Back Issue Box: Adventure Comics #381

Adventure Comics was once a flagship title in the DC universe with anchors like the Legion of Superheroes and Supergirl leading the way. With the current retro-fitting of the DCU to a more Silver Age sensibility (after years of 'grim and gritty' fare), Adventure Comics is back and in a big way. Adventure Comics #0 was released last week, reprinting the Legion's first appearance and including a very interesting 'Omens and Origins' story about Lex Luthor and Kon-El.

With this rebirth of the title, I thought I would take a look back at Adventure Comics #381, Supergirl's first issue as the headliner and her first 'booklength' tale. The book was released in 1969, 10 years after Supergirl's first appearance in Action Comics. 'The Supergirl Gang' was written by Cary Bates and drawn by Win Mortimer.

I included the opening splash page because I think it is a very nice 'one stop shopping' review of Kara's history. In three sentences, a new reader basically knows the broad strokes of Supergirl's history and is also thrust into the issue's story.


The story starts out in Metropolis where Supergirl is patrolling for Superman while he is away on a deep space mission. While flying overhead, she hears a muffled explosion and comes across a gang of thieves robbing a safe. She has little problem overpowering them but is shocked to see that all the thieves are young women she recognizes from the Stanhope College campus. Even stranger, they all seem to be dazed and amnsetic when questioned at the police station.


After some simple questioning with the girls while in her Linda identity, Supergirl discovers that they all had enrolled in a local Detective School for women. Wanting to learn more, Linda goes to a demonstration the school is having where a woman dressed suspiciously like the women burglars shows her prowess in marksmanship, safe cracking, and martial arts.

Adding to the mystery, the school itself is made of lead-lined walls blocking any XRay vision reconnaisance.

Deciding to some old-fashioned detective work herself, Supergirl flies to Gotham and lets herself into the Batcave.

Can you imagine Batman just allowing Supergirl to rifle through his files in today's DC Universe? Not likely ... or not happily. It was a simpler time.

Still the legwork seems to have paid off. The man running the school is a known felon named Albert Maxom.

Of course, you would think the Metropolis Police should have figured this out as well.

Unfortunately, Supergirl doesn't think there is quite enough evidence to blow the case wide open. She also want to be able to produce some proof that the girls were not knowingly involved in the crime. The best place to gather that evidence is from the inside.

Linda joins the school and passes the first challenge, fighting back when confronted by some thugs. Since she was with other students, she could not use her powers. Luckily, the thugs were actually robots that shut down. Maxom uses the robots to see if his females students will fight back if confronted. If you don't try to fight back against his robots you are expelled.

After some snooping, Linda also discovers a plausible reason for the lead-lined walls. Maxom (who is posing as his legitimate twin brother) has a working nuclear reactor in the school. He is trying to create atomic weapons to fight crime.

An atomic reactor in a detective school? Sounds pretty suspicious to me but it makes Linda doubt her instincts that things are not on the level here.

I tend to chuckle a bit at things like this when looking at it from a 2009 sensibility. Who would approve a private nuclear reactor just outside of Metropolis and next to a college?

Despite being a new girl, Linda strives to head right to the head of the class, especially when she hears that a new crime might be being committed that night. Her only way to get on that squad is to dispatch the top student in the class, a blonde named Miss Barbour.

As you can see, Miss Barbour has a secret too. But more on that later ....

Despite being overmatched in martial art skills, Linda defeats Barbour who literally collapses from exhaustion.

Promoted to the upper echelon, Linda and the other girls are brought into a secret room where Maxom, dressed in a suit of mirrors, hypnotizes them into doing his bidding ... committing crimes and giving him the loot.

So let me see if I understand this Maxom guy. He has access to a nuclear reactor and robot thugs and can also mass hypnotize. And he thinks the most efficient way to use this hardware and skill set is to send female college students on daring break-ins? Seems at the very least he just should just send the robots in.

And doesn't Supergirl have enough information now to shut the whole operation down? I would think so. But instead she proceeds with the plans of robbing a Metropolis bank.

The girls, including Linda, are successful in robbing a local bank. Superman, who has returned from space is about to stop them when he notices Supergirl amongst the pack. She in turn leaves him a microscopic message telling him she knows what she is doing. Superman actually trusts Supergirl (near inconceivable back then) and lets the girls escape back to the school.

