Some positivity: Supergirl #43.

I liked it!

It was obviously a bridge between the Superwoman arc and the whole "Supergirl/Mon-El take on Nightwing/Flamebird" arc that's upcoming (and we were only anvilled once or twice about the whole Kara and Flamebird were friends things).

So it was Kara's birthday, which on New Krypton (and I imagine original Krypton) means choosing your guild. For some reason, it didn't occur to be that Krypton ran on a caste system based on guilding. But that sort of makes sense. Then again, they're also all heterosexual and seem to have the same kind of gender roles that Earth does, which doesn't make sense in the context of the universe. It makes plenty of sense in the context of having been written by humans.

Anyway, they had me from page one, which was a very cute, very aww-worthy triptych of Kara's desk in her room on New Krypton. Has there ever been an explanation of who flies after her and takes pictures of her flying? No? Okay, I'll pretend Jimmy Olsen got a jet pack. I really like the picture of her and Cassie, and the dorky BFF frame, because it's very humanizing. I also like the crumpled up balls of paper in front of the empty notepad. One of the characteristics of this Supergirl that has kept me engaged where other Supergirls haven't is her struggle with balancing her Kryptonian roots and her human friends and the fact that she's not very good at it. Not in a naive way. Not in a comic-relief way. But in a legitimate, "I have no idea how to connect" way. That's why I also appreciate the Daily Planet mug, why I wish there was a picture of Lana on the desk, and why the fact - as we find out later - that Lois wants Kara to stay off Earth for awhile is so sad. It's an injustice, but one that she weathers because she thinks she deserves it, even though we all really know she doesn't. But her connections on Earth feel so tenuous that she's not willing to risk pissing her cousin's wife off. She needs everythign she can get. Everyone she can get.

Poor Kara.

But this issue was nice not just for that. It was nice for me to get a look at Kryptonian society, and to see Kal-on-Krypton through Kara's eyes. I understood immediately what her mom was doing, but the fact that she didn't rang very true. And the fact that she's so wary of her mother's intentions that every single instant up until the very end was a fight... I liked that, too. I've read some response elsewhere that don't like that Kara picked the science guild. Maybe I'm not familiar enough with the character to know why this is such a betrayal, but her reasoning made perfect sense to me.

I can understand some frustration. But as someone in a professional field who would rather be a writer, who's been told time and again that I can always write, no matter what I do, I can sort of understand some of the rational behind Kara's choice. She can always pursue art, but she's got the chance to connect with her last living parent. Why wouldn't she leap at that chance? It's a shame she's apparently stuck there her whole life (caste systems are dumb, but I guess we have them in America too, we just do it a little differently), but it's not like that stopped her mom from becoming the leader of New Krypton.

Kara has her mother, she lost her father. She feels connected to her father, despite his death, but her mom is alive and Kara doesn't understand her. Why not try?

It's all about connection. And I really liked it. I really like this Supergirl. And I like Kara Zor-El. I want to stick with it and see where she goes. Issue #43 sold me on something I'd been unsure of before, mostly because I wasn't sure I'd make it past the Superwoman arc. But this glimpse into Kara's life, and into some of her motivations, hopes, frustrations, and thoughts has made me love the character.

Kudos to Sterling Gates. And speaking of Sterling Gates... well, I'll save Bart for his own entry.