Supergirl is still on the hunt for the man who hurt Krypto, but to find him she must witness all the horror he’s done. Your Major Spoilers review of Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow #4, awaits!

SUPERGIRL: WOMAN OF TOMORROW #4 (OF 8)
Writer: Tom King
Artist: Bilquis Evely
Colorist: Mattheus Lopes
Letterer: Clayton Cowles
Editor: Brittany Holzherr
Publisher: DC Comics
Cover Price: $4.99
Release Date: September 21st, 2021
Previously in Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow: Supergirl has been tracking down a man named Krem, who not only killed Kara’s young companion’s father, but also severely wounded Krypto the Superdog. The man has thrown in with a group of mass murderers named The Brigands.
A DARK PATH
Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow #4 opens with Supergirl picking up and comforting a lone alien baby in a field of dead people. Next, she is on another planet talking to a survivor of a brigands attack who tells them that Krem is still with The Brigands. Next, she comes across a planet where a single person is trying to dig the individual graves for those who died in a Brigands attack so that his people won’t have to use a mass grave. Kara then uses her powers to finish the task for him. On the next planet she is able to watch a video recording of one of the attacks. At their next stop Supergirl and her companion watch a captured Brigand get executed. The two finally arrive at a place where Supergirl believes that the next planet they go to they will catch up with The Brigands. The two argue about the young girl being sent home, but eventually Supergirl relents and the two set off to face The Brigands.
HEAVY
If you’re in the mood for a fun and lighthearted comic book romp, don’t let the colorful and bright art of this one fool you. This is not a happy book. Continuing on with the dramatic shift in tone from the last issue, Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow #4 is a dark chapter that sees the main character pushed to the very brink of what she’s willing to witness. It’s a pretty simple premise for an issue. It’s just one scene of horror after another to the point where it almost seems gratuitous, but Tom King does something clever here where just as it starts to get too much, we see a sequence where Supergirl has had enough and flies into a nearby sun to let it all out. For awhile now the trend when dealing with Supergirl is to present her as a more aggressive and somewhat edgier version of Superman, but it’s here that we see that done as best as it’s been done where it’s not just Kara’s personality that’s darker, it’s what she’s forced to endure that’s also darker. There’s a lot of references to old feats of Superman but with little tweaks, for example, using her super speed to dig up a bunch of graves, or instead of flying through a sun to clean her cape, she does so in order to weep over the latest horror she witnessed. Functionally, this issue manages to establish The Brigands as a group to be hated entirely and a clearly defined enemy to our hero.
WEARING THE PAIN ON HER FACE
As mentioned earlier, the art in this issue is still full of color and light, almost purposely contrasted with the subject matter. The exception to this is Supergirl’s face which we see become harsher and paler as the issue goes on. Essentially, what this does is effectively convey the toll her quest is taking on her without using too much detail. It’s a technique with solid results.
BOTTOM LINE: A LESSON IN PUSHING SOMEONE TO THE BRINK
Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow #4 in an unrelenting book that hits the reader over and over with its subject matter that comes close to becoming too much. But it manages to pull back just in time so that the reader can empathize with Kara more completely, rather than become numb to the events. It’s a powerful issue that cleverly hides a lot of depth. 4 out of 5 stars.
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Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow #4
Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow #4 doesn’t shy away from gruesome images and dark subject matter and while this might be understandably hard for some to take in, for those who do, there’s a subtle yet well-crafted character study waiting for them here.
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Writing8
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Art8
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Coloring8