Supergirl #3 review

Crazy Kandor kid Lesla-Lar wants Supergirl’s life. She’s hypnotised Kara’s Earth parents and convinced the town of Midvale she’s the real deal. Kara’s regular costume having been vandalised by Lesla, she’s resorted to an older look and is doing good regardless.

A little super-vision spying has Supergirl guessing where Lesla’s head is at, and she shares her theory with Lena Luthor, who’s recently moved to Midvale to get away from all the Metropolis drama.

It’s not long before Lesla emerges again – with a new look.

And then the teenage termagent gets out her piece de resistance – a ray gun firing blasts of energy from a variety of space rock Kara doesn’t know – black Kryptonite. Supergirl and Superdog are transformed into… Satan Girl and Satan Dog!

But will Satan Girl team up with Lesla Lar… or take her down?

Once again writer-artist Sophie Campbell adroitly juggles drama and comedy to produce a thoroughly satisfying chapter in the new life of the Girl of Steel. Lesla had forced Kara into allowing people to call her Phoneygirl, now she’s made her someone else altogether. Satan Girl is more mischievous than malevolent, but she’s different enough to regular Kara to prompt thoughts about who she might be if freed from the ties to Cousin Superman.

The identity theme continues with Lesla facing up to the girl she’s become and Lena having a poignant ‘conversation’ with Streaky the Supercat.

Krypto and Streaky aren’t the only super animals around in part 3 of ‘Misadventures in Midvale’. Remember last month Lesla sicced Titano the Super Ape on Supergirl, he wound up plush-sized and I wrote: ‘I really hope Lena works out how to de-Titano a certain adorable super-ape.’ Well, she doesn’t seem to have cured him of green Kryptonite vision yet, but Lena does manage to let the pocket-size monkey use it more positively.

Magic.

Nostalgiawatch! The Satan Girl idea reaches as far back into the Silver Age as Lesla herself and has come up twice more, though it’s not always been a transformed Kara. And Lesla’s ‘villain-coloured’ outfit is another tweak to a pre-Crisis costume, as is the Bronze Age classic Kara wears this month.

And talking of costumes, Lena not only fixes Kara’s costume, she gives it a rather neat upgrade.

Campbell does a fine job of making Kara, Lena and Lesla distinct, recognisable human beings. I like that Kara doesn’t get over-angsty about Lesla nicking her parents and home – she’s been around nuttiness long enough to recognise the Danvers aren’t in danger from Lesla’s Machiavellian moves, so allows herself to watch, and wait. And the empathy she feels for her foe is commendable and, actually, rather heroic.

The art by Campbell is terrific too, open and breezy, action packed and full of emotion. The Satan Girl design, nodding to the first version in Adventure Comics #313, looks fresh, and Krypto’s turn as Satan Dog will stay in the memory. In an issue full of great moments, though, my favourite may be the one showing the Danvers defending their home.

What a cool couple.

The colouring by Tamra Bonvillain is helping shape the character of this series, with earth tones offset by pops of brightness. And Becca Carey’s letters sit wonderfully on the art.

Cover-wise, Campbell’s close-up is intense and eye-catching, but the ‘maiden’ in that cover-line, well, tut, Supergirl has always been the ‘Maid of Might’. Editors Brittany Holzherr and Jillian Grant, please take note.

Also, take everyone involved with this book out for dinner – it’s a gem.