Review: Supergirl #11

Supergirl #11 came out this week, the week after the San Diego Comic Con and all its news about the fractured super-family, a week after Superboy #11 where the hero seems on a downward spiral.

Then I sat down and read Supergirl #11 and all seemed to be well again. You think I would have learned my lessons about this book, that the promotion made by the bigwigs doesn't seem to jibe with the actual comic. Before the book came out she was described as a loner, more probable to fight her friends, 'hell on wheels'. She had no affection for humanity. At SDCC, we heard she wants to kill Superboy immediately.

And yet, the character in the book is so so different than that. Sure, she is alone and confused. But there is more of a pall of despondency over Kara rather than one of ire. And while she says she doesn't ever think she'll belong on Earth, each issue we see her embracing this new home a little more, its people and its ways. On top of that, we are still slowly being shown just who this Kara is, what her moral compass is, and how she reacts to stuff. So while the bulk of this book is a brawl with a super-villain, the subtle details around that fight are what impressed me the most.

Mahmud Asrar's art continues to shine throughout this issue. He has really just dazzled on this book. But what I liked here was that there suddenly were smaller panels and tighter pages such that more story could be told in the issue while maintaining an above average number of splash pages/near splash pages. I don't mind big art for big moments but I also want my 'money's worth' of plot with each issue. This issue gave me that.

The issue starts with Supergirl taking in scenes from around the world, dolphins in the ocean, penguins in the polar regions, a lion taking down a zebra, and even what appears to be a temple in the Holy Land. But despite seeing the beauty and brutality, she floats above it all and says it will never feel like home.

We have seen panels like this splash before, a hero high enough to see the planet from space, and usually there is a joy to them as if the hero can't believe they are that high. Sometimes they are deific, the sun behind the hero with them looking down on the Earth as protector. But here, with Kara with her eyes closed to the grandeur of the view, possibly dabbing away a tear, the panel has a very different feel.

And yet ...

She also says she appreciates the diversity of what she sees ... probably a very different world than Krypton. She appreciates what she sees.

And there is more. While she says it won't be home, she seems to be adapting to it. She is living with Siobhan and Tom and flies to the apartment. And look ... she says hello to Tom, caught in a state of undress.

She said hello! And she flew in at high speed to avoid any unwanted eyes seeing her head there.

It might not be home. But it is a place she has decided she wants to live in, learning the language, making friends, and learning the customs (like Siobhan teasing Tom like siblings do or what 'first dates' are). And I love how surprised she seems when Siobhan tells her Tom thinks she is pretty.

So her reaction isn't to get angry about being here. Her reaction isn't withdraw, become catatonic.

And that immersion into Earth's culture continues.

Tom takes her out for a bite to eat (something she hasn't done since she has been on Earth, she simply hasn't needed to eat or sleep). Heading into a pizzeria, she takes in the smells and partakes of a slice marveling at how delicious it is. Again, this willingness to become accustomed to our world will eventually lead to her loving this place. Yes, it will never be her old home but it can be her new one.

These scenes in the apartment and the pizza place stood in such contrast to the sad Supergirl above the planet. Almost as if the 'big view' is one of sadness but the small view has a different feel.

How interesting that we see Supergirl do something like swiping a slice from a waitress tray and Tom immediately there to explain things and promise to pay. Not exactly robbing a bank in the wee hours of the morning.

But this is a comic book after all. A police officer near the random pizzeria they have gone to is actually a nanobot swarm suited supervillain, working for unnamed 'bosses' to bting Kara in. Ahhh ... the coincidences of comics.

What is more interesting is that Kara's supersenses seem to go awry just before the 'police officer' arrives. Could this be some form of super-intuition? Her body intuited the impending danger and so ramped up her sensory input? Sort of a super-Spidey-sense?

And then, once the threat presents itself, her senses 'calm down'. Knowing a battle is about to happen, Kara flies off and slips into her battle gear.

What is among her first thoughts? Helping Tom. So despite all that has happened to her, despite being a stranger in this strange land, she still initially thinks about helping people, saving people. That is what Supergirl is about.

