Supergirl Being Super Preview

Back in September, DC Comics announced Supergirl Being Super, an out of continuity mini-series telling Supergirl's origin. Written by Mariko Tamaki with art by Joelle Jones, the book promised an 'updated look at Kara Zor-El's earliest days on Earth'.

Now I have been a fan of Joelle Jones' art since I first discovered her work. So I was going to be in for this  project no matter. I have not read anything of Mariko Tamaki yet but I have read the glowing reviews for her work all over the internet and so I am intrigued.

Last week preview pages for the mini-series hit the internet and I think it teases what the underlying theme is going to be in the book. Here is a link to the pages as posted on Newsarama:
http://www.newsarama.com/32076-go-back-to-supergirl-s-origin-in-supergirl-being-super-1.html

Just based on the creators and the out of continuity nature of this, I could knew this was going to be a bit more modern and perhaps a bit more progressive. After all, without the weight of 50+ years of continuity and fandom memory, the shackles are creatively off. So I am interested to see where all this is going.

In what seems to be the opening page, we get a simple origin page.

This basically looks like a retelling of the Superman origin, doesn't it? Rocket to Earth, in the breadbasket of America, discovered by a passing car. I have to assume that there isn't a Superman on this Earth. So already it is a whole new world.

Look at that page again and remove the words from the balloons. You would assume this is a Superman origin page, wouldn't you?

It is the  voice over that shakes things up a bit though. These are the words of a teenage girl, lamenting cheesy narration. But the theme is right there. She says you need an origin story so you can learn 'who I am'.

Like many origin stories, this is clearly going to be one of self-discovery and forging your own identity.

 Moving on, we see Kara walking her way through a typical day in high school. I get the sense her powers haven't manifested yet. She is just suffering through the usual trials of normalcy - picture day and acne.

We meet Dolly Granger, Kara's best friend and self-described 'bad-ass dyke'. She seems completely comfortable with her identity with her purple hair and quirky clothes. But she is confident and happy with who she is.

 And then we meet Jennifer Bard, Kara's other best friend. She defines herself as an athlete. And she seems quite comfortable with being seen as that.

So we have two best friends with solid ideas of who they are and how they want people to perceive them. Clearly, they are the contrasts to Kara who, I am sure, is going to be wondering who she is in this world.

You can see some of that in her body positioning in the picture. She seems off-balance on the stool, unsure.

Now would these three be best friends in the weird world of high school? I suppose that friends are friends. But there is a sort of Breakfast Club feel to this clique.

Jock? Check!
Political activist? Check!
All we need is a rich kid and a nerd.

Hopefully it won't be that stilted.

We see the three in gym class, running some track with biometric recorders, solar-powered fitbit like things which measure pace and vitals. Could this be where we start to see some of Kara's abilities catalogued?

Anyways, we know that Kara will manifest powers here. And my guess is it is that sort of growth that will spur her to declare her identity as Supergirl, a hero. And I am sure we'll get some deep discussion between these three about how important it is to be true to yourself and not hide what you are.

It all reads wonderful and the art is spot on. So unlike many of the 'Earth One' projects I have flipped through, I am actually looking forward to this 'Elseworlds'. Can't wait to read the actual issues!