The Uncanny X-Men - Year 1

One of the great advantages of buying digital comics from +comiXology is the ability to get one's hands on back-issues that would be impossible to find, and read, in their original paper format.  There are many comics from the Silver and even the Golden Ages that I have never read, but always wanted to, and a few of them (though not as many as I would wish) are now available digitally, and more are being uploaded to +comiXology every day.  One such series, of which I was a huge fan back in the day, is the classic Uncanny X-Men, originally written by Stan Lee and drawn by Jack Kirby.  Along with more modern comics, I've been buying 2-3 issues each month of this original X-Men series (published starting in 1963). I've now reached issue 12, and so I am going to comment on "Year 1" of X-Men. As I proceed with later issues, I will add new installments of this article series.

Before I proceed, a few comments.

First, I put "Year 1" in quotation marks because, back in those days, X-Men was published bi-monthly, so the first 12 issues, which would represent a single year of a monthly series in modern times, actually took two years to publish in the 1960s.  Because all my other reviews are based on modern publishing schedules, I've decided to continue to review 12 issues at a time.

Second, there have been many series with the term "X-Men" in the title, and I want to clarify which series is being discussed here.  When I refer to the X-Men series in this article (and the 4-5 following ones, which will take us through X-Men #66), I will be referring to the original series (aka. volume 1), published by +Marvel Entertainment (called "Marvel Comics" back then) starting in 1963 and published for almost 50 years.  I will not be referring to any other incarnation of the X-Men title in these articles.

X-Men #1 - Origin

X-Men #1 opens by introducing us to a new team of super-heroes.  After 50 years, it's hard to imagine, but in this first issue in 1963, we have the very first appearance of super-humans born with their powers, and referred to by the term "mutants."  Prior to this issue, just about every superhero you can name derived his or her powers from some external force (an accident, being an alien, being a robot, etc).  But here, we have four teenagers -- Scott Summers, Hank McCoy, Bobby Drake, and Warren Worthington III -- who were simply born with these superhuman abilities.

The story begins with another mutant, Professor Charles Xavier, who has mental super-powers, putting these young men through their paces.  Xavier runs a "school for the gifted" -- in this case, gifted with superhuman abilities. He believes that, with these powers, comes great responsibility to protect and defend the rest of humanity -- especially against those who are born with super-powers but may use them for evil purposes.  Thus, we begin in the "danger room" of the X-Men, with Cyclops, Beast, Ice Man, and Angel training to use their powers.

Shortly after the training, the team of young men is joined by their first female character, Jean Grey, who has telekinetic powers, and is given the code-name "Marvel Girl."

The guys, being teenage boys who have rarely been around girls, make fools of themselves flirting with Jean, and she shows off her powers a bit.  Meanwhile, a helmeted, caped man is hatching a plot to take over the world.  He refers to mutants as "Homo superior" (for X-Men fans -- yes, this term was coined in the very first issue) and plans to take control of the nuclear arsenal of the U.S. and use it to blackmail normal humans into bowing to him.  This man is, of course, Magneto, for years the greatest arch-enemy of the X-Men.

Magneto uses his powers to take over a military base, gain control of the missiles, and then put a force-field around the base to prevent anyone from attacking him.  The news of this gets out, and Professor X summons the X-men, and sends them off to try and stop Magneto.  This leads to the very first battle between Magneto and the X-men, in which each X-man uses his or her powers against various attacks hurled at them by the villain.  In the end, the X-men manage to fight him off, and Magneto flees, vowing to return.

X-Men #1 is a classic first issue from the Silver Age.  I was amazed at how much is crammed into this issue. We have the introduction of the "born with our powers" mutant concept.  We have the first appearance of all five original X-Men plus Professor X.  We have the introduction of Magneto the "evil mutant," and a setup of the "mutants vs. non-mutants" conflict that will dominate this title in years to come.

There are also many surprises in this issue if you came to the X-Men series much later on (in the days of Storm and Wolverine, or in recent times), because in this issue, rather than being hunted by the government, the X-Men team is actually sanctioned by it.  Additionally, there is no hostility between normal humans and the X-Men -- all the hostility is on Magneto's side (he hates non-mutants). The X-Men confuse and surprise the military when they first appear (of course), but by the end, the base's general is shaking their hand and talking about what an honor it was to work with them.

How different this reaction is from the reactions we see toward mutants in modern times, and indeed, the reactions we've seen for decades.  One wonders if, when they started all this, Lee and Kirby had any idea how much the mutant theme would change over the years, and indeed, whether they would, back then, have approved of what was coming.  We know that years later, as publisher, Stan Lee allowed the mutant hatred that came to dominate +Marvel Entertainment, but I have to wonder if the 1963 Lee and Kirby would have warmed to the idea, given the stories they were writing at the time.

Overall, X-Men #1 is an extremely fun, as well as educational (from the perspective of comic-book history) read.  Yes, the dialog is a campy and the actions of the characters are a sometimes silly.  Yes, the X-men, who are portrayed as being in their late teens, sometimes act childishly (especially around Jean, they act more like they're 12 than 17).  But we have here all the classic elements that became hallmarks of the X-men for years to come, and there is no question that this light-hearted story is worth a few smiles.  Unlike today's comics, this is an issue I will be able to share with my nephew when he is old enough to read, and I know he will love it.

Adventures under Professor X

Following the first issue battle against Magneto, Professor X leads the X-Men through a series of battles against villainous mutants.  Each issue, the danger room provides greater and greater challenges, as Professor X hones his students' skills.  And in each issue, we see a new villain to challenge the X-Men.  In issue #2, the X-men face the Vanisher, who can turn invisible.

In issue #3, they try to recruit the Blob, who is a circus performer but also a mutant, only to have him turn on them and try to attack their school.  Professor X solves this problem (temporarily), but making the Blob forget he is after them.

Then, in issue #4, Magneto returns, this time accompanied by his "Brotherhood of Evil Mutants," consisting of Toad, who has acrobatic powers, Mastermind the illusionist, Scarlet Witch, who has 'hex' powers, and Quicksilver, who has superspeed.  The evil mutants take over the fictional island of Santo Marco as a first step to conquering the world.  In this issue, we see for the first time Professor X and Magneto making "astral projections" of themselves, in which Magneto asks Xavier why he insists on protecting the "lowly" humans from superior mutants.  Xavier says he will not stand by and watch innocents hurt, and this sets up the first-ever show-down between the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants and the X-men.

In the end, the X-men defeat the Evil Mutants, forcing them to flee the island. However, there is a cost... Professor Xavier is caught in an explosion and, on the final page of the issue, says he has lost his mental powers and can no longer lead them.

In the next issue, we find out that the Evil Mutants have an asteroid base in orbit around the earth, and that Magneto wants to find and defeat the X-men.  Mastermind searches for them unsuccessfully, and so Magneto sends Toad out to pretend to be a track star. When Toad's powers appear to make him "cheat," the crowd at the track turns into a mob and attacks him (first instance in comic-book history of a mob attacking a mutant for "being different"), and the X-men go to save him.  While bringing him back to their base, however, they recognize him, and a fight breaks out, with the other Evil Mutants joining in.  In the end, the villains flee back to their base, and the X-Men give chase in a second rocket that was meant for Toad.  This leads to a battle royale on the asteroid, and another escape by the evil mutants.  At the end of the story, Professor X reveals that he was never without his powers, but he was just pretending to be to further the education of the X-Men.  This was their final exam, and they passed.  And so, at the end of issue #5, the X-Men have graduated from the "school for gifted youngsters."

As the series continues, the battle between X-Men and Evil Mutant continues. In issue #6, both Magneto and the X-Men attempt to recruit Namor, aka. Submariner, to their cause.  There is a three-way battle, by the end of which Namor decides he doesn't want to be associated with either group, and returns to the ocean.  The Evil Mutants escape once again, after being defeated by the X-Men.

Adventures under Cyclops

Although they passed their final exam in issue #5, the X-Men don't officially graduate until issue #7. In this issue, which began the second calendar year of X-Men (since it was published bi-monthly), the students officially graduate, and Professor Xavier leaves them on their own.

Before leaving, Professor X shows Scott Summers his "Cerebro" machine, which detects mutant activity, and then leaves it, and the X-Men, in his hands. Cyclops will be the new leader of the X-Men.

Meanwhile, Magneto and his Evil Mutants go to the carnival where Blob is performing, and manage to break the mental block Professor X had placed upon him. They convince him to join them and fight against the X-Men.  Together with the Blob, the Evil Mutants battle the X-Men. But when the X-Men end up in a group around the Blob, Magneto sends a flight of torpedoes at them, not caring what this will do to his new underling.  The Blob sees Magneto's true colors as a result, and decides, much like Namor, that he wants nothing to do with either team. And of course, once again, the villains escape (starting to see a pattern here?).

