Superman #16
Superman (Vol. 2) #16 holds a firm place in post-Crisis DC history as the issue that first plants the seed of the Matrix Supergirl — the figure DC created to fill the void left when Kara Zor-El was killed in Crisis on Infinite Earths and editorial policy forbade a Kryptonian Supergirl. The final page image of a mysterious blonde woman frozen in Arctic ice, recovered by the Navy, is one of the great slow-burn teases of John Byrne's Superman run, setting in motion a story that would not fully pay off until the three-part 'Supergirl Saga' months later. The issue simultaneously delivers the first post-Crisis reintroduction of two classic Silver Age antagonists — the Prankster and Morgan Edge — both reimagined for a grittier, more grounded Metropolis, and quietly establishes DeSaad's presence as a reminder that the Apokolips subplot threading through Byrne's run was far from over.
Sell my copy
Have this issue — or a whole collection? Get a fair offer from us, skip the marketplace fees and the hassle.
We Buy Collections ▸History
The issue was written, pencilled, and covered by John Byrne, with inks by Karl Kesel, colors by Tom Ziuko, and letters by John Costanza — the core creative team that had helmed Superman Vol. 2 since its 1986 launch in the wake of Crisis on Infinite Earths. Byrne was in the late phase of his celebrated Superman tenure by late 1987, and this issue — released on the stands December 15, 1987, despite its April 1988 cover date — reflects his deliberate strategy of reintroducing pre-Crisis villains with contemporary twists while threading longer-arc mystery plots (here, both the Morgan Edge/DeSaad conspiracy and the Antarctic discovery) through otherwise self-contained action stories. The Matrix cameo was carefully seeded here as a preview, with the full 'Supergirl Saga' payoff coming in Superman #21–22 and Adventures of Superman #444, which TV Tropes and multiple Supergirl-history sources confirm served as Byrne's exit arc from the title.
Trivia · 8 facts
- First post-Crisis appearance of Matrix/Supergirl: on the issue's final page, researchers discover a blonde woman frozen in an Arctic ice block — the first in-continuity glimpse of the character who would become the post-Crisis Supergirl, a shape-shifting protoplasmic being from a 'Pocket Universe' created by John Byrne.
- First post-Crisis appearance of the Prankster (Oswald Loomis): reimagined by Byrne as a disgruntled children's TV show host whose programme is cancelled by Morgan Edge's Galaxy Broadcasting network, who then terrorizes Metropolis with elaborate practical jokes before deliberately getting himself arrested for publicity.
- First post-Crisis appearance of Morgan Edge: introduced here as a television network president with a secret — a scene reveals he is conspiring with DeSaad (disguised as Darkseid), folding him into the ongoing New Gods/Apokolips subplot running through Byrne's Superman.
- DeSaad appears in disguise as Darkseid, deepening the Apokolips-ties-to-Metropolis-media conspiracy that Byrne had been developing across his run.
- The issue's sole story is titled 'He Only Laughs When I Hurt!' (also styled as 'The Perfidious Perils of the Pusillanimous Prankster!' in some reprint contexts), with the internal story title confirmed by the Grand Comics Database.
- Cover date: April 1988; on-sale date: December 15, 1987. Published by DC Comics as Superman Vol. 2 #16, written and drawn by John Byrne, inked by Karl Kesel, colored by Tom Ziuko, lettered by John Costanza.
- The Matrix cameo here was a deliberate preview: the full origin and first speaking appearance of the character — as a pocket-universe artificial life-form constructed by an alternate Lex Luthor — was not revealed until the 'Supergirl Saga' (Superman #21–22; Adventures of Superman #444, 1988).
- Reprinted in Superman: The Man of Steel Vol. 4 (DC, 2022 edition), as well as in two Scandinavian editions (Stålmannen #8/1989 and Supermann #8/1989) and Superman: The Man of Steel #8 (DC, 2014).
Cast · 19 characters
Full credits
Full plot ⚠ may contain spoilers
▸ Reveal full plot — may contain spoilers
The Prankster strikes.
Plot details indexed by the Grand Comics Database (CC BY-SA).