Brainiac 5's first appearance

[greenygal]

We've seen Supergirl and Brainiac 5's most recent encounter, so here's their first story together, several continuities back, when Brainiac 5 was introduced as one of the Girl of Steel's love interests...



"Supergirl's Three Super-Girlfriends" starts with Supergirl thinking sadly about how, as Supergirl, she can't have female friends with whom she can share her secrets--when who should conveniently appear but Saturn Girl, Phantom Girl, and Triplicate Girl of the Legion of Super-Heroes! To her delight, they explain that they're here because they want her to try out for the Legion. Given that, as detailed in this story, her previous attempt at this ended with her being declared unacceptable because Red Kryptonite had temporarily transformed her into an adult, I don't know how thrilled I would have been about this, but in the Silver Age Superbooks that sort of thing is just par for the course, and they're off for the thirtieth century to try it again.

(And hey, a quick point about this story. It's 1961, this is the Legion's sixth appearance ever, and they have three female characters in their roster as the story starts. You know how long it took the JLA to get to that point? Seventeen years. Not that any of them really do anything in this story, despite the title, but still, they're there.)

Supergirl is introduced to the other applicants, one of whom seems oddly familiar...



I've always been a little skeptical about this "woe, my evil ancestor was evil!" thing. I mean, it's been a thousand years! At some point surely you get to stop feeling deep, personal shame over your unfortunate relatives? But then again, in this story he's trying to court a girl for whom that guy is the only Brainiac she knows, so it's understandable if he makes something of a production of it.



Man, as supervillain demises go, that is just embarrassing. Also, that whole "Superman has a unbreakable code against killing" thing? Propaganda, clearly. I mean, he doesn't even try to save the monkey.



Sweet as this is, I never fail to start giggling at this point. It's a thousand years later and the Kryptonite is still falling. Directly onto the only Kryptonian on the planet. It has a mission!

(Reluctant though I am to admit it, this scene would make a lot more sense if Brainy had set the whole thing up to impress Kara. I mean, it's very convenient, isn't it?)



And there you have the pre-Crisis Brainiac 5/Supergirl relationship in a nutshell: "You're wonderful and I love you madly!" "You are cute, but I have to go now. Maybe later?" We'll see how it goes this time around...

Suggested tags: char: supergirl/kara zor-el, char: brainiac 5/querl dox, group: legion of super-heroes, publisher: dc comics

Comments

[retro_nouveau]

If Brainiac 5 is the grandson of Brainac 3, then just add two greats to get to Brainiac (1) instead of four?

The Clubhouse has to be the cheeziest base ever. Perfect for the Substitutes.

[psychopathicus_rex]

It does make one wonder - if Brainiac 5 is the great-great-great-great grandson of the current Brainiac, then when are we going to see some of his initial offspring in the present-day? Where's Brainiac 2?

[greenygal]

Vril Dox II is, next to Brainy, actually the most prominent Coluan in the DCU; back in the '80s he was the founder and leader of the space-police organization L.E.G.I.O.N., and currently he's headlining the title R.E.B.E.L.S. He's a complete manipulative bastard who is nonetheless mainly on the side of good, although his methods and tactics frequently do not bear close examination, and has the emotional intelligence of a turnip.

[psychopathicus_rex]

Well, yes, but he's not Brainiac's son, is he? That's what I'm talking about. If there's a Brainiac 5 in the future, and the original Brainiac in the here-and-now, and the future version is his distant descendant... well, you can't descend from someone unless that someone has kids at some point. So why hasn't Brainiac begot any offspring yet?

[greenygal]

Well, yes, but he's not Brainiac's son, is he?

Er...that's exactly who he is.

[psychopathicus_rex]

Oh. Uh... OK. Guess I should click on the link next time...

[odditycollector]

So why hasn't Brainiac begot any offspring yet?
Ah, we get into the *real* reason Vril Dox I hates Superman so much.

Well, yes, but he's not Brainiac's son, is he?
...No, he is a random Coluan kid adopted and experimented on by an Evil robot! ...No, clones have no hereditary rights! ...No, his other parent was wiped out in one of the various crises and he no longer exists!

This question is challenging.

[psychopathicus_rex]

Aha, so he ISN'T his son after all! Continuity is on my side!

[bluepard]

Brainiac also has another child with Lex Luthor.

[hero_of_lallor]

He's Brainiac's clone. The other origin is pre-crisis

[odditycollector]

Somehow, greenygal forgot the most relevant bit! 1. 2.

[psychopathicus_rex]

You mean the most IRrelevant bit?

[odditycollector]

I mean the BEST bit.

[psychopathicus_rex]

Well, you should have said so, then.

[q99]

Ah, but Brainiac is something of a title. Perhaps not all Doxes made the grade!

B4 was Brainiac 5's mother, but the space between her and Vril Dox II aka B2 is a blank.

[psychopathicus_rex]

Logical enough, except Brainy specifies that he is both the fifth Brainiac of his line (hence the name) and the great-great-great-great grandson of the original - which strongly implies, therefore, that 'Brainiac' is a name and title passed down through the generations. If he's fifth-generation Brainiac - 'Brainiac the Fifth', as it were - that more-or-less says directly that his father, grandfather, great-grandfather, great-great-grandfather, great-great-GREAT-grandfather, AND great-great-great-GREAT-grandfather (the original, of course) were all Brainiacs in an unbroken line. (Unless, of course, the title was also passed down to some of the female members of the family, in which case there'd be some mothers and grandmothers and great-grandmothers thrown in, but you know what I mean. Anyway, 'Brainiac' sounds more masculine than feminine to me, unless you feminized it to 'Brainia' or something.)

[q99]

There's been two female Brainiacs- 4 and 8. I wish they'd bring 8 back :(

And while that fits, it also fits if simply only members of his family have claimed the title but do not have to.

[psychopathicus_rex]

'4 and 8'? Wait-a-minute... If Vril Dox is (maybe) the current Brainiac's son, making him Brainiac 2, then is #4 Brainy's mother? And who's number 3? And who in the wild blue galaxies is #8? Is she a descendant of Brainy's from a post-Legion future? What's going on?

[q99]

4 is Brainy's mother, at least in the Reboot legion version. B3 is unknown in any version to my knowledge.

Brainiac 8 is indeed from a post-legion future and also know as Indigo, who's gone pure synthetic in her body and was sent back to the past. She was mainly in Nightwing's Outsider run.

[bluepard]

No, B3 is Lyrl Dox. Although Vril Dox II also has/will have another child. And there's a B4 who isn't B5's mom but is his dad.

[q99]

I think the fact that we're up to B3 with 900 years to go before 5 says something :)

[bluepard]

True, but B3 isn't B4's father. So maybe Vril will have a child at the end of a long and happy life.

Probably not.

[kamino_neko]

Currently it mostly says that thanks to B1 being a full on villain, B2 being borderline, and B3 hopping merrily over that line multiple times in his first decade of life...the name got kind of tainted for a few hundred years, and only with Querl is it starting to get some respect (rather than fear). (I think that post-ZH there was a different explanation for why it went so long without a Brainiac, but I can't remember precisely what it was.)

[intertobamf]

Female Brainiac 4 is for Post-Zero Hour Brainiac 5. Male Brainiac 4 is for the current Brainiac 5 (who is meant to be the same as Pre-Crisis).

[bluepard]

Yes, but the important thing is that Lyrl could kick most people's ass before he could walk, and I hate when he's forgotten. XD