SUPERGIRL #10

Secret Identities

November 2006

Written by Joe Kelly

Pencils by Ian Churchill

Inks by Andy Lanning & Norm Rapmund

Cover by Ian Churchill & Norm Rapmund

Synopsis

Supergirl decides to enroll in high school to have “normal” friends so she adopts the secret identity of Claire Conners.  Both Captain Boomerang and Wonder Girl warn her school will not be easy.  However, she is able to quickly make friends with Becky and her boyfriend.  Later, she is invited to Becky’s house a sleep over.  In an attempt to make more friends, Claire invites Sarah, who is usually a social outcast.  Immediately, the other girls start to make fun of her.  The next day, Claire talks to Becky’s boyfriend about how bad she feels for Sarah.  The next day, Becky plays a prank on Claire, dumping gloop all over her because Becky thinks Claire is stealing her boyfriend.  Becky taunts her.  Claire then removes her wig and her clothes to reveal her Supergirl outfit.  As she flies away, she tells the kids to just “be yourself.”

Review

“Are you intentionally being retarded, or has school messed up your brain?”

There was just a lot fun in this issue from Claire’s first day on page 3, to the conversation with Wonder Girl while she battles a gorilla, to Boomer’s advice to watch prison films to get a better understanding of High school, to Claire fooling the others they got her to levitate, to the finale when Supergirl leaves the school in a blaze of glory. 

Each issue under Kelly’s direction gets better and better.  He understands the Kara is truly an alien looking for a place to fit in and unlike Loeb’s decision to battle other heroes, Kelly has decided she needs to battle normal teenagers, which can be worse.  Everyone feels the need to fit in and I think this issue will resonate with those who felt like outsiders during school.  Claire wanted desperately to fit in with other kids that she forgot that she should just be herself.  In this case, “herself” is being Supergirl, not Claire Conners.  In that regard, I liked the ending to the issue and what it means for Supergirl and her future.  There are a number of DC heroes who have secret identities and we get to see that a lot to the point that it may be overkill.  It actually is somewhat a breath of fresh air for at least one hero with their own title to only have one identity.

Unfortunately, I think the impact of that moment is completely lost by the rushed feeling of this issue.  Think about this:  Supergirl gets and tosses a secret identity in one issue.  All of the characters are broad stereotypes and we never get to know them at all, except as plot devices.  The girl at the end with the green sweater is the perfect example.  She is supposed to be the snobby one, but in reality she cares.  Besides dialogue clues, we never learn she is snobby.  If this story had been stretched out with a little depth, that moment when the snobby girl is nice, it would’ve had a bigger impact. 

My only other (minor) complaint was the advice about high school came from two people who are still fairly young.  It seems incongruous that two people so young could give such advice about essentially young people.  It just seems that the advice should have come from someone older, someone with a little more life experience.  Or maybe it is just me. 

I love how the same two kids appear behind Claire on page 3 despite the different classes.  I suppose it was easy for Churchill but it was pretty funny.  It would be rare in high school for the same kids to not only have the exact same classes but also sit in the exact same position.  I also like how their expressions slowly change from grumpy to happy over the course of time, as if Claire had an effect on them during their time together.  Of course, they are the same ones who approach her during lunch and Becky even comments on the fact they are in every class.-- Review by MRB

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