Review: Action Comics #1100

Action Comics #1100 came out last week and was a sort of turning point for all the Superman books. As a result, this jumbo issue has elements of all the Super-titles and therefore has a multiple stories from all the writers of the super-books. We are closing the book on the Reign of the Superboys and we are heading into the Kingdom of Zod.

The main story picks up the Superboy arc that Mark Waid and Skylar Patridge have been crafting, showing up how Clark became Superboy in Smallville. How he learned about his powers. How he fell in love with Lana. Waid uses this anniversary issue to basically give a quick primer on Superman's history and sort of closes the book on our Smallville arc.

The remaining stories set up the upcoming arc. Joshua Williamson and Daniel Sampere give us the return of present day Superman being found and heading back to the present with ... Superboy?? Sophie Campbell and Dan Mora show us Supergirl forming her super-team to head to El Caldero and the meeting between Superboy Prime and Conner Superboy (I've been waiting). Dan Slott and Lucas Meyer send us to El Caldero to show us what is going on there and revealing the super-villain of the next arc.

I love the fact that DC has used this issue to showcase all the Super-books and how they all are going to fold into this next event.

On to some particulars!

Review: Batman/Superman World's Finest #53

Batman/Superman World's Finest #53 came out this last week, wrapping up the three part Warlord crossover story. As always with this book, there are a lot of fun moments. But this story never really grabbed me.

Writer Mark Waid continues to do a great job with characterization in these stories for sure. In this one, it is Robin who gets the bulk of the work with our title heroes under a sorceror's spell for most of the book. Not only to we get to see how smart and funny this young Dick Grayson is but we get to hear what he has been taught about by Superman and Batman. There is a sanctity to life even if the life lived has been one of evil. Waid always shines with that stuff.

But the villain  plot here about a pilot getting magical powers and then trying to augment them with Atlantean tech all seems to come out of nowhere as does his defeat. 

Clearly I don't know what I want. I don't want decompression. But I don't want super-compression either. I wonder if this was more Waid just wanting to play in the Skartaris sandbox for a bit.

The art is again split between Adrian Gutierrez and Vicente Cifuentes. Both artists seem to be enjoying this savage land setting and these characters. 

As I have said before, I expect unparalleled excellence from this book. When it merely entertains (which this issue did) I somehow feel let down. On to the details.

Review: Summer Of Supergirl Special #1

Last year the Superman movie hit the screens so a Summer of Superman Special hit the racks.

This year ... indeed this very day ... a Supergirl movie will hit the screens. So DC did the right thing meaning a Summer of Supergirl Special #1 hit the stands this week. And what a special it is. We are talking big name creators are on the book. Mark Waid, Sophie Campbell, and Gail Simone write stories. Cian Tormey, Belen Ortega, and Emma Kubert are on art. And most importantly, the stories all say something. 

Campbell and Ortega are on 'Main Man's Best Friend', finishing the story started in Lobo #4. That means we get a story truly in current continuity.

In 'Lost Girls', Simone and Kubert give us a sweet story pointing out, quite elegantly, the similarities between Supergirl and Mary Marvel. It even sets up Supergirl as a sort of mentor for Mary, a nice new wrinkle if kept in continuity and built on. We have seen Kara be a role model for Lesla in her current book. We have seen Kara be Superman's second in command. Why not have her be a 'big sister'.

But the absolute winner of the book is Waid and Tormey on 'Who Is Supergirl?'. I have always known that Waid is a fan of Kara. But in this story, he sort of double downs on what he wrote in the recent New History of the DC Universe. In fact, Waid almost seems to be pulling a 'Morrison on Batman' take on Supergirl's continuity. It all happened. But baked into the story are some funamental truths about who Supergirl is, not just her history but her character, her ethos. Most wonderful.

This truly is the Summer of Supergirl and this special is a great way to kick it off.

On to the book.

Review: Batman/Superman World's Finest #52

Batman/Superman World's Finest #52 came out last week and sported a pretty nifty Dan Mora Supergirl movie variant cover. I will never complain about seeing Dan Mora Kara.

Outside of that, this second chapter of the Skartaris adventure was otherwise just okay.

It is hard to dislike a Mark Waid moment. There are always character moments and history mentions that make the book solid. In this title, he has really poked around the DCU. This story visiting the Warlord and his supporting cast shows that premise. My guess is this story is, for many readers, the introduction to this world. Throw in some great Robin moments and the book remains the fun title it has always been.

It is the plot that those moments exist in that is what I am finding a little lacking. We definitely get two exposition dumps to explain the plot progression. The plot isn't exactly innovative. And I don't know how long I think a side adventure to Skartaris is warranted. Not when the Earth 3 story was rushed to just 2 issues.

Adrian Gutierrez remains on art and continues to sparkle. I love how he uses silhouettes now and then to accentuate the action. His take on the Warlord cast is solid. Plus we get all sorts of primitive landscapes too.

But I expect a lot from this title and this one didn't hit the usual mark. On to the book.  

Review: Action Comics #1099

Superboy has taken over Action Comics but Superman is due to return in next month's Action Comics #1100. This made me think that this week's Action Comics #1099 might be the ultimate or the penultimate chapter of this remarkable run. 

Interestingly enough, this felt like a normal issue of this Superboy run. Yes the current story of some JLAers in the past fighting the time villain Epoch. This issue does push the plot forward quite well. But it doesn't feel 'almost over'. We had two new plots introduced in this issue! So is Superboy continuing as a back-up? As a new book? Or is Mark Waid going to rush to the end next issue?

