World of Superman

Superman #5 - The Mummy Strikes!

2011-11-13T21:12:00.001Z

This isn't quite as planned, as my laptop is having a few problems reading my latest set of pictures, featuring all of my lovely MCM Expo goodies, from my memory card. So, whilst I wrestle with the technical issues, I figured it was probably worth getting back to the bread and butter of this blog - the life and times of the Post-Crisis Superman!

Don't forget to grab the latest episode of the 20 Minute Longbox. Not only is it a super-sized episode featuring my good friend Jon M. Wilson as a special guest-star, but it also contains an exciting announcement about a future project!

And on with the issue!

The Mummy Strikes

Writer-Penciller: John Byrne

Inker: Karl Kesel

Colorist: Tom Ziuko

Letterer: John Costanza

Editors: Andrew Helfer & Michael Carlin

Cover Art: John Byrne

Cover Date: May 1987

Release Date: 12/02/1987

Superman dreams of fighting Apokolitian Warhounds inWashington DC and the arrival of Wonder Woman. The two defeat the Warhoundstogether. Wonder Woman makes to leave, but Superman grasps her wrist. The twoare about to kiss when Clark awakes, amazed at the intensity of his dream. Starting to wonder if there might now beplace for romance in Superman’s life, Clark realises that he is late for work.

At the Daily Planet, a package has arrived on Clark’s desk.Distracted by Cat Grant’s flirting, Clark forgets about it. Summoned to Perry’soffice, he sees a video message from Lois Lane giving an update on hersecondment to an archaeological dig that suddenly cuts out. Perry sends Clarkto South America to investigate.

Superman flies to South America before changing in a digtent. As Clark, he meets up with Lois, who has been trying to fix the radio.She accuses him of trying to scoop her again, before reluctantly mellowing ashe convinces her that he is here to help. Dr Estevez, the dig chief, showsClark a piece of machine-tooled metal found inside a 3000 year old jar, the keyto the dig. Descending into the site, Clark sees futuristic panels secretedbehind naturally grown stalagmites, which are the source of the interferencethat blocks communications. As Estevez attempts to work the panels, a wallcrumbles as two large bandage-wrapped hands burst through.

The hands belong to a giant mummy-like creature that attacksClark and Lois with eyebeams. Clark gets Lois and Estevez to safety, wonderinghow he can use his powers without compromising his identity. He uses his heatvision to bring a section of the roof down around him, giving him cover to usehis powers. The ‘mummy’ surprises him however, by blasting into the air withrockets. Clark has to pull his punches, as his x-ray vision cannot penetratethe ‘mummy’ to discover if it is a living being or a robot. He realises that he cannot change intoSuperman as he hasn’t shaved, and both Clark and Superman being seen by Lois inanother country with stubble would be too obvious.

Clark lunges for the panels, trying to halt the attack. Agiant explosion rocks the ruins. In the aftermath, Lois crawls into the rubble,looking for Clark. She finds him unconscious, and she and Estevez drag him tosafety. Returning to investigate, she comes face to face with the ‘mummy’,whose bandages have disintegrated revealing a large robot underneath.

For the second issue in a row, John Byrne takes anopportunity to move beyond Superman’s rogues’ gallery and bring something newto the table. This issue is all about continuing to establish the world inwhich Clark and Superman operates, and raising the stakes of the threat.Explanations and revelations will be saved for the next issue; this is allabout the setup.

It might be a given, considering that the book is namedafter him, but this really is Superman’s issue. I love his gentle rebuttal ofCat’s not-so-obvious flirting, caused by him forgetting to shave. I reallyappreciate the page where Superman flies from Metropolis to South America,going suborbital to get there as quickly as he can. What is implied about thispage is Superman’s intelligence. He knows how far away his destination is, andhas a strong enough understanding of XXXX to be able to maximise his abilitiesto get there as quickly as possible.

The fight scene is a great example of Superman’s brains andbrawn coming together. Realising that if both Clark and Superman appear to Loiswith a five o’clock shadow then his secret will be out, Clark stays in costumeand seals himself inside the ruins with the mummy-robot so that he can tackleit without worrying about his identity. This leads to come great visuals asClark, clad in khakis, a shirt with rolled-up sleeves and a tie, goestoe-to-toe with a 20-foot tall mummy. I also like that he pulls his punches incase the mummy is an innocent living being, showing a respect for liferegardless of the circumstances.

The cliffhanger to the issue is nice and strong. Clark, hissecret safe thanks to not getting changed, is rendered unconscious by a hugeexplosion, whilst Lois is menaced by the unwrapped mummy, revealed to be asleek-but-giant robot. We’ll see next week that the story takes a turn that’snearly impossible to predict from the information given in this issue, which,in my opinion, makes the story stronger without cheating the reader.

The Geeky Bits:The intensity of Superman’s Wonder Woman dream is probably an after-effect ofPrana’s attack in Adventures of Superman #427. Superman met Wonder Woman inLegends #6, and will feel drawn to her over the next year-or-so’s worth ofstories. Look for Action Comics #600 to see what will happen between the two ofthem.

The mysterious package has been seen before, but for thesake of spoilers (!) I’ll hold off any futher commentary until we come toresolve this plotline in the books.

Collected in Superman: The Man Of Steel vol 3. It was covered in depth on episode 7 of From Crisis To Crisis.

Nexton World of Superman: Superman#6. Well, what did you expect?

MCM Expo: The Pictures, The Memories

2011-11-10T18:00:00.000Z

It's MCM Expo week here at World of Superman, taking a look back at this October's MCM Expo. Today, I'll be letting my pictures tell the story of the Expo. But, to warn you, I'm not a great convention photographer. I tend to feel very British and uncomfortable asking for pictures, and some experiences just cannot be captured in photographs. But I've got what I've got, and I'd like to take you on a journey!

All good journeys to the EXCEL Centre involve the Jubilee Line, and to my surprise, I sat down next to a Spanish lady who happened to have this emblazoned on her bag. A wonderfully appropriate start to the weekend, and a great way to introduce myself to Guest of Honour Gail Simone later on that day.

From the Underground to the Docklands Light Railway. Can you spot anyone who might be coming to the Expo? I love playing spot the cosplayer, seeing how early I pick them up on my journey from Surbiton to Docklands. This year, I had one on Surbiton station, only 10 minutes into the 90 minute journey, which was a record!

The title sponsor this year was Arkham City. This was the main entrance to the Expo halls, about 1pm, an hour before opening. The best thing about the Friday early entry is being able to get your hands on the hot games without queuing for hours, and I was able to while away some time playing the first section of the game. Having not played Arkham Asylum before, I was blown away by the attention to detail and the depictions of the characters within. Sadly, the game was on an Xbox 360, a console I've had no experience playing on, so I wasn't very good at it at all...

The queueing hall, 5 minutes after the doors should have opened. As much as I hate queuing for an hour, I do enjoy the sense of anticipation and fun you get in one of these queues. I met the lovely @pwnagesniper, who was attending for the first time, and together we whiled away the queue.

The doors, about 30 seconds after opening. No-one's gone through them yet. The con is open!

As always, my first port of call was the Comic Village, which this year had moved across the main hall and had grown across to the other side of the main walkway. Friday isn't always the greatest day for the Village, as about half of the creators don't attend until the weekend proper, but there's always enough great people to spend some time getting to know, and the lack of crowds means that you can get some great chatting time with people. Picture above is the great Ciaran Lucas, working with a digital inking pen whilst inking the 11th Doctor. Unfortunately, not long after this picture was taken, he introduced me to the 'delight' that is My Little Pony: Friendship Is Forever. I'm not Bronie... but I'm close...

Behind the Goblin suit is Claude of Gronk Comics, a must-meet every time I head to the convention. Claude has a great, weird sense of humour, he can happily geek out about comics at any point in the day, and his own comics are always worth spending some money on. Saturday was his Green Goblin day....

... and Sunday was his Hobgoblin day. Sadly, no love for the Demogoblin...

I normally get annoyed when a signing is interrupted by some cosplayers, but when those cosplayers were as good as this, I couldn't complain. Gail Simone was happily signing my pile of Action Comics (pictures tomorrow) when the Secret Six - and friends - arrived to say hello. Gail was an absolute joy to have as guest of honour, so free with her time and willing to be a part of the convention. It was absolutely great to see her solo panel on the Sunday packed out - standing room only, which was the first time I'd seen the audience so full for a comics-related panel at MCM.

It's always a delight to spend some time at John McCrea's table. We had a wonderful chat last time about Hitman, as he proudly showed off some of his original artwork that he had for sale. John very kindly let me watch him work on a commission and take some pictures. As an absolute non-artist, I am genuinely impressed with the skills of anyone who can create such fantastic images with just a pen and paper.

Does this look familiar to anyone? The book is a custom binding of The Demon Annual #2, Batman Chronicles #4, and the first 30 issues of Hitman.

You may recognise it as an upside-down Tommy Monaghan, fighting hordes of zombified sea creatures. If you don't understand why this is absolutely amazing, then run very fast to your local comic shop and purchase Hitman vol 3.

No con would be complete without some cosplay, and this wonderful teeny-tiny Wolverine was the first thing I saw when I came through the doors on the Friday.

Fantastic Four cosplay is not very common, so I just had to grab a shot of this guy. Of course, I also have some ulterior motives for getting a picture of something Fantastic Four related, but you're going to have to wait just a little longer to find out why!

I just loved the attention to detail on this. Well, maybe not the belt, but the darker blue on the costume really works for me. Red Son cosplay is awesome!

There's so many other memories that sadly aren't connected to photographs, so I think for the sake of brevity, I'll only cover a couple of them.

The first was a signing and chat with the always-lovely Tony Lee. Whilst he took my money and signed my stuff, he handed me his iPad, which was loaded with his proof copy of his final Doctor Who comic. I was the second person other than himself to read the book in the UK. It's a Christmas Special, entirely without words (with the exception of a highly appropriate final page), and it's a great way to end his run on the title. As well as my traditional Doctor Who comics, I also picked up a copy of his and Dan Boultwood's Hope Falls, a dark and brilliant tale of an angel falling to hell but taking the murderers of her mortal form with her. It's got one of the bleakest and most brilliant endings I have ever read, and when this makes it to the big screen in a few years, it's going to be a great film.

The other was a wonderfully pleasant chat with David Hine. I'm on good terms with him, thanks to my love of his first Marvel work, Daredevil: Redemption. We spoke a lot about his recent Batman work (did you know that his Detective Comics story involving gangs of fake Batmen and Jokers is actually a tie-in to a currently-unreleased video game?), and he showed me several preview pages by Shaky Kane for their upcoming Bulletproof Coffin: Disinterred, their sequel to their highly-regarded 2010 project, Bulletproof Coffin.

I had a superb time at MCM Expo. Check back tomorrow for pictures of my loot from across the show!

MCM Expo: The Thrill Electric

2011-11-09T18:00:00.000Z

It's a belated MCM Expo week at World of Superman, taking a look at all the fun and games I had at this November's MCM Expo. Today, I'll be taking a look at a webcomic project that is redefining what webcomics can do - The Thrill Electric.

The team behind The Thrill Electric took the stage first thing Saturday morning to show off their work and talk about the inspiration and the making of the comic. Writers Leah Moore and John Reppion, designer Emma Vieceli, and artist Kit Buss from Windflower Studios attended:

From left to right: Emma Vieceli, Leah Moore, Kit Buss, John Reppion

The Thrill Electric is a 12 part, weekly comic chronicling the life and times of various characters whose lives revolve around the telegraph in 19th century Manchester. Leah and John talked about the origins of the strip, arising from research that discovered that, for skilled operators, the telegraph facilitated as much timewasting as facebook and twitter do today. This attitude provides a hook for the readers to bring them into the story.

The webcomic itself is gorgeous. Emma Vieceli's designs have been handled incredibly well by Windflower Studios, a team of four who worked for nearly a year to turn the scripts and designs into the full comic. There are sound effects, links from within the pages to wider research (the project is funded by Channel 4, and is seen as an educational project), and moments where you can head into the inner thoughts of the characters. There is constant motion within the panels, whether animation or the elements of the panels moving to provide interest. All of these provide an experience that is deeper than just reading a comic that has been designed for print but is being read on a screen.

But there are two features of this project that really make this stand out. The first is that each instalment features a moment of total animation, the 30 seconds or so of film from the first issue functioning almost as a title sequence. The second is the enhancements that pop up in each issue. Moore and Reppion talked about trying to create moments in each issue that could only exist in a project of this format, and of working to ensure that each one is unique. The enhancement in the 2nd issue is genuinely revolutionary, and not even months of spoilage on Bleeding Cool could lessen the impact of this. I won't spoil it for you, except to say that it's as close to having a Steadicam shot featuring the same characters throughout that you can get in comics.

To put it simply: This is a great read, not just for the whistles and bells and the joys of experimenting with and developing the webcomic format. Episode three has just been released, and there are nine more to come, one a week. Check it out and enjoy!

Next on World of Superman: A pictoral trawl through the MCM Expo.

MCM Expo: Battle Of The Bloggers

2011-11-08T11:26:00.001Z

It’s MCM Expo week at the World of Superman, coveringeverything I got up to this weekend at London’s biggest Con. It was a greatweekend, full of comics and comic-y people. In a couple of days I’ll be postinga full rundown of the people, the purchases, the signings and the loot. Today,however, I’ll be taking a look at the Battle of the Bloggers event Iparticipated in on the Sunday afternoon.

Yes, at 2pm on Sunday afternoon, the Memorabilia Stageplayed host to the grandest blogger slamdown of the weekend. My opponents wereofficially the superb Tonyo Times, but it soon turned into a three-way battlewith the audience eager to hoover up discarded points along the way. We had toanswer a series of challenging questions covering all elements of geekery andfandom, loosely based around events, promotions and products featured at theMCM Expo.

I got off to a bad start, failing on my knowledge of boththe new Footloose film and anime-based videogames (although I really should haveguessed Dragonball). However, a couple of lucky guesses around SyFy televisionshows had me back in the game. The game continued, with the audience rewardedwith spot-prizes for picking up on any passes or incorrect answers from thecontestants.

However, the battle was soon over, and when the dust hadsettled, it turned out that I had won, by a score of 7-5. However, both of uswere winners, sharing the prizes between us. Prizes included Disney Universe for the Wii, a book of Sci-Fi art, various pieces of In Time promotional gear, some really nice in-ear headphones, a USB drive, and a funky pyramid clock.

I now get to travelto Birmingham in a few weeks to the Memorabilia event there, where the grandfinal of the Battle of the Bloggers will take place. A big thank you to Kat andPhil from Blogomatic 3000 for organising the event, and to the team from TonyoTimes for providing great competition. A couple of people recorded the event,so as soon as the videos hit youtube, I’ll post them here.

One final thing: As part of entering the event, I was giventhis for the Sunday:

I think this could be the start of something beautiful…

Next on World of Superman: The Thrill Electric!

A brief rest and the MCM Expo

2011-10-25T22:20:00.001+01:00

Yes, I know the more long-term readers of this blog are rolling their eyes at this. 'Oh look,' they're thinking, 'the World of Superman is taking a break from regular posting again'. Sadly, I am. But this isn't because I've run out of steam, or I've found a new shiny thing to attract my attention. I'm actually written up for two weeks solid of posting, and planned further ahead than I have been for a very long time.

So, why the break?

I work in retail, and you don't need to work in retail to know that this time of year is a killer. On top of the Christmas run-up, the store I'm working in is going through a refurbishment, with the completion date set for next Thursday. This refurb is an absolute back-breaker. For two weeks now I've been working 6 day weeks, leaving the house at 6.30am and getting home around the 10pm mark. I just don't have the time to sit down, set up the hyperlinks, choose the images for the post, and generally spend the hour or so I need to turn a block of text into a blog post. So I'm not going to do so until the start of November, when I get a week off work and I can get some Superman posts up.

But there will still be activity over here. This weekend sees me once again at the EXCEL centre in London, attending the MCM Expo. And not only am I attending, but I will be participating. At some point on Sunday afternoon, in the Memorabilia side of the convention, I will be competing in the MCM/Blogomatic 3000 Battle of The Bloggers competition, fighting for the glory of this blog.

I've been issues with a press pass for the day, my first one ever. It says 'World of Superman' on it, and everything! I'm so happy! And so, to justify this, I'll be providing some stronger coverage of the event than I have done so before. Expect to see posts and pictures of the event over the week or so following the Expo, as well as an account of battling other bloggers for a superbly geeky title. Just not very many manga questions please...

If you're going to be around at the Expo, do stop by the Battle and cheer me on. If you want to say 'hi', drop me a mention on twitter - @quizlacey - and we can try and find each other across the halls. It's a fairly good bet that I'll be camping the Comics Village anyway!

So, basically, Superman's taking a brief break from the blog, but convention coverage should fill in the gaps.

Goodbye, Hello: Part 3

2011-10-21T17:45:00.002+01:00

Welcome back to the list of things I will and won’t missabout Superman in the New 52. After last week’s looks at two sides ofSuperman’s family, this week, I’ll be focusing on the most important personalrelationship Superman has – his marriage with Lois.

The Third ThingI’m Going To Miss About Superman In The New 52:

The Marriage

If I had to name the one thing above all others that definedthe post-Crisis Superman, I think I would end up choosing the relationship andmarriage of Lois and Clark. I don’t have a lot of time for the pre-Crisisrelationship between the two, with constant deceit on Superman’s part toprotect his identity, and Lois’s repeated attempts to uncover Superman’ssecret. I do like how this was played with in the aftermath of the Crisis, withsoap-opera love triangles involving Cat Grant and Jose Delgado, as both Loisand Clark were written as proper characters, rather than ciphers jumpingthrough the hoops of the highly-formatted Silver Age issues. But it was the twogetting together that really gave an emotional grounding to the series.

And it wasn’t just the fact that they got together that madeit. Clark made only the tiniest effort to continue living a double-life oncethe two got engaged, culminating in his coming out of the closet to Lois at theend of Superman #50. I feel that this is one of the most important moments in thisperiod of comics. By sharing his secret with Lois, Clark allowed theirrelationship to move to a level barely seen before in any version of Superman.Finally, he had someone to come home to, someone to unwind with, someone whocould help him bear the burden of being Superman.

The Death of Superman would not have been as strong a storyif the reader hadn’t had the emotional hook of feeling Lois’s pain andisolation after watching her fiancé die, but being unable to share that withanyone. The shooting of Lois in Greg Rucka’s Adventures run would similarlyhave had less impact if we hadn’t have had such a strong emotional tie to herrelationship with Clark. And we wouldn’t have had one of my personal favouriteSuperman/Lois moments in comics, when Superman finds Lois in the Phantom Zonetowards the end of For Tomorrow and they reunite. (Yes, I’m a sap. I dislike alot of that story, but I love that moment.)

It’s painful to see Lois and Clark not together in the New52. Frankly, seeing her new boyfriend in the doorway at the end of Superman #1was as much of a kick to the gut for me as it was for Clark. The last 20 yearsof reading Lois and Clark as a couple have convinced me, more than anythingelse, that the two of them are destined to be together. I don’t want themmarried again within the year, but I’d like to think that the long-termSuperman masterplan has the two of themmoving closer together again.

The Third ThingI’m Not Going To Miss About Superman In The New 52

Joe Quesada’s feelings towards the marriage of Mary-Jane andPeter Parker are a mere passing whim when compared to the vendetta shown by thepast decade’s worth of creative teams towards the marriage of Lois and Clark. Inno particular order, we’ve had:

· The Parasite impersonate Lois to poison Supermanand drive her and Clark apart
· Lois fail to deal with the death of her fatherin Our Worlds At War, heading off around the world and blaming Superman for notsaving him
· Chuck Austen
· Well, OK, Chuck Austen writing Lana as amarriage-wrecking bitch, destroying her own marriage to Pete Ross and coming onto Clark in his parents house whilst Lois recovers from a gunshot wound
· Major creative teams (Azzarello/Lee,Johns/Frank, JMS/Whoever) avoiding the issue entirely by underwritingLois/finding reasons to not include her in the story that they want to tell
· Superman leave Earth to spend a year on NewKrypton with little-to-no reflection on how this will affect his marriage

For over ten years, the marriage of Lois and Clark weatheredblow after editorially-sanctioned blow, yet somehow weathered the storm. Andnow it’s gone, and whilst it will be missed, it can only be hoped that if andwhen a relationship between these two is returned to the books, it will beallowed to grow and strengthen rather than suffer repeated attempts toundermine and dissolve it.

Hi.

I’m Steve, and I’m a Lois and Clark shipper.

Next on World ofSuperman: This weekend (ish) sees us hit up another issue of Superman,featuring the much-heralded Superman/Mummy confrontation. And join me midweek-ishfor a look at number 4 on both lists.

Adventures of Superman #428

2011-10-18T18:00:00.000+01:00

Have you seen that new button at the top of the sidebar? That marks me as an official competitor in the MCM/Blogomatic 3000 Battle of the Bloggers that will be taking place at the end of the month at the MCM Expo. I have no idea what to expect, but with such an event taking place on my doorstep, how could I not take part? Click the button for further information, and expect a write-up of the event a few days after it has happened. If you're coming to the Expo, then swing by the event and cheer me on!

Personal Best

Writer: Marv Wolfman

Artist: Jerry Ordway

Letterer: John Costanza

Colorist: Tom Ziuko

Editors: Andy Helfer and Mike Carlin

Cover Art: Jerry Ordway

Cover Date: May 1987

Release Date: 19/02/1987

Three days after his ‘meeting’ with President Marlo,Superman launches a further assault on Qurac’s military forces, decimating itsair force and assaulting its navy with one of its own submarines. Supermanholds a televised meeting with Marlo, again warning him over harbouringterrorists. Clark and Cat Grant watch television coverage of Superman’s recentattacks, flirting throughout. Their fun is interrupted by Perry White’sappearance on television to publically condemn reputed mobster and citycouncilman Jay Falk, as he had been instrumental in investigating and exposinghim.

Elsewhere in Metropolis, Jerry White, Perry White’s son,tells Jose XXXX that he is ready to quit his street gang. As he reflects on hisvolatile relationship with his father, his former gang attacks him for planningto quit. As the beat him up, mobsters arrive, breaking up the fight andkidnapping the unconscious Jerry. The crooks contact Perry and demand that hekills his expose on Falk. Perry clears his office, before storming out of thePlanet building.

Later that night, Falk throws a party. Superman arrives toconfront Falk, demanding to know where Jerry is. Getting nowhere, Supermandrags one of Falk’s ‘bodyguards’ to the roof of the Daily Planet, threateningto leave him stranded atop the globe if he doesn’t get the location of Jerryfrom him. The terrified goon agrees to talk.

Later on, in the Ace of Clubs bar, Superman asks for thelocation of mobster Louie Lyppe. Taking offence at his style, Bibbo Bibowskithumps him in the stomach, injuring his hand. The rest of the barflies clam up,but as Superman makes to leave, Bibbo offers to buy him a beer.

At home, Perry White is unable to write his expose on Falk,wracked with worry for Jerry. Alice tries to calm him. The two briefly argueabout whether Perry should abandon his journalistic principles to save his son.

Returning home, Louie Lyppe is surprised in his apartment byBibbo. Bibbo intimidates Louie into giving up the location of Jerry. Bibbo thenreveals himself as a disguised Superman, threatening to tell Lyppe’s boss aboutLouie’s betrayal if anything should happen to Bibbo in retribution for hissubterfuge. As Perry settles down to retract his story, Superman breaks intothe warehouse where Jerry is being held. A mobster holds a gun to therestrained Jerry’s head. Superman uses his heat vision to set the mobster’spants on fire, before using his super-breath to extinguish the flames andincapacitate the mobster.

Superman returns Jerry to his family. Jerry and Perry argueabout Perry taking so long to take action to save his son. As Superman lookson, the two row, before Jerry storms out.

The last issue of Adventures of Superman eschewed the actionscenes (after a few pages) for some mind-bending explorations of what Supermanmeans to different elements of his life. This issue brings back the action,opening with one of most dynamic and ferocious scenes of Superman’s might.Superman’s previous assault on Qurac is merely a warm-up for this sustainedassault, decimating its armed forces in the space of three pages. This is realballs-to-the-wall action, the standout being the moment when Superman sinks abattleship by bursting through its hull with a submarine. I was debating themerits of Superman Returns a few nights ago, and one of the points I made wasthat the plane-crash was a sequence that could only occur in a Superman film,Iron man, the X-Men, Captain America and Batman just don’t have the sheer forceand combination of powers required to save that plane. The same can be said ofSuperman’s actions here. Only Superman (or heroes blatantly modelled on him)could use a submarine to sink a ship. I also love that this scene is only athird of the double-spread. I can’t help but think that if this scene waspublished today, that one panel would take up an entire double-spread (althoughit would look absolutely glorious).

Later on in the issue, Superman has to play detective totrack down Jerry White. One could ask why he doesn’t just do what he’ll do inan upcoming issue of Superman and use his x-ray vision to scan Metropolis, butif he had done so then we wouldn’t have had Superman doing his best-ever Batmanimpersonation. Superman’s investigations are superb. He forces – and blunders –his way throughout Metropolis from the heights to the dregs of society. Iparticularly like his not-so-subtle confrontation with Falk, casuallydestroying a work of art before denouncing it as a fake, making the councilmansweat with every artefact he touches. Straight after, Superman’s Batman impressionscomes to the fore as he drags a henchman to the top of the Daily Planet globe,toying with his fear to get the response he needs.

Wolfman’s writing in this scene – and this issue in general– is excellent, and there’s a moment in this scene where Superman flies awayfrom the henchman, making him think that he’s been abandoned in the skyline.The art shows Superman making a loop back around, and when he returns, he says:“Hi, miss me? I had to rescue a cat from a fire”. In this one line, Superman establishesexactly where the hoodlum sits in the pecking order, and that Superman’sattention regarding him is short and fickle, so he’d better start talkingimmediately. Of course, the thug is too stupid to ‘fess up. Superman’s nextlines – click the image to enlarge – are hilarious.

This issue sees the first appearances of three charactersthat would form part of the Superman family for the next few years: JerryWhite, Jose Delgado and Bibbo Bibbowski. When you consider that this title hasalso introduced Emil Hamilton and Cat Grant, it seems clear that if ActionComics is the team-up book, and Superman is the flagship title, then Adventuresof Superman seems to be primarily concerned with world-building. With theexception of last week’s issue (and, of course, the Apokolips-set Legendscrossover), each issue has provided depth and development for Metropolis andSuperman’s supporting cast. Here, Perry White takes a feature role for thefirst time, and we take our first trip into Suicide Slum. This Metropolis hasdepth and diversity, a more textured and real city than that which we’ve seenin the Superman comics for the past few years.

Overall, this is a fantastically strong and enjoyable issue.Whilst the story of the Circle outstays its welcome by the end, Wolfman’sslice-of-life story in Metropolis is incredibly strong, and his use of Supermanthroughout the issue, adopting different strategies to track down Jerry, ishighly notable. Ordway’s art is also superb. He informs the anguish of Perry’sstruggles with his journalistic morality with skill, his action sequences arefantastically well-drawn, and his depiction of Superman-as-Bibbo isdelightfully ambiguous, making great use of shadow to convey the deception.

The Geeky Bits: This issue was reprinted in Superman: The Man Of Steel vol. 3 and is covered on episode 7 of From Crisis To Crisis.

Next on World ofSuperman: Work allowing, midweek will see the posting of the nextinstalment of my looks back at what I will and won’t be missing in therelaunched DC Universe, whilst next weekend will finally see Supermanconfronting the mummy!

Goodbye, Hello: Part 2

2011-10-14T12:07:00.000+01:00

Welcome back to the list of things I will and won’t missabout Superman in the New 52. After last week’s looks at the various originsfor Superman, this week, I’ll be focusing on two important parts of Superman’sextended family.

The Second ThingI’m Going To Miss About Superman In The New 52:

Ma and Pa Kent

I’ve never really understood why Superman needs to have lostone or both of his parents. My first introduction to Superman’s parents wasthrough the series Lois and Clark (or The New Adventures of Superman, as it wastitled in the UK). Whilst there was a large element of comic relief to theirrole in the series, they were a valuable part of Superman’s support network.They provided Clark with a refuge from Metropolis and being Superman.

When I first discovered that the Kents were nottraditionally a huge part of Superman’s adult life, I couldn’t understand it.Having a place to go home to seemed so important, and having the Ma and Pastill alive gave Superman a reason to go home to Smallville regularly, allowingfor greater variety in Superman’s life and his adventures.

