Mariko Tamaki

Seventeen-year-old Mandy, who dyes her hair black and hates almost everyone, is not like her mother, the tall, sparkly alien superheo Starfire, so when someone from Starfire's past arrives, Mandy must make a choice about who she is and if she should risk everything to save her mom.

I Am Not Starfire

Sarah Sammis

I Am Not Starfire by Mariko Tamaki and Yoshi Yoshitani (Illustrator) is told from the point of view of Mandy, the Goth daughter of Starfire. Her birthday is coming up and college applications will be due soon. Mandy has decided she's had enough of both and just wants the world to stop fucking with her.

There are two big themes at work in this book. The first is the divide that can develop between an immigrant parent and their children. Parents who flee oppressive regimes or situations often don't share their culture with their children, hoping to save their children from the same heartache or to avoid stirring up painful memories. Well meaning intentions can backfire, and do here for Starfire and Mandy.

http://pussreboots.com/blog/2021/comm...

Marissa Davis

So I have to say I love this and now want a physical copy. This follows the life of Mandy who is the daughter of Starfire and how she navigates her last year of high school and finally tell the girl she likes that she likes her. find out more by picking up your own copy now.

Celia Adams

I don't get why everyone is so mad, I f*cking loved this book.

That's a lie I do know why everyone is mad and if that's what you want to do with your emotions who am I to stop you, go off.

I like Mandy. She's an absolute chaotic mess, she's constantly in gay-panic, she has understandable issues being the daughter of a famous superhero and is trying to distance herself from that image. She looks like a very normal teenage girl, and acts like one too. 

I like Starfire. She's perfectly in line with her former portrayals as an innocent, optimistic, bubble of a person (not to mention sexy), while also showing some more maturity and depth you'd expect from being a mom. She isn't a perfect mom but she's clearly doing her best, and it's partly because they don't have a perfect relationship and communication system.. Also, she's a single mom, which is badass. 

Also, the story doesn't give a flip about Mandy's dad and I love that.

And they have this really fun relationship that is perfectly them going through the awkward transitional phase as Mandy finds herself as an adult and just regular awkwardness that is two very different people living together, but make it a superhero.

I'm not gonna sit here and act like it's perfect and deep and doesn't have any flaws or plot holes. But I don't think it's meant to be. It's FUN. It's literally Starfire's awkward teenage daughter, you get exactly what you should be expecting. Go read Kingdom Come if you want Nightstar, or literally any other Titans work if you want OG Starfire. Let us have this.

Heather Killeen

Rating: 3.75/5 bottles of black hair dye

Format: ebook. I’d like to thank the author, artist, and DC Comics for a copy of this ebook in exchange for an honest review!

To sum up: Mandy has waited for her powers to show up ever since she was a little girl. The more time that passed without them, however, the more disappointed and angry Mandy became. She starts to feel like maybe she isn't destined for anything her mother, the Superhero Starfire, expects and wants for her. This story explores what it might feel like to be crushed by the expectations and disappointments of being the daughter of a fabulous superhero. It's also about the expectations daughters put on themselves on behalf of their mothers. 

What I enjoyed: 
Okay, wow. Reading through some of the reviews of this comic (after I finished reading it) I am blown away by the vitriol on this platform about it. Yes, this comic features an angry teen that could be viewed as unlikeable. No, the plot wasn’t perfect (or her motivations super well explained), but I cannot fathom why this book has been given so many hateful reviews. Disclaimer, I haven’t read any original Starfire comics, however, I have read quite a few of DC’s other comics aimed at younger readers and teens and this was by far my favorite so far! I LIKE that Mandy is angry. Mandy doesn’t feel like she fits into the “perfect” world of her mother’s superhero persona. Mandy is questioning her purpose, her self-image, AND her sexuality ALL AT ONCE. That is a lot for any teen to deal with so give her a damn break. Although I agree that her actions are unreasonable at times, THAT’S WHAT TEENS ARE LIKE lol Did some readers forget how nasty they were to their parents when they were teens?! Therefore, I could totally understand what Mandy was going through and recognized that she was DEFINITELY going through something. 

The only main criticism I had for this story was that the ending was too tidy and oversimplified. Mandy is dealing with complex issues and she basically had them all fixed by (view spoiler)[ being given powers  (hide spoiler)]. That being said, I felt that this story deserved a little bit of a lighter ending and I definitely wanted to see Mandy confident and (view spoiler)[ literally EMPOWERED!  (hide spoiler)]. 

Overall, I thought this was a fun and intriguing premise for a comic. It gave us a unique POV (an angry teen dealing with her mother’s fame and the weight of expectations) and brought up mature issues that I feel are important! I recommend this to fans of the DC Teen Titans comics or anyone who has felt like they don’t satisfy their community’s/parent’s expectations.

I Am Not Starfire

Reviews