Mild Mannered Reviews - Superman Comics
DC Future State: Kara Zor-El, Superwoman #1 [of 2]
Scheduled to arrive in stores: January 12, 2021Cover date: March 2021
"Two Graves" - Part 1
Writer: Marguerite Bennett
Penciller: Marguerite Sauvage
Inker: Marguerite Sauvage
Cover: Paulina Ganucheau
Variant Covers: Alex Garner
Reviewed by: Adam Dechanel
Click to enlarge
"Future State: The triumphant victory of our heroes saves all reality from the brink of destruction and shakes loose the very fabric of space and time. From the ashes of Death Metal rises new life for the infinite multiverse and glimpses into the possible unwritten world of tomorrow."
Kara Zor-El, now a mature older woman, has set up a colony on the moon. Attempting to live up to the ideals Clark and Jon had attempted to... A utopian colony of peace and love.
Her only companion was Krypto, though he has now passed away. Amid all the flowers and soft lighting, despite many suitors past, Kara lives on the moon alone, that is, until today.
A spaceship breaches the colony shield and crash lands with a precious cargo, much like Kara when she arrived on Earth, greeted by Superman.
Shooting out of the ship is a magical shape shifting girl. A being capable of absorbing and mimicking Kara's super powers. The girl, Lynari Lili'alo, reveals she has come to the fabled moon colony to seek refuge. Superwoman's colony is known across the galaxy as a place of peace, far nicer that the Starswamp Asteroid, Lynari called home.
Lynari reveals she is in possession of the Starfall jewel, a gem tied to her life force and that one side of her family wants her and the Starfall jewel. Seeing much of her young self in Lynari, Kara allows the girl to stay and they form a strong bond of friendship.
A strange starship enters the galaxy and scans the moon. They are from Lynari's asteroid and vow to recapture her and destroy the moon that offered her shelter.
Lynari and Kara begin to slowly fall out over their ideas of birthright and legacy and giving up on living life. The argument leads to the spaceswamp girl soaring away from the colony and directly into the arms of her evil family.
She is doomed unless Kara gives up her utopian life and fights for truth and justice.
To Be Continued…
Story - 2: Heavy handed, ham fisted and a little too on the nose. It took a long time for the issue to get to the point and when it did it was so poorly done. I understand the parallels with Kara's life as Supergirl. I also get that she thought she would inherit Superman's legacy over Jon; but to become a space spinster in a utopian society was just too out of character for me to stomach. The story just doesn't ring true for me. There is one more issue to go and I hope she throws out the victorian garb and taps into the superhero we know and love.
Art - 1: I feel bad because the artist isn't bad, but the obvious attempt to mimic the Netflix show "She-Ra" and the agonizingly dull colour palette make for a book that is bland from start to finish. There is a reason we never really see perfect utopian societies - they are boring! No amount of action could elevate beyond the pastels.
The style of the book is unique, it must be said and distinctly aimed at the female audience. Nothing wrong with targeting a demographic, but it is so far divorced from the Supergirl stories that it is the sequel to.
Cover Art - 2: Princess Adora or Kara Zor-El? The problem with styling art to be so closely familiar with a TV shows audience is that Kara still looks like a superGIRL not a superWOMAN. Aside from that, the cover is dynamic and looks like an animation cel. The color palette still strongly favors pastels but nowhere near as drab as the interiors.
Variant Cover Art - 4: A really stunning cover, Kara still looks too young, but I guess we are in the age of instagram and filters so who can tell? The downer I have is that truly ugly costume. I understand they really wanted to push the fact Kara had being an old spinster but it's just so dull. It really ruins the art for me because it becomes the focal point rather than the artwork itself which as I said is STUNNING.