They also added another emotional string to the books. InSuperman #75, the page that tugs most on the heartstrings is the one showing Maand Pa watching Superman in the final throes of his fight with Doomsday, unableto be with their son. It was a very small and human moment amongst the bombastand destruction.

In the back of the recent Action Comics #2, a reference wasmade to Superman being free from his parents as a reason for his hard-edgedcampaigns in Metropolis early on in his career. Whilst I’m sure this will leadto some interesting stories, I can only think of how this goes againsteverything we’ve read in the last 25 years, about a Superman whose lovingparents helped him to learn to control his powers and to respect life above allelse.

The Second ThingI’m Not Going To Miss About Superman In The New 52

Supergirl

(The Kara Zor-El incarnation.)

Supergirl was a mess. Introduced in a best-selling arc inSuperman/Batman, the character’s solo title launched a few months beforeInfinite Crisis, and boy, it was not good. With Superman fans already upset atthe cancellation of the Peter David-written Supergirl series to make way for aconfusing and character-less plot device that bore almost no resemblance toanything that could have taken the name ‘Supergirl’ (Yes, Cir-El, I’m lookingat you), DC then spectacularly dropped the ball by being unable to provide apurpose or direction for her across well over three years of books.

Was she an assassin sent from Krypton to kill Superman? Amisguided super-powered teenager trying to cope with an entirely new society?What about being a hero-within-a-hero, protecting the bottle city of Kandor?No? OK, we can try Supergirl as a legend of the 21^st centurymarooned in the 31^st? (Actually, Supergirl and the Legion ofSuper-Heroes was pretty damn good, one of the best uses of the One Year Laterdevice. It was so good that it was barely mentioned again in Supergirl’s coretitle). What exactly was Superman’s relationship with her? Protecting uncle,concerned elder, or just plain embarrassed by this inconsistent, rebelliousteen that burst out from a ship contained in a lump of kryptonite? Constantlyrotating creative teams, barely hanging around for an entire story arc didn’thelp either.

It wasn’t until Sterling Gates arrived on the book thatSupergirl actually had something approaching a status quo, a supporting castand a character. Taking underused elements of Superman’s supporting cast andusing them to create a cast for Supergirl was a great move (yes, even CatGrant, as the explanation for her behaviour, when it came, worked well).Supergirl also had a consistent relationship with Superman and, even better, arelationship-of-sorts with Lois. Best of all, Gates laid to one side the ‘darkSupergirl’ plots and worked hard to bring Supergirl into direct continuity withthe core Superman books, continuing in this vein after New Krypton had ended.

Of course, as soon as he was gone, this was all undone. Wewere back to the rotating creative teams, and in Justice League of America, thedark Supergirl was back.

Supergirl #1 was too much of a setup issue to see which waythe new creative team will take the character. I know I never want to seeSupergirl in a black costume again, and I don’t want to see a character who isas painfully naïve as she was when she decided she was going to cure cancer. Iwant to see a strong but flawed character who not only justifies her ownexistence beyond ‘hey, we need to have Supergirl around’ but also who affectsSuperman. If the relaunched title can deliver this, then I see no reason whyKara Zor-El can’t become as strong a character as Matrix/Linda was in her owntitle.

Next on World ofSuperman: A change to our next issue, thanks to an editorial snafu (read: Icounted wrong). Instead of seeing Superman fight a giant mummy, we’ll bemeeting Jerry White, Jose Garcia and Bibbo Bibbowski for the first time!Hurrah! And next week, we’ll be back for the third instalment in this series ofarticles. See you then!

Action Comics #587

2011-10-09T20:53:00.000+01:00

It's a Sunday, which means that it's a Superman day here at World of Superman! For those of you keeping up with my podcast, 20 Minute Longbox, look for that episode to be released late tomorrow as I'm slightly behind with the editing there. Last week's episode is still up, a look at Superman/Shazam: First Thunder #2.

(Covers only today as I'm short on time.)

Enough plugging, enough rambling. We've got us some John Byrne-drawn Etrigan action today. Or have we?

Cityscape

Written and Pencilled by John Byrne

Embellished by Dick Giordano

Colored by Tom Ziuko

Lettered by John Costanza

Edited by Andrew Helfer and Michael Carlin

Cover Art by John Byrne

Cover Date: April 1987

Jason Blood visits a curiosity shop in Gotham. His friendGlenda picks up a trinket shaped like a futuristic city and accidentallyactivates a hidden switch. The trinket shoots a spike into her arm, causingcrystalline spires to erupt upwards from her body. She transforms into a largespire, then sends out spikes into the other people in the shop, causing them totransform as well. Jason avoids a spike, transforming into Etrigan and causinganother spike to shatter against him. The spires continue to grow, burstingthrough the ceiling and transforming the couple above.

Returning from space, Superman soars over Gotham, musingthat it is the first time he has returned to the city since meeting Batman. Hesees the spires, growing ever larger in the centre of the city. Taking action,he shatters one of them, but he is tackled by Etrigan. The two fight, with theDemon desperate to keep Superman from harming the spires. As they fight,several more spires are damaged. Etrigan is able to halt the combat by showing Supermanthat the shattered spires have blood oozing from them. Realising what hashappened, Superman agrees to help. Etrigan quickly conjures a spell to sendSuperman back in time.

Armed only with a message from Etrigan to seek out JasonBlood, Superman finds himself in 12^th century England. He quicklylocates Blood, who has been expecting Superman. Jason takes Supermanunderground to a Pool of Knowing to track the source of the trinket. Hediscovers the location, and Superman flies him there. Above a humble shackcontaining an old man and his granddaughter, Blood transforms to Etrigan andwrestles free of Superman’s grasp, falling through the sky and bursting in.

Etrigan attacks the granddaughter, revealing her to beMorgaine le Fey. Fey traps Superman in a cage of stone, before preparing toweave her master spell that will result in the trinket, which will create acitadel in the future for her to travel to. She possesses the grandfather touse a human hand to craft the spell. Realising that interrupting the spell willavert the future crisis, Superman breaks free from the cage. Despite Etrigan’swarnings that his actions will cause is death, Superman attack Fey, disruptingand cancelling the spell.

Suddenly, Jason Blood is back in the curiosity shop. Glenda activatesthe trinket again, but it harmlessly pops open. Another customer looks throughthe window and sees Superman passing overhead.

Before we get going into this one, let’s just be very clearabout one point. Superman’s action in the past, interrupting Morgaine leFey’s spell, nullifies the future wherethe trinket grows into an entire city. Because this future never existed,Superman never travelled into the past. Therefore, with the exception of thelast two pages, this issue never happened. It’s also an interesting statementon how time-travel works in the DC Universe. The only reason le Fey doesn’thave her citadel overrule Gotham is because Superman travels back in time tostop this. But without the emergence of the citadel, Superman never participatedin the events that caused le Fey’s plan to fail, meaning that logically, hercitadel should once again appear until Superman prevents it. Of course, logicrarely applies to time-travel, and for simplicity’s sake, once Superman hasdefinitively prevented the citadel’s emergence, the timeline where le Fey’splan succeeded simply withered and died, cauterised from causality. If you’re aDoctor Who fan, think of it like this: Superman’s interruption of the spellcreates a fixed point in time which determines how time flows from it.

Phew!

I’m not that hot on this issue. I can’t help but feel thatthe Demon is a wasted guest star. Etrigan is always more interesting whenfollowing his own agenda that puts him in conflict with a hero. Here,surprising as it is to see him working with honourable intentions – saving theinnocents trapped within le Fey’s citadel – there was little to no personalgain for Etrigan, no hints or suggestions that he’s being anything other thantotally altruistic. It’s very contrary to what I expect as a reader, and to me,it feels like the Demon was used because Byrne needed a character who couldexist in the past and the present, rather than because there was a story thatneeded this character to tell.

I also have to wonder why Superman prolongs the climacticbattle with le Fey. It’s established towards the end of the battle thatSuperman is able to break free of the stone prison because whislt magic is usedto construct the prison, the prison itself is not magical. If that’s true, whydoes Superman spend a page and a half loitering in it watching the grandfatherget put through unimaginable pain? Again, things are happening because thestory demands that it does, rather than for a logical reason.

At this point in the super-books, Action Comics isdefinitely the weakest of the three titles, but still a good read. This,however, is the first issue that just feels average rather than of a goodquality in itself.

The Geeky Bits:The Fourth World aside, The Demon is probably Jack Kirby’s most notablecontribution to the DC Universe. Etrigan is summoned by Merlin and bonded toJason Blood, a knight of the Round Table. This bonding grants Bloodimmortality, allowing him to participate in events of the current day. Jasoncan summon the Demon by reciting a short verse, but will always do so as a lastresort. His demonic nature has seen him appear in titles as diverse as JLA andSandman, as well as multiple attempts at supporting his own series across theyears. The most recent ongoing Demon series was Blood of the Demon, written andpencilled by John Byrne, running from 2005-2006. In the new 52, Etrigan can befound as a member of Paul Cornell’s Demon Knights.

Action Comics #587 was collected in The Man Of Steel vol. 3,and coverage of this issue can be found in episode 6 of From Crisis To Crisis.

Next on World ofSuperman: Midweek sees us take a look at the next things I will and won't miss in the New 52, whilst next weekend has us back at our post-Crisis reviews when we take a look at Superman vs The Mummy, with no sign of Rachel Weisz!

Goodbye, Hello: Part One

2011-10-06T18:39:00.000+01:00

Let's be clear here: This is not a fill-in post because I haven't yet written anything for the next issue. Against all expectations (including mine!) I'm three issues ahead, eager to build a backlog of material before my awful retail-career eats up my life at some point in the next three months!

So, I don't know if you've heard, but DC have been having some changes lately. And by some changes, I mean throwing everything out of the window (unless you're Batman or a Green Lantern) and starting again from scratch. Being fans of Superman, we're pretty accustomed to this, having had, on average, a new origin or retelling every two years for the past decade. However, unlike those, this one is total and absolute, wiping out everything that has come before (including record breaking numbering) and starting fresh and anew.

So, as the second month of the relaunch kicks into gear (I've just finished reading Action Comics #2, and don't get me started on the story finishing just over halfway through the issue), I think that it's an appropriate moment to mourn the passing of five things that have made the last 25 years worth of Superman such a great read. Oh, and because it was never all great, we'll also wave goodbye to five turds that are finally being flushed into the sewers of hypertime.

So, without further ado, let's start at the very beginning,

Literally.

The First ThingI’m Going To Miss About Superman In The New 52

The Man Of Steel

I think, considering the raison d’etre for this blog, you couldprobably have guessed this one. For nearly 20 years, these six issues were theseed from which Superman and his comics grew. So much of what is now acceptedas the standard Superman status quo was established here, from the Last Son ofKrypton (no exceptions) to Superman’s shaky relationships with other heroes.But most of all, coming from an idea by Marv Wolfman, John Byrne gave us theruthless businessman Lex Luthor, as seen in Smallville, Lois and Clark, andSuperman: The Animated Series.

The structure of the series took us from before Kal-El’sbirth to six years into his career when he discovered his origins. Thestatement at the very end of the series, where Superman reconciles hisKryptonian birth with his human upbringings is the most succinct and accuratesummation of who Superman is. For years afterwards, writers would intertwinetheir stories involving Superman’s youth with these six issues. And whilst thename may have come from a Batman story, some of the most successful 1995 YearOne annuals were carefully structured to occur in an around the events of thisseries.

As we’ll see below, the strength of the writing and theiconic nature of what was presented within was such that it took three attemptsover nearly 10 years to establish a new origin for Superman, and not long afterthat series was completed, DC hit the big red button and started everything allover again. Officially, the Superman in Action Comics #904 and Superman #714came from Secret Origin, but for most of us, he was the same person who landedthe space-plane, who fought Bizarro and unexpectedly restored Lucy Lane’ssight, and who brought public embarrassment upon Lex Luthor when he frogmarchedhim to a police cell. He was our Superman, and we’ll miss him.

The First ThingI’m Not Going To Miss About Superman In The New 52

Birthright's Canonicity

Let’s be clear on one thing before we get going, as it’ll bemany years before this appears in the blog. Birthright was not a bad series atall. In fact, faked-Kryptonian attack aside, it was pretty good. Mark Waideschewed much of what is considered to be normal for a Superman origin story –Krypton’s destruction, growing up in Smallville, etc. – opting instead to startwith Clark trying to make his way in the world, and bringing these elements inas the story progressed. Leinil Yu’s artwork was also noteworthy, strengtheningas the series progressed and his style asserted itself.

No, what I have an issue with is DC’s reluctance to take astand on wether or not we were reading the official new origin for Superman,even for years after the series had wrapped up.

If you were reading Superman comics at the time, then you’llremember that it wasn’t until after the series had begun that DC first begantalking about Birthright as a replacement origin for The Man of Steel. But theydecided to be uncertain about this, stopping short of definitively stating thisfact, despite elements of Birthright starting to appear in the comics. AsSuperman vol. 2 rolled towards #200, noise was made about the anniversary issuemaking a firm statement as to Birthright’s canonicity. At the end of thatissue, following a fight with Braniac, Superman found himself journeying backto reality, but got distracted along the way when he saw Krypton. This was themoment that things changed, but the issue stopped short of saying that he wasnow attached to a new origin. Only the meagre back-matter, highlighting some ofLeinil Yu’s Birthright designs, mentioned the series by name.

As a result, readers were left to wonder as to which originwould stand. The next two story arcs, Strange New Visitor and Godfall, wouldn’tinvolve the origin at all, and the next set of creative teams on the titleswould again craft stories that took Superman forward, not looking back. Even whenthe multiverse returned and New Earth was formed, hints were given as to a neworigin, but it took nearly four years for that origin to be presented to thereaders.

There are plenty of things to argue about with Superman, butarguing which origin applies to him from 2003 onwards is an argument weshouldn’t have had to have. I’m very happy to finally not have this be anissue, and whatever changes come to Superman’s origin in the new 52, my onlywish is that there is consistency.

Next on World of Superman: Come back Sunday for the continuing coverage of the post-Crisis Superman's life, and at some point in the middle of next week, we'll be taking a look at number two on both lists.

And don't forget to check out the latest episode of the 20 Minute Longbox, taking a look at Superman/Shazam: First Thunder #2!

Adventures of Superman #427

2011-10-02T12:14:00.000+01:00

Hello there. Whew, it’s dark in here. Where’s the lightswitch? Ah, got it. Close your eyes, I’m turning the lights on… now.

Hello, it’s been a while!

I’m not going to insult you with long tales of woedescribing many reasons why I’ve not been active over here. There’s a verysimple reason for the lack of activity on this blog. For two months, I’ve notfelt like writing about Superman. I’ve been having a great time working on mypodcast, 20 Minute Longbox (itself suffering from a lack of time to put anepisode together), and for a while, I toyed with the idea of shutting the dooron this blog and letting the dust gather.

So, why did I change my mind? Put simply, I’ve been missingSuperman. With new blood and, indeed, a new Superman hitting the stands as partof the New 52, I’ve been feeling strongly about the Man of Steel again. Morethan ever, a project like this seems like something worth doing, celebratingthe comics that made many of us Superman fans at a time when, hopefully, manypeople are finding similar things to celebrate in the new Superman. Oh, and Imiss arguing with myself over which order to do the comics in!

I’d like to think that this is a return to regular posting,but if you’ve been following this blog for a while, you’ll know that this isn’ta promise that I can keep. The best way to keep up to date with happenings overhere is to subscribe, either through Google Friend Connect or Networked Blogs,both of which are over on the sidebar. That way, if I have another absence(hint: I work in retail and Christmas is a-coming), you’ll know when I pick upthis project again.

Enough procrastination. If you’ll join me, I’d like to takeyou on a journey to Qurac.

Mind Games

Brought to you by Marv Wolfman and Jerry Ordway

Lettered by John Costanza

Colored by Tom Ziuko

Edited by Andy Helfer and Mike Carlin

Cover Art: Jerry Ordway

Cover Date: April 1987

Release Date: 15/01/1987

Superman invade Quraci airspace, attacking Quraci defences.He fights his way to the palace of President Marlo, bursting in and confrontingthe dictator. He accuses Marlo of orchestrating the recent attacks onMetropolis, but the dictator denies this, suggesting that rogue elements in hiscountry are responsible. Superman demands information, but suddenly collapsesas a result of a psychic attack from Prana, a feline-looking member of amysterious group called The Circle. Prana falls to his knees, his mindconnected with Superman’s.

Superman sees a vision of his parents on Krypton,instructing him to conquer and rule the Earth. Superman attempts rejects this,causing psychic feedback to Prana, who carries on with the illusion. The twobattle further with their minds, before Prana retreats. A drained Supermanleaves the palace, confused by the vision of his parents and their oppressiveinstructions. He returns to the hotel he’s using as Clark Kent and fallsasleep, allowing Prana to re-establish contact with him.

Superman awakes in costume, confronted by Bizarro, Metallo,Synapse and Lex Luthor. The villains attack him, demanding to know his truemotives, whilst Luthor works to undermine Superman’s confidence. Supermanfights back, denying Lex’s words and dispelling the illusions again. Prana isonce again weakened and pained by the contact, but he has become determined tomentally defeat Superman. As Clark takes a shower to recover, Prana once againmakes contact.

Superman finds himself in Japan, where a Godzilla-esquemonster is attacking a city. Refusing to be bowed, Superman quickly defeats themonster, shrugging off Prana’s attack. Prana, weakened by the final assault,dies in the sewers beneath Qurac. His wife, Zahara, steals his powers andcombines them with her own, launching one final assault. Superman is confrontedby Lana, Lois and Cat, all of whom accuse him of being fickle with his love andlying to them about his origins. Superman is able to withstand this assault,and drifts into a restless sleep. In the sewers, other members of the Circlefind Prana’s corpse and Zahara’s unconscious body.

This is a different and interesting issue of Adventures ofSuperman. Initially continuing the story of the assault on Metropolis, the issuesturns into something else, taking some interesting turns and leading us in afar more character-driven direction than the awesomely action-filled coverwould suggest.

Prana and Zahara assault Superman’s psyche from fourdifferent and relevant angles – his heritage, his villains, force of nature,and his women. I find it amazing that so early on in the life of thepost-Crisis Superman, Marv Wolfman lays out the four origins of almost everySuperman story. Whilst the vision of Lara and Jor-El and Lex’s gang of villainscontain accusations that are easily rejected, the accusations of Lois, Lana andCat strike much closer to home. Superman does lie to those he loves. At thisstage in his life, with Lana not-quite behind him and with Lois and Cat as potentialpartners, he is fickle with his affections. Frankly, this is a far morerealistic and chilling potential outcome of Clark’s alien nature than we saw inAction Comics #794.

Superman taking overt action against a foreign state is abig moment. We saw in The Dark Knight Returns a potential future where Supermanis a weapon for the United States Government, covertly assaulting America’senemies, the fear of his intrusion being as great as the his presence. In hisrun on Adventures of Superman, Greg Rucka would use the concept of whatSuperman’s presence in a war-zone would do to the conflict as the driving forcebehind his story. It’s great to see the sheer power of Superman unleashedagainst an army, something we’ve not really seen before, and the callous natureof his entrance into the palace, smashing down the doors with a casual flick ofhis finger, hints at a darker side to his rage that is manipulated by Prana.Thankfully, Qurac would remain in the comics through this run and beyond, andthe consequences of Superman’s actions here would be felt in future issues.

As normal, Jerry Ordway’s art is great. The cover is one ofthe early favourites, and his renditions of Prana’s attacks are justotherworldly enough whilst remaining grounded. I particularly like how he drawsthe illusion of Krypton, with Zahara and the sewers breaking through into theillusion. Even the panel borders reflect this, become much rougher and unfinished. Once the assaults start, Superman appears shaken and disturbed, paleand sweating, and thin in the face. Although it’s Prana who ultimately dies,Superman is taking a toll from the battle and it’s showing on his facethroughout the night.

The Geeky Bits:Qurac was for many years the fictional middle-eastern state used by DC whenever they needed a stand in for countries like Iraq or Afghanistan, that is, a state that supports or condones terrorism and an anti-West stance. It's no coincidence that President Marlo bears more than a passing resemblance to Saddam Hussein. The country once named the Joker as an ambassador, although this was a retcon as in the original storyline, it was Iran. Cheshire once decimated the country with a nuclear weapon. Over the years, more fictional middle-eastern territories, including Bialya, Khandaq and Umec would appear to give more texture to this region in the DC universe.

If, like me, you're wondering who the guy in the orange armour in the villains hallucination is, then you'll be pleased to hear that according to comicbookdb.com his name is Synapse, and his only other appearances were in three issues of Extreme Justice in 1995. And now you know!

This issue was reprinted in Superman: The Man Of Steel vol. 3 in 2004.

Coverage of this issue can be found in Episode 6 of From Crisis To Crisis

Next on World ofSuperman: Superman goes a-time-travelling.

12 Hour Podcast

2011-08-08T10:44:00.000+01:00

Just a quick note to say that I'm currently working on the next episode of the 20 Minute Longbox in a very different way. Having done nothing for it before this morning, I've set myself the challenge to create the entire episode from scratch within 12 hours, including reading the issue, writing the synopsis, the commentary, the 52 Relaunch Roulette, recording the episode, editing it and uploading it. I started at 10am this morning, and am 45 minutes into the challenge.

I'm keeping a commentary and updates rolling on twitter. I'm @quizlacey, and I'm using the hashtag #12hourpodcast.

Superman #4

2011-07-31T12:56:00.001+01:00

It's been a quiet couple of weeks here at the World of Superman. It should have been a bit of a shorter gap between posts, but my free copy of Microsoft Word Starter Edition froze whilst I was writing this post and destroyed most of what I had written. Two short but very enjoyable holidays followed, so now I'm ready to get a new post written.

Please don't forget to check out my podcast, 20 Minute Longbox, the compressed podcast for the decompressed, wait-for-trade age (yes, I'm trying this as the strapline for the show). The latest episode looking at Guy Gardner #5 and Justice League #1 went live a few days ago, and the next episode will be up just as soon as I've got it ready, hopefully tonight or tomorrow night at the latest.

Superman’s Pal Jimmy Olsen: Bloodsport

Writer/Penciller: John Byrne

Inker: Karl Kesel

Colorist: Anthony Tollin

Letterer: John Costanza

Editors: Andy Helfer, Mike Carlin

Cover Artist: John Byrne

Cover Date: April 1987

Release Date: 08/01/1987

Lucy Lane and Jimmy Olsen share lunch in a shopping mall. Jimmy is trying to persuade Lucy to snoop around for dodgy dealings at her employer, Intercontinental Airlines, but their lunch is interrupted by a loud cry of ‘FOOLS!’. Jimmy pulls Lucy down as a hail of bullets bursts through the window, striking several members of the public. Bloodsport, a gun-wielding, bandann-wearing muscleman, yells about abuse of freedoms before speeding away on a motorbike. Jimmy activates his signal watch, calling down Superman.

Landing, Superman is met by Maggie Sawyer, who walks him through the crime scene. Realising that Bloodsport’s cries to clean up Metropolis mean that he will strike again, Superman goes on the hunt. Using his infrared vision, Superman picks up the heat trace of Bloodsport’s bike, and follows his trail through the city. Watching his pal fly away, Jimmy jumps into his car to give chase, but a flat battery means that he has to grab his police scanner and continue on foot.

At a bowling alley, Bloodsport is busy shooting up the place when Superman arrives. Bloodsport grabs a hostage and puts his gun against his head, forcing the two into a stand off. Superman breaks the situation by grabbing the gun faster than the bullet can travel down the barrel after Bloodsport fires. With Bloodsport apprehended, Superman is surprised when he materialises a new weapon in his hand, firing a kryptonite needle in Superman’s shoulder. Bloodsport is about to take a headshot when Jimmy arrives, brandishing one of Bloodsport’s weapons. Bloodsport throws a smoke pellet and makes his escape.

Recovering after surgery in hospital, Superman vows to catch Bloodsport, and the fact that he has access to kryptonite has revealed who is funding and providing technology to him.

At LexCorp, Luthor demands to know what has happened and why Bloodsport isn’t being effectively controlled. The scientist Kimberly explains that Bloodsport’s fragile psyche has caused him to target civilian rather than Superman. Luthor order’s Bloodsport’s termination.

Superman locates Bloodsport. The two face off, with Bloodsport conjuring larger and more powerful weapons to keep Superman at bay. As the destruction and chaos mounts, Bloodsport is suddenly hit by a blast. A tank and hazmat-suited soldiers from LexCorp have arrived, drawing Bloodsport’s attention. As he switches weapons, Superman realises that he is actually teleporting the guns in from another location. He ionises the air around Bloodsport, causing his teleport to malfunction and his weapons to disintegrate. Finally able to safely get in close, Superman disables Bloodsport, who reveals that he is holding a dead man’s switch that will detonate his power supply. Suddenly, a parapalegic arrives, using Bloodsport’s real name of Bobby, begging him not to kill himself. The new arrival is Mickey, Bobby’s brother, brought in by Jimmy Olsen. The arrival of his brother breaks through Bloodsport’s delusions and conditioning, halting his rampage.

Jimmy tells Superman that Bobby was never a soldier in Vietnam, having run away to Canada when his number came up as he was afraid to go and fight. Mickey pretended to be him and replaced him in the army, but had his arms and legs blown off. The guilt put caused Bobby to suffer delusions, resulting in several stays in psychiatric hospitals, before he disappeared just before Bloodsport arrived on the scene. The issue ends with a dedication to the names on the Black Wall and those who remember them.

This is a strong issue of Superman from this era. Bloodsport is a strong one-off villain, there’s some great interaction amongst the supporting cast, Lex Luthor is behind the scenes, pulling the strings, Superman uses his powers intelligently to resolve the conflict, whilst a true resolution comes from the actions of a supporting character.

As much as Superman is the focus for Bloodsport’s rage throughout this issue, it is really Jimmy Olsen’s story. We find out for the first time that he is in a relationship with Lois’s sister, Lucy, and that they have been together for a couple of years. It’s not the happiest of relationships, with Lucy angry that Jimmy wants her to compromise her job with Continental Airlines to feed him information, based on little more than a hunch on Jimmy’s part. Jimmy performs the first rescue of the issue, pulling Lucy out of the way of the hail of bullets that rip through the rest of the patrons of the mall, and brings Superman into the situation through a responsible use of his signal watch. Later on, it’s Jimmy who distracts Bloodsport enough to rescue Superman and get him to the hospital, and most notably of all, it’s Jimmy who takes note of Bloodsport’s rantings and does the legwork to peacefully resolve the situation. It's no wonder that DC resurrected the 'Superman's Pal: Jimmy Olsen' strapline for this issue, and should DC ever collect a ‘Jimmy Olsen: Greatest Stories Ever Told’ trade paperback, I would fully expect this issue to be included.

But whilst Jimmy is working behind the scenes, Superman is front and centre, utilising the full range of his powers in surprising and interesting ways. I’ll quickly brush over the use of infrared vision to track the heat-trail of a bike and its rider throughout a busy city. There are so many things that would obscure a heat signature, from a powerful exhaust fume, to a hot dog vendor, to those lovely heat-venting manhole covers, and I’m glad that this particular power usage is rarely, if ever, seen again. More interestingly is the way that Superman uses his heat-vision to disrupt Bloodsport’s teleportation device. Rather than directly attack the source of the teleport, Superman uses a minor side-effect of his heat-vision to short it out. I also like how Superman's body behaves during surgery. Once the kryptonite is removed, his invulnerability returns and the doctors are unable to stitch him up, so they have to re-expose him to the kryptonite in order to finish their job. It's a small touch, but one that highlights an integrity and consistency with Superman's powers.

Most impressive of all is the way that John Byrne presents the use of Superman’s speed during the stand-off at the bowling alley. The entirety of page 8 is a fantastically-constructed series of silent panels devoted to the moment that Bloodsport and Superman face each other down with the life of a civilian hanging in the balance. It starts with a short, wide panel showing the distance between the two, before moving into close-ups of the faces, then of the weapons – the gun and Superman’s feet – before hitting slow-motion with the pulling of the trigger and the moving of the firing pin. Finally, Superman moves in, grabbing the gun and moving it away before the bullet travels the length of the barrel. It’s a brilliantly composed and paced homage to cinematic standoffs, that could easily be read whilst the theme from The Good, The Bad and The Ugly plays in the background.

