Comic Book Review: Supergirl: Cosmic Adventures in the 8th Grade written by Landry Q. Walker, art by Eric Jones
Lex Luthor has finally developed the ultimate anti-Superman robot, which is immune to all his Kryptonian powers! Only a rocket from another dimension could possibly harm it. This being a comic book, a rocket from another dimension promptly appears and destroys the robot. The surprises don’t end there, as a teen girl with a familiar-looking costume and powers similar to Superman’s is inside!
Kara, it turns out, is from Krypton’s moon colony Argo. When their home planet exploded, Argo was sent into another dimension. After years of study, they were able to learn of Superman and create a rocket to send a message that he was not alone in the universe. Kara was supposed to be on a cheer squad for the launching ceremony (thus the outfit) but was grounded for poor grades. She smuggled herself aboard the rocket without considering the consequences, and wound up on Earth.
Superman doesn’t know how to get Kara back home, but is willing to help her live on Earth as his “cousin”, Supergirl. To get her acclimated, he enrolls her in Stanhope Boarding School as ordinary human “Linda Lee.” Since Argo is a far more advanced civilization than Earth, Kara thinks school will be a breeze. She’s reckoned without her complete unfamiliarity with Earth culture, however. “What is money? Is it important?” Between her constant confusion and mishaps caused by unfamiliarity with her new and unreliable powers, Linda becomes the laughingstock of the school. Forget supervillains, can Supergirl survive eighth grade?
At the time this children’s series was originally published, the Supergirl in the mainline DC comic books was decidedly not kid-friendly (or indeed reader-friendly), so this version was a refreshing alternative. It remixes some ideas from the early stories of the Silver Age Supergirl with a contemporary (2009) culture.
This Supergirl is an underconfident but optimistic early teen (the back cover describes her as “preteen”, but no.) She’s given to wild imaginings about how various actions will turn out, and not good at making friends at first.
The standout innovation of the series is Belinda Zee, a neat twist on the Bizarro concept. Bizarros are imperfect duplicates of people, usually Superman. But instead of being ugly and talking oddly, Belinda’s imperfection is that she lacks the non-self-centered parts of Linda’s personality. Thus she has no hesitation about using dirty tricks to make herself popular or bully Linda. And when she takes on a costumed identity, it’s as Superior Girl. (There’s also a bit of Silver Age villainess Lesla-Lar in there.)
Lena Thorul also gets a makeover. Instead of being an unknowing sister of Lex Luthor with vaguely defined telepathy, this version of Lena looks up to her big brother (who she thinks was framed as a villain by Superman) and is a gadgeteer. Despite her bad temper and self-centeredness, Lena becomes Linda’s friend while despising Supergirl. Better keep that secret identity secret, Linda!
Sorry, Dick Malverne fans, he didn’t make it into this version. Indeed, there’s zero romantic content at all.
Because this was such a short series, a lot was crammed in, including a time travel subplot, and a surprise master villain. (Okay, not so much of a surprise if you read the back cover of the collected edition.) The issues feel overcrowded, especially the finale.
The cartoony art suits the feel of the series.
This series is suitable for middle-schoolers on up, and Supergirl fans wanting something lighthearted and funny.
