Supergirl #10 – Review

By: Michael Green & Mike Johnson (story), Mahmud Asrar (art), Dave McCaig (colors)

The Story: And here you thought Kryptonians know nothing about swashbuckling swordplay.

The Review: You’d think I’d have exhausted my comics-as-relationships metaphor last week in my review of Suicide Squad, but strap yourself down, because I’ve got some more left in my pocket.  In this case, Supergirl is like the person who caught your eye at that kickback a friend of your friend had at his house.  You check them out, chat them up, get their number.  You hang out a few times and enjoy yourself.  And just before it gets serious, you realize it won’t go anywhere.

Not that there’s anything wrong with Supergirl, per se; I’m sure it’s a great title for other people, but for me, I realize now I was attracted to a few of its qualities, but not the whole package.  What I really liked from the debut of this series was Green-Johnson’s naturalistic take on Kara, the intellectual sweetness she’d display towards giant robots and her infant cousin.  I liked her introspective, but not moody, point of view, a rarity for any teenage character.

Supergirl #9 – Review

By: Michael Green & Mike Johnson (story), Mahmud Asrar (art), Dave McCaig (colors)

The Story: Kara gets her first taste of Earth-style daddy issues.

The Review: At the start of its life, this title surpassed expectations because it managed to deliver a convincingly realistic, nuanced take on a character whose entire claim to fame is from being Superman, but younger, blonder, and with boobs.  Back then, Green-Johnson delighted you with any number of small, fresh details that made you feel you were getting a focused take on Supergirl for once.  They made you feel for once, Supergirl could stand on her own.

And she still might, but now that time feels very, very far away.  We’re closing in on the one-year mark for all the original new 52 titles, and that means it’s prime time to evaluate the long-term viability of each series.  For Supergirl, your primary frustration is even after eight issues, Kara is still getting jerked around by events as they happen.  By having relatively no agenda of her own, she simply emphasizes her book’s lack of direction.

Supergirl #8 – Review

By: Michael Green & Mike Johnson (story), George Pérez (art), Bob Wiacek (inks), Paul Mounts (colors)

The Story: Unnecessary bangles, beanie hats—you’re really on Earth now, Supergirl.

The Review: No matter how much anyone emphasizes the Super-family’s non-human origins or background, the fact remains that they are heroes of Earth, not of Krypton, Kandor, Argos, Cadmus, or what-have-you.  Supergirl pretty much proved that last issue when she defended New York City against invaders who came from her home planet.  Over half a year later, the time seems right for her to make an emotional connection to this world she’s chosen as home.

Green-Johnson have done an admirable job of not letting our heroine get lost in her cousin’s big shadow, especially so early on in her career, so I appreciate that Kara doesn’t immediately turn to Clark for help now that she’s settled here.  Instead, the writers throw in Siobhan Smythe, who serves as the ideal foil to Supergirl.  Since she’s a fellow orphan and emigrant to America, she can sympathize with Kara in important ways, and her good-natured approach to the world will be particularly useful for acclimating her Kryptonian friend to human society.

Supergirl #7 – Review

By: Michael Green & Mike Johnson (writers), Mahmud Asrar (artist), Dave McCaig (colorist)

The Story: Supergirl’s first trip to the Big Apple, and it’s under crisis.  Perfect timing, right?

The Review: Look, I love big, drawn-out action scenes as much as the next guy.  That opening chase sequence in the newest Casino Royale is a sequence of beauty that I still haven’t gotten tired of.  But there’s a big difference between watching and relishing each punch, kick, flip, dash, jump, shot, blast, and explosion in, say, a ten-minute piece of big-screen cinema, and seeing a truncated, stationary version of the same thing across however many pages of comics.

Admittedly, it also makes reviewing a little harder.  I mean, how much can you really say about an issue that’s just one big punchfest, as this one is?  You can comment on the creative uses of superpowers, I suppose.  Supergirl does employ a few neat tricks in her battle against four Worldkillers, like releasing her internal energy through her skin in an outward blast.  That’s another skill set we’ve never seen her cousin employ, so we should see how that evolves later.

