Supergirl Shrine Update

I realized that it has been nearly 18 months since I last showed off my Supergirl collection and with this being something of a slow news week, I thought I would show it off again.

As I have said before, I have something of a true man-cave. A third of the unfinished basement is where my stuff resides. That space is split between a 'living area' complete with futon, entertainment center with Supergirl collection, and large bookcase for trades. The other half I call the sanctum sanctorum, an area with my comic boxes, framed commissions, and a work table for organizing, bagging, etc.

The Supergirl collection is in the entertainment center surrounding a television, DVD player, and XBox.

Since I last showed the collection, a fair amount of new merchandise has been released making me rearrange the shelves a bit. Here on the top shelf are the white shirt Supergirl merchandise - action figures, statues, and plush figure.

It also has the 'new 52' Supergirl stuff - 3 statues! I have to say, while I am not a huge fan of the new costume, the statues are gorgeous.

And this shelf has the few headband costume pieces - action figures and Ertl metal figure.

I also put a couple of odds and ends here - the armored Flamebird action figure (which simply won't stand), the Superwoman figure (yeah Sterling Gates!), and in the way back a bit of a too scantily clad Supergirl vinyl statue I am a bit too ashamed to own to have prominently displayed. (To put it in perspective, Howard Wolowitz of the Big Bang Theory has that statue in his room.)

The middle shelf is mostly 'belly shirt' Supergirl stuff. Multiple action figures, the Barbie, the mini-mates and legos, the Microman, and several statues. I like the one on the far left, part of the Superman Family multi-statue.

This is also the 'Matrix' shelf. The large collector doll, the Hughes full statue, the bobble head, the PAD mini-statue, a Heroclix, and a Polly Pocket.  I really like Hughes statue, bursting through the ground flying high.

There are also some odds and ends here as well. Look close and you'll see an AmeComi mini-statue and the Elseworlds' Worlds Finest figure (another which simply won't stand without assistance).

And the other top shelf is the Silver Age and hot pants shelf.

There is the beautiful statue on the left, a flying smiling twirling Supergirl. And the major piece in the middle recreating the cover of Action Comics #252. There is an action figure (with Streaky!) and another mini figure.

The hot pants costume section (like the headband section) is pretty sparse. Two tumbler glasses and an action figure.

And, as usual, there are a couple of odds and ends. The first Women of DC bust by Adam Hughes, the recent Hot Wheels tanker truck, the SBFF figure, and assorted rings.

While the bulk of my trades are on a nearby bookshelf, the center is the 'Supergirl' trade shelf. That includes the Archives, the showcases, many Supergirl trades, Power Girl and Fallen Angel trades as well.

It also includes my other Archive books, some oversized coffee table stuff, and some Superman specific books. (Superman trades are on the other shelf.)

There are still some pieces out there I need but probably won't get. The COIE #7 statue, the full sized PAD statue in front of the stained glass window, and Eaglemoss pieces. A New 52 action figure is on the way!

Superman:The Legend Supergirl Card

I have talked about the Superman: The Legend cards before and as I feared they have become an impulse buy each week as I cash out at my comic store.

Finally, luck won out and I got a Supergirl card in this week's pack with art by Mahmud Asrar.

I suppose the use of the world Legend in the title allows DC to use some artistic license in the info on the cards. We see all sorts of versions of a variety of incarnations of the Superman characters rather than simply the New 52 information.

And that is seen pretty clearly here on the Supergirl card sporting the belly shirt costume from the last version of Kara. It also is a more angelic Supergirl, floating among the clouds, the birds flying with her. I don't know if the expression is bemused or pensive. But one thing it isn't ... it isn't angry.

And it isn't the New 52 costume either.

I asked Mahmud Asrar about the artistic choice and he said both the costume and concept were specified to him. Fascinating ...

And here are the words he was given.

Happy and carefree!

Not at all like the New 52 Kara.

Unfortunately, the text on the card is pretty sparse. We are given a couple of lines about how she is older but arrived later. I do love that she got the coveted #2 slot in the card deck, right after Superman himself.

But there is nothing about her powers.

Nothing about her personality.

Too bad. I would have loved some line which defined her personality in some way. Although, given the scattershot approach to continuity in this card set, I suppose the vaguer the text the better.

Anyways, I love the art here. And I am still hoping to get a Kara Kent, Silver Banshee, and World Killer card. I suppose I should bite the bullet and buy a complete set off EBay rather than hoping luck is waiting for me in a random pack.