Under the leadership of Cyclops, the team continues to develop and to meet, and battle, new foes.  They battle Unus, whose mutant power makes him impossible to touch. And in issue #9, they meet the Avengers for the first time, and through a misunderstanding, battle them.  The battle is caused by both groups searching for the same villain, a man called "Lucifer" who is an old arch-enemy of Professor Xaveir's.  Eventually, Thor comes to understand what is going on, and calls off the Avengers, telling them to leave this to the X-Men.  Together, Professor X and the X-Men defeat Lucifer, and Professor X returns to the school.

The Return of Professor X

With Professor X back, we begin to see the eventual leadership arrangement of the X-Men taking place.  Xavier remains the director of the team, giving strategic orders and making large decisions, while Scott (Cyclops) remains the tactical leader in combat.  This relationship is very much like a coach and a quarterback, with Xavier calling the plays and Cyclops commanding their execution.   The X-Men go on three new adventures with this new leadership structure.

The first adventure, in issue #10, is in the Savage Land underneath Antarctica, where dwells Ka-Zar.  The X-Men encounter dinosaurs, mammoths, and ape-men, and at first battle Ka-Zar himself, until they realize they are both on the same side.  Then Ka-Zar helps Cyclops, Beast, and Ice Man rescue Marvel Girl and Angel from the ape-men.  However, as with most individual mutants met by the X-Men in these early issues, he decides he wants no part of superheroes or supervillains, and bids them farewell.

In issue #11, the story of Magneto finally wraps up (at least for the moment) as another mutant is detected by Cerebro -- this one more powerful than any to date.  Once again, both the Evil Mutants and the X-Men vie to recruit this being, called simply the "Stranger," but he proves to be too powerful for either.  Finally, he reveals that he is not from earth, and that his civilization collects mutants from other worlds. He has decided to "collect" Magneto and Toad, and takes the two of them off-world, seemingly forever.

Meanwhile, Mastermind has been transformed into solid matter by the Stranger and is no longer a threat, and the Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver, freed of their debt to Magneto, decide to return home to Europe. Since they were never truly villains, the X-Men allow them to leave.

Finally, in issue #12, a new mutant of incredible power is detected. Cerebro raises a loud warning siren, and all the X-Men gather to learn of the new threat.  Professor X tells them that this mutant is on his way to the school and will be almost impossible to stop, but he has them prepare a series of defenses around the school. Then, as the mysterious mutant crashes through one defense after another, Xavier tells the story of his origin.

He was born to parents who had been around nuclear test facilities, which probably caused him to be born a mutant. As he grew older, he developed mental powers.  But his father died in an atomic test accident, and his mother married his father's colleague, Dr. Marko.  Marko had a son, named Cain, who was cruel and mean to Xavier.  The two step-brothers never really got along.  Cain eventually caused a lab accident that killed Dr. Marko, leaving Xavier alone with him. The two remained antagonistic for years, until finally, during the Korean War, Cain fled into a cave and found a powerful gem of dark magic. Taking it, he was transformed into a being of unstoppable strength and power -- the Juggernaut.  North Korean shelling caused the cave to collapse on him, but now (10 years later, when the comic was being published), he had dug himself out and was back to defeat Professor X.  After smashing into the school and blowing past the X-men, he stands before Professor X ready to exact vengeance at the end of issue 12 - the first true cliffhanger of the X-Men series.

Reflections on Year 1

Re-reading the first "year" of classic Silver Age X-Men issues while simultaneously reading the first year worth of DC's "New 52" titles has been an educational study in contrasts.  Although I will readily admit that the plots, and the dialogue, of X-Men 1-12 are clearly aimed at kids and relatively unsophisticated by today's standards, Stan Lee and Jack Kirby also clearly illustrate, in the larger view, how to launch a brand new series in a relatively clean, new universe (as Marvel's was at the time).  Here, I will compare and contrast what is going on today, with what we see in the first 12 issues of the 1960s X-Men series.

Continuity vs. Story Arcs

The first thing that jumps out at the reader of X-Men 1-12 is the lack of what we call "story arcs" today.  In modern comics, storylines last about 4-8 issues, averaging 6, and are relatively self-contained.  Thus, if you look at the "Year 1" summaries I have written about other titles, you will see them broken up into two (or perhaps 3) story arcs. Often (as with Superman 1-12), each story arc has a different creative team.  Within the story arc, supporting cast members appear, but they may not carry over into later story arcs.  And often, although the title characters may remain the same, hardly anything else will be consistent from arc to arc. Indeed, these arcs are most commonly written as stand-alone stories so they can be collected into a trade paperback and sold separately later.  Thus, one can read the arcs in almost any order.

Lee and Kirby did not follow that pattern 50 years ago.  Instead, each individual issue was written as a stand-alone story.  The characters remained consistent from issue to issue, but the main plot was relatively self-contained.  Thus, the plot that began in issue #10 involving Ka-Zar, ended in issue #10.  There were generally no "cliffhanger" endings, and plots did not continue from one issue to the next.

On the other hand, there were sub-plots and character development points that did carry over from issue to issue.  Jean Grey begins falling for Scott early on, and then Scott starts falling for her, and the thread of their unspoken mutual attraction continues throughout all 12 issues.  The training from Professor X accelerates through the first 6 issues, and then in issue 7 the X-Men graduate, followed by Professor X leaving for a few issues, and then returning.  Thus, there is a strong continuity from issue to issue, where what happened previously clearly affects the future.

And yet, despite this strong continuity, it is easily possible to read any one of these 12 issues on its own, without being confused.  Lee and Kirby use the first page or two of each issue to recap what has gone before and explain who the X-Men are, or they use some short flashbacks or narrative boxes to remind readers of the past.  By today's standards this might seem to "slow things down" and would probably be considered heavy-handed, but it was actually quite brilliant. Back then, when comics were still not really being "collected" by many people, and comics specialty stores did not exist, Lee and Kirby knew that the reader could not easily go back and read up on the earlier exploits of the X-Men. They also knew if someone tried to read this month's issue and got lost, he might be frustrated enough not to try any more issues. So they wisely kept readers abreast of what was going on.  This was done gracefully enough that if you have been following along, the recaps were actually fun to read rather than obtrusive.

The continuity in X-Men 1-12 keeps people looking for the next issue, without confusing new readers or forcing people to "buy all the back issues" to figure out what the heck is going on. This should be an important lesson for today's comic-book creators.  Continuity is important, and having a sub-plot continue for many issues is one of the great joys of reading comics.  But in the interests of providing constant "jumping on" points for new readers, comic creators are better served with single-issue stories that are part of a larger continuity, than by producing stories that span many issues, and then are disconnected from the rest of the series.  The way X-Men 1-12 present their stories and continuity is therefore superior to the "story arc" method of today, and I encourage writers and editors to consider at least trying to build a series or two like this again.  (One rare example of this is the New 52 Wonder Woman, which has followed the 1960s Lee/Kirby model rather than the "story arc" model.)

Stability of creative team and story

The primary reason the strong threads of character development and continuity are seen in the first 12 issues of X-Men is the stability of the creative team.  Stan Lee and Jack Kirby worked together on all twelve issues.  There were no fill-in artists or writers. The creative team didn't get fired and replaced after 4 issues.  Rather, Lee and Kirby worked together to slowly build their storyline over 12 issues, and gradually introduced new characters and elements of the story.  As a consequence, there is a consistency and uniformity of style to X-Men 1-12 that only rarely exists in the comics of today.

Today, in contrast, creative teams often come on board for a single story arc, produce 4-8 issues, and then move on, to be replaced by another team.  This causes the quality of most titles to rollercoaster wildly up and down, and causes the characters to be extremely inconsistent from issue to issue.  A great example is the first two story arcs of the New 52 Superman series. Issue 1-6, done by George Perez, has a completely different feel, tone, and emphasis on supporting characters, than does issue 7-12, done by Dan Jurgens, or issue 13-17, done by Scott Lobdell.  These books are so different it almost seems like they're depicting Superman on 3 different Earths.  This inconsistency destroys any sense of continuity the books may have.

Campy stories

Probably the primary criticism that could be leveled against these early Lee/Kirby X-Men is the "campy" tone of the stories. The X-Men are supposed to be young, but they act far younger than their supposed ages (they should be around 17 years old, but they sometimes act more like they are 11 or 12).  The villains love to give corny speeches and act somewhat unrealistically.  However, if you're willing to suspend your disbelief and just enjoy these issues for what they are -- a fun diversion from reality -- these classic X-Men stories can be a lot of fun.  I will certainly admit that, objectively, some of the stories are pretty unsophisticated. But they're plotted well, and they are enjoyable. And after all, that's what we read comics for, isn't it? Enjoyment.

Conclusion

Overall, I greatly enjoyed re-reading the first 12 issues of X-Men.  Although some aspects of the series definitely show their age, the way this series was handled by Lee and Kirby is really an object lesson for how to introduce a new comic-book series, with a new set of characters, to the comic-reading public.  If the companies of today did things more like Lee and Kirby and less like Morrison and Lobdell, we'd all have a much better material to read each month.

