Justice League #7 Variant Cover

By Gary Frank. Diana looks gorgeous. Kal:uniform looks good but his face! Yikes. Frank needs to try and stay away from Chris Reeve for a young 2012 Superman. The face looks old and the smile a bit creepy. The good thing about this: our couple, they look like they could be holding hands.

Action Comics #6 Review

We open with a creepy, little man offering the anti-Superman army or the K-Men, as they call themselves, splinters of the various kryptonite isotope that was stolen from Superman's baby rocket. It is the power source of the rocket, by the way, and the same K-Men who are demanding the kryptonite now apparently were the ones who stole it in the first place. Yep, this is going to be a trippy issue where we time travel quite a bit. Creepy, little man wants these guys, who are salivating for vengeance against Superman, to do him a favor.

We see Superman who has gone back in time ( five years) with the Legion. They are hanging out in Superman's first Fortress of Solitude, Brainiac's ship.  Seems the kryptonite isotope has been torn out of the rocket. Well, we know it is the K-Men who did it. Saturn Woman, Lightning Man and Cosmic Man try to save the rocket from dying. While doing this they realize they are not alone.

They are attacked by a huge octopus, who really is a man by the name of Erik Drekken, who has the power to evolve and devolve his genetic material, and who was part of the Anti-Superman army. There is a big fight and eventually Saturn Woman finds out where the power source to the rocket is.

Yeah, a microscopic, hollow, lead bullet with the kryptonite isotope and a tessaract space (this is 31st century technology :it is a small space that can hold large amounts of storage)  with the creepy, little man and the anti-Superman army was shot inside Superman's brain. We cut to the past when Clark meets the Legion as a boy and a really lovely moment with him and Pa Kent. I am assuming these are Superman's memories bubbling up since the pellet is causing some pressure in his head. The Legion goes into Superman's brain to face the villains and try to get back the kryptonite via a time bubble and using a tessaract key they took off Drekken. They face off with creepy little man and the K-Men.

There is a battle in Superman's brain and the Legion are about to take the kryptonite isotope, when creepy, little man opens the lead lined box in an effort to kill Superman. Note that creepy, little man seems to have almost magical powers. Superman fights the radiation and Drekken on the outside. He remembers important words said to him by his father and this gives him the will to not give in. Inside Superman's brain creepy, little man causes the kryptonite to tear apart. He disappears and only the green crystal remains while the other fragments vanishes as well. The Legion manage to retrieve it while Superman overwhelmed by the radiation from inside him uses his own body to power the dying rocket, which in turn saves him from Drekken. The Legion come out of his brain bearing the green crystal and they are able replace the power source. Superman is taken back to the future or rather his present. He just needs rest and sunlight and time to heal. The Legion reaffirm their commitment to the earth and him. We then go to the back up story.

It is a lovely little story of Clark's last day in Smallville. His parents have passed and he has chosen to move on and go to Metropolis to be a reporter. He is seen off by Lana and Pete. We see flashbacks of him with his parents and his two best friends and what's great to see is that these people are so important in shaping the man he would become. One person alone can never do that or ground you. Life and people in your life do that.

It was refreshing to see Lana especially (and Pete) written so well and how great a childhood Clark did have despite the challenges of his powers. Clark comes across as well adjusted and motivated because he had people who loved and understood what he needed to do.

I do love this panel of him and Lana just sitting up on the barn with sunflowers surrounding them. I hope Clark, while he goes to the city and plays hero and reporter, never forgets his roots. That he does not need a Ma and Pa alive to value that.

If you are a new reader to Superman you will be entirely lost. The way it is written with the jumps in time and allusions to what happened in the past and future makes it jarring. Since we left jeans and cape wearing Clark, Action's pacing has been a bit chaotic. Morrison is jumping all over the place. Half of these people I do not know. Who is little creepy man with magical powers? Who are those people on the anti-Superman army? Are they past villains Morrison revamped? They keep dropping names and events that's to come when we have not even tied up the Brainiac arc. I am assuming what happens here will tie in somewhere down the line but really that does not help while reading this. I did enjoy seeing the tough, current day Superman and the part where he used his own body to save his rocket was poignant. This seems more consistent with how he has been in Action and Justice League than what I read in the lackluster Superman title.

Anyway again for pacing and the disjointed feel...though on reading a couple of times...things do seem a little clearer and some really good stuff to refine the mythos is explored here...I give this 3 stars out of 5.

Best Panel: I love this image of Clark taking the bull down while Pa supervises. I love that rawness and real earthiness we are seeing. A farmer's son with a galactic inheritance would be tough.

