Review: Supergirl #1 (v8)

Supergirl #1 came out this week, the first new Supergirl solo issue to be on the racks for almost 5 years. And the first Supergirl issue that felt like the Supergirl I love in a long time.

Since the title was announced, writer/artist Sophie Campbell has been saying all the right things. She liked the character. She had read and enjoyed Supergirl's history, especially the Bronze Age. She wanted to bring a warmth to the character, something missing in recent times. She was bringing back Streaky.

All of that shows in this first issue. But there's more than that. There's a respect for the character's history that is evident too.

Grant Morrison's take on Batman was that all the stories happened. It seems like Campbell is a believer of that philosophy here. There are more nods, mentions, and homages to Supergirl's history in this issue than I can count. Moreover, they come from solidly Silver Age, through the bonkers 70s, into the 80s, and right up to the Rebirth era. 

Somehow all of that of that history has to fit into a Supergirl that seems like she is around 17 here. This is a sort of soft reboot, like what Paul Kupperberg did in Daring New Adventures of Supergirl #1 back in the 80s. By making Supergirl younger, it brings back one of the most important historical themes of her character. She's a young hero. She's learning. She is trying to figure out who she is. That sometimes isn't easy when Superman is your cousin. Supergirl questions herself a couple of times here in a way that feels both classic and fresh. 

But she isn't timid or reluctant to act or lacking confidence. She is a complete hero in this book, leaping into action to save people without a second thought, standing up for people who need help. 

That's my Supergirl. Warm, heroic, learning.

I really love Campbell's art, particularly in Jem and The Holograms in the past, and she shines here. She brings a sense of fun and whimsy and pizzazz to the action. The plot and art mesh completely.

Add a mystery and a cliffhanger and you have a winner.

Yes, this might feel like a small step backwards from the 20-something field general we saw by Joshua Williamson and Phillip Kennedy Johnson. But this is a step that historically works. 

It is definitely a huge step away from recent missteps like the catatonic hero of Mariko Tamaki or the depressed, drunk killer in Woman of Tomorrow. 

On to details.

Review: Supergirl #7

Supergirl #7 came out this week, the first issue since the opening Cyborg Superman arc ended. Written by Steve Orlando with art by Matias Bergara, the issue is a nice breather after the intensity of that opening storyline. If you want an episode to give someone to let them see who this #Rebirth Supergirl is, this is a fine primer.

From the very beginning, Orlando said that his take on Supergirl is of a young hero who will stop you from committing crime but then check in on you to make sure you are getting better. She is someone who will throw a punch but also someone who cares deeply. We have already seen it with her visiting a the crook she threw into jail. In this issue, Orlando gives us the follow-up to his Supergirl Rebirth #1 story of Lar-On. In that issue, Kara promised she would help Lar-On. Here she shows she meant it.

The story takes place in Lar-On's mind which means it is something of a fever dream. The landscape is chaotic, ever changing, and the frightening. But it also gives Kara the ability to look into Lar-On's psyche and try to help alleviate his troubles. Lar-On's issues resonate somewhat with Kara's life which gives the book an extra level of emotional weight.

And Orlando has clear respect for the DCU history as well. We get the usual dose of references and homages which just show how rich the mythos is.

The art in the issue is by Matias Bergara. His style is semi-similar to Brian Ching's so there is a nice sense of continuity in the proceedings. Bergara really gives a sense of movement with his work. There are plenty of panels where you can feel the action  play out.

On to the book.

Direct Currents #1

Last week I went to the comic store and was delighted to find a nice surprise. Direct Currents #1 was on the rack, a promotional magazine put out by DC Comics, big and glossy and covering all of the titles in some fashion. And best of all it was free.

I remember the pre-internet days of Direct Currents being present in DC Comics, basically a list of the upcoming title solicits. And I also like the Daily Planet faux newspapers, the occasional DC Profile of creators, and even the straight up news columns that occasionally would grace DC's books in the 70s and 80s. So the name and format struck a nostalgic chord.

But more importantly, it's in print!

