Written by: Sophie Campbell
Art by: Sophie Campbell
Colors by: Tamra Bonvillain
Letters by: Becca Carey
Cover art by: Sophie Campbell (cover A)
Cover price: $3.99
Release date: May 14, 2025
Supergirl #1, by DC Comics on 5/14/25, finds Kara Danvers returning to Midvale to visit her adoptive parents, but it turns out Supergirl is already in Midvale and has become its biggest celebrity.
Is Supergirl #1 Good?
Plot Synopsis
Supergirl #1 begins a new day for Superman's cousin (and capitalizes on the in-production film) when Kara Danvers makes her rounds helping people around Earth, in Kandor, or wherever she's needed. She still wonders if she lives too much in Superman's shadow, but she's determined to step into the light through her choices.
One day, Kar receives a call from her adoptive parents. They returned from the D.O.E to their home in Midvale, and they're fixing it up. They want Kara to visit over the 4th of July holiday. Kara grudgingly agrees, but she doesn't look forward to returning to old haunts, old friends, and old memories.
When Kara arrives in Midvale, Supergirl signs, posters, and swag are everywhere, but the person in the promotional material looks a bit different than Kara. When a chance encounter with an old schoolmate turns into a potential car accident, Kara quickly changes into Supergirl to save the day. Supergirl enjoys the praise for her good deed, but the praise turns to boos when everyone suspects Supergirl is an imposter because she doesn't look like the Supergirl they know.
Suddenly, the "real" Supergirl arrives and attacks Kara as an imposter, dousing her with strange chemicals and zapping her with strange weapons. The imposter tells Kara to leave Midvale and flies away. After a quick change back into Kara, she heads to her old home to talk to her parents. The issue ends with her parents not recognizing her and the "real" Kara Danvers coming to the door to say "hello."
First Impressions
There seems to be a tonal shift in the Super Office, and I'm not sure it's the right one. Between G. Willow Wilson's elementary school take on Superman in Action Comics and Sophie Campbell's CW tween show antics here in Supergirl #1, DC appears to be experimenting with hitting different audiences at the expense of the audience that already exists. Could it work? We shall see.
How’s the Art?
Sophie Campbell pulls double duty as the writer and artist, so hats off to Campbell for the extra work. Artistically, this comic looks great. The lines are clean and sharp, and Campbell's panel layouts are visually striking. The visual style is bright and cheery, buoyed by Tamra Bonvillain's vibrant coloring. That said, Campbell makes a bizarre choice to give almost every character a severe overbite ala Jervis Tetch, aka Mad Hatter. Once you see it, you can't unsee it.
What’s great about Supergirl #1?
If you're tired of the dour, mature, serious, adult deluge of comics coming out of the Big 2 in recent years, Sophie Campbell has you covered. There isn't a mature or super-serious moment in this entire comic. It's light and airy, with just enough drama to appeal to adolescent and tween girls who love CW levels of character development and drama.
What’s not great about Supergirl #1?
Holy Wall Of Thought Balloons and Dialog, Batman! I suppose Sophie Campbell thought the way to get you inside the head of Kara Danvers was to literally hear every thought, every moment of insecurity, and every exclaim of confusion as if the comic were narrating a young teenager's diary. Plus, Kara's manner of speaking and slang is horribly outdated. In fairness, the mystery and hook about an imposter Supergirl is reasonably well done, but you have to endure loads of tedious, stiff, outdated language to get to it.
About The Reviewer: Gabriel Hernandez is the Publisher & EIC of ComicalOpinions.com, a comics review site dedicated to indie, small, and mid-sized publishers.
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Final Thoughts
Supergirl #1 looks, reads, and resonates like a CW soap opera squarely targeted at tween girls who talk like Valley Girls from the 1990s. Sophie Campbell's mystery about an imposter Supergirl is intriguing, and Campbell's bright art is super-solid (barring the weird choice to give everyone an overbite). However, this comic reads like it was meant for a very specific audience, and that audience probably doesn't include you.
6/10
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