Lar Gand

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Character
Name: Lar Gand, Mon-El
Occupation: Superhero
Relationships: Tasmia Mallor (girlfriend), Kara Danvers (girlfriend), Imra Ardeen (wife)
Fandom: DC Comics, Legion of Super-Heroes, Supergirl
Other:
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Lar Gand, also known as Mon-El, Valor and M'Onel, is a DC Comics character.

Canon

Comics

Mon-El first appeared in Superboy #89 (1961).

Mon-El is a Daxamite superhero inspired by Superboy. His powers are very similar, although he is vulnerable to lead instead of Kryptonite. Superboy put him in the Phantom Zone when Mon-El was fatally poisoned, and Mon-El stayed there until Brainiac 5 discovered a cure in the 30th Century. This lead Mon-El to become a member of the Legion of Super-Heroes.

--Mon-El at DC Comics Database

Supergirl (TV Series)

Mon-El is the former prince of Daxam, who crash-landed on Earth after escaping the ravaging of his home planet. Mon-El is also the son of the late king Lar Gand and the late queen Rhea, the boyfriend of Kara Danvers and the husband of Imra Ardeen. While adjusting to living on Earth, he begins to use the identity of Mike Matthews.[1]

Fandom

Supergirl (TV Series)

Fan Responses

Supergirl fandom is often divided on Mon-El, though he is a frequent target of character bashing.[2] Opinion on Mon-El first split when it became apparent that Kara's season 1 love interest, James Olsen, was dropped so that Kara and Mon-El could have relationship instead. While Kara/James was not the most popluar ship, some fans were still uncomfortable with an interracial romance being ended with little onscreen explanation in favor of a white man who was later revealed to be a former slave owner.[3][4] The split got worse once Kara/Mon-El did get together; some liked how much development Mon-El had gone through thanks to Kara's influence and how much more progressive he became. Others felt that his ongoing lack of respect for her and apparent disregard of her wants was a sign that he hasn't changed at all. Some also felt his presence on the show took away screentime from other characters such as Alex, James and J'onn.[5]

In Season 3, the episode "In Search of Lost Time" had Kara give Mon-El a speech that called him out on everything fans had complained about: Overtaking Kara's own story, how quickly his romance with Kara moved and acting as if he's Kara mentor. Several reviews praised the show for finally facing up to all the issues of the character,[6] though some fans remained conceived.

Fan Campaign

After the season 3 finale when it was announced that Mon-El would not be returning to the show a fan campaign began under the #justiceformonel hashtag. An online petition was created wanting his return as fans left like his character did not receive proper closure.[7]

Shipping

Fanworks

Fanart

Archives & Fannish Links

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Resources

References