Page 8 is a merely a highlight in a superb issue of art from John Byrne. There’s a real sense of sudden and pointless brutality to the panel where Bloodsport’s bullets cut through the crowds at the shopping mall. For some reason, the inclusion of a priest amongst the victims just makes the violence worse. I’m a big fan of the panel at the bottom of page 4 where Superman views the bodies of Bloodsport’s victims, in which his shocked face, shaking with shock, is the only thing in in a large, white panel, and the rage in Superman’s face when he flies off to track Bloodsport is chilling.

If there’s anything about this issue that doesn’t work, it’s that the story seems to stop two pages before it should do. The final page is the exposition page, where Jimmy reveals the story of Robert and Michael DuBois. There’s no sense of closure to the story, no mention of what will happen to Bloodsport, whether it be jail or psychiatric care, and even Lex Luthor seems to get away with his involvement in the rampage. It’s a small but important flaw in the issue, and it’s a shame that – dedication aside – the issue didn’t have a stronger sense of conclusion.

The Geeky Bits: The Robert DuBois Bloodsport wouldn’t appear again for 8 years, when he would be forced into a boxing match with another Bloodsport, this one a fanatical racist, by his prison wardens. In the aftermath of the boxing match, DuBois would be shot and killed whilst attempting escape.

This issue was collected in The Man of Steel volume 3, the trade paperback collections covering the first year-or-so of this era of Superman, from a few years ago. This issue was covered on episode 6 of From Crisis to Crisis.

Next on World of Superman: Clark Kent goes to Qurac and has some bad dreams.

Legends #6

2011-07-16T22:02:00.001+01:00

Hey all, not much to say by the way of an introduction, save to point out that my podcast, 20 Minute Longbox, is out there, awaiting your ears. Go check it out after we wrap up our coverage of Legends!

Finale!

Plotter: John Ostrander

Scripter: Len Wein

Penciller: John Byrne

Inkers: Karl Kesel, Dennis Janke

Letterer: Steve Haynie

Colorist: Carl Gafford

Editor: Mike Gold

Cover Art: John Byrne

Cover Date: April 1987

Release Date: 29/01/1987

Darkseid relishes his imminent victory, listing to Phantom Stranger the various ways that he has destroyed humanity’s faith in their modern legends. The Stranger warns that Darkseid has overlooked one crucial factor that will lead to his downfall.

In Washington, Godfrey faces off against Doctor Fate’s heroes, using his PA system to maintain his control over the crowds. Martian Manhunter arrives, despite not being summoned, just as Godfrey orders the warhounds to attack. The heroes use their various powers to remove the controllers from the warhounds, allowing the stronger heroes like Superman to unleash their full powers. As the final warhound hits the ground, Godfrey opens up a boom tube, summoning legions of parademons from Apokolips. Doctor Fate reveals that this is why he brought the various heroes together, charging them with the fate of humanity. As the heroes head off to fight the invasion, Fate turns his attention to the crowds. Seeing his distraction, Godfrey sends in a parademon who wrenches the Helm of Nabu from Doctor Fate, carrying it off into the skies. Unmasked and having lost most of his powers, Kent Nelson flies away to safety.

Leaving the Lincoln Memorial, Godfrey moves on to where he has captured Captain Boomerang. As Boomerang prepares to tell Godfrey all about Task Force X, Deadshot takes aim with a sniper rifle. Rick Flag disrupts his aim, revealing an alternative plan. The Enchantress steps up, turning the warhounds into Jell-O, sending Godfrey running. Bronze Tiger confronts Godfrey, but falls foul of his mind-controlling powers, letting him go. Boomerang is reunited with Task Force X, and Flag tells him that his televised threats have resulted in him being permanently assigned to the Suicide Squad.

Batman patrols Washington, controlling the rioters and looters. Guy Gardner unleashes his power ring on the warhounds. One warhound terrorising innocent civilians suddenly finds confronted by Wonder Woman, who has decided that she cannot remain concealed from the world whilst innocents are in danger. Gardner is impressed with Wonder Woman’s powers, and the two continue to battle.

Several of Godfrey’s troops blast their way into the Oval Office, attacking President Reagan. The President is unharmed by their attack, quickly defeating them, before revealing himself as a disguised Martian Manhunter. As Manhunter moves on to continue the fight, Reagan officially rescinds his executive order, giving all of Earth’s heroes free reign to join the fight.

In the skies, Superman and Captain Marvel corral the parademons, whilst Flash, Changeling, Black Canary and Blue Beetle help control the crowds on the ground. They are quickly joined by Batman, Guy Gardner, Wonder Woman, Captain Marvel, Doctor Fate and Superman, and the heroes face off against the controlled mobs. Godfrey arrives with Bronze Tiger, urging the crowds to attack and destroy the humans, watched from afar by a gloating Darkseid.

Suddenly, a gang of children, led by Lisa, burst through the crowds. The children line up in front of the heroes, confronting their parents in the crowds. Robin arrives, imploring the mob to see through Godfrey’s words and see sense. Lisa stands up to Godfrey, who tells her to be quiet and hits her. The act of violence dispels his control over the crowd, and they turn on him. In desperation, Godfrey reveals the Helm of Nabu, which he dons. When he tries to use the power within, the helm destroys his mind. Kent retrieves his helm, whilst Bronze Tiger slips away into the crowd to reunite with Task Force X.

The crowd asks for forgiveness, but Guy berates them for already distrusting heroes, which allowed Godfrey to take control. Captain Marvel suggests that the heroes themselves may have been responsible for this, necessarily having to stand apart from humanity to face the threats that only they can face. Wonder Woman agrees, and Doctor Fate suggests reforming the Justice League, to which all the present heroes agree to, save Flash and Superman, who offer themselves when needed, and Wonder Woman, who has slipped away.

On Apokolips, Darkseid vows that Earth will one day fall to him. The Phantom Stranger states his pride in standing with the legends of Earth.

I’ve not been kind to various part of this crossover. Read issue by issue, there was a lot of monologuing from Darkseid, and way too much repetition by constantly touching base with the same heroes, operating outside of Reagan’s edict. Here, this weakness turns into a strength, as Ostrander unleashes the new Justice League onto the forces of Apokolips. Every hero gets a part to play in the battle, and the use of such a wide variety of heroes allows for a very unexpected moment, where the first hero to encounter Wonder Woman is Guy Gardner!

Wonder Woman’s appearance here, although brief, is superb. A shadowy female figure observes Guy Gardner facing off against the Warhounds, resolving that to stay hidden would be a disservice to her Amazonian heritage. We then see her move, quite literally in a blur, before John Byrne unleashes one of the best pieces of artwork we’ve seen from him, a full page spread of Wonder Woman lifting a Warhound

It should be noted that Guy Gardner isn’t the only one taken with Wonder Woman. Superman here notices Wonder Woman, becoming gently obsessed with her over the next few months, before agreeing to a meetup/gentle date in Action Comics #600. It’s interesting that John Byrne teased this 25 years ago, with the rumours that one major element of the relaunched DC Universe in September will be a relationship between Superman and Wonder Woman. With the knowledge that both Action Comics and Justice League will initially be telling stories set in ‘the past’, my hope is that this fledgeling relationship will be given more room to grow, but with Superman ending up with Lois Lane, as per the last 20 years or so.

I like the way this story ends. It’s a very circular ending. Darkseid’s actions against Captain Marvel led Billy Batson to meet Lisa, strengthening her belief in heroes, leading her to be at the front and centre of the revolt against Godfrey. I would have liked to have seen more made of the fact that a child achieved what the heroes were unable to, breaking Godfrey’s spell, although the message that all you need to save the Earth from Darkseid’s machinations is a little child abuse is probably not one DC were wanting to play up! On a side-note, the last time Superman met Captain Marvel there was a definite air of unintentional paedophilia around. Here, Superman meets Marvel and a child gets beaten up. Maybe the two should stop having meetups! (I mention this, as one of the most popular posts on this site is my coverage of Superman/Shazam!: First Thunder #4, and I’m wondering if my audience are a bunch of strange, dark people who enjoy Superman endangering children. We’ll see what the hits are like for this page in a few weeks!).

Although Superman again declines membership in the Justice League, it is clear that his presence is a powerful and inspiring one. He takes the lead against the parademons when they appear, and his words are a big part of the reformation of the Justice League. It would be several years before Superman would become the leader of heroes that we are used to, but seeing him stand up and be counted amongst the heroes of the DCU is a rarity at this stage, and a pleasure to see.

I’m going to wrap up by simply stating that I have really enjoyed the appearances of Task Force X in Legends. I love the way Ostrander wraps up their story whilst setting the scene for further adventures, and it’s a pretty safe bet that if I had been reading comics at this time, I would have definitely been out there picking up the first issue of Suicide Squad when it hit the shelves.

The Geeky Bits

The new Justice League would be written by Keith Giffen and JM Dematteis. The series would become notable for the way the writers worked around the restrictions of not being able to use many of the A-List superheroes. Characters like Booster Gold, Blue Beetle and Guy Gardner would find their feet in Justice League International, and the title would become renowned for the use of humour, becoming colloquially known as the ‘Bwa-ha-ha’ League. This incarnation of the Justice League is well worth seeking out, as are the ‘sequels’ from the mid-2000s, Formerly Known As The Justice League, and JLA: Classified #4-9.

Wonder Woman would return to her own title, having been completely rebooted in the wake of the Crisis, in 1987. George Perez initially handled the character - the various trade paperbacks that reprint his issues were recently plugged in the letter columns of DC comics - with successive runs from creators such as John Byrne, William Messner-Loebs, Phil Jiminez and Greg Rucka.

Next on World of Superman: Probably another 3 week break. Either that, or Superman facing off against a gun-toting ex-marine called Bloodsport.

Legends #5

2011-07-11T22:21:00.000+01:00

Hurrah, I've managed to recover the missing bits of this post! Apologies for no images other than the cover, I'm just desperate to get this post out, and I really don't want to re-grab all the panels I'd previously chosen.

Just a fast note to say that the second and third episodes of the 20 Minute Longbox have been released, covering Daredevil #502 and Countdown #48 respectively. Go and check them out, and let me know what you think at 20minutelongbox@gmail.com.

“Let Slip The Dogs Of War”

Plotter: John Ostrander

Scripter: Len Wein

Penciller: John Byrne

Inker: Karl Kesel

Letterer: Steve Haynie

Colorist: Tom Ziuko

Editor: Mike Gold

Cover Date: March 1987

Billy Batson stumbled through the deserted streets of Central City, haunted by the death of Macro Man. He is found by his new friend Lisa, who is concerned for his welfare. Angered by the rioting masses, Lisa runs off to try and intervene, but some stray rubble from the riot strikes her, knocking her out. Realising the danger of the anti-hero propaganda, Billy decides to put his own fears aside, and becomes Captain Marvel. Accessing the wisdom of Solomon, Marvel realises that Macro Man’s death was not his fault. He attempts to break up the riot, but Doctor Fate appears and teleports him away.

Fate is recruiting heroes who are defying the President’s order. Black Canary is next to join, followed by Guy Gardner, who has defeated the villain Sunspot. Blue Beetle and Batman are the next to join.

Meanwhile, Flash and Changeling are forced into an uneasy alliance with Captain Boomerang when the crowd manipulated by G. Gordon Godfrey erupts into a riot. Boomerang destroys a warhound, and the heroes discover that inside each one is a member of the public, piloting it. The mob goes for Boomerang, dragging him into the crowd. Before they can help, Flash and Changeling are recruited by Doctor Fate and taken away.

At the White House, Superman is discussing Darkseid’s recent actions with President Reagan when he too is recruited.

In Metropolis, Godfrey presents the captured Captain Boomerang to the baying crowd. In front of the crowd and the cameras, Boomerang sends a subtle message to the command of Task Force X, telling them to take action to save him or he’ll make trouble. Dismissing his captive, Godfrey declares that the government has lost its authority and commands that the crowd marches on Washington. Watching, Amanda Waller orders Rick Flagg to either rescue Captain Boomerang or eliminate him.

On the steps of the Lincoln Memorial, Godfrey is about to announce who his followers should obey as the ultimate authority when he is interrupted by the appearance of Doctor Fate and the heroes he has recruited. Watching from Apokolips, Darkseid tells the Phantom Stranger that either the heroes will be forced to battle the people they have sworn to protect or they will be destroyed, guaranteeing him victory no matter what the outcome. Meanwhile, in hospital, Jason Todd decides that he must fight against Godfrey’s manipulation and the insanity of his followers, no matter how serious his injuries. Despite having a broken arm and leg, he struggles into his Robin costume and heads off to fight.

If the first two issues of Legends were about dismantling the heroes of the world, and the second two primarily concerned themselves with maintaining a hero-banning status quo whilst at the same time developing the threat posed by G. Gordon Godfrey into a more outright form, this issue is about the final move of the pieces around the board ahead of the climax. We’ve had plenty of vignettes featuring heroes defying the presidential order; here we see this develop into a recruitment drive for a new Justice League. The Suicide Squad’s story, which seemed to be over with the defeat of Brimstone in issue #3, places itself at the centre of the climax with the threats made by Captain Boomerang.

Sadly, one plot that receives a more perfunctory wrap-up is the guilt of Billy Batson, which is dispelled the moment he becomes Captain Marvel and the wisdom of Solomon reveals the deceit. One has to wonder why Billy never chose to quickly change to Marvel, use the wisdom to ascertain the true extent of his culpability, then pop back if it turns out it really was his fault. Later writers would work with the conceit that the wisdom of Solomon would have a presence in his mortal form (although the only example that springs to mind at the moment is at the start of the I Can’t Believe It’s Not The Justice League miniseries). Perhaps this moment would have held more weight within the issue if the reappearance of Marvel then led to the forming of the Justice League, with Marvel in the Doctor Fate role, but all that Marvel’s reappearance seems to achieve is getting his ass nearly kicked by a rioting mob.

The recruitment drive as well seems a bit overdrawn in this issue. Most encounters are limited to just one page, but did we really need to have four pages of Guy Gardner fighting Sunspot? I know that Guy Gardner as a Green Lantern was still a relatively new concern, but the fight seems to be fairly irrelevant and appears to serve no purpose other than to fill up space. I do like that most heroes are involved in keeping the peace or defeating a villain, but Blue Beetle is busy being mistaken for a peeping tom!

This is a Superman blog, and Superman's role here is minor but pivotal, if a little out-of-synch with his other adventures this month. Having just survived combat with Darkseid and discovered his role in the deaths of hundreds of innocents whose only desire was a better life, Superman's first response on returning to Earth is to pop round to the White House for a chat with President Reagan. I've said it before, shouldn't he be off somewhere soul searching and attempting to atone for his (admittedly forced) actions, rather than taking tea with a man who has prevented him from acting publicly? Still without Superman being with Reagan when he is recruited by Doctor Fate, the President would have been less likely to rescind his edict in the next issue.

The Geeky Bits: There's a rumour that the original ending for this issue saw a mutant with the power to control American History animate the Lincoln Memorial and use it to defeat the warhounds, resulting in the next issue being devoted entirely to Wonder Woman's debut. Before the idea made it past the scripting stage, it was realised that animating a statue and getting it to single-handedly defend Washington DC was completely shite idea, and the plans were shelved.*

Next on World of Superman: The finale of Legends. 'Nuff said.

*No, I didn't like Secret Avengers #13. Why do you ask?

Introducing... The 20 Minute Longbox

2011-06-27T22:02:00.000+01:00

So, you've probably noticed that I've been absent again. I have a post queued up, I then edited it at St Pancras station, accidentally cancelled the scheduled posting, and lost half of the post as well. It's been a struggle to go back to it again, but it'll be here in the next couple of days.

But I've also had another distraction. It turns out that I've gone and got me a podcast. And so, I present to you...

The 20 Minute Longbox

A brief and random dip into my longboxes, 20 Minute Longbox is a review of a random comic, one per episode. I've started with 52 #2, and the next episode, featuring Daredevil #502, will be up in a couple of days. The show is also on iTunes, and you can leave comments and reviews both there and at the libsyn page.

My show is very similar to the blog randomlongbox.com and I mean no disrespect to TomO by... well... ripping off his idea. However, we are both very different writers, with very different comic collections, and I'm sure the amount of crossover between our two projects will be minimal. TomO's blog looks like it's getting ready to return, and as soon as it does I'll be shouting about it, as it's one of my favourite reads on the internet.

Anyway, that's enough from me. Go and check out my show, let me know what you think, and stop by the Random Longbox and take a peek.

See you all in a couple of days!

Action Comics #586

2011-06-13T22:31:00.000+01:00

Yes, I'm back. I had a great time at the MCM Expo. I had my entire run of All Star Superman signed by Frank Quitely. I got Hitman #34 - yes, that issue - signed by John McCrea. I got the most amazing Doctor Who variant cover from Tony Lee. It's a TARDIS on the front, and the cover opens in the middle to reveal the console room, twice the size of the cover. The inside is bigger than the outside. It's genius! And I saw exclusive Green Lantern footage and heard Maurice LaMarche do the voice of The Brain live. And Billy West rolled out Ren and Stimpy. It was great, and if you didn't get the chance to go then I'm sorry, I'm so very sorry.

I also got to see X-Men: First Class recently, and I've not felt that excited about an X-Men movie since X2. Everyone involved in the film did a cracking job, and that cameo was an absolute bloody treat. More recently, last night in fact, I saw the documentary film Senna, and I would fervently recommend that to anyone, regardless of your level of giving-a-crap about Formula 1. The film was superb, constructed entirely of archive footage and the very occasional context-giving voiceover. Go see it - you won't be disappointed.

That's enough of various bits and pieces, let's take a look at some comics.

Legends Chapter 19: Superman vs The New Gods! The Champion!

Storyteller: John Byrne

Embellisher: Dick Giordano

Letterer: John Costanza

Colorist: Tom Ziuko

Editor: Andrew Helfer

Cover Art: John Byrne

Cover Date: March 1987

Release Date: 26/12/1986

Lightray and Orion head to Apokolips. Superman is being tested by Granny Goodness, telling him that he is the son of Darkseid. Looking on, Amazing Grace wonders if the testing is safe, as Superman has lost some of his strength along with his memories. Darkseid reveals the extent of his plans, pretending not to recognise Superman as Clark Kent, ensuring that he meets and trusts Grace, Glorious Godfrey’s sister, and then manipulating Superman into giving the Hunger Dogs a taste of hope before crushing that hope. Darkseid questions if Grace has fallen in love with Superman. Darkseid restore Superman’s powers and sends him off to fight for him, acknowledging the risk in doing so, as he has also restored Superman’s full brain functions and risks having his memories returned.

Superman flies above Apokolips and encounters Orion and Lightray. Lightray uses his powers to distract and confuse Superman whilst Orion prepares for battle. When he is attacked, Orion claims the right to single-combat, and the two fight. Orion quickly realises that Superman believes that he is the son of Darkseid, and removes his helmet to show Superman the true cost of being Darkseid’s progeny, hoping to shock Superman back to his true self.

Meanwhile, Lightray encounters Amazing Grace, who uses her seduction powers to sway him to her side. Realising what is happening, Lightray emits a bright burst of light, blinding Grace and breaking her spell. Returning to Orion, he finds that Superman has been cowed. Orion uses his Mother Box to restore Superman’s memories and costume. Realising what had been done to him, Superman lets out a loud yell, alerting Darkseid to the failure of his plans. Darkseid sends his omega beams, this time to destroy Superman. Superman leads the beams across Apokolips to the palace, where he tricks them into striking Darkseid. Although he survives, Darkseid is weakened, and the two fight. As soon as Superman gains the upper hand, Darkseid opens a boom tube and returns Superman to Earth. He then allows Orion and Lightray to leave Apokolips.

The final part of this Apokolips trilogy both delivers a strong ending to the story yet at the same time feels unfinished, thanks to its commitments to the wider Legends crossover. We have some fantastic battles here, including the first time Superman goes toe-to-toe with Darkseid, and the issue really lives up to the title of the series. Yet the ending also feels rushed, with Darkseid sending Superman back to Earth in a boom-tube when the book is about to run out of pages, rather than because his encounter with Superman has reached a natural ending.

This book is trying to do too much, which this is evidenced on the cover. The already busy Action Comics cover format, with separate banners for the guest-stars and creators, also has to take the Legends banner and two chunks of cover text. Orion and Superman’s fight barely takes up half of the cover, and as great as the image is – I particularly like the way the outline of the ‘S’ shield survives the full force of Orion’s attack – it is drowned out in the mass of words and logos all fighting for prominence.

Another way in which it is clear that this issue is trying to achieve too much is the inclusion of Lightray. His encounter with Amazing Grace is nice, but takes up space that is desperately needed by Superman. His presence has no real effect on Superman’s story within this issue, save as a mild distraction at the start of combat. As someone whose experience with the Fourth World is all from the post-Crisis era, Lightray is known to me as the guy who shows up here and who dies in Countdown to Final Crisis. Based on his appearance in this book, he appears to me to be a flying Dazzler, and whilst I am sure his role in the wider narrative of New Genesis is more substantial, I have never encountered this in my Superman reading. His brief usage of his power is good, but he doesn’t have the space in the narrative to make any real impact on me.

Orion has a much stronger role in the book than his companion. If this was your first time reading Orion, I feel that you walk away from this book knowing everything you need to know about the character. In particular, the dichotomy of the character really comes through. Although he struggles to control his Apokoliptian heritage, what really draws him into the battle is Superman’s claim to be Darkseid’s son. The art doesn’t quite convey the full horror of Orion’s un-muted appearance – let’s face it, there are scarier looking people out there who are not sons of the universe’s most evil being – but it does convey the idea of someone physically scarred by their ancestry.

I wrote last time about how I felt it was a missed opportunity not to have Superman deal with his actions whilst under Darkseid’s control. We’ll Superman see in the next instalment of Legends later in the same day as his return to Earth, and he is calm and rational enough to debate Darkseid’s plans with the President, implying that he has fully recovered and come to terms with his actions (in fact, that scene strongly implies that Superman’s entire stay on Apokolips occurred within a few hours, which would make the uprising of the Hunger Dogs the universe’s fastest revolution). Here, he lets rip at Darkseid, his anger driving him into his most physically combative encounter to date. Superman outmaneuvers the omega beams, causing them to strike Darkseid, and Byrne’s artwork here portrays a damaged, hurt and pissed off Darkseid with a simple effectiveness that doesn’t diminish the character. Darkseid is a mean fighter, and this first of many great clashes between these two characters is a strong one. This is the first time Superman has gone toe-to-toe with someone of equal power and prowess since he confronted his clone in Man of Steel #5, and the artwork again lends great weight and power to the blows that are landed.

The problem with this issue is how everything resolves, or doesn’t. All of a sudden, Darkseid opens a boom tube and deposits Superman back on Earth. He then exchanges some brief words with his son before letting him go. The entire Orion/Darkseid scene feels very underwhelming, with both characters departing to suit the scope of the Superman story instead of following the wider story of the New Gods. Yes, there’s a reference to their final battle that is yet to come (sadly, and spoilers here, it occurs in Countdown to Final Crisis, and the warm-up bout is Darkseid vs Jimmy Olsen…), but it does feel like Byrne has written himself into a little bit of a corner, with not enough room in the issue to resolve the non-Superman story, instead just letting it grind to a halt as soon as the main character is removed from the action.

The Geeky Bits: Orion and Lightray are both familiar with Superman, but their first meeting has as yet gone unrecorded. This is presumably the first time that Superman has entered direct combat with Darkseid, but if there have been other occurrences before now, they have gone unrecorded.

Next on World of Superman: As Superman starts to take a larger role in the main Legends series, we drop down to one issue per post and take a look at Legends #5.

Adventures of Superman #426

2011-05-27T10:38:00.001+01:00

It's here! Golden Age Superman episode 19, featuring myself with the host Jon M Wilson covering Superman #3, Action Comics #20 and a whole bunch of newspaper strips, has gone live. I had a blast recording the show last week, and although I get a little quiet towards the end as my local time heads towards midnight, I think I made a good shot at talking about comics that I have very little experience with. Thanks to Jon for having me on!

It's been a busy week, what with a whole bunch of work for my job, and preparation for this weekend's MCM Expo. I'm really looking forward to the show - I'm off in a couple of hours to the preview day. I can't wait to re-meet some creators from last year, including Kieron Gillen, who had yet to have his first issue of Uncanny X-Men published, and Tony Lee, the writer of the fantastic IDW Doctor Who series. There are panels for both the Green Lantern and X-Men First Class movie, and most of the voice cast of Futurama are making an appearance, although sadly no Bender or Leela. But I'm really looking forward to meeting some great Superman-related guests. Occasional JLA: Classified writer Warren Ellis (I'll admit, that's a very tenuous connection) is a guest of honour for the weekend. Hitman artist John McCrea will be there, and in celebration of that I picked up a copy of the award-winning Hitman #34, featuring Superman, for him to sign.

The biggest Superman name for the convention, though, is All-Star Superman and JLA: Earth-2 artist Frank Quitely. I have these titles from the original release, and I also picked up the first trade of Batman and Robin yesterday to re-read and get signed, and I can't wait to meet this amazing artist.

As with last year I'll be posting a review and round-up after the event, but for 'live' coverage, be sure to follow me on Twitter as that's how I'll be keeping up with the world.

Legends Chapter 18: From The Dregs…

Writer: Marv Wolfman

Artist/Co-Plotter: Jerry Ordway

Co-Plotter: John Byrne

Letterer: Albert de Guzman

Colorist: Tom Ziuko

Editor: Andrew Helfer
Cover Art: Jerry Ordway

Cover Date: March 1987
Release Date: 18/12/1986

The fires of Apokolips burn. Beneath the surface of the planet, a scavenger collects waste and debris from the flame pits. He has a luck catch when he snags red material, and pulls the unconscious body of Superman from the flames. Realising that his catch has survived the fires, he wonders whether he should attempt to sell him to Darkseid, but decides against it, choosing instead to let the Hunger Dogs of Apokolips know of his find. Word spreads, and a crowd forms around Superman’s prone form. The scavenger attempts to show Superman’s invulnerability by scorching his hand with a fiery torch, but gets a surprise when Superman revives and grabs his hand. Superman is more surprised to discover that his hand has actually been burned. The Hunger Dogs react to the apparent deception by forming a mob, but the appearance of Amazing Grace, the woman from the previous issue, cows the threat. She declares Superman their saviour, one of the New Gods of New Genesis, and announces his arrival as the start of a revolution.

Watching Amazing Grace and the Hunger Dogs on a monitor screen, Darkseid is unconcerned, unleashing his parademons on the crowd. Although he is unable to remember much of who he is or how he came to Apokolips, Superman recognises innocents in danger, and leaps to their defence, fighting the parademons. After a short but furious battle, Superman is victorious, and the Hunger Dogs strip the defeated parademons of their amour. Superman notices that every time he begins to think clearly and remember details of his life, his mind starts to cloud over. Unable to resist, he accepts Amazing Grace’s proclamation of him as Apokolips’ saviour, and becomes a figurehead for the rebellion.

Elsewhere, Highfather of the New Gods feels a sense of dread and unease, and consults the Source. The Source shows him something that makes him fear for the safety of all the New Gods.

On Apokolips, Amazing Grace fires up the leadership of the rebellion, before tending to Superman, relaxing his aches away in a herbal bath. Grace replaces Superman’s costume with armour emblazoned with Superman’s symbol. As Superman leads the battles, his logo and costume become symbols of the rebellion. The battle approaches Darkseid’s citadel. Amazing Grace oversees the battle from a balcony. Declaring victory, Superman embraces her and gives her a passionate kiss. Superman addresses the crowd, telling them that their hope for freedom must now be ended. Parademons swoop down and massacre the Hunger Dogs. Superman and Amazing Grace then turn away from the slaughter and face their master, Darkseid.

The second chapter of this three-part Apokoliptian romp gives us a Superman who is barely the character we know and love, and whose passion and drive to fight against injustice is gruesomely subverted in the closing pages of the book.

I came out with a lot of love for Jerry Ordway when he made his artistic debut on the Superman books, and that love stands, but it’s unfortunate that in the midst of the entire Legends event and this crossover, all of which was pencilled by John Byrne, we didn’t get a guest spot from Byrne on Adventures of Superman. Ordway’s style, whilst strong and distinctive, feels out of place in the middle of such a Byrne-led story. There is some great artwork on display here. Ordway draws the heck out of the crowds of rebelling Hunger Dogs, and his parademons look and act as threatening as the characters treat them. In later years, parademons would come to be used cannon fodder for the fists of various heroes, but here a small force are as great a threat to the rebellion as Darkseid himself. Talking of Darkseid, he is well-presented by Ordway, but the hard, malicious tone that Byrne brings to the character is sadly missing. The final panel in particular should be far more ominous than it looks. Wolfman's scripting also feels out of place in the wider context of the crossover. His scripting is more verbose than both Byrne and Ostrander, resulting in pages that look more crowded than the other issues, and that take longer to read. It's a good read, but like the artwork, it sits awkwardly in the middle of the story.

