A Little Bit Of Kandor: Candor Pt 3 Supergirl #8

Welcome to my review of Supergirl #9, the third part of the Candor storyline I am covering.

After two issues, the Greg Rucka era on this Supergirl title ended. I would love to talk to Rucka at some point to see if this was always planned to be a brief run or if he had editorial differences or other opportunities that led him to leave.

But Supergirl #9 is the beginning of the Joe Kelly run on the book. For me, Kelly's run is the worst run for this character. That took me by surprise. After all, Kelly wrote 'What's so funny about Truth Justice and the American Way' in Action Comics #775, one of the better looks at Superman remaining an inspirational hero in a cynical world.

Instead of giving us a heroic Supergirl, learning the ropes on Earth, he gives us a petulant child, an angry and angsty young woman who only cares about herself. He made her a violent person, a killer on Krypton. And his portrayal of her was hypersexual. It certainly isn't any type of Supergirl that I want to read. And at times it is downright creepy.

The art on this issue leans into that portrayal. We start with the cover by Joe Benitez who gives us a Power Girl defining pulchritude. The internal art by Ron Adrian isn't as overt. Adrian brings a decent take on Kara, Karen, and the weird Kandor.

But this story can't end soon enough. And as you will see, it ends abruptly and rather terribly. On to this book!

Publishers Weekly DC Sales Report

There is a very in-depth look at DC's current economic woes at Publisher's Weekly. Here is the link:

http://pwbeat.publishersweekly.com/blog/2008/07/02/dc-month-to-month-sales-may-2008/

The writer does an incredible job at breaking down the numbers, not only of DC as a whole but each individual title, looking back at not only the last several issues sales but also prior incarnations of the title going back years.

Here is the breakdown of Supergirl. The numbers are sobering ... staggering ... depressing. I had no ideas the title had hemorrhaged readers so badly.

74 - SUPERGIRL
05/2001: Supergirl #58 — 20,376*
05/2002: Supergirl #70 — 19,156*
05/2006: Supergirl #6 — 102,860
———————————
05/2007: Supergirl #17 — 50,429 (- 2.4%)
06/2007: Supergirl #18 — 50,279 (- 0.3%)
07/2007: Supergirl #19 — 48,576 (- 3.4%)
08/2007: Supergirl #20 — 46,862 (- 3.5%)
09/2007: Supergirl #21 — 44,656 (- 4.7%)
10/2007: Supergirl #22 — 41,758 (- 6.5%)
11/2007: Supergirl #23 — 45,460 (+ 8.9%)
12/2007: Supergirl #24 — 37,922 (-16.6%)
01/2008: Supergirl #25 — 36,459 (- 3.9%)
02/2008: Supergirl #26 — 34,186 (- 6.2%)
03/2008: Supergirl #27 — 32,596 (- 4.7%)
04/2008: Supergirl #28 — 31,379 (- 3.7%)
05/2008: Supergirl #29 — 30,192 (- 3.8%)
—————-
6 months: -33.6%
1 year : -40.1%
2 years : -70.7%
Supergirl sales keep dropping at an alarming rate. Yet another “regular” new creative team (the sixth one to date, if you’re keeping count) has been announced, meanwhile.

70.7% loss of readers over 2 years. 33.6% over the last 6 months recorded.

70.7 % !!!! 33.6%

So ... how do we interpret these numbers? Let's look at some of the key issues.

Issue 6: 102,000 issues. I expected sales to be brisk at this point in the title. The title was just coming off the Loeb opening arc. Churchill's art was being relatively well received. This was also a jumping on point for new readers with a new storyline that was in essence One Year Later. There was a variant Churchill cover. It also marked the return of Ed Benes to a Supergirl title and guest starred Power Girl. Greg Rucka had just been named new writer. I thought issues 1-5 were okay, although I thought the ending of the story was not satisfying. But I had optimism for this new team and story.

Issue 19: 48,500 issues. Well, after a number of creative teams and what I felt was an absolutely abysmal run by writer Joe Kelly, I was not surprised to see that the title had lost about 50% of its readers. The buzz had faded. The story and art was uneven. And the boards unfortunately showed a fractionated Supergirl fandom. To be honest I am surprised the title sold that many at this point. This was the really awful 'mad Zor-El, kill Kal-El' storyline. The Garza art was uneven at best, muddy at worst. Kelly continued to write (for me) an unlikeable Kara. I almost dropped the title myself.

Issue 23: 45,500 issues. This represented a slight bump in sales from the prior dreadful Countdown crossovers. The new team of Kelly Puckett, who wrote Batgirl so well, and Drew Johnson were coming on board. There was a variant cover by Adam Kubert. Maybe some new readers were brought in. Maybe some old readers came back with the end of the Joe Kelly run.

Issue 24: 38,000 issues. Uhhh ... were did all the new readers go? Well, when it is a new team and you expect new readers, you need to hook them. But issue 23, Puckett's first issue, which was nearly wordless, was probably not a great way to reel people in. So 7ooo readers left. For me, these issues were a breath of fresh air. It immediately redefined the Superman/Supergirl relationship. Kal called on her for help. Sheacted heroic, going to her absolute limits to try to accomplish the mission. Even better, in issue 24 we see a loving Zor-El!

