The Silver Banshee is an enemy of Superman. Siobhan McDougall comes from an old Irish family cursed to be Banshees.
History
Origin
Centuries ago, Siobhan was born in the McDougal Clan, an Irish clan[5] whose first-born children inherits the powers of the Silver Banshee and ascends to leadership through a mystic ritual. When her father died and she was next in line, her uncle and brother opposed her on the grounds of not wanting a woman to lead the clan. While performing the ritual without her uncle's consent, her brother interrupted the ritual, botching it and causing her to be sent to the " Netherverse" for centuries. Eventually, the entity known as the Crone bestowed her the powers of the Silver Banshee so that she could extract her revenge on her brother and uncle while also testing her.[1][5]
First Encounter with Superman
The Banshee first appeared in Metropolis in search of an arcane book. Superman, being very gung-ho in this early part of his career, confronted her right away, believing that her touch is what was deadly and that his invulnerability would save him. It was not her touch, however, but rather her voice that proved her deadly weapon, and she nearly killed him. Superman recruited J'onn J'onzz, who deduced that Banshee's power was tied to visual cuing. Superman allowed everyone to think he had died and had J'onn assume the shape of his "ghost." Convinced that she was fighting Superman's ghost, the Banshee could not harm the Martian and fled.[6]
It was not long before the Banshee returned, still looking for her prize, which was apparently a book taken from Ireland. Superman managed to trick her twice into not killing him, this time by masquerading as the Batman. Then the Banshee's brother Beven showed up, claiming that she had committed some terrible crime against their clan. The Banshee again withdrew in a flash of light.[7]
Batman came to Superman not long after with the book that the Banshee had been searching for. Lois Lane and Jimmy Olsen had gone to Ireland, to Castle Broen, the ancestral home of the Clan McDougal. They were seized by Beven and his uncle, Seamus. Superman, with the book in his arm, flew towards Ireland. The Silver Banshee, her powers greatly augmented, attacked him en route, demanding the book which he did not relent. Seamus revealed that for a thousand generations the oldest sons of the clan McDougal had descended into the chamber beneath the castle and confront the forces there. Siobhan insisted that the old law was only for the oldest child, not the oldest son, and as she was the oldest she insisted on going. She was distracted by Beven during the ritual, seized by some mystic force, and dragged down into an underworld. An ancient spirit in the form of an old woman allowed Siobhan to return as the Silver Banshee. The crone wanted to see if the clan had evolved, but seeing that Siobhan had murdered anyone that had crossed her path to get the book (which was the provision for which she was sent back) the crone condemned her. The Banshee's power was broken and the castle was destroyed.[8]
Hell
Banshee next entered a deal with the demoness Blaze, who offered her great power and a chance for revenge against the Crone if Banshee would kill Superman. The Banshee failed and was again stripped of her power.
Later she turned up trapped in a cage beneath Leesburg adjacent to a chaos stream. Supergirl unknowingly released her, but the Banshee's memory was fragmented. She wandered into Leesburg thinking that she was just Siobhan, not remembering what she had become. Lord Satanus contacted Supergirl and insisted that the Banshee be recaptured. Banshee was immaterial, seeking a body to inhabit. She could not possess Supergirl, as at this time SG had become an earthbound angel. Banshee was confronted by the police and remembered what she had become. Her powers had changed slightly--she had to know a person's name in order for her cry to be lethal. Not knowing that Supergirl had bonded with Linda Danvers, Banshee could not kill her outright. She merged with Mattie Harcourt instead. Mattie was so angered by the murder of her brother during The Final Night by Gerald McFee that the Banshee was driven to seek him out in the asylum he was locked up in. Supergirl managed to reach the two women, causing Banshee to leave Mattie's body and disappear.[9]
Day of Judgement
During the Day of Judgement, Silver Banshee was ordered by Neron to guard Lois Lane, trapped in Hell, while he tried to break Superman. Superman foiled Neron's scheme and battered aside Banshee.[10]
Ending Battle
She next emerged as one of the villains used by Manchester Black in the Ending Battle Saga. Banshee, along with Mongul II and Bizarro #1, were the last warriors to be unleashed against the Man of Steel. Banshee's role in the fight was very small, however, even though she had been taught his Kryptonian name in Kryptonese, her scream did little more than stun Superman. She was said to have been "downed" by the explosion caused by the "detonated" Neutron.[11]
Public Enemies
Silver Banshee attempted to collect the billion dollar bounty President Luthor placed on Superman's head, but failed.