The swarm suit is an interesting weapon. It seems to be able to absorb energy and then use that energy to replicate its nanobot foundation. And the villain then sends out the nanobots to engulf his victims my guess is to imprison or kill.

It is a good fight because we get to see Supergirl's thought process as she battles. Initially she is simply swinging away, unleashing haymakers and heat vision blasts. And why shouldn't she? That approach of relying on her brute strength has worked in every battle she has been in so far. But it becomes clear that the brawler approach isn't going to work; she has to switch gears.

Just as she is about to be overrun by the nanotech her senses kick back in. Combining xray vision and heat vision she is able to localize the power source for the suit and surgically burn it out.

Again, the way her senses kick in and out does not seem haphazard. There is a pattern here ... impending or tremendous danger=sensory overload. It is an interesting concept although it could become something of a crutch for the character.

I also like how she is worried that this heat vision blast might kill her opponent. She does blast the power center thinking she has to take the chance for the greater good. But then worries that her attack might have been lethal.

She worried about killing her opponent!

It is these small moments, these quick phrases, that could be glossed over in the massive and beautifully rendered action sequence that resonate with me. We know she can punch and shoot eye beams. Now we know a bit more about who she is.

And I loved this panel ... maybe even more than the one where Kara says hello!

One, the name of "Supergirl" seems to have caught on.
Two, people seem happy to see her. Some think she is dangerous. Others cheer her on.

"She's a hero! Just like Superman!" Be still my heart. Thanks Mike Johnson, Michael Green, and Mahmud Asrar! You get it.

I do worry that Tom has his pic snapped with Supergirl here. My look in the crystal ball is enemies track down Tom for info on her, kill Tom, and that reignites Siobhan's powers. And Silver Banshee blames Supergirl for his brother's death and becomes a villain.

And I hate to keep harping on this but she cares about people! This comic has consistently shown that Supergirl's heart is in the right place, she has a moral center. It is so different than the way she sometimes is described in promos.

She realizes that people recognized her (does this portend a 'secret identity'). She realizes that being attacked endangers Siobhan and Tom. She needs to figure out what it all means. So she is isolating herself ... alienating herself. But she is doing it for the right reasons. She even hugs Siobhan before leaving.

The time has come to get a better grasp of who she is, what it means to be a Kryptonian on Earth, and how to survive on this planet without being endlessly pursued - either by paparazzi or foes. And that means (as stated in the next issue blurb) she needs to talk to Kal.

This really was a great issue. It is a wonderful jumping on point so should be promoted as such. It continues to show a compassionate and caring Supergirl, evolving as her time on Earth grows. And it shows she is tough and willing to do what it takes in battle.

Add to that her speaking English (at least one word), my own theories about super-intuition, and the typical fantastic Mahmud Asrar art and I have nothing but high marks across the board.

Overall grade: A

Sales Review: June 2012

The comic world continues to flourish a bit as sales in June were up once again. Buoyed by Before Watchmen and the continuing Avengers vs. XMen mini-series, there was another month of properity. As always, ICv2 is the place to get the best breakdown. Well worth perusing. Here is the link:
http://www.icv2.com/articles/news/23331.html

As for Supergirl, the title remains healthy, selling solidly and stable in its position.

Supergirl #10, the conclusion of the three part Silver Banshee story arc sold 33,309 and the title slotted in as the 67th best selling title. This is just around where the book has settled into (although this was down from last month's 35129 units sold). Again, the company it keeps (JLDark, Fraction's Iron Man) is solid as well.

Will 'Zero Month' lure in new readers? Will DC promote the 'Who shot Zor-El?' angle.

I usually comment here about a low-selling underdog who I want to promote.

This month I thought I would talk about the Superman title.

Now I understand that the bloom is off the rose a bit with the DCnU. Even darling title Aquaman has plummeted a bit.

But I can't help but notice that the Superman title has bled off about 30K in sales. And I think it is all about the uncertainty and constraints on this book. Three creative teams in a year. Unable to freely tell stories because the past (by Morrison in Action) isn't written yet. How can this book be marketed as worth reading when it is a revolving door for creators who are handcuffed to Action's continuity.

Superman deserves better ... and better sales.

