Supergirl Episode 208: Medusa

"Medusa" aired this last week, the first part of the 4 part CW Superhero crossover event. And while that crossover promise was trumpeted as the main draw for this episode, it really played a minor role. In some ways this was more the 'first scene' of the crossover.

Instead, the main plot of this episode was Cadmus and the threat of Project Medusa. And surprisingly, that plot line is tied up pretty quickly. In fact, several subplots are sort of pushed forward or finished within this episode, some of them almost too fast. It is as if there is another major storyline that is coming around the corner and so much of what has happened so far needed to be wrapped up. I am still trying to get my head around some of these choices. Are things moving too fast? Or is it better than dragging something out? Or is it the *how* things are resolved that seems to be my issue?

While that main plot is the foundation on which this episode is built, it is the smaller, more personal character moments that shined. This seems to be a recurring mantra in my reviews. The character building this season has been very strong. And the acting has matched these moments wonderfully. So we get a lot of Alex progression here, coming out to her mother who she has feuded with in the past. We get some Mon-El progression. J'onn acts truly heroic, willing to sacrifice himself for others. We see significant character development with Lena and the Luthors. And we see some further maturation with Kara. The idea of family and mothers and the support they can provide was a nice nugget of contrast for the main characters. It really is a great episode from that perspective.

And yes, we see two major kisses and the Flash. As is also becoming a recurring mantra, when this episode was over my youngest looked at me and said 'too intense'. Awesome.

February 2017 Solicits

The DC solicits for February were released a while back but it has taken me a bit to finally get to cover them. The solicits here sound like February will be an excellent month for comics. And luckily, given the usual lack of funds in the post-holiday time, there weren't too many surprises.

Here is a link for all the solicits over on Newsarama:
http://www.newsarama.com/32089-dc-comics-february-2017-solicitations.html

As for the super-titles, I am excited for any number of reasons. Let's jump right in.

SUPERGIRL #6
Written by STEVE ORLANDO • Art and cover by BRIAN CHING • Variant cover by BENGAL
“REIGN OF THE CYBORG SUPERMEN” finale! Argo City is on a collision course with Earth and the Girl of Steel is the only hero that can stop it! Cyborg Superman and Kara Zor-El clash in a cataclysmic final battle that leaves only one standing!


The first arc of the Orlando/Ching Rebirth look at Supergirl comes to an end. We have seen the idea of Argo City being crashed into Earth before way back when so it'll be interesting how that plays out in this more modern time. But for me, I will be glad to see the Cyborg Superman arc put behind us. I look forward to Kara declaring Earth her own home and dealing with her father.

I love the cover. Kara looks like she has been through a fight, looking determined and holding what seems to be an injured arm. Nice look.

SUPERGIRL: BEING SUPER #2
Written by MARIKO TAMAKI • Art and cover by JOËLLE JONES
Midvale has been torn apart by a devastating earthquake, and the death toll has hit Kara Danvers hard. As she begins to put the pieces of her life back together, Kara’s developing powers kick into high gear, and her memories of a world that shouldn’t exist begin to surface.



I didn't realize that Being Super was bi-monthly but if that gives Joelle Jones time to get the art done, so be it.

I like the idea of a natural disaster somehow spurring Kara into a heroic ideal. As you may have heard, with great power comes great responsibility.

But the line about her having memories is the line that grabbed me. Was Kara a baby when she was rocketed to Earth? A toddler? Was there an Argo City? Hmmm .... 

Review: Action Comics #968

Action Comics #968 came out last week and was a decent middle chapter to the Godkiller arc. While the main thrust of this issue were the tremendous action sequences which pitted Superman and Alex against the crusaders of L'Call and his partner Zade against Superman and Lex, it was the smaller moments giving us some insight into the characters that I appreciated the most.

Writer Dan Jurgens certainly can write the big super powered sequences well, having the combatants slam there way through Metropolis. These are the sort of scenes that made me fall I love with comics to begin with. And artist Tyler Kirkham continues to bring his A-game, bringing a great energy to fights while also making sure his expressive work impresses.

But for me, it is the subtle character nudges that that made me want to read the next issue already. L'Call hints at an interesting back story. Jon continues to win me over with his exuberance and desire to jump into action. Lex continues to ooze smugness, reminding me he shouldn't wear the S-shield. And the new Clark again shows that maybe he isn't a mild mannered reporter but something more nefarious. These are the moments, more than the haymakers and body slams, that grabbed me.

I'll say again that Kirkham shines here. I love his Lois and his Jon. And there are a couple of panels where his art complements the words perfectly.

On to the book.

Sales Review: October 2016

In the States, the Friday after Thanksgiving is known for its crazy store sales so I figured why not review last month's sales numbers today.

Also it is a pretty dry topic and on a day when I suspect traffic is going to be low, this isn't a big post to miss. As always, I think the coverage is best over on ICv2 so I will provide the link:
http://icv2.com/articles/markets/view/36052/top-300-comics-actual-october-2016

The idea of Rebirth had fueled a nice bump in sales for DC and they actually led the market throughout the summer. October saw Marvel reassert itself as the top dog. But DC still was pretty robust in sales. That said, the novelty of some of these titles might be wearing off and books are slowly receding to what I think are expected numbers.

