Amidst Brainiac's assault on New Krypton, General Zod has brandished the Legion of Super-Heroes terrorists and imprisoned them. Superboy will do his best to free them, but he'll have to go through Supergirl first -- wait, what? You read right, folks. It's the Super-brawl you weren't expecting, courtesy of writer Sterling Gates and artist Jamal Igle.
SUPERGIRL #51 hits 3/17.
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You read that correctly. An interstellar conflict waged at superspeed.
Could this be in any way related to THE WAR OF THE SUPERMEN, which we announced not too long ago?
Same thing, folks, and it's all hitting in May, courtesy of writers Sterling Gates and James Robinson.
An epic, defining battle for the Man of Steel unleashed in one month. Because super-beings that fly fast? Well, they fight pretty fast, too.
But let's move past the high concept and dive into the nitty gritty, shall we? We pestered Superman Group Editor Matt Idelson on his day off to give us the goods, so take it away, Matt:
"The war between New Krypton and Earth has been the worst kept secret in comics the last several months. The number of mocking 'Wouldn't a world of supermen defeat Earth in five minutes?' questions I've been assaulted with have undone years of therapy. Now, thank Freud, the time for secrets is over, as the two sides are finally going to war! And it's going to last a lot longer than five minutes--100, to be exact, told in 25 minute increments. That doesn't count the few minutes before the clock starts, in WAR OF THE SUPERMEN #0, our contribution to this year's FREE COMIC BOOK DAY. There, we'll bring new readers up to speed on everything they really need to know, while hitting our regular loyalists with a tense tale the ending of which baps you between the eyes. Yay, war!
Jokes aside, this 100 minute thing made us realize that spreading the story over several months would kind of deaden the impact of the timeframe device, not to mention starting the war a month after #0. Besides, with five covers by Mr. Eddy Barrows, and Eddy being joined on this thing by the likes of Aaron Lopresti, Jamal Igle and Eduardo Pansica, why wait to put the issues out?"
But there's more.
With Superman caught between the war-hungry factions of General Zod and General Lane, could any victory be much more than Pyrrhic? What side will Supergirl take, and could it find her at odds with her cousin? Where are the other "Supermen" of the DCU, like Steel and Superboy? Right in the thick of it, is the answer.
War is declared. Time is of the essence. May is going to be a game changer for Superman, and if you don't believe me yet, maybe these stunning in-progress Eddy Barrows WAR OF THE SUPERMEN covers -- along with the cover to #0 -- will help sway you.
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In addition to the special, 50th issue wonderful-ness coming your way next month from the stellar creative team of writer Sterling Gates and artist Jamal Igle, SUPERGIRL #50 features a story by none other than Helen Slater,who as some of you can recall, played Supergirl in the major motion picture by the same name. In tandem with co-writer Jake Black and the very talented Cliff Chiang, Slater will tell a story about a “Meet the Press”-type show where a panel discusses Supergirl’s merits (or, according to Cat Grant, her lack thereof).
We checked in with SUPERGIRL assistant editor Wil Moss for the lowdown on the story, and not only did he share some info, but he passed along two lovely pages by Mr. Chiang. Take it away, Wil:
"We're thrilled to have Helen Slater - Supergirl herself! - contribute a story to this special anniversary issue of SUPERGIRL. She and her co-writer, the wickedly talented Jake Black, have crafted a short story that really encapsulates everything that's good and true about the Girl of Steel. The fact that we were able to get the A-list art team of Cliff Chiang and Dave McCaig to provide the art and colors just seals the deal - this is one story you do not want to let fly by!"
SUPERGIRL #50 hits 2/17.
We’re right in the thick of the holidays, but for the Superman books, it’s the dawn of a new day. James Robinson and Greg Rucka are in the same boat, balancing their holiday shopping with writing WORLD OF NEW KRYPTON #12 and turning the other Superman books on their respective heads in anticipation of… but I’m getting ahead of myself.
WONK #12 (gosh, I’m going to miss that name) is the finale, the wrap-up, the cherry on the sundae that has been WORLD OF NEW KRYPTON for the last year. A very devious conspiracy has been afoot on New Krypton, one that could change the balance of power in our solar system, and not in a good way! Because we were all raised not to do things in a simple, easy way, that means change abounds in the related Super-titles as well. Since we’re not in a position yet to show you any interiors, check out this variant cover by Ladrönn, who handled the variant for the first issue of the series! (And as a bonus, check out this page by Pete Woods from WONK #11!)
While WONK is doing its death dance, in SUPERMAN James is bringing Mon-El front and center once more in a story that could only be called “Man of Valor.” Check out these pages from issue #695, due out in time for Christmas. Man, that Bernard Chang and Blond make a heck of an artist/colorist team, don’t they?
Meanwhile, Greg and the one writer who truly understands him, Eric Trautmann, are feverishly bringing the story of Nightwing and Flamebird to a head. Check out what they’re making the book’s artist, Pere Pérez, draw. Yikes! (And yes, that is indeed Guardian and Mon-El, along with their pals the Science Police—this is part one of a two-part crossover between ACTION #885 and SUPES #696 that will reveal, among other things, yet another of General Zod’s sleeper agents!)