I guess I am going to sound like a Luddite but I like the print format. I picked this up looking forward to reading about the super-titles. But I read about the Suicide Squad and the Flash books as well. I'll probably end up reading this cover to cover. Because while I was sipping my coffee it was easy to simply flip the page.

I don't think I would necessarily have clicked on an article about, for example, The Flash. I certainly wouldn't have done it on sites where you need to click through ads, slides, etc.

So thank you DC! I am hoping that the #1 on the cover means this might be a recurring thing.

The book opens up with a letter from Dan Didio.

He starts out talking about the JL/Suicide Squad crossover. He touches on the upcoming Batwoman and Super-Sons titles.

And he ends the missive by saying "Rebirth is about a voice, a tone, a sensibility. We're crafting a strong, cohesive universe."

I rolled my eyes. I suppose some might derisively snicker. Didio was in charge for the years were things were off-tone and insensible. Hard to take him seriously. I will say I have been happy with the post-Rebirth DCU.

And I liked that he mentioned Mr. Oz and said that story is coming to the forefront soon.

There is a nice article about the Superman books in which we hear how Dan Jurgens, Peter Tomasi, and Patrick Gleason work together to get the long form stories right. It is worth reading.

And Supergirl gets just a strip of one page (three columns on the page promote Supergirl, New Superman, and Superwoman).

It is a brief and to the point. The middle section lays out the foundation of the book and defines the DEO. But the last paragraph does give us our first glimpse into what will happen after the Cyborg Superman.

Looks like the DEO is going to try to weaponize Lar-On!

It will be interesting to see how this plays out. Supergirl promised Lar-On that she would be there to help him. Will she support this? What if Lar-On doesn't want to do this? Will Supergirl side with him? He might ask her to kill him, given his curse. What will she do then?

I'm glad Orlando is bringing him back. I wasn't too keen on the idea of him just lying in the DEO sedated.

Anyways, head to the LCS and pick this up. It's free! And I'll let you know if this Direct Currents leads me to buying a new title, the ultimate goal of something like this!

Review: Supergirl Rebirth #1

Supergirl Rebirth #1 came out this week, the first solo Supergirl comic in over a year. It also has been one of the books I have been highly anticipating. Since the first Rebirth press conference, writer Steve Orlando has been saying all the right things about the character. He wants her to be optimistic and compassionate. He wants her to be young and bright. He wants her to be finding her way in the world. He wants her to be a hero. He wants to lean on her history, bringing everything that has been great with the character. It has all sounded perfect.

And this issue is a fantastic first issue for this new series. Orlando sets the stage nicely. We get a sense of where Supergirl is in her life. We meet the supporting cast. We definitely see who Kara is both in her actions and her words. And it is refreshingly on point.

But we also get some homages to the past. We get some deep DCU cuts. We get a healthy dollop of the show's surroundings. Despite the mentions of some past events in her life, this honestly felt like a soft reboot rather than a tonal rebirth. The thing it reminded me most of was the last sort of soft reboot, Sterling Gates and Jamal Igle's Supergirl #34. Trust me, that comparison is high praise.

The art in the book is by Supergirl veteran Emanuela Lupacchino. Lupacchino brings a beautiful look to the entire book. The action is well paced. The villain is monstrous. Kara looks healthy and strong. Lupacchino never lets me down.

Superman Encyclopedia: Lar-On

Amazingly, we are one week away from  Supergirl Rebirth #1.

I have been eagerly awaiting this book as everything writer Steve Orlando has said has sounded perfect. He seems to have an great understanding of Kara. And Emanuela Lupacchino is on art and we know how perfect she is for Supergirl.

But I also have been looking forward to this because Orlando plans to dust off a 'one and done' character from my youth, the Kryptonian werewolf Lar-On. I have reviewed his brief comic history here -

http://comicboxcommentary.blogspot.com/2016/07/review-worlds-finest-256.html

and here -

http://comicboxcommentary.blogspot.com/2016/08/back-issue-box-world-finest-258.html

But there was one more piece of his history I thought I would share for completeness sake, his entry in the Superman Encyclopedia.