Sometimes it’s not just the raw power that makes for entertaining reading, but the special tactics employed on the fly.  When Reign conveniently mentions that “Only a Worldkiller can defeat another Worldkiller,” Supergirl makes the quick, sensible inference from that statement and forces one of them to strike down the other.  More significantly, she does so in rather brutal fashion; had Reign been less concerned for her comrades, one of them would certainly have died from Supergirl’s attack.  This unhesitating use of extreme violence will be something else we can look to cause drama later, especially once Superman gets involved with her life.

Supergirl #6 – Review

By: Michael Green & Mike Johnson (writers), Mahmud Asrar (artist), Dave McCaig (colorist)

The Story: Kara, here’s your first lesson from Earth: you can’t really ever go home again.

The Review: If there’s one thing the new 52 has done for the Superman mythos, it’s been to bring the culture of Krypton front and center and make it an integral part of the Super-family’s lives.  Grant Morrison and Gene Ha gave us a fairly epic glimpse of the lost world back in Action Comics, but much of what we saw had more to do with the technology and aesthetics of Krypton than anything else.  Its culture, society, and values are a little more hidden from us.

Since Kara lived and breathed on the planet firsthand, she can reveal more of these intangible points, though only bits at a time.  This issue touches on the Kryptonian trials which all that race’s youths must pass before graduating.  Interestingly, martial artistry remains part of the trials, though it’s no wonder such an advanced species would dismiss it, much like Kara’s father does.  The scene features a throwaway detail that has more significance than first appears: Kara’s mother insisting on her daughter placing more focus on her physical education.

That detail seems to tie into a later scene, when Kara receives an encouraging vision of her parents as she’s about to hurtle to her death by blue star.  It’s a very cheesy sequence, but you can’t deny its heartfelt sentiment, and there’s that always fun mystery of how much of Kara’s visions is spiritual and how much is psychological.  What’s important, however, is we get to meet her mother for the first time, which seems a tad odd, when you think about it.

Supergirl #5 – Review

By: Michael Green & Mike Johnson (writers), Mahmud Asrar (artist), Dave McCaig (colorist)

The Story: It’s a hard fact of life, Supergirl: Daddy won’t always be around.

The Review: A year or so ago, I read over a collection of old Silver Age tales starring Supergirl, and I came away a bit wistful at the bright, cheerful lass she used to be, especially in comparison to the oft-times dour young woman of recent years.  But lately it occurs to me that for Kara, her story of a being rocketed from a doomed planet is in many ways much more tragic than her cousin’s, and so if she’s repressive and emotionally raw, she has good reason to be.

As this issue emphasizes, the glory of Krypton is but a recent memory for Kara, and it’s made all the more bitter when she unexpectedly discovers the last remnants of her world and its pathetic end (“…the population dead under the last gasps of an artificial atmosphere.”).  Green-Johnson have definitely put Supergirl on a roller-coaster ride of emotion, and here they’ve mingled hope and despair indiscriminately.

Most painful of all has to be her last vision of her father, which pans out as tragically as these last messages from one’s parents tend to do.  In the end, his efforts to preserve any part bit of Krypton comes to nothing; even the sunstone carrying all the planet’s history, the fruits of his research, and “the truth about what happened to—” disintegrates, leaving only Kara’s memory and whatever artifacts her cousin inherited as the sole relics of their homeworld.

After all she goes through, it’s hard to see how she’ll get over these traumas and become the heroine she’s meant to be.  Whether or not she takes the path of the righteous, we’ll leave to a later date.  For now, she already has plenty to worry about: Simon Tycho, who’s not down for the count just yet, as seen last issue; the unseen individual who murdered Kara’s father in the sunstone recording (an act which most likely defeated any last hope for Argo City’s survival); and these Worldkillers, living Kryptonian weapons who claim to live up to their name.

Supergirl #4 – Review

By: Michael Green & Mike Johnson (writers), Mahmud Asrar (artist), Dave McCaig (colorist)

The Story: That’s it—she’s taking her clothes back and blowing this joint!

The Review: Since Superman was raised among us, it’s not much wonder why he chooses to dedicate himself to the human race.  It’s hard to imagine why other DC extraterrestrials, like Martian Manhunter, Starfire, or, say, Supergirl, would do the same.  Sure, with no other place to go, Earth isn’t too bad of a place to live.  But if they spend just one hour watching our reality shows, you can’t see them thinking, “Gee, I should save these folks from themselves!”

