The Donnerverse may be more well known for the first two Superman movies with Christopher Reeve, but that universe gave rise to its own Girl of Steel. The 1984 Supergirl brought Kara Zor-El to the big screen, and for the longest time, it was her most mainstream adaptation. The movie itself was of questionable quality, much like the latter two Christopher Reeve sequels, but it's notable for one scene in particular.

In 1984's Supergirl, after Kara comes to Earth, she magically shapeshifts her hair and clothes to blend in with girls her age, and the mysterious power is never explained. It would certainly be useful, however, for her cousin Clark Kent, who usually has to rush off to change into his Superman suit. Here's a closer look at her weird power, why it exists and how it gave Supergirl an advantage that Superman never had.

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Can Kara Zor-El Shapeshift in 1984's Supergirl?

The story of the 1984 flick had Supergirl coming to Earth to locate a Kryptonian artifact called the Omegahedron. This device powered Argo City, a remnant of Krypton that survived the planet's destruction. Upon coming to Earth already in the familiar red and blue garb worn by her cousin, Kara decides to try to blend in with some locals at an all-girls school after peering at them through the bushes. This school is that Lucy Lane, Lois Lane's younger sister, attends, giving Supergirl some rather trite connections to the main series.

To disguise herself, Kara adopts the identity of Linda Lee, the cousin of Clark Kent. To complete the guise, she suddenly dons new clothes and darker hair. This is done through some sort of shapeshifting power or technology, as Kara simply walks and shuffles through several outfits as well as darker brown hair. Despite the lack of explanation, it's certainly a game-changer compared to what her cousin has to go through.

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How Does Supergirl's Shapeshifting Connect to Her Comic Book Roots?

Linda Lee had been the civilian alter ego of Kara Zor-El in the Silver Age and Bronze Age comics, explaining the name in Supergirl. Likewise, ever since her Silver Age debut, Kara had used a brown wig

to complete this facade. This explains why Kara's hair is darker in her disguise, though as mentioned, the exact way in which she achieves this transformation is unknown. It could be that she's simply moving so fast that she can try on different clothes in a short amount of time, though where she got these Earth clothes is also up for debate.

It's most likely that her technology from Argo City allowed her to achieve this feat, giving her powers and abilities far beyond other Kryptonians like General Zod and Superman. The result is that she never had to race off to a phone booth or alleyway to transform out of sight, and could do so much more conveniently. Thus, she could take care of any threat much faster than her cousin could. Of course, Kara never showed up again in the Donnerverse past Supergirl, so it's unknown if she shared this technology or whatever the trick may have been with her cousin Kal-El. With the multiverse opening up on film, there's a chance fans could see the original live-action Kara Zor-El show off her incredible shapeshifting powers again, though it's unlikely.

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