Over the past few years, Dreamer has become one of the most interesting—and important—characters in the DC Universe.
As we’ve made our way through Pride Month, DC.com has been taking a look at DC’s LGBTQIA+ heroes and creators. Nia Nal is a very rare case of both. She’s a trans superhero who has primarily been written by Nicole Maines, a trans writer. Even more, it was Maines who played the character when Dreamer was introduced on The CW’s Supergirl back in 2018.
Since making the leap to the DCU in 2022’s Superman: The Son of Kal-El #13, Nia has had a fascinating and unexpected character arc. We’ve seen her pushed to the absolute limit and bring one of the most powerful beings in the DCU to their knees.
If you haven’t been following Dreamer’s story, or you need a refresher, here’s a brief recap of what has gone down. Amanda Waller sought to exploit Dreamer’s precognitive powers to take down the superhero community. To get Nia’s reluctant cooperation, Waller threatened to publicly reveal the existence of Parthas, a safe haven on Earth where extraterrestrials and minorities can live openly without fear of persecution.
When Dreamer tried to rebel, Waller exposed Parthas, endangering the lives of the entire town. With that card now played, Waller then placed bombs inside Nia’s family to once again establish leverage over her. However, Dreamer grew tired of being controlled and having her powers used to hurt her friends. Eventually, she helped the heroes of the DCU take down Waller and used her abilities to derive Amanda Waller of her greatest weapon—knowledge.
Of course, we can’t talk about Dreamer without talking about Nicole Maines. This isn’t the first time an actor has written a DC character they’ve played on television or film, but it’s certainly the most consequential.
Not only has Maines written some impactful limited series, such as 2024’s Suicide Squad: Dream Team and this year’s still ongoing Secret Six, but she was one of the architects behind the 2024 summer blockbuster Absolute Power.
Acting and comic book writing may both be creative fields, but they’re very different ones. You could forgive someone for being skeptical that a talent as young as Maines could script a comic just as well as she could act out a scene, but if you’ve read any of her books, you know Maines is the real deal. She gets the material. She understands the DC Universe.
For example, it would be easy for Maines to just write Nia as the character she was on Supergirl. The TV version of Dreamer was gentle, enthusiastic, bubbly and full of hope. Yes, she had her moments where she would cut loose and get angry, but for the most part, she was a sweet superhero who served as the quintessential little sister to Supergirl.
When Dreamer came to the comics, Maines decided to do more with her. She challenged the character mentally, doing everything to break her. Throughout Suicide Squad: Dream Team, we see Waller turn Dreamer into a weapon against her will. She’s forced to go on a mission to overthrow Gamorra Island, which results in the death of her friend Jay Nakamura’s mother.
This all comes to a head in Absolute Power #4. After Waller is imprisoned, Dreamer enters her mind and makes her forget all the intel she’s gathered on the superhero community.
“You erased my mind!” Waller shouts.
“Me?” Dreamer replies. “Oh, no, no, no. That would be unethical. You always complained about how squeaky-clean we do-gooders are. Superman and his friends would never approve…if they knew.”
This is Dreamer bringing Amanda Waller, one of the most powerful beings in the DC Universe, to her knees. This is Dreamer breaking the boundaries of who she thought she was and crossing into some deliciously grey territory for a superhero. This is also something that the Arrowverse version of Dreamer would never do. The character has grown beyond her television counterpart and evolved into something new.
To be clear, the scene was written by Mark Waid, but Maines was involved in the planning of the event and that moment with Waller is the culmination of everything Maines did prior with the character in Suicide Squad: Dream Team and Absolute Power: Ground Zero.
Maines’ journey with Dreamer isn’t over yet. Nia’s character arc is continuing with Secret Six, which picks up where Absolute Power left off. When Amanda Waller is kidnapped, Dreamer joins a ragtag group of heroes and villains to find her before her captors can recover her memories.
However, Secret Six #2 ends with Nia telling Jay that she plans to kill Waller. There’s no doubt that her recent experiences have hardened her, but the question is…could she actually go through with it? Maines has taken the character to some interesting places, and it’s a testament to the effectiveness of her writing that we don’t actually know. It could go either way.
Dreamer’s character arc has been exciting and unexpected and so has Maines’ career as a comic book writer. Both their journeys are far from over and I can’t wait to see where they go next.
Keep up with Secret Six, written by Nicole Maines and featuring Dreamer, on DC UNIVERSE INFINITE.
Joshua Lapin-Bertone writes about TV, movies and comics for DC.com, is a regular contributor to the Couch Club and writes our monthly Batman column, "Gotham Gazette." Follow him on Bluesky at @joshualapinbertone and on X at @TBUJosh.
NOTE: The views and opinions expressed in this feature are solely those of Joshua Lapin-Bertone and do not necessarily reflect those of DC or Warner Bros. Discovery, nor should they be read as confirmation or denial of future DC plans.
