Superboy #15 Review

Just a quick look at Superboy. I don't read the title but because it is part of the H'El on Earth crossover I picked it up. It follows off Superman #14 when H'El attacked all three supers in downtown Metropolis. He took Kara, and did something to Superboy to shut his system down.

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Superman takes the dying Superboy away despite the pissed up authorities. He takes him to the Fortress of Solitude in an attempt to try to save his life. Superboy is conscious of what is happening but unable to move or speak.

Meanwhile, H'El has taken Kara to her undersea refuge and convinces her that Superman did indeed betray her. He also seems ready to make some moves on her, judging from that smirk.

Back at the fortress, Superman contacts Cyborg and Dr Veritas who informs him that Superboy's genetic strands are in meltdown and he needs something to help contain them while they knit together. Superman has an idea. He gives the boy the battle armor.

Suffice to say Superboy is not too keen on it. He even pulls the shield off. But Superman tells him he will die and it is his choice to take it or give up.

Superboy takes back the armor. While they try to think how to defeat H'El, he appears and kicks them both out of the Fortress.

I admit I enjoyed this. I liked seeing Superman show an interest in the boy and a desire to save his life and not treat him like an outcast. Superboy is struggling with his place in the world and he has no interest in being a hero or wanting to have much to do with Kal or Kara. But the uneasy peace he comes to is a sign we will see hopefully some development between him and Superman.

Action Comics #15 Review

Vyndktvx, little creepy man turned devil, is after Superman. He has been preparing a multiprong attack all through Superman's lifetime and has the ability with the Anti-Superman army to attack him at any given moment in his life. We have some moments like the one where Pa Kent is helping the creepy little man on the night of Clark's prom. An ominous sign that he would possibly be the one responsible for the death  of the Kents.

It's a trippy issue. Going to and fro in time, past, present and future but clearly all happening at once. Mrs Nylx explains to Superman what was happening and her role in all of it. She was once aPrincess of the 5th Dimension and married to an Superman's old foe, Mxyzptlk. She tells Superman the story of how they fell in love and how Vyndktvx be came the enemy. While she tells her story Superman is being attacked on all fronts.

I was never a fan of Mxyzptlk, an interdimensional imp, as a foe but the Vyndktvx set up is showing a way more dangerous and insiduous foe for a Superman. Who Myx is and his courtship of Mrs Nylx really does not do that much for me. The issue thankfully is grounded by interchanging it with real life events to give emotional context to what is happening. The prom scene with Clark and Lana was sweet and sad. First love about to be interrupted by tragedy.

Before Mrs Nylx could try to help Superman she is taken out by Nimrod the Hunter.

The army closes in on Superman. Past. Present. Future.

I give this 4 out of 5 stars. Things are happening and the story has a sense of urgency now as you can feel the inevitable, big final confrontation. Some of the interdimemsional stuff I can't connect with on an emotional level but Superman's life I can and I appreciate the level of threat this foe poses.

Best Panel. The entire page where Clark finds out about his parents is heart wrenching.

Superman #14 Review

We start this issue with the heralding of Lois Lane by Clark Kent. We are told how she is the most amazing woman he ever met. We are told how she outshines all women, even a royal princess at her own wedding. We are told how great a reporter she is (Pulitzer winner, Emmy nominee) and she is not even 30. We are told how she is his best friend etc. We are told lot of things. And since the reboot, we have not seen much to support the greatest reporter and the best friends tag and this supposed chemistry they suppose to share. I guess the writers, both here and in Action Comics, think the mere fact they were married last continuity, you don't have to show readers anything much.

Clark and Lois get into a little argument over the fact he walked out on his job and she comes to demand him to come back. He sticks to his guns re quitting but spoils it all when he pulls out the whining card. He is annoyed over the fact she did not tell him about moving in with Jonathan. Lois puts him in his place.

Lois calls him out on the "country mouse smile" plastered on his face he wore for the past week. Clark fumbles. Now I guess it could be because after he kissed Diana (if Lobdell is going according to Justice League's continuity) she flew off on him before they could discuss it. The kiss "just happened" and a "kiss is not a commitment" comes to mind. Or is it he still has feelings for Lois based on his reaction? He reminds me of a kid thinking mom has a new boyfriend, so where does that leave me? Has Clark really moved on? He claimed to have done so last issue yet he's still questioning himself over Lois and Jonathan. Now is this an attempt to start a lame triangle? Maybe. Or maybe Clark is genuinely conflicted because he does not know where he stands with Diana. What is he to tell Lois afterall? He can't share the woman he kissed was Wonder Woman and in any case, he has not officially started dating her. Now if Clark still carries on about what Lois is doing or not doing re her love life even after what we saw in Justice League #14, I can only conclude he is a selfish idiot.

