Review: Super Sons #6

Super Sons #6 came out last week and was just an absolute delight of a book. I have been loving this fast-paced, fun-loving look at the DCU through the eyes of these young heroes since its inception. And I have also loved how the differences between the sons, the down-to-Earth Jon Kent and the cynical assassin Damian Wayne, has been a nice catalyst for the stories. I think we definitely have seen the two boys rub off on each other in a nice way. And, of course, the frenemy aspect of their relationship has been tussle-filled blast.

Writer Peter Tomasi does his typical great job of showcasing the personalities of the two boys, with those differences seeping in at the edges. Throughout this book, Damian has come on as something of a bully, telling Jon he is doing things wrong. And we have seen Jon, at times, try to adopt some of Damian's ways. Here, we see some of that subtle bullying again. At times, I wonder why Jon would hang with Damian, unless he thinks Robin is 'cool and edgy' or is just desperate to share the super-powering side of his life with a peer. My hope, based on the cliffhanger, is that Jon will rub off a bit on Damian for once.

Jorge Jimenez's art has sizzled since issue #1 and that doesn't change here. He so effortlessly shows emotion, warping anatomy slightly to sell the feeling. When Jon is happy, you just see him exploding off the screen with an impossibly huge smile. But it his take on the Titans that grabbed me here. Great stuff.

On to the book!

We open with a nice creepy scene. A bespectacled man uses clay from a dead multiverse to mold into statues. He was given the clay from another version of himself. This clay is his rebirth. And these statues won't be forgotten.

The idea of clay from a dead universe is an interesting idea, especially if it has some weird properties. And the words rebirth and forgotten are so prominently emphasized. There definitely is some meta-comic stuff happening here. This is the Rebirth DCU. And these is the rebirth of these characters. (I'll touch on the forgotten piece in a bit.)

Who is this man? A comic writer from Earth Prime? A pre-Crisis villain now making his first appearance? I would say The Puppet Master, but he's Marvel.

With the shadowy villain intro out of the way, we get back to the kids.

Last issue, the Kents and the Waynes decided to let the kids adventure together, a way to grow up a bit. We get a perfectly brilliant scene of Lois packing Jon some snacks in a paper bag and telling him to be home by 10PM.

As Superboy, he scampers onto the Metropolis rooftops to meet Robin. You just see how much of a jerk, how dismissive Damian is. He tells Jon to not call their fighting clothes a costume. It is a uniform. And he puts his finger on Jon's mouth, shushing him. That is just so haughty.

I just think that Jon would be torn. Robin is definitely 'Batman cool'. But who would want to hang out with someone who belittles you like this.

Thankfully, Jon shows some backbone and says if they are patrolling in Metropolis that they will patrol the super-way.

And so we get a nice montage of the two stopping a crook, saving a cat, and even chastising a jay walker (although Robin gets a bit uppity).

Is there anything more classic Superman than saving a cat from a tree? And Damian's reaction in the back is priceless.

The night of patrolling nears its close. And then, the Titans arrive to pick up Damian.

It is clear that Damian is the leader of this group as they take all their orders from him.

One thing I thought was missing from this scene was that Jon didn't even blink. I would have liked to see him a little bit starstruck at seeing a bunch of new heroes arrive. Or at least excited. He is oddly muted here.

I love Jimenez's take on the Titans, especially his Kory. She is fantastic!

The Titans have been trailing some villain. There is a lot of comic book jargon about energy signatures and chemoreceptors. But the trail seems to have gone cold.

Damian barely says goodbye to Jon, just getting on the ship and taking off. This is Titans business.

Seriously, this is High School bullying here. This is Damian shaming Jon, or shunning him. Letting him know there was a party but Superboy isn't invited. You can see how hurt Jon is. And that just isn't cool.

It was here that I wondered why Jon would want to team up again.

Back home, the spurned Jon sulks in front of the television with snacks. Lois thanks him for coming home on time.

I love that middle panel where Lois is just chuffed that Jon helped people. She is soooooo happy and proud! But off she goes to work.

It is funny that she can't sense how upset he is.

The Titans do end up finding the villains they are tracking. They battle Atom Master, the Faceless Hunter of Saturn, and the Time Lord.

We see the Titans get taken out pretty easily. I liked this sequence where the Time Lord ages to batarangs to rust as they fly.

Hmmm, a dead multiverse clay being used to sculpt figures who won't be forgotten? A Atom Master and Faceless Hunter sighting? You know who we are dealing with ...

The Forgotten Villains!

I doubt the Enchantress will be part of this. She survived the reboots. But will we see Kraklow? Or Mr. Poseidon too??

Anyways, when you fight someone who can control time and can age iron, they can age you too.

Jon is called to the Metropolis balcony and sees the defeated Titans and a rather aged Robin.

Nice cliffhanger. How did Damian get them onto the plane and escape the villains? Why didn't Time Lord just kill them? Where is the plane? Quibbling questions but ones I hope will be answered.

But most of all, maybe Damian will learn that he could use Jon around when fighting villains.

How could I not give a book where Superboy saves a cat from a tree and Lois claps with joy a high grade. That said, the entire book reads wonderful and the art just sizzles!

Overall grade: B+