The growth of the rebellion is interesting. As the crowds grow and they get closer to their goal, Amazing Grace becomes more… well… amazing! Her transformation from rag-clad fugitive to glorious princess overseeing the advance of her troops is a sure tip to the reader that not is all as it seems, although subtle enough to prevent the shock of the final twist from being lessened.

And what a final moment this is. Superman unleashes a horde of parademons onto the massed Hunger Dogs, wiping them out, before pledging allegiance to Darkseid himself. It’s heartbreaking to see Superman party to and instigator of these actions, even though it is clear, if unstated, that Amazing Grace is the one responsible. What perhaps robs this moment of its true power is the lack of reflection or penance on Superman’s part after he regains his memories. I believe that Superman’s conscience is strong enough that he would feel responsible, even though he was being manipulated by Darkseid and Grace, and indeed, we have seen plenty of occasions where Superman takes responsibility for events completely out of his control. In a couple of years we would see Superman react very strongly to three deaths that he took complete responsibility for, but I feel that it was a missed opportunity to deal with Superman’s guilt, regardless of whether he could be truly blamed or not.

The Geeky Bits: Several references are made throughout this series to the one-shot titled The Hunger Dogs, published in 1985 as DC Graphic Novel #4. This was Jack Kirby's final work for DC, and his intention was to bring the Fourth World saga to a close with the death of the New Gods. DC disagreed, demanding that the New Gods survive the series. When the story finally saw publication, it was not as Kirby had intended, with many page orders restructured and plot points revised. The plot featured a rebellion on Apokolips by the slave population, the titular Hunger Dogs, that saw Darkseid fleeing Apokolips. At some point between that story and this, Darkseid regained control of Apokolips, and the massacre of the Hunger Dogs in this issue would be the final rebellion on Apokolips.

This issue was covered on episode 5 of From Crisis To Crisis

Next on World of Superman: We'll be back after the weekend to cover a four-way smackdown featuring Orion, Lightray, Superman and Darkseid.

Superman #3

2011-05-20T21:13:00.001+01:00

Hey guys, welcome back to the World of Superman.

Before we get going today, I just wanted to throw a shout-out to Jeffrey Taylor, co-host of From Crisis To Crisis and a contributor and administrator of the Superman Homepage. I had the great pleasure of meeting Jeffrey at the start of April in San Francisco, where my holiday coincided with WonderCon, and Jeffrey was kind enough to take a part of his Sunday morning to share breakfast and chat about Superman and life in general. Jeffrey has just started a series of articles for movies.com focusing on the production of the upcoming Superman: The Man of Steel film. The first instalment went up a few days ago, and future instalments will arrive every other Tuesday. Go check it out! The article is a great read, and I'll be looking forward to future posts. Don't forget to add your comments and interact as sell - I'm told that the next post will be worthy of comment!

But let us turn our view away from Jeffrey, and instead take a look at a maniacal super-god, determined to conquer the Earth. I'll leave you guys to make up your own punchlines!

Legends Chapter 17: Legends From The Darkside

Writer/Penciller: John Byrne

Inker: Terry Austin

Letterer: John Costanza

Colorist: Tom Ziuko

Editor: Andrew Helfer

Cover Artist: John Byrne

Cover Date: March 1987

Release Date: 11/12/1986

Lois Lane arrives at the Metropolis Grande Hotel to interview G. Gordon Godfrey. Godfrey resists attempts by Lois to pry into his background, and tells her that the true goal of his crusade is to see super-heroes wiped from the face of the Earth.

In the streets below, Clark Kent rushes through the crowds in a panic. He is being pursued by two beams of light that take great care not to strike anyone as they chase him, and is unable to change into Superman as a result of President Reagan’s edict. Clark heads into the sewers, ducking to avoid the beams, but is struck by them when they unexpectedly reverse direction. The beams take him to Apokolips, to Darkseid’s feat. Darkseid cannot understand why his omega beams haven’t brought Superman to him, and gaining no help from the Phantom Stranger, he hurls Clark through a window and into the Armagetto below.

Finding himself in the garbage of the Armagetto, Clark wonders about the Phantom Stranger’s involvement with Darkseid’s plans. Denizens of Armagetto quickly descend on Clark, stripping him of his possessions and clothes, revealing him as Superman, who easily bats them aside. Exploring the Armagetto, Superman reviews all he knows of the New Gods. He uses his telescopic vision and discovers that New Genesis no longer exists. Superman ducks further down into the Armagetto to avoid detection by Parademons, and uses rags and cloth to disguise his costume.

Proceeding on foot, Superman comes across an angry mob, protesting the imminent execution of a woman who preached against Darkseid’s rule. Recognising that a life is in danger, Superman steps forward, breaking the fence that keeps the mob back and demanding the woman’s release. With the shock troops distracted by Superman’s show of strength, the woman escapes. The troops summon a pacifier, an oversized armoured soldier, who attacks Superman. The two fight, and Superman is able to crack the armour, releasing a parasitic slug-like creature which attacks Superman, attaching itself to him. As Superman struggles, he topples into a flame pit. Looking on, Darkseid laughs.

This is a great book. Whilst I felt that the Legends series proper had lost momentum leading into this crossover, this book comes out of the gate with all guns blazing. Lois gets to grip with G. Gordon Godfrey and his twisted philosophy, and his manipulation powers come across as far more insidious when directed solely at Lois. Her admission that his arguments are so persuasive that she has to remind herself which side she is on carries as much weight as the baying mobs seen in the back half of the Legends storyline.

In the meantime, an unprepared Superman narrowly avoids a one-on-one confrontation with Darkseid. Clark’s madcap dash through the streets of Metropolis has a real sense of panic to it. You really get the feeling of his desperation, forced to stay in his civilian identity but frantically trying to outpace the omega beams. Thankfully the Phantom Stranger is present to help deflect Darkseid’s attentions when he arrives on Apokolips, although it is unusual that Darkseid should be so trusting of another’s word, especially when it would appear to cast doubt on his own abilities.

Superman’s adventures on Apokolips are interesting. After twenty-five years of Superman vs Darkseid stories in different media, we are used to Superman marching into Apokolips on a war footing, ready to throw down with Darkseid as soon as he needs to. Having him skulk around in the Armagetto, his costume covered by rags, is an different and clever way to get Superman involved with the story. I particularly like the touch where Superman’s aura that keeps his costume intact during battle also prevents the grime of the Armagetto from dirtying him, forcing him to hide in the shadows to avoid detection by Darkseid’s troops.

Of course, a whole issue of skulking would not make for a satisfying read, and it doesn't take long for the injustices of Apokolips to bring Superman out. The throwdown with the pacifier is a great piece of action. John Byrne’s style seems particularly suited to the designs and environments of the Fourth World, and the pacifier – and the slug-like parasite within – are strong visuals.

I love, just love, the final page of this book, where the camera pulls back from Superman’s descent into the flame-pit to a menacing, gloating Darkseid. It takes a lot to be able to draw Darkseid smiling or laughing, and Byrne really sells the image in the final panel. There is an incredible amount of sinister and insidious delight in Darkseid’s reaction to Superman’s plight, and this whole page makes for a great cliffhanger to the book.

The Geeky Bits: Man, I can’t believe I forgot to drop this in on the last post!

Although this is the first time that readers saw Superman face Darkseid after the Man of Steel reboot, Clark's thoughts here clearly indicate that the two have met before. John Byrne wrote the story of how Superman first encountered the New Gods in the closing issue of his series Jack Kirby's Fourth World (covered here), and later events would seem to canonise the pre-Crisis Justice League of America #183-185.

This is the first time all of the current Superman titles directly tie into each other, with the story continuing from book to book. For the next few years, such inter-title continuity will be the exception, rather than the norm, but as we move from the 1980s into the 1990s, these three books (with the addition of Superman: The Man Of Steel) will form a continuous ongoing storyline, eventually linked by the ‘shield numbering’ on the covers, that will be known colloquially as the Neverending Battle style of storytelling. This will last until 1999 when the replacement of almost all of the creative teams on the four titles will only see continual inter-title storytelling for special events and crossovers.

This issue was covered on Episode 5 of From Crisis To Crisis.

Next on World of Superman: Forgive me, for I have been watching too much Futurama (particularly All My Circuits), but… Superman comes down with a sudden case of… AMNESIA!!!?!?!!

Legends #3 and #4

2011-05-17T10:57:00.000+01:00

We're back! Check out my previous post for details of my latest podcast appearance. I'll let you know as soon as it's up and available on iTunes.

I'm writing this post from my new laptop, and sadly I don't have my image editing software up and running yet, so no scans to illustrate the posts. Hopefully I'll be properly set in time for the next post.

Anyway, on with the story!

Legends #3
Send For... The Suicide Squad

Plotter: John Ostrander
Scripter: Len Wein
Penciller: John Byrne
Inker: Karl Kesel
Letterer: Steve Haynie
Colorist: Tom Ziuko
Editor: Mike Gold
Cover Artist: John Byrne
Cover Date: January 1987
Release Date: 23/10/1986

Angry mobs lay siege to public headquarters of super-heroes, whose activities have been prevented by executive order. Sarge Steel acts a a chaperone to the Teen Titans, but is unable to follow through his threats of extreme force when Changeling and the Flash decide to head out to help. Meanwhile, Task Force X is given their purpose - carry out missions in exchange for pardons - and with most of the team wearing explosive bracers to keep them in check, are directed to take down Brimstone. They engage the monster at the foot of Mount Rushmore.

Billy Batson, distraught at the death of Macro Man, goes into hiding, meeting a young girl called Lisa who has become separated from her parents. Meanwhile, Bruce Wayne visits Jason Todd in hospital. As Bruce comforts his injured sidekick, shots ring out from outside, a symbol of the civil disorder inspired by G. Gordon Godfrey. Wayne leaves, determined to prove that President Reagan's edict was wrong.

During the battle, Blockbuster directly attacks Brimstone, who reaches down and burns the villain to death in his fist. Revelling in the destruction, Brimstone leaves his chest open to attack, and is destroyed by a shot from Deadshot, wielding a specially-constructed laser sniper. In the aftermath, Captain Boomerang realises that everyone on the team was considered to be expendable, including Rick Flag.

At the White House, Superman pledges his support to Reagan's edict, despite his vocal opposition to it. At the same time, Billy Batson is invited to dinner by Lisa's parents. During the meal, G. Gordon Godfrey appears on the TV, provoking a reaction in Lisa's family that intimidates Billy into running away again. Catching up , Lisa tells him that she still believes in super-heroes.

Throughout the issue, Darkseid and the Phantom Stranger debate Darkseid's plans. Observing Lisa's faith, the Stranger declares that this is why Darkseid is doomed to fail. Darkseid refuses to believe this, unveiling the next phase in his strategy - his Warhounds.

Legends #4
Cry Havoc

Plotter: John Ostrander
Scripter: Len Wein
Penciller: John Byrne
Inker: Karl Kesel
Letterer: Steve Haynie
Colorist: Carl Gafford
Editor: Mike Gold
Cover Art: John Byrne
Cover Date: Feb 1987
Release Date: 24/11/1986

In Star City, an attack by Count Vertigo is foiled by a law-breaking Black Canary. A policeman pulls a gun, attempting to arrest her, but is blocked by his partner. The two argue whilst Black Canary escapes, with the first policeman accidentally shooting and killing the second. Attempting to rationalize his actions, the policeman concludes that Black Canary made him shoot, and thus she murdered his partner.

On Apokolips, Darkseid sees all on Earth, despatching Desaad to the land of Skartaris to destroy the legend of Travis Morgan, the Warlord. Elsewhere in Gotham City, Batman foils a raid by the Joker, apprehending him in defiance of the Presidential Order. Meanwhile in Los Angeles, a gang of body-building bank robbers are caught by Guy Gardner. In Chicago, Blue Beetle foils a heist by Chronos, but is forced to let the villain escape when the police arrive and turn their attentions to him. Meanwhile, spurred into action by the growing public hysteria, Doctor Fate returns to service.

In Washington, Rick Flag announces to Task Force X that their actions against Brimstone have earned them their freedom, de-activating their bracelets and letting them free. At the same time, G. Gordon Godfrey addresses a rally in Gotham City calling for a revolt against President Reagan for the weakness of his frequently-flouted edict. He introduces the weapon to be used against the government, human-controlled Warhounds. Enjoying his freedom, Captain Boomerang goes on a rampage, but is quickly caught by the Teen Titans. As they prepare to take him away, Flash and Changeling are attacked by two Warhounds.

On Apokolips, Darkseid turns his attention to Superman, unleashing the power of his Omega Beams.

The middle chapters of Legends feel like they both progress the story and tread water at the same time. There is a large amount of time spent setting up tie-in issues in the fourth chapter, despatching Desaad to participate in the Warlord title, and using the cliffhanger to draw readers into the next month's Superman titles. We also spend a lot of time following various future members of Justice League International as they ignore the presidential edict, although in the case of some members such as Blue Beetle and Booster Gold, they are newer characters within the DC Universe, and in the case of Guy Gardner, a character with a new status quo, having recently received a power ring during the Crisis. Whilst these vignettes were undoubtedly important at the time, knowing where these characters will end up after the crossover makes most of the fourth issue seems like an extended exercise in moving the pieces of the story into position.

I do like the continuation of the Task Force X storyline. It plays very nicely into Darkseid's schemes that Brimstone, the monster that has apparently destroyed the Justice League of America, should be brought down by a morally dubious government-sponsored team of super-villains, hardly an achievement that can be propogandized.

I'll be honest here. I see the Legends crossover in four parts - the opening two issues, these two, the Superman crossover, and then the conclusion. I like the opening, love the Superman crossover, enjoy the ending, but see these issues, especially the fourth, as the bit we have to get through to get to the good stuff. I have nothing against the creators, but apart from the death of Brimstone, it all feels a bit too much 'middle chapter'-ish. The cliffhanger to the third issue, the introduction of the Warhounds, is barely touched upon in the fourth, save for a brief reference to the fact that people get 'turned into' them.

Knowing the great Apokolitian action just around the corner, I think it's best to draw a veil here and reconvene at Darkseid's feet.

Next on World of Superman: Clark Kent vs Apokolips!

Golden Age Superman

2011-05-16T21:10:00.000+01:00

Hi guys, just a fast post, made mid-recording of my good friend Jon M. Wilson's podcast Golden Age Superman. Jon's recapping concurrent releases from the month, which features Superman #3 and Action Comics #20.

I'm so very close to a new post, featuring Legends #3 and #4, then featuring Superman #3, this time from the second series.

Anyway, back to the podcast!

Sarah-Jane Smith

2011-04-20T22:04:00.000+01:00

This is not a Superman post.

About 22 hours ago, a post appeared on Facebook that I initially thought and wanted to believe was a sick, tasteless joke. It told me that Elisabeth Sladen had died. I hate it when things like this pop up, because I fall for them like crazy. I fell for the Samuel L. Jackson one a few months ago, where CNN accidentally tweeted of his death and it spread like wildfire. I fell for the Michael Jackson thing a few years ago, then refused to believe it when it actually happened. The post linked to a BBC news story. Surely the BBC couldn't be complicit in a hoax about the death of the star of their most popular children's dramas, The Sarah-Jane Adventures?

Sadly, they weren't. The news was true.

Completely out of nowhere, Elisabeth Sladen, the actress behind the most popular and enduring companion of the entire 49-year history of Doctor Who, had sadly succumbed to battle with cancer that very few people knew that she was fighting.

I've spent the past day in a state of partial shock. I can't think of anyone's passing that has affected me more, and I can't quite work out why. Sarah-Jane was never my companion. She debuted a full decade before I was born, and by the time I discovered Doctor Who the series had been consigned to history, bar the publication of a regular novel series. And yet, whenever companions were discussed, the name 'Sarah-Jane Smith' was always mentioned with the highest praise and respect. Coupled with the most popular Doctor (at least, until David Tennant), Sarah-Jane had managed to burn herself into the national consciousness, the Doctor Who-loving bits of it, with such presence that twenty years after her departure from the show she was still remembered with more than casual fondness. (Of course, she never really departed, returning in 1981, 1983, 1993, 2006, and beyond).

Until a few years ago, bar a repeat of Pyramids of Mars shown when I was still a bit too young to truly appreciate her performance, I had never seen Sarah-Jane Smith in action. When I remedied that, with a rented DVD of The Time Warrior, I was very impressed. Most of what I knew of companions came from the Target novelisations, and they tended to embellish and over-sell the character in comparison to the performance on screen. In the case of Sarah-Jane, the opposite was true. The printed word couldn't hold a candle to what I was seeing.

===

In 2006, Russell T. Davies was looking for a way to strengthen ties between the revival of Doctor Who and its past. Working on the season-long theme of what would happen to Rose when she left the Doctor's side, the decision was taken to bring back a former companion from the show's classic era. There was only one person who could be brought back - Sarah-Jane Smith (oh, and K-9, the robot dog). The third episode of the second series, School Reunion, was as close as Doctor Who has ever got to a masterpiece (some dodgy CGI aside). Sladen's performance was pitched perfectly. The moment where she ran into the TARDIS in the school basement and then into the Doctor was the most electric moment of the entire series. Her return was a success, propelling her into a successful spin-off show, 25 years after her first attempt!

For me, the shining moment of Sladen's performances in new Doctor Who came from the Season 4 finale, Stolen Earth/Journey's End. Her reaction to the revelation of the Daleks as the 'kidnapper's of Earth, crying whilst hugging her adoptive son closely to her, was so human and so painful to watch that it grounded what was otherwise a very overblown, but enjoyable, piece of space opera. Even better was a confrontation with Davros from the second part, referencing scenes from Genesis of the Daleks from 34 years previously. This short interaction crackled, Sladen was feisty and defiant, living proof beyond the Doctor that Davros was doomed to fail in his plans. Even better was the fact that for these two episodes, Sladen, along with several other cast members, wasn't credited as a guest star, but received her name in the opening credits, the coveted 'and' position, for the first time in her career.

The news of her death of shocking, and pretty much took everyone by surprise. Twitter was full, initially, of comments trying to discover if this was a terrible hoax, then with anguished realisation and acceptance, before heading into a day of celebration and remembrance. There have been many responses to her death, and I'd like to link a few of them.

Chip, the Two Minute Time Lord, released episode 201 of his podcast within hours of the news of Elisabeth's death. A tender, heartfelt, and brief look at his reactions to the news. http://twominutetimelord.com/

Tony Lee, writer of the ongoing Doctor Who comic from IDW, wrote a warm recollection of her impact on his life, both personally and professionally, over at his blog.
http://www.tonylee.co.uk/index.php?option=com_wordpress&p=255&Itemid=1

Richard Herring, comedian, covered his discovery of her passing during the interval of his stand-up tour, before launching into a very touching remembrance of her, probably the most tender writing from someone not directly connected with the show or the franchise.
http://richardherring.com/warmingup/?id=3095

Tom Baker, former Doctor, writes about the loss of his friend, and publishes some rare behind the scenes pictures from his archive.
www.tom-baker.co.uk/

Finally, the current generation of fans, those who knew Elisabeth Sladen primarily through the revived series and the Sarah-Jane Adventures, post their thoughts and tributes over at the CBBC Newsround site. There are so many, from young children to teenagers, and the simplicity and honesty of what they have to say is heartbreaking.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/cbbcnews/hi/newsid_9460000/newsid_9463000/9463099.stm

I hope Elisabeth knew of some of the extent of the love that people had for her, and I hope that these good wishes, fond memories, and public remembrances act as a small measure of comfort for her family in these difficult times.

Elisabeth Sladen
1936-2003

A fast 'Hello'

2011-04-10T15:32:00.000+01:00

Hi all!

Well, I'm back from my holidays. I had a great time over in California, exploring the state, enjoying the good weather, rueing the bad, and generally having the time of my life. I had a few nice comic-related experiences, discovering Earth-2 Comics in Sherman Oaks and discovering that the owner had spent a large part of the late 1980s in London, working for and with most of the comics shops that I've ever had a pull list from. I also encountered WonderCon in San Francisco, although due to schedule and not buying a ticket I only encountered the outside of the convention center. But being there did allow me to meet and enjoy a breakfast with Jeffrey Taylor of the supermanhomepage.com and the From Crisis To Podcast.

Sadly, it's going to be a bit longer before we get back into things here at the World of Superman. I'm currently starting the huge task of packing up my life and moving to the other side of London. At the same time, my computer has been hit with a crazy mad virus which at the moment is preventing it from booting up. I'm getting help with it, but my confidence is low and I think it may have to be a new computer before too long.

So, I'm keeping my fingers crossed that I can be back regularly just after Easter, but if I'm not then you know why.

See you all soon!

Where in the world is the World of Superman?

2011-03-16T23:11:00.000Z

Hi all.

So, I guess those New Year's resolutions about regular and timely postings went out of the window pretty quickly, huh?

In brief, I wasn't intending to be away from the blog for so long without any notice. However, a month ago, my 6-and-a-bit year relationship came to an end, and I've going through all kinds of things since then. It's been hard to sit and focus on anything, and this blog is one of many things in my life that have been put on hold for the near future.

There is some good news. I'll be taking off to California for nearly three weeks next Monday. I'm looking forward to this like crazy. It's my first time travelling in a decade, and I'm planning to take in an awful lot. Two weeks after I return, I'm moving across London to start things over again, and hopefully my job will be moving with me. Once I'm settled, I'm fully intending to get back to writing again. After all, I'm only five years worth of comics behind From Crisis To Crisis, and I'll need to catch up at some point!

Look for me after Easter when I'll hopefully be able to resume my coverage of Legends. And don't forget to follow me on twitter - @quizlacey - to keep up with all things, both geeky and non-geeky.

I'll see you all after Easter,

Steve

Legends #1 and #2

2011-02-13T23:17:00.000Z

OK, a bit of a long one today. I'm going to try and hit up the first four parts of the Legends crossover in two posts, bringing us up to the point where the Superman titles segue into the story. Before we begin, I'd just like to drop a quick reminder to e-mail Ian Sattler at DC comics in support of a trade paperback of Dark Knight Over Metropolis. See this post on the Superman Homepage for more details.

And now, the first of a two-part special bringing us up to speed on the 1986/7 Legends crossover.

Legends #1

Once Upon A Time...!

Plotter: John Ostrander

Scripter: Len Wein

Penciller: John Byrne

Inker: Karl Kesel

Letterer: Steve Haynie

Colorist: Tom Ziuko

Editor: Mike Gold

Cover Artist: John Byrne

Cover Date: November 1986

Release Date: 28/08/1986

On Apokolips, Darkseid is content with his domination. Desaad reminds him of Earth and its heroes. Darkseid notes that not only do Earth’s heroes perform heroic deeds, but they act as legends, inspiring others. Deciding to strike at the concept of legends, Darkseid summons Glorious Godfrey and Doctor Bedlam, and orders Desaad to prepare the Techno-Seed.

On Earth, Professor Stein oversees a nuclear experiment when the Techno-Seed materialises in the core, spawning the inhuman monster, Brimstone. Stein summons Firestorm, who assaults Brimstone, but quickly discovers that the monster is far superior to him. Thinking quickly, Firestorm protects himself by turning the air to asbestos, and goes to summon help.

Elsewhere, the Flash faces off against Deadshot. He quickly defeats the assassin, delivers him to the police, and returns to Titans Tower, where Changeling is watching the latest broadcast from G. Gordon Godfrey, interviewed by Billy Batson, who rails against all super-heroes, calling them threats to society. As the two Titans talk, a power outage strikes both the Tower and the studio where the interview is taking place. The outage is caused by an armoured giant rampaging in the neighbourhood. Under the cover of darkness, Billy slips away and transforms to Captain Marvel.

Captain Marvel and the giant, Macro-Man, fight, but when Marvel is caught in Macro-Man’s vice-like grip, he decides that the only way for him to escape is to change back into Billy Batson briefly. Calling down his magical lightning, Billy is shocked to see that the bolt also struck Macro-Man, causing him to fall from the rooftop to a fiery death.

In the Pentagon, Colonel Rick Flag reports to Amanda Waller, and is ordered to reform Task Force X. He is shocked by the list of candidates for the Task Force, but puts his surprise aside to do his job.

In a diner, Cosmic Boy’s breakfast is interrupted by the onslaught of Brimstone. The Legionnaire attacks, attempting to construct a metallic prison to contain Brimstone, but his attack is soon repelled. The Justice League of America arrive to lend their help.

Viewing the melted corpse of the Macro-Man, Billy Batson vows never to become Captain Marvel again.

Legends #2

Breach of Faith

Plotter: John Ostrander

Scripter: Len Wein

Penciller: John Byrne

Inker: Karl Kesel

Letterer: Steve Haynie

Colorist: Tom Ziuko

Editor: Mike Gold

Cover Artist: John Byrne

Cover Date: December 1986

Release Date: 25/09/1986

G. Gordon Godfrey arrives at the site of Macro Man’s death, using it as an opportunity to decry not only heroes but the concept of being a hero. His words whip the onlooking crowd into a frenzy, scaring the confused Billy Batson into hiding. Darkseid watches Batson’s despair with glee, before turning to the Phantom Stranger, promising to remove free will from the people of Earth.

On Earth, Brimstone faces off against the Justice League of America. Although Vibe is able to topple the giant, Brimstone fights back, burying the League underneath a collapsing building. Meanwhile, Rick Flag visits Deadshot in prison, enlisting him into Task Force X. At the same time, in Gotham, Batman and Robin break a hostage situation. The commander of the arriving SWAT team clashes with Commissioner Gordon when he prevents him from taking down the heroes. Suddenly, the onlooking crowd turns, attacking and carrying Robin away whilst Batman is unable to help when a bottle of perfume is smashed in his face.

In Chicago, Blue Beetle carries out a drug bust, but unwittingly exposes a deep cover police officer. The attending policemen open fire on Beetle, who escapes in his bug ship. Meanwhile, Guy Gardner rescues an aeroplane whose engine has exploded mid-flight, guiding it to a makeshift landing on the freeway. However, the commuters on the road turn aggressive at the disruption caused to them. Gardner uses his ring to repel them before flying away.

At Titans Tower, Cosmic Boy recovers from his combat with Brimstone, revealing to Flash and Changeling that the Justice League had disappeared by the time he came round. He flies off to rescue ‘the love of his life’. Watching news reports of the League’s defeat, Professor Ivo prepares to make his move.

Superman meets with President Reagan in the White House, where Reagan informs him that he is about to issue an executive order, banning all super-hero activities until the public disorder has passed. Later in Gotham, two policeman discover the battered and beaten body of Robin.

These first two parts of the Legends crossover take a very wide-angled view of the state of the DC Universe. reading with hindsight reveals some strong comparisons, especially the way that the then-current Justice League (Detroit) fares against the yet-to-be-formed Justice League International. The defeats of the heroes hurt. The entire League is beaten and missing in battle, whilst Billy Batson's pain at believing that he has killed the Macro-Man is very tangible. Other heroes find themselves lost and without a cause when faced with the negative reactions of the public. By the end of the second issue, where Superman bows his head in acceptance of President Reagen's executive order and Jason Todd lies unconscious in the street, there is a very real sense that the tide has turned against the heroes.

John Byrne draws the heck out of these issues. I do marvel at his ability to turn out great-looking comics. At the time of this issue's production, Byrne was likely working on the first few issues of Superman and Action Comics, yet he still found the time to produce six issues showcasing almost every major hero in the DC universe. In particular, Byrne's renditions of Darkseid are masterful. In fact, I'd be happy to list Byrne as one of my top three Darkseid pencillers, along with JG Jones (Final Crisis) and Jack Kirby. Byrne gives us an intricately detailed Darkseid, with maliciousness oozing from every frame. When Darkseid grins, it's a grin that should terrify any onlooker. The final panel of issue #1, with Darkseid looming in the background revelling in the success of his plans, could easily have looked goofy in the hands of a lesser artist, but a rarely-seen laugh from Darkseid here chills the reader. And the opening shot of Apokolips, from the first page of issue #1, is glorious.

Inevitably, there are things that don't work so well for me. I wasn't reading the DCU when the series first arrived - it would have been quite an achievement considering I was 3 1/2 at the time - and a lot of the wider picture of the DCU is lost on me. As always, some of the Fourth World designs look incongruous and a product of their time, although Glorious Godfrey is far more sinster and insidious as G. Gordon Godfrey than as his cloak-wearing, grinning Apokoliptian incarnation. And most annoyingly of all, the Phantom Stranger pops up in issue #2 for no adequately explained reason, giving Darkseid someone to boast to and turning his campaign against Earth's heroes into something more akin to efforts to impress an unimpressed colleague.

