Opportunity Missed: Catar-Ol Did Not Make an Appearance in Supergirl

Art by Bryan Hitch (Hawkman) and Stanley Lau (Supergirl)

   Back in February of 2019, the Hawkman series by Robert Venditti revealed a former life of Hawkman, and it wasn't just any random character. This character was Catar-Ol, a Kryptonian who was living on Krypton at the time of its destruction. He appeared in a few comics during the next two or three years, but he has not been seen since 2022. Still, he was given a pretty important background. 

Hawkman Vol. V No. 1 (August 2018)

He actually made his first appearance a few months earlier in the very first issue of the series. Fans speculated who this character was, and Venditti gave us the story a few months later.

Hawkman Vol. V No. 8 (March 2019)

   Carter slipped back in time and met up with his former self on Krypton. The planet was already erupting, and he was there with Catar-Ol at the end. He was hoping that Catar-Ol had a weapon to defeat the enemy called the Deathbringers, but Krypton was destroyed before he could finish it. However, he reminded Carter that he was the living document of the universe and that he could use that to defeat the enemy. It was also revealed that he was a history teacher and the curator of the Krypton museum. One of his pupils was Kara Zor-El, aka Supergirl. 

   Apparently Catar and Kara were working on a history project together, and Catar called her "a bright child with a penchant for history and anthropology." We also saw a couple of other series about Catar-Ol considering and accepting her as his student, which apparently was a coveted position reserved only for the best students. 

World of Krypton No. 3 (April 2022)

Supergirl Annual No. 2 (January 2020)

   After Catar-Ol died in the Krypton explosion, he was brought back to fight with all the other former lives of Hawkman in Hawkman Vol. V No. 10 (May 2019).

Hawkman Vol. V No. 10 (May 2019)

Hawkman Vol. V No. 12 (July 2019)

   After they defeated the Deathbringers, Catar-Ol and all the other past Hawkmen give Carter their memories and disappeared into the past. After this final encounter with Catar-Ol, Hawkman has yet to meet up with Supergirl and discuss the past that they share. It would make for a very interesting story, but no writer has approached it yet. It would really be interesting if James Gunn brought that angle into a future Superman or Justice League movie. Since it is not that well known, it would really be a huge surprise for the moviegoers. 

   Supergirl had the setup for Catar-Ol, but I guess it was just too minor to bring it into a movie where they are trying desperately to keep it from becoming a four-hour marathon. Maybe Supergirl could make an appearance in a future Hawkman/Hawkgirl movie! Now that would be fun.