Review: Legion Lost #11

Legion Lost #11 came out last week and continued the restructuring of this book, moving it toward a new overall theme of 'lost', not only temporally but also psychologically. This Legion team is each dealing with some serious issues in this time whether it be trust, or fear of death, or paranoia.

It is an interesting overlay for a Legion book. I feel like these Legionnaires are sort of caught in the eye of a storm. They are starting to look at each other with a more discerning eye as secrets and lies are being uncovered. And yet, they still have to trust each other as teammates and friends to get through these trying times. That dichotomy of feelings is a pretty rich theme to mine. In that way, it is an interesting counterpart to the more upbeat main Legion book.

Writer Tom DeFalco adds more mystery this issue, bringing in a new wrinkle to a Legionnaire and helping move the initial storyline of Alastor and his Hypertaxis plague closer to a finale. And artist Pete Woods continues to shine here.

Last issue ended with the MetAmerican attack squad engaging with the Legionnaires who returned to New York and shooting Timber Wolf in the chest. And Chameleon Girl isn't going to take that lightly. She morphs into your typically excellent Pete Woods monstrosity and wades into battle.

Now I usually harp on these books for having our military immediately target and fight the heroes in comic books. But this actually seems reasonable. The Legionnaires aren't established in our time and have been around a lot of disasters. It makes sense to try to bring them in.

That said, the placement of the American flag so prominently in the fight sequence seemed forced. It added a bit too much 'our heroes are fighting America' feel to the scene. That flag doesn't need to be in the scene but it is ... so the writer must want it to mean something. I liked it when our heroes fought for America.

Anyways, the MetaMarines are a pretty good unit and pretty soon get the upper hand. Yera suffers a minor head injury so she can't focus to shape change. And Tyroc gets a boot to the throat so he can't use his sonics.

The scene shifts to Oz, Tellus, and the injured Timber Wolf. Oz brings Brin to the local urgent care center, staffed by Dr. Shaleeka Mosley. She opened up the clinic to help the underserved and has treated many trauma victims. But high caliber bullet wounds to the chest?

Now I suppose if I can suspend my disbelief enough to buy Timber Wolf, Tellus, and Gates then I have to suspend it that an urgent care site and an experienced doctor could deal with these wounds. But even a level one trauma center with an experienced trauma team and a waiting OR would have a hard time saving someone with multiple high caliber bullet wounds to the chest.

I do hope that Mosley becomes a supporting cast member, a sort of Leslie Thompkins for the team.

One character who I have grown to like a lot is Yera. She seems completely 'no nonsense' and proactive. She will wade into the good fight with or without her powers. No you could argue that maybe the right thing to do was surrender here and state their case to the marines. But not Yera ...

Yera seems to be hiding inside info about Harvest.
Tyroc seems troubled by a propecy only he knows.
So they have their issues, even with each other. So nice to see them back each other up.

Tellus is hiding some big secret too.

At first it seemed like Wildfire and Dawnstar might not be touched by all this internal intrigue. But now they have their own issues adding to the maelstrom of this team.

Dawnstar apparently has feelings for Timber Wolf. The two rush to his side in the clinic where his natural healing has kicked in.

Wildfire, his suit irreparable and leaking his essence, sees that she loves Timber Wolf and not him. As a Wildfire fan, this struck me. He thinks he is dying, dissipating ... and now he thinks he has lost his love.

So now they have their issues outside of the team as well.

Pete Woods has always been great but I feel like he has come to put his mark on these characters. I like that Tellus' human image of Wildfire has a scar where the crack in his faceplate is. And he really does a wonderful Dawnstar, a sort of cold beauty about her.

That clinic also has a corpse! A dessicated husk of a person ... with the stench of Alastor all over him.

With the rest of them elsewhere, Tellus and Dawnstar decide to track him down on their own.

Thank goodness! I am glad the opening arc is going to be dealt with.

That said, shouldn't Tellus be able to tell that Yera and Tyroc are in a battle. Shouldn't they head back to find out who shot Timber Wolf? I just don't understand why this team would be so scattered. And blase about the attack.