Why I blame editors for bad decisions, rather than writers

Many times, comic-book stories go in directions that simply leave this reader scratching his head -- not because I do not understand what is happening on the page, but because I don't understand why anyone (sane) would write the story this way.  For example, why would +DC Comics  give Batman a new Robin, Bruce Wayne's son, only to kill him off in under two years? Why would DC reboot their universe to the point where they are re-telling Superman's origin, and the Justice League's origin, but not reboot Batman and Green Lantern?  Why, after killing Jean Grey off, leaving her dead for years, and then bringing her back to life because they realized they needed the character around, would +Marvel Entertainment kill her off again? And why would the creators make a story-line that is a mega-tie in, crossing over an entire family of books, and then give it a plot that goes nowhere until the very final issue of the crossover sequence, in which the plot is abruptly and illogically resolved in a couple of pages? (I'm looking right at you, "H'el on Earth.")

All these, and many more, examples of head-scratching plotting decisions -- these story directions that make no sense to any reasonable person -- are written out by the writer of the comic.  Traditionally, when head-scratchers like this are printed, the writer is blamed.  After all, it was his plot, and his dialogue, that produced the poorly-thought-out plot element.  There have, of course, always been editors, and we have always known that any plot point must be approved by the editor, so the editor was to blame as well.  But traditionally, the editor was more of an "accomplice," with the writer being the actual perpetrator.   Editors could, sometimes, alter the outcome of a story, but they rarely were directly involved in the plotting.

A great example of how it used to work comes from the first death of Jean Grey/Phoenix in Uncanny X-men #137.  As originally plotted, writer Chris Claremont and artist (and co-plotter) John Byrne had scripted Jean's loss of her powers at the end of X-men #137.  This story made it all the way to then-editor-in-chief Jim Shooter's desk, and had already been penciled, inked, and perhaps even colored by that point.  However, Shooter, reading the story, decided that losing her powers was not sufficient punishment for Jean, who had, as "Dark" Phoenix, destroyed an entire world, killing hundreds of millions of innocent sentient beings.  Shooter requested that the story be re-written so that Jean died for her crimes; it was the only fitting punishment.

This anecdote shows how influential an editor can be on the final product.  However, it also shows how "hands off" most editors were at the time.  Claremont and Byrne were allowed to tell the story they wanted, and they only got interference when there was disagreement over a large, important issue.  Here again, the editors assisted with the story and had to agree to what was written and drawn, but generally, creative teams were given a free hand unless something peculiar happened.

If the M.O. I described for the Jean Grey story were still in effect, then I would lay the blame for all the idiotic plot and story decisions at the feet of writers and artists.  However, at least in DC, it apears the writers and artists no longer control their stories.  Indeed, it seems as if the plotting role has been turned completely over to editors, and the writer has been demoted to a "scripter" (writer of dialogue, not planner of plots).  DC's editors are exerting more and more control, and the writers are starting to find their style so cramped that they are beginning to jump ship.

Probably the most significant recent example of this writer/editor conflict, and a perfect illustration of the iron control editors seem to have over plotlines, was the resignation of writer Joshua Hale Fialkov from DC's Green Lantern series.  Original reports were that Fialkov resigned from the book over vague "creative differences" with the editorial team.  However, recently confirmed reports now indicate that Josh resigned because the editors wanted him to kill off Green Lantern John Stewart, one of the most famous African American superheroes in comics lore, and Fialkov refused to write such a story.  According to CBR, Fialkov seems to have had two main reasons for quitting the book. First, he didn't agree that Stewart should be killed off. And second, he didn't want the comic fans to blame him for killing off one of their favorite characters, and one of the only prominent minority characters in DC.

Leaving aside the utter stupidity of the "kill of John Stewart" idea in the first place, this incident clearly demonstrates that the editors are exerting far too much control over the plotlines in DC's comics. The editor should be there to assist, guide, and help the creative team tell the best story, but the editor should not be coming up with large plot elements all on his or her own.  Editors should not be handing down plots and telling writers to script those stories.  They should be letting the creative teams do their work, and stick to editing.

The evidence that the iron-clad editorial control is a disaster is all around them at DC.  Book after book is being canceled.  Writers and artists are coming and going from books like they're playing musical chairs.  Other than one or two signature titles, hardly any series from DC has been able to really hold onto an audience -- most series are bleeding readers month by month.  All these things are happening because DC's editors are trying to be plotters, and that is not their role. It's not what they are good at. It's not where their talent lies.  Rather, the people with the talent for good storytelling are the writers and artists.   The stories were clearly better when writers had a free hand.  And in the few cases at DC where you can tell the writer does have a freer hand than most (such as the first year of Batgirl by Gail Simone, or Wonder Woman by Brian Azzarello), the stories and plots were clearly far superior to those books where the editors were micro-managing and interfering.

I've suspected since getting back to reading comics this past winter that the editors were strongly controlling everything in comics, but I had no direct evidence. Now I have proof, and now I can lay the blame for fiascoes like H'el on Earth squarely on the shoulders of the editors. It's not longer just enough to ask, "Why did the editor let the writer do this?" because writers are not the ones making the plots. The editors are not letting the writers produce these dumb plot elements -- they are making them produce these elements.

+DC Comics, if you ever read this blog (I know you won't; you don't care about fan feedback unless it's a +1 or a +like), take some advice.  Go back to the days when you let the writers write, and the artists draw, and stop putting these people under the thumbs of the editors.

New Comic-book Night - 3/20/13

It's "week 3" of the month, and that means my largest haul of new paper comics, at least for the moment.  This week's "pull list" included Justice League 18, JLA 2, and Supergirl 18.  In addition, I picked up the trade paperback containing issues 6-9 of the previous Supergirl series, Supergirl: Candor.  Combined with last week's purchase of Supergirl: Power, I now have the stories contained in the first 10 issues of that series (0-9), plus a few other stories in which that version of Supergirl appeared.

I've not read Candor yet, but I have read this week's new offerings, and they are a mixed bag.  Strangely enough, JLA, which is the new kid on the block, and is written by Geoff Johns, was the strongest book this week.  I'll provide brief reviews of each issue.

Justice League of America #2

 After getting off to a slow start in issue #1, where hardly any of the team members got much screen time, we finally see the team coming together in this issue.  I'm still not quite sure that Catwoman makes much sense on this team, but I am greatly enjoying Star Girl, who seems to be one of the few classical superhero characters left in the DC Universe, and Martian Manhunter, who is always interesting.  There's a nice cliffhanger ending in classical comic-book style as well. This one's an 8/10.

Justice League #18

In the main story, the JL has decided to let new members onto its roster, and this issue has them all showing up at the JL base (which is a space station orbiting the earth) and meeting each other.  We see one of the first "Metal Men," who malfunctions, and watch a great number of heroes interact.  The basic premise is interesting enough, but it is executed very badly.  They're going for humor as the heroes interact, but a lot of the jokes fall flat.  In the Shazam! backup story, which is finally back after vanishing for a couple of issues, we see Black Adam terrorizing the city, and Freddy tells the rest of the family about Billy Batson being Captain Marvel (I know they don't call him that any more, but that's the proper name for the character). The Seven Deadly Sins also make their appearance.  Although I enjoy the Shazam! backup feature, I really think it is misplaced. They should have just made a 6-issue Shazam! mini-series rather than adding it as a backup feature to JL. I give this one 7/10.

Supergirl #18

I was looking forward to this issue, hoping that, with the atrocious H'el story arc finally over, and with her finally admitting the destruction of Krypton and knowing how to speak English, Supergirl would start to attain some level of normalcy, which the book has not had yet since it started a year and a half ago.  Sadly, DC just seems unwilling, or perhaps unable to make Kara act like a normal person, or have any sort of normal down-to-earth experiences.  Instead, she's suffering from Kryptonite poisoning after the events of H'el. There are hints in this issue that they may be doing this to "depower" Kara so that she is not equal in power level to Superman (if they are doing so, it is both lame and sexist, and they will earn even more of my derision than they already have).  Supergirl gets attacked by a lava creature that apparently comes from the Superboy comic.  That part is a typical mindless superfight.

But what I really hated about this issue was Kara's behavior, which continues to be utterly inexcusable. She is a complete hot-head, who won't listen to anyone else and does just whatever she pleases.  She doesn't think, doesn't plan, just goes off half-cocked all the time.  This aspect of her personality is decidedly unappealing, and it is starting to make me actively dislike this version of Kara, rather than just being disappointed in it.  They may call this character "Supergirl" and "Kara Zor-El" but from where I sit, she is even more of an impostor than the old Matrix character, who at least acted like Supergirl should act.

I'm not sure why the writers and editors have decided to make Supergirl such a hot-tempered, unsympathetic, down-right jackass of a character.  Perhaps this is how they view teenage girls. Perhaps they just don't like the character and therefore aren't inclined to make her likable.  But at this point, I'm getting very close to giving up on the Supergirl series. And that's pretty amazing, when you consider all the money I have spent getting every single back-issue of The Daring New Adventures of Supergirl (series 2), and Peter David's 80-issue run about a character that was called Supergirl but wasn't even Kara.  At this point, honestly what I would really love to see is original, pre-Crisis Supergirl from Daring New Adventures show up in this timeline, and kick this new Kara's ass all over the planet.  Hell, I'd root for Matrix Supergirl in that fight at this point. And again, for someone who loves the original Kara so much, that's really saying something.