Michael Turner's Costume Designs

I recently posted about Jamal Igle's proposed redesign of Supergirl's costume. And, as usual, there is a lot of talk on line about Kara's costume in general ... much of it focused on Igle and Matt Idelson's inclusion of bike shorts under her skirt.

With all that talk still resonating, I thought I would post some of Michael Turner's ideas about the costume. It is interesting to see how he took pieces of some of his different concepts to piece together Kara's current look. Looks like the belly shirt was a unifying theme to his thoughts.

These pictures are from the back pages of the Superman/Batman:Supergirl trade. Sorry for the lousy scans for pics that crossed the binding.

In this look we see the belly shirt and mini skirt look. Her boots are the classic Superman boots she wears now. But notice the short sleeves. Interesting.

I like how Turner played around with a variety of color schemes. I really like the first iteration with dark blue shirt and red skirt. I would have been very happy with that costume. The all white version is interesting, a play on the animated/later Linda Danvers look.

The last 2 in this series wouldn't have worked for me. Those powder blue boots look hideous.

This string looks very similar to our current uniform albeit with no cape. I kind of like the shorter looser appearing pirate-y boots. And here we have the gold ringed trumpet sleeves. Add these sleeves to the sketches above and you have the current costume.

For some reason, the red skirt and long blue sleeves is not as pleasing to me as the short sleeve version of the same color scheme above.

I definitely don't like the earth tones or war paint.

This last series seemed a bit too similar to Wonder Girl's uniform for my tastes. A sleeveless belly shirt and pants just doesn't say Supergirl to me. Again, there is no cape. I think this look has a little too much of a 'harem girl' feel to it as well.

But again, the different color schemes contemplated are sort of fun to look at.

The red based ones really seem too much like Cassie. Of all these, I like the last one best - white shirt, blue pants, and red boots. Feels like the embodiment of 'truth, justice, and the American way!'

Anyways, I think Turner put together a fresh look for Supergirl. I am more of a fan of the Matrix look. But if we were going with the belly shirt, I think I may have preferred this 'short sleeve dark blue shirt, red skirt' version.

What do you all think? Any of these strike your fancy?

Jamal Igle Costume Redesign

Over on Jamal Igle's blog, he has posted a proposal he did for a Supergirl costume re-design. Here is the link ( http://jamaligle.blogspot.com/2009/04/way-back-machine-6-not-so-much.html ) and a quote.

Here's a rejected Supergirl redesign I did prior to actually starting the series. Everyone thought it was a good design but at the time particularly it would be too radical a change from the Michael Turner costume.

I have always been partial to the 'red skirt' look so this is appealing to me. I especially like it's shape, being longer in the front and coming to a point. This has sort of a Matrix feel to it.

Things I find intriguing are the off the shoulder cape and the short boots. I don't think I would end up liking the 'shoulderless' look.

The blurbs on the side of the picture are also interesting to read as it shows were Igle is coming from in his interpretation of Kara, one we have now seen fleshed out in stories.



I even did a penciled drawing to pitch it as well.

Now that is a lovely picture. I sort of miss the trumpet-ended sleeves on the costume, although the 'amazon bracelets' are one of my favorite parts of the current costume.

This drawing of Supergirl flying among the clouds reminded me of this:


Igle drew this picture to promote his taking over the main title. This was colorized for his banner at NYCC but I am pretty sure has never been printed. Maybe it can be included at the end of the eventual trade of the initial Gates/Igle run.

I love it when I am able to see some of the background pitches and creative processes of artists (like Drew Johnson's proposed redesign I posted here a long time ago or Josh Middleton's cover designs). Makes me appreciate the hard work the professionals do and their personal viewpoint on characters.

Supergirl #40 - Jamal Igle's Costume Changes

Thanks to everyone who pointed out to me Kara's costume in this flashback panel with Batman. It was something I glossed over in my first reading of the issue.

Given this is a memory of her training with Batman, the assumption is that this panel takes place during the early days of Supergirl's time on Earth.

And Jamal Igle lets us know that by putting her in a costume more in line with the earlier issues of the book.



Notice how the shirt and skirt are a little bit smaller.

And can't you read her body language here? Bored/frustrated look on her face, hands on hips. It just speaks a bit more about the K-poisoned irritated angsty Kara seen in the first 19 issues of the title.

Contrast that costume to this panel which showcases some of the subtle changes Igle has made in the costume. Notice how the shirt covers a bit more of her ribs now, a strip of blue now evident under the S-shield.

