Argo City
Encyclopedia
Argo City is a fictional Kryptonian
city in the DC Comics
Universe, and the birthplace of Supergirl
. Argo City was first seen in Action Comics #252 (May 1959).
and Kryptonopolis
.) Warned of the impending destruction of the planet by his brother Jor-El
, scientist Zor-El convinces the Argo City leaders to construct a dome force around the city's perimeter. The dome force allows the city to survive the destruction of Krypton, and provides oxygen and light for the inhabitants (in earlier stories, the air bubble is kept in place by unspecified means). The same chain reaction that turned the rest of Krypton into Kryptonite
begins to affect the surface of Argo City; the surviving Kryptonians manage to line the surface with lead, protecting everyone from the deadly rays. Zor-El and his wife eventually have a daughter named Kara, the future Supergirl.
About thirty years after the destruction of Krypton a large meteor shower
pierces the lead lining of Argo City, dooming its inhabitants to a slow death. In desperation, Zor-El sends Kara in a spaceship to Earth, where her cousin Kal-El (Superman
) helps her become Supergirl
. Zor-El and Alura manage to survive in the "Survival Zone", a similar parallel dimension to the Phantom Zone
, but the other inhabitants of Argo City perish.
. In issue #6 of Supergirl, Supergirl and Power Girl
travel to the bottled city of Kandor
. There Supergirl claims that the city of Argo still exists, and that she is searching for it as it is a piece of her home.
In Action Comics #869 it is revealed that before Krypton was destroyed, Zor-el and Alura used Brainiac
's shield technology to create a dome over their home of Argo City protecting it for a short time after the explosion that destroyed Krypton. Soon afterwards, sensing his technology in use, Brainiac found the floating city in space and integrated it into Kandor
and any "unnecessary" people in the city were killed. Superman finds the city on Brainiac's ship.
During the integration, Zor-El and Alura sent Kara Zor-El (Supergirl) to earth to find her baby cousin Kal-El (Superman).
crossover miniseries Superman/Aliens. In the story, a probe that appears to be Kryptonian crashes on Earth, and leads Superman to an Argo City that has been overrun by xenomorphs
from the Alien film series
. Superman befriends a survivor named Kara, and together they destroy Argo City and the aliens. Superman, who is impregnated by a facehugger, escapes in a pod and regurgitates the alien upon returning to Earth and its yellow sun. Thought dead, Kara managed to escape in a separate pod. In this story, Argo City is revealed to not be part of Krypton, and received its Kryptonian influence from a visiting Kryptonian cleric years earlier.
In the 1984 film Supergirl
, Argo City is shown as having survived in a pocket of extradimensional space
, with life-support powered by a device called the Omegahedron, the loss of which forms the basis of the film's plot.
In the television series Superman: The Animated Series
, Argo is said to be the name of Krypton's "sister planet" knocked out of orbit by Krypton's destruction, with a cryonically frozen Supergirl as the lone survivor of a small colony of Kryptonian settlers.
Argo is referenced in television series Smallville
. In the episode "Conspiracy" Faora mentions that Zod saved her and his army in "Argo Valley". The Siege of Argo is mentioned in another episode.
Argo City appears in Kevin J. Anderson
's novel The Last Days of Krypton. It located on a peninsula
connected to the main continent by a thin isthmus
and five ornate, golden bridges. It is an extremely beautiful, practically utopian city beloved by its inhabitants and seen as "a jewel of Krypton". In the closing scenes of the novel, as Krypton is exploding, Argo City is flung into space intact, although its inhabitants do not appear to realize what is happening (Zor-El believes he is about to die).
Krypton (comics)
Krypton is a fictional planet in the DC Comics universe, and the native world of the super-heroes Superman and, in some tellings, Supergirl and Krypto the Superdog. Krypton has been portrayed consistently as having been destroyed just after Superman's flight from the planet, with exact details of...
city in the DC Comics
DC Comics
DC Comics, Inc. is one of the largest and most successful companies operating in the market for American comic books and related media. It is the publishing unit of DC Entertainment a company of Warner Bros. Entertainment, which itself is owned by Time Warner...
Universe, and the birthplace of Supergirl
Supergirl
Supergirl is a female counterpart to the DC Comics Superman. As his cousin, she shares his super powers and vulnerability to Kryptonite. She was created by writer Otto Binder and designed by artist Al Plastino in 1959. She first appeared in the Action Comics comic book series and later branched out...