Here's hoping the new writer with issue #20 can do something positive with this character. Right now, she's just a complete and total brat of a teenager. And that's not a very respectful way for them to write this venerable character.  I give this issue 6/10.

The over-use of death in comics

Perhaps the most problematic element of comic-book stories has always been caused by the unfortunate reality that one of the best ways to sell comics has always been to kill off a character.  Unfortunately, however, killing off a character for sales purposes is a one-time proposition.  Once the character is dead, the company can never use him or her again in future stories. And as your mother probably told you when you were a kid, "never" is a long time.  Even villains like Lex Luthor and side characters like Jimmy Olsen have fans, so if the publisher kills these characters off, and the characters are gone permanently, many copies of the "death" issue may sell, but gone is the chance to ever attract those fans with those characters again.

Death in the Golden and Silver Ages

Ironically, the editors and creators of comics in the Golden and Silver Ages (pre-1975) knew that the "big bang" of sales they got out of a death would not be worth losing the chance to tell future stories with a character (a fact that today's creators seem to have forgotten), and so they became very good at "faking it." They would make the character appear to have died, but always in some way that was not definitive.  The character would vanish in an explosion, or disappear under water, or be buried under an avalanche.  The issues in which these events occurred would sell well, because the character seemed to have died.

But the emphasis here is on the word seemed. By making the death somewhat ambiguous, the writers left themselves (and their successors) an "out" with these deaths. Because you didn't see the character's body blown apart, you couldn't be sure if maybe, just maybe, at the last minute, the character mightn't have escaped through some crack in the wall and gotten beyond the blast radius just in time.   Thus, the character could return with much fanfare 20 or 40 or even 100 issues later, and explain how he managed to thwart death.  And so, characters never really died in comics, but just disappeared for a while.

For decades, the "apparent death" that was not really death was a mainstay in comics.  Readers would often say to each other, "A character isn't dead unless you see the body." Since one rarely was ever shown the body, the reader accepted that comic-book characters generally don't die.

Death in the Bronze Age

The "apparent death" tradition began to change after the mid-1970s.  Little by little, characters were killed and the reader was shown the body.  As with the "apparent deaths," these real deaths were mainly meant to sell comics. But the writers and editors, at the time and for a long while afterwards, generally intended these characters to stay dead.

One reason comic-book companies went for these more permanent deaths during the Bronze Age was exactly because "false" deaths had become such a mainstay in the earlier comics that character "death" had become something of a joke.  Nobody really believed deaths were real by the end of the Silver Age, which had completely robbed character death of its value.  Real death, the writers believed, would inject greater weight into their stories, by making superheroing seem like the truly dangerous profession it always should have been, and making death seem truly serious to the reader.

Among the most famous early "permanent deaths" in comics were the death of Jean Grey/Dark Phoenix (Uncanny X-men #137), the original Supergirl, Kara Zor-El (Crisis on Infinite Earths #7), the original Flash, Barry Allen (Crisis on Infinite Earths #8), and the second Robin, Jason Todd (Batman: A Death in the Family).  These characters were killed off with every intention of the death being permanent.  And for many years, these deaths were honored by the companies -- even characters like Kara Zor-El and Barry Allen, who had large fan bases demanding their return.

The Death of and Return of Superman

Then in the early 1990s, +DC Comics decided that Superman had become "boring," and to get people "interested" in him again, they decided to kill Superman off.  There's a great (although, fair warning, it's laced with obscenities) YouTube video from Max Landis that very accurately summarizes the stupidity of the "death of Superman" plot better than I ever could.

The actual details of the plot (and how silly it was) are less important than the big picture, which is this: Superman, in a blaze of company hype, was killed off "permanently," only to be brought back a few months later (as everyone knew he would -- because we all knew Superman could not be permanently removed from the DC pantheon).  What +DC Comics (and the other companies) learned from this was that they could sell comics by the thousands or even millions when they killed off big, important characters, and made those deaths seem permanent.  And then, they could just bring those characters back, and move forward as if the death had never even happened.

The Death of Death

As Landis says in the video, this "death and return of Superman" event is most significant because it "broke death in comics."  Following the death of Superman, both DC and Marvel started killing off characters left and right, only to bring them back a few months or years later.  Landis lists a whole bunch, including Aquaman, Batman, Daredevil, The Flash 2 (Wally West), Batwoman, Colossus, Animal Man, Blue Beetle, Booster Gold, the Thing, Elektra, Captain America, Wonder Woman, Wonder Girl, Mystique, Spawn, Doomsday... and many others.  Landis sums this up by saying, at the end of his video, "Death of Superman didn't kill Superman; it killed death."

And that is basically where we are today. Comic-book companies have so over-used death, that almost every major character in both Marvel and DC has died and come back from the dead at least once (and some several times).  Characters who we were told for years, sometimes decades, were dead and would never come back, have, by now, come back.  There is not a single death that has "stuck."

The most recent installment of this over-used death paradigm occurred last month when yet another Robin was killed off again by DC comics -- this time, Bruce Wayne's son, Robin #4, in Batman Incorporated #8. I did not buy this issue. Heck I don't even care.  Why? Because it's just another death.  The death/rebirth paradigm has been so over-used that death has been rendered toothless.  Indeed, we have come full circle with the Golden/Silver age period when all "deaths" were done with obvious "outs" (like not seeing the body).  Just like back then, death in comics has become a complete joke.

And that's why the following happened last week. I have Batgirl on my pull list, so the guy at the comic shop handed it to me from my pull folder. It was issue 18, which is part of the Bat-family's "Requiem" story-line, showing the aftermath of Robin's death.  The comic-shop guy asked me if I had read Batman Incorporated #8 yet, to which I said "No."  They had reprints, he said... would I like to have one?  "No thanks," I said. "I don't really care about it.  It's just another death that will be undone shortly by another writer."

He tried to argue with me.    No, he said. "This time" it would be different. This death is real, because Grant Morrison is writing it, and he's putting to bed all his characters before he retires from writing comics. (That's a bit of good news -- the sooner Morrison leaves the comic industry, the better off that industry will be, but I digress.)  He knows I recently got back into comic books, so maybe he thinks I'm a comics-newb to believe that. Or maybe he's a newb himself.  But I just smiled at him and said, "Oh yeah? That's what they always say."

"This time it's for real," he answered.

"Uh-huh," I responded. And then I rattled off the list, including some names he was probably shocked I would know. "That's what they said about Jean Grey, Steve Rogers, Bucky, Sharon Carter, Jason Todd, Supergirl, and Barry Allen."  All of those characters, over time, eventually came back, of course. He knows it.   So he had nothing to say, and just bagged up my comics for me.

And this really is my point. The comic-book companies have so over-done death and rebirth that death has no meaning at all anymore.  They have completely subverted their original intent with these deaths, which was to add "weight" to the universe by having the characters occasionally suffer the ultimate consequence. But now, death is just a temporary plot device, making it have not weight, but utter weightlessness.

It's time for DC, Marvel, and all the rest to stop with the over-use of death. Just stop. Killing. Off. Their. Characters.  If they want to do something with weight, have the character lose his powers or have amnesia or retire or disappear or something.  From those things, a character can believably return.

New Comic-book Night - 3/13/13

It is once again New Comic-book Night.  For 2-3 weeks each month, NCN doesn't require me to visit the comic shop, because either nothing I collect comes out that week, or else I buy the issues digitally.  However, twice each month (usually weeks 2 and 3, although it can be weeks 3 and 4 in a month with 5 Wednesdays), I actually purchase new print comics on NCN.  Yesterday was one such Wednesday.

Also, in the past, I have been using NCN to pick up print copies of the third Supergirl series (Peter David's series about the Matrix Supergirl).  With my recent completion of that collection, I had no individual back issues to purchase.  However, I have begun collecting another Supergirl series -- series four, which ran for 67 issues from 2005 to 2011.

Unlike the previous Supergirl series, series four was published during this modern era of "trade paperbacks," in which a series consists of story arcs lasting 5-8 issues (on average), and those story arcs are then re-printed a year or so later as a single paper-bound volume (the "trade paperback" or TPB).

In many cases, buying TPBs is the most efficient way to read older stories. The TPBs are often more readily available than individual back-issues, and are frequently much less expensive. For example, a single near-mint copy of Superman/Batman 19 (which is the launch story for the fourth Supergirl series, then continued in Supergirl 1) can cost upwards of $8 on its own, while Supergirl 1-5 cost $4, $3, $3, $2.50, and $2.50 respectively, or $23 total.  On the other hand, the TPB of Superman/Batman 19 plus issues 1-5 of Supergirl costs only $14.95.  TPBs also save lots of space and are much easier to keep in good condition (because of their firm spines and their more durable covers).  Therefore, at least for this first story arc, I went with the TPB instead of the individual issues.

And so, for NCN this week, I bought two new comics -  Batgirl 18 and Katana 2 - and one TPB - Supergirl: Power.

