Supergirl‘s ending pulls directly from a twist hidden in the Woman of Tomorrow comic’s final pages. The film turns a fictional detail from the source material into its most pivotal moment.
How Supergirl changes Woman of Tomorrow’s ending
Supergirl changes the ending of the comic Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow in one major way. In the film, Kara picks up Ruthye’s sword and kills Krem herself after convincing Ruthye to walk away. This differs significantly from Tom King and Bilquis Evely’s original story.
In the comic, neither Kara nor Ruthye kills Krem at the end of their journey. Both characters decide that enough killing has already occurred throughout their quest. Ruthye also tells Kara, “Let us away to find punishment for this man,” choosing justice over vengeance.
The comic then jumps decades into the future for its true conclusion. Kara reunites with an elderly Ruthye, who has written a bestselling book about their adventure. Kara reveals that Krem has spent three hundred years trapped in the Phantom Zone during that time.
Krem emerges as a changed man after centuries of reflection and begs Ruthye for forgiveness. However, Ruthye responds by striking him across the face with her cane and walking away. The final page then reveals that Ruthye’s book falsely claimed Supergirl killed Krem with her sword.
The film essentially adopts the fictional ending from Ruthye’s book as its actual ending. Kara kills Krem partly because he poisoned her dog Krypto, her last connection to Krypton. She also believes she can carry the emotional weight of his death better than Ruthye can.
Both versions attempt to reach a similar thematic destination through different paths. The comic focuses on making peace with trauma while protecting Ruthye from future retaliation by Krem’s allies. The film makes Kara’s act literal, giving it a Hollywood conclusion that sets up her next DCU appearance in 2027’s Man of Tomorrow. Milly Alcock stars as Kara Zor-El in the film, which serves as the second film installment in James Gunn’s new DCU franchise.
The DC movie is in cinemas now.
Originally reported by Anubhav Chaudhry on SuperHeroHype.