Diana was very vulnerable after the Steve and Cheetah incidents and he should not have pursued her as he did if he  is wanting something with Lois. Diana did not force him to open up to her and take her to Smallville and kiss her again. Diana is not some lame second choice and I hope the writer stay away from that sort of nonsense. Lois seems to view him as a friend and wants to keep it that way and it is not clear if Clark tried to date her and she turned him down.

The little discussion is abruptly interrupted by Supergirl who wants to have a word with her cousin. Clark lucks out when Lois concludes Clark is doing human interest stories and she is a cosplayer. He and Kara leave the apartment and get into an argument. Clark is not happy she nearly blew his ID and she is far from impressed with his alter-ego and earth on the whole. Kara has someone she wants Kal to meet.

H'El announces himself. He claims to have been a student of Jor-El and a test subject of the pod that would take Kal-El to earth. Superman does not believe him.

H'El does not appreciate being mocked and drags Superboy into the picture. He offers to snap the neck of this "abomination". Superman and H'El engage in battle. H'El appears to have super speed, super strength, the ability to teleport as well as mind controlling and telekenetic type abilities. He tricks Kara into thinking Superman turned on her and is on the verge of killing Superman. Superboy stops him only to get himself taken down. H'El leaves a defeated Superman, with the threat of resurrecting Krypton. He takes Kara with him.

Another good issue by the team of Lobdell and Rocafort. With the exception of Clark's juvenile attitude regarding Lois' personal life everything else was good. Lobdell paces well. We get that continued modern feel to the book with the dialogue and great art. There is humor and action all the while with ongoing world and character building. I am interested in H'El. I can understand Kara's and Superboy's ambivalence towards the world and their situation. I can't wait to see how their relationship with Clark grows. It's refreshing to see the supers have to really work for a change to build trust and respect for each other instead of it given to them on a platter.

I give this issue 4 out of 5 stars.

Best Panel: Superman, the pleb, taking on H'El.

Justice League #14 Review

Superman has been transformed into a were Cheetah and begins attacking his allies. The sound of a horn blows and stops him while the Cheetah takes off. We meet Hara, the leader of the San Tribe, and she gives us some history of the Cheetah. The Cheetah was a force of good and the Goddess of the Hunt. Every generation a human host was chosen  and Hara's mother had been the last Cheetah. She had been murdered by a man carrying a weapon called the Godslayer. While Hara's mother died, the Cheetah's spirit entered the Godslayer. The weapon was lost until it was stolen by Barbara Minerva.

With Hara's help Superman is given an antidote to counteract the Cheetah's bite. His alien constitution is the only reason he did not die. Diana, with Barry and Arthur's help, corner the Cheetah and take her in.

They incarcerate the Cheetah in Belle Reve. And Diana, once again, offers to help Barbara to rid her of the curse, which she spurns. Once left alone in her prison cell, Cheetah seems to be in contact with someone on the outside. Black Manta's name is mentioned. Dare we wonder if we are going to see the Legion of Doom at some point? At the Watchtower Diana learns about Barbara Minerva's past. It turns out Barbara was a criminal long before she met Diana and worked with her at ARGUS. Diana had been blaming herself for Barbara becoming the Cheetah but as it turns out Barbara is the one who corrupted the Cheetah. This knowledge hits Diana hard because Barbara had been her "best friend" and she had used her.

Wonder Woman and Superman discuss what went down, and bear in mind we have the knowledge of the shared kiss and those emotions between them. Diana feels betrayed and as if she can't trust anyone and her naivety is at fault. Superman lets her see that it not a weakness but a strength and something he admires in her. He tells her she can trust the team and him. She challenges that. How can she trust someone who does not share much of who he is? Superman is determined and willing to change that.

We see our two heroes having breakfast in a diner in Smallville. People gape and stare while they try to have a quiet meal and talk. Clark's whole point of bringing her to his home town was to share who he is and why he choose to be a hero.

It's a sweet scene and refreshing to see Superman open up and not have to hide and lie about his life and it makes me regret the Kents are not alive to meet Diana. To meet her as his prospective partner, as opposed to just a friend. Diana coming from an island and him coming from rural Kansas in a way sort of shows a kind of connection to the quieter beauty and peace environs like this offer. Clark who has been doing this longer than she has, tells her life wasn't all about heroics and trying to save and protect people either. That he tries to keep connected to the simple, ordinary things that make life worth living.