I've already read the two single issues.  Katana 2 was interesting.  The art is a bit questionable in this series -- perhaps it's the inker's fault, but most of the panels look like they could use some additional "finishing." The story is fairly good and has me curious about what is coming next. I haven't decided to add this series to my long-term pull list just yet, but it's getting close.

Batgirl 18 was a decent issue, but the writing is decidedly inferior to Gail Simone's.  I'm hoping Gail will be back for issue 19, because this series loses a lot without her unique voice behind Batgirl.  The other problem with the Batgirl series is the need for it to regain its own path and identity.  Batgirl has been leading into, participating in, or leading out of, cross-family storylines for 6 months now -- #0 is the last issue that has been just a Batgirl story.  It's enough already. Let's get back to some real stories focusing just on Barbara and her supporting characters.  For instance, we haven't even seen her room-mate in three or four months.  Again, I think this will be fixed once Gail returns -- at least, I hope so.

I've also gotten about 2/3 of the way through the Supergirl: Power book.  Although the overall plot is interesting, the writing is juvenile.  The way all the superheroes just blindly attack not only Supergirl but even their friends without stopping to talk is simply absurd.  I might, perhaps, be able to understand the "punch first and ask questions later" mentality when they go after a villain, especially a known villain like the Joker or Lex Luthor.  But to behave that way with a girl you've never met but whom you have every reason to believe is a hero (and Superman's relative to boot) makes no sense. And to do it to your own fellow team mates (as the Teen Titans do to Superboy in this story) is simply inexcusable, no matter what they think about his powers being "out of control."

I'm honestly rather surprised by this story arc, because I thought Loeb's writing was quite good in the Superman/Batman: Supergirl storyline that re-introduced Kara to the world.  But the "Power" story arc is written like the kinds of stories I dreamed up when I was 10 (with lots of silly fights between heroes for no reason other than to just have fights).  Hopefully the last 2 stories in the TPB will be an improvement.

The people in charge at DC Comics need to have their heads examined

When I was a kid, and I did something that didn't make any sense, my mother would say to me, "You really should have your head examined."  This was her way of asserting that I wasn't thinking clearly -- that, in fact, I was engaging in such murky thinking that my illogic rose to the level of a clinically diagnosable condition.  She was, of course, using hyperbole. But to this day, whenever someone does something that is so illogical that I can't imagine anyone thinking it makes sense, I will wonder out loud if he should have his head examined.

Today, I am wondering just that about the people in charge of DC comics -- the editors and "front office" people.  Only in this case, I am not using hyperbole. I am actually wondering whether these people are in need of honest-to-goodness psychiatric evaluation.  And I find myself believing strongly that they do need professional help.

Why do I say the people in charge of DC need to have their heads examined?  Because they have been making decisions, for years now, that I just don't think anybody sane could possibly make under any circumstances.   I could cite any number of obvious examples about their bone-headed decision-making process, but today, I want to focus on their refusal to hire incredibly talented creators, while giving jobs on title after title to people whose abilities are mediocre at best.

Case in point: a blog entry last week by long-time comic-book writer and artist Jerry Ordway.  In the blog, he describes, as a fifty-something creator, how difficult it has been for him to get work over the years -- hell, how difficult it is to even get a polite "no thank you" when he inquires as to whether he can have work at all.  That he should be in such a state, groveling for work from DC and getting "talk to the hand" treatment, is incredible to me.

Jerry Ordway, in case you've never heard of him, has been in the comic-book industry (at least nominally) since 1980, although he has gone for more than 10 years without steady, reliable work.  Jerry was well known as an artist, and later a writer, primarily for DC comics.  He inked over Geogre Perez in the famous Crisis on Infinite Earths mini-series, and after that series ended, was responsible for the reboot of the Shazam! franchise, both writing and drawing the Power of Shazam! series for several years.  He also drew many other comics, including Superman and the Justice Society.

At all times, Jerry Ordway turned in top-notch, classical comic-book creations.  His stories were good, and his art was beautiful.  When people my age think of comic-books with fond memories, we are thinking of the creations made by folks like Jerry Ordway.  His work defined many of DC's greatest characters. You would think that someone like this should be in high demand, just as veteran actors or directors are in Hollywood.

But that's not the case.  Instead, Jerry Ordway has been spending years scraping the bottom of the barrel, begging DC comics to give him work.  DC, for their part, has mainly spent the last 10 years ignoring him. And they've ignored many of the other talented guys who came up with Jerry as well.

Their reason for this?  DC would tell you that they are "moving forward" to "better" things.  By this, we must infer that they mean they are hiring "better" artists and writers than Jerry Ordway (or his colleagues like Chuck Dixon, another famous writer from the 80s and 90s who still wants to work in comics but can't find anyone to hire him).

Now I ask you... if you read the New 52 -- where is this "better" talent they claim to have? Who in DC is drawing better layouts than Jerry Ordway used to draw? Who is writing better stories than Chuck Dixon?  About what "talent" does DC have to boast?  They've given the silent treatment to geniuses like Jerry Ordway, but then given top-flight titles to the Scott Lobdells, Grant Morrisons, and Ken Rocaforts of the world.  I ask you... can anyone seriously compare Jerry Ordway's Power of Shazam! from 20 years ago, both in writing and in art, to the absolute sewage being passed off as Superman since New 52 issue 13, and possibly say the new stuff is better?

I submit that anyone who honestly believes Rocafort's indecipherable nonsense scribbling is better than the beautiful lines of Jerry Ordway should have his head examined (or at least his eyes).  I won't even mention Lobdell's impenetrable writings... I don't think anyone with more sanity than the Joker could look at his scripts and find them comprehensible.  And when the two of them team up the produce such a swirling vortex of poor quality that it has made even a die-hard Superman fan like me cry "uncle" and stop collecting the title, you know it has to be bad.

Is that what DC means by "moving on" to "better" things? Incomprehensible stories and indecipherable art?  If they think "talent" means "never letting your readers understand what they are reading", then I guess I can see why Jerry Ordway is having trouble finding work.  But I don't think most comic fans want to be confused and nauseated by what they are reading. I think we want to enjoy good stories and beautiful art -- at least I do.

Here's a news flash for the people at DC: Lobdell and Rocafort aren't from the same planet -- hell, the same universe -- of talent as Jerry Ordway.  Jerry Ordway is whole alternate dimensions better than they are.  Anyone who would employ Lobdell and Rocafort instead of Ordway is crazy.  And that's why I think the higher-ups at DC ought to have their heads examined.

If you are a fan of old school comics -- comics the way they used to be, the way they were meant to be -- please visit Jerry's blog and "+1" his article.  And if you wish, leave him a note to let him know you support him. We can't control what DC does, nor can we force them to get professional help, but one thing we do know is that they always listen to their marketing gurus.  If the marketing types see enough support for Ordway, maybe, just maybe, they will convince the editors to throw him some more reliable work.  Maybe, just maybe, if we're really lucky, we'll see a collaboration between Jerry Ordway and Gail Simone, to boot. Wouldn't that be something special?

And while you're at it, as a sign of protest, join me in refusing to buy any more Superman issues by Lobdell and Rocafort.  It's time we sent a message to DC.

The Many Faces of Supergirl - Part 2: The Impostor

What has gone before

In the previous installment of this series, we reviewed the 26-year history of the original Supergirl, Kara Zor-El of Krypton.  Our story concluded with the death of Supergirl in 1985.  Before moving forward to discuss the second incarnation of Supergirl, let us briefly review why she was killed.

+DC Comics had killed off Supergirl for two main reasons: (1) her products didn't sell, and (2) they wanted Superman to be the only survivor of the planet Krypton.  Thus, they removed from their continuity a character they didn't want around for editorial reasons, and one they thought didn't have much of a fan-base anyway.

However, +DC Comics wildly under-estimated Supergirl's popularity.  Her products may not have sold, but many comic-book fans liked her, and after she was first killed off and then wiped from the history of the DC Universe, the fans began demanding her return.

The "Last Son of Krypton" Policy

The higher-ups at DC refused to budge on what I will call their "Last Son of Krypton" policy -- the iron-clad company-wide directive that Superman must be the only survivor of the planet Krypton. Thus +DC Comics was faced with a conundrum: how could they please the fans by bringing back Supergirl, while still adhering to the "Last Son of Krypton" policy?  Their solution was a create something that would look and act like Supergirl, but not be Kal-El's cousin, or of Kryptonian descent. Thus, DC created a character who they hoped would meet both demands - give "Supergirl" back to the fans who demanded her, while allowing DC to retain the "Last Son of Krypton" policy.

The arrival of "Matrix Supergirl"

The "new" Supergirl began by guest-starring in comic-book titles headlined by Superman, such as Action Comics and Adventures of Superman.  Although, because of the "Last Son of Krypton" policy at DC, she could not be a survivor of Krypton, +DC Comics still wanted her to have the appearance of Supergirl, most of the familiar powers of Supergirl, and a background like Supergirl's.  To that end, they made her an alien, and a survivor of a doomed planet. However, there were also many differences between the new one and the original.

