While it has its perks, being the child of a celebrity can be incredibly stressful. The pressure to be just like a famous parent has led some children to feel isolated as they fail to live up to a legacy they didn't ask for. If all of that is true for an actor or musician's kid, then it would only be magnified for anyone related to a person who saved the world. While some comics, such as Robert Kirkman's Invincible, have explored the concept, it has very rarely been addressed in mainstream comics. DC is looking to change that with the announcement of the new YA graphic novel, I Am Not Starfire, and the introduction of Mandy Koriand'r.
DC's latest foray into the world of young adult fiction sees Starfire having trouble connecting with her daughter. Mandy is the exact opposite of her mother in just about every way possible. The teenager is an anti-social goth who can't stand the idea of her mother's fame. The constant barrage of questions from young fans of Starfire's adventures with the Titans leads Mandy to dye her hair black and avoid crowds at all costs. Aside from her best friend Lincoln, the only other person she cares about at school is her crush, Claire. Just as Mandy begins opening up to Claire though, Starfire's past comes back to haunt the former Titan and her daughter.
The new graphic novel from writer Mariko Tamaki and artist Yoshi Yoshitani offers an enticing look at a potential future for one of DC's most beloved heroes. From the plot description, fans will no doubt have a ton of questions, the most obvious being who is Mandy's father. While longtime fans of the Teen Titans will no doubt hope it is Starfire's longtime love, Dick Grayson, that seems unlikely given that he is more famous than Starfire and Mandy is never questioned about him. A much more solvable mystery though is who or what from Starfire's past will come back to haunt her and Mandy. Blackfire is Starfire's most well-known villain and could contrast the differences between her and Starfire with the differences between Starfire and Mandy.
All of this should provide fans of the Teen Titans and Starfire with more than enough to warrant a read, but equally exciting is the question of how the graphic novel will be received by fans of young adult fiction. Struggles with identity is often an important theme in YA, and Mandy is facing an identity crisis on multiple fronts. It is not just being different from her mom that isolates Mandy, it's also being an outcast while trying to figure out her sexuality that is driving a wedge between her and the people in her life. Further adding to all the pressure weighing Mandy down is her alien heritage. Starfire's home planet, Tamaran is a harsh place. Starfire not wanting to talk about her traumatic life back on her home planet will no doubt fuel Mandy's issues with identity as she wants to know more about her heritage.
While some comic fans have bemoaned DC's recent slate of YA graphic novels, they've had more successes than failures. Swamp Thing's reinvention was inspired, and their two books on Raven and Beast Boy had strong appeal for both new comic readers and old. Eager fans can hope that I Am Not Starfire will live up to its legacy even when its main character doesn't want to.