Review: Batman/Superman World's Finest #36

Batman/Superman World's Finest #36 came out this week and was a fun middle chapter in this undersea adventure. The Floronic Man has used some hallucinogenic spores to enrage the people of Tritonis, leading that city to think the city of Poseidonis is using it to weaken the city for takeover.

The overall plot, as well as Floronic Man's motivations, are pretty thin. I think that is almost an afterthought so that writer Mark Waid can tell the stories he really wants. What if Aquaman's interactions with the surface world weakened his political power in Atlantis? What if Superman was reunited with Lori Lemaris? There are a lot of Silver Age reverberations in this one. The most obvious one is how big a pill Lori's husband Ronal is. He is bit of a domineering jerk, ready to throw down the gauntlet and start a war.

But for an old-school Superman fan like me, I always get joy out of seeing Superman and Lori interact. Lori is a married woman making Superman quite the Casanova here. Where does this fall in continuity? It is obviously pre-proposal to Lois. It seems to be post-Swamp Thing Anatomy Lesson? Hmmm ...

As for the art, Adrian Gutierrez seems to be having a ton of fun here. We see Atlantean armor. We see battle scenes. We see botanical bodies. He even continues to use words as interesting art flourishes. I love this cover by Dan Mora with Swamp Thing's face formed out of the branches/seaweed. 

Overall, a fun issue with a great cliffhanger. The foundation of the story is sort of thin but the plots built on it are great.

On to the book.

Last issue ended with Batman and Robin learning that the Floronic Man was behind the madness plague. 

It turns out that this Floronic Man has the ability to jump into The Green and regrow his body like Swamp Thing can. I don't think this has always been one of his powers. He has always seemed tethered to his human origins, maybe in touch with The Green but not immersed in it.

Still, I do like Gutierrez' use of 'be seeing you' as the Floronic Man jumps out of his current form. Gutierrez really uses words and lines and even 'ha ha ha' laughs as good effects in his art.

And kudos to Waid and Gutierrez for giving us a recap of the villain's origin. 

Back in the day, recaps like these were how you learned about comic history. Yes, currently you can just hit the internet. But I like it included in the story-telling. Robin is learning about this villain so we should too. Plus with all the relaunches and reboots who knows what elements are still canon or not. 

But it is the sort of subplots in this story that intrigue me to most.

The people of Atlantis don't know if Aquaman is fit to be king given how much time he spends away from the place. They want a sitting monarch and they want him leading them into this war.

Aquaman gives a pretty good inspirational speech here saying the citizens shouldn't give in to fear and rage.

Comics work best when art and words complement. We see the Atlanteans, clearly hanging on Aquaman's words, wide-eyed and rapt, shows us the power of these words. Pretty slick.

And then this semi-splash of Aquaman and Mera saying they will try to de-escalate the proceedings from outside the dome. Love this 'battle-action' armor on both the them. Mera looks stunning.

The other subplot is the clearly still smoldering feelings between Superman and Lori.

Superman was captured by Ronal using Atlantean magic. Here Lori comes back to Superman because she needs him to stop Ronal's war. I do like how Supes is listening to Lori's heartbeat, perhaps hoping to sense if there are other feelings prompting this. Her speech gives him enough oomph to break the bonds. 

Superman pining for a married woman? Lori clearly still smitten ... and perhaps sick of her hothead husband. Sassy!

Waid seems to know how to get the most out of his characters as well.

Aquaman is trying to stop Ronal's attack when Superman flies in, all bluster, to add a sort of physical presence and gravitas to the situation. Alas, it is the wrong move, belittling Aquaman's authority forcing the Sea King to tell Superman to leave. It even opens up Ronal to call Aquaman a 'land walker'. 

Best intentions of Superman for sure ... but the wrong  move here. And Gutierrez uses expression so well. The consternation on Aquaman's face. The surprise on Superman for being shown the door. All adds to the moment.

Meanwhile the Caped Crusaders are still battling the Floronic Man.

The Floronic Man's motivation for this manufactured war? The vegetation is magical and could give him power. What would he do with it? It feels like an almost idea. I don't quite know if this is baked enough for me to get on board. Maybe we'll hear more later.

Meanwhile, Superman and Lori's feelings continue to simmer ... her bubbling to the surface! Their hands touch!

Double sassy!

I am all about Lois. But I do love the Superman/Lori romance.

Batman has brought in the big guns. Swamp Thing shows up to face off against the Floronic Man. 

But saying the Floronic Man disturbs the Green. How connected is he. 

And Swamp Thing knowing Floronic Man this well. Definitely makes this post-Moore.

Again, the Floronic Man shows that power to jump and tries to grow himself into Swamp Thing's body. I suppose this could become a game of multiple body jumping and growing.

But if you want a 'boom' moment, check out the last page.

Superman full on kissing Lori!

WHOA!

For me, this is a better cliffhanger than any sort battle standoff. 

Surely, this is going to enflame Ronal more. And this brief affair ... does it make sense for Superman and Lori? Or could they be having their emotions tampered with by some other Floronic Man fungus?

This was fun for sure. The subplots really grabbed me more than the villain's plot. After all, Floronic Man wanting vegetation and creating this fake war seems somewhat weak. Couldn't he just grab some? Grow a body out them? Isn't this war too complex.

Still, Aquaman's struggles at home and Superman and Lori K-I-S-S-I-N-G makes it all worth it. The art is pretty slick too.

Overall grade: B+