a salt water fish tank.  Before the internet, the best resource was the forums on CompuServe.  My husband used to occasionally visit, CompuServe’s Comics and Animation Forum.  One of the most popular people on that forum was a police office who was a comic book fan.  As a kid, he read comic books.  His favorite was Green Lantern.  He grew up in a neighborhood where gangs were prevalent.  But, he resisted the pressure and never joined a gang.  Why? Because he wanted to be like his comic book heroes.  When he grew up, there wasn’t a Green Lantern Corp to join.  But, there was a group of people who served as police and peacekeepers, so he joined them.  He became an award winning police officer and was assigned to work in the neighborhoods he grew up in.  He was a hero and his inspiration was his childhood role models – super heroes.

This man didn’t do it for the glory.  He didn’t do it for the recognition. He did it because it needed to be done.  Because if he didn’t, no one else would.

Merry Christmas and Peace on Earth!

I hope you enjoyed today’s post and will come back tomorrow.  If you want more Christmas goodies, please check out these other Super Blog Team-Up posts:

The Retroist – Christmas Knight

Crapbox Son Of Chuthulu – !mpact W!nter Spec!al #1

Chris Is On Infinite Earths Blog – Christmas with the Super-Heroes #1

The Superhero Satellite

Longbox Graveyard

DC In The 80s

The Unspoken Decade

Coffee and Comics Blog 

The Daily Rios