So we’ve covered the middle of the month and the end of the month, but what about the middle? Well, that’s where you’ll find SUPERGIRL. Doing his own juggling act, writer Sterling Gates is keeping me on my toes with issues #49 and #50. Matt Camp, who did an amazing job with issue #47, is back for another go-around (where things take a turn for the worse for poor Lana Lang!). And your pal and mine, Jamal Igle, returns for our big, shocking, oversized issue #50, where, among many other things, we pick up on the story of the not-so-nice Superwoman and her even-more-not-so-nice father, General Lane!
But I’ve digressed, I fear. I started this off talking about balancing the present with the new day in the Superman titles. Come March, a brand new miniseries (emphasis on the “mini”) will arrive, taking the place of the dearly departed WONK. You’ll be learning a lot more about this in a few short weeks, but what I can tell you is that James and Sterling are teaming up with a recharged Pete Woods for this story. And weighing in at 30 pages per issue, it’s one heck of a page-turner for the Superman line. Oh, and I might as well mention that a certain colleague of Lex Luthor’s will be showing up. And if that weren’t enough, said miniseries will be roping in SUPES, ACTION, SUPERGIRL aaannnnddd… ADVENTURE COMICS! (And check out Wil Moss’ recent blog post for more clues to all of this!) Can you feel the excitement? If not, you will!
All of this -- these events, these changes -- are just the table-setter for what’s to come. Man, when May rolls around, readers and non-readers of the Superbooks alike will be very, very tickled. And, yes, I did just say “tickled.”
Supergirl has finally brought Reactron back to New Krypton so he can be held accountable for murdering her father, Zor-El. While the debate about what to do with him rages among the people of New Krypton, the planet's ruler – and Supergirl's mother – remains unsure. Should Alura have Reactron executed? And will Supergirl allow it to happen if her mother decides to go that route? We can't spoil that for you here. But we can give you a glimpse at the issue, from writer Sterling Gates and guest artist Matt Camp.
SUPERGIRL #47 hits 11/18.
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As some of you know, artist Michael Turner died from complications of cancer last summer. He left a lasting legacy with not only the Maid of Steel, but comics in general. We thought it would be a great honor to spotlight his career and this milestone issue, SUPERGIRL #50 by having a cover from the artist that helped usher the modern version of Supergirl into the DCU.
We hope you agree and join us in celebrating the character, and this great artist.
Sterling Gates is far from a newcomer to the DCU -- but he's certainly one that's on the rise. With his work -- alongside artist Jamal Igle -- redefining and stabilizing SUPERGIRL, Gates has made a name for himself for his tight plotting and knack for strong and precise characterization. All of which can be seen month-in and month-out in the pages of the Girl of Steel's ongoing series. Not-so-coincidentally, you can get a good sense of what we're talking about here by picking up the newly-released SUPERGIRL: WHO IS SUPERWOMAN? collection, which shows Gates and Igle slowly unraveling the mystery behind the new, villainous Superwoman.
But why stop there? In addition to his work on SUPERGIRL, Gates has expanded his reach in Metropolis and Krypton, firstly by co-writing the recently-concluded "Hunt for Reactron" arc with writer Greg Rucka in the pages of SUPERGIRL and ACTION COMICS and now with WORLD'S FINEST, a mini-series slated to spotlight members of the Batman and Superman families of characters as they team-up to face off against common threats.
The first issue kicks off with Gates and artist Julian Lopez bringing Red Robin and Christopher Kent/Nightwing together to help track down a missing Flamebird -- but as readers have come to expect from Gates, things are rarely that linear, so fans should be in for a treat. But don't take my word for it -- check out some pages from the first issue below.
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Continuing from ACTION COMICS #882, "The Hunt for Reactron" concludes with the final showdown between Flamebird, Supergirl and the man who killed their father. And for the Daughters of Zor-El, that means it's payback time. Will Reactron make it out alive? Or is Nightwing the only one who can save them all? Writers Sterling Gates and Greg Rucka team with Jamal Igle to bring the story to a close. Check out a few pages below before you swing by your shop and pick up the full issue, which hits today.
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Jumping from the pages of ACTION COMICS #881, writers Sterling Gates and Greg Rucka continue "The Hunt for Reactron" in the pages of SUPERGIRL. Can Supergirl rely on her seemingly unhinged childhood buddy to help her track down her father's killer? Or will she get burned by the person she once trusted most? Who knows? But we can tease a few lovely Jamal Igle pages right here. And don't go anywhere, as later today we'll have some more Superman inside info, right from Superman Group Editor Matt Idelson's desk.
SUPERGIRL #45 hits 9/23.
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The regular SUPERGIRL Team of writer Sterling Gates and artist Jamal Igle roar into the third part of the "Codename: Patriot" crossover, as Supergirl and Mon-El throw down against Nightwing and Flamebird. What happens when the Girl of Steel has to face off against one of her oldest and dearest friends, just as General Lane puts the next phase of his master plan into action -- with some help from a guy named Atlas. Check out some pages from #44 below, which hits 8/19. "Codename: Patriot" concludes in SUPERMAN #691.
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