These complaints aside, these are strong issues, featuring super-hero action and a strong, logical drive to the plot and threat. What is really enjoyable is watching Ostrander pull task Force X together, and next time, we'll see how well they do on their first mission.

The Geeky Bits:

Legends was the first event for DC, following Crisis on Infinite Earths. Originally planned as more of a direct sequel, Legends eventually grew to be its own unique story. John Byrne was picked for the art, although his workload with Superman meant that he only had time for 6 issues, not the planned 8. This reduction in length may account for the confusing nature of the Phantom Stranger's appearance in the story, with his introduction a casualty of editing the story down.

A large number of DC titles crossed over into Legends, with 22 official tie-ins alongside the six issue miniseries. A full list can be found at the DC Crossover Checklist over at the Fortress of Baileytude.

Next on World of Superman: See how Earth's heroes react to an executive order banning their actions, how Task Force X fare on their first mission, and what leads Darkseid up to focusing his attention on Superman.

The Most Important Post You'll Read This Year

2011-02-11T22:50:00.000Z

Readers of this blog will know that I am a big fan and supporter of From Crisis To Crisis: A Superman Podcast. After nearly 100 episodes, it's still a must-listen on my podcast feed, and the only thing that stops me from listening as soon as it's downloading is the need to sit down and enjoy the relevant issues first. If you listened to the recent episode #82 (and let's face it, you probably did), you would have heard Michael and Jeffrey launch a campaign to get the classic Superman and Batman tale "Dark Knight Over Metropolis" reprinted, possibly as Superman/Batman vol. 0.

Of all the uncollected stories from this era - and let's face it, there are a lot that have never been collected - this is possibly the most notable. It's a great, tight, 3-parter that (serendipitously for this blog, considering this recent post) wraps up the story of Amanda Conner, as well as redefining the relationship between Superman and Batman, allowing the two to grow beyond their frosty and untrusting relationship that was characteristic of the early years of the post-Crisis reboot. Suggestions have been made that the trade could contain Man of Steel #3, as well as the Superman/Detective Comics crossover set during Luthor's presidency that concerned the kryptonite ring (on a personal note, when this story first came out I was keeping up with events in the comics through the Superman Homepage reviews, and when they didn't cover the Detective Comics issue I was pretty annoyed, and it took me several years to get hold of a copy and read it for myself). However they choose to do it, it's undeniable that a reprint of Superman stories from this era would be a bold move DC, considering that since they wrapped up their Superman: The Man Of Steel series of trades we haven't seen any of material from this era reprinted, and may bode well for future reprints or re-releases of out-of-print titles (Exile, I'm looking at you!).

Well, the details are in and the campaign has begun. Check out this post at the Superman Homepage for the full details and get writing your e-mails. Remember the plea to be polite and to the point, and don't forget to pre-order the book if and when it gets announced. And don't forget to mention From Crisis To Crisis in your e-mail!

Action Comics #585

2011-02-07T23:37:00.000Z

Hmm, maybe if I sneak in quietly, nobody will notice that I've been gone...

Oh, hi there! You caught me firing up the old blog here.

So, where have I been? Oh, here and there, just not... y'know... here...

Before we get into the issue today, just a few notes about my recent catchup with Smallville. I stopped watching about halfway through the Supergirl episode, specifically the appallingly composited scene atop the weather tower where Kara tries to teach Clark to fly. But I put my 1970s Doctor Who hat on (the one that makes you immune to poor quality special effects and really bad CSO [except Underworld]) and dived back in. And I enjoyed myself, far more than I expected to do so.

I had a lovely surprise when one of my favourite screen actors, Michael Ironside (Darkseid from Superman: The Animated Series and Roy Schneider's replacement on Seaquest DSV) turned up as a near-perfect Sam Lane. I was pleasantly surprised at the appearance of Granny Goodness, and her orphanage and Female Furies were scary, fascinating, and a great watch. I enjoyed the heck out of Lionel Luthor's return to the series, and THAT last scene was such a doozy that for the first time in years I'm actively anticipating the series. And Erica Durance is bloody fantastic as the most enjoyable screen Lois Lane I can remember watching. Of course, this is Smallville, and all my goodwill was dissipated when the mid-season cliffhanger was a MacGuffin making everyone fall over. I can't wait to pick up the next series, and to see Darkseid's plans really ramp up.

But that's the screen, and we like comics here. Shall we look at some?

And The Graves Give Up Their Dead...

(Writer and Penciller: John) Byrne

(Inker: Dick) Giordano
(Letterer: John) Costanza

(Editor: Andy) Helfer*
Cover Art: John Byrne

Cover Date: February 1987

Release Date: 27/11/1986

*The credits page for this issue only gave these four surnames engraved onto tombstones.

High above the streets of Metropolis, an aged Superman confronts the sorceress Arathaza in her floating citadel. Arathaza has possessed the body of a librarian. Superman is unable to stand, but is able to crawl towards her and grab her staff, striking it on the ground and shattering the citadel. Arathaza’s power is dispersed, freeing the librarian and restoring Superman. As he flies the librarian to safety, a diamond fragment of the citadel falls to earth, landing in a graveyard where it sinks into the ground.

Returning to his apartment, Superman is surprised to find the Phantom Stranger waiting for him within. The Stranger wants Superman’s help, but Superman is reluctant, aware of his vulnerability to magic. Refusing to take ‘no’ for an answer, the Stranger transports Superman to the graveyard, where the citadel fragment has animated the ground into a giant elemental being. Superman launches into battle, fighting the mass, but is surprised when the creature reacts to him and speaks to him. The Stranger warns that the mass is not alive, but has the memory of being alive. He then opens a portal to another dimension, the Kingdom of the Damned, where he intends to fight the force behind the elemental.

Whilst the Stranger participates in a mock trial headed by the remnant of Arathaza, Superman tried to prevent the elemental mass, which is continually growing, from attacking Metropolis. Noticing that the creature gains its mass from soil and earth, Superman burrows down to bedrock, which cannot be absorbed, delaying the creature. Inside the ‘soul’ of the mass, the Stranger shatters the diamond. Contacting Superman, the Stranger tells him to break the creature’s contact with the earth. Superman achieves this by burrowing into the earth and raising the ground the creature is standing on into orbit. The creature collapses into itself, and Superman hurls the dormant mass into the sun. The Stranger reappears, but refuses to tell Superman what happened on the inside.

Although we have already seen an establishment of Superman’s vulnerability to magic with Superman Annual #7, this was the first time readers really got to grips with this in 1987. Prior to this issue, Superman hadn’t really got involved with any mystical or magical forces, and for this first encounter, John Byrne teams Superman up with probably the most prominent magical user in the DC Universe, the Phantom Stranger.

The first page of the issue features the Stranger in a narrator role, giving an introduction not unlike the Watcher in the Tales Of The Watcher or the opening narration from The Twilight Zone. It’s a neat stylistic touch that has a little fun with the reader, although the narration that continues through the issue suffers from being a little too stylised, with phrases like 'And even Superman feels the touch of fear.' Another moment of fun comes when Arathaza leaves her host, revealing that the mighty and powerful sorcerer was actually a meek secretary named Barbara Kowaleski.

The thing is, the Arathaza plot is pretty generic and inconsequential. Superman fights the body whilst the Stranger fights the mind. I’ve written previously how magic in Superman stories doesn’t really interest me, and this issue is no exception to that rule. Although the Stranger’s battle helps resolve Superman’s, nothing Superman does seems to influence the Stranger’s conflict. As neat as the mock trial is, it does overpower Superman’s physical battle, and it’s not clear how Superman’s efforts contribute to the defeat of the remnant.

This issue is light and frothy. The action is present but has no real consequence, although the lump of Earth thrown into orbit would be revisited several months later in Action Comics. In the same month that teased a whole new dynamic between Superman and Lex Luthor and saw widespread destruction in Metropolis, this issue’s fight between Superman and a big pile of mud just doesn’t stand up as well.

The Geeky Bits:

Towards the end of the book, Superman discovers that he can breathe in space. Except that he already knows this from his encounter with the H’tross. He also appears to have forgotten his experience with Thahn and Doctor Occult, where he first realised his vulnerability to magic.

The Phantom Stranger, created in 1952 by John Broome and Carmine Infantino, is one of the more mysterious and powerful mystical beings in the DC Universe. He has had a sporadic publishing history, with several ongoings and miniseries, as well as being one of the few characters to move between the DC and Vertigo publishing lines, where he was a key character in The Books of Magic.

Next on World of Superman:

We play catch-up on the first two parts of the Legends crossover.

Superman #2

2011-01-25T22:43:00.000Z

Hey guys, it's been a little while but I'm back.

I first of all wanted to drop a shout-out to J David Weder, the host of the Superman Forever podcast. The podcast is one of the msot enjoyable and informative Superman podcasts out there. It's very much a magazine show, with great features on the history of Superman (I'm particularly enjoying the current look at Superman animation throughout the ages), moments of fun and silliness, and a strong look at the post-Infinite Crisis Superman, making the podcast an ideal companion to From Crisis To Crisis. I cannot recommend this podcast enough to you guys!

Secondly, if you have been to your comic store at any time over the past year you have probably noticed a series of reprints entitled DC Comics Presents. This series sits neatly between a single issue and a trade paperback, comprising 4 or so issues of a run that has not been reprinted before for about $7.99. One of the most recent issues was DC Comics Present Superman: Soul Survivor, which reprinted Legends of the DC Universe #1-3. I covered this some months ago (here, here and here), and as this is the first time this arc has been collected you may want to go check this story out if you haven't before. I'm a big supporter of this method of reprinting comics, especially as one of the strands being produced is a reprint of Peter David's Young Justice, which is an absolutely wonderful comic and one can't wait to cover in a couple of decades or so!

The Secret Revealed!

Script & Pencils: John Byrne

Inks: Terry Austin

Lettering: John Costanza

Editing: Andrew Helfer

Special Thanks to Keith Williams for Background Inks

Cover Art: John Byrne

Cover Date: February 1987

Release Date: 09/10/1986

Amanda McCoy’s research into Superman has revealed images of Lana Lang, who had been present at numerous Superman sightings. Luthor orders a team to find Lana, before ordering Connor to have dinner with him that night. He then moves onto Sydney Happerson’s laboratory, where Metallo is being investigated. Metallo rants and raves at Luthor, who simply plucks the kryptonite heart from his chest, apparently killing him. He orders a full examination of the kryptonite.

Meanwhile, in Smallville, Luthor’s agents who are investigating Clark Kent tranquilize Ma and Pa Kent before ransacking the house looking for clues. They find Ma’s scrapbook of Superman sightings and unexplained phenomenon, and decide to take it back to Luthor. As they leave, they are discovered by Lana Lang, and they kidnap her. That night, Luthor’s dinner date with McCoy is interrupted by news of Lana’s capture. Lex prepares to drug her with truth serum, but Dr Kelley warns that Lana has a serious allergy to drugs, meaning that she cannot be given the serum.

Flying above Metropolis, Superman discovers that he is being followed by a small, agile, flying camera. Finding that it is too fast to grab, Superman confuses it with a bunch of helium balloons, but before he can investigate it, it self-destructs. Returning home, Clark Kent discovers bloody footprints leading past his door to a maintenance closet. Opening the door, he discovers the battered and beaten form of Lana Lang, who tells Superman that she has been kidnapped and tortured for two days. Her kidnappers wanted to know everything about Superman, but she refused to talk to them. She tells Clark that her kidnappers have also taken his parents.

Superman heads off to confront the kidnappers, monitored by Luthor, who orders Dr McCoy to review the gathered data on Superman and Clark Kent. Arriving at an abandoned factory, Superman confronts the kidnappers, but Luthor detonates the complex by remote, killing them and angering Superman further. Soon after, Superman bursts into Luthor’s office, threatening him with kidnapping, torture and murder charges. Luthor is not intimidated, and points out that Superman is dizzy and confused. The closer Superman gets to Luthor, the weaker he gets, the result of kryptonite radiation. Unable to proceed, Luthor throws Superman out of his office.

Superman flies Lana back to Smallville. They arrive at the Kent farm, and Superman is astonished to discover his parents, free and well. Lana’s kidnappers had ignored them and left them where they were. They report that only personal items relating to Clark had been stolen, and Superman worries about what Luthor is going to do with the information he has gained.

Luthor meets McCoy in her laboratory, where a computer is analysing all the data on Clark Kent. Suddenly, it produces its conclusion: Clark Kent is Superman. McCoy is astonished by the revelation, but Luthor refuses to believe it. To him, the power of Superman would be something to be exploited, and he cannot understand why anyone would choose to hide it and pretend to be a normal person. In his anger, he fires McCoy.

Wow, what a great issue. End of review.

What’s that? 532 words of recap followed by 5 words seems a little unbalanced? Damn you, internet, with your reasonable expectations! Damn you all to hell!

But seriously, one of the hardest reviews to write is that of something you completely love, and I completely love this comic. We’ve talked a bit about statements of what the post-Crisis Superman is, and this issue is possibly the strongest statement there is. Everything that I associate with this era is present and correct. Luthor being an absolute magnificent bastard, revelling in his power and influence? Check. A supporting cast that is as strong, if not stronger, than the title character? Check. Tremendous faith and compassion? Oh, check, absolutely check that.

Lex Luthor takes the centre stage for the first time since Man of Steel #4, and he hogs it completely. He is a predator, an unstoppable machine, devouring and spitting out not only Lana Lang but Dr McCoy as well. There are some great sexual undertones when it is implied that Amanda slept with Lex on his order, and the thought of having to physically torture Lana fills him with joy. Bear in mind that the last time Lex had a female in custody, it was a teenage Lois who was forcibly searched on camera, it can be implied that it is not only a beating Lana receives. His skills in manipulation are on fine form, sacrificing his henchmen to bring Superman to him, simply to bring the Man of Steel to his knees in the presence of his newly-acquired kryptonite ring. He also happily wrenches the artificial heart from Metallo without a second thought as to whether or not this would kill the cyborg. But it his final act, born of misunderstanding, that truly tells the reader who Lex is. Unable to comprehend that someone blessed with such power would not use it for his own benefit, he dismisses McCoy in his anger and walks away from the very truth he had been seeking. Luthor is the ultimate egoist, and anything that does not fit his view of the world is summarily dismissed.

This is the first time that the supporting cast from Smallville crosses into Clark’s Metropolis life, and for Lana Lang it’s a terrible journey. Found at the wrong place at the wrong time, a chance allergy to ‘drugs’ (what does she do when she has a headache?) sees her subjected to two days of physical torture. Her strength shines through when she tells Clark that his identity is too important to her and to the world to give up. This moment defines Lana in the same way that this issue defines Lex. She is forever the girl next door, in love with the hero but acceptant of the fact that they will never be together. Their bond is unbreakable and their secrets too important to share. If you don’t come out of this issue loving Lana to pieces and feeling so sorry for her situation, then you probably don’t have a heart!

The other element of the Smallville cast, Ma and Pa Kent, are involved with a moment of false jeopardy that feels untrue and forced. The reader is supposed to believe that Luthor’s goons have kidnapped them along with Lana, and some attempt is made to convince us that the Kents are missing or in danger. The revelation that they were left to sleep off their tranquilizers feels as if a potentially interesting direction for the books was closed off too soon (although the missing scrapbook would provide plots for some time to come.

With all of this supporting-cast love, it could be easy to see Superman as a secondary player in his own book. Whilst it’s true that he doesn’t appear until page 10, every event in this book revolves around Superman. His presence is the instigator of the plot and its every development. When he does appear, he doesn’t disappoint. There’s a lovely little moment when Superman is trying to evade the flying camera when he stops to pay a street vendor for his bunch of balloons (apparently Superman’s belt, whilst not at Batman levels, has at least a pouch for change). We then switch into compassionate Clark, telling Lana that she should have given him up rather than take Luthor’s beating. The scene in Lex’s penthouse where Superman is blindsided by the kryptonite and is forced to retreat is painful to read, and Superman’s final utterance through gritted teeth, ‘Damn you Luthor’ is powerfully portrayed in what is possibly the thinnest panel of the year.

But what about the climax? Heavily hinted at by the cover, Lex Luthor is presented with evidence that Clark Kent is Superman and chooses to disregard it. The cover is a great exercise in creating an impossible situation and letting the reader wonder how this can be undone. Unlike certain stories involving mindwipes and scarlet pigeons, the undoing of the premise comes entirely from Luthor’s character and is all the stronger for it.

The Geeky Bits: Lex Luthor would ‘rediscover’ Superman’s identity in Superman #178. Look out for coverage of this in… ooh… about twenty years or so!

Amanda McCoy and her knowledge of Superman’s identity would culminate in the Dark Knight Over Metropolis storyline.

Coverage of this issue can be found in Episode 4 of From Crisis To Crisis.

Next on World of Superman: Magic. Blegh. Superman vs mud. Blegh.

Not Superman #2, but a call for help.

2011-01-21T00:04:00.000Z

Sorry guys, the look at Superman #2 is going to be a couple of days more before it's ready. I've been getting distracted with sales figures for the Superman books. I'm not sure what put me onto this, but I've been hunting down sales figures for the post-Crisis Superman books, which isn't easy for several reasons, not least of which is the fragmented nature of comics distribution before the rise of Diamond. If there is anyone out there who can point me in the direction of the order figures for Capital City Distribution, which I understand used to be published in its own newsletter Internal Distribution, I would be eternally grateful. Many thanks to John Jackson Miller and his website comichron.com for data from 1995 onwards, which I have been slowly inserting into the relevant entries.

Anyway, if you can lend a hand with sales or order figures from the post-Crisis reboot through to the mid-1990s, drop a line in the comments or e-mail me.

See you in a couple of days!

Action Comics #584

2011-01-14T23:15:00.000Z

How are we all doing this evening? Really? That's great!

I'm feeling good, thank you for asking. I spent five hours a couple of nights ago with Jon M Wilson, Zach Henderson and Tyler Crone from Teenage Wasteland: An Ultimate Spider-Man podcast, talking about the first Stuart Immonen arc on the title, The Death of a Goblin. Well, at least, we did for some of the time. Along with thoughts on DCU Online (No, I don't have it yet, I need to become more self-sufficient in Cataclysm before I start to put a second MMORPG into the mix), the rise of Joe Quesada, just how bad Ultimates 3 was (hint: very), moments in Ultimate Spider-Man that make people cry, and more vulgar profanity than the most profane episode of South Park with all the non-profanity edited out.

The episode will be up in a month or so, and I'll be sure to drop a link here if you want to check it out. I'll be interested if only to hear what Zach manages to salvage from our random mumblings.

And talking of random mumblings, how about our review for today?

Squatter!

Storyteller: John Byrne

Embellisher: Dick Giordano

Colorist: Tom Ziuko

Letterer: John Costanza

Editor: Andrew Helfer

Cover Artist: John Byrne

Cover Date: January 1987

Release Date: 23/10/1986

A Superman sighting in Metropolis turns sour when the Man of Steel starts attacking skyscrapers. As the debris hurtles towards bystanders, Cyborg of the Teen Titans appears, using his sonic weaponry to disintegrate the rubble. He then heads to confront Superman, who is ranting and boasting about his superior powers. To get his attention, Cyborg hurls a metal sheet at him. The plan works, but a little too well, as Superman attacks the Titan. Superman rips Cyborg’s arm off, heavily injuring him. Cyborg temporarily blinds Superman with a laser, but is hurled off the top of a skyscraper and crashes heavily to the ground. With his internal communications systems damaged in the fall, Cyborg makes it to a telephone box where he contacts the rest of the Titans for assistance.

Wonder Girl and Changeling respond to Cyborg’s cry for help. Changeling goes up against Superman as an elephant, but is quickly batted to one side. Wonder Girl appears to subdue Superman with a wrecked car, but Superman fights back with a broken mains water pipe. Changing tactic, Wonder Girl binds Superman with her lasso. Meanwhile, Jericho breaks off from teaching American Sign Language to children when he hears a radio report of the combat. Cyborg recovers from his beating just in time to see Superman break Wonder Girl’s lasso, and leaps in to save her. Jericho arrives, getting Superman’s attention by throwing fruit at him. He makes eye contact and jumps into him, but Superman’s alien physiology prevents Jericho from fully taking control, although his presence quells Superman’s rampage. Suddenly, a man on crutches arrives and claims that he is Superman.

Flying across Metropolis, ‘Superman’ explains to the Titans what happened, whilst Jericho ‘pilots’ Superman’s body to keep him under control. Clark Kent had taken a phone call at the Daily Planet from David Gunderson, an amateur scientist who needed Superman’s help for an experiment. Arriving at Gunderson’s lab, Superman was tricked into a trap, and Gunderson was able to switch his mind with Superman’s. Gunderson then locked Superman in his basement whilst he went on a rampage in Superman’s body, although Superman was able to escape. The Titans take Superman to back to Gunderson’s lab, where he is able to reverse the mind-swap by tinkering with the apparatus.

In Paris, Lex Luthor reads Clark Kent’s report of the incident in the Daily Planet. Musing on the fact that Clark Kent seems to get all the good Superman stories, he decides to discover the connection between Kent and Superman.

In his column at the end of this issue, John Byrne talks about the genesis of the three post-Man of Steel Superman titles. He writes, “it would be in Superman and Marv’s title (Adventures of Superman) that we would explore Clark Kent’s place in the universe, his attitudes to the world and Superman. In the team-up title, then, the key would be… action” This definition between Action Comics and the other titles is marked, and exemplified by the contents of this issue. With the exception of the final page, none of Superman’s supporting cast appears, and no service is paid to the ongoing plots of Superman and Adventures of Superman.

Instead, what we get is action, and lots of it, featuring the stars of DC’s most popular team book at the time, the Teen Titans. First Cyborg, then the entire team, go up against the mind-controlled Superman, and this issue is little more than a very well-executed fight scene with a superficial plot tacked on. The mind-swap plot, such as it is, is pretty basic and non-descript, although the comparisons between the crripled Gunderson and the pinnacle of super-heroic ability that is Superman had more mileage than the simple homily of “It’s not you body that cripples you, Gunderson. It’s your mind!”. Unlike the similar fallen genius of Emil Hamilton, there is no on-page redemption for Gunderson, which is probably deserved thanks to his failure to disable the mind-control machine to ensure the switch would not be reversed, before going on a power-drunk rampage in Metropolis.

The action is well portrayed. Cyborg’s initial encounter with Superman is brutal and destructive. The fall from the top of the office building is painful, and the visuals of Cyborg without his cybernetic arm and leg are disturbing. The Titans fight with varying levels of success, with Changeling coming across as impulsive and a little reckless, whilst Jericho’s inventiveness to insert himself into the fight, using a piece of fruit, surely the least threatening item imaginable in the destruction of the fight, is deft and amusing.

This is a light issue, short on plot and resonance, but high on power, energy, and panache.

The Geeky Bits:

I mentioned that I would touch on this a while back, but the use of the Teen Titans as the guest stars in this issue tells us a lot about how compressed DC history is when compared to that of Superman. The last time we saw Robin was in Legends of the DC Universe #6, set between Man of Steel #4 and #5. Approximately three years or so passes between that issue and the January 1987 issues of the Superman titles, meaning that Robin has his entire career as Robin as well as some time as Nightwing, including leading the Teen Titans, in this time. Of course, Nightwing doesn’t appear in this issue, but the appearance of the Titans was intended to be contemporaneous to their current adventures in their own title, resulting in this comparison.

Talking of the Teen Titans, their hugely-popular title, The New Teen Titans, had launched in November 1980, written by Marv Wolfman and pencilled by George Perez. The success of this title meant that it was the only DC book to rival the popularity of Marvel’s Uncanny X-Men, and the two titles shared a crossover in 1982.

This issue of Action Comics was covered on episode 3 of From Crisis To Crisis.

Next Time on World of Superman: We take a look at the brilliance of Lana Lang.

Adventures of Superman #425

2011-01-09T18:00:00.000Z

Welcome back to World of Superman. Things are moving rather smoothly here, and there's not a huge amount to report. So I'd like to take this pre-post waffle-space to introduce you to a new podcast out there, hosted by friend of this blog Jon M Wilson, called Golden Age Superman, and focusing, surprisingly enough, on the Golden Age Superman. I got the chance to have a sneak preview of this podast just before Christmas, and the first episode was a good listen, covering the entirety of Action Comics and not just the Superman story. I think this is going to be a really good listen, and I encourage all of you give it a try.

And with the podcast-pimping now over, let's turn our attention to the issue.

Going The Gauntlet

Writer: Marv Wolfman

Artist: Jerry Ordway

Letterer: John Costanza

Colorist: Tom Ziuko

Editor: Andy Helfer

Cover Artist: Jerry Ordway

Cover Date: February 1987

Release Date: 20/11/1986

Emil Hamilton pleads with an unknown listener to hear his story and to understand how he came to be where he is.

A few weeks previously, Hamilton was summoned to a meeting by Lex Luthor. There, he reveals that the company Hamilton was working for when he created his magnetic force-field generator was owned by LexCorp, and that he owns the rights to the generator. He demands the blueprints in return for a paltry payoff to twenty years of Hamilton’s work. Returning to his lab, Hamilton starts to destroy his work to keep it out of Luthor’s hands, but a visit from Luthor’s goons leaves him fearful for his life. With the police unwilling to assist, Hamilton approaches the Department of Defence, hoping that they will work with him this time, but he is turned down.

Hamilton is approached by Compucon Services, who are interested in helping Hamilton complete his work. A few days later at a public demonstration of the forcefield, industrial saboteurs arrange the death of one of the visiting businessmen. Branded a thief and a murderer, Hamilton finds himself without any support.

In the present, Superman faces off against the combined Freedom League machine. He survives the first attack, and uses a steel girder to render the weaponry of the machine useless. A missile is launched, and Superman flies through the streets as a decoy, before returning to the machine where he tricks the missile into blowing up on the machine. The machine is crippled, but as Superman prepares to confront the Freedom League inside, Hamilton appears with his force-field generator, trapping Superman and the machine inside an impenetrable force-field. The machine still has some functioning weaponry, which Superman is eventually able to defeat. Bursting into the machine, he is shocked when the Freedom League soldiers inside choose to commit suicide rather than answer for their crimes. The machine explodes, but Hamilton’s field prevents the explosion from harming Metropolis. However, his contribution goes unnoticed as the public lauds Superman.

A week later, Hamilton broadcasts a challenge to Superman, calling him to Fifth Avenue to save the life of an innocent. Arriving at the location, Superman discovers Hamilton with a gun to the head of a prostitute. Hamilton’s force-fields prevent Superman from flying, forcing him to walk through a series of traps. Superman battles through the numerous traps, surviving each one but getting weaker with each challenge. His resilience shocks Hamilton, who prepares to detonate his generator, killing himself, his hostage, and Superman. Superman smothers the generator with his body, saving their lives, and shocking Hamilton into realising what he has done. Hamilton hands himself over to the police, and is revealed to be in jail telling his story to a disinterested guard.

In a voiceover, Lex Luthor reveals that Compucon was another LexCorp subsidiary, and that he engineered the death at the demonstration to drive Hamilton to improve the generator, which he now owns.

The second part of this two-issue story is a great introduction and character piece for Emil Hamilton. Hamilton would later, after Wolfman’s departure from the title, become Superman’s unofficial ‘scientific advisor’, participating in his adventures up until his revelation as Ruin at the end of Adventure of Superman. Even if he had never been seen again, he would have stood out in Superman’s gallery of opponents, thanks to a sensitive and detailed portrayal in this issue.

The focus here is very strongly on Hamilton, opening with a flashback to show how Emil has reached his point of desperation, relegating the resolution to last issue’s cliffhanger to almost halfway through the issue. Emil is a victim of Luthor’s schemes. For the most part he does no wrong, only finally falling foul of the sin of Pride when the public of Metropolis ignores his contribution to the defeat of the Man O’ War. He is good enough to recognise his failings, and to cease his activities when it looks like Superman has seriously injured himself to save him from the exploding generator, telling the police to shoot him if they want, but to help Superman first.

