Bullet Review: New History Of The DC Universe #3

When the New History of the DC Universe was announced, I was thrilled.

Three issues in and I am confused at best and dissatisfied at worst. 

Writer Mark Waid is working with a smorgasbord of great artists on the book. This issue has art by Dan Jurgens and Doug Manhnke, which makes sense given some of the events covered here.

This issue Waid takes us from the aftermath of the Crisis of the Infinite Earths to Final Crisis. But it seems like DC has decided that everything has happened. Like, everything. 

So in essence, this becomes a bit more like a list of events rather than a historical epic. And sometimes things don't seem to make sense. 

Let's take a look at New History of the DC Universe #3 solely from Supergirl perspective. I already talked about how in History #2, Kara's age and the very presence of COIE in a non-multiverse universe was pretty confusing.

So how do we get to the current Supergirl? And what do you do with the Matrix Supergirl adventures? 

You say they happened ... 

Review: Superman Unlimited #5

Superman Unlimited #5 came out last week and was an interesting chapter in the title. This is a mix of new plot elements, some nostalgia, and one semi-problematic new twist that I will be watching closely. Plus, I have a theory. 

I am not sure if I am excited by writer Dan Slott's Kryptonite Evermore main plot but this issue he brings in a couple of interesting kernels. A sunstone buried in the Kryptonite meteor is intriguing. It seems almost impossible to think this particular sunstone would make its way to Earth. But given the fact that a massive Kryptonite meteor covered in intertron was sent on a path to Earth makes me think this is a villain's plot. It is the sunstone element that has a potential problematic plot thread but we'll get there.

I also think that Slott is having some fun with the DC Universe bringing back a beloved vehicle for us old time readers.

Rafael Alburquerque continues to bring a muddy style to the book as well. There are some battle scenes in the Kryptonite mines of El Caldero where it seems to work best. 

On to the book.

Review: Superman #30

Superman #30 came out this week, pushing the Legion of Darkseid story forward with some important plot reveals, a possible Crisis homage, and a triple-agent double-cross that works well. 

But I am still trying to work out what exactly is happening regarding Darkseid. I thought that Darkseid wanted to die in the All In Special so that he was the 'hand Krona saw' in the Absolute Universe. Now it seems like he wants to come back and has sent his Legion to try and resurrect him. I thought it was cooler that he was sort of the primal energy of the whole universe rather than a being wanting to dominate. DC is approaching the DC KO mini-series which means Darkseid has to manifest to fight whoever wins the round robin. 

So in this issue, writer Joshua Williamson tells us about the origins of this Dark Legion and what their goals are. These aren't my Legion and, in particular, this sadistic Saturn Girl, killing with her mind and licking her chops over the nihilistic Superboy Prime is about as far away from my Imra as possible. And like last month, Prime is a delight here, dropping creator names and comic references throughout. 

Dan Mora brings the action and frenzy in this issue. The action is wild and crazy. We see the Legion pounding the good guys throughout the book. And his take on Saturn Girl is chilling. It has been a while since Mora hit the scene and I am still in awe of his stuff. 

On to the book.

Terrificon Recap #3: Walt Simonson Sketch And Other Notables

Here is my final recap of Terrificon 2025 which was absolutely tremendous. If you haven't, check out part one and part two. 

So we'll start out with this fantastic Walt Simonson 'quick sketch'.

But to understand the story behind this sketch, you need to know about Walt Simonson and his con presence. So settle in. Because if you are hoping to meet him at a con you need to know what I am going to tell you.

First off, Simonson is one of the nicest guys in the business and is just great to interact with.

Two, he sets up two lines at his table. One is only for signing comics. The other is for 'quick sketches' and he tries to do 10-15 a day. He sketches these 'quick' in real time. If you are in the sig line, you need to wait while he does them. When he runs his table, he does several people in the 'signing only line', then does a sketch, then goes back to the signing line. Then back to do a sketch and so on. So be prepared to wait.

Third, his lines are very very long because he is a legendary creator and, as said, an extremely nice guy. And those lines form early. Usually the sketch line is 15 deep in 5 minutes after the doors open because everyone runs to his table to get there. So be prepared to wait.

All this to say, fans need to be aware that if they are hoping for a Simonson sketch they need to be at the front of the line to get into the con itself and should head to his table first ... like run there. 