Supergirl has special reasons not to be too fond of humanity.  Her arrival on our planet was greeted with gunfire and hostile mechs, and now she’s held captive and tortured by fatal radiation.  It’s worth mentioning that Simon Tycho does none of this for the sake of global security, which would at least be a semi-rational motivation, but for the most commercial purposes possible.  On discovering Supergirl’s outfit is well-nigh indestructible, he waxes poetic over the applications: “Bikinis and boxer shorts.  Diapers and dishtowels.”

Thankfully, our species may be redeemed in Supergirl’s eyes by the noble actions of one “Jacobs,” the same guy who ordered his men not to shoot at her when they first attacked in #1.  Green-Johnson are careful to explain how such a nice guy can work for such a baddie: “I thought Mr. Tycho was a genius.  Thought he was gonna help the world.”  And ultimately, Jacobs gives up everything to do right by Supergirl, actions which are definitely not lost on her.

That’s not to say she’s about to follow directly in her cousin’s heroic footsteps, however.  She engages Tycho’s men with little hesitation about hurting them (“Oh God my arm oh God—”), and grows more adept with her powers by the moment.  As elated as she feels about her increasing mastery, you have to wonder how long it’ll be before the intoxication of “doing impossible things without even thinking about it” gets the better of her.

Supergirl #3 – Review

By: Michael Green & Mike Johnson (writers), Mahmud Asrar & Bill Reinhold (artists), Paul Mounts (colorist)

The Story: Supergirl gets her first taste of Earthling villainy—and it’s bitter stuff.

The Review: One thing that always struck me as odd about Supergirl in previous incarnations was her seemingly seamless transition into Earth—specifically American—culture.  The last iteration of Kara Zor-El took to the rebellious party girl stereotype fairly quickly, and except for every now and then expressing a brief melancholy over how “different” she felt on Earth, she seemed like she could’ve just as easily been raised there her whole life.

Her integration into our world looks like it’ll be a lot rougher this time around.  Besides the traumatic circumstances of her arrival, and the less-than-friendly welcome party, she now has to face the obliteration of her world and people, an idea clearly too ghastly to swallow.  Even as she senses her cousin “can only ever tell the truth,” she piles on the denial.

One interesting thing about Kara: despite her youthful appearance, she is still a member of a highly advanced, science-devoted race.  When Superman tells her the fate of Krypton, she immediately bursts into a girlish, “This is all some kind of joke!”  But then she follows with a series of logical rebuttals: “Do you have any proof for any of this?  …What about my family? …If I survived—if this even really happened—they could have survived, too!”

Yet all these counterarguments only partially succeed in keeping her emotions under control, a kind of mature coping mechanism for a relatively immature young woman.  It’s revealing, however, that while she accuses Superman of misleading her, she ventures the hypothesis, “If there’s a chance that Krypton survived…”  The fact she uses the word “survived” in that theory indicates that, deep down, she knows there can be no happy conclusion to that sentence.

Supergirl #2 – Review

By: Michael Green & Mike Johnson (writers), Mahmud Asrar (penciller), Dan Green (inker), Dave McCaig (colorist)

The Story: On the plus, this means no more babysitting for Supergirl—probably.

The Review: Back when DC brought back Kara Zor-El as Supergirl sometime in the first few years of the new millennium, they took a lot of things for granted with her.  So many comics readers know the major bullets about her character (e.g., cousin of Superman, teenager of Krypton, etc.) that maybe writers didn’t feel the need to explore those things so much.  This really did a disservice to the character since a large chunk of her background got shafted.

Green-Johnson aren’t making that mistake this go-round.  Now you get to see some of those basic elements directly, which pays off dividends.  Take that opening scene of Kara with baby Kal-El.  It’s one thing to think of her being Kal’s older cousin in theory, but to actually see her deep affection for him as she cradles him, to see her shush his tears, and to think she might have been one of the last people to have held him before he rocketed to Earth—it’s quite touching.

Then seeing that babe all grown up into a big, burly man who’s trying to restrain his former caretaker just drives up the emotions of that scene to an even higher level.  You’re completely in tune with Kara when Superman introduces himself as her cousin and she flies into a rage.  You don’t need her to explain the mix of fear, confusion, and anger she’s feeling; you immediately feel it when she grabs Supes by the cape and demands, “What have you done with him?!”

