{"id":11472,"date":"2014-01-11T08:00:57","date_gmt":"2014-01-11T08:00:57","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/?p=11472"},"modified":"2014-01-09T16:09:50","modified_gmt":"2014-01-09T16:09:50","slug":"supermanbatman-supergirl","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/2014\/01\/11\/supermanbatman-supergirl\/","title":{"rendered":"Superman\/Batman: Supergirl"},"content":{"rendered":"

New Revised Review<\/strong>
\n\"\"\"\"
\nBy Jeph Loeb<\/b>, Michael Turner<\/b> & Peter Steigerwald<\/b> (DC Comics)
\nISBN: 1-4012-0347-7<\/p>\n

In a shock of sheer horror, I realised over Christmas that I’ve been doing this for over 20 years: firstly in magazines like Comics Forum<\/b> and books like Slings and Arrows<\/b>, then as an online critic for the Comics Creators Guild website, before starting the independent Now Read This!<\/b> in 2007.<\/i>
\nMoreover many of those early efforts weren’t particularly fair or good – a side-effect of being literally bombarded non-stop with volumes one wouldn’t generally pick to read.<\/i>
\nThus in a probably futile effort to be less judgemental I’ve been going over older reviews, rethinking some previous pronouncements and will be making amends over the months to come.<\/i>
\nWhat’s really worrying is how many I haven’t changed my mind about\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6<\/i><\/p>\n

For many years Superman and Batman worked together as the \u00e2\u20ac\u0153World’s Finest\u00e2\u20ac\u009d team. They were best friends and the pairing made perfect financial sense as National\/DC’s most popular heroes could cross-sell their combined readerships.<\/p>\n

When the characters were redefined for the post-Crisis on Infinite Earths<\/b> 1980s, they were remade as cautious but respectful co-workers who did the same job whilst deploring each other’s methods. They preferred to avoid contact whenever possible – except when they were in the Justice League<\/i> – but then, the character continuity of team titles has always been largely at odds with heroes at home in their own titles…<\/p>\n

After a few years of this new status quo the irresistible lure of Cape & Cowl Capers inexorably brought them together again with modern emotional intensity derived from their incontestably differing methods and characters.<\/p>\n

For decades DC really couldn’t make up their minds over Supergirl<\/b>. I’ve actually lost count of the number of different versions that have cropped up over the years, and I’ve never been able to shake the queasy feeling that above all else she’s a concept that was cynically shifted from being a way to get girls reading comics to one calculated to ease young male readers over that bumpy patch between sporadic chin-hair outbreaks, voices breaking and that nervous period of hiding things under your mattress where your mum never, never ever looks\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6<\/p>\n

After a few intriguing test-runs she debuted as a future star of the ever-expanding Superman pocket universe in Action Comics<\/strong> #252 (May 1959). Superman’s cousin Kara Zor-El<\/i> had been born on a city-sized fragment of Krypton, hurled intact into space when the planet exploded. Eventually Argo<\/i> City<\/i> turned to Kryptonite like the rest of the detonated world’s debris and her dying parents, observing Earth through their vision-scopes, sent their daughter to safety as they apparently perished.<\/p>\n

Landing on Earth, she met Superman who created the identity of Linda Lee<\/i> and hid her in an orphanage whilst she learned of her new world and powers in secrecy and safety.<\/p>\n

Her popularity waxed and waned over the years until she was earmarked for destruction as part of the clearout of attention-grabbing deaths during the aforementioned Crisis on Infinite Earths<\/b>.<\/b><\/p>\n

However as detailed in scripter Jeph Loeb’s introduction ‘On the Roller Coaster or, How Supergirl Returned to the DCU for the First Time’<\/i>, after John Byrne successfully rebooted the Man of Steel, non-Kryptonian iterations began to appear – each with their own fans – until early in the 21st<\/sup> century the company Powers-that-Be decided the real Girl of Steel should come back\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6 sort of\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6<\/p>\n

Thus this visually intoxicating version (reprinting Superman\/Batman<\/b> #8-13, May-October 2004) resets to the original concept and has a naked blonde chick arrive on a Kryptonite meteor, claiming to be Superman’s cousin\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6<\/p>\n

Written by Loeb with captivating art by Michael Turner & Peter Steigerwald, the action commences in the aftermath of Superman\/Batman: Public Enemies<\/a><\/b> wherein a Green Kryptonite asteroid crashed to Earth. Now in ‘Alone’<\/i>, as a quarantined Superman chafes at enforced detention, the Dark Knight explores a section of the meteor submerged in Gotham Bay.<\/p>\n

