SDCC 2023 Convention Exclusives: Supergirl & The LSH #23 covers by Hughes & Nakayama

Supergirl and the Legion of Super-Heroes #23 - July 2023

For some reason, DC decided to put out some San Diego Comic Con 2023 exclusives around Supergirl and the Legion #23 from back in 2006. You'll recall at the time there was the regular Barry Kitson cover and a special (for unknown reasons) variant 1:10 cover from Adam Hughes. 

Regular coverArt by Barry Kitson	1:10 VariantArt by Adam Hughes

Well, that Hughes variant was on sale at SDCC 2023 in a couple variants of its own:

• "Virgin Foil" variant, with the cover in foil with no logo
• "Superman #51 Mexican foil variant" (I don't know what it reprints inside, as this shows Tomasi/Janin as the creative team instead of Waid/Kitson/Gray). I don't think it's the "La Mole" version (see below) since that has #43 on the cover, not #51.

 

Additionally, two other brand-new versions of SLSH #23 were for sale:

• David Nakayama "Pink Stars with Foil" Virgin 
• David Nakayama "Sky Blue" DNA Trade Dress (non-foil)

On his Instagram page, Nakayama says:

My final exclusive for SDCC is my first-ever SUPERGIRL cover!😃❤️👍Available in sky blue or pink stars with FOIL, this special edition of SUPERGIRL AND THE LEGION OF SUPERHEROES No.23 is ONLY available at the WHATNOT HEROES HOUSE across from the convention center.

 

So then I went down the rabbit hole looking up the Mexican version. One of the most helpful things I found was this 20-minute YouTube video from 2020 talking about the different international versions:

• The US version that we are familiar with (Dec 2006), they estimate 4000-4500 copies exist
• From Italy, "Supergirl e la Legione dei Super-Eroi" #4 (2007), reprinting S/LSH #22-23
• From Spain, "Supergirl y la Legion de Superheroes" #8 (2007), reprinting S/LSH #23
• From Mexico, "Superman" #43 (2017), "La Mole" convention exclusive, reprinting Action Comics #51, Superman #51, Batman/Superman #31, and Superman/Wonder Woman #28

However, I don't track foreign versions, so I won't be adding those to my Cover Variant Field Guide, but there are a lot of Adam Hughes collectors who seek these out because either (a) they're less expensive than the US version, and they're just looking for one for their collection, or (b) they are obsessive collectors who must have every version. I will, however, add these four new ones to the 2006 Field Guide.

And if you're an obsessive collector, a pen/ink version of the cover (pre-painted) appears in Hughes' 2007 sketchbook called "Thongs You Know by Heart", as seen in this screen grab from the YouTube video. No idea where I got the work-in-progress images below that.

 

And just for funsies, here's a computer wallpaper (1024x768) for you to download that I found somewhere, based on the original Hughes version.