You might recall that the Supergirl Rebirth Special sold over 100K and Supergirl #1 sold just over 90K. These were incredible numbers, maybe too good to be true. But with the popular show on the small screen and the rejiggering of the character in the book to sort of mirror the show's themes, maybe this was a sales bonanza that could be maintained?

Supergirl #2 came out in October and continued the Cyborg Superman arc, a story which (I assume) will once again have Supergirl declare Earth as her new home and put Krypton behind her. Of course, the problem is we already have had this as a story in the New 52 ... maybe even twice within that run. So this Rebirth has a little more of a reboot feel.

So how did it sell?

Mike Maihack Supergirl And Batgirl Political Comic

Happy Thanksgiving to all the Americans celebrating!

I have long been a fan of Mike Maihack and his Supergirl/Batgirl one page comic strips. They are whimsical, poking fun at the optimism of Supergirl and the faux grittiness of the Babs Batgirl. Neither have escaped being the object of some simple teasing. But always ... always ... the core of these characters as friends and heroes comes out.

It has been a while Maihack produced one of these so I was thrilled when one came across my feed last week. And given the biggest current world news story, I wasn't surprised to see this one have a political angle.

Either playing on Donald Trump's victory or riffing back to actual comic continuity from the late 90's, Lex Luthor has one the presidential election. Babs can't believe the bad guy has won ... even joking about if this is an aftershock from some Flashpoint event. That alone is a killer joke, especially given the current Flash TV show.

Supergirl seems to take it in stride. Lex is Lex and will eventually show he is a villain and get ousted. After all, everyone loves Superman and Supergirl. When Lex attacks, the people will side with the super-cousins.

But If it was the Joker in the Oval Office, people wouldn't care if  he went after the Bats. No one likes them. The country wouldn't remove the Joker from office. The United States would be doomed!

This again teases Babs for how 'oooooh scary' the Bat family tries to be. I think Kara's over the top response in the last panel shows me this is pure razzing in her part, poking Babs a bit.

I love these Maihack strips. The art here is just delightful. I like Kara being in her show costume, This was a fun retort to the election and a welcome Thanksgiving treat.

Supergirl Episode 207: The Darkest Places

Supergirl Season Two has been very entertaining so far. Between the Superman visit, the personal growth of the character, and the very strong performances of the cast, the show has been gripping. I have had my minor complaints, no doubt. Some of the political messages have been delivered in a very heavy handed manner. Some of the character beats (specifically James deciding to be a costumed hero) has seemed rushed. But overall things have been fantastic.

'The Darkest Places' aired this last week and was one of the strongest episodes of the season so far. There are basically 4 plots happening, one for each of the major characters. Each plot pushes these characters' individual stories forward, some of them nudged, others pushed forward rapidly. But, for me, the biggest thing about this episode is that it also pushed the overal season's story forward as well. We have known about Cadmus before. But now we get a sense that they have a big plan. And they have an enforcer. And they are willing to do whatever they need to do to achieve their goals.

Now this isn't a perfect episode. Nothing is perfect. I think the Maggie/Alex storyline was advanced almost too quickly here. After last week's emotional ending, I almost wish this subplot was left alone to let Alex's issues sort of simmer a bit. Instead, we get a bit too much progression. And both Supergirl and The Doctor seem to make classic comic book mistakes which are hard to dwell on. Sometimes, you can't think too hard about plot points or suddenly you realize how ridiculous these things can be. But these were minor issues.

But overall, this was an action-packed, quickly paced, powerful episode. When watching with my youngest, she looked at me and said 'this is too intense!' That is definitely a good sign!

On to the details.

Supergirl Being Super Preview

Back in September, DC Comics announced Supergirl Being Super, an out of continuity mini-series telling Supergirl's origin. Written by Mariko Tamaki with art by Joelle Jones, the book promised an 'updated look at Kara Zor-El's earliest days on Earth'.

Now I have been a fan of Joelle Jones' art since I first discovered her work. So I was going to be in for this  project no matter. I have not read anything of Mariko Tamaki yet but I have read the glowing reviews for her work all over the internet and so I am intrigued.

Last week preview pages for the mini-series hit the internet and I think it teases what the underlying theme is going to be in the book. Here is a link to the pages as posted on Newsarama:
http://www.newsarama.com/32076-go-back-to-supergirl-s-origin-in-supergirl-being-super-1.html

Just based on the creators and the out of continuity nature of this, I could knew this was going to be a bit more modern and perhaps a bit more progressive. After all, without the weight of 50+ years of continuity and fandom memory, the shackles are creatively off. So I am interested to see where all this is going.

In what seems to be the opening page, we get a simple origin page.

This basically looks like a retelling of the Superman origin, doesn't it? Rocket to Earth, in the breadbasket of America, discovered by a passing car. I have to assume that there isn't a Superman on this Earth. So already it is a whole new world.

Look at that page again and remove the words from the balloons. You would assume this is a Superman origin page, wouldn't you?

It is the  voice over that shakes things up a bit though. These are the words of a teenage girl, lamenting cheesy narration. But the theme is right there. She says you need an origin story so you can learn 'who I am'.

Like many origin stories, this is clearly going to be one of self-discovery and forging your own identity.