Supergirl finally decides to end the charade. She ties up Maxom's associates and let's him know she has uncovered the whole seedy mess. She even has time to grab her Linda Danvers robot to explain away how she was there for the robberies and yet is *not* really Linda Danvers.

But just as Supergirl is about to lead Maxom to justice, he pulls out his last ace in the hole. The robots seen earlier attack again but this time they expose Kryptonite they have hidden in their mechanics. Supergirl is suddenly incapacitated.

But Miss Barbour shows up in her own reveal ... as Batgirl ... and swings Supergirl far enough away from the Kryptonite that she is no longer effected. Get it .... Miss Barbour ... Barbara ... Barbara Gordon ... nice little unexpected twist.

Now I really have to question Maxom's crime prowess. He had access to Kryptonite wielding robots and he sent out barely trained college co-eds to rob banks? Couldn't he just sell the Kryptonite to the mob and live on the interest he would collect?

With the robots far away, Supergirl simply blows them apart with her super-breath. And Batgirl gets the honors of punching out Maxom. Another job well done by the female World's Finest team.

I have to admit the Batgirl reveal was a bit of a surprise when I first read this issue. A pleasant surprise.

And it was nice to see Supergirl finally get her own title rather than a few pages at the back end of Action Comics. As a result, this issue also has some historic qualities for the Supergirl fan, it being her first solo issue and all. I see this issue run between $15-40 dollars at conventions depending on condition. It is a nice piece to have in a Supergirl collection.

Overall grade: solid B

NYCC Rundown

New York Comicon ended yesterday and where was I? At work.

Nevertheless, while I was unable to attend the convention, most of the big comics websites had near constant coverage. Thanks to Newsarama, Comic Book Resources, The Beat, and other sites, I felt like I was there.

And, of course, my buddy actually *was* there. Based on voice mails he left on my cell, I will have some cool stuff to post later this week.

The biggest glut of Supergirl news from the NYCC came on the first day at the Superman Panel. Here is the link for full coverage http://www.comicbookresources.com/?page=article&id=19893 .



First off, check out the cover for Supergirl #41, another winner by Josh Middleton. Looks like it'll be a brawl. Supergirl looks so intense!

Next, I pulled out some quotes to comment on here.


Idelson reminded the crowd that "World of New Krypton" is the only book Superman will be appearing in this year, "more or less."

"This book is the driving engine of all the Superman books," Robinson agreed. "You will see life in Metropolis, Supergirl, Nightwing and Flamebird, all of this is driven by events in 'World of New Krypton.'"

Hard to believe that we will have a whole year without Superman appearing in Action Comics or Superman. I still think this is a huge risk by DC, especially given the buzz the super-titles have recieved recently. Honestly, I don't know if I am going to like reading a year's worth of The Guardian. Of course, I am going in with an open mind. I like Rucka and Robinson's body of work so I should trust they will keep me entertained.

Supergirl was next on the agenda.

"We're going to do some interesting stuff with New Kyrpton and with Supergirl's mother and with people in Metropolis," Gates said. "The secret identity of Linda Lang is not going away, it's going to be big and we're going to do some good stuff with it. And Jamal is kicking all holy ass on it."

I am glad to hear that Linda Lang was not an afterthought and will be explored more soon. Sounds like Kara's decision to stay on New Krypton might be a short one. I can only wonder what will drive her away from Alura and back to Earth.

Geoff Johns added, "I think Sterling's doing a phenomenal job on Supergirl. It's one of my favorite books at DC Comics right now."

"We really wanted 'Supergirl' to be a really important book," Robinson said. "We hope it will be embraced for everybody."

This is the sort of stuff I like to read ... other creators talking up Supergirl. I am glad it is still being promoted so heavily. I don't think I have hidden the fact that I have loved the Gates/Igle issues.

Johns next talked about 'Adventure Comics,' the Legion book that will launch in June with Francis Manupal on art. "It's a book that spins out of 'Legion of 3 Worlds,' and obviously Starman's there. If anyone's reading 'JSA,' he's taking a central lead in the book. Francis taking his work in a whole direction, it's just stunning." The book will feature painted artwork.

