Review: Superman The Stranger #1

Superman The Stranger #1 came out last week, the first issue of a mini-series written and drawn by Wes Craig. This is my first major work by Craig so I was interested in seeing where he would go with this Superman in the 30's angle. 

I have to say I am a little bit up in the air right now. This first issue had high points and low points. But I wonder if this is going to be a politically preachy book and that always feels more like homework than fun. 

It is clear that Craig is setting up this Superman as a populist hero, looking out for the little people. This is a Superman without the Kents, without knowledge of Krypton, whose powers are slowly growing. He wants to do good; he wants to help people. Not having the Kents around is an interesting wrinkle because it means his ethics aren't the wisdom of Ma and Pa, it's internal.

And this harkens back to the earliest Siegel and Shuster stories where Superman was more about every day issues than intergalactic super-villains. Pick up any Chronicles and you'll read him fighting landlords, owners of unsafe mining communities, warhawk military men, abusive husbands, etc. I am not against a Superman fighting small crimes.

This comic seems to veer into a story where we will see Superman fighting bigots. And Superman fighting rich people. And Superman fighting bigoted rich people. And letting criminals go. I'll have to see where this goes. 

But it came right on the heels of the message of Absolute Superman #23, where Superman doesn't bring evil rich people to justice but instead disperses their wealth. And now here where the knife-wielding robber is the victim allowed to go free, it felt like a double-down on messaging. 

Craig's art is perfect for the story though, a mix of Fleischer Studios and Tim Sale. Really lovely stuff.

On to the issue.

Review: Absolute Superman #23

When the Absolute Universe was announced, I was unsure if it was going to be for me. The idea of a universe built on darkness and how our heroes would be impacted by that seemed to be a tough sell for me. Turns out that I am reading two of three main books in the imprint. Absolute Wonder Woman I read via trades and have enjoyed greatly. Absolute Superman I read monthly and, for the most part, I have found a very good read showing that even in a dark world Superman can rise above and inspire.

Absolute Superman #23 came out this week and was another good read showing how hard it must be to be Superman in this world. Superman is tracking down Brainiac and instead runs into Toyman and has to battle that villain instead. He is tempted to cross an ethical line, perhaps a bit out of character given the prior 22 issues. We also get shown that rich men have the capability to be evil as well. 

When read back to back with Superman The Stranger #1, I worry we might be heading into 'wealth is evil' and not 'some wealthy people can be evil'. Yes, Superman in this world feels like a populist hero making sure villages and individual people are cared for. Yes, Aaron doesn't say 'wealth equals evil'. So I'll have to see how this pans out. 

The Toyman here is truly scary showing how diabolical he can be. This isn't Schott in a striped suit with giant tops. This is a madman.

Juan Ferreyra's art remains top notch. Love his battle sequences. He amps up the terror in the scary stuff nicely. And we even get a Krypton flashback. Love his take on the landscape and Lara.

On to the book.

Review: Supergirl Survive #4

Supergirl Survive #4 came out this week and was, for me, the strongest issue of the story so far. As this story of a young Kara protecting a younger Kal while trying to stay ahead of kidnappers and evil scientists has unfolded, I have found myself more and more enamored of this young Supergirl. She exhibits all the things I love in the Supergirl character. Loving, loyal, and sweet when she needs to be. Determined, intelligent, and fierce when the time is right. All rolled together.

The beginning of the title seemed a little too fussy for me with nonlinear storytelling that didn't add much. But now that we are moving forward with the story, it has just clicked more.

Writers Ethan Parker and Griffin Sheridan show us this guardian Kara teaching Kal how to use his burgeoning powers on a yellow sun planet. She really is at times big sister and at times mother figure. It is completely sweet. 

But they keep the adventure and journey to Earth moving forward by introducing a new story element that made me smile, Brainiac 5. For long time Supergirl fans, Brainy is a huge part of her mythos and for many (like me) he is who she should be romantically linked to. Seeing this version of Brainy, a bit more cuddly version of the classic Querl, made this endearing. Add a few more Easter Eggs and you get a very good book.

Rod Reis continues to stun me on the book with his art. There is this sort of painterly/colored pencil feel to the book that soften it a bit, adding to the emotional tone here. He draws a young Kal perfectly, something which not all comic artists can do. 

We even get a solid cliffhanger to lead us into the next issue.

I am really enjoying this! On to the details.

DC Comics November 2026 Solicits

The November DC solicits were released recently and this seems like a bit of a quieter month. The Supergirl books sound intriguing albeit with the same sort of possible concerns I have had before. But overall the Super-books have really been clicking and this month sounds just as good, especially what Mark Waid is doing in Action. 

