Supergirl: Five Cadmus Characters We Want to See
Tonight's episode of Supergirl introduced Colonel James Harper, familiar to comic book fans as [...]
Tonight's episode of Supergirl introduced Colonel James Harper, familiar to comic book fans as Guardian.
In the comics, Guardians was for a time the head of security for the Cadmus Project, a genetic-engineering lab that tinkered in human, metahuman, and alien DNA.
The lab is responsible not only for driving a lot of plot over the years in the Superman family of comics, but for introducing or housing a number of interesting characters.
Here are some of the ones we'd like to see pop up on Supergirl...!
DABNEY DONOVAN
Dabney Donovan, the mad scientist behind so many of Cadmus's experiments, could be a great substitute for Maxwell Lord as a calculating, human threat in the show's second season.
He's also one of the men involved with the cloning of Lex Luthor, and by extension responsible for some significant problems for the Matrix Supergirl, who dated Lex believing him to be his own son.
It makes more sense in context.
Donovan is the one who first started experiments to create "DNAliens," genetic experiments, clones and the like infused with alien DNA. Which sounds a lot like how Harper described the Cadmus Project on Supergirl.
prevnextDUBBILEX
Dubbilex the "DNAlien" is one of Donovan's finest creations, and probably the most recognizable creation to come out of Cadmus.
He worked in security for Cadmus, using his telepathy to gain information, but ultimately he and Guardian started to trust Superman and other outsiders more than the Cadmus management.
In the post-Crisis on Infinite Earths era, Dubbilex moved to Hawaii with Superboy and became his aide and friend.
prevnextTHE UNDERWORLDERS
A collection of misfits -- some from space and some from Cadmus -- who were too ugly to blend in, the Underworlders were a favorite storytelling device for Louise Simonson during the first half or her run on Superman: The Man of Steel.
They dealt with the issues of refugees versus militants that Supergirl has wrestled with so often -- partially because most of them just wanted to live peacefully, but there were just enough -- with just enough power -- to make them dangerous from time to time.
This motley crew of survivors might actually be an interesting group of people with whom to surround Jeremiah Danvers...!
prevnextCONNER KENT
This one is basically impossible, but it would be the brass ring of Cadmus characters.
Following the Death of Superman, Cadmus stole his body (yeah, they're not really nice guys). While they didn't have it for long enough to actually figure out how to clone him (his invulnerable skin made it hard for them to draw blood or anything), they did figure out a way to replicate the electromagnetic aura that gave him his invulnerability. With a little bit of Superman and a little bit of the Cadmus director Paul Westfield (later retconned to be Lex Luthor's DNA, not Westfield's), the post-Crisis Superboy was born.
prevnextGUARDIAN
Will the real Jim Harper please stand up?
I usually give a wide berth to superhero shows to reinterpret characters as they need to in order to suit their stories. Tonight, though, I found myself furious at Supergirl's depiction of Jim Harper -- basically DC's Captain America -- as just a terrible person and a tool of the worst elements of the Cadmus Project.
During the post-Crisis on Infinite Earths era, when Cadmus was really up to no good, it was Harper and Dubbilex that figured it out and essentially policed the organization from within, as J'Onn was doing to the DEO as Henshaw on the show. Then again, Guardian clones weren't an unheard-of thing. Could this just be one of a few James Harpers?
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