Supergirl #37 // Review

Supergirl #37 // Review

Any actor will say that the secret to playing a villain is that every one of them thinks they’re the hero. Kara is a hero who has been infected with supernatural villainy, but she still wants to be Supergirl. She’s lost her grip on reality, and she’s running the risk of taking the world with her in Supergirl #37. New writer Jody Houser and new artist Rachel Stott take over Kara’s adventures in a debut issue that has a very confused Kryptonian up against Superman, Batman, and herself in another Year of the Villain crossover issue. The new team has a solid grasp of the heroine at her worst in a very appealing first issue.

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Kara didn’t know what she had caught when she laid her hands on a Batarang infected with strange corruption by The Batman Who Laughs. She has been charged with protecting the earth, but the corruption has made her view all who inhabit the planet as feeble, little children. Her logic is twisted and infected. She’s putting people in great danger. Her cousin Clark and his friend Bruce are about to have a little intervention with her. It’s not going to go well for any of them.

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Houser has a very deft sense of characterization. Kara’s inner monologue has little twinges of irrationality about it. “I honestly don’t know how these frail, little people survived into adulthood before I got here,” she says, haphazardly saving a school bus filled with children as she yawns. The confrontation between the classic World’s Finest pairing and a Supergirl totally unfettered by moral complexity feels remarkably fresh in Houser’s hands. As does the internal struggle, Kara feels as she fights the infection of corruption. Houser has made an admirable entrance into the series at a rather tricky time for the hero.

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The character design for Kara’s infected form looked pretty silly and derivative. Stott takes the exact same dark Supergirl character design and makes it look remarkably good with overly expressive emotions exploding across her face and sardonic body language the occasionally contorts into pain as Kara struggles to keep herself together. Stott’s treatment of Clark and Bruce feels remarkably fresh her as well. The emotionality of two heroes who have known each other forever comes across with impressive resonance. This issue also allows Stott the opportunity to dive into some powerfully vertiginous perspectives as Kara tangles with Batman and Superman above and amidst a cluttered metropolitan skyline packs quite a visual punch.

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Houser and Stott have made a really solidly entertaining opening for their run on Supergirl. Having opened with a very compelling emotional exploration of Kara’s darker side, it will be interesting seeing what they can do with her once the infection fades as it presumably will in issues to come. Decades after her first appearance, Kara still has great potential to explore new territory. The inconsistent quality of the past years has failed to live up to that potential. Houser and Stott clearly show that they can do some great work with the title, as evidenced by this issue.

Grade: A

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