Supergirl (And Some Superman) News From The NYCC

The New York City Comic Con just wrapped up and sounds like it was a great convention to attend. If only because it was the first big con after the DC Relaunch, it probably was a blast. Alas, I couldn't be there.

But the usual sites have very good coverage. After perusing, I would recommend going to Comic Book Resources and Newsarama to read about the super titles. Both have pretty much the same info, although there are a couple unique items in each. Here are the links: http://www.comicbookresources.com/?page=article&id=34943 and http://www.newsarama.com/comics/nycc-2011-dc-superman-panel-111015.html

And here are the Supergirl specific stuff (with one Superman item at the end).

The audience clapped loudly as "Supergirl" writer Mike Johnson joined series artist Asrar to talk about the title. "It was really intimidating at first," said Johnson, touching on reinventing the character, adding, "Part of the fun of the book is seeing people, places that are familiar but different in very important ways."

Showing the cover to #5, Johnson revealed that the issue takes place in Argo city. "The first few issues will be, how do you get from Siberia to Argo City? It is a painful process," said Johnson.

Loud clapping for a Supergirl team? That's great news.

And I wonder just how much of the classic Supergirl history we are going to see in this new run. I am glad that the Argo City part of her origin remains intact (rather than Kara being rocketed directly from Krypton as it was in the Loeb reboot). But here it sounds like Argo still is around (unlike the classic where it became a Kryptonite tomb or the Johns/Gates reboot where it was destroyed by Brainiac). Is there an intact chunk of Krypton's culture still out there?

Asrar then brought up onscreen two pages from the second issue showing Supergirl punching out Superman. "She's strong!" laughed Asrar.

"The first page of the issue takes on place on Krypton," Johnson added, saying that neither Superman nor Supergirl will trust each other at first. "There's a certain distrust," Asrar said with a laugh as a slide was shown where Supergirl punches Superman.

"She's actually stronger than Kal-El," Idelson said. Johnson said, "She came out of that pod ready to go, as people noticed," he said.

So like everything about this new comic, I think a lot depends on timing. A 'certain distrust' for a couple of issues ... fine. A year worth of the cousins not talking to each other? Too much. If Supergirl is missing her homeworld so much, she should be embracing her cousin. And Superman, who has been 'alone' for so long, should be seeking her out as well. Heck, even in the Loeb version their first reaction was to hug each other.

The 'stronger than Superman' thing also seemed played out in the Loeb version. It was quickly swept under the rug early in that series.

"Well, we have the wedding of Lois and Jimmy special," joked Jurgens. Johnson then said that they were going to bring Jimmy into "Supergirl" as a friend for Kara.

I like Jimmy as a member of the Supergirl supporting cast, something we saw at the end of the Gates/Igle period. It also makes me think that the Superman rift must be short lived if a prominent friend of Superman is also a friend to Kara. 

So overall, some nice juicy info about the Supergirl. And lots of Superman news although this stuck out.

Artist Gene Ha also did part of the interior art for #3 and Idelson displayed those pages, saying that Ha is in charge of all the sequences on Krypton in the issue. "Not only is that your first look at Jor-El but Krypto, which looks very different then you're used to," said Idelson, bringing up an image of Jor-El and Krypto on the screen.

I loved Ha's work on Project Superman so I am glad he is getting some more Super-work. But I have read elsewhere that Krypto is not around in the new DCnU. He doesn't survive the trip and might even be the horned animal seen in Action Comics #2. That's a bummer. Yes, I know en face a super-dog seems silly and Silver Age-y. But it certainly has worked the last few years. Too bad.

Anyways, some interesting news, especially the Argo City reveal. I hope that the book continues to impress.