Anyone who beats up on Superman won’t look too great, but Green-Johnson do a great job selling her violent reactions to what’s happening.  Still, once they transfer their fight to China (she gets the hang of flying pretty fast), the destruction hits the verge of getting out of control.  But in a moment that reveals much about her future heroism, you see her dismay as she realizes she’s not just on a world full of goons trying to attack her; this world has families and babies too.

Supergirl #1 – Review

By: Michael Green & Mike Johnson (writers), Mahmud Asrar (penciller), Dan Green (inker), Dave McCaig (colorist)

The Story: Take me to your leader…and your best mall.

The Review: Most every comic book character is guilty of a burdensome back-history, but Supergirl has perhaps some of the most convoluted continuity of all.  Compared to her famous cousin, who turned into living lightning once, Kara Zor-El has been a protoplasmic matrix, an earth-born angel, and an experimental weapon by a vengeful father, among other things.  And we haven’t even covered the myriad personalities writers have imbued her with over the years.

Here, Green and Johnson wipe Kara’s slate clean as the fallen snow around the site where she awakens from her cosmic slumber.  Previous writers tended to tell this part of her origin story through the eyes of Superman.  This had the effect of making her arrival all the more wondrous, but it also kept us at a distance from her character.  As a side-effect, it took that much more time to appreciate the character for herself, a problem which particularly plagued her last incarnation.

Green-Johnson wisely stick us with Kara from the start, allowing us to get a sense of who she is and her point of view without relying on the reactions of others.  They keep her narrative natural, credible, and on-point, revealing interesting and crucial elements of her past without being overly direct.  We get a significant hint that Kara may not have been the most diligent student: “I’m not supposed to wear [my costume] for another year, when I graduate…if I graduate.”

Her implied lack of academic achievement may contribute to the funny, lovely kind of innocence she expresses throughout the issue.  In a perfect reaction for a girl from an advanced world, she smiles at a bunch of armed mechas surrounding her as if seeing an adorable pet.  Her musing that “Father would love this dream” gives you a couple things: appreciation for her girlish love for her dad, and dread for when she inevitably discovers what’s happened to her father and home.

Superman/Batman #62 – Review

By Michael Green and Mike Johnson (writers), Rafael Albuquerque (artist), David Baker (inker)

The Story: Supergirl and Robin (Tim Drake) meet for lunch and reminisce about their first adventure together. The book then flashbacks to them being left alone in Gotham by Batman and Superman and having to respond to a prison break in Arkham. The inhabitants of Arkham are never people that settle the stomach, so these young heroes have a hard time, each in their own way.

What’s Good: The art is great. I don’t tend to like cartoony styles, but Albuquerque’s details of the inhabitants of Arkham was brilliant and reminded me a bit of Quitely’s style. Two-Face was creepy, the windows and capes shone, the fires glowed, and the faces expressed clear emotions. Albuquerque’s Joker was horrifying, wide-eyed, confused, and deranged. Croc and Ivy were sinister and threatening. A-class art all the way through.

The parallels in the stories were good too. Green and Johnson used reversals to bookend the Arkham adventure. In the beginning, Supergirl needs Robin’s advice, at the end, he needs hers. It worked for form’s sake, but lead into some problems.

What’s Not So Good: Supergirl and Robin face virtually identical personal pressures, so it’s not clear to me why Robin was hardened at the beginning. It didn’t make sense that he needed Supergirl to balance him at the end. As I said above, it made for a nice plot structure, but it is a false development and was difficult to swallow.

I also get that this issue of Superman/Batman is aimed at a younger audience and if it had used only juvenile material, I would be ok with that. However, showing lots of corpses, dismemberment (and dismemberings!), I’m going to make the assumption that the editors had also envisioned an older readership. In that case, I have higher standards of sophistication, which this book failed to meet.