Superman # 5 review

So the boring story line continues. Truly, this arc simply regurgitates the art and pacing from the former issues. In a nutshell, Superman is out of commission elsewhere and  the elemental creatures are reabsorbed by someone who looks like Superman. He spends this issue undoing the good will that he built up with the citizens of Metropolis by going around and taking the law into his own hands and destroying any elements he thinks might affect the peace and harmony of Metropolis. Of course, he causes chaos and stresses out his friends and supporters and gets the military pissed.

We see Lois. On the phone. Again. Or watching behind a computer. In fact, like all four issues, she and the press keep following Superman around and it is fricking annoying. I know modern media uses phones and computers and videos to get events in real time but for crying out loud, can the readers just be allowed to follow the story and our hero without that annoying exposition of the press??? Is this book staring Superman or the press?

The supporting cast just gather in offices again as the people on the street to hold their heads in consternation. You know, they have to tell us stupid readers what is going on. They are like this idiot in the helicopter... an annoying fly you want to swat away. The press can hear Superman speak now. What the hell?

Anyway Superman goes and takes out Titano and what was left of the Terminauts etc. Oh yeah, Superman is a big bad killer now and you know that is not going to go down well.

Another prime example of wasted pages. Lois again stressing before a computer over Superman or Clark since Perez has been inferring she might know he is one and the same. Let me tell you there are pages like this spanning all 5 issues. I wonder Nicola Scott or Merino had anything challenging to really draw with regards to Lois. And what the hell? Is Jimmy Olsen fourteen years old?

So Superman crosses the line and Lois screeches. Once again...we are being treated to a format of story-telling that is very clunky and redundant. And the real kicker? This is not Clark/Superman. So we invested in several issues to find out this Superman is an imposter. Real Clark is floating somewhere in space looking as if he is fourteen years old as well. Nicola Scott's Superman is inconsistent.

George Perez, you are one of my favorite artists and I appreciate you want to raise relevant themes in the new reboot. The way Superman would not be trusted so easily in a modern, paranoid world post 9/11 and the role of the media and you even want to try to make Lois a focus point and even hint that she and Clark have something so special, even though we have just started the reboot. It is not working. Not in the way you have told this story so far. You have told us...in a heavy handed way but not shown us anything to make me care. I have learned very little about what drives Clark and Superman five years later (at least, compared to Action and Justice League) and I frankly don't care for him or what happens to him. You cannot world build based on old canon. This is a new reboot. Just because Lois hooked up with Clark then does not automatically mean we will buy they belong together when their personalities and histories are so different. That is lazy. If DC wanted to stay with old Superman and old dynamics...they never should have rebooted. We have elemental monster villains that frankly were a waste of 3 issues. They have added nothing to the world of Superman. A hero is measured by a good villain. Where is Heather in all this? Why is Jimmy drawn and written so poorly? Why is Perry so watered down? Who the hell are the rest of the Daily Planet crew and do we really care? Too much Lois pandering and too less world building and not enough of the energetic, charismatic and tough new 52 Superman.

I give this 2 stars out of 5.

Best Panel. : General Lane making his stance clear.  Can you blame him? He's an ass, yes, but then Superman seems a bit of an idiot as well. What you sow you reap.

Justice League #5 Review

Flash is the first to wake from the destructive force of  Darkseid's entrance. Now don't ask me how someone like Batman survives this. Once again we just have to buy he does not get squished to a pulp. Anyway Flash sees the mighty Darkseid for the first time and what the beams from his eyes can do and he is close to wetting his pants. He calls to the others for help.

Superman is up and he's rearing to go. "I'm up. But not to talk." Nice. Love this 'bring it' attitude Geoff Johns is giving him. Darkseid is ready for them both and Flash grabs Superman so they can get out of the way of a pair of omega beams.

Once again Jim Lee excels with the Flash and Superman panels. It is almost like a race while the two heroes try to out run the omega beams. These two share some good chemistry. It is fun to see Geoff build the dynamic between group members. We already know Barry and Hal are close and pre-reboot it was always Clark and Bruce. But as we will see later...we might be getting some slight variations. Anyway, these guys cannot outrun the omega beams, as rightfully no one should really. Flash manages to vibrate through a parademon and it takes the hit. Superman is not so lucky. He is captured and taken away. Flash regroups with the others who finally wakes up and informs them what happens. Of course, Green Lantern, cocky as usual, decides to rush in. He is severely punished by Darkseid.

