I have a lofty goal of reviewing comics each week on New Comic Book Day. However, my shop doesn't open on Tuesdays, which is when DC drops new books each week, so I have to wait until Wednesday. No big deal, other than avoiding spoilers for an entire day. Now, being a HUGE Supergirl fan, I will most assuredly be reviewing anything with Kara Zor-El or any other version of Supergirl. I've already seen two mentions of her this week alone.
She will be making an appearance in Tom Taylor's "Dark Knights of Steel". That's all I'm saying. It was spoiled for me, but I'm not spoiling it for you. If you're a Supercorp fan though, you might consider going out and grabbing issue 1 & 2. Tom's one of my top writers currently. I'm reading his Superman run as well as his Nightwing run. Both are excellently written and heartfelt. Everything Superhero comics should be. I love how he's changing what it means to be a Superhero with this second generation. Evolution of the genre is something the comics industry has needed and this guy is nailing it.
Dark Knights of Steel issue one was fantastic. I'm not going to spoil it here, even though it's been out for a month, because I think you Supergirl fans might go get it this week, but I will tell you it was a fun "elseworld" type beginning. We're in Medieval times, Kal-El's pod crashed near a castle & you never know who's going to show up where & in what context. If you like King Arthur or Robin Hood or sword swinging knights and you like superheroes, this book is for you. Go get it.
Kara Zor-El is also supposed to pop up in the new book "World of Krypton" issue 1. It also comes out today. If you love Krypton or have ever wanted to learn more about Krypton, you might want to check this out. I'm going to. I'll give you more on the book later this week after I've read it. Kara does seem to be a fairly important part of the book, though.
I like that DC seems to be embracing Kara Zor-El more. She's a great character with a super interesting past (pun intended) and so much trauma and hope and interesting things to explore. Past, present & future. While "World of Krypton" seems like a place we might get to see a young Kara growing up, which oddly enough in 60 years we NEVER have. Tom King's run explores Kara's present/future.
Tom King's "Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow" is so much of what I've wanted to see of Kara Zor-El. The trauma, the fight, the inability to give up no matter the odds. Stripping away the male gaze and the sexed up teenager in a short skirt that's always portrayed as some sort of perfect virginal vessel of hope & goodness. An object, rather than a multi-layered being with emotions & imperfections & bad days. Having Bilquis Evely on the pencils really made sure of that. We get one of the most beautiful depictions of Kara Zor-El that I have ever seen. Mat Lopes colors just make things even more stunning.
There's a lot of people that don't like this version of Supergirl. I really don't know how you couldn't, but hey, to each their own. I'm more than happy to see her elevated beyond fap material for 40 year old men. Some argue about her swearing. A being as intelligent as Kara Zor-El would swear. There are scientific studies out there about swearing & intelligence. Just google it.
It's a character driven story about boundaries, trauma, aloneness and personal morals. Kara is one of the only (if not only) character in all of comics that has lost everything. Everything. Her loved ones, her friends, her home, her planet, her culture, her language, her gods, her technology, her way of life. Kal-El maybe a Kryptonian by DNA, but Kara Zor-El is really the last survivor of that culture. That world. Kal-El is a human. An Earthing in every way except his DNA. DC has sat on this character for far too long & I am really happy to see her evolving into someone women and young girls can connect with on a deeper level, rather than just being the same unsure sexualized teenager in a short skirt.
"Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow" is an 8 book run and issue 6 will be the next issue out in either January or February, possibly the 21st of December if the paper shortage has been fixed & the release dates are to be believed. There should be a nice Hardback edition planned as the series ends that I would guess would be out late spring or early summer, unless DC decides to skip the usual fancy hardback. Tom King usually gets 12 books in a series and was very upfront about how DC didn't feel Supergirl warranted his usual 12 and only gave him 8, so it's possibly they'll just go straight to trade paperback. I certainly hope not because despite collecting every cover of every issue, I also plan on buying that hardback. Do you hear me, DC?
All of this just to let you know that this space will be reviewing comics from now on. Weekly, if I don't utterly fail & fall into a hole of self-loathing laziness. This week, "Dark Knights of Steel" and "World of Krypton". Stay tuned.
This was an amazing post with so many fantastic points about how DC repeatedly neglects the potential depths of Supergirl. I agree that Tom King is doing a fantastic job of reflecting the darkness and pain that she has had to endure and despite it all still has hope. I sincerely hope that DC does release this run in hardback because it is such a well told story that I would love to see on my bookshelf. Can’t wait to read more of your reviews!
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