For example, it is cliché pulp scifi power fantasy to have the police stand around waiting for a pre-pubescent boy to pull their chestnuts out of the fire. It is shallow superheroing. Moreover, I always have a problem with heroes that are extremely mismatched in power. In plain language, Tim Drake’s career as a hero could be ended with a sharpened stick. Only one of Supergirl’s powers (not including flight, super strength, heat vision, invulnerability, etc…) is super-speed and she tours the entire Batcave before Tim can finish a sentence. Tim would have had a hard slog cleaning up a prison break at Arkham on his own, but honestly, I have trouble seeing why Supergirl just didn’t go through at super speed and tie everyone up before they even knew she was there. Superheroes are diminished when the villain is not a challenge. In this case, the Batman villains filling Arkham should be no challenge for Supergirl.

Conclusion: This was an offering of filler and trivial character development that will have no effect on these characters in the DCU, but the art in the Arkham flashback was awesome.

Grade: C

-DS Arsenault

Superman/Batman #54 – Review

By: Michael Green (story) Mike Johnson (dialogue) Rags Morales (pencils and cover) John Dell (inks) Nei Ruffino (colors) Rob Leigh (letters)

The Story: Superman struggles to find his place in a world without his powers. After striving for so long to be more human, he’s discovering that it’s not all it’s cracked up to be. Batman on the other hand, is loving his new-found strengths just a little too much. His new powers are helping him clean up Gotham at an alarming rate, but at what cost? They say absolute power corrupts absolutely, and Batman may fall prey to the rule.

What’s Good: The power shift between the two heroes is playing out very well. Not only because it’s nice to see their role reversal, but also how they’re reacting. The fact that Batman of all people is having trouble seeing things clearly with his new powers says a lot. Embracing his new-found god-hood and further alienating his allies sets up some good character tension down the line. Superman’s struggle with mortality and inability to help also comes off very well. We’ve all felt helpless in our lives, but to go from god to guy in a few seconds would be tough for anyone to come back from.

What’s Not So Good: My only real gripe is the lack of overall villain thus-far. Silver Banshee came in and did her thing, then Batman threw down with Bane and all of that was fine. But it’s still unclear if the arc will only be about the power-shift, leading to a powerless Superman trying to take down a power-mad Batman. Or if a larger problem looms on the horizon.

Conclusion: This arc is off to a great start but I feel that the sooner we get an idea of where things are headed the better. If you’ve ever wondered what Batman would be like with powers, or Superman would be without them, this is a must buy. You might be surprised at the results, and a little surprise here and there is a good thing.

Grade: B+

-Ben Berger

Superman/Batman #53 – Review

By Michael Green, (story) Mike Johnson, (dialogue) Rags Morales, (pencils and cover) John Dell, (inks) Nei Ruffino, (colors) Rob Leigh (letters)

The Story: Whenever Bruce Wayne has business in Metropolis, Superman insists on filling in for Batman in Gotham in exchange for the same courtesy. A run-in with Silver Banshee has some lasting and drastic consequences that causes Batman to gain the Kryptonian’s powers while leaving Superman powerless.

What’s Good? My favorite part of this series has always been the inner monologue of Batman and Superman. It perfectly illustrates them as opposite sides of the same coin. The story itself has a lot of appeal as well, playing on the idea of what would happen if Batman had superpowers. Would Gotham be cleaned up overnight? Would they hinder him? So far it looks like the latter, but we’re one issue in. Even more interesting than Batman with powers is Superman without them. I’ll probably catch hell for this, but Superman’s heroics are overrated in my eyes. I’m not saying he’s not a hero, but someone like Batman who can die is more heroic than a god doing the right thing. It’s not like your local thug can stop off at the corner mart for some kryptonite. Still, I’ve grown to appreciate Superman more over the years. Even though he’s wanted to be more human, will his lack of powers make him see that mortality’s overrated? I’m excited to see how things pan out and where Green and Johnson are taking our heroes.

What’s Not So Good? Silver Banshee is a lame villain. I’m sure she’s just a pawn or even a throw-away. But Batman and Superman switching powers is a big deal, and one I’d rather see that go to a better villain. The other negative is that we haven’t gotten much setup for the story. Is it going to be all about Bruce and Clark adjusting to the new powers or lack thereof? Or is there a larger force and story at stake.

Conclusion: Even without too many seeds being planted for the arc, this issue does more than enough to get me excited. The pressure is on for issue two, since not much was established beyond the power-switch. Nevertheless, the role-reversal should have a wide appeal for both these heroes. Fans should check this one out.