He gets tossed around like a rag doll, his constructs are easily destroyed, his hand is broken and he still shows no sign of backing down. He shows how fearless he is but also how impulsive. Batman has to intervene and try to reason with him; that they need a strategy because this is an enemy they couldn't beat that easily. This is where this issue sort of goes off the rails. We already had Green Lantern rushing in and taking up panel time (god knows why the others are standing watching him) and then we have him and Batman take up more pages. Hal is trying to be all martyr-like and heroic and Batman is trying to convince him that they are alike as they are 'normal' and he knows how he feels. Oh, for crying out loud. Batman even unmasks. Huh? The only thing that makes this remotely passable was Hal's response.

 Now I get they want to make Bruce be the focused and shrewd one and less like a paranoid jerk but come on, he just met the guy! Also why does Batman unmasked look like Superman? This is where Jim is very weak when drawing faces. Batman unmasking is weird enough, but he pulls off his cape and  the bat symbol off his chest too. "This is bigger than you and I," he says and off he goes. Excuse me? Anyway this took nine pages. Counting from the time Hal rushed in. In a book that has 20 pages of story.

Green Lantern goes to the others. Don't ask me what they were doing while he and Batman were having a heart to heart. They decide they will follow Darkseid. Wonder Woman gets to speak twice. Wow. She got one up over Aquaman. Anyway, she thinks they should blind Darkseid. Geoff could only make up for wasting her so far by actually making her do that somehow in the next issue. Green Lantern jabbers on and takes charge. Batman, meanwhile, gets himself picked up by a parademon as a rouse to get to Superman. He manages to use his human skull to hit a parademon in the head too and bring it down. Good grief. He ends up before a portal.

Yes, he finds himself on Apokolips.

This issue unfortunately did not build well upon the last strong one. Cyborg, Wonder Woman and Aquaman were wasted. This was the Green Lantern and Batman show. This is a team book, is it not?

I give this issue 3 out of 5 stars. It would have gotten less but Darkseid is a badass and the art was pretty good and there were some fun moments. And let me rant a bit. I am pretty fed up of the 8 pages that are wasted on designs and adverts. Those could be used for, oh I don't know...the story???!!!!

Best Panel: Flash and Superman on the run.

The Super Friends

Now who thinks that the girls are focusing on the reader than the story? Though, Robin's look is a little suspect. Diana is probably thinking ...mmm, Kal smells so good.

Super Embrace Art Print

This beautiful art print was done by RobOsborne and can be seen in full here. http://www.etsy.com/listing/90941258/super-embrace-comic-book-pop-romance-art

Shh Superman Is Sleeping

by

Meejay7

Another brilliant one by Meejay. Superman looks mighty tasty in this. No wonder that Amazon is smug. I bet she wore him out...er...sparring. Yes. Must be that.

Wonder Woman #5 Review

We open with Diana, Zola and Hermes back home in London. They are sitting having breakfast in a pub and, I assume Diana is having a proper English breakfast And yes, it does include tomatoes, Zola. We are introduced to another player. A bull dog faced fellow calling himself Lennox, who knows a lot about Diana and her "family" and calls himself her brother.

Diana spends time bonding with Zola while Hermes leaves with Lennox. Lennox is trying get to the bottom of Zeus' disappearance. He lets Diana know that the rest of the family would be looking to stake a claim for what Zeus left behind. We see him enter a series of underground tunnels (almost looks like Traitor's Gate at the Tower of London)  and tell Hermes to be ready for whatever he is going to deliver.Diana and Zola hang around Tower Bridge because Lennox told her she needed to be there at six o'clock. The ladies seem to have forged a kind of easy rapport despite their differences in status and Diana corrects the idea that she is "perfect".

We see the appearance of Poseidon. And the lord of the oceans is majestic as he is whimsical to behold. The designs for all these Gods are really interesting. The creative team keeps surprising us by veering from the norm. Poseidon is a giant amalgam of a whale, walrus, octopus, barnacles and shell. And he is imperious and very grumpy. He calls Diana a mongrel and states his intent to claim the heavens.

Lennox tangles with a Cerberus and possibly a new God enters the stage. Who he is I am not sure. The Cerberus usually guards the gate to the Underworld. This guy is in armor and has a crown of candles burning on his head and melting wax hiding his eyes. Is this Hades? Anyway, Diana has a plan of her own. She realizes she is out of depth while dealing with these Gods and she decides on some  strategy. She informs Poseidon that Hera has claimed the heavens as her own. He is not happy.

And a rather fashionable looking Hera is astound and peeved Diana would have the gall to say this. Meanwhile, one wonders if this lie will be the thing that saves the innocent bystanders on the bridge. Those creepy centaurs are back.