Hmmm ... now this book sounds so intriguing. It was called sort of a 'Superman Family' style book by Johns. But starring Bizarro, Luthor, Brainiac, Starman, and 2 folks hidden in shadows?

Any guesses on the unknown stars?

I thought Adventure was just going to be the new Legion book. Guess I was wrong.

And then my favorite parts of panels, the Q&A session.

The panel then turned the floor over to the audience for questions.

- Are we going to see more of Supergirl interacting with characters her own age? Yes.

I am pretty excited to hear this. One thing that I think has been missing from the book since its inception was a solid supporting cast. And with Kara being written as a 16/17 year old girl, I do think that giving her true peers to interact with is important and realistic.

- Are there going to be repercussions for the death of Supergirl's father? "Do you like Black Lanterns?" Gates said.

If 'Blackest Night' is going to cross over into Supergirl, Zor-El is the obvious choice. But I feel bad for the man. He is portrayed as a lunatic. Then re-invented as a ranger. Then remade more in the Silver Age mode as loving father and brilliant scientist only to be killed shortly thereafter. I think he deserves a little peace.

But it sounds more like he will be back as heartless zombie. Poor guy ...

- Is Superman going to have to pick one world over the other? "That would be great drama," Rucka said. "But it's a false choice. He's Superman. But I think it's a very good question for Supergirl."

The whole crux of issue #34 was Kara's decision to rehabilitate her image and make Earth her home. The next month New Krypton started. All along the question in my mind has been 'why would Kara choose Earth over Kandor/New Krypton?' And while Alura's insanity could be a big part of Kara's decision, I don't think it would be all of it. I think we need to see more of Supergirl's stay on Krypton and events there that would lead her to want to go back to Metropolis and Earth.

- A fan asked about Richard Donner's Superman film's influence on the comics. "It's cool!" Johns said. "General Zod, Ursa and Non are more well-known than Brainiac. It doesn't make any sense that we haven't brought them in before now. People wear General Zod tee-shirts. Nobody wears Brainiac tee-shirts."Igle said the films' designs are timeless, referring specifically to the Kryptonian crystal technology.

- Who are your Superman influences? Barrows: José Louis Garcia-López. Johns: Curt Swan. Richard Donner's films. Rucka: "The most profound influence is Donner."Robinson: Curt Swan. "More specifically, Curt Swan inked by George Klein."Gates: The Richard Donner films.

I continue to be amazed at how the Donner films had such a huge impact on comic creators. I find that so interesting.

Supergirl #39 Cover By Joshua Middleton

On his blog yesterday, Joshua Middleton revealed the finished cover to Supergirl #39. This is a pretty eye-grabbing cover showing a malevolent looking Reactron just oozing Gold-K energy. This take on Reactron looks more robotic ... more inhuman ... and as a result more threatening.

Compare the cover to this pic of Reactron from Action #872. See how the exposed eyes and neck make Reactron look like a 'guy in a super-suit' or a masked pro wreslter? While I know Reactron is human, by seeing the exposed flesh in areas, it just makes him less ominous somehow.

One thing I really like about Middleton's blog ( http://joshuamiddleton.blogspot.com/2009/02/supergirl-39.html ) is that he talks about the creation of the cover art, often from design through finished product. Here is what he said about the Supergirl #39 cover creation.

I wasn't sure how to go about rendering all of the metal, and wound up experimenting quite a bit. I started with a quick digital sketch as a foundation (which I used to get approval for the image from my editor) and made a new line drawing by tracing the rough sketch cleanly. I then shaded the line drawing by hand with some water-soluble graphite pencils, which I was able to blend with a clean wet brush. I also went in with some white paint to pull out some highlights. I scanned the gray "chrome" rendering back into the computer, placed it over my basic sketch, and tried several different blending modes to marry it with the base layer. It required quite a bit of brushing and smudging to look decent.

Sounds like a pretty laborious process to go through to get it where he wanted. As a fan, I appreciate reading these things as a peek behind the scenes.

The solicit for the issue from http://www.dccomics.com/dcu/ is below.