And the skirt also rides higher and is little longer as well. We don't see the lines of Kara's pelvic bones anymore.

Lastly, I thought I would show the most controversial change Igle made, the inclusion of bike shorts under the longer skirt.

I did not put this post up to necessarily discuss the merits of the costume changes (although I like the changes Igle made).

Instead I posted it to show how the current creative team is doing the small things to put out the best product it can. The Batman panel shows that Sterling Gates and Igle care about details like costume continuity in flashback scenes.

And as I said way back when they took over in issue #34, I was glad that they weren't ignoring everything that had happened in the book prior but instead were recognizing and reacting to it. This was a 'soft reboot' with Kara's history (outside of her muddled 'Kill Kal-El' origin) kept intact.

As a reader I appreciate it when the writers and artists care enough about the character to get the small details right.

James Robinson's Justice League: Cry For Justice

After what seems to be forever, some information and sneak peeks of James Robinson's Justice League book has been released. The sneak is over on the DC blog ( http://dcublog.dccomics.com/2009/04/07/more-justice-league-cry-for-justice-goodness/ ) and consists of what I think is the cover (most likely a 50:50 distribution of right and left sides) and 3 interior pages.

The art by Mauro Cascioli is simply stunning. His Supergirl is gorgeous. My guess is as a fully painted book, Cascioli couldn't keep up with deadline demands. That's why (probably) this book has yet to be solicited despite being announced a year ago.

One thing noticeably absent in all the sneaks was any sight of Freddy Freeman. He was named as being on the team and was seen in the team shot in Wizard a few months ago. Maybe he joins the team in the second issue.

The three pages are shown in full at the blog but here are some thumbnails.

This must be Hal telling Superman that he is forming his league. Of course, the problem now is fitting this in continuity wise. Superman is on New Krypton. And Hal will be enmeshed in Blackest Night when this finally gets released.

Anyways ... back to this panel. The look on Superman's face looks somwhat disapproving. I wonder what he will think when Supergirl accepts the offer. Hopefully Robinson shows that interaction.

But more importantly, that doesn't appear to be the belly shirt she is wearing!

If anything it looks like the movie Supergirl is standing there. I would love to see Cascioli's take on a Matrix-y version of the uniform!!

This panel of Hal and Ollie travelling through space is just amazing.

The last page shown is an pretty dyanamic page of the Atom taking out a variety of villains. I am pretty sure this is Ray Palmer.

There is no doubt in my mind that the art throughout the series is going to phenomenal. But I still feel cheated that this book has been delayed so much. I also wonder how much the art problem impacted the decision to make this book a mini-series instead of an monthly. A mini-series story can be pigeon-holed into a continuity timeline.

Everyone on board for this title?

Poll 3: Which Is Your Favorite Supergirl Costume?

What with all the talk recently about Supergirl's current costume, I figured it might be fun to start a poll asking all visitors here which version they prefer. So, as always, please vote. And feel free to post why you prefer that costume. Poll closes next Wednesday at noon, just in time for the local comic shops to open and sell Supergirl #34 with Jamal Igle's new look.

Here are the costumes for you perusal. I tried to pick a couple of covers which featured the costume in a positive way and in some different angles.

1) 'The Original' or 'The Blue Skirt' - This is the version that Kara was wearing when she burst from that rocket on the cover of Action Comics #252. It's old school in a good way, harkening back to adventures when Kara was a girl young enough to be embarassed about her crush on Jerro the Mer-boy, riding a super-horse, and just finding her way in the world.

2) 'The Hot Pants' - Shortly after Supergirl graduated from being the back-up feature in Action Comics to headlining Adventure Comics, she switched to the 'Hot Pants' costume, complete with V-neck puffy sleeve shirt. This was the primary costume for Supergirl until the mid-80's.

Now certainly there were some minor changes, beaded short bottoms vs athletic shorts, slippers vs boots, choker vs no choker. But overall, the design remained fairly constant. This is the Supergirl I grew up with. The first Supergirl I read and enjoyed, making her my favorite character.


3) 'The Variants' - During her Adventure Comics run, the editors actually invited readers to design new versions of Supergirl's costume (see the cover the Adventure Comics #397 at the top of this post). Some of them were featured in issues!! I cannot imagine anything more engaging to readers, something which of course would never happen today. These versions include bathing suit styles and body suits as seen above but also thigh high boots and funky belts.

None have ever caught on with me, but I am sure there are fans out there.

