The DC Universe has made its way both into film and television in very exciting ways. From The Flash to Arrow, fans of the comics have had the opportunity to witness their favorite characters come to life on their TV screens. One of the shows audiences have been thoroughly enjoying is Supergirl, which follows the adventures of Kara Danvers, Superman's cousin. Sounds like an interesting family tree, to say the least.
Many interesting and complex villains have been a part of the hit series. Arguably, there wouldn't be much room for superheroes to shine if it weren't for their nemesis always managing to install chaos. One of these evil characters was none other than the Silver Banshee, which is the last person you'd want to sit next to on a horror movie screening. But how much do you really know about the character? She was only in five episodes but is still one of the most interesting characters created by DC. So if you've been wondering, we've got 10 things you never knew about the Silver Banshee!
10 There Are Two Versions Of The Character
The world of comic books is pretty complicated. There are few things as convoluted as the multiple universes and character arcs we find in comics like Marvel and, in this case, DC. It's almost impossible to keep track of, but we have you covered. Die-hard fans probably know this, but in 2011, DC launched 52 new comics series that re-launched its whole line. This included elements from Wildstorm Productions and Vertigo, resulting in some changes to the character stories.
The New 52 introduced a new version of the Silver Banshee. The first version of the character was Siobhan McDougal, while the new one is Siobhan Smythe, the name adopted by the Supergirl adaptation. Both characters are still similar, but a few changes did take place. Regardless, her powers remain the same, including the super-sonic scream capable of ripping another person to shreds.
9 Her Family Roots Go Back Centuries
As you can probably tell from the name, Siobhan is originally from Ireland. According to the comics, her family is part of a very old Gaelic clan that's been living in an island between Scotland and Ireland for centuries. The origin of her powers os very tightly connected to Gaelic mythology, since the Banshee heritage runs in the family (her father is the Black Banshee).
It's precisely on this island that a place called Castle Broen exists. This is where family members of the clan Siobhan belong to must go in order to take part in a ritual that will prove whether or not they are worthy of becoming the next leader of the clan. It's a breath of fresh air to see something more mythological than meta, and certainly more mysterious.
8 She Was Resurrected
Remember the castle we just talked about? Well, when Siobhan's father died, she came back to Ireland after having traveled all around the world for many years before. She had all the intention of leading her clan, but her uncle refused to let a woman lead the way. This, however, didn't stop her from taking what she wanted, and she went into the castle to perform the ritual, which entailed calling on supernatural forces.
Her uncle interrupted her mid-way through the ritual, and Siobhan was dragged into some sort of infernal dimension. It was thanks to an unknown entity called "the Crone" that she was allowed to return to Earth, this time around with powers that turned her into the Silver Banshee. However, this didn't come for free.
7 She Faced Superman
There are already plenty of crossovers on the TV incarnations of DC characters. However, there will never be as many as in the comics because, well, that would be a bit too much. While in the show Supergirl the Silver Banshee never came face to face with Superman, the original Siobhan McDougal has faced the hero on several occasions.
The first encounter actually took place because of the entity that gave her the powers that turned Siobhan into the Silver Banshee. The Crone demanded she found a strange book that had once belonged to her father, that she believed was in New York. In search of the artifact, the Banshee killed everyone who stood in her way, which brought on the attention of Superman. He eventually defeated, and she was forced to continue with her mission later.
6 She Was A Member of Secret Society
Whether you know the comics or not, you've probably heard of the Justice League of America, a team of heroes who protects the world from all the bad guys and gals out there. Of course, every mighty group of heroes needs to have its villainous counterpart, and for DC, that came in the form of the Secret Society of Super Villains (or SSoSV).
When the society was lead by Alexander Luthor Jr., the Silver Banshee was a member. She was actually of the people who turned on Shazam's nemesis, Black Adam, once Alexander needed him for his machine. The Banshee also fought and survived the Battle of Metropolis, one of the greatest instances of superheroes versus villains in the history of DC.
5 She Saved Supergirl
In the New 52 version of the Silver Banshee, she actually begins things on a great note with Supergirl. While on the show there was plenty of animosity between the two, which turned into a full-scale battle between good and evil, on the comics things transpire slightly differently, and it has nothing to do with assistants or other more mundane matters.
Siobhan arrives in New York after leaving Dublin, in the hopes of having a shot at the beginning of a better life, after her mother dies. After Supergirl saved New York from Kryptonian Worldkillers, the National Guard was prepared to kill her, because they weren't capable of understanding the circumstances. Siobhan stood up to them, saving the heroine, and marking the start of a good friendship.
4 She Has A Knack For Languages
The Silver Banshee has an impressive array of powers, including accelerated healing, the death stare, flight, strength, and teleportation, not to mention her sonic screaming. However, she has other abilities that, even though they don't really help much when it comes down to a fight, are extremely useful for life in general.
This includes the Silver Banshee's incredible knack for languages. Just by listening to a certain language for a very short period of time, she's capable of not only fully understand it, but speak it fluently as well. And this is not just valid for communication with humans! She can't speak to all other creatures, including animals.
3 She's An Accomplished Musician
It's hard to believe anyone would like to sit for a couple of hours and attend a concert headlined by someone whose name includes the word Banshee. Even die-hard heavy metal fans would eventually start crying if forced to listen to the Silver Banshee screaming for hours on end, and hey, no one could really blame them.
However, the Banshee's ability to control sound gives her the upper hand in the world of music. She can pretty much play any instrument she wants and make it sound good, and that includes her voice, which she can manipulate to sing at a volume high enough to be heard without a microphone, and beautiful enough so that people actually want to hear her.
2 Supergirl Fought Alongside Her
Siobhan Smythe's talents as a musician are well evidenced in the comics, where she's a part of a band that plays in New York a few times a week, for considerably sized audiences. After saving and befriending Supergirl, Siobhan invites her to watch one of these shows, but someone ends up ruining the night for everyone - none other than Black Banshee, Siobhan's father.
Once he attacks, Supergirl ends up being absorbed by the Balck Banshee's body, an instance in which she learns about the Banshee curse that runs in Siobhan's family, and how he plans on having his daughter join him to achieve world dominations. Together, Supergirl and the Silver Banshee fight and defeat the Black Banshee.
1 She Has A Weakness
Another very interesting power the Silver Banshee has is the ability to kill anyone she pleases just by looking at them, something known as the death stare. This is undoubtedly something that should be feared because being capable of eliminating someone simply by staring could be truly game-changing in battle.
This power, however, does come with a limitation, and it's the only weakness of the character that we know about. The Silver Banshee can only use the death stare against those whose first name she know, otherwise, it's a no-no. This name thing seems to also work for aliases since she's been seen killing superheroes she only knew the aliases of. It's thanks to this weakness that Superman manages to defeat her in the first place.