Warning: SPOILERS for Action Comics #1048With her new role as a mentor to the Super-Family's new members, Supergirl is proving that she deserves a bigger leadership role in the DC Universe. As a Kryptonian, Kara Zor-El has long been one of the most powerful characters in the DCU. Now, her new responsibilities demonstrate just how well-suited she is to leadership, and especially to training other heroes.

Supergirl has gone through many iterations and transformations over the decades, and her origin has changed more than once. The essential details tend to remain the same: Kara Zor-El, a teenage citizen of Argo City on Krypton, was sent to Earth in the wake of Krypton's destruction - much like her then-younger cousin, Kal-El. Upon arriving on Earth, Kara discovers - due to some mishaps during her journey - that her now-older cousin Kal-El has grown up to become Superman. Kara develops her own Kryptonian powers and joins Superman's quest to help other as Supergirl. More contemporary depictions of Supergirl explore the trauma and grief of actually remebering Kryptonian society and witnessing its destruction. Kara has grown and experienced much, and is now a pillar of the Superman Family, sharing her wisdom with others.

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That wisdom and maturity are on full display as Kara mentors the newly-powered Phaelosian, Thao-La, in Action Comics #1048's 'Red Moon' by Phillip Kennedy Johnson, David Lapham, Trish Mulvihill, and Dave Sharpe. Supergirl guides Thao-La as she learns to navigate her flight powers, and she also assuages some of Thao-La's anxieties about possible threats from Warworld, where Thao-La was once enslaved. Supergirl also reminisces about her home, Argo City, with fondness when Thao-La asks about Krypton. What Superman has in the past been to Supergirl, Kara is to Thao-La in this story.

Supergirl Shows She's Ready to Lead the DC Universe

supergirl teaches flying powers

Supergirl's recent appearances in these Superman Family focused Action Comics stories - as well as her arc in the recent Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow miniseries - demonstrate for readers just how much she's grown. Kara Zor-El is far more than Superman's sidekick or even ally; she is a hero in her own right, and she has even begun mentoring other fledgling heroes, like Thao-La in this story. Given Supergirl's newfound self-assuredness, as well as her longevity and recognizably, Kara more than deserves to be among the leaders of the DC Universe. As alluded to in Dark Crisis event, which sees Supergirl in Jon Kent's revamped Justice League team, she absolutely belongs on a team as high-caliber as the League, if not leading her own.

Supergirl's recent experiences have been a proving ground, and now - like the rest of the Superman Family in 2023 - her character deserves time in the spotlight. Whether that spotlight is as a leader of the other Superman allies or as a player on an even larger stage is yet to be seen, but it would certainly be refreshing to see Supergirl finally take her rightful place on the Justice League as a leading light of the DC Universe.

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Check out Action Comics #1048, available now from DC Comics!