'Can you be a hero...if society doesn't see you as a person?'
A bold, brilliant and hugely relevant DC comic by L.L. McKinney, the author of the 'A Blade So Black' YA series.
What can I say? What hasn't already been said by dozens of other reviewers on why 'Nubia: Real One' is so good? Read it, be entertained, and learn something. Let western society and culture learn something through its thick, stubborn and toxic skull already.
This super comic about a black teenage girl, Nubia L'Shae Johnson, living in America, who happens to have superpowers - which she must hide from the public eye for reasons that don't apply to white superheroes - is about fighting the system. The system of racism, misogyny and misogynoir. It really hammers home the truth of how black people are viewed as a threat no matter what they do. Hell, even when they literally do nothing. No matter how scared those in the black community are, no matter how hard they try to adhere to the "rules" of living safely, they will still be called "uncooperative", and so deserve to die, according to the police. For Nubia, being a tall black girl in the land of "truth, justice, and the American way" is intimidating to white people (who won't see her as what she truly is - just a kid); but being one with super strength will make her appear as even less than human to the white patriarchal society. Even if the good, noble-hearted girl wants to be a hero, to be like Wonder Woman, they would not let her. Never mind whether she saves lives, they would not want her.
They would sooner see her dead.
With nothing outside of her circle of parents and close friends to show that she is welcomed and loved, Nubia is forced to hate herself. The white supremacist patriarchy makes her think she is broken for existing ("I'm sorry I'm like this. I wish I wasn't! I wish I wasn't broken. [...] I can't turn it off...I'm sorry you're stuck with me." - one of the most heartbreaking lines). When she could be a great hero.
So it's seriously fucked up, racism and misogynoir, isn't it?
Thank you so much, 'Nubia: Real One', for tackling issues such as police brutality, the Black Lives Matter movement, protesting against racist law enforcement, gun violence, school shootings, white male privilege, male entitlement, toxic masculinity, sexual assault, and threats and violence towards women that is kept hidden and quiet by the patriarchy. Thank you for giving rich white male arsehole characters the accountability and punishment they deserve, as well. Those who are obsessive, violent, insane and deadly in their bigotry do heartbreakingly exist. They are the monsters in society, those sociopaths and psychopaths who hold absolute power and sway in their communities.
We will not stand for this bullshit any longer.
And I'm glad DC seems to agree.
Everything is political. Nothing happens in a vacuum, nor in a narrowminded, ignorant bubble. To be "woke" is simply to know and do better. To educate. To upgrade. To progress, for the sake of everyone.
I'd never heard of Nubia before. I never knew that she was a pre-existing character in the DC universe before picking up her new solo comic. I knew nothing about her origin, which I won't dare spoil in this review. For me the surprise revelation of her true identity was a thing of tearful beauty. But what I love most is that Nubia is not defined by her origins. At best it is a footnote in her story. She will not be compared to any white superhero. She is her own magnificent and real person. She is a hero in her own right.
Other examples of representation include: Nubia's two mums, who mean well in their overprotection of their daughter, and are clearly very much in love with each other; and Oscar, Nubia's love interest, who is Hispanic, and has a feminine appearance to him. The thing is, though, in the comic's Black Lives Matter protest march scene, Oscar wears a shirt that says Stop Killing Black Trans Women. Another protester wears a shirt that says Black Trans Lives Matter. There is no other reference to the trans community in the whole comic. Oscar isn't hinted to be trans. Maybe he isn't? I'm not sure. I only wish for more overt rep for that violently marginalised group as well. It would have made 'Nubia: Real One' all the more perfect.
A few more of the best lines in the comic, in an exchange between mother and daughter:
"People like Wayland are dangerous. They're used to getting their way, no matter who gets hurt. A lot of the time, they do the hurting."
"Nubia. I know I say you should be careful because of how the world perceives you...But that perception is their problem, not yours."
"Baby...none of this is fair. Not Wayland. Not the cops. Not having to hide who you are, or deal with people who would likely set themselves on fire if it meant watching you burn. More importantly, none of it is your fault."
"[...] And don't you let anyone make you feel you need to throw pieces of yourself away to be part of this world. You be you. All of you, all the time. Everyone else will deal with it."
"I don't feel very heroic." "True heroes seldom do."
'Nubia: Real One' is the graphic novel equivalent of Angie Thomas's 'The Hate U Give'. And like 'THUG', it's also incredibly sweet, touching and relatable, to go alongside its heavy subject matters. Nubia is the realest heroine DC has right now. She is beautiful and amazing, and deserves praise and exposure and recognition of the highest order in mainstream pop culture. She is who we need.
Final Score: 4.5/5
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