Also, fans should know that they might spend a big chunk of time in that line whether it is the sig or sketch line because they get long. So figure out how important meeting Simonson is and how much time you want to spend in that one line. Preparation is important. (You need to make this calculus for any popular creator at any con.)

For me, I had the luck of going to the con all three days. I avoided the Simonson table on Friday. That was my heavy lifting day, trying to set up commissions and get the bulk of signatures I wanted. 

Saturday was 'Simonson day'. With the heavy lifting done, I was ready to spend as long as I needed to in his line. (Again, it helps that I was going all three days. If you are there for one day, you might need to make a harder decision.)

I knew I wanted a sketch. I knew the way the line formed. I got in line very very early on Saturday. When the doors open, I ran to the table.

This is a long set up but I want to help con goers who don't know this. 

Back Issue Box: Action Comics #599

In Action Comics #1090, Superboy battled Raze in Will Magnus' lab. This is an Elsewhen story so there weren't any Metal Men there, just your standard robots and some samples of elements in the lab's cabinet. One of those elements was Kryptonite. The set-up led to blog friend Mart Gray asking if Magnus ever made a Kryptonite Metal Men.  As far as I know, that hasn't happened. But we got close in Action Comics #599. With all that background, how could I not review it?

We are about 15 months into John Byrne's reimagining of Superman in the DCU, a time when Action Comics became a sort of DC Comics Presents, a team-up book. That format ends next month with the anniversary #600 dropping. With  Byrne being new to the universe, I was glad that we got this team-up book letting us see his take on the Demon, Mister Miracle, the Titans, and others. Here Byrne has our hero teaming up with the Metal Men ... a little. You'll see what I mean.

There is something else even more interesting about this. Usually Byrne did writing and art. But on this issue, legend Ross Andru did the pencils. Byrne does inking of 'figures', I suppose to give the book that Byrne polish. And Keith Williams does the inking of the backgrounds. So it looks like Byrne ... sort of. You'll see what I mean.

And, as Mart asked, we get a Kryptonite Metal Man to attack Superman. On to the book.

Review: Batman/Superman World's Finest #43

Batman/Superman World's Finest #43 came out this week, the conclusion of the Bizarro storyline by Mark Waid, Adrian Gutierrez, and Sean Izaaske. This was a quick arc which embraced the Bizarro aspect of the world with backwards talk and ideas and insanity. But it also somehow veered from those humorous aspects to some serious pathos. Bizarros just want to live their lives.

Mark Waid does his usual writing dance of both revering DC's history while modernizing it. Square world? Backwards speak? A 'secret' Batcave with neon signs pointing it out? Pure Bizarro madness out of the Silver Age. But Bizarro's who are sad for becoming 'sane' because they miss their true lives? Robin learning lessons about personal freedoms? A Bizarro Krypo? Nice updates. Heck, Waid even made Bizarro talk, which often can be aggravating to me, have some internal sense. And giving us Robin as the audience's POV character worked well.

The art is a mix of usual artist Adrian Gutierrez and Sean Izaaske. Both bring the insanity and their styles are different but flow well together. They also embrace the insanity, bringing some wild images.

I don't know if this is one of the better arcs for this high-ranking title. But it was a fun diversion.

On to the details.

Plastic City Comic Con Recap: Phillip Kennedy Johnson

At the end of last month, I attended the Plastic City Comic Con in Leominster Massachusetts. I always will try to support local shows and dealers as best I can. I have been to the show before and had a great time. 

This year there was also the announcement that Phillip Kennedy Johnson would be in attendance. Johnson is a favorite of mine because of his stellar work on Superman. I met him at last year's Terrificon but a lot has happened since then! Johnson has been on Hulk, a horror book I have been reading. He has been doing a mind-bending run on Batman & Robin. He even did a fun mini-series called Hellhunters from Marvel. He is one of those creators now who I follow to whatever book he heads to because I know I will be getting quality work. When the show happened, Superman: The Book Of El had not been released. 

So I knew I'd be heading there if I could. And lucky enough I had the day off.

The con itself is a perfect small con filled with a couple of big guests, some local artists, and some comic and toy dealers. It felt like there were fewer comic dealers than I remember the last time I went but I still got a couple of buys.

What I really liked about the con was it had a whole section just for kids. Comics needs a new generation. I was thrilled there was big area dedicated to that next group of comic readers.

But the big draw for me was meeting PKJ again.