Starkville’s House of El Podcast

Long overdue but not forgotten, I have another SF for you. The Silver Banshee was shown on Episode 9×16 “Escape”. Judging from the fan reactions that I have have seen this episode will not go down as one of the most memorable episodes in Smallville’s history, but I will say that the Silver Banshee was done well for live television. A mystical being from the underworld who bears a curse devoted to the killing of men isn’t always easy to pull off. But lets steer clear of the merits and/or gripes with the episode itself and lets look at the history of the Silver Banshee.

Silver Banshee is what I would consider a newer villain to the DC Universe, she was created by John Byrne who was charged with rebooting Superman after Crisis on Infinite Earths which reset the continuity of the DCU. She first appeared in Action Comics #595, and with the help of Martian Manhunter, Superman defeats her.

Siobhan McDougal was the first born child of Garrett McDougal, the patriarch of a clan of old Gaelics that resided on an island halfway between Ireland and Scotland. The clan had remained stationed there for a thousand generations. The island held the Castle Broen, the battleground for the first born McDougals to battle for the honor of leading the clan. It was a ritual as old as the clan. It was extremely important to all who reside on the island and one Siobhan only paid heed to as part of her family lore.

She left her clan at an early age to travel the world. She had grown tired of life with the clan and needed an escape. She had remained away for an extended period of time and only returned when she received news that her father had died. Upon her return, the proceedings for the next ritual were already underway. She was told by her uncle Seamus that she was not to take part. He didn’t want a woman to be clan leader and had already decided her younger brother Bevan would take her role in the ritual.

Siobhan took this as an affront and decided to do the ritual herself, alone. The ritual involved calling forth supernatural forces for power. She almost succeeded but her brother Bevan inadvertently interrupted her mid-ritual to disastrous effect. The forces consumed her and drug her into the Netherworld. An entity known as “the Crone”  was responsible for giving her powers and the ability to escape the netherworld, the price for this was that SB had to find an occult book that belonged to her father and return it to the Crone. She follows the trail of the book which ultimately leads her to Metropolis and since she kills anyone who gets in her way she quickly gets the attention of  Superman. Unable to beat the Man of Steel, she retreats to fight another day.

This is a nice plot device that allows this character to return and disappear countless times since her creation for the comics. SB has since become more of a villian for Supergirl as of late and the dynamic between the two  is really something a Superman (family) fan can really get into. The SB has appeared in over 40 issues of DC comics since her creation. The DC animated universe has used her countless times as well, I believe that is because she has a very distinct look and can be brought into a animated series without going into her origin.  Her powers have stayed consistent over the years and Smallville stuck to cannon as well with regard to her powers and abilities. Although we didn’t get to see much other than her Banshee wail and her power to possess people’s bodies.

Her powers allow her Super speed, strength, and a high degree of invulnerability. The Death Wail is her most powerful attribut however, and according to the comics she can use it to kill only when she knows her victims first name. The wail actually removes the life-force from the individual leaving a burned out husk of a corpse.  Her wail also allows her the ability to teleport, although I’m not exactly sure how that works. It’s a comic, lets just believe it and move on.  the animated version of the character has always given her the power of flight as well. In the Justice League Unlimited series SB appeared a number of times most prominently in the episode ” Chaos at Earth’s Core”. This was a fantastic episode that also starred Green Lantern John Stewart, Supergirl, Stargirl, and Metallo.  She was also in the JLU series finale “Alive”.  Most recently she appeared in the DC direct to DVD movie “Superman/Batman: Public Enemies” where she tries to kill Superman to receive the one billion dollar bounty that Lex Luthor has placed on his head. She is stopped by Superman and Batman places a device on her that turns her power against her if she tries the Death Wail. GO Batman! ( sorry, i couldn’t resist)

While we really on got to see her in her full form at the end of the episode, what did you think of this character? would you like to see her again on Smallville or is it best she stays in the Netherworld?

Leave a comment below and let me know what you thought of this character and if you were aware of her before Smallville. If you have read some good stories in the comics involving her please leave a recommendation  for others to possibly check out.

Thanks!

This entry was posted on Monday, April 12th, 2010 at 9:36 am and is filed under News. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.