Monday, April 12, 2021

Tom King Tweet

News continues to leak out about the upcoming Supergirl:World of Tomorrow mini-series.

Last week, Tom King posted this alternate cover of the first issue drawn by Gary Frank as well as an interesting tidbit within the tweet itself. But more on that later. For now, let's look at the cover.

First off, I am a long time Gary Frank fan, especially his take on Supergirl. I was there when Peter David's solo title hit the racks with some great Frank art. And I loved his take on the new Kara in Geoff Johns' Action Comics run, including the Brainiac storyline.

More recently, I have thought that his characters look a bit gaunt and haggard. Not so here.

Supergirl looks strong, fit, and healthy. I like that her hair looks like the wind is blowing through it, her cape billowing. And she looks fierce.

We finally get to see the 'vengeful young girl' who is the key to this mini-series. She looks very young, despite the Amazon-like armor. And the alien vegetation and the barbarian archer in the background gives us a sense of the planet she comes from.

But poor Krypto! He looks outright despondent. Maybe he is sad that Kara once again is going off-planet and wondering about her life. Can't I get a Supergirl series where she is simply an Earth-based super-hero, bright and inspirational?

Anyways, on to the tweet.


Here is what he said:


Incredible alt cover for Supergirl Woman of Tomorrow #1 by Gary Frank. Meet Ruthye, your newest favorite DC character. She’s got quite a future ahead of her.

(Also, We’ve got a nice surprise coming for fan’s of the Frank/David Supergirl run. So this is kind of perfect.)

No mention of Kara at all in this tweet, really. Only time Supergirl is mentioned is in reference to the book title.

But we hear about Ruthye, 'your newest favorite DC character'. This, of course, makes me worry that much like the tedious Future State Kara Zor-El Woman of Tomorrow mini-series, that Kara will be a supporting character in her own book while a creator cultivates their pet project.

Now I know that is a lot for me to glean from that one line. But this is learned behavior.

Wouldn't it be great if King had called Supergirl 'your new favorite character' meaning she is your newly-minted favorite character? Or something about how she is the hero helping Ruthye? 

That last line is interesting, especially for me, a fan of the Peter David run. A reminder, in that run the protoplasm Matrix Supergirl merged with a vengeful angry young woman named Linda Danvers.

But if this series ends with Kara merging with Ruthye, forever changing my Supergirl into King's pet character, I'll be pretty ticked.

I am truly trying to enter this with optimism. Surely this will be a solid-selling book given the creators. But does Supergirl need a Mister Miracle, Heroes in Crisis, Vision deconstruction and wallow in trauma? Will she come out reinvigorated and ready to be a hero?

Fingers crossed.

10 comments:

  1. I had exactly the same thought about ‘Ruthie’ but you can also reading it with the thought in mind that Supergirl is already a favourite character, now here’s another to add to the list. Fingers crossed for the latter. I do love her design, it’s so pulp SF, and yes, Kara looks tremendous too.

    But please, someone give Krypto a super-Scooby snack.

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  2. I just hope this new Supergirl mini series is good. Tom King is usually good with mini series than ongoing but not promoting the title character is a bit concerning. This is Kara's book after all. But at least we know the art will look good. Hoping for the best.

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  3. "Meet Ruthye, your newest favorite DC character. She’s got quite a future ahead of her."

    Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaand, dropped. At least King tweeted ahead of time what this book will really be about. Not that I had hopes that a book written by him would be any good.

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  4. Yeah this is another "Earth Angel" thing, clearly King's pitch for a "Ruthye" book didn't reel in any takers so he is essentially shoe-horning his favorite into the Supergirl book. I wonder if DC's "Plan for Supergirl" (if they even have one) is for her to proclaim herself "SuperWoman" (and likely then vanish into obscurity) leaving the TPTB the opportunity to create a "New Supergirl"?
    I wouldn't put it past them, its the sort of dumb decision DC makes these days.

    JF

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  5. There's an epidemic of "new characters" fueling first appearance speculation. Tynion promotes his new characters non-stop. Punchline (who got a one-shot and now a backup series), Clownhunter, Ghost-Maker (now with a backup series), Miracle Molly. This feels like it could be more of that.

    Tom King did well by Superman in his story "Up in the Sky," in the first Walmart series. On the other hand, he has inherited not just where the most recent Supergirl series ended, but also where she ends up in Future State. So far, DC seems to be tracking towards Future State as an actual, not hypothetical, future. All of the Batman books are tracking it closely, while Suicide Squad and Teen Titans seem to be heading straight ahead as well, plus Wonder Girl is about to debut. We are going to see more of House of El. The exact Midnighter story is continuing, through time travel, in the present, and Superman seems to be weakening and is probably headed for War World. King has similar parameters to work with, and you can't blame him for that.

    T.N.

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  6. "But if this series ends with Kara merging with Ruthye, forever changing my Supergirl into King's pet character, I'll be pretty ticked."

    Nahhh, I think that would be too obvious. Hallmark of the PAD run was that he almost always kept readers guessing what was going to happen next. So if King can pull off some similarly surprising plot twists, then the series should make for an 'absorbing' read instead. And yes, the Gary Frank alt. cover is pulling me back in.


    KET

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  7. If DC can make a stupid decision, 10/10 they will.

    I'll admit, I do not have high hopes for this. Anj, if you check it out and say otherwise, than I'll change my mind. But until then, I have my doubts.

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  8. Thanks for comments.

    It is a weird combination - King, Supergirl, space, and a vengeful young girl.

    Trying to be hopeful.

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  9. Professor FeetlebaumApril 12, 2021 at 9:04 PM

    I can't see Kara merging with Ruthye. As I recall, Peter David's purpose in merging Matrix with Linda Danvers was because he felt that readers (and maybe he himself) could not relate to a Supergirl who was an artificial shapeshifting gloptoid. Merging with Linda gave Matrix a needed human identity.

    That's not the case here. I would guess that somehow, in the course of this new series, Kara and Ruthye encounter Matrix/Linda/Supergirl and she joins them on their mission.

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  10. William Ashley VaughanApril 12, 2021 at 11:09 PM

    I would hope that Supergirl would find her true heroic nature and be an inspiration for Ruthye.

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