Alura (DC Comics)

For the Buck Rogers character, see Buck Rogers.

Alura In-Ze is a character appearing in media published by DC Comics, usually those involving Superman. Alura is the Kryptonian daughter of In-Zee, wife of Zor-El, mother of Supergirl/Power Girl, and paternal aunt (by marriage) of Superman. Created by writer Otto Binder and artist Al Plastino, the character first appeared in Action Comics #252 (May 1959).^[1]

Alura
Variant cover art of Supergirl #47 (January 2010) Art by Joshua Middleton.
Publication information
Publisher	DC Comics
First appearance	Action Comics #252 (May 1959)
Created by	Otto Binder Al Plastino
In-story information
Full name	Alura In-Ze
Species	Kryptonian
Place of origin	Krypton
Team affiliations	Zor-El Supergirl
Supporting character of	Supergirl Superman
Notable aliases	Alura In-Zee
Abilities	(Under a yellow sun): Superhuman strength, stamina, endurance, speed, agility, reflexes, intelligence, longevity, and hearing Solar radiation absorption and projection Enhanced vision EM spectrum vision Microscopic vision X-ray vision Telescopic vision Infra-red vision Invulnerability Ice and wind breath Flight Heat vision Vocal mimicry

The character has appeared in media adaptations of the Superman and Supergirl comics, including live-action films, television programs and video games. Alura was portrayed by Mia Farrow in the 1984 film Supergirl. Laura Benanti portrayed the character in the first two seasons of the Arrowverse series Supergirl, with Erica Durance taking over the role in season three.

Publication history

The character Alura appeared unnamed in Action Comics #252 (May 1959) as part of the origin of Supergirl (Kara Zor-El).^[2] She was created by Otto Binder and Al Plastino. Her role was similar to that of what Lara was to Superman. She and her husband, Zor-El, send her to a spaceship from Argo City to Earth to survive.^[3]

Fictional character biography

Pre-Crisis

Earth-One

Alura is the mother of Kara Zor-El and wife of Zor-El, originating from Argo City. When Krypton explodes, Argo is preserved with a protective dome. When a meteor destroys the city's protective lead sheets, exposing its residents to deadly kryptonite, Alura and Zor-El survive by entering the Survival Zone and send Kara away in a rocket. Later, Supergirl rescues her parents, and they move to the planet New Krypton/Rokyn.

Earth-Two

In the alternate universe of Earth-Two, Allura In-Z and Zor-L do not survive Krypton's destruction.

Post-Crisis

In post-Crisis continuity, Alura is a resident of Kandor. Superman later restores Kandor to full size, after which its inhabitants move to a planet dubbed New Krypton.^[4] However, Alura and most of the Kryptonians are killed when Reactron destroys New Krypton.^[5]

Powers and abilities

Alura In-Ze has all the powers and weaknesses of a Kryptonian from exposure to Earth's yellow sunlight.

In other media

Television

• Alura appears in the Super Friends episode "The Krypton Syndrome".
• Alura appears in Supergirl, portrayed initially by Laura Benanti in the first and second seasons,^[6][7] and later by Erica Durance in the third and fifth seasons.^[8][9][10] This version is a member of the Kryptonian Science Council and has a twin sister named Astra In-Ze (also portrayed by Benanti). Towards the end of the third season, Supergirl discovers that Alura is still alive and is part of Argo City's High Council, with Zor-El having built a fail-safe around Argo City to protect it from Krypton's destruction.
• Alura appears in the DC Super Hero Girls episode "#DCSuperHeroBoys", voiced by Kari Wahlgren.^[11] This version is a member of the council of Krypton and imprisoned General Zod, Ursa and Non in the Phantom Zone.

Film

• Alura appears in Supergirl, portrayed by Mia Farrow.
• Alura makes a non-speaking cameo appearance in a flashback in Superman/Batman: Apocalypse.
• Alura appears in Superman: Unbound, voiced by Sirena Irwin.^[11]
• Alura appears in DC Super Hero Girls: Hero of the Year, voiced by April Stewart.^[11]
• Alura appears in Legion of Super-Heroes, voiced by Jennifer Hale.^[12][11]
• Alura appears in Justice League: Crisis on Infinite Earths, voiced again by Jennifer Hale.^[13][11]
• Alura is set to appear in Supergirl, portrayed by Emily Beecham.

Video games

• Alura appears in Injustice 2, voiced by Grey DeLisle.