While the facts seem a little loose about the actual encounter, one thing stood out. Here it says Lar-On was a scientist fascinated with physical transformation who experimented on himself. That is new information not presented in the stories at all. Suddenly this isn't a curse or a disease, this is a self-inflicted condition.

I don't think an encyclopedia should be providing novel information. And I don't know where that information comes from unless there is another Lar-On appearance I'm not aware of. But it makes his feelings of guilt (as seen in the comics) more painful and palpable.

Back Issue Box: World's Finest #258

We are just a couple of weeks from Supergirl Rebirth #1, the reintroduction of a Supergirl book into the new DCU as well as the reappearance of Lar-On the Kryptonian werewolf! I am really looking forward to what writer Steve Orlando and artist Emanuela Lupacchino will be delivering. The brief glimpses of the book we saw at San Diego Comic Con looked incredible.

I have been taking a look back at Lar-On's brief history in the DCU starting with his first appearance in World's Finest #256. While that was Lar-On's only true appearance, his story sort of continued in World's Finest #258. As this story included an interesting wrinkle about Lar-On's lycanthropy, I thought it was worth sharing here. I am hoping that Orlando explores that bit of 'The Krypton Curse' but we'll see.

Lastly, I remember having this comic as a kid. I must have bought it right off the rack. Unfortunately all sorts of books from that time simply disappeared, meaning I was on a hunt for this one in all the comic stores I came across. Hard to believe that I found it while on vacation earlier this summer.

On to the story.

SDCC 2016: Supergirl Comic News

Okay everyone, please settle in.

I usually try to cover the Supergirl news that comes out of the San Diego Comic Con in one post. But let's face it, Supergirl has become so popular that there is no way I could cover it all in one place. How crazy is it for me to say that! But true ... between the comic, show, and merchandise, Supergirl is everywhere.

This post will only cover the news about the comic that came out of SDCC. And that is still a lot for me to touch on. Between preview pages and hearing Steve Orlando talking about the book, I am even more excited for this new book. Everything looks and sounds like I am going to love this book.

So the outline here will be me grabbing blurbs from a couple of panels that Orlando appeared at and then adding my thoughts. After that I'll showcase some of the panels from the preview pages I liked. Everything I am commenting on is easily found on the internet. For ease, here are links to where it all can be found on Newsarama.

The link for the DC Young Metropolis panel: http://www.newsarama.com/30246-sdcc-2016-dc-rebirth-s-young-gotham-young-metropolis-panel.html

The link for the DC No Boundaries panel: http://www.newsarama.com/30235-sdcc-2016-dc-all-access-no-boundaries-panel.html

The link for the comic pages: http://www.newsarama.com/30251-dc-first-looks-supergirl-rebirth-1-and-supergirl-1.html

But there is a lot to cover here than just that. So please settle in. It is great that so much Supergirl news came out of SDCC.

Review: World's Finest #256

Way back in May, we first read about Supergirl Rebirth #1, a prelude to the upcoming Supergirl written by Steve Orlando. The Rebirth special has art by Emanuella Lupacchino and a variant Adam Hughes cover and should re-establish Supergirl as a hero within the reimagined and reenergized DCU. We are just a few weeks away from a new Supergirl title.

But the thing that really caught my eye in the solicit for the issue was that the villain would be the Kryptonian werewolf Lar-On. That is a pretty deep cut by Steve Orlando and makes me think that fans of Supergirl and the DC mythos are in good hands.

Lar-On first appeared in World's Finest #256 way back in 1979. From the cover, drawn by Ross Andru and Dick Giordano, you get a sense of just what a threat Lar-On will be. A giant pink werewolf crawling out of a dimensional portal?? Just fantastic.

This story is a whopping 20 pages in this dollar comic, the size of a regular comic today! There is plenty of padding in this tale. Batman gets a mostly unnecessary subplot to give him something to do. The fight scenes are rather pedestrian and go on for quite a while. But the tragic ending to the story gives it a nice impact. I wonder if Orlando is going to play up that tragedy as a sort of prologue to the sad reality of Zor-El being tranformed and mutilated into the Cyborg Superman.

But all that said, calling back on Lar-On alone is fantastic!