Significantly, the new Supergirl was an artificial being.  She had been manufactured by the members of an alien civilization in an alternate reality. (If you're saying to yourself, "Wait! I thought with the Crisis that DC had gotten rid of alternate realities!" give yourself a bonus point - you've noticed how arbitrary some of these creative decisions are.)  She was given the ability to take a "female Superman" form to appeal to Superman, and enlist his aid in stopping villains from destroying her world.  The shape-shifting creature was called "The Matrix," but because it tended to adopt the form of a female in a Superman outfit, Superman and the other heroes took to calling it "Supergirl." 

Superman and the Matrix returned to her world to fight the villains, but they couldn't save her planet.  In the end, a very wounded Matrix, which had reverted to an almost shapeless mass of clay, was returned to Earth by Superman, and he took her to live with Ma and Pa Kent.  The Kents nursed her back to health, calling her "Mae," and treating her like a niece, and once she was better, the Matrix, once again resuming her "Supergirl" shape, returned to the world of superheroes.  From then on, she was always referred to as Supergirl (and rarely called "the Matrix").  Fans, however, to distinguish her from the original, from the Kara Zor-El version of Supergirl, often referred to this version as "Matrix Supergirl."

Supergirl volume 3 - the Mini-series

Throughout her many guest appearances in the DC Universe, one of the interesting wrinkles in Matrix Supergirl's story was her love affair with Lex Luthor.  Over many years in the Superman comics, Lex Luthor had died, and been replaced by a man claiming to be his son, "Alexander" Luthor.  In later stories it would be revealed that this was really a clone of the original Lex Luthor, but during Supergirl's early appearances, this young, vital Lex Luthor had tricked Supergirl into thinking he was a decent guy, and she had fallen in love with him. Thus, in late 1993/early 1994, when +DC Comics put out a 4-issue mini-series titled Supergirl -- which would be the first publication with her name in the title to appear in nearly a decade -- Supergirl begins as the girlfriend of Lex Luthor.

The 1994 mini-series, penned by Roger Stern and drawn by June Brigman and Jackson Guice, was clearly designed to dispel confusion about Supergirl and gather her story into one place. So many different writers had told so many different, fragmented stories about Supergirl up to that point, that most readers were confused about exactly what her powers were, and where she came from.  In the first two issues, Stern uses the device of having Lexcorp's scientists study Supergirl, to present all the information he can to the reader and help them to "get" this new Supergirl.

 In these issues, it is revealed that most of her powers are "psychokinetic" -- that is, they arise not from her physical body (like Superman's) but from the powers of her bio-engineered mind.  Supergirl's "invulnerability," for example, is caused by an invisible, mentally constructed (psychokinetic) force field.  Her ability to manipulate her matter to shape-shift is also mental, as are most of her other powers.

Later in the mini-series, Supergirl learns that Lex has been cloning her, and trying to create an "army of Supergirls."

 In a story eerily similar to a plot line in The Daring New Adventures of Supergirl #9-12, Matrix Supergirl destroys the lab, and wipes out the clones, but also comes to realize that Lex is the "bad guy" everyone's been saying he is.  As the series concludes in issue #4, Supergirl turns against Lexcorp, leaves Lex, and strikes off on her own.

Over the next two and a half years, Matrix Supergirl would continue to appear in Superman, Action Comics, and related titles, and would also make appearances in the 1995 edition of DC's Showcase series.  The character's appearances were generally successful, and the audience seemed to have accepted her as Kara Zor-El's replacement.  Thus, in 1996, +DC Comics decided to once again launch an ongoing series with the name Supergirl, hoping that the third time would finally be the charm.

Supergirl volume 4 by Peter David

To write the new stories for Supergirl, +DC Comics turned to acclaimed writer Peter David.  In summer of 1996, David's first Supergirl story hit the stands, and it sent shock-waves through the community of Supergirl fans, because the story starred, primarily, not Matrix Supergirl but a young woman who was the spitting image of the original Supergirl's secret identity, and even shared her name -- Linda Danvers. Peter David's Supergirl series ran for a long time -- 80 issues -- so I will divide my summary into four sections to make it more manageable.

Issues #1-20 - New identity, new powers.

In the two-part re-introduction of Supergirl, called "Body and Soul," we learn that Linda Danvers was a young college drop-out who liked sculpting, and who idolized Supergirl (even sculpted statues of her), but had fallen in with a bad crowd.  She fought with her parents frequently.  She ended up captured by a group of cultists who tried to sacrifice her to summon a demon.

In the meantime, Linda's parents had contacted Matrix Supergirl, and begged her for help.  Supergirl arrived too late, however. Although she stopped the occult ceremony from succeeding, Linda was dealt a mortal wound.  Supergirl, the artificial being, held Linda as she died, and the two of them merged into one being.  The resulting person was part Linda Danvers, the human, and part Supergirl, the alien super-being.

As the series progresses, the two consciousnesses, Linda's and the Matrix's, slowly merge to become one. Little by little the character starts thinking of itself as a single person rather than two different people.  In the early issues (#1-9), Supergirl must deal with the leftover trauma of Linda's troubled life. This culminates with her confronting and defeating Buzz, the demon-like being who had tried to kill Linda in the first issue.  As Buzz is defeated, he hints at larger things awaiting Supergirl, referring to her as an "angel."

This angel motif continues through the next 11 issues, as Supergirl is increasingly referred to as "the blue angel." She is told she is one of three "earth-born angels." She begins to develop new powers, including occasionally sprouting wings of fire, and shooting flames out of her eyes.  And she repeatedly encounters a boy called "Wally," who claims to be God.  By issue 20, Supergirl's angel powers have become a major element of the series, but we still really don't have an explanation about what is going on.

Issues #21-40 - The Chosen Ones

As the series progresses through the 20s, Peter David continues to develop the "blue angel" theme of Supergirl. Her fire wings and flame vision continue to sprout throughout the stories, and "Wally the God boy" continues to dog Linda/Supergirl's footsteps.  In fact, Supergirl is finally reconciled to her mother thanks to Wally's assistance.  Throughout the 20s, she also continues to interact and flirt with Comet.  Along the way we learn more about earth-born angels. We've known for a while that there are three "chosen ones" on earth, and Supergirl is one of them.  Now we find out that Comet is one of the others, and that like Supergirl, Comet is a combined being -- part Zed-One, the horse-like superbeing, and part Andy, reporter Cutter's ex-wife.  This sets up an interesting conflict for Supergirl, who was attracted to the male side of the character (Comet) but has no romantic interest in other women.

In the early 30s, the old protoplasmic material that "washed off" of Linda/Supergirl in the very first issue, has reconstituted itself as "The Matrix" and returned to take revenge on Supergirl for getting rid of it. Superman joins the battle to help free Supergirl from the Matrix remnant, which is then cleaned up by Atlas Corporation and taken back to their base.  Throughout the rest of the 30s, then, Supergirl faces increasingly difficult challenges, and a mysterious man with glasses starts observing her.  His mission is to make the blue angel (Supergirl) fall from grace.

Issues #41-60 - Redemption

In issues 41-50, Supergirl struggles to avoid "falling" to temptations as a "Church of Supergirl" develops (run by a scam artist) and she struggles against the other Earth-born Angels (Comet and Blithe), both of whom have fallen under the control of "the Carnivore" (the man with glasses).  The last straw for Supergirl is the death of her boyfriend, Dick Malverne, after which she lashes out at those she believes are responsible.  Believing she has finally "fallen" as predicted, she surrenders and allows the Carnivore to capture her.  With the three Earth-born angels under his control, he takes over heaven.  Supergirl, however, is then contacted by her angelic form, who tells her that all is not lost. Calling herself the Archangel Kara (!), the angelic part of Supergirl encourages her to team up with the other angels and fight the Carnivore.  At the end the Carnivore is defeated, but Supergirl's angelic essence is released.  As Issue 50 concludes, Linda Danvers is back to "normal" (although she has some residual super-powers).

For the next 25 issues, Linda goes on a journey of discovery, seeking to "find" where Supergirl has gone.  She leaves Leesburg behind, causing most of the wonderful supporting cast to vanish from the series (unfortunately), taking only Buzz, former demon now turned mortal guide, with her.  Since Linda no longer can shape-shift and ordinarily has brown hair, she has to don a wig and a suit from a costume shop to appear as Supergirl.  This change in look constituted the first "new look" for Supergirl in almost 20 years.

Issues #61-80 - The Quest for Supergirl

The Quest for Supergirl, which began in issue #51, continued for 25 total issues, finally concluding on issue #74.  Throughout the 60s and early 70s, the de-powered Linda/Supergirl continues to struggle with having less powers than usual, and continues to search along the chaos stream to find her angel/matrix half.  She travels around the country, from Gotham to Vegas.  Her steps become dogged by a "demon mother" who turns out to be Lilith (Adam's mythical "first wife" before Eve).  Lilith wants revenge on Supergirl for destroying her son, the Carnivore, in issue #50, and wants to use Linda to bring him back.  With the help of Mary Marvel and (ultimately) Buzz, Linda stops Lilith's plot, and once again finds the blue angel. This time, however, she decides she no longer wants to be merged to an angel, and the angel instead combines with Twilight.  Linda gets her old Supergirl (Matrix) powers back and returns to Leesburg.