"Who is Superwoman?" part 3! Supergirl continues her manhunt for Reactron, determined to bring him to justice for the heinous crimes he committed in "New Krypton"! Meanwhile, Lois Lane and Inspector Mike Henderson investigate the appearance of a dead body in Metropolis Harbor. Whose body is it and what could it have to do with the new Woman of Steel? Find out as the big mystery of 2009 continues!

We now know that the body in the harbor is Agent Liberty, killed by Superwoman.

Man, this book is clicking on all cylinders right now.

Review: Supergirl:Cosmic Adventures In The Eighth Grade #3

Supergirl:Cosmic Adventures in the Eighth Grade #3 came out yesterday and continues to be a fun read. The more I read this series, the more I understand that we are truly reading the origin of this Supergirl's heroism.

This Kara is struggling so hard to fit in, to have friends, to feel good about herself ... and it isn't easy. So of course when she finally has her powers under control she is going to want to help the the underserved, the marginalized, the down-trodden. She feels she was one of them herself!

As we saw in the preview, the issue starts with Linda sitting alone with Lena in the cafeteria. Lena bemoans the fact that they have been 'banished' but Linda notes that they usually pick the table farthest from everyone. In some ways they are self-banishing themselves rather than reaching out and trying to make new friends.

No sooner has Lena noted this than the sly Belinda Zee comes up and declares Linda her new BFF. I have seen enough of Belinda in just one issue to know that she doesn't mean it. Instead she is simply causing trouble by making Lena jealous. And I have seen enough of Lena in a short period of time to know that she is unhinged enough to take the bait.

Before Linda can say anything, she sees something even more disastrous than this exchange, something she needs to deal with as Supergirl.

A red meteor is streaking towards the school! And only Supergirl can save everyone.

As I have said before, the thought bubbles in this series are one of my favorite parts. We get to see the inner thoughts of this Kara in a very concrete way. Here we see her plan to deal with the meteor ... use a giant tennis racket to smack it back into space. I think that is precious. For one, where the heck is she going to find a giant tennis racket? Second, won't the meteor just smash through it? But that is probably what a 12 year old would think of as a solution.

Alas, before Supergirl can find a giant Wilson racket, the meteor smashes into her, breaking into tiny pieces and missing the school. So she successfully saved the school but in a rather sloppy way.

Kara crash lands into a dumpster where she remains unconscious for several hours. Careful inspection on the panel shows some interesting pieces.

First off, piles of the red rocks seem to be all over town.

But also (thanks to poster Nikki for pointing this out), I think we see our first glimpse of Streaky hiding behind the nearby trash can. I always say ... I can't get enough Streaky.

After awakening, she uses super-vision to check on the school and sees that it is safe. However, a rally is happening on the school grounds and she is being called to the dais by Prinicipal Picklemeyer.

Using super-speed to return to Stanhope, Linda is shocked when the Principal asks her to show him her super-powers.

Here is another great thought balloon. Linda is so worried about how Superman will react if people discover her powers. Her first thought when the principal asks her about powers is an image of Superman banishing her to a black hole.

For us old-timers, this fear was very prevalent in Kara's early adventures in Action Comics and even her early solo adventures in Adventure Comics. And if you read those stories, these were not unfounded fears. Superman used to punish Supergirl for the slightest indiscretion. Landry Walker talked about the 'specter of Superman' looming over Supergirl in this series and I knew just what he was talking about. He was talking about this.

And you feel for Supergirl. She is trying to please Superman (a beloved hero on Argo), trying to eke out a decent life in Stanhope, and trying to be a super-hero. There is absolutely no way that all those hopes and dreams can be realized together. In fact, they might be at odds with each other.

Luckily, the Principal is not asking this because Linda has been discovered. He is asking this because the red meteor's radiation has given everyone, students included, super-powers. Well almost everyone. Seems Lena was not given any.

Lena seems pretty rigid in her beliefs. She strongly states that she doesn't need powers to measure her self-worth (just like she doesn't needs popularity or friends either). And she drags Linda into the mix with her. And Linda, not wanting to jeopardize her friendship with Lena by isolating her, goes along with her. Linda hides the fact that she has powers.

This is such a nice scene. First off, it definitely shows Lena's Luthor roots of hating super-powered beings and wanting to put mankind first.

