Smallville and The Tale of Two Supergirls

Helen Slater, who starred in 1984 movie “Supergirl,” as Superman’s sexy cousin and female counterpart here on Earth, Kara Zor-El, will be guest-starring on “Smallville” this season as the show’s official Supergirl’s aunt. The report on TVGuide.com specificies that this means she will be playing Lara, none other than Clark’s (aka Kal-El’s) mother.

With Slater stepping in as Lara and Laura Vandervoort coming to town as Kara, “Smallville” is hosting the perfect complements for the next season. The casting of the new Supergirl certainly looks right from promos, and the casting of Slater as the maternal figure passing the torch to the new Supergirl is wonderful use of the actors that Superman fans know and love. This is evident also in the fact that Dean Cain will also be making an appearance in this seventh season of “Smallville.” (Rumors and speculation abound that the former Superman of “Lois & Clark” is going to appear with the ironic twist of being love interest for Erica Durance’s perfect-pitch Lois; but on an official note, Lois’s ex, Justin Hartley’s exceptional and very well received Oliver Queen will be back mid-season.)

The context in which Slater will appear isn’t quite clear yet, but her Lara could very well be a spirit/remnant acting as a guide to Kara the way Terence Stamp’s Jor-El has been for Clark. What is known is that her appearance will come in the sixth episode of the new season (Dean Cain is scheduled to appear in the fourth new episode as Dr. Curtis Knox), and it is not yet known if she will appear in more episodes. Slater joins “Superman” movie franchise veterans Margot Kidder and the late and beloved Christopher Reeve as a highly appropriate guest star on the CW series.