Still, I think about Birds of Prey 56, the first Simone/Benes issue. That had a hook ... great dialogue, great cliff-hanger, eye-catching cover.

Heck, it even said 'Bold New Direction' on the cover. Comics readers are suckers for that line! That's what this title needed in issue 23, a hook to keep new readers.

Issue 29: 30,000 issues. Right in the middle of the 'Saving Thomas' storyline and we are at 25% of sales from issue 6. 30,000 is probably on the cusp of cancellation. But just like Kelly's run was loved by some and hated by others (like me), it seems Puckett has the same effect. I think if you hated Kelly, you like Puckett. And if you liked Kelly, you hate Puckett.

Issue 34: ??? issues. My guess is that DC will do some ads about the title, emphasizing the link to the Superman title. Let's hope Sterling Gates is a unifying force for the polarized Kara fans, bringing together the divided Supergirl house. I think this pic from the Igle website will be a variant cover, maybe drumming up orders.

And I am hoping for about 38,000 in sales for that issue. I don't think this title can afford to lose more support.

Review: Supergirl 1-28

Let's review the Supergirl issues so far.



1-5: A decent opening story, picking up where the Superman/Batman origin story ended. Jeph Loeb did a decent job of showing how difficult it was for Kara to find her way on earth initially. And there is always some guilty pleasure in seeing a Kryptonian/Lutho smack-down. The 'split persona' plot twist is a little tired, and the seeds of the 'I am here to kill Kal-El' thread were planted here though. Grade: B



6-8: One year later and we have 3 inscrutable issues taking place in Kandor with Kara again being mind-controlled. After an aborted rebellion and fiery speeches, Kara takes off for Earth to possibly search for Argo. Even Greg Rucka knew this was so bad, he left after 2 issues. Grade: D




9-12: The beginning of the Joe Kelly experiment. A series of one shots which are hit or miss. The high school issue, where Kara tries to have a secret identity only to leave after she sees how cruel teenagers can be, is a brief shining light. The Outsiders issue (11) and the Terra (12) issue do little to move the title forward. The Outsiders issue in particular seems more interested in cheesecake art than story. The Terra issue shows us a shallow Kara rave dancing rather than saving people. It was here I began to feel some dislike to the character, who had yet to show much heroism and instead was sort of a jerk. Overall grade: B, might have been higher without the Terra issue.



13-15: The Power Boy arc. Some nice art here. And a decent message against abusive relationships of any kind. Still, Kara seems flighty and shallow here again. And the seeds of the 'kill Kal-el' plot as well as the 'crystal powers theme' start to put down roots here. Grade: C-




16-19: It ends with Kara asking Kal to forgive her and become part of her life again. Whew! Unfortunately to get there we have to see a demented Zor-El experimenting on Kara, leading her on a Colombine like rampage in her high school where she mows down students with a crystal gun, and Kara killing her mother. There is some obsfuscation where maybe these memories were planted by the dark herald of the Monitor. But who wants to read about a murderous Supergirl with crystal powers and a genocide streak. In particular, issue 18 seems a slap in the face to older Supergirl fans where a 'sweet as pie' Silver Age Kara tries to rough up the current one. It read more like Kelly trying to show some fans that a heroic Kara is the wrong direction. It didn't work. Grade: F




20-22: Amazons attack cross-over. Two Countdown crossovers. (shivers). Enough said.




23-28: Kelley Puckett and Drew Johnson come on. Immediately out of the gate they do 2 things that revitalized my interest in the comic. One, they made Kara act like a hero again. The first issue shows her trying to help Superman in some intergalactic war. She wants to help!! Second, they completely erase the 'mad Zor-El, kill Kal-El, crystal hell' thread, showing actual visions from Krypton of a loving Zor-El and a scientist Lara. Hurrah hurrah!!




Next, they bring in a old school Kara villain, Reactron, last seen way back in Daring New Adventures of Supergirl issues 8 and 9, a nice touch for the old-timers.




But the most intriguing plot has been the cancer plot. Kara promises a young cancer victim that she will save him despite the dismal prognosis. This has always been an undercurrent in super-hero comics. Why stop Blackstarr when instead you can plant crops and feed the hungry? Build shelters for the homeless? Turn deserts into plains? Kara asks the question 'maybe curing cancer is a better use of my time than stopping crooks.'


While the actions she does to bring this about (find Resurrection man, break a noted evil scientist out of jail) seems silly, it makes sense for the character. Kara is a teenager; she is going to be impulsive and do things that seem silly. Still, it is for a good cause.


Some bloggers/message board pundits have complained about this run. They say Kara is too passive. That she is constantly being bailed out by Superman and seems subservient to him. That she has no guts or spirit. I think quite the opposite. This is the best version of Kara I have seen so far in this title. Now if only Drew Johnson could have drawn all the issues so the art would be consistent, it would be fabulous. Grade: B+



And now that we are caught up ... from now on ... monthly reviews.