More importantly, Linda could actually show her powers and suddenly fit in ... suddenly be part of the crowd. But she is too nice to do that knowing it will hurt Lena and so she denies herself that which she probably wants. That is being a hero.

Unfortunately, it means that she lands in the lowest rung of the school's new caste system. Those without powers are exiled to classes in the basement (almost looks like a prison) where they are taught that the powerless are worthless, put on Earth to worship those with powers, wallow in their own mediocrity, or be a pawn in the schemes of those with powers.

Linda already knows this isn't right and asks about equality and fairness only to have the teacher try to crush those feelings from her.

I know how much relatively small events from junior high and high school helped turn me into the person I still am today. That's why I think scenes like this, where Linda has the strength to question injustice, are helping to build the foundation for Supergirl's ethics and drive for justice in the future.

While in the class however, Supergirl hears cries for help and sees that the powers granted by the red meteor seems to be wearing off. People are literally falling from the sky as their flying power wears off.

Thinking quickly to get out of class, Linda uses her powers to be apparently thrown around the room by an 'invisible superhero'. That's actually pretty savvy.

After saving everyone in the town, she returns to her room exhausted. Unfortunately, cries for help ring out again from all over town.

It turns out that Lena has created a machine to siphon off the red meteor's energies thus depowering people. However, Belinda keeps re-exposing people to the rock's energies granting them new powers. The cycle keeps repeating and the results are near-cataclysmic with building falling and fires spreading.

Why would Belinda do this? Either she likes the chaos that super-powers are causing in the high school hierarchy or she likes the chaos they are causing around town. Either way, she is an agent of chaos. Slowly but surely, Belinda is becoming my favorite character in this series. It's sort of like how I liked the 'Serena' episodes of Bewitched best.

Hmmm ... that is the second Bewitched reference I have made regarding this comic. Weird.

Showing some ingenuity again, Linda realizes she needs to stop this whole episode from happening to begin with. She decides to mix the red meteor's energy with Kryptonite energy as a way to grant herself new powers. She knows that the results might be unexpected such as turning her into cheese but she still risks it. 'I'm too delicious to live!' ... that's pure gold.

After several attempts which grant her useless powers (stretching toes, waffle burning, talking to fish - nice jab at Aquaman), she finally gets the power she is looking for ... time travel.

Supergirl travels back in time and actually stops the meteor from ever making it to Earth. I wonder if she used a giant tennis racket!

But there are too many goodies in the panels to just gloss over. It looks like Supergirl used those powers to do more than thwart the meteor. A new costume? A crown? A small scimitar? A Legion belt and flight ring? Nice touches.

And we still see the hole in the chalkboard from last issue's accident, a nifty little piece of serie's continuity.

Since the meteor timeline has now never happened, this red meteor-powered Supergirl cannot exist. She fades away, but not before revealing that Principal Picklemeyer is not who he appears to be. More on this later.

Since Linda never had to leave the cafeteria to save the school, we see the Belinda/Lena conversation again. This time Linda has the opportunity to stand up for herself a little.

It's actually a pretty powerful moment. It shows that Linda is growing a bit. She isn't sitting there passively.

Too bad it seems to backfire. Both Belinda and Lena storm off leaving Linda alone. This should have been a great moment for Linda where she grabs some control of her life at Stanhope. Instead it leaves her sort of worse off than before.

And then we see Principal Picklemeyer gloating over Supergirl's misery and promising that the worst is yet to come. And look at what we see! We knew that Streaky was coming next issue. And we have seen the more Bizarro-garbed Belinda on the cover previews of issue #5. But a head-band wearing Supergirl! Now I am intrigued.

And we also get a little mystery. If Gates and Igle can have 'who is Superwoman?' then Walker and Jones can have 'who is Principal Picklemeyer?'

I already know. Picklemeyer is Mr. Mxyzptlk. Who else could he be? Any other guesses?

We are halfway through this mini-series and we have seen a Supergirl pretty much put through the wringer. Despite that, she continues to strive to be a hero and do what's right. And now we are seeing some glimpses of her applying her powers in creative and productive ways as well as seeing her inner fortitude and resolve grow. My guesses is the Supergirl at the end of issue #6 is going to be different person than the one we first saw in issue #1.