And I thought that Timber Wolf might remain above the fray of all the personal conflicts and conspiracies. But he also begins to have some concerns about this mission.

While recovering he has a vision about the Echo project, a plan to mindwipe witnesses in the future and throw them in the past. Could the Legionnaires have been mindwiped and dumped in the present?

It seems too crazy an idea to contemplate. It's not like Alastor wasn't here when they arrived. He was. And they have their memories ... although I suppose the key memories could have been scrubbed.

But this seems a bit too out there to easily accept as a reader. It feels like a forced 'lost' storyline for Timber Wolf.

But as I said above, what I love about the book is that while everyone seems to have a skeleton in their closet or some impending tragedy or some delusion, they are still the Legion, together. The Marines can only defeat Tyroc and Yera by exploiting their care for each other. It was a nice little reminder of who the Legion are amidst these personal dramas.

And I like that the MetAmerican thinks that exploitation of their teamwork was loathsome. Again, I don't think these guys are the bad guys. So it is nice to see them have some morals as well.

And Tellus and Dawnstar have no shot against Alastor, who has developed a new power to possess people. That is, until he burns them out like that corpse seen earlier. And here he takes over Dawnstar.

We saw Alastor defeat the whole team in the early issues so I don't know just what these two thought they could do by themselves. I don't know why Tellus didn't inform the rest of the team.

So right now these characters are lost in time, hiding motivations and missions from each other, and now separated. It looks like things are going to get better before they get worse.

Of all the DCnU titles I have bought which changed themes and teams early on, this one has made the easiest transition. While I miss the rotating narrator motif that Nicieza brought to the book, these internal mysteries and 'lost' plotlines have piqued my interest. Now you can't keep all the secrets secret too long or it becomes tedious. But for now I just wonder which one of these hidden back stories is true ... maybe more than one is. I almost feel like the team needs to come together and everyone needs to come clean.

Overall grade: B

Supergirl In Animated 'Brainiac' Movie!

So some stealth news did come out at San Diego Comic Con about Supergirl and I have to say it is great news!

Here is a link to a TV Guide article in which actress Molly Quinn leaks that in 2013 there will be a DC Animation movie based on the Geoff Johns/Gary Frank 'Brainiac' story from 2008: http://www.tvguide.com/News/Molly-Quinn-Supergirl-1050007.aspx

And here is some of the text from that article.

There wasn't a Castle panel at Comic-Con this year, but that didn't stop self-proclaimed fangirl Molly Quinn (Alexis) from heading down to San Diego for the geek fest. And she couldn't contain her excitement over a new project that will endear her even more to future Con crowds: The 18-year-old actress is voicing the role of Supergirl in an upcoming animated project based on a popular DC Comics storyline. "I'm so excited to be a part of the DC family, not to mention helping Superman fight crime," Quinn told TV Guide Magazine. "Yes, I am a supergirl!"

The as-yet-untitled project, the latest in a successful series of DVD movies from Warner Bros. Animation and DC Entertainment, adapts a 2008 story by Geoff Johns featuring Superman's nemesis Brainiac and the bottle city of Kandor, which survived the destruction of Krypton, Superman's home planet.

"I'm thrilled about our 'Super' project," she said of the movie, which will be released in 2013. "And that my character happens to be named Supergirl? Well, that's just a bonus."

The Brainiac story was a fantastic, reintroducing Kandor, Argo City, Zor-El, and Alura to the DCU while reinventing Brainiac. It was wonderfully written and drawn, a perfect story for adaptation to the small screen. In fact, I think several blog friends here have been asking for this since the arc finished 4 years ago!

Supergirl did some pretty heavy lifting in the story, overcoming her fear of Brainiac, burning through robot troops, and ultimately saving the world when she stops Brainiac' Solar Aggressor missile! No complaints about anything here.

And Molly Quinn seems like a perfect choice to play Supergirl. So no complaints there!

I guess there really is a Santa Claus! Brainiac is being made into a movie!