Mild Mannered Reviews
2021
Note: Except for digital first releases, the month dates are from the issue covers, not the actual date when the comic went on sale.January 2021
- Superman #27
- Action Comics #1027
- Batman/Superman #14
- Justice League #56
- Justice League #57
- Young Justice #20
- Legion of Super-Heroes #11
- DCeased: Dead Planet #5
- Dark Nights: Death Metal #5
- Justice League: Endless Winter #1
- Superman: Endless Winter #1 [of 1]
- Superman #28
- Justice League #58
- Action Comics #1028
- Batman/Superman #15
- DCeased: Dead Planet #6 [of 6]
- Dark Nights: Death Metal #6 [of 6]
- Tales from the Dark Multiverse: Crisis on Infinite Earths #1
- DC's Very Merry Multiverse #1
- Challenge of the Super Sons #4
- Challenge of the Super Sons #5
- Justice League: Endless Winter #2
- Legion of Super-Heroes #12
- Future State: Superman of Metropolis #1
- Future State: Kara Zor-El, Superwoman #1
- Future State: Superman/Wonder Woman #1
- Future State: Justice League #1
- Future State: Superman: Worlds of War #1
- Future State: Legion of Super-Heroes #1
- Future State: Superman vs. Imperious Lex #1
- Future State: Batman/Superman #1
- Tales from the Dark Multiverse: Dark Nights - Metal #1
- DCeased: Dead Planet #7
- Dark Nights: Death Metal #7
- Challenge of the Super Sons #6
- Challenge of the Super Sons #7
- Challenge of the Super Sons #8
- Challenge of the Super Sons #9
- Truth & Justice #4
- Future State: Superman of Metropolis #2
- Future State: Kara Zor-El, Superwoman #2
- Future State: Superman/Wonder Woman #2
- Future State: Justice League #2
- Future State: Superman: Worlds of War #2
- Future State: Legion of Super-Heroes #2
- Future State: Superman vs. Imperious Lex #2
- Future State: Batman/Superman #2
- Future State: Superman: House of El #1
- Challenge of the Super Sons #10
- Challenge of the Super Sons #11
- Challenge of the Super Sons #12
- Challenge of the Super Sons #13
- Challenge of the Super Sons #14
- Truth & Justice #5
- Truth & Justice #6
- Infinite Frontier #0
- Crime Syndicate #1
- Superman #29
- Action Comics #1029
- Superman: Red and Blue #1 [of 6]
- Batman/Superman #16
- Justice League #59
- Future State: Superman vs. Imperious Lex #3
- Superman by Grant Morrison Omnibus HC
- Superman #30
- Action Comics #1030
- Superman: Red and Blue #2 [of 6]
- Batman/Superman #17
- Justice League #60
- Crime Syndicate #2
- Superman #31
- Action Comics #1031
- Superman: Red and Blue #3 [of 6]
- Batman/Superman #18
- Justice League #61
- Justice League: Last Ride #1
- Crime Syndicate #3
- Superman #32
- Action Comics #1032
- Superman: Red and Blue #4 [of 6]
- Batman/Superman #19
- Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow #1 [of 8]
- Justice League #62
- Justice League #63
- Justice League: Last Ride #2
- Crime Syndicate #4
- Infinite Frontier #1
- Action Comics Annual 2021
- Action Comics #1033
- Superman: Son of Kal-El #1
- Superman: Red and Blue #5 [of 6]
- Batman/Superman #20
- Superman & The Authority #1 [of 4]
- Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow #2 [of 8]
- Justice League #64
- Justice League #65
- Crime Syndicate #5
- Justice League: Last Ride #3
- Infinite Frontier #2
- Infinite Frontier #3
- Justice League Infinity #1
- Action Comics #1034
- Superman: Son of Kal-El #2
- Batman/Superman #21
- Batman/Superman 2021 Annual #1
- Superman: Red and Blue #6 [of 6]
- Superman & The Authority #2 [of 4]
- Superman '78 #1 [of 6]
- Superman vs. Lobo #1 [of 3]
- Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow #3 [of 8]
- Justice League #66
- Justice League: Last Ride #4
- Justice League Infinity #2
- Crime Syndicate #6
- Infinite Frontier #4
- Infinite Frontier #5
- Action Comics #1035
- Superman: Son of Kal-El #3
- Batman/Superman #22
- Superman & The Authority #3 [of 4]
- Superman '78 #2 [of 6]
- Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow #4 [of 8]
- Justice League #67
- Justice League #68
- Justice League: Last Ride #5
- Justice League Infinity #3
- Infinite Frontier #6
- Superman: Son of Kal-El #4
- Superman & The Authority #4 [of 4]
- Justice League: Last Ride #6
- Justice League Infinity #4
- DC vs. Vampires #1 [of 12]
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Check out the Comic Index Lists for the complete list of Superman-related comics published in 2021.