4) 'The Headband' or 'The Crisis'- In the early 80's, the Supergirl movie was being made and the producers decided her costume needed to be changed. The original movie design included a head band and red shoulders on the shirt as well as a red mini-skirt.

DC Comics decided to change the comic book costume to be more in tune with the movie and so unveiled the costume above. Kara explained that she added the headband as a flourish of Kryptonian culture.

Alas, the movie changed their mind and went with a more Matrix-esque version. DC kept the headband look for the remainder of that Kara's career, cut short in Crisis on Infinite Earths #7.

5) 'The Matrix' - My personal favorite. When John Byrne re-introduced Supergirl as Matrix, the protoplasmic heroine from a pocket universe, he put her in this costume, one which I feel is the most iconic. Here with a flowing skirt of decent length and the classic blue shirt with S-Shield, she exudes presence and strength.

Flourishes I like are the pointy sleeve ends and the pointy belt. Supergirl just looks like a hero in this costume.

6) 'The White Shirt' or 'The Timm' - In the late 90's, DC Comics was enjoying great success with animated versions of their properties. Bruce Timm was the mastermind behind Batman: The Animated Series and the Superman: The Animated Series.

In the Superman animated series, a Supergirl was introduced, a young girl named Kara from the planet Argo, a planet in Krypton's solar system. She lands on Earth and befriends Superman, living with the Kents and fighting crime. She dons an updated costume with a white belly-shirt and blue dress.

In a case of 'history repeating itself', DC decided to take advantage of the animated branding by having the comic book Supergirl, a conflicted and now slightly depowered girl named Linda Danvers, don the white shirt costume. She wore this costume throughout the remainder of her run as Supergirl.

7) 'The Turner' or Current- In 2004, DC decided to re-introduce Supergirl as Superman's cousin. Suddenly my beloved Matrix/Linda Danvers version was ret-conned out of existence, paving the way for a young Kryptonian with a 'simple origin' to take on the mantle of Supergirl.

With a new design by uber-fan-favorite Michael Turner and written by Jeph Loeb, a conflicted Kara lands on Earth and dons this version, apparently designed by Ma Kent. Again, Supergirl is in a belly shirt, now the more classic blue, with gold trim and a blue mini-skirt. There have been slight variations along the way different belts and different lengths and sizes of shirt and skirt, but the overall design remains Turner's.

All versions have their plusses and minuses. And I am sure I have missed or not mentioned some of the rarer or seldom seen costumes (adult Linda Danvers full white shirt version from Many Happy Returns comes to mind immediately) but I think I covered the big ones.

I hope people vote. I really enjoyed hearing people's thoughts about the Final Crisis #3 cover.

Jamal Igle on The Pulse

Well, we are a mere 11 days away from the much anticipated Supergirl #34, the first issue for the new creative team of Sterling Gates and Jamal Igle! 11 days!

For those craving to hear more about what the new team has in mind, there is a great interview with Jamal Igle over on The Pulse. Here is the link: http://www.comicon.com/cgi-bin/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic;f=36;t=007480


Now Mr. Igle talks about a lot of things in the interview including Tangent:Superman's Reign and Marvel comics and it is worth reading the piece in its entirety. What is interesting is that he spends a lot of time on Supergirl and touches on one of the persistent hot topics about Kara, her costume.

About every 2 months or so, the topic of her costume rears its ugly head on the various Supergirl boards out there. Some people absolutely loathe the belly shirt. Some feel it is too 'slutty' and 'sexy'. Some love it. Others are indifferent. Here is what Mr. Igle had to say.




With the encouragement of DC Editorial, he and Gates are toning down her stripper-inspired costume and making her personality more realistic as an actual teen-aged girl: "I'm trying to [take a different approach to her] than the previous artists. Catching up on older issues, the shirt got smaller… and she's supposed to be a teen-aged girl."

He verbalized the uncomfortable feeling many readers of the title have felt for several years: "I don't feel comfortable sexualizing what's supposed to be a teen-aged girl." The first thing he did, "was look at the costume, and make her less like a hooker than she's been looking."

The picture at the top of the post was a preview piece Igle drew when he was announced as the artist. Sort of a different vibe than the Cinemax-like panels from Ian Churchill above.

As for me, I like the Matrix version of the costume. And no, that statement isn't a lame excuse to show my Igle commission again, although clearly he would draw a wonderful Kara in this outfit. That said, while I don't prefer it, I don't hate the belly shirt in and of itself. There are plenty of other young super-heroes sporting the look including Stargirl, Ultimate Jean Grey, and X-23.

