Last month DC Comics, as part of their Pride Month plans announcement, teased new work for the publisher from Supergirl actress and transgender activist Nicole Maines. Today they revealed exactly what that will look like, as Maines will co-write July’s Superman: Son of Kal-El #13, an issue that will officially introduce her Supergirl character, Nia Nal aka Dreamer, to the DC Universe proper. Maines will co-write with regular series writer Tom Taylor, with Clayton Henry providing the art. No colorist or letterer were named in the announcement. The issue will feature a main cover by Travis Moore, and variant covers by A.L. Kaplan (open-to-order) and Henry & Marcelo Maiolo (1:25).
Here’s how DC describes Superman: Son of Kal-El #13:
It’s the dramatic DC Universe debut of Dreamer! When every hero on Earth is threatened by Henry Bendix’s machinations, it’s a race against time for Dreamer to warn Superman before it happens! But will this mysterious new ally’s premonition become a nightmare for Jonathan Kent?
The story marks Nicole Maines’s second time writing Dreamer in the pages of a DC comic. Maines penned a story for last year’s DC Pride 2021 one-shot that featured the character’s first comic book appearance, though that story was set pretty firmly in the universe of the CW Supergirl series. Maines also wrote an introduction for this year’s DC Pride 2022 one-shot, which the publisher posted an excerpt of yesterday.
In a statement announcing the issue, Maines and Taylor expressed their enthusiasm at collaborating and bringing Dreamer to the DCU proper:
“I’m so excited to work with Nicole Maines to bring Dreamer from the screen to the pages of Superman: Son of Kal-El and to the DC Comics Universe,” said Tom Taylor. “I want to thank all the people at DC who have championed Dreamer and who recognize the importance of this powerful trans superhero in this time.”
“Jon Kent and Nia Nal are two characters that have a lot in common, both as superheroes with the weight of the world on their shoulders, and as young people with impossibly big shoes to fill,” said Nicole Maines. “Weaving their stories together for Superman: Son of Kal-El with Tom was a complete pleasure, and there is only a little pun intended when I say that Superman and Dreamer make for a brilliant new Dream-Team.”
Check out the variant covers by Kaplan and Henry & Maiolo below. Superman: Son of Kal-El #13 is set to arrive in stores and digitally on Tuesday, July 13th.