. Argo City was first seen in Action Comics #252 (May 1959).
Earth-One
Argo City was one of the largest cities on the planet Krypton (the others being KandorKandor
Kandor is the name of the former capital city of the fictional planet Krypton in the DC Universe. It is best known for being stolen and miniaturized by the supervillain Brainiac...
and Kryptonopolis
Kryptonopolis
Kryptonopolis is a fictional city in the DC Comics universe. Located on the planet Krypton, it is the birthplace of Superman.-Fictional history:...
.) Warned of the impending destruction of the planet by his brother Jor-El
Jor-El
Jor-El is a fictional character, an extraterrestrial in the . He was created by the writer Jerry Siegel and the artist Joe Shuster, and he first appeared in a newspaper comic strip in 1939 as Superman's biological father....
, scientist Zor-El convinces the Argo City leaders to construct a dome force around the city's perimeter. The dome force allows the city to survive the destruction of Krypton, and provides oxygen and light for the inhabitants (in earlier stories, the air bubble is kept in place by unspecified means). The same chain reaction that turned the rest of Krypton into Kryptonite
Kryptonite
Kryptonite is a fictional material from the Superman mythos —the ore form of a radioactive element from Superman's home planet of Krypton. It is famous for being the ultimate physical weakness of Superman, and the word kryptonite has since become synonymous with an Achilles' heel —the one weakness...
begins to affect the surface of Argo City; the surviving Kryptonians manage to line the surface with lead, protecting everyone from the deadly rays. Zor-El and his wife eventually have a daughter named Kara, the future Supergirl.
About thirty years after the destruction of Krypton a large meteor shower
Meteor shower
A meteor shower is a celestial event in which a number of meteors are observed to radiate from one point in the night sky. These meteors are caused by streams of cosmic debris called meteoroids entering Earth's atmosphere at extremely high speeds on parallel trajectories. Most meteors are smaller...
pierces the lead lining of Argo City, dooming its inhabitants to a slow death. In desperation, Zor-El sends Kara in a spaceship to Earth, where her cousin Kal-El (Superman
Superman
Superman is a fictional comic book superhero appearing in publications by DC Comics, widely considered to be an American cultural icon. Created by American writer Jerry Siegel and Canadian-born American artist Joe Shuster in 1932 while both were living in Cleveland, Ohio, and sold to Detective...
) helps her become Supergirl
Supergirl
Supergirl is a female counterpart to the DC Comics Superman. As his cousin, she shares his super powers and vulnerability to Kryptonite. She was created by writer Otto Binder and designed by artist Al Plastino in 1959. She first appeared in the Action Comics comic book series and later branched out...
. Zor-El and Alura manage to survive in the "Survival Zone", a similar parallel dimension to the Phantom Zone
Phantom Zone
The Phantom Zone is a fictional prison dimension featured in the Superman comic books and related media published by DC Comics. It first appeared in Adventure Comics #283 , and was created by Robert Bernstein and George Papp...
, but the other inhabitants of Argo City perish.
Post-Crisis
Recently Argo is shown to still be in-continuityContinuity (fiction)
In fiction, continuity is consistency of the characteristics of persons, plot, objects, places and events seen by the reader or viewer over some period of time...
. In issue #6 of Supergirl, Supergirl and Power Girl
Power Girl
Power Girl is a DC Comics superheroine, making her first appearance in All Star Comics #58 ....
travel to the bottled city of Kandor
Kandor
Kandor is the name of the former capital city of the fictional planet Krypton in the DC Universe. It is best known for being stolen and miniaturized by the supervillain Brainiac...
. There Supergirl claims that the city of Argo still exists, and that she is searching for it as it is a piece of her home.
In Action Comics #869 it is revealed that before Krypton was destroyed, Zor-el and Alura used Brainiac
Brainiac (comics)
Brainiac is a fictional character that appears in comic books published by DC Comics. The character first appeared in Action Comics #242 , and was created by Otto Binder and Al Plastino....
's shield technology to create a dome over their home of Argo City protecting it for a short time after the explosion that destroyed Krypton. Soon afterwards, sensing his technology in use, Brainiac found the floating city in space and integrated it into Kandor
Kandor
Kandor is the name of the former capital city of the fictional planet Krypton in the DC Universe. It is best known for being stolen and miniaturized by the supervillain Brainiac...
and any "unnecessary" people in the city were killed. Superman finds the city on Brainiac's ship.