SDCC Wrap-Up - Supergirl Pt 2 - Long Post

The Superman panel at the San Diego Comic Con was held on Friday. The guests included Shane Davis (artist of Superman:Earth One Vol2), writers Scott Lobdell, Tom DeFalco, Mike Johnson, and editor of the Super-books Matt Idelson. Here is a link to Newsarama's coverage as well as their transcript:
http://www.newsarama.com/comics/sdcc-2012-dc-comics-superman.html

I have to say there was a lot of information in the panel. I have grabbed the quotes that grabbed my attention to post here and comment on. I recommend reading it in its entirety. Also, I won't be covering Shane Davis' comments here so if interested in his and JMS' graphic novel, you should head there.

Now there is a lot of stuff here that actually stood out as positives. A lot.

There were a couple of things that glaringly stood out as negatives to me.

At least the positives outweighed the negatives.

So the text in blue is taken directly from the transcript. I rearranged some of the quotes for comprehensive coverage of some themes. And as this is a set-up for the coming year, this is a long post. So settle in.

First up, Scott Lobdell talked about his upcoming run on Superman. Lobdell's answers made me optimistic about the book which I think has suffered a bit from the creative turnover. And his enthusiasm over being given the book is clear, even when reading text off a screen. Here were some of the comments and my analysis.

Next is the cover to Superman #0, Scott Lobdell's first issue. " But we don't see what life was like on Krypton, much about Jor-El, the horror of the night when he first discovered that Krypton was going to die. He's up on the roof trying to figure out how to tell his wife, and she comes up and gives him a hug and says "we're having a baby!" and he's like "greeeeat"

We haven't seen much of Krypton or Jor-El since the New 52 came about. So for someone like me looking to have a foundation on build this new incarnation on. Also, most of the versions of Jor-El's discovery start with him telling the Science Council. So this look, where he tells Lara first (which makes complete sense that he would share it with his wife first) feels new. So

"I want Superman to mix the new characters with completely new versions of existing characters. Treat them like when we first started the New 52, like we're seeing them for the very first time."

I also think this is a very positive statement. I have wondered if the writers of Superman have been handcuffed a bit by Action Comics and it's current 'in the past' story-telling. Can the Superman writer introduce an re-imagined villain knowing that a 5yr gap exists between the stories of Action and the Superman book? So hearing that Lobdell is planning to show us some new versions of existing characters means that maybe he has been given a little more creative freedom.

"I'm also doing a lot of concentrating on Clark. Traditionally in the books, Clark has been seen as kind of bumbling. To me, I think of Clark as... When you're Superman everything you say is examined to the most minute detail - you have to be more guarded with your words and actions. Clark is going to be his id, he'll be his voice when he wants to express how he really feels. It'll be fun. I want to merge them a little closer in terms of personality."

This explanation on Lobdell's take on Clark is also very interesting. It makes me think Clark is going to be a bit more of a pro-active and vocal investigative journalist. The present-day Superman probably can't vocalize his opinions about corrupt politicians or businessmen (like he is doing in Action). But Clark ... well he can uncover and report and rail against corruption loudly. So this take on Clark actually dovetails nicely with what Morrison is doing. I feel Clark is as important as Superman so I am glad he is being paid attention to.

Lois Lane will play a larger role in Lobdell's Superman. "I kind of see them as besties, where she might share a tub of Haagen Daas with Clark after having a fight with her boyfriend. A lot of relationships take a long time to happen, when you're thinking of Clark and Lois you think of them as competitors, but I'm trying to reflect them in a more realistic way. Lois will be very much a part of Clark's life, just not the only aspect of Clark's love life."

And I think Lois is as important a component to the book as Clark. I like this take on Lois as friend, confidante, and potential romantic partner. At least it is possible ... an aspect of Clark's love life. I think Lois has been on the periphery of the current book so I hope she gets more screen time.

So nothing but good news from Lobdell on Superman.

But here is where the panel took a sour note for me, all in one lump.

Next is Superboy #0, the book is being handed off to Tom Defalco.

There were clones in the Kryptonian society, then they started to deteriorate and became homicidal maniacs and warmongers. Kara sees him as something she needs to kill as soon as possible before he snaps. Superman will be much more "let's wait and see how he goes, if we can help prevent that deterioration" and Kara won't like that.

