Review: Action Comics #1083

Action Comics #1083 came out this week, the second part of John Ridley's arc during the Superman Superstars era of the title. Last issue showed a sort of bleak world where both our heroes and our villains were downtrodden and dreary. I wondered if something might be manipulating people's feelings.

In this issue, Ridley gives us the answer. I don't know if it quite worked for me but this is a middle chapter so maybe it will all work out in the end. Maybe I was thinking of something more innovative. I will say that the cause of the villains hopelessness and the cause for Superman's hopelessness are different which gives this a somewhat interesting twist. But in the end, it raises another concerning question, one I talk about at the end of this review.

Inaki Miranda stays on art and is solid. I like how beefy he makes Superman, a physical presence. There is a nice action-filled 2 page spread near the end that is quite brilliant. I like the way he draws Scorch as well. 

But this issue overall fell just a little flat with that big plot reveal. 

On to the specifics.

Last issue ended with Clark being beaten up by some thugs armed with energized batons. 

He wakes up in the Batcave. Bruce assumes the criminals were armed with red sun batons just in case Superman arrived. 

It is an interesting conversation. Bruce thinks that Clark has been asking the right questions regarding Major Disaster's recidivism. And maybe given this beatdown that Clark should step back and let other heroes dig in. I don't know if Batman saying 'give up' makes perfect character sense. Imagine if Superman told Batman to stop hunting Deadshot in case he got hurt. Wouldn't fly.

But it does give Clark this moment where he says he has to continue to move forward. You can't have a journalist give in to violence. They are truth-seekers. Might be the best moment in the book. 

Clark decides to look into the one person who died in the attack. It turns out that the person was a life coach for ex-cons. And while he didn't work with Disaster, he did work with the Atomic Skull and Scorch. There is a threadbare connection. But the cops seem to think it isn't worth investigating.

I have to agree. It seems almost lucky this guy is the one that died. Because I don't think he was singled out by Disaster in the bank robbery.

So this is a sort of deus ex machina leading Clark to the answer.

The Chief remains dour, saying it is an ugly world where ugly things happen.

The Atomic Skull also has recently returned to villainy and now has a link to this crime (albeit tenuous). So Clark goes to interview the Skull in jail.

It is hard to make a skull look sad but Miranda pulls it off here. And the Skull is sad, basically revealing that in his state, flaming skeleton and all, it is hard for him to think he can accomplish anything on a daily basis. How do you go about a normal life like that.

This might be the second best moment in the book because I actually felt Skull's hopelessness. Excellent mix of words and art to convey the emotion. 

With more work to be done, Superman juices up in the sun.

Lois reminds him that he not only carries the weight of everyone's hope, he is also carrying his own despair. That is a burden.

I don't often think about how heavy it must be for Superman to be this shining model for everyone, mostly because I think it comes naturally to him. But this is a story where an enraged Superman almost fried Disaster with heat vision.

With Skull interviewed, our hero heads to talk to Scorch, the other connection to the deceased.

And here is where we get an answer. She teleports them both to some bleak land.

Bruno Mannheim is there and explains he has some device that harvests telomeres out of people's DNA. He pays the people for this. But this removal removes their hopes and ambitions. Villains out of stir often need money and so both Disaster and Skull had this done, explaining their turn. The 'life coach' was in cahoots with Mannheim and so sent the villains there.

A telomere extraction causing hopelessness? Even for an old reader used to comic book science, this seems off. 

Scorch is in on it too. 

After a brief skirmish, Superman convinces Scorch she needs to help her friends. It isn't clear if she has been harvested or if she is just struggling in the 'real world'. But this is a solid Superman moment, convincing the villain to try again. It also shows that maybe Superman isn't hopeless.

When Mannheim realizes Scorch has turned on him, he sends out a squad of fighters who Superman mops up easily (in that 2 page spread). With the first wave gone, we end on a cliffhanger ... more fighters coming.

So I already have a problem with the reason for the villains' turn back to crime is something as silly as a 'cash for telomeres' scheme. But here is the other problem.

Superman hasn't had his telomeres removed. Neither has the police chief. But both are hopeless and angry and feel ineffective. So I can't explain away why they are acting differently than I am used to. So Superman almost frying Disaster, losing his mind about this turn, was inside him.

I don't know if that's my Superman. I suppose that maybe this story ends with him realizing he needs self-help. But I don't read Superman for that either. I need my heroes ...

Anyways, here we are.

Overall grade: C