May Sales Review

It's that time of the month when ICv2.com reviews comic sales from the prior month. As usual, the whole set of links is worth reviewing, especially if you are keeping track of some of your favorite titles. Here is the main link: http://www.icv2.com/articles/news/15150.html

After something of a rebound month in April, the comics market again dipped in May. Once again there was no comic that sold more than 100,000 units. In comparison to May 2008, the market dipped 18%. That is hard to swallow but not hard to believe given the current economic situation.

All that said, I also have been reconsidering my pull list. Knowing the upcoming Blackest Night minis coming out, I have had to look long and hard at my current titles and wonder if I need to trim the fat.

For me, the best part of the ICv2 monthly review is the list of the top 300 books ( http://www.icv2.com/articles/news/15147.html ). The list gives the total number of issues sold and gives me some gut feeling about the 'health' of a title.

Supergirl #41 was the finale of the "Who is Superwoman?" story arc. With the big reveal last month, I was curious to see how the book would do here. Would some people leave with the Lucy reveal? Would the spoilers posted on the net bring some people to the title?

Looks like neither was true. The Gates/Igle Supergirl looks like it is good for 33-34K in sales monthly. That is a steady and respectable number. This issue sold 33,441 issues, down 2% from last month's sales of 34,080. It also represents the lowest sales since the team took over. It is hard to know what that means given the current economic climate and market. The fact that readers have for the most part stuck with the title despite the downturn in the market has to be seen as a good thing, right?

The same sense of stability can be seen in the sales of Supergirl:Cosmic Adventures in the Eighth Grade.

The last issue sold 6,179 which is down 6% from last month's rebound sales of 6,576. That said, outside of the first issue which sold over 9K, this mini sold about 6200 issues each month. Is that good enough sales for a Johnny DC book to greenlight a sequel?

The question is 'does stability in sales in a volatile market signify a healthy title?' Or is DC looking for more? Or is there a certain number sales-wise that should have people preparing for cancellation.

For example, I have really enjoyed R.E.B.E.L.S. but issue #4 only sold 13,468. Despite getting good reviews and some publicity, sales for the title continue to drop monthly. How long does DC give a new title to catch on before the axe falls. 12 issues? 18? I can only hope this title goes long enough to see the end of this Starro run.

Review: Supergirl #41

Supergirl #41, released this week, was labeled the finale to the 'Who is Superwoman?' arc but in some ways it didn't feel like an ending. After last month's Lucy Lane reveal I was hoping that this issue would answer the myriad of questions that I had. What was Lucy's motivations? How did she get her powers? Why go through all this deception?

Some questions were left unanswered; some answers were hinted at. Now I don't need to be spoon-fed my comic stories. Heck, I read Grant Morrison and sort of liked Final Crisis. Still, when an arc is built around a mystery, I think readers deserve the answers.

Now next month's issue is listed as 'Questions and Answers, Epilogues and Homecomings' so maybe more information is going to be revealed there. Maybe this was the 'action' issue and next month is the 'exposition'.

Still ... I really was hoping for more information here. I went into this issue with some expectations that weren't met. Maybe I am just a month early.



As we saw in the Newsarama preview, General Lane had a front row seat for the battle between Supergirl and Superwoman.



And Supergirl asked the question that I have been asking since last issue's big reveal. 'Why?'

'Why' would Lucy put on an S-shield and do the things all the things she has done?

When I reviewed the clues after the Lucy reveal, I wondered if one of her motivations might be besmirching the S-shield and the House of El. I also think that Lucy is trying to earn the love of General Lane and Sam Lane hates Superman. So Lucy acting as Superwoman and doing evil would accomplish both goals.

Here she hints that I might be right. She tells Kara that the Superwoman charade really had little to do with Supergirl specifically but more about the House of El in general. She points to the S-shield and says 'it's about this'.

