DC's Supergirl Next Door Valentine's Day anthology came out this week, a smorgasbord of quick romance stories starring an interesting if unaffiliated group of characters. Much like the Ma Hunkel Christmas Special, the talent on the book are mostly people I haven't heard of with a smattering of a people I know from a few books.
I used to love these holiday books when growing up. These days they are mostly 'hit or miss' without much to remember afterwards. But they had me at calling it Supergirl Next Door.
One thing that is tough about these books is that they are outside of continuity so trying to figure out the whens and the wheres are tough especially in this book where things seem far afield for most of these characters. And for a hefty $9.99 I would love for there to be one story, maybe a lead story, from a big name talent team.
I do love the Amy Reeder cover even if it isn't related to the Supergirl story inside.
Let's jump into the Supergirl story.
Welcome to the post-Tom King Supergirl where the default mode is the young woman just holding back the tears, filled with sadness.
Thankfully Allen knows a way to cheer her up, asking her to discuss the constellations she is looking for. She has a sheet of paper to remind her what they look like.
'A Dream of Different Stars' was written by CRC Payne with art by Paulina Ganucheau. We saw Ganucheau's art in a recent Supergirl issue so I recognized the name.
Here a blonde Linda Danvers (haven't seen that before) is the popular girl in high school and isn't afraid to show some athletic prowess. All of this feels very new for almost any incarnation of Supergirl.
Allen is a shy boy who thinks she is lightyears away from him.
Late one night, Allen hears footsteps on his roof. There is Linda doing some stargazing. She likes his roof more than her own because he has a better view.
She is trying to see stars that she used to see back home. And she missed that view.
Welcome to the post-Tom King Supergirl where the default mode is the young woman just holding back the tears, filled with sadness.
Allen says she can go on his roof whenever she wants and he can join her. She would love that so she could have a friend with her. As a shy guy, he can't believe how easy Linda is open to be friends.
But that is a pretty fast turnaround from the girl who just said how much she misses her old home and seemed despondent.
As the continue to view the stars, Linda opens up about how she has dreams of flying in a ship with her family and her father teaching her all the constellations. She wishes they could have got in the ship with her.
She collapses on the roof, head between her knees, forlorn. She will only see her parents and those stars in her dreams.
Welcome to the post-Tom King Supergirl where the default mode is the young woman just holding back the tears, filled with sadness.
In a nice touch, she talks about the Flamebird and Nightwing star configurations, even touching on their mythology. You'd think he might ask where she is from and if those beings are local color. But he doesn't.
Remember, this is a Valentine's Day special.
In the end, Allen does something very sweet, recreating Linda's star map on a light dome, making a personalized planeterium. And she responds, putting her head on his shoulder and thanking him.
It is a sweet story.
I won't touch on all the stories but the Swamp Thing story by Rosie Knight and Michael Shelfer was my favorite. Swampy remembers the day he first met Abby Arcane in the swamp. (It doesn't jibe with continuity but that is par for the course here.) But it is also very sweet.
And Shelfer's art was the best in the book by far.
Anyways, Happy early Valentine's Day.
Overall grade (Supergirl story): C+
Overall grade (whole book): C
1 comment:
I’ve only read the Supergirl and Flash story so far. The Jay tale is awful, this is just a tad nothingy, YA longing. If this is actually Supergirl she could, perhaps, just possibly, get a good view of the night sky by, you know, flying?
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