The House of El
Although he is often called “The Last Son of Krypton,” Kal-El (a.k.a. Superman/Clark Kent) is not the last Kryptonian, by an stretch of the imagination. Besides the Kryptonians like General Zod, who are trapped in the Phantom Zone and thus avoided Krypton’s destruction, the most notable of these other Kryptonians is Kara Zor-El, Superman’s cousin.
In some versions of her origin story, Kara is actually older than Kal-El and was a teenager at the time of Krypton’s destruction. She is sent by her father to watch over his infant nephew Kal-El on Earth but her ship becomes stuck in stasis. In another version, due to Zor-El’s efforts their home of Argo City is saved from Krypton’s initial destruction but eventually the city becomes threatened by Kryptonite radiation and Zor-El sends his daughter to join Kal-El on earth. Either way, when Kara arrives on Earth she is still a teenager while Kal-El is a grown man.
Of course, Kara finds that thanks to Earth’s yellow sun, she now has super powers, and Kal-El, now known as Clark Kent, teaches her how to use and control them. He also consoles her and helps her deal with her grief over the destruction of Krypton and death (in most versions) of her parents. Here, family plays a critical role in helping Kara find her way. Kal-El had Jonathan and Martha Kent but they raised him and he found out about his Kryptonian heritage later. He never knew his birth parents Jor-El and Lara so he did not have to process his grief and had to learn how to control his powers on his own, with help from his adoptive parents. Kara is fortunate that she has her cousin to help and train her and there is automatic trust built into their relationship.
Kara eventually gets a human family much like the Kents, but Kal-El gives her a Kryptonian familial presence that he never had. She eventually adopts a feminine version of the Superman costume, which has the crest of their family on the chest, and fights crime and other threats alongside her cousin as Supergirl. Superman and Supergirl are an outstanding example of the stability that can be provided by family members in the wake of chaos and tragedy, especially when that family member shares the same experiences, whether formative or traumatic.
The Waynes
In some cases, one is not blessed as Kal-El and Kara are with a natural family that shares one’s unique experiences. In those cases, one must sometimes form a family of people who share those experiences and can better understand each other because of them. Such is the case with the “Bat-Family.”
Bruce Wayne is of course an orphan who is raised by his loyal butler Alfred Pennyworth. The trauma of witnessing the murder of his parents by Joe Chill leads him to become Batman and fight crime as a vigilante. For a long time, Alfred is his only family, until he encounters the acrobat Dick Grayson, whose family is murdered. Bruce takes Dick in as a ward, eventually adopting him as his son. In the process, he trains Dick to fight crime as he does, with Dick eventually adopting his own secret identity: Robin.
Sharing the same experience as Dick of having witnessed the murder of his parents, Bruce helps Dick to channel his grief productively and fight crime alongside him. After Dick goes on to fight crime on his own as Nightwing, Bruce takes on Jason Todd as a new Robin, and after Jason’s death, Tim Drake. Interestingly, the “current” Robin is Damian Wayne, Bruce’s biological son. Bruce was unaware of the existence of his son until told by the child’s mother, Talia al-Ghul, daughter of villain Rhas al-Ghul.
This becomes an entirely new dynamic to the crime-fighting relationship of Batman and Robin. Previously, each Robin was an orphan who shared formative experiences with Batman. Now, Robin is Batman’s biological son who is almost nothing like his father, having been raised by his mother who is a member of the League of Assassins. Nevertheless, now knowing that he has a biological son, Bruce steps up to be a father and attempt to raise his son as a hero, instead of a killer, despite the stress that it puts on his relationship with his adopted sons. Interestingly, Damian first became Robin while Bruce Wayne was presumed dead and worked alongside Dick Grayson, who had adopted the Batman. Here, Dick carries the tradition of Bruce and attempts to provide the mentorship that Bruce had provided to him to Damian.
All in all, the Bat-Family is an excellent of how an adoptive family can be just as much of a family, if not more so, than a biological one.
Thomas J. McIntyre
Thomas J. McIntyre is a teacher and amateur historian. He holds an MA in History from Georgia Southern University. In addition to the Voyage blog, he writes for Catholic 365 and on his personal blog "Pope Damasus and the Saints." He resides in Louisiana with his wife Nancy-Leigh and daughters Kateri and Alice.