Secret Society of Super-Villains
Silver Banshee later joined the Secret Society headed by Alexander Luthor. She was one of the members who turned on Black Adam when Luthor needed him for his machine. She also took part in the Battle for Metropolis.
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Powers and Abilities
Powers
- Banshee Curse Empowerment: Siobhan's powers come from the magical empowerment of an entity known as the Crone, the curse affording her a variety of special abilities.[5]
- Superhuman Strength: Siobhan possess strength compared to the equivalent of ten men[5], powerful enough to cause pain and distress to Kryptonians such as Superman.
- Superhuman Speed: Siobhan possess superhuman speed to the equivalent of ten men.[5]
- Superhuman Durability: Siobhan is durable enough to be imperious to gunfire.[5]
- Spiritual Possession: Siobhan can possess the body of another person and manifest through them.[12]
- Death Stare: Silver Banshee is said to be able to kill any being by just knowing their name. Specifically, it must be their real name however she has killed certain beings by just knowing their alias. However, her victims must remain in her line of sight during the duration of the stare.
- Flight: Silver Banshee can fly through her own powers. She has chased Superman around Metropolis dozens of times and has even eluded him on a few occasions.
- Fear Projection: Silver Banshee can leave her victims in a catatonic state by exploiting their deepest fears upon physical contact.[12]
- Pyrokinesis: Silver Banshee can create fire.[12]
- Sound Manipulation: Silver Banshee has incredible control over various sounds waves and is able to control as well as produce them through her own prowess. She has been seen killing someone by vibrating the sound of their own heart beat enough to shatter their own bones.
- Death Wail: Silver Banshee's most popular weapon of choice is her incredible powerful and destructive voice. She can scream her wail multiple times or for an extended period which can cause people to fall into a coma, drive them insane, or outright kill them.
- Sound Immunity: Silver Banshee is immune to her own cry and/or other sonic screams from opponents like Black Canary.
- Accelerated Healing: If Silver Banshee takes physical damage she can heal from her wounds quickly; this ability extends to her ghostly costume.
- Teleportation: Silver Banshee can seemingly evaporate and reappear at will. She has traveled small distances in rapid succession as well as international travel without any stress.
Weaknesses
- Death Naming: Silver Banshee cannot use her death stare if she does not know her opponent's name. This ability and weakness is not well defined as on occasion she could not use her wail as a death blow without the name of her victim. On another occasion, she could use her wail but was able to kill a super-hero by just knowing their alias and not their true name.
Notes
- Siobhan's name is pronounced as "Shee-Vaughn".[1]
Trivia
- Tullus the Damned described himself as being Siobhan's grandfather several generations removed.[2]
- Silver Banshee once had Superman mind-controlled to seduce him and proceeded to subdue him.[13]
Related
- 58 Appearances of Siobhan McDougal (New Earth)
- 13 Images featuring Siobhan McDougal (New Earth)
- 2 Quotations by or about Siobhan McDougal (New Earth)
- Character Gallery: Siobhan McDougal (New Earth)
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Superman (Volume 2) #23
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Legends of the World's Finest #1
- ↑ Legends of the World's Finest #3
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Superman Villains Secret Files and Origins #1
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 5.5 DC Comics Encyclopedia: Updated and Expanded
- ↑ Action Comics #595
- ↑ Superman (Volume 2) #17
- ↑ Superman (Volume 2) #23
- ↑ Supergirl (Volume 4) #11-12
- ↑ Superman: The Man of Tomorrow #15
- ↑ Superman: The Man of Steel #131
- ↑ 12.0 12.1 12.2 Action Comics #820
- ↑ Legends of the World's Finest #2
  This character has been primarily an enemy of Superman in any of his various incarnations, or members of the Superman Family. This template will categorize articles that include it into the "Superman Villains category." |
 Secret Society of Super-Villains member |
 Suicide Squad member |