The emotions they feel for one another naturally gives way to another passionate kiss. But there is a tracer on Clark's cape and guess who is watching them? Batman.

I loved this issue. The Cheetah battle was not that intense but adequate to move the plot along. We learned a lot of important details like the San Tribe, Cheetah's history, the existence of the Godslayer, Black Manta's involvement etc. It is the Clark and Diana scenes that steals the show. Tony Daniel's work brings real emotion and depth. There are some issues with the colorist in some panels though. In some panels I don't know what is happening to Clark's eyes and lips. But these scenes show two people allowing themselves to be vulnerable and on the way to falling in love. Batman watching. Hmm, now I am hoping Bruce only accidentally stumbled on this and he is not going to be a jerk about it. He claims Superman is his friend. We shall see if DC will go the same old trodden route of the paranoid Batman or a wiser Batman who will be happy for his younger friends. I doubt Clark  will appreciate being spied on though and Diana, already with trust issues, will not be happy.

I give this 4 out of 5 stars.

Best Panel. Once again I can't choose a panel. I adore the whole page. Here is a Superman I can fall for. A guy who knows what he wants and who he is and is prepared to be honest with a woman who is worth taking that risk for. Tony Daniel draws the most amazing eyes and he manages just like last issue to portray this intense attraction between them.

Wonder Woman #14 Review

We start with the head eating "First Born" and learn he was entombed for seven thousand years.

We learn about Sirraca's background and how nasty and vindictive Hera was and probably still is.

Now I would say Diana got off real lucky compared to what happened to Sirraca. It was a good thing mom and sisters kept her a secret else imagine her without a nose. Seems Zeus is not all that cruel either, is he?

And Diana, with a few choice words and a little one sided fighting, gets Sirraca to trust her just like that. Eh.

The Gods continue to squabble and we find out the First Born's history. Born to Zeus and Hera, and taken away to be put to death because of perceived threat to Dad. Hera appeared back then to have some maternal feeling. Can't say I feel too sorry for her because she was a meanie afterwards to many other mothers and her own children.The First Born was not killed because the witch who was supposed to do it was moved by pity for Hera.

We then switch to New Genesis and see High Father who is worried about a threat. Orion is going to be sent into the fray.

So this issue was kind of  slow. It was more introductions and nothing much happened but talking. I am interested to know who is leading the expedition and what they want with the First Born. But I am also getting a little weary of reading about more Gods. Whatever Orion is coming for, does it really concern the universe? I sure hope so because so far it is just Olympian politics and him coming in for the sake of another God in the picture is just adding to the clutter of deities. We have many loose hanging threads and no signs of tying anything up and more Gods seem to loom on the horizon judging by upcoming solicits.

I give this 3.5 stars

Action Comics #14 Review

Metaleks,alien xenoformers, are attacking a base on Mars. Superman goes to stop them and try and rescue the human team trying to colonize the red planet.

While Superman battles the machines we are being warned of the oncoming Multitude.

The Multitude was responsible for the death of many worlds and Earth is next on their to do list. The only man to ever repel the Multitude was Jor-El.

The Multitude, at first glance, look like a host of angels and they are overwhelming. Too many for even a Superman to defeat. But like his father before him,.Superman shows us he can think our side the box. To do the impossible.Once again, Morrison shows a Superman with a brain. He manages to repel the demonic looking hordes.

Unfortunately, as we have seen before creepy little man is skulking around, biding his time. It's interesting he is drawn looking like the devil after Superman's battle with demonic looking angels and he calls him man-god.

The backup starts with Superman fighting with the Justice League and I'm putting those pages up because Diana is in them. She gets one word but I'd like to see it as the one that ultimately helped him decide.

Superman meets up reknown astrophysicist, Neil deGrasse Tyson. The images of Krypton's destruction which happened twenty-seven years ago were schedule to reach earth due to space time difference.

An issue that allows us to see some personality traits of Superman that, to me, he lost somewhere along the way last canon. The charming cockiness, the never say die attitude, the intellect, the vulnerability but dignity even in the face of loss. All of this wrapped up in metaphysical themes but still grounded in emotion.

I will give it a 4 out of 5 stars.

Best Panel. That succintly explains Superman.

Thanks

Thanks for the follow, Vienna. :)