During the integration, Zor-El and Alura sent Kara Zor-El (Supergirl) to earth to find her baby cousin Kal-El (Superman).
Other versions
Argo City is mentioned in the DC/ Dark Horse ComicsDark Horse Comics
Dark Horse Comics is the largest independent American comic book and manga publisher.Dark Horse Comics was founded in 1986 by Mike Richardson in Milwaukie, Oregon, with the concept of establishing an ideal atmosphere for creative professionals. Richardson started out by opening his first comic book...
crossover miniseries Superman/Aliens. In the story, a probe that appears to be Kryptonian crashes on Earth, and leads Superman to an Argo City that has been overrun by xenomorphs
Xenomorph (Alien)
The Alien is a fictional endoparasitoid extraterrestrial species that is the primary antagonist of the Alien film series. The species made its debut in the 1979 film Alien, and reappeared in its sequels Aliens , Alien 3 , and Alien Resurrection , two crossovers Alien vs...
from the Alien film series
Alien (film series)
The Alien film series is a science fiction horror film franchise, focusing on Lieutenant Ellen Ripley and her battle with an extraterrestrial lifeform, commonly referred to as "the Alien"...
. Superman befriends a survivor named Kara, and together they destroy Argo City and the aliens. Superman, who is impregnated by a facehugger, escapes in a pod and regurgitates the alien upon returning to Earth and its yellow sun. Thought dead, Kara managed to escape in a separate pod. In this story, Argo City is revealed to not be part of Krypton, and received its Kryptonian influence from a visiting Kryptonian cleric years earlier.
In other media
Supergirl (film)
Supergirl is a 1984 superhero film directed by Jeannot Szwarc, and stars Helen Slater in her first motion picture role in the title role of the DC Comics superheroine Supergirl. Faye Dunaway played the primary villain, Selena. The film was a spin-off from the Salkinds' Superman film series which...
, Argo City is shown as having survived in a pocket of extradimensional space
Pocket universe
-In science:A pocket universe is a concept in inflationary theory, proposed by Alan Guth. It defines a realm like the one that contains the observable universe as only one of many inflationary zones.-In fiction:...
, with life-support powered by a device called the Omegahedron, the loss of which forms the basis of the film's plot.
In the television series Superman: The Animated Series
Superman: The Animated Series
Superman: The Animated Series is an American animated television series starring DC Comics' flagship character, Superman. The series was produced by Warner Bros. Animation and aired on The WB from September 6, 1996 to February 12, 2000. Warner Bros...
, Argo is said to be the name of Krypton's "sister planet" knocked out of orbit by Krypton's destruction, with a cryonically frozen Supergirl as the lone survivor of a small colony of Kryptonian settlers.
Argo is referenced in television series Smallville
Smallville
Smallville is the hometown of Superman in comic books published by DC Comics. While growing up in Smallville, the young Clark Kent attended Smallville High with best friends Lana Lang, Chloe Sullivan and Pete Ross...
. In the episode "Conspiracy" Faora mentions that Zod saved her and his army in "Argo Valley". The Siege of Argo is mentioned in another episode.
Argo City appears in Kevin J. Anderson
Kevin J. Anderson
Kevin J. Anderson is an American science fiction author with over forty bestsellers. He has written spin-off novels for Star Wars, StarCraft, Titan A.E., and The X-Files, and with Brian Herbert is the co-author of the Dune prequels...
's novel The Last Days of Krypton. It located on a peninsula
Peninsula
A peninsula is a piece of land that is bordered by water on three sides but connected to mainland. In many Germanic and Celtic languages and also in Baltic, Slavic and Hungarian, peninsulas are called "half-islands"....
connected to the main continent by a thin isthmus
Isthmus
An isthmus is a narrow strip of land connecting two larger land areas usually with waterforms on either side.Canals are often built through isthmuses where they may be particularly advantageous to create a shortcut for marine transportation...
and five ornate, golden bridges. It is an extremely beautiful, practically utopian city beloved by its inhabitants and seen as "a jewel of Krypton". In the closing scenes of the novel, as Krypton is exploding, Argo City is flung into space intact, although its inhabitants do not appear to realize what is happening (Zor-El believes he is about to die).