But it is a hint of motivation ... not a straight forward answer. And even Supergirl recognizes that. She tells Lucy that isn't an answer. Lucy responds that all mysteries aren't easily solved. In a metatextual way, it felt like Supergirl was acting the part of the reader and Superwoman was acting the part of Sterling Gates in a Q&A session. We as readers want cut-and-dried answers and they aren't coming yet.

One thing that is also revealed is that somehow Lucy's DNA now appears to be Kryptonian. So at least part of how she has her powers is known. By being organically derived we have an explanation for her heat vision and strength. Of course, this seems to contradict her immunity to Gold K. Of course, when I thought Superwoman was a Kara clone I explained it away with the suit.

Lucy does reveal that she still wants to be flying under the radar. The discovery of her killing Agent Liberty forced her hand a bit. So she flew to Metropolis to destroy the evidence, kill Henderson and then kill Supergirl, in essence implicating Kara for the Liberty murder. Sure sounds like she wants to tarnish the El family's reputation.

One thing that was good about this issue was that we actually got to see Supergirl cut loose. Superwoman had a hand in Zor-El's death, has deceived Supergirl with friendship, and has murdered Agent Liberty and possibly Inspector Henderson. Superwoman is evil and so deserves to be beaten to a pulp.

In fact, Supergirl is soooo mad she calls Superwoman a murderous 'babootch' a monkey-like animal from Krypton. Hee hee ... I love obscure Silver Age Superman references.

Supergirl actually gets the upper hand smashing Superwoman through the walls of the Police Station and temporarily incapacitating Lucy.

Again, we see Supergirl asking all the questions that I want answered. Why was Lucy on New Krypton? How did she get there? At least Sterling Gates understands what the readers want to know.

In the meantime, Lana has recovered from her nosebleed/fainting spell enough to be released from the Emergency Room with the plan for outpatient testing.

I don't know if I like that look from Cat Grant. I think she is intrigued enough about the night's events to start digging into Lana's life. Can some investigation into Linda Lang be far behind?

Before Supergirl can figure out exactly what to do with Superwoman, Reactron rejoins the fight. There is a great and humorous moment earlier where a couple of kids on the street mistake him for the Atomic Skull.

Reactron wades into the precinct, quickly depowers Supergirl with his Gold K, and slaughters a few police officers. One thing that was slick in this fight sequence was Kara actually counting down the fifteen seconds until her powers kick back in. As we read her mentally counting down the time, it added a nice layer of suspense to the scene. We are counting along, hoping the villains are stalled enough for Supergirl to get back into the fray.

Luckily ... amazingly, Inspector Henderson is able to recover from his heat vision chest wounds. (As a doc myself, I wonder how that's possible ... but anyways.) Noting wryly that lead stops Kryptonite, he shoots Reactron in the eye. I always knew that skull mask didn't provide enough protection. Despite his powers, Reactron is just a guy. A bullet to the eye should stop him if not outright kill him.

This was my favorite moment in the book.

When the fifteen seconds finally elapse, Supergirl says 'time's up' and makes a fist. There is such determination and anger and power in that panel. Wonderful.

When Reactron was shot, he accidentally destroyed one of the yellow disks on Superwoman's costume which caused a feedback of some sort. Lucy screams in pain and is out of commission for a short period of time allowing Kara to recover.

Figuring the disks are some crucial part of Lucy's power grid, Supergirl starts ripping them off and crushing them.

As Kara destroys them, Superwoman begs her to stop. Lucy tells Kara it isn't the disks at all. I suppose if she has some quasi-Kryptonian DNA than it isn't the disks. But when they are destroyed it does seem to hurt Lucy. Even the Project 7734 folks watching the fight note that Superwoman's 'containment field' is in severe flux.

After destroying all the disks and pummeling Superwoman, Supergirl rips the S-shield off Lucy's uniform stating she doesn't deserve to wear it. It is another great moment ... one of pride in her family. I can't believe that 2 years ago Supergirl hated her insane father and was trying to kill Kal. Unfortunately destroying the suit seems to have a greater effect on Lucy than smashing the disks did. Lucy's body becomes suddenly unstable contorting and expanding until she literally explodes. Pretty disgusting. It reminded me of Tetsuo at the end of Akira. Her body simply couldn't contain the power.