"We'll see lots of conflict between the 3 supers because of that" Johnson "They won't be superpals anytime soon."  Superman will try to mentor both Superboy and Supergirl... and both of them will reject his advice in unique ways.

Q: If he's not mentoring Superboy or girl, will he mentor anyone else?

Idelson: Not right now, he's such a loner and still figuring things out himself, so he doesn't feel like he can mentor anyone yet.

So Supergirl is going to be actively trying to kill Superboy.

Reread that sentence.

Supergirl wants to kill someone.

Okay, maybe she considers him a 'something' not a someone if she considers him more like Replicant. And she doesn't even want to wait to see if Superboy snaps (although he isn't necessarily a Kryptonian clone and Superman advises watchful waiting). Nope, Kara wants to kill him right now and Superman saying don't kill him doesn't sit well with her. And as a result the Super-family is splintered.

Moreover, both Supergirl and Superboy reject Superman as a mentor. I would think that a lonely Kara, mourning Krypton, would want her cousin and the only other surviving Kryptonian as part of her life.

And then the coup de grace of things that irked me. Idelson, the Super-editor, the person in charge of the future of Superman and all his books, thinks Superman is a loner who doesn't want to mentor anyone because he still doesn't know himself.

Reread that sentence!!

Superman is a loner! And uninterested in mentoring his family!

So in the DCnU, Batman is less of a loner and more of a mentor than Superman. It is as if the people in charge of Superman don't know him. At least I have Superman Family Adventures.

Finally, I ask you to imagine if this upcoming storyline would work for any other family. Let's imagine it in the Batman books. Imagine if at the Batman panel, they creators said this:

Batgirl thinks, given the history of the Al Ghul family, that Damien is a time bomb of villainy ready to explode (which is possible). So Batgirl decides she needs to kill Damien before he can do anything evil. Batman advises her to wait but she wants no part of it and will strive to kill Damien despite Batman's protests. Batman offers to mentor both Batgirl and Robin but they reject him. In fact, Batman is a loner who doesn't know himself at all so he really isn't ready to mentor anyone as it is.

Doesn't that sound ridiculous? Would that story arc make it past the bat editors? Would DC let that happen? So why is that part of the Superman family?

Okay, the negative parts of the panel are done. The rant is over I promise. Back to the positives.

Action Comics #0 is up next, we'll "learn things about Jimmy Olsen that you didn't know" says Idelson.

In Action #13 "we'll find out what happened to Krypto. It's our halloween issue. We'll find out in a GOOD way"

After Action #13, Superman, Action, Superboy and Supergirl will have "tighter coordination"

Okay. More Jimmy is good. Krypto is good. And a tighter continuity around the super books is, in theory good.

And now the Supergirl stuff which all sounds very good.

On Supergirl #0:

Johnson: "The whole issue is set on Krypton. It delves into the family dynamic. We have fun and make it a little messier than the traditional superman family. Her relationship with her father and her mother is very different. We see that all come to a head when krypton is dying."

Supergirl #13 will show Kara's "Fort of Solitude" not as grand as Kal's but her own sanctum. This is her opportunity to remember and preserve the world that she left behind.

Well, in the last incarnation, Supergirl had very different relationships with Zor-El and Alura. So it will be interesting to see Johnson's take on this. It does re-open up the suggestion that Alura killed Zor-El. I can't wait to read Supergirl #0 to see that night on Argo and to have some of Kara's origins revealed.

And a 'Fort of Solitude' at least gives a ripple of similarity between Supergirl and Superman. It makes sense that she would want a place to be reverential to Krypton.

So at least the main title sounds like it moving Supergirl in the right direction.

One last comment.

Lobdell said he wanted to bring Supergirl into Teen Titans and Johnson said "yes as long as I can write it with you" but there are no definite plans yet 

I'll say it again. We need a couple of years of Supergirl in her own book and getting defined before she gets put into a team book. I don't want her on the Titans.

SDCC Wrap-Up - Supergirl Part 1

One of these days I am going to get to the San Diego Comic Con so I can hear this news in person.

Like many, I was scouring comic news sources and reading Twitter to get all the news fit to report.

