Writer: Geoff Johns
Art: Todd Nauck, Matt Herms, and Rob Leigh
Publisher: DC Comics
Price:$3.99
Release Date: March 28th, 2023
The battle for the fate of the Lost Children has begun as Stargirl leads a raid on the Childminder’s castle in this week’s Stargirl: The Lost Children #5 by Geoff Johns! But who has been asking the Childminder to round up these kids, and for what purpose? The buyer has arrived, and Stargirl is not ready for him!
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Readers, I absolutely love the two-page spread that kicks off Stargirl: The Lost Children #5 with the character summary via headshots along the border. It provides such a classic almost Golden Age feel to a story reminiscent of the era. Additionally, the first three pages include a pretty accurate summary of the series to date making it somewhat easy to jump into Stargirl: The Lost Children #5 if someone wanted to even though I wouldn’t necessarily recommend it. But, you could nonetheless.
Moreover, as plot threads go, Corky’s bad leading gets most of the kids taken. And frankly, he falls to the wayside rather quickly. Heck, he’s not seen after the first three to four pages. Additionally, I wasn’t a big fan of Salem as a character. She was extremely cocky and ignorant having Johns create friction in the group during their big battle to overtake the island. Ultimately, it’s the Coming of Age Story where readers discover who the true leader is. And at this point, it wasn’t necessary for the development of the narrative. Fans already knew the leader would be Stargirl and not some witch girl or time-traveling Davy Crockett.
Additionally, we discovered the last issue that the Childminder wasn’t the boss here as the final reveal showed readers the introduction of Hourman. However, as Stargirl: The Lost Children #5 develops, we also find out that Hourman appears to be another go-between as he makes reference to his “owner”. Nevertheless, clues in the discussion lead fans to believe immediately which Hourman this is in case there was any confusion. Hopefully, Johns delivers that blow in the finale!
Nevertheless, the highlight of Stargirl: The Lost Children #5 was the Boom! Eventually, fans get to see more of Judy Garrick and what she’s capable of, and it’s actually quite impressive. The illustrations are exactly how I always expected someone with super speed to actually run. It’s explosive, chaotic, and destructive almost as if she doesn’t completely understand her powers yet. Nevertheless, it’s as realistic as one with super speed would actually run as well as someone called “The Boom”. All other Flash’s run so sleek, calm, and eloquent almost with this prestige. However, Judy runs with this almost uncontrollable power and anger which makes more sense for someone attempting to harness this ability. Moreover, as Stargirl: The Lost Children #5 continues to unfold, fans discover that there is more involved than simply capturing sidekick children out of time. There is also an aging process too. But, the cliffhanger not only provides an exciting title for the last issue but it also seems to add a bit of a wrinkle as to Hourman’s true allegiance.
FINAL THOUGHTS
In terms of the entire Stargirl: The Lost Children series to date, this issue had the most action for sure. it was the most explosive as well as the most dynamic mainly due to Judy Garrick and her outstanding abilities in which I hope are never leveled down. There is no doubt in my mind that she was the standout of Stargirl: The Lost Children #5. Nevertheless, issue five was probably the most down story of the series due to the lack of plot and creative reveals. There wasn’t much to go on nor was there a ton of development to the overall story.
Ultimately, for a penultimate installment, one could easily summarize the entire issue by saying, almost everyone is freed for the final showdown. Therefore, if you had to skip this one, you’d fall right in line for the finale. Overall, Stargirl: The Lost Children #5 wasn’t a bad issue. However, action doesn’t always speak louder than words (or in this case story development and plot twists). I certainly wouldn’t give up on this Stargirl: The Lost Children by any stretch. Just expect little development and a ton of action in this penultimate issue.
8.3/10