At least we know why Lucy was glad Reactron didn't compromise the suit in issue #39. Brrrrrr. One guess is that somehow General Lane was able to splice Kryptonian DNA into his daughter giving her powers. However, this amalgam proved too unstable and so needed to be fortified by a containment field. The same field may have shielded her from any Kryptonite exposure. Or her hybrid genome may have made her immune to K-radiation. The suit and disks somehow provided that protection. But this is educated conjecture rather than revealed truth.

But here is my latest guess and it's one I like.

I wondered about the purple color of the energy swirling around Superwoman and if that has some significance. Could it be Phantom Zone energy? Could Lucy be somehow possessed by either a Phantom Zone criminal or even one of the Phantom Zone phantoms from Joe Kelly's run? That would explain a lot. It would explain the grudge against the House of El, how Kryptonians are 'her people', why her DNA looks Kryptonian, how she had a place to go to on Kandor, and even partly explain the powers. That would explain why Sam Lane said 'I know who you are' to Superwoman/Lucy ... he knows who is possessing her. That might even explain why the suit needed to protect her ... it kept her in our dimension. Without it, she popped back into the phantom zone. Supergirl didn't kill 'Lucy', she put her back into the Zone.

This was my second favorite moment of the book. General Lane actually shows some emotion, some grief over the death of his daughter. It is the first crack in his armor that I have seen since he was re-introduced in New Krypton.

The issue ends with a somewhat battered Supergirl wondering if she killed Lois' sister.

So this is a tough issue to grade.

The truth is that there was a lot to like. It was great to see Supergirl show some resilience and finally throw down ... show how powerful she is. It was great to see her thrash Superwoman. There were some powerful individual moments. And we learned some things about the hows and whys of Superwoman.

I thought Fernando Dagnino did a fine job standing in for Jamal Igle. In particular, I think the fight sequences were done very well. His stuff here seemed to be more polished than the recently released Codename:Patriot covers, maybe due to Raul Fernandez inks. (That said, I am looking forward to Igle returning).

But my expectations might have been set too high. I was really hoping for more information about the Lucy reveal. The whole mystery of 'Who is Superwoman?' is somehow lessened since I still have no understanding of Superwoman's origins and motivations, of the small details like her time on New Krypton or why she would befriend Kara. Now all of this might be revealed in next month's epilogue. and maybe I am jumping the gun a bit. But without getting that information when expected, I felt just a little let down here.

Overall grade: B

Supergirl #41 Preview

Supergirl continues to get some publicity around the web including a nice 5 page preview Supergirl #41 over on Newsarama: http://www.newsarama.com/php/multimedia/album.php?aid=27931

This issue was pencilled by Fernando Dagnino, who I believe is also doing some upcoming Action Comics. From what I have seen of this issue, I think he will do a fine job standing in for Jamal Igle for an issue.

After a page showing Lana being wheeled into a hospital, we cut right to the action - starting out in Project 7734's headquarters. Seems like they have those flying drones everywhere and are able to look in on Supergirl and Superwoman's battle.

It is implied that the troops all knew Lucy was under the cowl.

It is also interesting that General Lane tells his men to have Reactron not re-enter the fight. He wants to see what Lucy can do on her own. He always seems to measuring people's worth, in this case his own daughter. No wonder Lucy is a bit addled. His love and respect is not unconditional.

I was pretty impressed with the art on this 2 page splash. In particular, I think Superwoman/Lucy is rendered very well here.

It is amusing to read along with Kara's thought process about the reveal. She is trying to put together the clues and timeline just like we the readers are.

I also chuckled when Supergirl asks the very question I have been asking since the reveal last issue. Why? Why is Lucy acting as Superwoman?

It is going to be a long week until I get this issue in my hands. I am pretty pumped to read the conclusion to this arc!

More Sneak Peeks on The Source.