What I don't like is when the belly shirt is drawn more the size of a sports bra, usually accompanied with a skirt the size of a napkin rather than a skirt. There is *no way* Ma Kent designed that take on the costume. And this is not the 20-something Linda Danvers, this is a 16 year old Kara. When drawn tiny, it is a bit cringe-worthy.

And of course, throughout the series, she was drawn sensually not only in terms of her ever-shrinking skirt, but in her positioning. For example, the above coquette-ish look by Joe Benitez.

While I don't think anyone should judge a real person's sexual proclivity by the clothes they wear, there is no doubt I would not let my daughter dress like that. It looks too provocative. But let's hear more from Mr. Igle.

"I think I've figured out of a way to draw the costume." He used as reference the uniforms of the University of North Carolina cheerleaders. "The point with her costume and character is to like her as a character. You should want to be empathetic with what's going on with her." He pulled out a splash (which unfortunately must stay secret for now, since the first issue of the "new look" has not been released) which was extremely attractive – without any hint of slutty. A much-improved "look".

First things first ... I am a 'Big East' guy, not an 'ACC' guy. UNC? Ah well, those basketball cheerleaders usually have more to cheer for than those of my alma mater, Providence College.

But one can easily imagine an S-shield over the UNC on the above shirt. And yes, there is a hint of mid-riff, but with a more athletic feel to it, a sense of mobility. And little sense of tittilation.

More Igle:

When he was brought on the book, he was asked to make her "more presentable" than she was previously. They "went out of their way to make the character more presentable." He noted: "There's a difference between cheesecake…" and what is supposed to be a book about a teen-aged girl who is trying to find her place in her new environment.

The saddest thing for me is that there is this sense that the belly shirt in any form is slutty and terrible. And I don't believe that. Only when it is under-done, does it convey that. Only then can it cross over to cheesecake. Take for example the micro-micro-micro mini on the evil Kara above, again from Ian Churchill. I mean how does that stay up? It is barely covers her pelvis! I mean there is a place for cheesecake, but not in a book about a 16 year old girl.

It is almost as if Supergirl is held to a higher standard than other characters, as no one is gnashing their teeth over Star Girl. But now people are looking at this costume and seeing 'slutty' where I simply don't. It was hard for me to believe that the cover for Final Crisis#3 was labelled by many people on blogs and boards as showing an orally-fixated tramp rather than a scared young hero.

More Igle:

Igle and Gates are on the same page with making Supergirl less trashy while still appealing to adult readers. "Previous writers wanted to make her edgier, but there's a way to make her edgy, and still be likable. The way Sterling writes her, you want her to win; You can tell she's trying. She's a teenager – and she'll still make mistakes" like any teenager.

He noted that the more realistic characterization, "is easier once you break down the character and think about her motivations. She's finally decided that she wants to live up to the expectations of her" based on previous stories and her role in the DC Universe. Now wants to help people, but "monkey wrenches keep getting thrown at her."

That sounds so perfect right now. A Supergirl that wants to help people ... and that readers want to see win. I am looking forward to Mr. Igle's new design and I am counting down the days to October 1.

Drew Johnson's design for Supergirl's Uniform

Over on Drew Johnson's blog (http://www.cursethatmonkey.blogspot.com/) he posted the pic below, which was one of his designs on an alternative Supergirl costume.





Well I like it for a number of reasons.


1) No belly shirt. I have never been a fan of the belly shirt, even when Linda Danvers wore the white half-shirt in the latter issues of Peter David's run (which of course was designed to match the Timm-verse Kara).

2) I am a big fan of a huge S-Shield for all the 'supers'. I think it should dominate the shirt, not be a little logo. Here the shield basically *is* the front of the shirt.

3) The ' cape's shoulders forming the corner of the S-symbol' is reminiscent of the Crisis era Kara with the red shoulders, a nice homage.

Overall, it is a design that is much closer to the "Matrix" style costume, which is my favorite of all the Supergirl costumes: blue shirt, pointy sleeves, red skirt, pointy belt. Here is a Gary Frank take on that costume from Supergirl #4 (1996).






Despite not being able to use this design, I did like the slight panaches Drew put into the current costume. In particular I liked the big oversized gold sleeve ends and the thick gold strip around the collar of the cape and bottom of the shirt.

As I have said before, I thought Johnson's art was slick and I am sad to see him leave the title.