As a result, I am really enjoying this series. It continues to have the perfect blend humor, history, heroics, and tweener angst all revolving around an adorably struggling Supergirl who is slowly growing into her role of hero.

Interestingly, when I read the issue to the primo Supergirl at home, she seemed just a smidge disappointed. She certainly laughed at the funny parts (especially the cheese bit). But I think she is still at a point in her life (age 10) where she wants to see the hero win easily. After three issues of a somewhat crest-fallen Linda, I think my Supergirl is looking for an outright victory for good soon.

My overall grade: A
Primo Supergirl's overall grade: pretty good

Supergirl Tonner Dolls In 2009

We are only 2 weeks away from the release of DC Direct's Deluxe 1:6 Supergirl doll with Streaky accessory. I have already put down a sizeable down payment at my local comic book store and look forward to adding that figure to the shrine later this month.

I have talked about Tonner Dolls DC Stars collection before when they announced their SDCC 2008 exclusives. Here is the website link: http://www.tonnerdoll.com/dcstars.htm .

Tonner dolls seem to be aimed more for the hard core doll collector rather than comics fans who occasionally branch into the toy market. For those out there who crossover into both the comic and doll world, Tonner has announced their 2009 collection. Just like last year, Supergirl is featured.

Here is their Deluxe Supergirl character figure which looks like it is limited to 1000 and costs 'only' $199.99. Tonner's description is as follows.

Classic red and blue bodysuit with printed signature emblem and mini-skirt with 'gold' belt; includes matching zip-up faux leather boots, pantyhose, lustrous cape and display stand.

It is an interesting doll from a Supergirl point for view for a couple of reasons. It is based on the current Michael Turner costume. But a red skirt? And gold laced boots with big heels? Seems like the Tonner company took some liberties with the outfit. My guess is that the more detail oriented the figure, the more minutiae that is added, the more desirable it is to the doll efficianado. So adding actual laces to the boots probably upgrades the 'strength' of the collectible. The face and hair on the doll do seem quite lovely. But this is not going to find it's way in my collection.

And Tonner does variant dolls too! This 'Kara of Krypton' figure was part of Tonner's Women of Power series announced in late 2008. This one is exclusive to Tonnerdirect.com and is limited edition of 200. It's cost is a mere $159.99.

This could be any blonde (more platinum) tressed doll in a genie outfit. Although there is no description on the web site, I have read elsewhere the gold clasp of the top piece is the S-shield. I guess that makes this a Kara doll.

Certainly, I don't know any appearance in comics of this outfit.

For completeness sake, here is the standard DCStars Supergirl doll available for $124.99. Of course this is a Matrix-style uniform so this one is more appealing to me although still outside of my price range. I do like that the boots have no heels.


Here is the SDCC exclusive, limited to 200. This is called the Supergirl Phantom Zone variant and cost $139.99. Again, some fancy and intricate boots here.

And outfits are available too. Here is the Kryptonian Silver Casual outfit, retailing at $89.99.

If anyone out there is more of a doll collector, I do suggest you take a peek. There are some very nice figures available including some standout Wonder Woman dolls. I also thought they did fine renditions of Black Canary, Poison Ivy, and Hawkgirl.

Preview Of Supergirl:Cosmic Adventures In The Eighth Grade #3

The publicity on Supergirl: Cosmic Adventures in the Eighth Grade continues to blister. A 5 page preview of the third issue, released this week, is up on Newsarama. A Johnny DC book as top story on Newsarama with a preview?! That's great. Congratulations to Landry Walker and Eric Jones for producing a wonderful book worthy of the accolades and press it has been receiving.

And based on this preview, the issue looks to be as fun as the first two. Here is the link: http://www.newsarama.com/php/multimedia/album.php?aid=25715

First off, we see the Luthor side of Lena bubble to the surface as she wonders why Linda would want or need more than just her friendship. Hmm. Just a hint of malevolence there.

My guess we are heading for a showdown later on in the mini.

And then we see the ever-conniving Belinda Zee try to throw a bigger monkey wrench into the Linda/Lena friendship.

I find Belinda to be a very intriguing character ... sort of Linda through a mirror darkly. She is so twisted.