Well there certainly has been a lot of Supergirl news this week and I have been trying to keep up. I haven't even had the opportunity to sit down and review this week's comics: Action Comics, R.E.B.E.L.S., and Tiny Titans.

But I felt those reviews could wait given the sneaks and information released over on DC's Blog The Source which covered a day in the life of super-title editor Matt Idelson. Here is the link:
http://dcublog.dccomics.com/2009/04/17/a-day-in-the-life-of-superman-group-editor-matt-idelson/

Of course, the whole post is worth reading but here are the Supergirl pieces.


Some more gorgeous pencils are in from guest-penciller Fernando Dagnino for SUPERGIRL #41—man, he’s SO good. Looking at our schedule, however, I’m thinking it might be more logical to ask Fernando to draw the upcoming SUPERGIRL ANNUAL rather than ACTION #878-879.

So it sounds like Supergirl #41 will be drawn by Fernando Dagnino, whose work I am not familiar with. I am pretty sure this was originally the issue slated to have Talent Caldwell as artist.

The pages I posted on April 16 from the DC blog showing the Supergirl/Superwoman fight were Dagnino pieces. His style seems to complement Jamal Igle's work more than Caldwell's.

But look at that Superwoman above with one red eye. Makes me want to think about voting android a bit more. Actually when I saw it the first time I immediately thought of one person ... Cyborg Superman! He would actually fit in soooo many ways. And that would be absolutely devious.

And I am tickled to hear that we will get a Supergirl Annual this year.

All of the sudden it’s 1:30, which means it’s time for the weekly Superman writers’ chat. Liz, Sean and Wil reemerge from their offices to join me, and we phone up Greg, James and SUPERGIRL writer Sterling Gates and begin a very focused discussion on our next crossover between the Super-books in August. What these guys have come up with is simply amazing, and I’m getting more and more excited about the event. About five minutes in, Geoff Johns joins us—in person!

Well, after the success of New Krypton and the re-integration of Supergirl into the Superman titles, I am glad to hear that another crossover event will be happening. August isn't that far away. That is only a third of the way through World of New Krypton and smack dab in the middle of Blackest Night. Maybe the crossover event is trying to take down the Zombified Kal-L?

Anyways, looks like good stuff is planned. I am excited.

Supergirl News On DC:The Source

Some previews of Supergirl are now being showcased on the new DC Blog, The Source. Here is the link: http://dcublog.dccomics.com/2009/04/15/some-supergirl-art-to-close-out-the-day/

The first preview is a couple of pages from Supergirl #41. Remember, this is the last issue of the 'Who is Superwoman?' story arc and supposedly takes place after Superwoman has revealed herself to Kara.

The first sneak page shows that a battle is ongoing with Supergirl fighting Reactron and Superwoman.

Nice semi-splash here of Supergirl face-planting Superwoman into a wall.

The next sneak page shows Kara on the losing end of the battle. Reactron gloats over her, Gold K spilling from his chest.

I pity the police officers who are trying to stop Reactron. I don't think they are long for this world.

Unfortunately, nothing on these pages to add to the 'Who is Superwoman?' mystery. In fact, I find it interesting that Superwoman is still wearing the cowl.

Also shown is the cover of Supergirl #43, a stunning picture of Kara flying happily in the sky.

We have seen this picture before. Joshua Middleton actually had it posted on his blog waayyyyy back in February 2008! Here is the link including a nice breakdown from rough sketch to finished piece: http://joshuamiddleton.blogspot.com/2008/02/supergirl.html

This doesn't take away from how great this cover is. Unfortunately, it doesn't clue us in to anything happening in the issue either.

No matter what, it was good to see Supergirl promoted on DC's blog.

Middleton On Supergirl #41 Cover

Over on his blog, Josh Middleton does a nice job of breaking down the creative process behind the creation of the cover of Supergirl #41. Here is the link:

http://joshuamiddleton.blogspot.com/2009/03/supergirl-41-process-pics.html

I think I have said it before, but one thing I really like about this blog is the 'behind the scenes' discussion that Middleton pours into his posts. This post, in particular, does just that as we see the evolution of the cover.