First off, on Thursday, Scott Lobdell was on the All Access DC Now panel. Here is a link to the transcript on Newsarama: http://www.newsarama.com/comics/sdcc-2012-all-access-dc-now.html And here are a couple comments from that discussion worth mulling over.

Lobdell on Superman: Starting in issue #13, readers will see "a lot of Superman and a lot of Clark at the same time. What we're really going to examine is what it means to be the most powerful person on the whole planet, and yet you can't actually ever behave in a way that you are that person. You're hiding out among humanity."

I am still reeling a bit from the Lobdell/DeFalco Superboy #11 issue so I might be looking at these comments with too jaundiced of an eye. I hope that this comment does not mean that Superman is going to be uncomfortable being Clark or acting like a 'normal guy'. Anyways, I hope I don't see nonsense like him accidentally breaking stuff because he 'forgot about his powers'.

Lobdell says that he "couldn't be any more excited" about writing Superman, and that his run will include new takes on previously existing characters. "There's nothing like writing Superman," Lobdell says. "No offense, Scott." "There's nothing like writing Batman," Snyder replies. Snyder says he's read Lobdell's proposal, and there's nothing more inspiring than seeing someone who's been in the business for a while getting so excited about a project.

I doubt that DC would like it if another creator said 'I read his proposal and thought it stunk!' so I take these comments with a grain of salt. Still, Snyder didn't need to say anything so the fact he did comment so positively makes me a bit more optimistic.

Raven is coming up in Teen Titans, Lobdell says. "If I get my way, which I seldom do, we're going to be seeing Supergirl on the team," Lobdell says.

I don't think Supergirl should be put in any team book right now. She needs to establish herself in her own book before she joins a team. 

Also on Thursday, at the DC Collectibles panel, a New 52 Supergirl bust was announced available in November. Here is a link to the DC Source blog and that transcript: http://www.dccomics.com/blog/2012/07/12/sdcc-2012-dc-collectibles

And the announcement:

The DC Comics-The New 52 line of products will continue with Shazam! and Supergirl busts along with more. And the Cover Girls of the DC Universe line is being revisited with DC Comics-The New 52. 

Thanks to all the people who sent me pics of the bust. The Supergirl figure itself looks great, powerful and graceful at the same time. I am sort of bummed that they got away from the similar base style that the three prior Supergirl busts had. I thought it gave them all a sort of unified field. Still, I will definitely be getting this.


I'll wrap up the rest of the SDCC on Monday including the Superman Panel and some of the things which cam out in that forum.

Review: Superboy #11

I was pretty excited to read Superboy #11 this week. I have been a bit surprised by this title, enjoying it more than I thought I would. I love RB Silva and Rob Lean's art. The one thing that detracted from the book was how linked it was to Teen Titans and now The Ravagers. The whole Culling storyline didn't grab me.

But all of that was behind us. Superboy #11 wasn't part of The Culling. Tom DeFalco was picking up on Scott Lobdell plots and was writing the book now. N.O.W.H.E.R.E. was demolished. And while the issue guest starred Bunker, this felt like it was going to be the first issue of a solo Superboy title. We were going to put the heavy cross-over feel to the book behind us.

Well ... if this is what this solo title is going to be like ... I don't know how much longer I am going to be reading it. This issue encapsulated everything that I think is wrong with the DCnU. Everything.

The book opens with Superboy showing Bunker his opulent apartmen all while TK-twirling $100 bills.

With his home a N.O.W.H.E.R.E. gone, Superboy had to figure out where he is going to live. He didn't like living with the Titans so he found a place to stay. And then he needed to fund his new life ... so what did he do ... he robbed a bank.

That's right! The 'hero' of the book robbed a bank.

And when Bunker calls him on it, saying that is what bad guys do, Superboy rebuts that 'he didn't hurt anyone' by doing this. Is that how low we have come that we have to praise our heroes for not hurting people? That white collar crimes are fine?

And this isn't him raiding N.O.W.H.E.R.E.'s funds (although we could debate the morality of that too) ... this is him stealing people's money.

Just as bad is Bunker's shrugging acceptance of these excuses. As if Superboy's reasoning isn't worth debating ... and vilifying.

