Stargirl #3 spills out the information as Geoff Johns and Todd Nauck unleash quite an issue this week. If you’re excited about the reveals from The New Golden Age #1, you’ll love seeing some of them get the spotlight here, and the story adds more to the mystery. Johns brings us heroes from the past and new heroes for us to appreciate that add to the continuity of heroics, making it fun. Nauck makes this world and island look wonderful and adds to the eeriness by showing us the Childminder’s darkness and her scary castle. New questions will arise to keep you on solving and saving the Lost Children.
Continuing to talk about the art, we have Todd Nauck on pencils and Matt Herms bringing the colors. These two make the pages electric which works for highlighting power sets and characters like Air Wave. The issue’s opening continues with Wing, Cherry Bomb, Robbie the Robot Dog, and Air Wave keeping Stargirl from being captured. I enjoy Air Wave’s look as living static energy, which also helps to create an emotional connection as you hope he can control his powers. Plus, there is great banter with him, and Cherry Bomb immediately makes them characters to watch.
Todd Nauck and Matt Herms do a fantastic job making Orphan Island look fun and creepy; it has such a Goonies vibe that is both scary and enticing. When the heroes get to their clubhouse, the Hangman’s Treehouse, take in that beautiful two-page spread. I’m sure Geoff Johns had some input, but Nauck makes the moment so delightful. As you know, these kids are heroes, and they’re trapped, but they are also kids just having fun in the moments they can steal away. The new character designs are great, especially the sidekicks, as they have elements of the hero they follow.
These new characters will be great to watch once they make their way into the main DC Universe. Geoff Johns has a strength in building characters, and he showcases it well here. Finally, meeting Tick-Tock, John Henry Jr., Ladybug, Salem, and Quiz Kid helps to create a wonder about them and how they will fit into the “Golden Age” continuity, but you also want to know more about them and their struggles. Great introductions for that large group of characters without feeling unnatural, forced or rushed. Not only do they get great moments, but classic characters like Wing and Air Wave get an excellent boost to the forefront, so you want to read more about them.
We finally get to meet the Childminder, and there is so much to unpack about her. One of her nicknames is the “Scavenger of the Timeline,” which inspires so much awe, especially after Flashpoint Beyond and Dark Crisis. Just how powerful is this character? This opinion might be a wild take, but is she evil? I didn’t get a vengeful sense from her, and the fact that she is giving these characters a home outside of comic book limbo makes it compelling to find her motivations. I also like that Todd Nauck’s design has her hidden behind a mask, which could mean she is someone we might have read about, or maybe she is a lost child too.
Stargirl: The Lost Children #3 is a character-driven issue that hits you with forgotten classic characters and introduces you to new ones that you will want to watch. Geoff Johns and Todd Nauck reveal just enough to keep you wondering but also add more to the mystery, making this story a hidden gem of a DC comic.
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