Remember, Supergirl has discovered that a genetic anomaly is keeping Kandorians shrunk and trapped in the city. Surely the Science Council knew about this and didn't act. Maybe they even initiated it. Upset about the whole thing, the Black Flame has organized the youth of Kandor in a rebellion, but she seems just as interested in destruction as she is in solving the problem of the anomaly. The city is being destroyed and the Black Flame is laughing in the wreckage.
And there is Supergirl recognizing that both sides are right and wrong. The Council shouldn't be trapping people in the city and should have helped fix the issue. The Black Flame is right to want freedom but not death and destruction. It is up to Kara to try and mend the rift, not happy with either side.
In our real world we have polarized politics and hate on both sides. We have protests that can grow destructive and entrenched power wanting to maintain control. And when things get extreme on both sides it isn't good for the folks in the middle.
Seeing Kara talk about trying to live in the shadow of someone big, trying to meet impossible expectations, being angry at the Council but willing to risk her life to protect them ...well ... that is everything I love about Supergirl.
The art in the book is incredible. Most of the book is a political debate so we have lots of close-ups and conversational art. But there are tricks Campbell uses to push the narrative visually. The fight at the end is brutal and even here we see some visual clues. But I also need to praise Tamra Bonvillain for bringing a dayglo quality to the fight, making it feel insane.
On to the book.
Supergirl isn't done taking them to task though.
Lena is worried so Conner brings her to the Fortress where the bottle city of Kandor looks like a disaster from the outside.
I don't think there is a wasted word in this issue. "Beloved" carries some weight here. Is this a beloved friend? Or does Lena have stronger feelings. I will say again 'SuperCorp' tore the Supergirl TV fans apart. So hoping we don't veer into anything here. For the sake of this tenuous fandom.
As I said, Kara was beaten to a pulp and left for dead last issue. She awakens in the Science Council bunker, alive but radically changed. She is more machine than person. It is a rough take on the old Adventure Comics exo-skeleton story.
There is a lot to like here. First off, it shows Supergirl's resilience in this book that while she is horrified in what she has become, she puts it aside to deal with the problems at hand in the city. She is its hero. She doesn't have time to wallow.
Second, Kim-Da! I have always appreciated how Campbell has mined the Superman and Supergirl mythos. Kim-Da has been around since Action Comics #242, although I met him in the back-up story in Superman #233.
Supergirl is trying to talk through the problem. The kids are revolting because of the anomaly that the Council probably knew about or could have helped solve.
The probable impacting all life in Kandor is interesting. Even the animals can't escape. (If you believe that the Council doesn't know the origin.)
But that last line is heavy. The older generation can't understand why the younger generation would want to leave. Or do they not want them to leave? What if everyone wants to leave? Should the culture die out? But isn't their freedom.
Supergirl is angry that the Council hasn't confronted the problem. Surely holing up and letting the city go to Hell outside isn't solving the problem. She chastises the group.
But Bry-Zan the current head of the council says she isn't authoritarian like her father was.
Yes, the split screen hides the robot aspect of Supergirl, focusing on her humanity. Nice touch. But I also feel like this panel construction shows that they are sort of closer in opinion than they might believe. They aren't facing away from each other in the art, or sneering/staring at each other like a faceoff in the art. I might be imagining this but I think this is a way to say maybe their opinions are close.
She calls out Lesla's parents in particular, pointing out that maybe if they didn't hold her to impossible expectations, she wouldn't be in the mess she is.
And then the second panel, explaining one of the things I love about Supergirl as a character. At some point she probably impossible expectations on herself, trying to live up to Superman. It isn't healthy.
Supergirl has learned this lesson and is her own person. She can still be inspired by Superman. She can be a hero. But she can put her own spin on it, stepping out from that shadow. The expression shows the weight of this.
The Council has a contingency plan outside of Supergirl. The ThunderCorps, clones of Thunder Boy, are ready to defend the city and rout Black Flame. There is ThunderLad, ThunderKid, and ThunderGirl.
Some things to mull here. One, the Corps are almost automatons, with no feelings and obedient to the Council's wishes. So maybe the Council is all about control.
This panel says an error in genetic coding made this clone ThunderGirl, a female. It is a wonderfully subtle discussion on the topic of the transgender issue. She should have been male but isn't and it is okay. She is the one that saved Supergirl and is the most stable.
Nothing ham-fisted. One-line that carried a lot of weight.
Again, Supergirl doesn't agree with the Council. But she won't see them killed. She will defend them. That is also Supergirl. She won't let others suffer.
To show how extremists can twist things, Black Flame tells her followers how Supergirl is a 'council goon'. Zora didn't listen or doesn't want to listen. If you disagree with her about anything you are the enemy.
Seriously, how often to we see this in comics these days? This shows a hero trying to stop a massacre when two political views are so entrenched they can't work together.
I think to Campbell really wants to show how out of control Black Flame is. Here hair is out of control. She is always smiling widely amid the mayhem. Even here, her heat vision is ragged and unrefined. It is a visual show of how she is violent and unhinged.
Bonvillain's colors increase the impact. Zora is purple, monstrous. She is a villain here.
But the council isn't better.
They send out the Thunders to 'kill Black Flame'.
There is a lot of violent action here. Kara's cybernetics are full of weapons. The city is ablaze. Everything is vibrant.
But in many ways, the strength of the issue was showing what a hero Supergirl is in the dysfunctional space of Kandor. It is a balanced showing of the insanity when neither side grows or accepts.
I loved this issue.
Overall grade: A+
No comments:
Post a Comment