Lex Luthor is a master-villain here. Although the gauntlet of the title specifically refers to Hamilton’s set of challenges for Superman, it can equally apply to the events masterminded by Lex. Every obstacle faced by Hamilton, with the exception of the newsmen who ignore his actions, is constructed by Lex, not only to gain ownership of the force-field generator (which he achieves within the first pages of the book), but to discredit Hamilton to the point where he won’t be able to gain funding to repeat his work. Like in the last issue, Luthor’s renown as a scientist is an element, but here it comes from Emil’s respect for Luthor that makes Lex’s takeover more personally galling. At no point in the issue does Luthor threaten Hamilton, but the physical threat of the bodyguards coupled with the assault immediately after Hamilton leaves Luthor’s office, clearly shows Lex’s colours in a way that cannot come back onto him.

The Freedom League and its attacks feels very much like a subplot within the issue. For Superman, the fight is testing, but the real defeat comes when the Man O’ War is disabled. Superman breaks into the machine, only to find that the members of the Freedom League within choose to commit suicide in the name of their goals. This failure is later partially-atoned for when Superman throws himself on the exploding generator before telling Hamilton that he wouldn’t let him destroy himself.

Jerry Ordway is on top form again here. He provides a strong, visually arresting cover, sadly an event not featured within the story itself, and the fight between Superman and Man O’ War really shows how much Superman is thinking on his feet and determined not to be beaten. There’s a highly detailed panel on the final page showing Hamilton’s nervousness and worry whilst in prison that really stands out, and contrasts nicely with the previous page where the height of his madness was depicted with his face basked in red light from the overloading generator. Also notable is the panel where a near-unconscious Hamilton is given the warning by Luthor's goons, as unusually for comics, the full extent of his beating, including several bleeding gashes across his face, is shown.

Although this title takes a breather in the next issue for the Legends storyline to play out, this issue marks a satisfying conclusion to the first act of Marv Wolfman's tenure on Adventures of Superman.

The Geeky Bits: Jerry Ordway is a writer, penciller and inker best known for his re-invention in the 1990s of Captain Marvel, in the Power of Shazam! graphic novel and ongoing series. Starting as an inker at DC in the early 1980s, Ordway’s most notable inking work was over George Perez’s pencils on Crisis on Infinite Earths. As a writer and artist, his work was notable during the 1980s on titles such as All-Star SquadronI and Infinity Inc, dealing with legacy characters most commonly associated today with the Justice Society of America. After Marv Wolfman departed Adventures, Ordway became the title’s writer, moving across to Superman when John Byrne finished his run.

The flashbacks in this issue take place prior to the events of Superman #1, most likely during the three-month gap between the conclusion of The Man of Steel and the start of the relaunched title. The Superman/Man O'War confrontation takes place immediately following the last issue, whilst Hamilton's gauntlet, occuring a week later, happens after Action Comics #584. Directly following his encounter with Man O' War, Superman follow up on his phone call from the last issue, calling on David Gunderson.

This issue of Adventure of Superman was covered on episode 4 of From Crisis to Crisis.

Next on World of Superman: When Superman goes out of control, it falls to the youngest team of heroes to halt his rampage.

Adventure of Superman #424 (or, I love Jerry Ordway)

2011-01-06T19:17:00.000Z

As I already covered a bunch of stuff yesterday, I thought I'd quickly cover where my reading and viewing in an internet-free world has taken me over the past couple of weeks. There's been an awful lot of Doctor Who, both the new Christmas special, which was spellbindingly brilliant, and the entirety of the Series Five boxed set. I also got to grips with Sherlock, the modern-day retelling from earlier in the year, on DVD, and finally got to the the final episode which has the most amazing cliffhanger. No spoilers, but it's up there with the reveal of Locutus for sheer 'how the hell are they going to get out of this one'-ness!

There were comics as well. A very long time ago, I made an illicit eBay purchase of the then-entire run of Captain America on DVD. I found it a few weeks ago, and picked up where I left off, which was the first issue of Mad Bomb, the return of Jack Kirby to the title in the 1970s. I made it all the way through to about #385 before the scratches on the DVD made the files unreadable, but I had a real blast with the comics, especially the Gruenwald run that I wasn't quite able to finish. From there, I went to the Legion of Super-Heroes, working my way through several years of the 1960s. I generally run cold with the Silver Age - I've been trying to read my way through the Hal Jordan Green Lantern series from the start and can only make a couple of issues in a sitting - but I love the Legion, their ridiculous rules and bylaws, the silly nature of their applicants, and wonderfully absurd concepts such as Miss Terious and Sir Prize. With the return of the internet, I know I won't be able to read as much as I have done, but I had a blast going through these comics and I look forward to reading a few issues a week.

Man O’ War

Writer: Marv Wolfman

Penciller: Jerry Ordway

Inker: Mike Machlan

Letterer: John Costanza

Colorist: Tom Ziuko

Editor: Andy Helfer

Cover Art: Jerry Ordway, Alex Jay
Cover Date: January 1987

Release Date: 16/10/1986

Somewhere in Metropolis, a man storms out of a meeting concerning the future of an oil-rich country subversively controlled by America. Once outside of the meeting, he summons a large mechanical construct to destroy the building where the meeting was being held.

At the Daily Planet, Clark Kent meets the latest addition to the staff, gossip reporter Cat Grant. The two stumble over each other in the lift, and find themselves attracted to each other. Clark and Cat happen upon the destroyed building and start to investigate. Whilst Clark surreptitiously uses his powers to search for survivors, Cat views a note left by the perpetrators, the Freedom League, stating that the destruction is a response to an American invasion. As the two head away, the mechanical construct surfaces again, this time to attack City Hall.

Cat and Clark visit the Suicide Slum laboratory of Professor Emil Hamilton, who claims that the government are trying to discredit him and his work. He demonstrates a magnetic force-field that Clark is unable to break with his powers, and which is impervious to bullets. As Cat interviews Hamilton, Clark picks up radio messages concerning the attack on City Hall. Sneaking away, he changes to Superman and heads off.

Arriving at City Hall, Superman discovers a large metallic caterpillar-like construct which attempts to detain him with metallic constricting bands before hurling him away. Inside the machine, members of the Freedom League control the battle. Superman recovers from the assault, breaking free from the rubble just in time to be crushed by the ‘caterpillar’.

Superman breaks free from the rubble again and helps rescue survivors of the assault before heading after the construct. However, all traces of the machine have vanished, forcing Superman to visit Inspector Henderson for further information. He learns that the Freedom League are likely a Quraci terrorist group. He departs suddenly when he learns of an attack on the Daily Planet. Arriving at the Planet he discovers another type of construct, which is quickly joined by all of the machines. The different machines combine together to form a juggernaut, which faces off against Superman.

Meanwhile, the Lane family gather at the bedside of Elinore Lane, who lies comatose following an accident at a chemical plant she was visiting. Lois is distracted by her personal problems, presenting a bitchy front to Cat Grant when they meet at the Planet. As the machines start to focus on City Hall, Lois leaves the Daily Planet, and is forced into a limousine by Lex Luthor’s driver. The limousine takes her to the airport where Lois meets with Lex Luthor on his private jet. He reveals that the chemical plant where Lois’ mother had the accident was a minor LexCorp subsidiary. Feeling responsible, he has managed to develop an expensive serum that can cure Elinore Lane, as long as she takes it monthly. He gives the serum to Lois for free, only asking that she accompany him to dinner. After dinner, with Lois returning to Metropolis alone, Luthor reveals to his assistant that he purposefully caused the accident to manipulate Lois into becoming indebted to him.

The first issue of Adventures of Superman, picking up the numbering from the first volume of Superman, opens with a strong start. From the off, Wolfman is less interested in re-inventing classic villains, or building Superman’s relationship with the rest of the DCU, and more interested in building Superman’s supporting cast and giving him new and interesting threats to counter. In this one issue alone, we see Lois’s family grow with the introduction of Sam and Elinore Lane, get another addition to the Daily Planet staff with the assured and exciting introduction of Cat Grant, and meet Professor Emil Hamilton, originally conceived to serve the purposes of this story, but who would go on to become a regular member of Superman’s supporting cast and Superman’s go-to scientific advisor all the way through to Infinite Crisis nearly twenty years later.

These new characters immediately jump off the page. Straight away we understand that Lois is not the favoured child in the eyes of her father, and her calling him ‘Sam’ instead of father speaks volumes about her relationship with the main male influence in her upbringing. Emil Hamilton doesn’t have a huge amount to do in this issue, so we’ll take a closer look at him when he takes a starring role in the next issue. But Cat Grant is the real guest-star here. Her introduction is a true classic, forcing Clark into the kind of pre-Crisis bumbling reporter role with the sheer force of her appearance and her attraction to him. Thankfully, we don’t see much of this version of Clark, but to have him bowled over by her beauty to the point that he gets his leg trapped in an elevator door is a lovely bit of humour. Clark and Cat have a great chemistry together, and it’s really evident from the start that Cat is intended as a threat to the concept of Clark and Lois being together.

For the threat, Wolfman gives us Middle-Eastern terrorists attacking public monuments with weapons of mass destruction, all in response to American activities in foreign countries where oil is the motivating factor. It’s an idea that resonates far beyond the original 1986 release and, at least at the start of Wolfman’s year of plots, grounds Superman (mostly) in a realistic world with problems that reflect those of our own. Of course, this is Superman, so the terrorists use a combining Transformer-like assault vehicle. The Quraci storyline forms the main thrust of Wolfman’s year on the title, and goes through its ups and downs over the next twelve issues. But for this issue, it’s Wolfman’s depiction of Lex Luthor that really stands out. Everything that makes the post-Crisis re-invention of Luthor great is present. He’s a notable scientist, devoting his skills to curing Elinore. He’s callously manipulative, toying with the lives of innocents as he did with yacht-full of people in Man of Steel #4 and the armour pilot in Man of Steel #5. In this case, he deliberately orchestrates a near-death experience for Lois’ mother, not to win Lois’ heart but to place her in his debt for years to come. This strong portrayal, coupled with Superman #2, clearly sets up the post-Crisis Luthor in his own right, a more worthy nemesis for Superman than simply an evil scientific genius.

The real highlight of this issue, however, is the art of Jerry Ordway. Through his writing and art, Ordway would come to be as synonymous with late 1980s Superman as Dan Jurgens would be with 1990s Superman, and he literally bursts into the Superman titles here. His designs for the Clark, and especially Lois and Cat, are very grounded in the fashions of the day, which does date the art a little, but shows a closer attention to detail and greater concern for grounding the book in ‘reality’ than John Byrne’s more ‘timeless’ approach in Action Comics and Superman. But it’s his Superman that really stands out. The splash page revealing Superman for the first time on page 12 is absolutely beautiful, distinct from the familiar Byrne rendition, dynamic and full of energy, especially in the way that Superman's arm breaks free of the panel and thrusts right off the page. The cover is similarly iconic, and even quieter moments, such as Superman pondering events whilst in Henderson’s office, look great. Another interestingly composed moment is the panel where Superman perches atop a cinema billboard, confronting the newly-combined machine. Relegating Superman to the corner of the panel lends the attacking machine greater weight, presence and threat.

The Geeky Bits: Although it is never named as such in this issue, the giant Quraci machine is referred to as Man O’ War in later issues.

During the scenes at the Daily Planet, Clark Kent receives a call from Mr Gunderson. This links into this month’s Action Comics issue, where Gunderson is the antagonist (But, as we won’t get there for a couple of posts, I’ll refrain from spoiling what he does. Even though the comic is 23 years old. And even if you haven’t read it, you’ve all probably listened to the episode of From Crisis To Crisis that covers it. Or you actually recorded that episode.)

This issue was covered on episode 3 of From Crisis To Crisis.

Next on World of Superman: We get a bit wibbly-wobbly, timey-wimey, as Adventures of Superman #425 manages to not only follow directly on from this issue, but take place before it, and after Action Comics #584. Confused? You will (not) be!

Status Update

2011-01-05T23:48:00.000Z

Evening all.

This is just a fast post to establish where I've been for a little while, and to set out where we'll be going over the next few weeks.

As I've hinted at before, December was a challenging month to find the time to sit down and work through comics. As well as being the busiest month of the year for work, the start of the month saw the release of World of Warcraft: Cataclysm, the latest installment of my one and only gaming love.As sitting at a computer, working on my character whilst chatting with friends is generally an easier way to unwind than focusing on writing 1000+ word posts, it became easier to push the blog to one side and focus on getting from day to day without going mad.

Christmas came, and whilst I spent a couple of days with my parents in Gloucestershire with no comics or internet, my internet at home in London decided to die. And it's only come back today, about 9 hours ago. So that made it hard to get any post uploaded.

I used my offline time wisely, though. Thanks to my girlfriend's trip to Israel, I've had access to a laptop (my computer is a desktop), which has come with me to work where I've used my lunchtimes to get synopses written and read and re-read issues without the distractions of twitter, podcasts and the like.

I have the next few posts fully written and raring to be published, and as soon as I can get blogger to upload the panel scans correctly without garbling the images, I will do. I suspect my still-healing internet connection may have something to do with this. Expect a look at Adventures of Superman #424 within the next day or so.

Finally, I want to take the space here and list my three comic-related New Year's Resolutions.

At least one post a week here at World of Superman. Even if I have dry spells (late March/early April will be a challenge as I'm on holiday in Los Angeles), I want enough posts published to have an average of one a week, and at least two in every calendar month.
To be better at writing e-mails. I listen to a lot of podcasts. I like a lot of what I listen to. Sometimes I have things I want to say to the people who make the podcasts, wether it's to provide information, constructive feedback, or simply to tell people what a good job they are doing. Unfortunately, I tend to listen to podcasts on the go, or at lunch on work. By the time I get home, I've forgotten the need to write an e-mail, or the detail of the e-mail. Well, no more. If you produce a podcast that I listen to, expect something from me down the line.
Read more Vertigo. I feel like my comics reading has become to blinkered towards DC, Marvel and heroes. There's nothing wrong with this, but it's a bit like dining out at McDonalds every day, then hearing your friends talk about a great Indian restaurant they went to. So many titles that have been lauded have come out of Vertigo in the last year, and I feel like I've been missing out. So I'll be directing some of my buying money away from titles that I feel like I'm being to be a completist (why excatly is Titans on my pull list?) and into titles and creators who work outside of my comfort zone. I'll let you know how I get on.

As I said, a new, proper post will be up tomorrow. Don't forget to follow me on twitter - @quizlacey - and you can always e-mail me as well. See you tomorrow!

Superman #1

2010-12-08T22:28:00.000Z

Well, the December doldrums appear to have hit rather hard this year Despite my best efforts to keep to a schedule, I am almost a month behind schedule with these posts. I can only apologise and ask you to bear with me whilst the Christmas trading season runs its course and I can get back to normality in the new year.

Just a few notes on Superman-related projects that are in progress right now. From Crisis to Crisis is just about to enter the true Neverending Battle era with the launch of Superman: The Man Of Steel #1. Charlie Niemeyer has launched a podcast covering the Bronze Age of Superman, appropriately titled Superman in the Bronze Age. It's up to its third episode, and is doing a great job of presenting the final days of the Silver Age Superman, from the first issue that Julius Schwarz edited onwards. Also, the Superman Forever podcast has altered its format to include coverage of the post-Infinite Crisis Superman, starting with Up, Up and Away. They've just started this, and it makes a great jumping on point for a great podcast.

With all of this Superman attention, I can hear you asking, 'Shouldn't there be a podcast covering the Golden Age of Superman?' Well, I've heard about some plans for this that should be arriving in 2011. I know the people behind this podcast, and I've heard an excerpt from the first episode, and I'm really excited about this project.

But that's enough teasing and promoting. We have a comic to look at.

Heart of Stone

Story and Pencils: John Byrne
Guest Inker: Terry Austin
Letterer: John Costanza
Colorist: Tom Ziuko
Editor: Andrew Helfer
Cover Date: January 1987
Release Date: 09/10/1986

Superman bursts in on an abandoned, lead-lined laboratory. He has spent three months searching for the missing birthing matrix. Working his way through the lab he discovers a sealed room, and on entering he finds that it is full of images and data concerning himself. Realising that his suspicions of being photographed (in Man of Steel #4) were accurate, he is then surprised to discover the six-week-old body of a scientist laid on a table, along with an acid bath containing fragments of human bone. To protect the data and to preserve the crime scene, Superman burrows around the laboratory, using his heat vision to fuse the silicates in the soil into steel, before lifting the entire complex into orbit.

Superman returns to Earth and changes to Clark Kent, to allow him to keep a jogging date with Lois Lane. As the two run, they hear an alarm from a nearby bank. Moving to investigate, they discover that the metal doors have been bent out of shape. Suddenly, Lois is grabbed by the bank robber. Clark attacks him, and rolls with a punch to get out of sight so that he can change back to Superman. The robber ignores him, bragging to Lois Lane that he is Metallo, and that he is as powerful as Superman. Superman arrives to contest this, but is surprised when he is hurled clean through a wall and across the street. He shakes off a moment of dizziness and returns to Metallo.

As the two fight, Lois climbs behind the teller's desk to find a tunnel in the floor. She rationalises that Superman tunelled Clark out of the bank to get him to safety. Turning around, she sees that Superman is losing the fight. Superman feels like his powers are draining away. He asks Metallo why he is doing this, but Metallo doesn't feel like answering his questions. He is interrupted by shotgun blasts from the MCU that knock Metallo back. Superman's strength starts to return, and he deduces that Metallo is dead, as he cannot hear a heartbeat. However, Metallo is not dead, and he gets the jump on Superman, telling him that he is going to kill him. The fight continues, with Metallo the stronger fighter.

In flashback, we see the origin of Metallo. He awakes in the laboratory from the start of the issue, and sees his metallic hands. A scientist explains that he has the power to kill Superman. The scientist had witnessed Superman's arrival on Earth in the birthing matrix, and had retrieved the matrix. There he witnessed a part of Jor-El's message, and became convinced that Superman was the vanguard of an alien invasion. He reveals a chunk of kryptonite, a material deadly to Superman, and implants it in Metallo's chest cavity. Realising that the kryptonite will power him forever, Metallo decides that he doesn't need the scientist and strangles him.

Lex Luthor is alerted to the fight between Metallo and Superman. He is angered when he discovers that Metallo could kill Superman, as he had promised to kill Superman himself.

The fight continues, causing the bank to collapse. Metallo emerges from the rubble, his synthetic skin destroyed revealing his robotic body, and grasping Superman's tattered cape. Superman surfaces as well, barely able to stand, but still determined to stop Metallo. Metallo responds by opening his chest cavity, fully exposing Superman to the kryptonite within. Superman collapses in agony, and is only saved when Metallo is inexplicably taken from the scene. Quickly recovering, he asks Lois what happened, but all she can say is that a black shadow fell over Metallo and he disappeared. Superman is concerned that his weakness to kryptonite has quickly become public knowledge, and he knows that someone kidnapped Metallo to get access to kryptonite.

There's a lot to like about this issue. Metallo becomes the first member of Superman's super-powered villains to be updated for the post-Crisis era (discounting the Bizarro from Man of Steel #5, which wasn't even called Bizarro). He bursts onto the scene, posing a credible and lethal threat, bringing Superman to his knees. He is unstoppable, and the city of Metropolis reacts to his attack on Superman in a way that reminds me of when Superman fought Doomsday for the first time. The moment where the bank has collapsed on top of Metallo and Superman, with neither surfacing, is a real heart-stopper. Before the relaunch, every reader would have known that Superman would be victorious, but this early in the post-Crisis era. there is a real feeling that anything could happen. When Superman does reappear, victorious is the last thing that he is. Wracked with pain, barely able to stand, the strength of his character is that he still does not submit, even when exposed to a large chunk of kryptonite for the first time. Even at the end of the issue, all is not well with Superman, and the final panel clearly shows a beaten and bruised Superman who has not fully weathered the fight.

There is a deus ex machina element to the climax of the issue, where an unknown force abducts Metallo, inadvertently saving Superman's life. The next issue reveals this force to have been Luthor (sorry for the spoilers guys, but this comic is twenty-three years old!), and the fact that he has succeeded where Superman failed only serves to strengthen his position and power in this new continuity.

The art here is fantastic. Byrne is no longer providing his own inks, with Terry Austin coming aboard as 'Guest Inker', but in reality staying around for the next three issues until Karl Kesel arrives. The art seems a little crisper than that of The Man of Steel. There's a lovely touch where Metallo's flashbacks to his creation are tinged with green, as if filtered through his kryptonite-powered body (although, considering that the kryptonite gets implanted in his chest just before the flashbacks end, there technically isn't any reason to do so.). Metallo is an imposing presence, especially when his full robot form is revealed (deliciously, with scraps of his fake skin still in place), and the decision to show him in silhouette when he opens up his chest to unleash the kryptonite really heightens his inhumanity.

If there is a disappointment with the issue it's that the minor plot threat that has run throughout The Man of Steel is underwhelmingly resolved here. The shadowy figure, Dr Emmet Vale, dies before he gets the chance to meet Superman, and the menace his unknown presence provided throughout the miniseries is revealed to be psychotic paranoia. His work to uncover as much about Superman as possible is lost when Metallo kills him, and Metallo never shows any sign of having absorbed that information in the future. My memory is being a little faulty, but I cannot remember the laboratory, so carefully placed into orbit, ever becoming a concern again. (As an aside, considering that Vale is willing to handle kryptonite and uranium with no more protection than rubber gloves, his body is probably so wracked with radiation that he is effectively a dead man walking.).

We also have an example in this issue of a Byrne-specific element of the rebooted Superman, that would fade away once Byrne left the book. When Superman is raising the lab into orbit, he notices that the mass has lost its weight once he starts flying, as opposed to being heavy when he was lifting it out of the ground. He then notes that it is as if he is moving the mass with the force of his mind. One of the trademarks of Byrne's reinvention of Superman was to look at how Superman's powers worked, and this is an example of one of those reworkings. Basically, the idea is that if Superman is standing on the ground lifting something, then it is really heavy and he is using his strength to lift it. However, Superman can fly, and when he does so, he uses his mind to make himself fly, at the same time, reducing his weight. Thus, if he is flying something heavy, such as a stolen laboratory containing illicitly-gained research about himself, then like his body it loses its weight. This re-evaluation of Superman's powers also includes the idea that Superman emits a bio-electrical field which prevents fabric sitting close to his skin from coming to harm, although this idea would outlast the pseudo-telepathic-flight one.

The Geeky Bits: As part of the relaunch, the decision was taken to cancel the first volume of Superman, transfer its numbering to the new title Adventures of Superman, and relaunch Superman as volume 2, issue 1. The decision was a fairly simple one - a hard reboot of the Superman numbering would be a strong message to readers, and allow the new ongoings to launch with a bang, as opposed to issue 424 of a 45 year-old comic. As Dick Giordano is quoted in John Byrne's column at the end of the issue, it was "History on the drawing board."

Dr Emmet Vale is pretty much a non-figure in the Superman universe. Other than a brief flashback in 1992s Adventures of Superman #491, his only other appearance is in an alternate universe in the Zero Hour tie-in issue of Action Comics (#703) where, in the other universe, he is the owner of the farm next door to the Kents. In the 2009 Secret Origin miniseries he briefly appears as the chief scientist on the METALLO armour project that leads into the first public appearance of Superman.

Clark here acts on his statement from The Man of Steel #6, where he vows to go after Lois Lane. Here, the two share a jogging date and the animosity from the Superman article of six years previously appears to be a thing of the past.

Metallo and the kryptonite next appear in Superman #2.

Want to know more? This issue of Superman was covered on the third episode of From Crisis to Crisis. It is collected in the second volume of the Man of Steel reprint series.

Next on World of Superman: The great Marv Wolfman and the great Jerry Ordway arrive to kick off their year together on Adventures of Superman with issues #424.

The Man Of Steel #6

2010-11-14T22:52:00.000Z

If it's Sunday night, then it must be time for a posting. Hey, I kept to my schedule for an entire week!

I've been having a bit of a Superman-heavy week this week. I've been re-reading the entirety of Time and Time Again to allow me catch up with 3 weeks worth of From Crisis To Crisis, approximately 7.5 hours of podcasting. I had suffered one of my periodic itunes library crashes, and in the course of attempting to restore all my user-created data, especially my playlists, I accidentally deleted my podcast folder, along with all of my active subscriptions. I've got them back, but I had a wonderful bug with FCTC that resulted in every episode attempting to download at once, even though I only clicked the 'subscribe' button. So, Michael, Jeffrey, that huge volume of downloading that made your stats look good last week? That was me. Sorry!

Anyway, I got caught up, just in time for them to release another episode, so I had to do the reading and more listening. The blog got another brief shoutout, although I am a little concerned that my last two podcast shout-outs have resulted in the hosts forgetting the name of the site! This little mishap aside, the episode was great, and a rarity for FCTC as they got to spend the entire episode working with comics that they didn't like so much, which was a nice change of pace.

All this rambling aside, I've also been looking at the final issue of The Man of Steel, also the final issue before we hit the relaunched titles from January 1987. Come and take a look with me!

The Haunting

Written and Pencilled by John Byrne
Inked by Dick Giordano
Colored by Tom Ziuko
Lettered by John Costanza
Edited by Andrew Helfer
Cover Art: John Byrne
Cover Date: December 1986
Release Date: 25/09/1986

Superman returns home to Smallville, changing to Clark Kent at super-speed to give the appearance of him arriving at the bus station. As he and his parents make small talk on the way to the farm, Jonathan is quickly silenced before he can give something away. Over dinner, Clark lays out his problems with Lois, the fact that she both resents Clark for scooping her on the Superman story, and her gentle infatuation with Superman.

That night, unable to sleep, Clark sneaks downstairs for some pie. He is surprised to see a ghostly apparition in the kitchen that speaks to him in an alien language. The apparition reaches out for Clark, and as soon as it touches him, Clark finds himself on another planet, dressed in his Superman costume, and able to speak the alien language. A figure approaches him and mistakes him for Jor-El. Realising her mistake, the figure realises that Clark is her son. As Clark tries to process this, he suddenly snaps back to Earth and sees Lana Lang in front of him.

Clark has been sleepwalking during his experience and has ended up at Lana's house. As he gets his head together, he asks Lana what she is doing back in Smallville, as she had left years ago. Lana reminds him of the last time they met, years ago. On the night he discovered that he was adopted and an alien, Clark turned up at her house late at night. They went for a walk, and Lana started to wonder if he was going to propose to her. Instead, Clark took her in his arms and flew into the sky with her. Landing, he gently kissed her goodbye, and left Smallville. Unsure of anything, Lana felt lost and confused, and it took many years for her to come to terms with what had happened.

Parting on good terms, Clark changes to Superman and returns to the field where the birthing matrix crashed. He is surprised to discover that the matrix has disappeared. As he starts to investigate vehicle tracks, the apparition appears again. He touches Superman, causing him to collapse in pain as images and information streams into his mind. Jonathan and Martha arrive, having spent the day searching for Clark in the truck. Seeing the apparition apparently attacking Superman, Jonathan grabs a shovel and whacks the apparition, causing it to disappear in a flash. Superman reveals that the apparition called him 'his son', and flies away to think about what just happened.

As he flies, Superman realises that the apparition and the woman were his real mother and father, Lara and Jor-El. He discovers the story of Krypton, its tragic end, and the fact that he is the last survivor of his world. He can now speak Kryptonian, and has knowledge of Krypton's culture. He lands on a mountain and decides that although his true parents are Kryptonian, and it is his heritage that grants him his powers, it is his upbringing that makes him who he is.

And so it ends as it began, in the fields of Kansas. There's a lovely circular feeling to this issue. After spending most of the series in Metropolis cementing Superman's role in the city and the wider DCU, it's a strong choice to bring him back to Smallville and participate in what is ultimately a very small-scale story that completely defines Superman for years to come.

This issue has three objectives: Introduce and define Lana's place in the new Superman mythos, grant knowledge of Krypton to Superman, and redefine Superman in light of this new knowledge. The Lana scenes work very well. It is revealed that Lana is the person Clark goes to visit back in The Man of Steel #1, and we see what happened that night. Lana's conflict is well-portrayed. Her confusion comes across, even as she rationalises it with the benefit of hindsight. Hers is only a small scene, but it is one of the most important in the whole mini-series. Their discussion concerning Clark's dual responsibilities define his approach towards Lois Lane for the next few years, as he balances both sides of his life. It also helps give Lana definition beyond 'Superboy's Girlfriend', allowing her to move beyond her teenage attraction to Clark and be a strong supporting character in her own right.

