Review: Supergirl #12

Supergirl #12 came out this last week and is probably my favorite issue of this run to date. This is a fast moving issue with intrigue, action, and some teenage angst. There is punchy dialogue. There is a some mystery. There is just incredible art by Robson Rocha and Daniel Henriques. And there is a Stanley 'Artgerm' Lau variant cover. If this title started out like this, we might still be selling 40K a month.

It's not that I disliked the first year of stories. But the Cyborg Superman arc was something of a bummer to start out on. And Brian Ching's somewhat loose pencils were definitely a style I needed to become accustomed to.

Now with the opening arc behind us, we are moving out of 'origin' and into adventures.

Steve Orlando is crackling here. This is the Cat Grant I want to read. These are the villains I want to see fighting Kara. And this is the caring Supergirl still reaching out to those who have hurt her as she moves forward. Plus, there is a lot of Legion working its way into this arc. Maybe Supergirl will join that team when we eventually meet them in the Rebirth DCU.

And I just have to say one more time in this introduction how much the art just sings on the page. This is detailed, energetic work which just sings. You see every clothes wrinkle, every hair strand, every crackle of energy. I hope everyone out there in comic land notices this book and trumpets it.

On to the story.

The issue picks up right where last issue left off with Supergirl being shot off of a CatCo balcony by Cat Grant herself. Now last issue (and even the standard cover of this issue) seemed to hint that this was a Kryptonite gun. But here, it is clearly a purple energy weapon. Should I forgive such a feint?

But this is the first panel in the book and just marvel at that art. From the physical feel of Kara falling over to the dissipation of the energy, to every single wrinkle in Cat's suit, this is just spectacular.

Gorgeous.

At the same time, across town, Cat Grant is announcing the premiere of CatCo Reporting, a news site driven by young innovators, where every person who has an account can post a story. It is a true news community.

Now I don't know about you but this seems like an odd proposition. Are there editors? Are there rules? Standards? It sounds good but in this day and age giving anyone a platform that can reach millions seems like a recipe for cynicism, personal attacks, and disaster.

Still, Orlando captures Cat's confidence and self-congratulation quite nicely.

meanwhile, plummeting to the ground, Supergirl look up to see that there is no balcony off the CatCo building. In fact there is no Cat. Where did all that go? How did all that happen?

Regardless of the how, the intent becomes clear. The beam amped up Supergirl's powers to the point where she has little control over them. So where does Supergirl head? To high school for fear of being expelled for truancy.

That seems a little bit risky. I am sure the DEO could manage to cover for Kara. That said, I think Kara's personal life as Kara Danvers needs to be a big part of this book and this character. We just haven't seen enough of that so kudos to Orlando for taking us there.

The Emerald Empress is still at large and carrying a vendetta against our hero. In the future, Supergirl 'destroys' the Emerald Empress. To stop that from happening, the Empress decides to destroy Supergirl today. She puts together a new Fatal Five.

The analogs mostly add up. A new Solomon Grundy (magically cloned by Selena from the original Grundy's hair) is Validus. Indigo is Tharok. Magog is the Persuader. The Empress is the Empress. So, I guess that leaves the sorceress Selena as the Mano of the group.

As a Legion fan I am loving this. This Empress sounds like the self-absorbed, nasty original. And she is just as deadly, frying the poor guard without a moment's notice.

Was the gun-toting Cat part of this group's plans? Or is there another villain out there? Hmmm ...

Again, just drink in this art. Amazing.

At school, Kara can barely hold in her powers. With her senses overloading her, she tries to stumble to the nurse's office. On the way, she falls and her new prestigious strength blows a hole into the floor. While everyone laughs and takes her picture, Kara's friend/rival Ben Rubel comes in to lend a hand.

If Ben is as smart as we have heard he is, he should have cracked Kara's secret identity by now. Here he seems pretty sympathetic to the whole predicament. I would not be surprised if Ben himself has a secret which we will learn at some point. (My guess is it has something to do with his gender.)

 The Fatal Five decide to attack Supergirl on all fronts.

Since CatCo supports Supergirl, Selena is sent to destroy it.

Once again, this is a delicious Cat moment. She simply isn't scared of anyone. Despite Selena teleporting in and threatening her, Cat is unfazed, poking fun at the villain's boots.

I mean, that is just brill.

Now despite the pulse-pounding pace of this whole thing, my favorite scene was a quiet one.

Dealing with everything that has happened and is currently happening to her, Kara looks for someone to talk to and help her. She doesn't pick Kal or Eliza or even Dr. Veritas (all of whom could help with this power overload issue).  She picks her father Zor.

We learn that Zor is awake and healing (with the Tycho body parts). But he is either too ashamed or too sad to talk to his daughter yet.

But I love Kara's optimism and compassion. She won't abandon him. She'll always be there for him. She will always try to help him.

Part of me was hoping Zor-El would be in a coma and simply forgotten. But if there is a redemption for him and it is done well, I wouldn't mind it. This scene made me actually hope for it.

The Five's attacks continue. This time the Empress blips into the DEO hoping to get information out of Cameron Chase.

Again, we see the strength of the women surrounding Supergirl. Without blinking, Cameron has gun in hand.

I said before that Orlando really has a grasp of voices. Here the haughty 'bullets are but wind to the Emerald Eye' is pitch perfect.

And then we finally get the beginning of an actual Supergirl/Fatal Five fight.

Supergirl hears the citizens of National City screaming about a monster. Barely able to control her flight, she lands on the street to face off against Solomon Grundy.

Whew ... talk about the opposite of decompressed. This book had the pedal to the metal the whole time. I loved every scene. The Ben/Kara and Supergirl/Zor-El scenes were welcome character scenes amidst the action and plot progression. And, as I have trumpeted, this art!

Even the 'too much power' plot, which we have seen elsewhere, is an interesting little kernel to this story. Maybe Kara will have to have the Parasite leech off some power as a cure?

Anyhow, this issue was a complete winner. I am thrilled!

Overall grade: A