So this scene alone would make me dislike this comic ... but the misses kept coming.

Bunker and Superboy decide to walk around the city. Superboy talks about how the only thing he can call his own is his symbol, ironic since it isn't his.

But look ... he notices that some people respond with hope to the S-shield. Others with fear.

Now I suppose that it is the criminals that respond with fear ... but that isn't what was said. Instead the implication is that some 'everday people' react to the Superman symbol with fear.

So in the DCnU there are people who are afraid of Superman. Superman!

It is as if DC doesn't understand who Superman is and what he represents. 

To show his 'ownership' of the S-shield, Superboy gets it tattooed on his right deltoid ... albeit in a barcode manner. Ooooh ... he got a tattoo! He's gritty!

And look, the tattoo artist has 'no use' for Superman. And neither does Superboy! So there is a rift between Superman and Superboy ... AND THEY HAVEN'T EVEN MET YET!

In fact, the only thing Superboy has faith in is himself. Oooooh .... he's a loner and a tough guy!

Of course, as happens in comics, a super-villain attacks the city at the same time the two Titans are walking around.

The villain is Detritus, a sort of parasite. He seems to absorb any machine or person he comes in contact with, growing with the absorbed mass. When we first meet him, he is a towering giant.

Using his TK, Superboy strips Detritus down to his core. And here is the villain, bemoaning how it is hard for him to survive in a 'world met for others'. Detritus is lonely. So ... that makes it okay that he was ripping up the town, hurting people, and wanting to enslave them? Am I supposed to feel bad for him?

Superboy empathizes ... in a sad way it seems. And yet, can Superboy complain about being lonely when he, of his own accord, has set out on his own and pushed everyone away? Has not trusted anybody except himself?

Despite the damage and threats, Superboy is going to let this guy just leave!

Nothing to complain about the art here by RB Silva, pushing the edges of the panel and adding the gear motif. The art was great.

Detritus turns out to be a true villain though, spurning Superboy's sympathy and compassion and trying to absorb Kon instead.

So Superboy defeats him by punching him into the water because 'water and robots don't mix'. Not that Detritus was a robot (as far as I can tell). And not that that will end Detritus' threat. He'll just terrorize some other place when he regains consciousness. The bad guy, in essence, gets away!

As if everything in this issue wasn't bad enough, the issue ends on a terrible note. Bunker says they need to leave before the authorities arrive because the two will be blamed for the destruction, not praised for the rescue. Superboy now equates the hero experience with 'no credit and all of the blame'.

Is that what being a hero means these days in the DCnU? We certainly have seen that theme in all the super books. We have seen it in Legion Lost. It is a pervasive theme that is being overdone.

So what did we have in this issue.
Superboy robbing a bank. 
Declaring himself a loner and then lamenting it. 
Shunning Superman and showing how people either don't like Superman or are afraid of him. 
Almost letting a super-villain walk away from devastation.
And then equating heroics with being blamed by the authorities.

It's terrible. It is terrible that this is what it means to be a super-hero in 2012.

It is terrible that the editors thought this was a good idea.

I don't want to hear that this is 'realistic'. Or that I am a curmudgeon or out of touch. This is a Superboy book ... not Mark Millar's Supercrooks, not Bomb Queen, not Irredeemable. Those books are already out there.

And I don't want to hear that this is what the readers want to read. Not all the time. I read Fatale and Bomb Queen and Wanted and Kick Ass. But not every comic on the rack needs to be a persecuted hero, painted with the same brush of alienation and isolation and angst.

Maybe ... maybe ... if DeFalco comes out and says that this petulant, self-centered, immature, and criminal Superboy is part of the journey. That he will learn some hard lessons and fly right soon. But this didn't feel like that. This felt like the future of this book and this character - a smug anti-hero, a quasi-supervillain.

I have read and reviewed every super-book on this blog for the last 3+ years. But I don't want to read this book if this is going to be the tone. I'll give it 3 more months to shape up or I'm out.

And it's a shame because I love RB Silva's art. But that alone can't keep me here.

Superboy robbed a bank and has no use for Superman. Yeesh.

Overall grade: F