It’s probably due to Supergirl’s recent success on television that she’s receiving more attention in the comic book medium than in quite some time. After a digital first tie-in to her CW series wrapped last summer, DC launched an eponymous solo series starring the Girl of Steel as part of the Rebirth era. And, more recently, an out of continuity story in the form of Supergirl: Being Super kicked off, fleshing out Kara’s formative years as never before told.
Although the titular character dons the familiar colors of blue and red pretty often, it’s important to realize this isn’t your typical superhero story. In fact, I would somewhat liken this four-issue miniseries from writer Mariko Tamaki and artist Joelle Jones to Max Landis’ recent masterpiece, Superman: American Alien, insofar that this is an intimate look at Kara the person and not Supergirl, if that makes sense. What’s kind of funny is that Jones also made some contributions to Landis’ book.
On that note, the newly released second issue explores a theme many fans of the genre have come to know but does so in an incredibly powerful way: You can’t save everybody. Long story short, in the aftermath of an earthquake, Kara does her best to rescue those who have found themselves in the most dangerous of situations and, as fate would have it, her powers fail at the worst possible time and the person she can’t save happens to be one of her closest friends.
What follows is a highly emotional exploration of the protagonist’s humanity that feels very contemporary thanks to Tamaki’s gift for writing for the generation coming up. As such, it’s recommended that you pick up a copy of Supergirl: Being Super #2, which is now available in comic shops.