The second objective is rather clever, and leads directly into the third. By this point in the series, the reader knew everything that there was to know at the time about Krypton, but Superman hadn't really confirmed that was extra-terrestial. The way that Byrne introduces this knowledge to Superman is deliberately non-specific, allowing for future revelations about Krypton's past, such as the contents of the World of Krypton series, to be available to Superman. It is this info-dump that most likely provides the information for Superman to relay to Lois Lane in that series. But this is more than just dropping the knowledge of a dead people into Superman's mind. The moment where he glimpses Lara and realises her identity is beautiful but brief, whilst the appearances of Jor-El plays into the fears we have seen across this project that Superman's presence on Earth is part of a larger plan (such as J'onn's fears in Martian Manhunter #20, and the drive Superman has exhibited at times to define his origins). Although we have seen that Jor-El's intentions are benevolent, Superman walks away from this issue unsure about his biological father.

The key scene of this issue is the climax where Superman flies around whilst debating the information he has just discovered. The final panel, where Superman declares that although Krypton made him Superman, it is the Earth that makes him human is the single most defining moment for the post-Crisis Superman. In effect, Superman is stating the key principle for Byrne's rebooting of Superman, that the human side, Clark Kent, is the primary definition of character; the hero, Superman, is one part of this character. For many fans, a story that deviates from this simple statement of principle is one that they would prefer not to read, and quite often I am one of them.

The art in this issue is fantastic. Byrne is at the top of his game. The contrasts between the futuristic Krypton and the urban Smallville are strong, and the faces of the characters, especially Lana, sell the words with utter conviction. But it is the final pages again that are the real highlight of the book. Byrne has given himself the opportunity to draw Superman in his element, flying across the globe. The panel at the bottom of page 20 where Superman briefly enters orbit is beautiful to look at, but even this pales in comparison to the final image of Superman standing tall on a mountain top, having reconciled his alien and human origins. Iconic is a word that is used far too frequently, but it applies to this image absolutely. Superman has rarely looked better.

The Geeky Bits: One plotline bubbling throughout The Man of Steel, the mysterious figure who observed Clark encountering the matrix for the first time, who took photographs of Superman in Metropolis, and who stole the birthing matrix, would be resolved in Superman #1.

The placing of this issue in context of the rest of The Man of Steel is hard to do, as no dating information is given within. However, Superman: The Man of Steel Annual #4, published in 1995, recaps this issue, and suggests that these events take place seven years after the events of The Man of Steel #3. Some people have taken this to mean that the span of the entire Man of Steel mini-series is 7 years from the first appearance of Superman at the end of The Man of Steel #1, but this actually suggests that the series lasts for the best part of 8 years, as Superman's encounter with Batman in The Man of Steel #3 takes place 8 months after Superman's first appearance. Ah, dating, ya gots ta luv it! However, I subscribe to the idea that no more than 7 years occurs between Superman's first appearance and the events of this issue, mainly because the idea that Superman was active for 7 years without encountering any major super-villains with the exception of the pseudo-Bizarro feels like stretching credibility enough without adding the best part of another year on!

As a side-note, one of the more interesting comparisons between Superman and Batman is that within months of Batman's first appearance, his major villains were starting to appear, both the psychos and the metas. In contrast, Metallo, Superman's first recurring super-powered villain, took seven (or eight, see above) years to appear. I find that an interesting statement on the nature of both Superman and Batman, and their respective cities.

This issue, along with issues 3-5 were covered on the second episode of From Crisis to Crisis, which can be found here.

The most recent printing of The Man of Steel in TPB form was the first volume in the six-volume series collecting the early issues of the post-Crisis Superman. (Yes, that's not the cover, but Amazon was being a pain and kept linking this, and I rather like its simple iconography).

Next on World of Superman: Phase one of the blog is over. Phase two begins. Superman #1. And at some point over the next few weeks, a special post for continuity nuts that will re-order some of the issues that slot in between individual issues of The Man of Steel. I've been busy!

Booster Gold #7

2010-11-06T22:37:00.000Z

Well, I'm back. I hope you enjoyed my random mutterings on the MCM Expo. I also hope you found the time to listen to the latest episode of Awesomed By Comics. I sent Aaron and Evie an e-mail about my encounter with Kieron Gillen (Have you read Generation Hope yet? Oh, go on, it's great!) which they then read out on the show whilst also giving the blog a gentle plug. Well, once they worked out what the site address was! There was a slight miscommunication that made it sound like I had asked Kieron to sign my copy of Phonogram with a reference to their podcast, whereas the dedication was all Kieron's idea, based on our chat. Let's face it, if I'm going to claim credit for someone else's ideas, I'll probably choose someone less well-known than Kieron Gillen!

I also got the chance to read Superman: Earth One. I'll not go into too much detail, save to say that I really enjoyed the first half of the issue, especially the bits where Clark slowly found his feet in Metropolis, but once the aliens turned up to invade, my interest started to wane. The art was wonderful, although the final reveal of Superman made him seem just a little on the weedy side. What did take me by surprise this week was Superman #704, which was one of the best fill-in issues I've read in a long time. It served the wider story, but put a long-overdue focus on the Clark and Lois relationship. For the first time in years, I found myself really believing in their relationship.

And now, an apology. As I've mentioned before, I work in retail, and the next eight weeks are the busiest weeks of the year for me. I'm also angling for a promotion, and with this on top of the pre-Christmas trading, I'm working an insane amount of hours. Therefore, in order to alleviate my guilt at not keeping to the regular, twice-weekly schedule that I would like to, I'm going to scale back my blogging activities over the next few weeks. I won't be giving up the blog, as I really enjoy both writing these posts and my behind-the-scenes oh-so-secret project that only two people out there know about, but I'll need to reduce my schedule to a weekly basis in order to be able to get through the next two months. Still, this should see us through to Legends quite nicely.

And finally, my scanner is playing up again, so no scans today. Go and grab the Showcase Presents: Booster Gold collected edition if you want to see what this issue looks like.

The Lesson

Creator-Writer-Artist: Dan Jurgens
Inker: Mike DeCarlo
Letterer: Augustin Más
Colorist: Gene D'Angelo
Editor: Alan Gold
Cover Art: Dan Jurgens, Mike DeCarlo
Cover Date: August 1986
Release Date: 15/05/1986

Booster Gold, Skeets, Fern and Zee have been taken to the planet Vellar, in a remote part of the galaxy, where they are interrogated by Lord Galeb. They discover that powerful magic has given them the ability to understand the alien language, as well as reducing them in size so that they are the same height as Zee. Lord Galeb, leader of the planet, accuses the heroes of treason, having aided and abetted Zee, who is a traitor, a charge he admits. Booster and Superman attempt to break free, but Galeb's consort, the wielder of magic, brings them down with a magical blast.

In a prison cell, Zee tells of how he attempted to overthrow Galeb's monarchy to free his people from tyrrany. When the revolution failed, Galeb executed Zee's wife and children. Booster wants to head back into action and overthrow Galeb, but Superman counsels holding tight and not interfering in the internal power struggle of the world. The two argue until Galeb arrives to free them, having had his consort telepathically probe them whilst they were unconscious and having discovered their innocence. Booster Gold wants to stay behind and work to overthrow Galeb, but Superman's morals lead him to step in and restrain Booster. The two fight, with Booster throwing everything at Superman, determined to replace the government on Vellar. Skeets speaks to Galeb, before interveneing in the fight by disabling Booster's technology. Booster is angered at his friend's 'betrayal', but when Skeets reveals that Zee never had a family and had been lying to him all the time, Booster hangs his head in shame before apologising to Galeb.

Back on Earth, Lois Lane arrives for a pre-arranged interview as Superman and Booster return from Vallar with Fern. She comments to Superman that he is yesterday's news compared to Booster, but that Booster might not have the staying power of Superman. As she and Booster head off for the interview, Superman confirms with Skeets that Booster's presence in the 20th century is part of historical record and not an paradox. As he leaves, he warns that if Booster uses his knowledge of the future for destruction, he'll have to reckon with Superman.

It's taken a while to get this entry done and dusted. There have been some real life issues, details of which have been given in previous posts, but there has also been one significant factor at play: I don't particularly enjoy this book and find myself fairly uninterested in it. That's not to say that there isn't interesting stuff in here, but the main focus of the plot, the runaround on Vallar, is so generic it hurts.

Part of my problem of this issue is the way that the strongest elements of the previous issue are jettisoned here. The character of Fern, our introduction to this story, plays almost no part in this issue beyond reminding the reader of how he is able to survive in an alien atmosphere. There is no reaction from Fern when Zee is revealed to be a liar and the antagonistic force on Vallar, and he pretty much disappears off-panel on the return to Earth. Also gone is the rich characterisation of Booster that was introduced last issue when his origin was revealed for the first time. Here we are given a hot-headed and arrogant Booster, although he has the grace to show humility when Zee's true colours are revealed. It is hard to disagree with Superman's assesment of Booster Gold throughout, which is suprising considering that this is Booster's book. It's a shame that what was such an important story for Booster Gold in issue #6 should finish with such a weak second part.

The Geeky Bits: The cover to this issue would be neatly reversed by John Byrne when Booster and Superman meet again in Action Comics #594.

Next on World of Superman: It's finally over. The first chapter in World of Superman draws to a close as Superman learns what have known for over a year now when he encounters the image of his father in The Man of Steel #6.

MCM Expo Days 2 and 3

2010-10-31T20:39:00.000Z

Wow, what a fantastic couple of days!

First of all, let's check out the loot. I had a great range of purchases and signings at the convention, from personal mementos to some titles that I always knew I should have been reading but never found the budget or time to do so. I even got a piece of artwork from a creator I have respected and adored for some time, but I have to keep quiet about that for the next couple of months!

First of all, the Doctor Who stuff.

All of which are written by Tony Lee, seen below on the left with his artistic partner Dan Boultwood on the right. Both Tony and Dan were incredibly warm and welcoming to a new person at the convention, and they didn't steal my camera when they had the opportunity to do so (always a plus in my book!). If you ever get the chance to meet Tony and Dan, I strongly urge you to do so. The next year looks to be very promising for the two of them, and I can't wait for their upcoming projects The Gloom and The Baker Street Irregulars. The second signature on the trade and the annual is Al Davison, who I talked about on the last blog post.

It wasn't just Tony at the convention with a Doctor Who pedigree. Paul Cornell, the current writer of Action Comics, was a roaming guest, participating in a couple of panels and doing a couple of signing sessions. Now, Paul has just had his fifth issue of Action released, but I've been reading him for about 15 years longer than he's been writing ~~Superman~~ Lex Luthor. And as I still associate him more with Doctor Who than I do with comics, there was only one item from my library that I wanted signed - my first ever (and his first ever) Doctor Who novel, Timewyrm: Revelation.

Oops, I appear to have got my ugly mug a little too close to a Superman writer...

I had a great time meeting and talking to Kieron Gillen and Sean McKeevie on Saturday, fresh from their success at the Eagles with Phonogram: The Singles Club. I had wanted to meet Kieron both because of this series, but also in the hope that he might have some of his recent Thor run on him. I'm a listener to the Awesomed By Comics podcast, which has ranted and raved over the greatness of his longer-and-better-than-a-fill-in-run Thor writings. We had a chat about the podcast (he's a listener as well), which is why he dedicated in the way that he did. Kieron was absolutely wonderful, very down to earth and modest despite his successes both with Phonogram and the rocketing of his Marvel career. I also got to meet Sean Phillips, and sample Criminal for the first time. Criminal is an astonishing read, a great script from Ed Brubaker and fantastic art from Sean Phillips. Having read the first volume, I'm pretty sure that if this had been handed to me as a short story in just prose, I probably would have had very little interest, but told through the medium of comics it really grabbed me. I look forward to getting hold of the other trades in the future.

The most famous comics creator at the convention was arguably Chris Claremont. Opinion is widely varied of his work, especially anything he's written in the last 10-15 years (and when we finally get to his brief run on JLA, we're not going to be happy with it), but his X-Men run is unparalleled. I have this on DVD, having imported the Uncanny X-Men DVD a few years ago, but before I got this I bought myself a copy of the Days of Future Past TPB, which covers #138-#143 (the immediate aftermath of the Dark Phoenix saga, the introduction of Kitty Pryde, DoFP and the N'Grai, along with the Dante's Inferno annual). I feel very proud of having his signature on the title page.

Other creators I met, but gained no loot from, included Antony Johnston, David Hine, with whom I discussed his first ever Marvel work, the underrated Daredevil: Redemption mini-series, and Bernard Chang, who I told that my favourite panel of his was his recent Bizarro JLA from Supergirl, which included Bizarro Red Arrow (Arsenal) with a quiver full of dead cats.

As well as all of this, I got to see an extended trailer for Paul, sat in on panels on Warehouse 13 and A Town Called Eureka, got freaked out when I realised just how bloody tall Tony Todd is, got my arse handed to me at both Magic: The Gathering and World of Warcraft: The Collectible Card Game, wondered just why the meme of the con was 'Free Hugs', was distinctly unimpressed by Pocky, drank ridiculously overpriced Mountain Dew and wanted to be gently sick, had an awesome sausage sandwich, marvelled at the ability of 4 Subway employees to royally fuck up an Italian BMT (if the answer to the question 'do you want it toasted' is 'no', then don't put it in the fucking oven!), and walked miles and miles and miles.

As with any con, cosplay was a huge element. In fact, the only time the main theatre was full was when the cosplay championships were on. As most of the cosplayers were characters from manga and videogames, I didn't recognise the majority of people in costume. However, there were a few good comics characters (including the Power Girl in the picture below, whose costume was really rather accurate, if several sizes too big) and a few duff ones, such as the dayglo orange DeathstrokeZatanna and Harley Quinn.

Finally, one of the funniest inadvertent moments of the convention came when I was looking at one of the adverts in the convention center for another event. See if you can spot what I enjoyed so much...

Next on World of Superman: Superman comics! Honestly!

MCM Expo: Preview Night

2010-10-30T09:16:00.001+01:00

So, I have lost my convention virginity.

Yesterday was the preview day for the London MCM Expo. As I live ten minutes walk away from the convention center (The ExCel Centre in East London), an appearance was always a given, especially as I had booked the afternoon (and the rest of the weekend) off work.

It was an interesting experience for the first-time convention-goer. I kept hopping from overjoyed to confused to (occasionally) intimidated by the scale of the event coupled with the sheer volume of content focused on areas which I have little to no knowledge. I was very surprised at the high manga and Japanese culture content of the convention. I know manga has been gaining popularity around the world, but I had no idea of the scale of this, or fanatacism of its fans and cosplayers. Yes, I know, my naivety in my expectations of the fans is readily apparent.

Being a comic fan, the first place I went to check out was the artist's alley. There were a lot of empty tables, but more than enough of the big names were present. I got the chance to say hello to Rich Johnson, formerly of Lying in the Gutters and now the founder and head of bleedingcool.com. As a semi-regular poster there (and, if all goes well, a front page article penned by myself has been submitted, and I'm looking forward to seeing what happens with that), this felt like an important meeting for me. But not as important as the next person I went to see - Tony Lee.

Tony is one of my favourite creators in comics. He is the current writer of the ongoing Doctor Who title(s) from IDW, which have been a great read. He topped the New York Times bestseller list with his graphic novel adaptation of Pride and Prejudice and Zombies. He was nominated for eight Eagle awards this year for his various projects, and his twitter feed - @mrtonylee - is one of the most interesting ones I read. As I was the first person to approach and buy from him, he cut me a great deal on the latest issues of the Doctor Who comic, and between sucking on his absinthe lolly, he pointed out that one of his Doctor Who co-creators - Al Davison - was present.

I didn't know Al Davison as anyone other than an occasional Doctor Who artist, although his career has been long and varied. His graphic novel autobiography - a work in progress - is a beautiful piece of work, chronicling a difficult and tragic childhood. Check it out at Muscle Memory, but be warned, it's not an easy read.

Finally, I was pulled over by Claude Trollope-Curson of Gronk Comics, who showed me some of his weird and wonderful creations. He did the best thing of making me laugh at his work in seconds, and I was happy to buy a couple of his publications. We ended up reading them on the Underground at 10.30pm on our way to a free showing of Due Date, and even my non-comic-reading girlfriend found his parodies of super-hero culture amusing.

I did some other stuff as well, including trying Magic: The Gathering for the first time in about a decade, and marvelling at all the cosplayers. One guy was dressed as Where's Wally (Where's Waldo for the Americans out there), and he cut a sad and lonely figure winding his way through the long, empty queueing system. I thought that he might have been playing the longer game, and that if the massive queue system was full then he would have been in his element. As the queue started moving as people were let in, I passed him once, then prepared to pass him again. But he had gone. Where was Wally? Suddenly, I understood the genius of his costume choice, and I berated myself for ever doubting him.

I'm really looking forward to today. I'm excited about meeting the Kieron Gillen, who recently wrote an amazing four-issue post-Siege fill-in run on Thor, and who just won an Eagle award for his series Phonogram. I'm hoping to meet Criminal artist Sean Phillips, and I'll be stopping by Bernard Chang's table to pick up the latest issue of Supergirl and hopefully get the panel with Arsenal and his quiver of dead cats signed. But most importantly, I'm really looking forward to meeting Chris Claremont, and Paul Cornell, who will be signing my first ever Doctor Who book, Timewyrm: Revelation, as my love of Who trumps my love of his current Action Comics run.

Right, enough buggering about. The con is open and I need to put trousers on and go there. Follow me on twitter at @quizlacey to keep up with me throughout the day.

A brief update

2010-10-27T23:11:00.000+01:00

Shock! Horror! This is not an imaginary post!

So, I've not been around for a couple of weeks. I've been feeling a lot of stress and pressure at work, which has made my non-work life, such as it is, feel very awkward. I've not been getting pleasure from the things that normally help me relax and unwind, and I've spent the last couple of weeks in a state of near perma-tension. All of which has made sitting down to read comics, analyse them, and write about them on this blog a task that has felt like an unnecessary chore, rather than a welcome pleasure.

The good news is that things have quietened down , and I can feel my life returning to normal. I've got a long weekend off ahead of me that I intend to spend geeking out in the most fantastic way. I'll be attending my first ever comics convention, the London MCMExpo, which takes place in a building about 10 minutes walk away from my front door. I'm looking forward to meeting the cream of British comic creators, including the wonderful Mr Tony Lee, Kieron Gillen, current Action Comics writer Paul Cornell, and the legendary Chris Claremont. I'm hoping to get in on the Paul exclusive footage (I'm a big Simon Pegg fan), attend the Eagles awards, and hunt down Lying In The Gutters and bleedingcool.com writer Rich Johnston.

In short, I'm looking to have a great weekend re-connecting with my inner (and outer) geek. And when it's all over, I'm gonna open up my longboxes, pull out my copy of Booster Gold #7 and get some thoughts posted here.

Next on World of Superman: Comics'n'stuff. Honest.

I'm Proud Of The BBC

2010-10-17T23:20:00.000+01:00

No posts for a few more days, as I'm pretty horribly ill and can't really focus on much at the moment. But to tide you over, a ratehr wonderful song and video from a comedian I've been following for years. I'm proud of the BBC, and here are a few reasons why...

See you in a few days!

Booster Gold #6

2010-10-07T01:40:00.000+01:00

This blog post has had a pretty tortured history. I had a chunk of it written, and then blogger had a fit and deleted a bunch of it. I then tried to get it written again, but blogger wouldn't let me edit or create new posts. After quite some time, I discovered that my browser was at fault, having crashed whilst attempting to update. This happened whilst I was away from my desk, so I had no idea about the update, until tonight when a little popup informed me. So, we're back, but a little behind schedule.

One of the things I got the chance to do whilst not blogging was to take a look at the latest episode of Smallville. As normal, there were things I liked and things I disliked, and as normal, the big money-shot moments just seemed to come across as a bit flat. I really dislike this new version of Cat Grant. The super-bubbly-perky character, the relentless parroting of 'Godfrey' (if she's such a hotshot young reporter, shouldn't she have her own opinions?), the forced pairing with Clark. I would be happier if they wrote the character as a normal person with the views that she has, and let the performance lead the irritating side of the character. I also found the 'lifestyle' comments regarding vigilantes to be incredibly heavy-handed. It's been covered elsewhere in more detail, but I also need to point out that Deadshot and Jonah Hex are two different characters, and nothing is gained by combining the two. And the revelation of the new costume for Clark was spoiled by some really bad CGI, especially on the flags waving limply in the background.

What I absolutely loved about the episode was the Carter Hall/Lois Lane subplot. Michael Shanks was great in Absolute Justice, but playing the identity rather than the hero really gave him the chance to shine. I loved his annoyance at Lois in the first scene, but what really sold me was the closing scene where he wonderfully conveyed centuries of love and loss. Erica Durance as Lois Lane has come on by leaps and bounds since I last really saw her in the role, back when she was first introduced. For probably the first time since the early days of Lois and Clark (or The New Adventures of Superman, if you're British), I was watching the Lois Lane that I have read for years in the comics. I wasn't expecting to be this impressed by her, but she is something I will enjoy watching in future episodes.

I also read the recent JLA/JSA crossover, but if you want to know about that, check out this episode of The LanternCast. The poor guys did the episode once, then lost the episode before it could be released, so they had to do it all over again. And the only way one of them could cope was... well... let's just say he wouldn't have been driving that day!*

To Cross The Rubicon

Creator/Writer/Artist: Dan Jurgens
Inker: Mike DeCarlo
Letterer: Augustin Más
Colorist: Nansi Hoolihan
Editor: Al Gold
Cover Art: Dan Jurgens and Mike DeCarlo
Cover Date: July 1986
Release Date: 14/04/1986

Jason Redfern (Fern), a teenage boy, discovers a miniature spaceship in Centennial Park, long with a miniature alien. The alien’s language cannot be understood, so Fern calls him ‘Zee’. When Zee pushes him out of the way of the exploding space-ship, Fern is convinced of his good intentions, and takes him home. At home, Zee projects an image of Superman’s ‘S’ shield, which Fern interprets as Zee’s desire to locate Superman. Catching an advert featuring Booster Gold on the television, Fern realises how to get hold of Superman. He travels to Reilleau Towers, where he is able to see Booster and tell him his story. Booster then publicly calls Superman out through the media to meet him the next day.

The next day, the media is buzzing with Booster’s decree. Clark Kent hears about it at the Daily Planet, and sneaks away to become Superman. Booster Gold arrives at the rendezvous point, having stopped off at STAR Labs to grab a life-support suit for Fern. Although Skeets is sceptical about whether Superman will show, the Man of Steel arrives. Superman is disdainful of Booster, his publicity seeking ways, and the fact that his powers are artificial. Disappointed in the reactions of his hero, Booster walks away. Skeets speaks to Superman, and reveals the secret origin of Booster Gold.

Michael Carter was a prodigious football player, the biggest name in college football in the 25^th century. As he was on the verge of being signed up professionally, he was caught betting on his own games, and expelled from college. With no further hope as an athlete, and needing to make a living, he took a security job at the space museum, as well as enrolling as a student of 20^th century super-heroes. Whilst participating in the studies and his duties at the museum, Michael formulated a plan, cemented when he discovered Rip Hunter's time machine in the museum. Disabling the security robot Skeets, Michael steals various exhibits to create a power suit, then travels back to the twentieth century in the time machine, taking Skeets along with him.

Superman is shocked to hear this, and accuses Booster of theft, and using the stolen equipment to make himself rich. As the two argue, Zee starts speaking. Superman recognises snatches of the language, and is able to discover that a warship is chasing Zee. Suddenly, an energy burst renders Superman, Booster and Fern unconscious. Another miniature alien appears, abducting the heroes, Fern, Zee and Skeets onto his ship, which departs for space.

pre-dates The Man Of Steel #1 by three months, meaning that we have here the very first appearance of the post-Crisis Superman. Booster does it again! This also means that Dan Jurgens debuted his art for Superman before John Byrne, and it's great art. His first panel, featuring Clark changing to Superman in an interpretation of an iconic pose, is wonderful to look at, and as fans of this era know, Jurgens' Superman art is a real keystone of the next fifteen or so years of the character.

This is a great Superman issue, and fits neatly into the timeline between The Man Of Steel #5 and #6. Superman here is confident in his position in the world, having already met and worked with one wave of heroes. Now, with the appearance of Booster Gold several years into his own career, Superman is starting to encounter the next wave of heroes, people whose motivations lie in places other than benevolence. His outrage at Booster's self-centered money-making activities, all of which stem from theft, is entirely justified, and comes from a place of confidence in not only himself but his position in relation to other heroes. The first panel in which Superman appears, a one-page splash where he stands above Booster, looking down with an expression of derision, neatly sets up how he feels, and completely wrong-foots Booster, for who Superman is a personal hero.

Of the two parts of this story, I feel that this is the stronger of the two. We get the first revelation of Booster's origin, devoid of the later embellishments and cliches that Booster would add, and the force of Superman's anger towards Booster has a powerful effect on the reader.

The Geeky Bits: Booster Gold is pretty much the first post-Crisis superhero, despite his first issue being released before the Crisis had finished publication. He has been a mainstay of the DCU, thanks to his high-profile membership of various incarnations of the Justice Leagues from the JLI onwards. He was also the first solo creation of Dan Jurgens for DC, but as before, I'm going to hold off on a full bio of Dan for a bit longer.

The title refers to the Rubicon river, which was crossed by Julius Caesar in 49BC, initiating a civil war. In general, the phrase 'To cross the Rubicon' refers to the point of no return, in this case the moment where Booster travelled in time to the twentieth century.

Next on World of ~~Superman~~ Booster Gold: The second half of this tale where Booster smacks down with Superman. Unless you've seen the cover, in which case you'll see that it's more a case of Superman smacking Booster down. Ouch.

*worldofsuperman.blogspot.com does not condone excessive alcohol consumption for the production of podcasts, blog posts, tweets, or any other type of new media (unless it's Lit Beer: My beer).

The Man Of Steel #5

2010-10-04T00:35:00.000+01:00

Happy birthday to you,
Happy birthday to you,
Happy birthday dear worldofsuperman.blogspot.com,
Happy birthday to you.

Yes, believe it or not, it's been a year since the World of Superman snuck onto the blogging scene. In that time, we've covered the death of Krypton, affairs with Lex, the birth of the ~~Heroic Age~~ Silver Age, Superman joining - and leaving - the Justice League of America, some very bad comics, and most of all, the introduction of Superman to the DC Universe. We've also suffered some dramatic delays to posting, which I very much hope will be a thing of the past. Sadly, I missed my self-imposed target of completing The Man of Steel by the time the first anniversary came around, but that was as much down to me having my dates all wrong as anything else.

So, we're back with The Man of Steel, and we're going to finish it in the next few posts before moving onto the regular series. Well, apart from a couple of diversions. But it wouldn't be the World of Superman if we didn't detour along the way...

The Mirror, Crack'd...

Script and Pencils: John Byrne
Inking: Dick Giordano
Lettering: John Costanza
Coloring: Tom Ziuko
Editing: Andrew Helfer
With special acknowledgement to the work of Otto Binder
Cover Artist: John Byrne
Cover Date: December 1986
Release Date: 11/09/1986

Superman returns a LexCorp-built battle armour suit to Lex's penthouse. Luthor claims that the suit was registered as stolen, and that the pilot was fired from LexCorp weeks ago. Sadly, the pilot cannot corroborate Lex's story as prolonged exposure to the suit has left him brain-dead. As Superman flies away, Lex heads into his laboratory and talks to Doctor Teng, who tells him that his scans have revealed that Superman is not a mutated human, but an alien. Lex asks how this will affect the duplication process, and Teng replies that they will see. A chamber opens, and an exact replica of Superman steps out. After a few seconds, the replica collapses, its body crystallising. Luthor is disappointed and orders that the duplicate be destroyed.

In Metropolis, Lois Lane prepares to leave for work. She argues with her sister Lucy, who is bitter about her blindness. Outside, an ambulance gets stuck in traffic. Suddenly, it is lifted above the streets and dropped off at the hospital. The EMTs prepare to thank Superman, but are shocked to see that a monster has saved them. As 'Superman' flies away, he saves the life of Lucy Lane, who has thrown herself off of Lois' balcony. 'Superman' flies away, as Lucy wonders why he was so dusty.

At the Daily Planet, a disturbance in the lobby causes Clark to run out of the newsroom. He confronts the source of the disturbance, the distorted Superman who has partially disguised himself as Clark Kent. 'Clark Kent' wallops Superman, sending him flying out of the Daily Planet building. As the two fight, 'Superman' uses his heat vision on Superman, causing him intense pain. As they fight, Superman notices Lois watching, and uses his heat vision to destroy 'Clark Kent's clothing to protect his identity.