But the big plot twist for the issue is the giant red Kryptonite meteor hurtling towards the school. It appears that Linda has saved the school from destruction. But even her heroics right now are clumsy and lack grace. This is really a raw Linda, learning on the fly.

I can only imagine the hijinks that ensue from the exposure to the Red K rays. We'll probably see some more Silver Age-y kookiness.

Full review will be up later this week. In the meantime, anyone heading to NYCC should look for Walker and Jones and thank them for bringing some light and fun to the DCU.

And hopefully this miniseries continues to do well enough to warrant a sequel.

Review: Superman #684

Superman #684 is the first Superman issue post-New Krypton. The issue was written by James Robinson but was drawn by fill in artist Jesus Merino. This 'Faces of Evil' cover sports the Parasite on the cover looking mostly like scar tissue. No mouth, no eyes, no ears. It reminded me of the Parasite from the Bruce Timm Superman animated series. I also noted the green diamond '12' on the cover. I thought the diamonds were going to stop with the end of New Krypton. And as far as I know there was no '11' unless it was accidentally left off of Supergirl #37.

The first half of the issue is told from the Parasite's point of view which was somewhat interesting. Robinson does a good job of putting us inside the villain's head as he vividly describes the craving he has for energy. He also points out that some things that the Parasite absorbs (like the ability to speak Portuguese) stay forever while other skills fade away.



The issue opens with the Parasite on the run on the streets of Metropolis. He then recalls his escape.

Superman and the Science Police were using the Phantom Zone projector to retrieve the supervillains exiled there by Alura during her stay on Earth. Superman says that the Parasite was one of the last few when Mon-El shows up and gives the Man of Steel some bad news.

Zod, Ursa, Non, and all Zod's followers aren't there anymore. And neither is Bizarro.



The Parasite, who was nearby when that exchange took place, jumps at the chance for some Daxamite energy and tackles Mon-El. After a quick drain, he allows Superman to 'imprison' him although he quickly uses his new found powers to escape and flee to the big city. The Parasite vows to find a way to get back to Mon-El and simply suck him dry.

This wasn't a bad section of the book as it sort of fleshed out the previously two-dimensional character of the Parasite.

The rest of the book reads more like a primer for the upcoming year of Superman titles.

First we see the Guardian introducing himself to the Science Police as their new boss. He even divulges his identity to them as a Jim Harper clone.

Then we have a quick scene with Nightwing and Flamebird in Keystone city. They are talking to the Jay Garrick Flash who promises them that he will watch out for the things 'they are hunting'. He also agrees not to tell Superman about their mission. It seems like he would not make that promise to 2 people he didn't know so he must know at least one of them.

On the last panel they are seen swinging away on ropes ... but to be honest it looks like the ropes may have been simply added in rather than drawn. Does that mean the artist knows they can fly?

My money is still on Flamebird being Maxima. But I guess we'll see.

But the most ominous scene comes at the end. Upon learning that Zod has escaped, Superman feels that he needs to warn Alura and New Krypton. He flies there and chats with her. After her usual cheap shots (telling him he is an Earth man and surprised he would care about New Krypton, etc.), she brings him to a military parade. Looks almost fascist with the flags flying and the troops and tanks cruising in formation. For Earth, that would be a chilling sight.

He remains calm, warning Alura of Zod's apparent escape from the Phantom Zone. Alura calmly tells Superman that Zod and his followers aren't missing. She freed them and pardoned them.

This is one of the few times I have seen Kal get emotional with Alura. He calls her Aunt Alura and demands to know where Zod is.

Alura points down to the parade grounds. There is Zod, with Non and Ursa, surveying the troops. If the parade itself is chilling, the sight of these megalomaniacs as the leaders of a superhuman army is downright terrifying. Certainly it has to be frightening to Kal-El.

This was a decent issue. As I said above, it seemed more like an issue to introduce the upcoming concepts of the super-titles. We see the main players of all the new directions. Mon-El and The Guardian for Superman. Nightwing and Flamebird for Action. Alura and Zod for World of New Krypton. And the Parasite part was pretty well done.

Merino's art is a bit blotchy and dark for what I consider more of a 'clean line' title. That style certainly worked with the Parasite, giving him a monstrous look. But it was a bit murky for Mon-El and the New Krypton scenes.

Overall grade: B