Shortly after Supergirl’s death, readers learned she had a secret marriage–and it made her passing all the more tragic. Supergirl famously perished during a battle with the Anti-Monitor in Crisis on Infinite Earths #7; her death’s effects were felt across the DC Universe, and perhaps no one felt it more than her cousin Superman. While mourning her in 1985’s Superman #415, Superman meets Salkor, Supergirl’s “husband,” and learns of her secret marriage. The issue was written by Cary Bates and illustrated by legendary Superman artist Curt Swan.
In 1985, DC Comics published The Crisis on Infinite Earths, a 12-issue series aimed at streamlining the DC Universe, merging its multiple Earths into one. Several beloved characters, including Barry Allen, died during the Crisis; DC editorial also used the event to simplify the Superman mythos as well. Believing that Superman should live up to the moniker “the Last Son of Krypton,” it was decided to eliminate Supergirl, Krypto, the Phantom Zone criminals and all other Kryptonian survivors. Shortly after Supergirl’s death, DC decided to give her passing an extra tragic layer by revealing she had a secret, and short lived, marriage in the story “Supergirl: Bride of–X?”
Still reeling from his cousin’s death, Superman returns to the Fortress of Solitude. Hoping for some down time, he instead finds an intruder attempting to steal a trinket that used to belong to Supergirl; Superman found it in her private chamber after her death, but did not know its purpose. The unknown alien holds his own against the Man of Steel, and uses his mental powers to take control of Superman. Rather than harm Superman, the alien, named Salkor, tells his story: he found Supergirl adrift unconscious in space. He brought her aboard his ship and nursed her back to health and in time her powers returned; however, she had no memory of who she had been before. Taking the new name “Jasma,” she fought evil on Salkor’s world, and in time they were married. Eventually, Supergirl’s memories returned, and she left Salkor alone in the middle of the night. Salkor would later learn of Supergirl’s death, and came to Earth to retrieve the trinket, which had been a symbol of their love.
Supergirl’s death in Crisis on Infinite Earths ranks as one of the book’s most unforgettable moments, and this epilogue (of sorts) makes her passing even more tragic. Her death showed that no one was truly safe during the Crisis, not even icons whose existence had been taken for granted. It was also a signifier that comics’ Silver Age, of which Supergirl was a product, was over, and a new era was dawning in the DC Universe. This story adds a personal layer to her death, using a secret marriage to explore her legacy and the impact she had on those left behind. By all accounts Supergirl’s marriage to Salkor was a happy one, and learning of his cousin’s happiness with Salkor helped Superman come to terms with her death as well.
Unfortunately, this story, as well as this version of Supergirl, were completely gone from DC continuity within a year, but it loses none of its emotional impact. The story of Supergirl’s secret marriage adds another layer to a death already tragic on many levels.