'Superman' grabs Lois Lane and flies away with her. In the air, he gives her a kiss, before taking her to her sister. As Superman arrives, Lucy explains that since 'Superman' saved her, she has been able to see shapes and shadows. The two Superman fight some more. Superman analyses the dust that falls off 'Superman', and discovers that his foe is not an organic creature. Deciding that he is not truly alive, Superman charges him with all of his might. The impact causes 'Superman' to explode, showering the neighbourhood with dust. Exposure to the dust restores Lucy's sight. Superman wonders if 'Superman' knew of the healing powers of his dust when he died.

For an issue of one of the most notable Superman mini-series ever published, there doesn't seem to be a whole lot to say about it. Of all the issues, this is the most 'business-as-usual', with its notable first occurrences being rather understated.

I think the problem with this issue is how little has carried over into the continuity of the comics. Lucy Lane has her blindness cured and stops being suicidal in this issue, and her blind period is rarely referred to again. Of course, in terms of things about Lucy Lane that are never mentioned again, her blindness comes in a distant third to her marriage to Ron Troupe and her child. We also have the revelation to Lex Luthor that Superman is not human in any way, that he is an alien. Having Luthor in a position where he knows more about Superman's origins than Superman does is potentially an interesting status quo, but this doesn't last beyond the next issue.

Superman faces a being whose powers match his own for the first time here. Although he has fought aliens and encountered New Gods, this is the first time that he feels his own powers being used against him. He is concerned for his well-being, and feels pain, possibly for the first time, when 'Superman' unleashes his heat-vision on him. However, this encounter is soon forgotten. When Metallo attacks in Superman #1, he wonders when the last time he was hit so hard was.

Perhaps the biggest event in the issue which fails to carry over into the ongoing series that followed The Man of Steel is the bogus 'Superman', or as fans know him better, Bizarro. He is never named in this issue, and it's another eight years until the character returns. The character is also played down in a more muted fashion. Most of the bizarre elements associated with the character, from the reverse-speak to the literal Bizarro-world, are missing. Instead, this version of Bizarro is very much a Frankenstein's monster, misunderstood and unable to comprehend the results of its actions, except possibly in one moment of realisation and sacrifice. However, the encounter doesn't seem to phase Superman at all. Having deduced that 'Superman' is an artificial being, Superman shows no signs of following up his appearance. He seems to accept that such warped doppelgangers exist, and that having got rid of one, he has faith that there will be no more.

There is an interesting moral dilemma for Superman that occurs during his fight with 'Superman'. Realising that only one of them will walk away from the fight, Superman examines the dust that 'Superman' sheds wherever he goes and theorises that he is an artificial being, and thus, not being alive, can be killed. Once Superman has made this distinction, he is able to use levels of force that he would otherwise be unable to use against a living being, no matter how dangerous that being may be. In short, Superman is able to terminate 'Superman' for the greater good without any of the guilt that would follow the next time he decided to kill.

These issues aside, there are some strong moments in the issue. We get a good look at how Lois and Clark function in the Daily Planet newsroom, and we also get the first instance of Clark abandoning the newsroom to address a problem as Superman. Lucy's suicidal tendencies, whilst melodramatic, are a hint to a darker type of storytelling to that normally associated with Superman. The same goes for the implication that Luthor deliberately caused one of his henchmen to suffer brain damage in one of his schemes to better Superman. And whilst Superman's fears for his mortality in his fight with 'Superman' aren't as pronounced as the ones he felt whilst stranded in space in Action Comics Annual #7, the art and writing effectively communicates the feeling that Superman is out of his comfort zone.

The Geeky Bits: The Special Thanks credit for Otto Binder refers to the fact that this issue's plot owes a lot to the original appearance of Bizarro in Superboy #68 from October 1958. There, as here, Bizarro is very much cast in the Frankenstein's Monster role, and the subplot involving a blind girl is shared between the two stories. The more familiar version of Bizarro wouldn't appear until Action Comics #254 in July 1959.

This is the first of three post-Crisis version of Bizarro. 1994 saw the publication of the Bizarro's World story, in which Lex Luthor II recreates the duplication experiment, but with similar failure. The current version of Bizarro debuted in the Emperor Joker storyline from 2000, where he was a creation of The Joker, who had been infused with Mr Mxyzptlk's powers, and this incarnation has regularly appeared in the Superman books since then.

Next on World of Superman: A mere six months after reviewing The Man of Steel #1, we ~~finally reach the conclusion~~ veer off one more time to examine the first post-Crisis appearance of Superman.

JLA Classified #49

2010-09-26T21:51:00.001+01:00

I really dislike leaving a full week between posts, but unfortunately, every now and again, work rears its ugly head and monopolizes my life to the point where I barely have the energy to to anything other than eat between walking through the door and going to bed. I did, however, find the time to squeeze in the season premiere of Smallville last night, and despite missing out on the best part of five years' worth of plot, I was not surprised to see that a lot of what drove me away from the series is still there.

We had moments of insanely bad acting (especially the scene where Clark returns to the Watchtower, and Tom Welling cannot find a sensible way to deliver the line 'But I'm here now. what about the others, did they make it?'), comedy that wasn't funny or made any sense (I had no understanding of the 'dropping the pen' scene), and, of course, at least one moment where the ambition of the show went far beyond its ability to deliver. The moment where The Blur (euch) raises the Daily Planet globe appears to have been witnessed by about 12 people, which isn't bad for a major metropolitan city.

I was watching for the money-shot. I had heard that Darkseid was to appear in the episode, and as he is one of my favourite villains of all time, I was eager to see how he would be handled in live-action. Well, as it turns out, he was being presented as a non-sequitorial puff of smoke that bore a fleeting resemblance to the villain we know and love. Remember how for about half a second you could see the outline of the true Galactus in Fantastic Four 2: Rise of the Silver Surfer? That's how it felt to me.

It wasn't all bad. The John Schneider scene looked for a moment like it was going to a terrible waste of potential, but turned into something quite beautiful and moving. The shadow of Michael Rosenbaum enhanced the episode rather than making him noticeable by his absence (although the fake clone Lex needed far fewer cliches to go along with the effectiveness of his corrupted Lex visual). And the introduction of the Superman, suit, something I wasn't expecting, was very nicely handled, and I like the way that the final shot set the concept of Superman as a prize for Clark at the end of the season, as well as a reward to viewers for ten years of support.

I think I'll do my best to keep up for this series. I'm going to be interested in how Apokolips is handled in live-action, and the return of the Justice Society is going to be more than enough to keep my inner geek satisfied.

**WARNING!**TENUOUS LINK ALERT**THERE WILL BE A TENUOUS LINK IN THE NEXT PARAGRAPH**

Talking of my inner geek, on thing he has not been satisfied with is today's review issue for the World of Superman, JLA Classified #49.

To Live In Hearts We Leave Behind

Writer: Andrew Kreisberg
Pencils: Paulo Siqueira
Inks: Amilton Santos
Colors: Allen Passalaqua
Letters: Jared K Fletcher
Cover: Siqueira with Passalaqua
Associate Editor: Tom Palmer Jr
Editor: Mike Carlin
Cover Date: Late February 2008
Release Date: 26/12/2007

An insectoid alien race called the Locusta has laid claim to Earth's solar system. The JLA convene on Mars to mount a defence against the invaders. As the JLA engage the Locusta, the Earth waits with baited breath. Linda Park presents news coverage, whilst other people close to the various members of the JLA anxiously await news. Eventually, the Locusta are defeated, the League reunites with their loved ones, and the Earth celebrates.

Whilst this occurs, Lois Lane arrives at Wayne Manor for a pre-arranged interview with Bruce Wayne. Finding that Bruce as been unexpectedly called away on business, she takes tea with Alfred whilst the two wait for news of the invasion.

Yes, it's a short synopsis. Not a lot actually happens in this issue. The JLA beat up some armored crab-aliens on Mars whilst everyone gets nervous on Earth. Lois and Alfred have a not-very-revealing talk. If you're after dense plotting, then you're better off looking at another comic. What there is in this issue is atmosphere, oodles of it. There's a real sense that the people of Earth are genuinely worried about the impending Locusta invasion. Linda West's broadcasts are suggested to be the kind of broadcast to bring the nation together, whilst Jimmy and Lois exchange terse, personal admittances of fear on their Blackberries. Compounding this is the fact that none of the combat on Mars has any dialogue, narration or sound-effects. Although the reader is privy to the action, they are not a part of the League's actions. We are as much in the dark as to how the battle is progressing as Earth is. I'd like to think that the League's triumph here is what gives the public the strength to support future moves against alien attackers, such as the 'Earth To Invaders: Drop Dead' response in Invasion #1.

Lois and Alfred's conversation is both interesting and unrevealing. There's a nice underlying element of dramatic irony in that the reader knows that both parties are concerned for heroes on Mars, but that neither is aware of the other's connections. Unfortunately, this is as far as it goes, and what we get on the page is several pages of small talk that doesn't really make for an interesting read.

I would normally be finishing my review here, summing up the issue as a fairly inoffensive but inconsequential fill-in issue of a title heading towards its cancellation 6 issues later. But unfortunately, I have to address one piffling little concern, namely the fact that the continuityJLA seen fighting on Mars is clearly, thanks to the presence of John Stewart and the predilection of JLA: Classified to use this version of the team, the post-Obsidian Age incarnation of the Big 7 League. The second is the relationship of Wally West and Linda Park, who first appeared in 1989. The third is the awkwardness between Lois and Superman, and the fact that Lois is not romantically involved with Clark, and doesn't know his secret identity. The three elements cannot co-exist. Most notably, John Stewart is only a true member of the JLA following the Obsidian Age, many years after the League's founding, and long after Lois and Clark/Superman are an item and open about Clark's identity.

Putting this issue in this position in the blog is a difficult choice, and doing so requires a pinch of salt. From the Lois point of view, her relationship is entirely with Superman. There is no mention of Clark at all in the issue, and the conclusion is her hugging Superman. Therefore, it can be assumed that Clark is only 'the guy that scooped her' at this point in time. This issue cannot be concurrent with the post-Man of Steel issues, as that version of the League was the infamous International version. Therefore, this League is more than likely a one-off permutation of the Satellite era that just so happens to resemble the later version. Of course, you have to ignore the fact that John Stewart is an icon on Earth when he is far more likely a very green, rookie Lantern, and the fact that Wally West isn't even the Flash yet, nor has he met Linda Park. But in the context of Superman, these elements can be brushed over. Well, I have.

Have you read this issue? What are your theories concerning the placing of this issue? Do you even care? Please let me know in the comments below.

The Geeky Bits: The title is a quote from Hallowed Ground by Thomas Campbell.

Andrew Kreisberg is a writer whose main claim to fame outside of comics was an episode of The Simpsons called Barting Over. His most noteable run on comics was replacing Judd Winick on Green Arrow/Black Canary, which he wrote for 15 issues, and a series called Hellen Killer, which saw Helen Keller become bodyguard to the President of the USA.

Paulo Siqueira is an artist whose work includes runs on Birds of Prey, Anti-Venom: New Ways To Live, and the 2007 Black Canary mini-series.

Next on World of Superman: We get back to the core series of this era, as we examine Man of Steel #5. Hopefully just in time for the first birthday of this blog.

JLA Incarnations #3

2010-09-19T23:13:00.000+01:00

So, we'll pass right by my last post, which inflated a minor mistake into an entire blog entry, before making a huge error at the end of the article. Thanks to Michael Bradley for catching that one for me in the comments!

I'd also like to return a shout-out to Kevin Cushing of the Geoff Johns Podcast, who read out an e-mail of mine on his second episode and plugged the blog a little. The Geoff Johns Podcast is a new podcast looking at the work of Geoff Johns. In a few episodes time, the podcast will alternate between the current month's worth of Geoff Johns work, and the same month 11 years ago (starting at the beginning of Johns' writing career), but for now the podcast is playing catchup with current titles and storylines to provide context for future episodes. I've really enjoyed the first two episodes, even with the second episode being a Brightest Day catchup (not a fan of Brightest Day, which seems to be heading towards Countdown standards as opposed to 52 standards). I hope you'll be able to find some time to catch this podcast, as once the 'historical' episodes get underway I think Kevin will be covering some really interesting titles.

Anyway, it'll be a very long time before we cover any Geoff Johns work here at the World of Superman. Today, we'll be looking at John Ostrander. Please open your issues to page 1.

Like A Tombstone In The Sky

Writer: John Ostrander
Penciller: Val Semeiks
Inker: Prentis Rollins
Colorist: John Kalisz
Separations: Heroic Age
Letterer: Ken Lopez
Assistant Editor: Steve Wacker
Editor: Dan Raspler
Cover Artist: Val Semeiks, Prentis Rollins, John Kalisz
Cover Date: September 2001
Release Date: 11/07/2001

Having been established for some time, the Justice League outgrows its original headquarters and builds itself a satellite headquarters in orbit around the Earth. Green Arrow resents the symbolism of the League looking down upon the Earth, and concerns over the 'sitting duck' nature of the satellite. Superman tries to address his concerns, telling him that only the League know that the satellite is there. However, Superman is wrong, as Lex Luthor gains positive confirmation that the satellite exists. He draws his plans against the League.

In the next few weeks, a new terrorist organisation known as Kobra makes itself known when an all-out attack on Cheyenne Mountain is routed by the Justice League. WLEX reporter Tully Reed presents footage of the attack, which is seen by Lex, who makes contact with the head of Kobra and reveals the existence and location of the League's satellite. Kobra plans to attack and destroy the satellite in retribution for the League destroying his mobile base of operations during the Cheyenne Mountain attack.

Green Arrow gives an inflammatory performance during an interview with Tully Reed, criticising the League for getting above its station and not doing enough for social issues. Hawkman takes offence at Arrow's comments, saying that the interview has jeopardised the League's UN backing and funding. He calls for the League to censure Green Arrow, but before they can do so, Arrow quits. Green Lantern follows his friend, and two talk. Green Arrow is having a mid-life crisis, and wonders if he needs the League as much as it needs him. Their conversation is interrupted by an emergency call from Black Canary, who is alone on the satellite and has detected a horde of Kobra spaceships heading towards her. The satellite is boarded and although Canary fights hard, she is overwhelmed by sheer force of numbers, and is captured by Kobra. As the the heroes prepare to rescue Canary, Atom tells the League to rendezvous at LexCorp.

The League confronts Luthor, who protests his innocence, claiming that Kobra stole LexCorp equipment to mount his raid on the satellite. He then turns on a screen broadcasting Kobra's message to the world - a trussed up Black Canary and an ultimatum for the League to surrender to him. Although they doubt Luthor's innocence, the League realises that Kobra has laid a trap for them. They decide to distract Kobra, and Green Arrow teleports to the satellite to be that distraction. Taking out the first few guards, he fires an arrow into a control panel before announcing his presence to Kobra and drawing his troops. Alone in the control room, the arrow starts to shape-shift - it was really a disguised Martian Manhunter.

Green Arrow is quickly captured, and is beaten and brought to Kobra. Green Arrow taunts his captor, telling him that Martian Manhunter has already disabled his traps and bombs. The League then burst in to confront Kobra, whilst out in space, Superman, Green Lantern and Firestorm take care of the spaceships. With the Kobra troops defeated, the League search for Kobra himself, but find that he has managed to escape. However, they find the badly beaten body of Green Arrow, and transport him to a government hospital for him to receive treatment. Recovering in bed, Arrow decides not to rejoin the League, although Atom tells him that he is family and will always be welcome.

There's not a huge amount to say about this issue from a Superman point of view. He is listed on the opening splash page as a reserve member, a status he holds with League pretty much until the Watchtower era starts in JLA #1. There's a good moment where Green Arrow is freaking out with the League's self-appointed protectorshipbenevolance and humanity shines through. Green Arrow's response, a semi-mocking 'You're not the same as other people', speaks volumes about how he views Superman.

Although Superman doesn't really contribute to the rest of the plot, he does get to use his powers against Kobra a couple of times. These are nicely rendered by Val Semeiks, who really gives some panache to the battle scenes in the book. I particularly like the splash page where Superman, Green Lantern and Firestorm take apart the Kobra spaceships, especially the bits where Firestorm turns the ships into stone. Semeiks does a great job with the issue, bringing a real sense of unease to Kobra, especially his temple.

The issue opens with the construction of the iconic Justice League satellite, then jumps forward in time with the caption 'Some time later...' on page 8. This leap in time covers the most notable incident to occur on the JL satellite, the rape of Sue Dibney by Doctor Light and the mind-wiping of both Light and Batman. Although not specifically stated in this issue, the League's actions in the aftermath of the assault is the trigger for Green Arrow's feelings towards the League and his actions in this issue.

There are a few continuity errors in this issue. Luthor is shown with his kryptonite ring, an item he wouldn't acquire until Superman #2, a year or so down the line. He's also pictured in his post-Underworld Unleashed body, taller, slimmer and more well-built than his original Man Of Steel body, which was shorter and stockier. Luthor should also have some red, receding hair, and I do get a little irritated when the Luthor from the Man of Steel era is rendered as fully bald, as one of the nice touches throughout the original miniseries was how Luthor gradually lost his hair across his appearances. In a wider DC sense, Ollie and Diana were residents of Star City at this time, not Seattle.

The Geeky Bits: On the topic of Superman and the JLA, around the time of this issue, three Justice League of America story-arcs from the Silver Age featuring Superman as a member/reserve member can be definitively said to have occurred in the Post-Crisis history. The first, issues 96-98 from 1972, contains the original appearance of Starbreaker, who would return in Justice League America #62-65 (1992), Adam Strange: Planet Heist (2005) and Justice League of America #29-34 (2005). The second is issues 120 and 121 from 1975, which featured the marriage of Adam Strange and Alanna. The last, issues 185-187 (1981) show Superman's first time on Apokolips and his first encounter with Darkseid. This story is important, as during the Legends crossover, Superman exhibits knowledge of Darkseid that he would otherwise not have had the opportunity to gain.

Next on World of Superman: I really don't want to do this, but I'm going to have to unleash the continuity-challenged JLA: Classified #49 upon you all. Put on your finest continuity cop uniforms, and meet me back here in a few days time.

World's Finest #6. Or not, as the case may be.

2010-09-15T21:29:00.001+01:00

A few hours before getting home and sitting down to write this, a tweet from bleedingcool caught my eye. It was announcing a new article, entitled Why Do People Hate Azazal Anyway - Blast From The Past By Paul O'Brien. Now, the article was basically an excuse to reprint one of Paul's best ever review from the sadly offline thexaxis.com (now incorporated into housetoastonish.com), blasting Chuck Austen's The Draco storyline from a few years back, but it did get my brain's nostalgia centre a-buzzin'.

The X-Axis was a review site that ran from 1999 to 2006 before the regular updates shifted to a blog format, before its current incarnation. Written by British X-Men fan Paul O'Brien, it set itself the not-so-modest task of reviewing, in full, every X-Book that was released on a weekly basis, as well as dives into the history of the X-Men. It was a tremendously fun site. I don't remember how I discovered it, but once I did I was hooked, looking forward to its weekly updates with glee. One of its many strengths was Paul's ability to puncture pomposity and pretension whilst making you laugh and despair at the state of Marvel comics (but only a little bit), which considering he was looking at the X-Men books, he was able to do on a regular basis. To this day, I can only look at a week when Marvel backends an entire line of books or a ridiculous amount of crossover titles into one release and think of Paul's many tirades against such practices.

I miss the X-Axis. Reading Paul's brilliant one-line decimation of the entire Draco storyline makes me want to go back and randomly dip into his previous reviews. But I can't, as the site has long-since expired. Thankfully this Saturday is a podcast Saturday for the House to Astonish team, and when I get home from work there will be another episode of House to Astonish waiting for me in my itunes. If you haven't already listened to this great podcast, go on and give it a try. I think you'll like it.

And here's what you won't like. I made a mistake and was trying to force World's Finest #6 into the Man of Steel timeline like a round peg into a four-dimensional hole.

Confused? Not as much as I am!

Here's the rundown of the situation. World's Finest takes as its conceit the fact that each issue takes place a year apart, on the anniversary of Harrison Grey's death, with the time just after the first meeting of Superman and Batman in Man of Steel #3 as its starting point. Man of Steel covers six years in Superman's life, from his public debut to the discovery of his origins, and my eagerness to chronicle this era of Superman's history led me to... well... be lazy. As with each issue of World's Finest, #6 is subtitled 'Year Six', and knowing that Man of Steel #6 effectively concluded the sixth year of Superman's career, I quickly filed this issue away under pre Man of Steel #5-6 (I have reason to conclude that a sizeable gap exists between Man of Steel #4 and 5 - just take a look at Luthor's hairline! - and tend to view the final two parts of the series as being almost continuous.).

Of course, several months after my poor piece of filing, I come to read the issue for the first time in a few years. And stuff just doesn't add up. How can Batman and Superman know each other's civilian identities and openly display this knowledge before Adventures of Superman #440? What about Mr Mxyptlk? Superman seems awfully familiar with his modus operandi, despite the fact that they have yet to meet. The Daily Planet newsroom seems awfully familiar if you were reading comics in 1988 (look, there's Allie), but seems like avery different place to the newsroom we see in Man of Steel #5.

I could have attempted to write a lovely snarky review pointing out the cockups in continuity, but the error is mine. Six years on from the first meeting of Superman and Batman (there is no hard evidence to suggest how much time has passed between Man of Steel #3 and World's Finest #1) puts us at least several months after Man of Steel #6, and with the vagiaries of comic book dating, this issue fits in very nicely post Adventures #440, more than likely between Action Comics #600 and the start of the Return to Krypton storyline that started in ~~Action #601~~ Superman #18.

So, my apologies for my mistake and for the wall of text that comprised this post.

Next of World of Superman: We get back on track and check up with Lex Luthor's first attack against the Justice League in Justice League: Incarnations #3

World's Finest #5

2010-09-13T23:53:00.001+01:00

Ok, I got back to this issue and got some panel scans uploaded, as well as fixing the unexpected truncated synopsis - sorry, recap fans!

At the back end of last week, the final episode of my stint on Amazing Spider-Man Classics went live. A few hours beforehand I strapped on the 'phones and mic and recorded my final contribution, almost two months to the day after the first attempt at recording. With the news that the hosts of the podcast are going to change their recording schedules - apparently, recording a podcast for 7 hours straight, the equivalent of a working day, is pretty hard even if it's not the middle of the night - this makes me the longest guest star on ASMC. Oh yeah, I am amazing!

In other news, I finally got to see Scott Pilgrim vs The World a couple of nights ago. Here in the UK, the film's release came a couple of weeks after the US release, and I've been waiting for my work schedule to allow me a proper night out before I went to see it. I absolutely loved it. I've only read the first three volumes of the series, but what I say adapted on the screen had the tone and feel of the books, and was far funnier than I expected it to be. The only moment that took me out of the film as Aubrey Plaza's portrayal of Julie, which just didn't feel like it fitted with the rest of the film. Everything else was absolutely brilliant, but props have to go to Brandon Routh, who made Todd so wonderful to watch. his delivery of the 'Tell it to the cleaning lady on Monday' speech was worth the price of the ticket alone. What I really enjoyed was that the theatre was mostly full, with quite a few people who I would guess had never read or heard of the original books, and who thoroughly enjoyed theirselves. It's nice for this geek to watch other people enjoy one of his loves, especially when it's one that doesn't occupy a space in the national consciousness like Superman, Batman or Spider-man does.

However, as great as Scott Pilgrim vs The World was, it had no Superman or Batgirl in it. I wonder what does... oh yes! This!

No scans as of yet, it's rather late for me to start scanning stuff in. I hope to get back to this later this week and pop a few in, in particular the panel where Superman and Batgirl start to fly.

A Woman's Work

Words: Karl Kesel
Pencils: Dave Taylor & Tom Morgan
Inks: Robert Campanella
Color/Separator: Alex Sinclair
Letters: Clem Robins
Associate Editor: Joseph Illidge
Editor: Darren Vincenzo
Special Thanks to Barry Kitson and Peter Doherty
Cover Artists: Dave Taylor & Robert Campanella
Cover Date: August 1999
Release Date: 16/06/1999

Six Years Ago. Two burglars attempt to break into the Gotham Public Library, but are stopped by the appearance of Batgirl. The crooks attempt to escape, but are caught by Superman. Batgirl acts nervously around Superman, until he explains that he is not timing her, and that he is not in Gotham on a case but on personal business. Batgirl unmasks the criminals, telling Superman that they are from Metropolis and affiliated with The 100. Surprised, Superman accepts Batgirl's offer to team up and work out what The 100 wants in Gotham.

In an abandoned warehouse, The 100 attempt to recruit a Gotham mobster to their organisation. The meeting is interrupted when Thorn comes crashing through a window on a motorbike. She takes out several of the goons, but one manages to whack her with a wooden plank, knocking her out.

Batgirl introduces Superman to Commissioner Gordon, informing Gordon that they will be working together. Batgirl leads Superman to the car belonging to the crooks, which she had disabled before tackling them. Searching the interior, she discovers that Batman has beaten them to the evidence. Following his notes, Batgirl prepares to ride her motorbike to the location, when Superman decides to try a different way of travelling. Grasping her, he lifts her into the sky. As they fly, Superman asks why someone as bright and upbeat as Batgirl would emulate Batman. Batgirl explains that for all of his darkness, she feels that he is the only one in Gotham who can see 'the light in the distance'.

As The 100 tie Thorn to a chair, she comes too and escapes. Giving chase, the crooks are surprised when the lights go out. In the darkness, something attacks them. The leader manages to escape, getting to his car. Turning on the lights, he is shocked to see Batman in front of him, crashing his car. Crawling from the wreckage, he is confronted by Thorn, whose lust for vengeance is tempered by the intervention of Batman. Superman and Batgirl arrive, with Batgirl wondering what The 100 wanted at the library. The leader confesses all - The 100 intended to plant evidence showing that Barbara Gordon had embezzled library funds, thus giving them leverage over Commissioner Gordon. To protect themselves, The 100 kidnapped the library's accountant, intending to kill her and place Barbara as the number one suspect. Superman takes Batgirl to the accountant's house whilst Thorn takes her leave of Gotham. At his house, the accountant answers his door to Barbara Gordon. Suddenly, Batgirl attacks, revealing Gordon as an imposter, who is quickly apprehended.

After the events of the night, Batman and Superman meet on the skyline of Gotham. Superman tells Batman that Batgirl is going well and doesn't need more training. Although Superman's advice is unsolicited, Batman values what is said, surprising Superman. Batman then confesses that he never thought that someone as dark and tortured as Thorn could have come out of Metropolis. Referencing Thorn's past, Superman wonders if there is a similar tragedy in Batman's past. Although he doesn't want to talk about it, Batman suggests that one day he will do.

In theory, this story should work. We're far enough into Batman and Superman's relationship to start to challenge what each character thinks they know of each other, and their preconceptions of each others cities, having only experienced the extremes in previous stories, is a good place to start. Starting to introduce the extended families (if Thorn can be considered to be part of Superman's extended family) also works as well. We're also working towards a softening of Batman, as opposed to a hardening of Superman. The problem is that all of these elements are filtered through the plot line of Thorn and The 100, a minor and obscure supporting character and criminal organisation from Metropolis.

So, the reason why this review is up a little later than expected is because I dived into this issue thinking I knew who Thorn was. As it turns out, she's someone completely different to who I was expecting her to be, having anticipated the Rose and Thorn version of the character. And once I worked out who she actually was, I realised that it didn't really matter to the issue. There are plenty of subtleties to Thorn's character, but in terms of this story the important thing is that she is a darker, Batman-esque character originating from Metropolis, in a move to help blur the lines between Batman and Superman's worlds. Unfortunately, contrasting her with Batgirl, a far more established and recognisable character in the Batman family, only serves to highlight Thorn's obscurity.

The final scene is probably the most successful part of the issue. For me, it's the first time Superman and Batman approach each other not only as equals, but as colleagues, not competing with each other or trying to prove a point. It feels like their modern relationship, with grudging respect for each other but each being their own superhero. Most notable is Batman's not-quite-a-refusal to talk about his personal history. Superman's gentle, respectful probing into his past elicits the response the one day Batman will tell him about his past. For Batman to be in a position where he considers revealing his most personal secret highlights how far the two heroes have come since their combative first meetings.

The Geeky Bits: I honestly can't remember when Thorn next makes an appearance, and considering my difficulties in identifying which Thorn I am reading, I don't think knowing her next appearance would do me much good! This version of Thorn isn't the schizophrenic Golden-Age-wife-to-Alan-Scott-and-mother-to-Obsidian-and-Jade character, but the schizophrenic Bronze-Age-anti-hero. So, I hope that makes things clear.

Next on World of Superman: It's our final visit to World's Finest for some time, as Batman and Superman take on Mr Mxyptlk, and continuity takes a beating.