Middleton started this cover with a blue pencil drawing of the primary figures: Supergirl and Superwoman. He does a nice job of explaining the process of blue pencil to graphite to inking and how that can change depending on the cover composition.

One thing I like about this up close shot is that you can see the early sketch marks as well as some erase marks. Look close at the fist. See how originally the arm was a bit longer. It shows the work that goes into making a perfect end result.

I figured I would just quote Middleton for the next bit.

In the second image the blue pencil drawing is nearly done, save for Supergirl's skirt, which can be difficult to draw, although I generally enjoy drawing drapery. Maybe it is because her skirt is too short to allow for many folds, or because I often have to bend the rules of physics to protect Supergirl's modesty, but for whatever reason, the skirt is often drawn last. As you can see, I drew her entire body even though the skirt will cover her pelvis- it is very important to always "draw through" your images. You can see that Supergirl's leg is drawn through Superwoman's body as well.

I find it fascinating that Supergirl's skirt is so tricky to draw that it is done last. I think Middleton draws it just a little bit shorter than the length Jamal Igle gives it in the comics. The 'bending the rules of physics' around her skirt used to amuse me back in the early issues of the title when the skirt was very small. Of course, in those issues we also saw some gratuitous panty shots too.

I also like how Middleton shows how he 'draws through' on the cover so you see all of Supergirl's leg even the bit behind Superwoman. I suppose that allows the artist to make sure that the anatomy stays correct.

For this cover, since color was more important than inking details, Middleton did not use graphite pencils or heavy inking over the blue pencil image. Instead he went straight to line drawing with ink.

I am probably massacring the process ... it might be better to read his entry.

One thing I did find amazing was that the drawing bit of the cover is really limited to the two characters. The clouds and ground are all added via computer.

I hope Middleton continues to put up these 'evolution' posts on his blog. One thing I would like to see is the step even before the first one here ... the step where he decides exactly what the cover layout will be. Maybe some thumb nail sketches from which he decides on the final design.

May 09 Solicits

Newsarama showcased DC's May solicitation earlier this week ( http://www.newsarama.com/comics/090217-may-2009-dc-solicitations.html ). While the big buzz is over the 'Battle for the Cowl' (including a hint that Babs might walk again!?), the Super-family remained pretty busy. And, as usual, there was a little surprise and another disappointment.


SUPERGIRL #41
Written by Sterling Gates
Art by Talent Caldwell
Cover by Joshua Middleton

The dramatic conclusion to “Who Is Superwoman?” Superwoman’s identity stands revealed, leading to a knock-down-drag-out fight the likes of which Metropolis will be talking about for years to come! Supergirl will wish she'd never found out who was under the hood as Superwoman and Reactron join forces against the Girl of Steel. How can Supergirl possibly survive?

Well, so much has been added to the mix with Wednesday's #38 ... review coming soon I promise. But we get the conclusion of the Superwoman story with what sounds like a major brawl.

The art is being done by Talent Caldwell this issue. I put him in the Michael Turner, Scott Campbell style of art, a big difference from Jamal Igle. No worries though, Igle has already said that he is back next issue. This was a planned rest issue to work around a vacation he had planned.

ACTION COMICS #877
Written by Greg Rucka
Art by Eddy Barrows & Ruy José
Cover by Andrew Robinson

Nightwing and Flamebird have beaten back Ursa’s first assault. But Round Two is about to begin! Forget brutal – now it gets personal.

So it is Flamebird and Nightwing against Ursa's machinations on Earth.

Interesting cover as it looks like they are about to work over/torture someone for info. Could this be the 'anti-hero' super title with Kal on New Krypton?

Is it me or has the Flamebird/Nightwing mystery really taken a back seat to the Superwoman mystery?