The JLA have all been active, clearing away the deadly fragments, but this last one is most disturbing. As Batman quickly grasps, it’s a ship but its single passenger is missing\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6<\/p>\n

Soon the Gotham Guardian is tracking a wave of destruction caused by a seemingly confused teenaged girl with incredible powers and only Superman’s unwise early intervention stops the mounting carnage. Their subsequent investigations reveal the comely captive to have all the Man of Tomorrow’s abilities and she claims – in fluent Kryptonian – to be the daughter of his long-dead uncle Zor-El<\/i>\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6<\/p>\n

The mystery further unfolds in ‘Visitor’<\/i> as a deeply suspicious Batman and ecstatic Superman continue their researches, arguing their corners as the most powerful girl on Earth becomes increasingly impatient. Fuelling the Dark Knight’s concern is superdog Krypto<\/i>‘s clear and savage hostility to the newcomer and Kara<\/i>‘s claims that she has amnesia\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6<\/p>\n

Then as Clark Kent<\/i> endeavours to acclimatise his cousin to life on Earth, on the hellish world of Apokolips<\/i> vile Granny Goodness<\/i> and her Female Furies<\/i> are ordered by ultimate evil space-god Darkseid<\/i> to acquire the pliable naive newcomer\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6<\/p>\n

Before they can strike, however, an attack comes from an unexpected source, as former ally Harbinger<\/i>, ruthless hunter Artemis<\/i> and beloved ally Wonder Woman<\/i> ambush the Kryptonians. \u00e2\u20ac\u00a6<\/p>\n

Princess Diana<\/i> has acted arbitrarily nut from necessity: kidnapping Kara and bringing her to the island home of the Amazons to be trained in the use of her powers as a ‘Warrior’<\/i>. Superman’s growing obsession has rendered him unable to see her potential for destruction, despite a cryptic message on her space ship from Zor-El, and Wonder Woman decided to strike first and ask later\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6<\/p>\n

With tempers barely cooled, Dark Knight and Man of Steel are invited to observe Kara’s progress weeks later, just as the tropical Paradise is assaulted by an army of artificial Doomsdays<\/i> manufactured on Apokolips\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6<\/p>\n

The wave of slaughter is a feint, but by the time the horrors are all destroyed, the Female Furies have done their work, slaughtering Kara’s only friend and stealing her away\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6<\/p>\n

In ‘Prisoner’<\/i>, DC’s superheroic high trinity enlist the aid of Apokolyptian \u00c3\u00a9migr\u00c3\u00a9 Big Barda<\/i> and stage a devastating rescue mission to Darkseid’s homeworld, but not before the Lord of evil apparently twists the innocent Girl of Steel into his tool: a ‘Traitor’<\/i> to the living\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6<\/p>\n

The Master of Apokolips has never faced a foe as adamant as Batman and the quartet are unexpectedly victorious, but after returning Kara to Earth and announcing her as the new Supergirl<\/i>, the heroes discover that they are not safe or secure, and in ‘Hero’<\/i> Darkseid horrifyingly returns to exact his ultimate revenge\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6<\/p>\n

This hardcover collection also includes a covers-&-variant gallery by Turner, Steigerwald, Jim Lee & Scott Williams, assorted roughs and a wealth of production Sketches<\/i>, and a nifty 2-page translation key for the Kryptonian Alphabet<\/i>.<\/p>\n

For me, the most intriguing aspect of this sometimes overly-sentimental tale is Batman’s utter distrust and suspicion of Kara as she is hidden from the world while she assimilates, but there’s plenty of beautifully rendered action (plus oodles of lovingly rendered girl-flesh and titillating fetish outfits jostling for attention amidst the lavish fight-scenes and interminable guest-cameos) and enough sheer spectacle to satisfy any Fights ‘n’ Tights fans.
\n\u00c2\u00a9 2004, 2005 DC Comics. All Rights Reserved.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

New Revised Review By Jeph Loeb, Michael Turner & Peter Steigerwald (DC Comics) ISBN: 1-4012-0347-7 In a shock of sheer horror, I realised over Christmas that I’ve been doing this for over 20 years: firstly in magazines like Comics Forum and books like Slings and Arrows, then as an online critic for the Comics Creators … <\/p>\n

Continue reading “Superman\/Batman: Supergirl”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[10,76,121,9],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-11472","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-batman","category-dc-superhero","category-supergirl-graphic-novels","category-superman"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p4AFj-2Z2","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11472","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=11472"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11472\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=11472"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=11472"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=11472"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}