DC’s Supergirl Next Door #1 arrives just in time for Valentine’s Day, with a variety of writers and artists delivering romantic stories and an eclectic mix of characters across the DC Universe. As with most anthology books, the eight stories are a mixed bag. One is amazing, three others are great, two others are slightly better than average. The remaining two? The less said about those the better.
Being a glass-half-full kind of guy, I’ll only focus on the four best stories in the book, in order of how entertaining they are.
Guy Gardner in “Guy Gardner: Warrior/Lover” (Written and colored by Nathan Fairbairn with art by Rafael Perez). Jerky old Guy Gardner is at it again, this time getting into a battle with an alien in a local dive bar. The alien’s female, so of course Guy’s going to try to make a move on her. For a guy who’s so great at slinging a Power Ring, he sure has no will power and even less self-awareness. It’s a hilarious story with Guy’s mouth once again writing checks his Power Ring can’t cash, and the art has a fun Joe Staton feel to it.
Harley Quinn and Poison Ivy in “Harlivy Rehabilitated” (Written by Nicole Maines with art by Sweeney Boo). An origin story of the Harley/Ivy relationship, showing the first time Harley was locked up in Arkham Asylum in a cell next to Ivy’s, and how misanthropic Ivy couldn’t help but fall for Harley’s charms. It’s a lovely story which doesn’t gloss over the abuse Harley suffered at the Joker’s hands and how Harley was definitely suffering from Stockholm Syndrome. It’s always a blast seeing Harley and Ivy raise hell together, and this story’s no exception. Nicole Maines always delivers great stories, and Sweeney Boo’s art is a perfect fit for Harley Quinn. Can we get these two to do a Harley and Ivy series, please?
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Swamp Thing in “So Long and Goodnight” (Written by Rosie Knight with art by Michael Shelfer and colors by Dan Brown). Swamp Thing reminisces about the first time he met Abby Arcane. The story’s creepy in the best ways, feeling more like an EC Comics story than a DC book. What really makes the story shine is Michael Shelfer’s exquisite art, with every panel looking almost like a painting. His art resembles powerhouses like Rick Veitch and Bilquis Evely. Absolutely stunning artwork and so wonderfully detailed you can feel the steamy heat and oppressive humidity of the swamp coming off the panels. Abby never looked more beautiful, and I wish the story had been twice as long.
Green Arrow in “I Love You Too” (Written by Dave Weilgosz with art by Dylan Dietrich, inks by Wade Von Grawbadger and colors by Ivan Plascencia). Ladies and Gentlemen, this is the best story in the book. Not only is this story a love letter to the eternal Green Arrow/Black Canary romance, it’s a love letter to the classic Justice League too, that (unfortunately) long gone pre-Crisis Justice League, complete with the old-fashioned Justice League satellite and Zatanna, Elongated Man, Atom and Green Arrow (AKA “The B-Team”) on monitor duty. When the Secret Society of Super-Villains attacks, the big guns in the team (Batman, Superman, Green Lantern, Flash, Wonder Woman, Black Canary, Aquaman and Hawkman) battle them, but the battle’s not going well and Green Arrow’s not one to just sit around on a satellite when his lady’s in trouble. Green Arrow beams down to the battle, and it’s on! Villains Captain Cold, Blockbuster, Felix Faust and others appear here, as Green Arrow lends a hand and battles alongside the other heroes. It’s pure action from beginning to end, with a very heartwarming moment at the finale.
Man, this story really hit my nostalgic sweet spot, feeling like a lost issue of the Justice League book from the 1970s (not too late in the ’70s though, because I think this story takes place shortly before Firestorm joined the team). The only thing missing was the “JLA Role Call” at the beginning.
Overall, this book has a great mix of stories, with some truly great writing and art throughout and a good array of characters. The stories are different enough to keep things interesting and for the most part, the usual cheesiness of romantic tales is kept at a minimum here.
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