Grade: B

Ben Berger

Superman/Batman #50 – Review

Michael Green, Mike Johnson, (writers) Ed Benes, Matthew Clark, Allan Goldman, Ian Churchill, (pencils) Matt “Batt” Banning, Norm Rapmund, Marlo Alquiza, Rob Hunter,(inkers) John Rauch, (colors) Andrew Robinson, Greg DiGenti, (Krypton sequence), Rob Leigh, (letters) Ethan Van Sciver, Ed McGuinness, Dexter Vines,  Dave McCaig (covers)

This issue has The League rebuilding Smallville and fighting it out with more rogue Kryptonian tech. As great as Superman is he just can’t seem to save us from his planet’s technology. After Brianiac, The Phantom Zone, and a Kryptonian probe, what’s next? But throw in a chance meeting between Thomas Wayne and Jor El and you’ve got a great start to this new arc.

Michael Green and Mike Johnson have done an excellent job with their run on this title. It’s unclear to me if the connection between Thomas and Jor El will carry through, or if it’s just a standalone scene – I’m thinking it’ll probably be the latter – in either case it’s very effective. Personally, I found it a little annoying that Batman and Superman are barely in the issue. Still, learning the details of their fathers meeting is great. It makes me wonder what things would’ve been like if Superman had crashed in Gotham.

A highlight of the book is definitely the pencils. The team is pretty massive, but everyone does a great job. The battle scenes are chaotic, but very detailed and easy to follow. My favorite of which is the fight between Batman, Superman and the crystal projections in The Fortress of Solitude. Not only does it feature their best villains, but awesome action as well. The backgrounds on Krypton during the flashback have a lot less detail, but it still fits really well. I’ve always thought Krypton would have a very streamlined architecture. I’m a big fan of the coloring during this sequence and the use of cool blues is a great choice, definitely better than your standard black and white.

Batman and Superman are like brothers in many ways, and this story reinforces that. Having Thomas Wayne reverse engineer much of Wayne Tech from his time on Krypton is a great touch. That said, I feel my biggest complaint is that it doesn’t seem like much happened; since most of the issue is a flashback it’s hard to really feel that progression. While it remains unclear if we’ll continue to see Thomas Wayne and Jor El in this book it’s still a good read with lots of good stuff for any fan. (Grade: B-)

-Ben Berger

Superman/Batman #49 – Review

By Michael Green, Mike Johnson, Shane Davis (pencils), Matt “Batt” Banning (inks), Pete Pantazis (colors)

Batman and Superman continue their quest to rid the world of Kryptonite. Along the way they duke it out with the Government and an old ally from Clark’s past.  It’s an emotional chapter, especially when the fate of Superman’s existence is placed in peril. Sounds pretty simple, but there’s A LOT of good stuff in here.

First of all. the dialogue is fantastic. A lot of writers seem to think that these characters have similar personalities because they have similar goals. Thankfully, that isn’t the case here. Each has their own inner monologue and right from the start we see the evidence of this. The US Government has Lexcorp putting Kryptonite bombs together “just in case.” When they arrive, Superman discovers Lana Lang and Lexcorp have thousands of caches of Kryptonite stashed, and rigged to blow. This would effectively exile Superman from Earth. The button is pushed, and he’s betrayed by his high school sweetheart. Among all the positives this book offers, my biggest gripe is with Toyboy, mostly because he’s such a stereotype. When he creepily accepts a Powergirl robot as payment for doing the right thing, I was done with him. Luckily, he’s only there for a few minutes.

The very detailed art is a true highlight of this book, Each page tells as much as it can with as few panels as possible. This is most evident with Superman, specifically his second confrontation with Lana. After Superman and Batman get everything sorted out, Supes returns to Lexcorp. He doesn’t say much. The image of him floating menacingly, with no detail on his face other than his glowing red eyes is enough. Very cool.

This comic has a lot of action in it, and I was able to get into what was going on right away. This is a credit to both the writing and the art teams. The book’s concluding scenes really tie everything together and speak volumes for the characters.  I was able to pick this up, get right into it, and enjoy it without reading the rest of the series. I think that’s as high of a selling point as anything. (Grade: B)

– Ben Berger