SUPERMAN #688
Written by James Robinson
Art by Renato Guedes & José Wilson Magalhães
Cover by Andrew Robinson

Mon-El’s role as Superman’s stand-in for Metropolis is threatened by a sudden and mysterious power loss. How can he be the hero he needs to be without any special abilities? Meanwhile the Guardian and his Science Police go to the rescue of a missing member of the Legion of Superheroes. And who is the spy within the Science Police ranks?

It looks like we will finally find out how Tellus ended up in Area 7734.

But I hope the powerless Mon-El is a one issue or short story arc. The powerless Superman/Protector of Metropolis storyline has been played to death.


SUPERMAN: WORLD OF NEW KRYPTON #3
Written by James Robinson & Greg Rucka
Art by Pete Woods
Cover by Gary Frank Variant cover by Eric Canete

With Superman now drafted into New Krypton’s Military Guild, it seems that General Zod finally has the Man of Steel under his control. But when given a command to commit an act of brutality against his fellow Kryptonians, Superman must choose between following orders and following his conscience – at the risk of being branded a traitor by his own people!

I have to say that I am getting excited more and more for this title.

There is such an opportunity for a character-driven Superman storyline. I know he has been raised on Earth. But how does he emotionally deal with this sudden insertion of Krypton in his life. How does he walk next to Zod daily? Cope with his insane Aunt?

This should really be a psychologically driven examination of a man torn between 2 worlds. Sure, Kara is going through the same thing but from very different perspectives. Sure I think there will eventually be a fistfight between Zod and Kal. But the story that gets them there is the one I want to read.



SUPERGIRL: COSMIC ADVENTURES IN THE EIGHTH GRADE #6
Written by Landry Q. Walker
Art and cover by Eric Jones

How will Supergirl ever wrap up all of the cosmic craziness that has developed since her arrival on Earth? Arch-frenemies, scheming faculty, an intergalactic orange kitty and a flying horse are just a few things that come her way in this final, action-packed issue!

Hoo boy. We all have been clamoring for a Comet sighting in this book, probably since the first issue. Now, not only do we see that Comet will make an appearance but that there is an 'Infinite Earths' theme on the cover as well. This could be a poster!



The positioning of Kara and Comet looks like the mirror image of Action Comics #293, one of Comet's first appearances. With all the other homages to Supergirl's past, I can't imagine it was coincidence.

But strings of Earths? Could Walker and Jones be channeling Crisis on Infinite Earths #7 for the last issue of the mini-series?

I can only hope that the title is popular enough to warrant a sequel! I am going to miss this title when it is over.


And now the surprise.

TINY TITANS #16
Written by Art Baltazar & Franco

Art and cover by Art Baltazar

It’s another ordinary gym class with Coach Lobo for the Tiny Titans until Supergirl and Kid Flash decide it’s the perfect day for a race around the world. The race isn’t theirs alone as some of the other Tiny Titans decide they don’t want to be left out. And see just what happens when the Atom and the Molecule compete in a shrinking contest.

As if casting Lobo as the school gym teacher wasn't enough comedy gold for an issue, he forces Supergirl to race Kid Flash! Sounds like more fun than the Batgirl/Supergirl tea party!

But why do I love this issue already?


Because the cover clearly is an homage to this Bob Oskner covered Limited Collector's edition. Even the breakdown of the fans on each side is sort of similar.

It is these small winks to the older readers, in Tiny Titans and Supergirl:Cosmic Adventures that truly makes the books for All Ages.

And finally the disappointment. Guess what wasn't solicited again! That's right the James Robinson/Mauro Cascioli Justice League featuring Supergirl has still not been solicited! It was announced nearly a year ago!

It has reached a point that Dan Didio actually needed to comment on this publicly saying that it was a mistake to announce the title until they had more issues done. Now I am sure that Cascioli's art is going to be unbelievably good. But this isn't a mini-series ... this is an ongoing monthly. Maybe they need to announce who the regular artist will be after the first arc now.

Maybe I wouldn't care so much if I wasn't looking forward to the title so much.

Let's hope we see it in June.