Bullet Review: New History Of The DC Universe #3

When the New History of the DC Universe was announced, I was thrilled.

Three issues in and I am confused at best and dissatisfied at worst. 

Writer Mark Waid is working with a smorgasbord of great artists on the book. This issue has art by Dan Jurgens and Doug Manhnke, which makes sense given some of the events covered here.

This issue Waid takes us from the aftermath of the Crisis of the Infinite Earths to Final Crisis. But it seems like DC has decided that everything has happened. Like, everything. 

So in essence, this becomes a bit more like a list of events rather than a historical epic. And sometimes things don't seem to make sense. 

Let's take a look at New History of the DC Universe #3 solely from Supergirl perspective. I already talked about how in History #2, Kara's age and the very presence of COIE in a non-multiverse universe was pretty confusing.

So how do we get to the current Supergirl? And what do you do with the Matrix Supergirl adventures? 

You say they happened ... 

In this issue, we get a 2 pages covering the Death of Superman and Reign of the Supermen. 

While I understand that the four 'Supermen' were the big draws of this story, the Matrix Supergirl was a big part of that long arc.

So at first I throught 'funny they left Supergirl off the page entirely'. I thought maybe she'd be a dot in the background.

But then I thought 'actually, it makes sense for her not to be there. It would be very hard to jibe the Matrix Supergirl adventures into this new history'. 

At last, I thought, a change.

Last issue ended with Supergirl dead in the Crisis.

Now we hear, in a throwaway line that Supergirl is resurrected. You can read that line that she was resurrected by Darkseid or that she was resurrected and then manipulated.

How resurrected? We will probably never know. 

Resurrected by Darkseid?? That's a dark turn but given the bratty early years of that book, maybe it makes sense. 

But now the Loeb/Turner Supergirl is the resurrected original Supergirl. So take from that origin what you will. Sounds like she didn't crashland in Gotham. But this is a serious change. And I don't know if I like it. If you are trying to make everything happen, you need to explain two Supergirls as one being.

Anyways ...

Love the Doug Mahnke Supergirl. Love the full blue shirt. 

And love ... LOVE ... that Waid talks about the joy everyone felt when Supergirl came back as a BEACON OF GOODNESS AND HOPE.

Seriously ... that is Supergirl. 

But get ready for one more curveball. 

First off, everyone please remember how much I loved the Matrix Supergirl. I loved that character. I loved the PAD series. 

But ... it might make more continuity sense if she didn't exist in this world where Kara has existed for a while and has even gone and come back.

And yet, in the appendix of the issue where we go beat for beat about the DCU, we see that Matrix did exist. She comes from 'another dimension' (not that pesky 'pocket universe') and 'posed' as Supergirl. Sounds almost nefarious.

Did she tell people she was Kara? What happened to her?
She isn't mentioned again in the backmatter.

There are plenty of other examples of headache-inducing continuity glitches in this series. But this Supergirl stuff alone is chin-scratching.

Overall grade: C