Although both mainstream continuities feature different backgrounds, both includes her as the daughter of Clay Irons (the brother of John and criminal known as Crash) and becomes close to her uncle, often working as his assistant for Steelworks, a future technology company based in Metropolis.

[5][6] One of her earlier adventures as Steel includes a team-up with Cir-El and Traci 13 to battle Japanese vigilante Byakko and protect Superman from her mystical-based abilities when he is injured.

[11] In the years following the New 52 which retroactively rebooted the mainstream universe and during the DC Rebirth initiative, Natasha's background and history undergoes significant changes with some similarities to the past continuity.

In this continuity, Natasha is also cast as the eldest daughter of Clay Irons and a scientific genius who has a close relationship with her uncle John and his girlfriend, Lana Lang, whom she views as an aunt.

[12] At some point, she also attended college at a young age, dated sorceress Traci 13, and began assisting John and Lana in their superhero personas as Steel and Superwoman.

[12] She later joins the Titans and meets her great-great-uncle, John Henry Jr.[14][15] In most depictions, Natasha possess no inherent superhuman abilities and posses a genius-level intellect in both the fields of engineering and computer science, using her expertise in order to fashion super-powered, armored suits.

[3][2] Prior to the New 52, Natasha gained metahuman abilities due to her participation of the Everyman Project, granting super-powers to non-metahumans with an artificial metagene or unlocking their latent potential.

[1] These abilities later faded following Luthor's deactivating of the artificial metagene but the treatment's side-effects granted her new powers in which allows her to shift into a gaseous form at will,[1] manifesting from a psychological fear of the prospect of her uncle abandoning her.