Saturday, May 16, 2009

Word Balloon Interview With Sterling Gates And Jamal Igle


There is an unbelievably in-depth interview as a podcast with Sterling Gates and Jamal Igle over on Word Balloon. Here is the link:
I will say, make the popcorn and get a soda. It is over an hour long! But it is great to hear these guys talk all about the book. And it really covers all angles of the book - from how the team got the book, in-depth discussions about characters and their motivations and background, and Supergirl's role in the DCU overall.

There is just way too much to cover here but I did pick out a couple of things that was worthy enough for me to jot down on a nearby pad.

Zor-El's death: Both Sterling and Jamal talk about how they drew upon personal experiences to create that scene and how that helped make it as powerful as it was. But also they talk about how the decision was made to kill Zor-El off in New Krypton in the first place.

Alura: there is a lot of stuff Alura's personality and how she might be pushing Kara away to spare Kara some pain should Alura die. But they also talk about how Alura's position makes Supergirl sort of a 'princess' on New Krypton and how that effects how Kara is perceived on the planet.

Fashion: There is a great discussion about the changes in Supergirl's costume sepecifically Matt Idelson telling Jamal that he never wanted to see Supergirl's panties again. But also there is a great spot about the origins of Lana and Cat's wardrobe and how further shows how those characters are foils.

Lana: There is a clear love of Lana Lang in both Sterling and Jamal. It seems like her illness comes to a head in Supergirl #47.

Supergirl Annual #1: This sounds like it is going to be great. Not only will there be a story called 'Linda Lang Day One' but also the 'The Secret Origin of Superwoman' !!

If you have some time on your hands, I recommend listening just because it really is a super-comprehensive discussion about Supergirl. I was really struck by how obvious it was that both Sterling and Jamal really care about the character.

10 comments:

  1. this really was a great interview. i know i probably didn't get everything on the first listen, and may have to give it another run though...
    its great to hear our supergirl team talk about their love for kara and her stories...

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  2. Hmmm, honestly? After having heard this (and with all due respect to both Sterling Gates and Jamal Igle) I unfortunately don't necessarily agree with what they had to say regarding their plan thus far for Supergirl (like having Superwoman being revealed to be actually Lucy Lane for one) as well as some of the upcoming stuff they intend to focus on and was actually finding myself somewhat more and more disappointed and depressed as it all went along because of it.

    I'm willing to see how it all plans out but I won't be afraid to jump off of her monthly and wait for the trade itself if what's going on in her monthly is something I no longer enjoy checking out. It'll more then break my heart but I'm not willing to support a version of Supergirl that I just think is being treated second fiddle when compared to Superman.

    I think I'm REALLY starting to sour on the whole "World of New Krypton" idea itself and truth be told instead really wished that Geoff Johns had decided to go through with the idea in the Legions own time 31st Century era instead of present because having more Kryptonians then just Superman, Supergirl, Power Girl, Krypto and the Phantom Zone trio is really starting to feel like overkill right now and come Supergirl in particular it just feels like it's taking away time and effort that could be better spent developing her in her own title including a supporting cast that ISN'T so heavily tied in to Superman's and trying to build from that instead of wanting to integrate her so heavily in this whole New Krypton thing including Superman's own home in the DCU itself.

    I would've loved to have seen Lucy Lane de-aged post-FC continuity wise to that of 16 and had been Supergirl's all new best friend upon being reintroduced in the Superman-family titles themselves rather then having her being OLDER then Supergirl and turning out to be this evil puppet of her fathers who's going by "Superwoman" instead.

    I would've loved to have seen Supergirl come Post-FC DCU continuity wise have adopted the secret id of one "Linda Lee" as well as befriending Lucy Lane as well as in time Lena Thorul (Lex Luthor's own younger biological sister) while aside from them 2 having her title establish her very own unique supporting cast characters around their age and have gone from there with the title's main plot eventually revealing to have a big bad who's been operating in the shadows causing Supergirl and her cast all of their individual problems. Hell I would've had action, adventures galore, romance and still would've been more then willing to leave out Supergirl having rediscovered her parents and Kandor's very existence even. I'm sorry this is just how I feel as of late.

    P.S. Sorry for any bad grammar for it's gone Sun 2:30 AM over here and have yet to get some sleep. Heh.

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  3. The interview was very interesting and felt like a DVD commentary for a comic book. I think Supergirl is currently in good hands and I look forward to what Jamal and Sterling has in store for us in the future.

    If WB does an animated Supergirl movie, I hope they pick Sterling's brain for ideas and plot points just like they did with Gail Simone for the recent Wonder Woman movie.

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  4. If the WB wanted to do a 'backdoor" animated feature, they could do worse than last year's "Brainiac" serial....of course some of Kara's bits would need to be tweaked (She'd be all enthused to go chasing a solar disrupter missile in my version) but other than that it is a natural.
    After that, we'd go to a solo SG feature, any one of a number of storylines would work in the animated format.

    BTW anyone else notice the mirror-imaging here?
    Alura bullyrags her daughter and uses her to get Reactron...Sam Lane bullyrags his daughter into becoming Superwoman. Seems like Lucy and Kara are more alike than they realize.

    John Feer

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  5. A really enjoyable and informative interview. I am glad that Gates and Igle will be on Supergirl for a long time.

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  6. -I love how geoff dropped his fork. Someone wants to write supergirl! SHOCKER!
    - I really hope he gets his legion story. Its the only team Kara really fits both in chemistry and tradition

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  7. The interview was very interesting and felt like a DVD commentary for a comic book. I think Supergirl is currently in good hands and I look forward to what Jamal and Sterling has in store for us in the future..

    Thanks for the post. It did have a DVD commentary feel to it ... that's a great analogy.

    They just sound excited about the book and that usually means a good product will be the result/has been the result.

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  8. BTW anyone else notice the mirror-imaging here?
    Alura bullyrags her daughter and uses her to get Reactron...Sam Lane bullyrags his daughter into becoming Superwoman. Seems like Lucy and Kara are more alike than they realize.
    .

    Thanks for the post.

    Hmmm ... I wonder if that somehow made Lucy opt to don the cowl. Interesting.

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  9. - I really hope he gets his legion story. Its the only team Kara really fits both in chemistry and tradition.

    Thanks for the post.

    I also hope we see it. Maybe as a crossover story with Adventure?

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  10. Hell I would've had action, adventures galore, romance and still would've been more then willing to leave out Supergirl having rediscovered her parents and Kandor's very existence even. I'm sorry this is just how I feel as of late..

    Thanks for the post.

    I have always said that the Supergirl audience is tough to please because we tend to be fractured amongst ourselves.

    I am sorry to hear your concerns about the title and hope you stick around. You are always passionate about Kara, the mark of a true fan.

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