The final story arc in this sequence includes the temporary return of Kara Zor-El to the DC universe.  In issue #75, Kara, the original Supergirl, crashes to Earth as she did in 1959, but this time, she's found by Linda/Supergirl instead of Superman.  Kara, who is about 15 years old, ends up staying at Linda's house, and enrolling in Leesburg High, while Linda takes over as a substitute art teacher.  During the process, a villain named Xenon appears, who has a vendetta against all Supergirls from every dimension.   The Spectre explains that one of Xenon's minions diverted the original Kara Zor-El from her pre-Crisis timeline to this one... meaning there was no one to die for Superman during the Crisis.  As issue #78 ends, Linda leaves Kara behind on earth and takes her place in the pre-Crisis timeline.

In the end, however, history cannot be thwarted, and each Supergirl must return to her own timeline.  This of course means that the original still dies in the Crisis, and Linda goes back to Leesburg, where she shows up just in time to see her new baby brother being born.  At the end, however, Linda decides to hang up her Supergirl identity, and fades off into the sunset.  This is where the series ends, on issue 80.

Reflections

We've now reached the end of Matrix Supergirl's story.  After almost 20 years and well over 100 comic-book appearances, Matrix Supergirl was written out of the DC continuity. Below, I will speculate on the whys and wherefores of what happened during the 20-year "interregnum" in which Kara Zor-El was not allowed to exist.

Why the fans never really accepted Matrix Supergirl

Most Supergirl fans never really accepted Matrix Supergirl, and always treated her as an impostor, because the fans had never accepted (indeed, many did not know about) the "Last Son of Krypton" policy.  Because the fans didn't see any reason why there couldn't be another Kryptonian, they also never saw any reason why there needed to be a Supergirl who was so close in so many ways to the original, but had these annoying, inexplicable differences in both her powers and her origin.  After all, many fans would reason, DC rebooted everything else after the Crisis -- why not bring the original Supergirl back to earth too?

Additionally, many fans didn't accept Matrix Supergirl simply because she was not Kara Zor-El.  To DC, as long as this girl looked like Supergirl and had powers like Supergirl, it shouldn't make a difference that she wasn't the cousin of Kal-El. But to Supergirl fans, Kara Zor-El and Supergirl are one character, and are inseparable.  Therefore, as good as Peter David's stories were, as terrific a job as he did with the character under the constraints laid on him by the editors, there was simply no way the fans could ever see the Matrix as anything but an impostor.

Why DC was so stubborn

The most puzzling element of this story (which went on for nearly 20 years, from Kara Zor-El's death in 1985 until the end of David's Supergirl series in 2003) was the blinding obstinacy of the DC higher-ups regarding their "Last Son of Krypton" policy.  Looking back, one wonders why they didn't realize they'd made a mistake earlier, and work to correct it sooner.  Because we can be sure it was a mistake, and that DC did eventually realize it -- by 2004, they had brought Kara Zor-El back to the DC Universe.  But why on Krypton did it take them so long?

The only explanation that fits is hubris.  The higher-ups at +DC Comics had chosen an iron-clad "Last Son of Krypton" policy, and they refused to admit that it was wrong-headed.  Their fans told them they were wrong.  I'm fairly sure their popular and brilliant writers like Peter David told them they were wrong. But the editors ignored everyone who said Kara Zor-El should come back, and stuck like captains to the sinking-ship "Last sone of Krypton" policy.

Thus, overweening pride is the only credible reason why DC would have wasted 15+ years trying to make the Matrix Supergirl idea -- one so obviously over-complicated -- work.  Any reasonable person should have been able to see that, if they were going to have a "Supergirl," the simplest, easiest, and most straightforward origin for her would be as Superman's cousin.

But DC's leadership refused to admit that the Matrix was a mistake. Like the gambler with a bad draw who refuses to cut his losses and fold before it's too late, DC decided to put all their chips down on a hand they couldn't win.  This stubborn pride is the only way to explain why they brought out the Matrix Supergirl in the first place, and why they stuck with the idea for more than 15 years despite the plentiful evidence that it was not working, and could never work.

Why DC finally relented 

DC's editors rarely give anyone insight into the inner workings of their decisions, and never admit to making a mistake, so we'll probably never know for sure exactly why they finally decided to relent and give the fans what we'd been demanding for 20 years.  However, a confluence of two events probably did the most in terms of returning Kara Zor-El to the DC universe as Supergirl.

The first event was the appearance of a character much like the original Supergirl, in the DC Animated Universe. Starting in the Superman cartoon episode Little Girl Lost, Kara In-Ze, who was from a Kryptonian population on another doomed planet (the planet, rather than the city, Argo), took on the role of Supergirl and appeared regularly in DC cartoons.  Although she was not Kal-El's biological cousin, this girl was (biologically) a Kryptonian, had Superman's powers, and was much closer to the original Kara Zor-El than was the Matrix.  (Given that the cartoon universe creators had realized this was a better way to go, one wonders why it took the comic-book creators so long to figure it out, but I digress.)

The cartoon character developed quite a following, but that audience could not easily be captured by the Supergirl comic-book because the Matrix Supergirl was a different, complicated, confusing character.  Thus, DC was unable to capitalize on the success of the cartoon as long as Matrix Supergirl remained in place.  Apparently, someone in the upper levels of DC seems to have realized that they needed the comic-book version to be more similar to the cartoon version, and this may have helped return Kara to the printed page.

The second event was a slow changing of the guard.  By 2003-2004, there had been an almost total turnover in the DC front offices.  The people now at the reins had not made the "Last Son of Krypton" policy, and therefore were not invested in it.  They'd also watched for 5+ years as the cartoon Kara had worked out just fine.  Without the prideful obstinacy that comes with being the owner of the bad idea, the new leadership at DC was more willing to throw the old, clearly unworkable, idea over-board, and allow a reintroduction of the Kara character.  Thus, in 2004, Superman's cousin Kara finally returned to the print universe of DC comics.  After 20 years, the long, dark night without Kara Zor-El was finally over.

Or was it?

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Statue 4: New 52 Batgirl

Since getting back into the comic-book/superhero scene, one of my most pleasant surprises has been the New 52 Batgirl series.  Whereas most of the New 52 material has been nothing great to write home about (e.g., Supergirl since issue 8), and some has been downright awful (Action Comics, Superman), Batgirl has been absolutely superb since day 1, due primarily to Gail Simone's top-notch writing.  Because of how well this series has been both written and drawn, the Batgirl character has risen rapidly to become one of my favorite superheroes in all of comics.  In fact, although as a general rule I would say that Supergirl is my all-time favorite, I have to admit that, just comparing New 52 incarnations, Batgirl has it all over Supergirl up to this point.

Given my growing esteem for this character, and my plans to create a small display dedicated to her (admittedly much less extensive than what I will be able to do for Supergirl), I thought it was high time to add a Batgirl statue to my collection.  There are a few choices here, but only one that captures the New 52 version of her suit -- the Batgirl Bust put out by the +DC Comics line of collectibles.  And I have to say this for +DC Comics -- their New 52 stories may only be mediocre, but the new line of busts they are putting out for the New 52 characters is absolutely first rate.  Now if only the comics could be this good.

The statue I picked up at the comic shop was the "display" model.  For some people, who never take the item out of the packaging, I suppose this would be unacceptable. But since the thing had been sitting in a glass case for several months, untouched, and was in mint condition, I saw no reason to turn up my nose at the floor model.  The guys at the shop always keep the boxes, so they were able to give me the box and styrofoam packaging to go with it.

I don't have any way to make a real display with this statue yet (first I need to buy a house, then I need to buy or build some kind of display stand or curio for my collectibles), but I pulled out some of Batgirl's biographical literature (including my signed copy of Batgirl #0) to provide an admittedly rudimentary display background for photographing.  The statue stands about 6" tall, the same height as all the other busts, and is not really a bust so much as the upper half of Batgirl's body from just below the waist to the tips of her bat-ears.

This is a really well-posted statue.  Batgirl is clearly in the middle of fighting some villain like the Joker or Riddler. She has her left hand cocked back, holding a bat-a-rang, ready to throw, with her right hand thrust out forward for counter-balance.  She looks to the right, clearly planning to throw toward the right, across her body, with the 'rang, and the flow of her movement has caused her cape and hair to fly to the left.  This really is a wonderful action pose for this character, and her facial expression is wonderful -- determined, but with a slight hint of a smile. You can almost imagine that, as she pulled out that bat-a-rang, she made a classic Batgirl wise-crack to the villains.

The statue is made of porcelain, and is beautifully sculpted and painted.  The colors are outstanding, with a shiny black for the armor and a golden-yellow for the boots, belt, and bat symbol.  Her hair is reddish-brown, and the purple underside of the cape makes a nice contrast with all the black and gold.  She really looks like a superhero.  The base is a dark purple, matching the inside of her cape, and there is a very nice raised gold bat-symbol on the front of the base.  Strangely enough, like the Supergirl statue, the symbol on the base is the old, classic (pre-New-52) version of the symbol, not the current symbol for either character.  I'm not sure why they did that, but it doesn't do anything to detract from the beauty of the piece.