I continue to enjoy this title. It was not as nail biting or emotional as the last issue and really a little lighter in tone and not much happens to propel the story forward. It's nice to see Diana is coping well and not moping and feeling sorry for herself. Lennox's role has yet to be "sussed" and we are left wondering how Hera will deal with Diana now. Chiang took a rest from interiors and Tony Atkins did a good job.

4 out of 5 stars.

Best Panel: Diana readying to meet Poseidon. She looks so regal and yet womanly. Did I mention I love her black dress and red scarf?

Action Comics # 5 Review

We sort of recap the beginning or foundation to the Superman myth in this issue. At the start we see Lara and Jor-El trying to rush to safety with baby Kal-El and Krypto (yes, you heard me) in tow. Unfortunately the ship Jor-El built is a prototype and can only hold one. They try to see if they can escape via the Phantom Zone, the ghostly prison for criminals, but that turned out to be bad idea. Lucky for them they had Krypto to take protect them.

We find out the AI that piloted the rocket ship is called Brainiac. That Kal's name means Starchild. Lara's name means Light of Waxing Moon and Jor-El means Great Star. Little details that all add a richness to the story and we see the love and pain of the Els as they send their child away to have a chance at life while they face their doom.

This is contrasted with Martha and Jonathan Kent who are Midwest farmers and they have not been lucky at trying to start a family. The ship crashes at the side of a lonely road and the Kent's are there to witness it and follow their hearts and take this baby in. The military are very aware of the alien craft crashing but Jonathan craftily fools them by showing them a deformed six legged calf as the "spaceman". It makes perfect sense now why Clark started to chortle with laughter in Action #2 when Lex showed him the remains.

The story then jumps from the past to a time when we see Superman's Fortress of Solitude. It looks like some sort of alien craft with the rocket ship, ( Clark found it in Action #2)  that had taken to protecting itself in a kind of crystalline matrix. It is being invaded by enemies of Superman calling themselves the Anti-Superman Army. We find out a little about kryptonite and what it is. Future armored suit Superman appears with the Legion and he is here to help the younger, t-shirt wearing one.

There is a back up story focusing on Martha and Jonathan, showing them as happy newly weds and then the following years of pain where they struggle to have a child.

This is a good issue though not a whole story. It is vignettes really. So it does jump around a bit and has a filler feel but the actual subject matter is very integral to the mythos. Though we may have read this before, it still feels fresh and love the new tweaked elements that is part of refining the whole legend. Andy Kubert does interiors and does a nice job in the main story.

I give this 4 out of 5 stars.

Best Panel: That one panel in the back-up of an unsuspecting Martha and Jonathan as Kal-El's rocket ship plummets towards them.

Superman #4 Review

George Perez continue to overwrite a book that never quite establishes its star, cast and foes in any real exciting or truly fresh way. Granted, he tries to incorporate real world problems that affect our hero and the way the media operates but it still feels all very lacklustre and redundant. We find Superman being questioned by the police about Heather Kelly but turns out she's fine and she's giving an interview on TV to try to get Clark/Superman off the hook. Lois is supposed to be managing her division but she seems to be preoccupied with Clark Kent to really do it. The three elemental foes all appear and they are as lame as ever and Superman we find is the one who supposedly created them.

When I lose interest in a book it is very tough to really review it properly. I take to summarizing stuff I find glaring.

So what I got from this issue.

1. Superman's supporting cast are really quite boring. No one pops. No one comes across with real personality and chemistry. I have read nothing to make me care Even Jimmy Olsen is a bore and that is disappointing since in Action Comics, he feels fresh and modern and is just as spunky as Clark. Heather is established to be what exactly? A rival for Lois? A cliched knock off it looks like. We have been given no reason to care for her other than the writing says she and Clark may have had something and she fancies him.

2. Lois is Watching: Is she Clark's Oracle or Den Mother? Honestly, can Superman not do anything without Lois watching him from a camera? Is this going to be an ongoing thing where she is constantly calling Clark on his phone to check up on him? She looks much older than him and there is actually no chemistry between them. In fact, Heather looks older than Clark too.He acts/looks like a college freshman while they look like his older sisters or something.

3. Please Get New Foes For Superman! Seriously, this is not good enough for the relaunch of a character. These elemental monsters are too old-school for my taste and what really have they contributed in this relaunch so far? To show how stupid Superman is, that's what.

I give this 2.5 out of 5.

Best Panel: Just another image by Merino. He draws Superman well. At least he looks manly here. Better than Nicola Scott, who did interiors last time.