Review: Blackest Night: Superman #1

As an admitted old-timer, I actually appreciated the ending of Crisis on Infinite Earths where Kal-L was the ultimate hero and he and Lois achieved paradise.

So I was less than thrilled to see Kal-L reduced to an Alex Luthor dupe in Infinite Crisis. And I was even more unhappy when he died at the hands of Superboy Prime.

You can imagine my trepidation when I first learned that Kal-L was coming back as a Black Lantern. That sort of completes the descent, doesn't it? Kal-L has gone from universe saving hero to dupe to outright villain.

With these feeling in my mind, I purchased Blackest Night:Superman.

While it does further besmirch Kal-L's character, I have to say the book worked for me. I found it creepy and engrossing. The setting, the dialogue, the art, the coloring ... it all worked.

Moreover, it might be called Blackest Night:Superman but it really seems to be Blackest Night:Superman Family. Superboy and Supergirl are big players here too.



The opening pages remind of how idyllic a place Smallville is. It's a place where everyone knows each other by their first names; a place where people stroll down the sidewalk and stop to chat at the general store.

It's a place where you have can have a 'usual' at the local diner.

That sort of paradise on Earth is suddenly shattered by the blood-thirsty risen Kal-L who promptly goes on a killing spree.

We don't initially see Kal-L, getting only glimpses of his shadow as he enters a scene. And the murders are all thankfully done off screen, marked by the cold appearance of rising power levels in Kal-L's ring. It read like a body count, detached from the violence but effective in showing the reader what is going on. That works better in building up the dread of these scenes. I can imagine what that diner looks like ... it is almost better left unseen.

Kal-L's trail of bodies eventually leads to the Kent Farm where Superman and Superboy are relaxing with Ma over dinner. This scene takes place on the day of heroic mourning we have seen in Blackest Night #1 thus explaining why Superman is back.

The meal is interrupted by Kal-L who has disinterred Pa Kent and now wants some Kryptonian blood on his hands.

This is just creepy. An undead Superman standing in a graveyard with Pa's coffin in the background. It is that contrast that works in Blackest Night. To see the heroic Superman so distorted just makes me feel uneasy. It is the same feeling I got in Blackest Night #1 when the Elongated Man is spouting his goofy lines as he bashes Hawkman with a mace. That disconnect throws the reader off and makes the scene effective.

Kal-L decides to eliminate Conner first leading to a brawl in the skies above Smallville.

One thing I find interesting about the Black Lanterns is how they can register the emotional spectrum in their foes.

While being attacked, Conner is feeling a mix of fear (most likely of dying again) and will (most likely to escape and survive).

In what I think is the most powerful panel in the issue, Superman feels a whole range of emotions when he sees Conner being attacked - fear he will lose the battle and Conner, hope he will win, the will to press on, the love for his friend, and the rage of the affront of this attack. All those feelings are swirling him in as he charges into battle. It is probably what he feels before a lot of battles.

Well, if Kal-L is being dragged through the mud as a Black Lantern, I guess I shouldn't be surprised to see the Black Lantern Lois from Earth -2. What ... no pillbox hat?

The undead Lois decides to pay a visit on Ma.

Are no characters sacred?

I can only hope that when Blackest Night ends, some of these characters get the peace and respect they deserve.

It is unclear if it is the torrent of emotions that Superman was feeling or just his plain old powers that lets him get the upper hand, but he is able to briefly subdue Kal-L and rescue Conner. I like how the decaying flesh just flies off the jaw here.

Unfortunately, the Conner rescue delays Superman for a moment and allows Kal-L to escape.

Don't think that Blackest Night is going to leave Kara unscathed.

All along I have wondered if we would see a Black Lantern Zor-El. Now we know.

Poor Zor-El. He was re-introduced, killed, and reanimated as a villain in under a year! We don't see much more besides his rising although the look of fear on Kara and Alura's faces speaks volumes.

I would love to hear when the decision was made creatively to re-animate Zor-El. Was it an easy decision? Did the super-teams vote on it? When he was killed last year was it already decided he would rise?

Zor-El has been portrayed as a stand-up sort of nice guy and loving father. I hate to see him arise as villain too. But again, it is that deranged mix-up between words from a loving father coming from the murderous undead that adds to the eerie feeling of the book.

Back on Earth, Conner and Clark track Ma's heartbeat into town.

I love the contrast in their responses when they find her in the clutches of Kal-L and Lois. Clark has the will to hold back and assess the situation. Conner is enraged and want to fly right in to battle.

There is Kal-L and Lois with Pa's casket and Ma. This could get ugly.

Of course, I don't know why they wouldn't immediately splatter Ma unless there is more to these Lanterns than a body count. But it seems silly that Lois has Ma in a choke hold rather than holding Ma's still warm heart in her hands.

This is the only Blackest Night character crossover mini-series I am planning to get. I am not getting Blackest Night:Batman, Blackest Night:Titans, or Blackest Night:Wonder Woman. But if those miniseries shake up those characters as much as this issue shook up the Superman family tree ... well fans of those characters should throw the mini-series onto their pull list.

This was a thrill ride of an issue ... a sort of kick to the gut for everyone in the Superman Family. Kal-L, Lois, and Zor raised and evil! Ma threatened? Pa's body in peril?

But it is the balance of straight forward superhero action with the emotional weight of loved ones returning as murderous undead that really gives Blackest Night its punch.

We have seen how profoundly Zor's death effected Supergirl and Alura in the Supergirl book. Zor-El's rising should have as significant effect on the two of them and for some time into the future. What will they be feeling when they need to fight him?

And we saw what effect Pa's death had on Clark. We know how much Superman revered Kal-L as the original hero. How much will this battle weigh on Superman?

Add into this the setting of all this carnage is tranquil Smallville and you have a recipe for a great story.

I have praised Eddy Burrows' art in the past. When he is on, his stuff is very slick. I thought this issue showcased his style nicely. This wasn't as strong as Action Comics #876, the Ursa knife fight issue, but it was still fantastic.

And I feel I need to praise colorist Rod Reis for his use of shadows and grays as well as the negative images of the emotional spectrum. The color really added to the tone of the issue.

It all worked enough to push my concerns about the sullying of Kal-L into the back of my mind a little bit. And that says something.

Overall grade: A