As with the New 52 Supergirl bust, which I reviewed back in January, the Batgirl bust is a very high quality, well-crafted collectible.  It retails for around $67, as most of the busts in this line do, and is well worth the price if you are in the market for a Batgirl statue.  They had two other statues of this character in the comic shop, with the classic/previous costumes, and although they were nice, I felt this was the most attractive Batgirl statue I have seen.  I give this one 10/10.

Red Sonja (Dynamite) - Year One

Back in the early 1980s, I had developed an abiding interest in two things -- comic-books, which usually feature superheroes, and the fantasy settings of authors like Tolkien and Donaldson.  Therefore, in 1983, when Marvel Comics put out a 2-issue limited series comic-book called Red Sonja with a fantasy setting, I immediately found it appealing.  I did not know at the time that Red Sonja was a character from the Conan novels -- I was never much of a Conan fan and I might not have bought the comics if I'd realized her provenance.  I also had no idea, when the first two issues came out, that there would be no more immediately forthcoming.  Nor did I know there had been a Red Sonja series some years before.  What I knew was that here, at last, was a fantasy-based comic-book with good art and a good story.  I was pretty upset when the series turned out to be just a two-for.

+Marvel Entertainment followed up this two-issue series with another "continuing" series, but it was published sporadically, seeing only 13 issues printed in a 3-year period (ordinarily, even a bi-monthly title would have had 18 issues after 3 years).  Because it was sporadic, I got a few issues (I think) but this series never managed to connect with me.

However, ever since that two-issue Red Sonja series written by classic comic-book author Roy Thomas, I've always found the character, Red Sonja, interesting. She was billed as Conan's equal in prowess and fighting skill, and thus, other than the Barbarian himself, is the greatest warrior in the land.  The fantasy setting is naturally appealing to me.  On top of that, let's face it: Sonja's pretty hot (though in those days, they had stopped drawing her with the itsy-bitsy-teeny-weeny metal-scaled bikini armor).

And so, when I started collecting comics again, I noticed right away that there are several Sonja-based ongoing series now being produced by Dynamite Entertainment.  There is, of course, one titled Red Sonja: She-devil with a sword, as well as another called Queen Sonja, and a newer one called Red Sonja Unchained.  There are also a bunch of other specials, one-shots, and mini-series that have been put out by Dynamite with Sonja's name.  I decided to begin with the old stand-by, Red Sonja, and go from there.

The Red Sonja series is now 6 years old and counting, and more than 70 issues have been produced.  However, as with my other series reviews, I am going to review this one a year at a time.  I will do this for two reasons. First, reviewing a 70+ issue series would make this article far too lengthy.  And second, there's no guarantee I am going to keep reading it for 70+ issues (I've seen hints that after issue 36 or so, someone "different" takes over as Red Sonja, which sounds iffy to me, so I might stop at that point).  Whether or not I branch out into the other "Sonja" titles remains to be seen, but so far, I don't plan to. As with characters like Batman and Superman, it's one thing to enjoy them in a monthly title, a single series. It's another to have to make a multi-title commitment to one character, when there are so many other interesting characters out there.

Story arc 1 - She-Devil with a Sword: Issues 0-6

Dynamite's Red Sonja series opens with a special "zero" issue, with a print date several months earlier than the first issue. I was not collecting comics at the time of publication, so I don't know for certain exactly why this issue was printed so far ahead of the others.  Presumably this was a "test run" to see if they would sell enough copies to warrant a full series.  Issue 0 can act as either a prologue to the story arc or an epilogue. Although it seems to have been printed first, and works very well when read first (as I did), chronologically (in terms of the story) the events of  #0 occur after the events of #6.

In #0, we hear of a "red storm" full of blades and fury - clearly, this is Red Sonja.  This is a short-ish issue (several pages shorter than the standard length) and there isn't a lot of dialogue.  In it, Sonja comes to a village, sees a girl with a strange pendant, and ends up tearing the village apart after she is attacked by the residents.  Exactly why these events unfold is left unclear.

The story really gets going in issue #1. Sonja begins searching for a city called Gathia, and she happens upon a messenger from there.  The messenger is being accosted by a violent group of highwaymen, and Sonja rescues him, single-handedly slaughtering the brigands. She then helps the messenger get to Gathia.  However, once there he drinks the water on the outskirts of town, which he says used to be cursed but no longer is, and comes down with the curse, turning into a monster and attacking Sonja. She is forced to kill him.  She then takes his body to Gathia to return it to them, but they believe she killed the messenger, and they attack her.

As the story continues, Sonja battles armies to a stand-still, and fights a giant troll.  She is eventually captured, and the city's priest plans to sacrifice her to the local god at the request of the religious leader, called simply "the celestial."  The story has many twists and turns, with Sonja battling her way through dungeons and across rivers, wading through armies, battling demons, and fighting monsters.  Finally she ends up going against the celestial himself.  She reveals that long ago, at his order, her entire village was slaughtered in the name of the celestial's "peace."  This is what has motivated her to fight against him.

When the story ends in issue #6, in classic Red Sonja fashion, pretty much everyone is dead except for her.  She's defeated the celestial and freed the city from his iron rule, but the town burns around her, and the river runs red with the blood of many.  Indeed, as her thoughts narrate the ending sequence, she realizes that she's not called "Red" Sonja for her hair, but for the blood and death that she causes.

When the comic ends, we see Sonja approaching the village from issue #0, following a girl who was the celestial's servant -- that's what the pendant signified in the opening sequence of #0.  The story has come full circle, and now we know why Sonja laid waste to the town and everyone in it.

Story arc 2 - Arrowsmith: Issues 7-11

The second story arc for Red Sonja begins when she arrives at a familiar town, one she's visited before, and finds it devastated by brigands.  She rescues a young girl from under a fallen statue -- a girl who's been raped and beaten -- and brings her to a shelter for treatment.  When she hears about the brigands, she heads out to find them and exact revenge.  Her encounter with the girl also brings up memories for her, so as Sonja follows the trail, we see flashbacks of her as a young girl, being raised by a loving family.  We watch as she fights with her brothers, and her father teaches her how to hunt.  These flash-backs are gracefully written, giving the reader insights into Sonja's background, and helping us understand who she is as a person.

We also see her family attacked and killed by the followers of the same god whose minions Sonja battled in the first story arc.  And along the way, Sonja's footsteps are dogged both by the girl she saved, and by a mysterious hunter.

As the series progresses, Sonja and her partner attack the bandits, and in the end they wipe out all but one, who the leave alive so he can tell others to stay away from the town of the Arrowsmiths.  Once the girl leaves Sonja's side, the hunter appears again, ready to attack and kill Sonja. It turns out he is a servant of Borat Na-Fori, the same deity served by the celestial, and is out for revenge after the happenings of the first story arc.  He battles Sonja, and her old friend Osin (from the first story arc) shows up to assist her.  At the end of the arc, a giant mammoth runs through the area, causing an avalanche, which separates the hunter from Sonja and Osin, thereby stopping the battle.  Where the mammoth came from is explained in the next issue, which begins a new story arc for Sonja and Osin (and will be reviewed with the Year 2 comics at a later date).

Reflections on Year 1

I found first year of this series to be absolutely outstanding.  The writers, Mike Carey and Michael Oeming, do an outstanding job of characterization. The dialogue crackles with energy. Sonja is written with a perfect mix of toughness and heart.  The villains may be cruel, but they are not mindlessly evil -- they have believable motivations.  And there is enough ambiguity to the unfolding plot that, although you're always on Sonja's side, you definitely realize that her way of "fixing things" is extremely bloody and destructive.  The Mikes clearly show that Sonja's win is a Pyrrhic victory.  Overall, the story in this series started out stronger than just about any first story-arc I have read since returning to comics, with the possible exception of Batgirl.

Additionally, the art was superb for the first year of Red Sonja.  The book's main artist, Mark Rubi, who seems to do both the pencils and the inks, does a fantastic job with all aspects of the art.  Rubi does a wonderful job with Sonja, who has a very expressive and (of course) lovely face, and the requisite killer body (literally).

But it's not just Sonja who is done well. All the characters look unique and individual, and have interesting features and a wide range of expressions.  Additionally, Rubi does an amazing job with the fight scenes.  I often felt like I was watching a movie, because the scenes were so cinematic.

And finally, Rubi does an excellent job with the backgrounds of the fantasy setting.

And then there is the job that the various colorists have done on this book, which is simply phenomenal.

All in all, between the high-quality stories, strong dialogue and characterization, and beautiful artwork, I can't say enough good things about the first year's worth of Red Sonja.  This run by Carey, Oeming, and Rubi is simply wonderful, and ranks up there with Gail Simone's Batgirl and Simonson's Thor. And that's saying something.

I know the creative team will change as I go along, but I will definitely be reading Year 2 of this exceptionally good series.