Here is a link to look at all the books coming out:
https://aiptcomics.com/2026/08/21/full-november-2026-dc-comics-solicitations/

And now onto the books.

SUPERGIRL #19
Written by SOPHIE CAMPBELL
Art and cover by SOPHIE CAMPBELL
Variant covers by MIGUEL MERCADO, KAREN S. DARBOE, and CHUMA HILL
Watchmen 40th Anniversary variant by GERALD PAREL

Kara Zor-El’s exposure to gold Kryptonite has left her without superpowers but not without super friends. The recently reborn Matrix and gloriously goth Nightflame get into a fight to prove themselves worthy of the Supergirl mantle, but another of Kara’s Super Force might surprise everyone. Meanwhile, Kara’s not just going to sit on the sidelines: She’s reenrolling at Stanhope! But will she make it past orientation with Reactron still on the loose?

One of my concerns with this book is how it is becoming a team book and not a Supergirl book. We have Super Force now and they are everywhere. Now in this solicit we find out that Kara is powerless in her own book. The cover shows Nightflame, Matrix, and ThunderGirl in prominent action poses. I'll have to see how all this pans out but I want Supergirl to be front and center.

As a fan of Matrix Supergirl I am excited to see what Sophie Campbell has in mind. And Kara going to Stanhope is cool. And Reactron! Yes! All that sounds great.

Review: Superman Father Of Tomorrow #4

Superman Father of Tomorrow #4 came out this week, pushing the plot forward and setting up an interesting final confrontation with Lex Luthor. 

We continue to learn about this world and this Jor-El. As lone survivor, he has been trying to protect Earth, not only through super-heroics but through science. He is trying to elevate towards his ideal, Krypton. What is interesting is that no one seems to be happy about it. Not his friends. Not the military. Not his enemies. That is an interesting take.

Writer Kenny Porter is showing us this sort of well-intentioned Jor-El who unfortunately seems to be opening Pandora's box with his technology. Moreover, Porter throws in a line that makes me wonder if Jor-El is even more flawed than we know right now. Porter does do a good job of broadening this Elseworld universe, giving us other versions of famous characters.

Danny Earls remains on art and continues to give us a sort of brutish look at the world. I think his art style amps up the nature of this world. This isn't a perfect utopia. His rougher style lends itself to this undercurrent that Jor-El isn't helping things.

I still don't know exactly how I feel about this book where there isn't someone to necessarily root for. 

On to details.

Review: Superman #41

Superman #41 came out this week, the next chapter in the Kingdom of Zod crossover. This is a 9-parter and this is chapter 4 so we are basically at the halfway mark. And this is quite an issue as it takes a hard ... and I mean HARD ... left turn taking this story to two places I was not expecting.

I will say that this whole arc is building off of the  Kneel Before Zod mini-series from 2 years ago. (All those issues are reviewed here at that link so feel free to dive in!) I will remind you that mini-series was supposed to be 12 issues but was cut by DC to 9, so I wonder if some of this plot was supposed to be touched on or even begun there. Also, as pointed out by friend Mart Gray, the opening pages which fill in what happened in that mini are direct lifts from that book. (Hope writer Joe Casey and artist Dan McDaid are getting some compensation.) In that book, I was surprised by how beaten down Zod was initially and how domineering Ursa was. Suffice it to say, we see that play out here.

I will also say that one of my biggest peeves about this whole story is the 'Kryptonite everywhere' aspect when it seems to have little or no impact on the action. Our Kryptonian heroes seem more irritated by being surrounded by Green K than in agony. So I decided to read this issue ignoring the Green K conundrum and I found that it reads better that way. But it seems odd that I can ignore the driving plot element. And I wonder if we will ever learn how Zod got that massive Green K meteor, altered it, covered it in intertron, and sent it on its way.

But enough backstory, Joshua Williamson and Eddy Barrows give us the best chapter of this arc. We get decent action. We get some plot progression. We get to see Superman in action. And we get two ... no three ... major developments and plot twists. I don't know if those new threads will pay off but I am more interested in them than the growing Green K stuff. 

On to the details.

KFC Supergirl Figurine

It is a shame that the Supergirl movie wasn't a bigger hit. I have gone back and forth in my mind on, trying to let the hopeful ending outshine the more dismal and murderous stuff that came before. And I will again say that Milly Alcock was great.

So why not celebrate the movie a little?

There were actually some merchandise tie-ins including a Supergirl meal at KFC! 

While there are no KFC's near me (perhaps a good thing for my health!), someone who knows my love for the character did their duty, ate some fried chicken, and sent me the toy. It finally arrived!

Not a bad little figure of Kara in her costume and wearing her duster jacket.