Enough worrying about next month. Let's celebrate this month. Waid does such a great job of showing the emotional swings of an adolescent male like Clark, as he goes from anger to losing his powers to joy of getting to be a 'normal kid' to back to maturity and recognizing his need to regain his powers. We get two Lana plot threads! One, she finally seems to see Clark as a possible romantic interest. And second, we see what her father has been up to. And we get to see the problems of time travel up close as our heroes literally fade from reality. So much fun.

The art is split by Skylar Patridge and Patricio Delpeche. Patridge just sings in the small town Smallville stuff. Her Lana has been luminous, showing why Clark would be smitten. I don't know if I am ready to not see more of this stuff. Patricio Delpeche has a very different style, rougher and looser. His pages are mostly in a Metropolis lab and that style works well there.

All in all another fantastic issue in this run. On to some details.

Review: Batman/Superman World's Finest #51

Batman/Superman World's Finest #51 came out this week, another fun story that allows writer Mark Waid and artist Adrian Gutierrez to amble around more of the DCU and introduce readers to some fun characters. 

This time Waid has decided to bring our heroes to Skartaris to see Warlord and his supporting cast. That is a tiny corner of the DCU and, as far as I know, one that hasn't been explored in a while. Maybe a bit in the last Young Justice book? Maybe one of the villains from the Convergence event a while back? But I wonder if this will be the first Warlord book for many readers?

One of the best things about this book is that Waid has had free reign to go any where he wants to in this book and bring in any characters he wants to as well. Given this is an elsewhen book, looking back in the DC continuity, Waid can give us classic takes while freshening things up. As always, the young Dick Grayson Robin has the best lines.

This issue is the opening chapter so we don't get too much backstory and instead are dropped right in. We'll see where this goes.

Adrian Gutierrez knows his assignment and brings us some great dinosaur action, fun sword and sorcery battles, and some of the sexiness that was a crucial part of the Mike Grell book back in the day. The art is the best part of this issue.

This book is always fun.

Review: Action Comics #1098

Action Comics #1098 came out this week, another great chapter in this look back at the early career of Superboy. Given recent announcements about Action Comics #1100 we may be nearing the end of this mini-run which feels shortsighted by DC because this has been great. If DC announced a Superboy book by this creative team, I would be there.

Mark Waid has done a great job on this book, showcasingClark's early super-heroics and discovering his powers as they develop. Just as important though, he is showing the emotional side of these early adventures. The Kents' history. The Lana love triangle. The Pete Ross mystery. All great.

This issue shines a light on the earliest origin, the landing of the rocket and the Kent's adoption of Clark, leaning a little more to the classic origin and a bit away from Byrne. Waid uses a time-travel villain to make the exposition a plot component so it isn't forced. I have talked about how the Lana stuff has been very nostalgic for me, remembering my early loves in high school. The scene in this issue is fantastic.

The art is split between Skylar Patridge and Patricio Delpeche. Patridge is a cleaner style which works for the Smallville scenes, especially the Lana stuff. I was hoping that Delpeche would do only the flashback pages to keep a sort of thread to the art. But the artists are mixed throughout the issue. Both artists are great.

Onto the book.

Review: Action Comics #1097

Action Comics #1097 came out last week and was another fun chapter in this ongoing Superboy run in which Mark Waid explores the earliest days of Clark's super-heroics.

This is a fun chapter as three time-tossed heroes from the present find themselves in the past, meeting a very young Superboy and navigating the troubled waters of time-travelers and a delicate timeline. That happens from both sides of the equation. Mary Marvel, Booster Gold, and Martian Manhunter are trying not to relay too much to Clark. And Clark and the Kents are trying not to ask too many questions. It is that tightrope everyone is walking that is the strongest part of the issue for me, even more than the battle with Epoch, the Lord Of Time. I love this Martha and Jonathan because frankly, given my age, I think I relate to them. 

There are even some philosophoical and emotional moments involving Booster Gold that made me think for a while. I don't usually think of Booster spurring on deep thoughts but that is the magic of Mark Waid. 

Skylar Patridge is back on art and continues to shine here. Patridge has always excelled in showing us the quiet moments. But here, her action pages really sing.

On to the book.

Review: Batman/Superman World's Finest #50

Batman/Superman World's Finest #50 came out this week, an oversized special celebration. Since this title hit the stands, it has been one best books on the racks month in, month out. Writer Mark Waid has been here throughout. As I have said time and time again, Waid has a perfect understanding of these characters and is able to walk the tightrope between classic and modern.

Waid crafts two stories for this issue. The first is a pretty fun team-up of our title characters. One of the things that people have asked in the past is how Superman and Batman could be friends when they methods are so different. In the first issue, Waid plays up the differences to a hundred, a level that has been in continuity in the past but no longer. It is fun to see Waid have them arguing with each other. 

But it is the second story that is the big win here. We go to the back-up World's Finest teams, Supergirl/Batgirl and Jimmy Olsen/Robin pairs in an old-fashioned contest to see which team is better. Waid has made the Kara/Dick relationship crackle in this else-when book. We have seen Jimmy team up with Babs here as well. So fun seeing them mix and match here, first racing each other then teaming up. This is a super-fun story.

Throw in some deep DC cuts in both and you have a win.

The first story is drawn by the masterful Dan Mora who gets to stretch his Ditko muscles in a crazy dream world. Whether it is insane action or crazy page layouts, Mora understood the mission. Regular title artist Adrian Gutierrez draws the second story and shines with his usual sound effect flourishes. Yes, I like his Supergirl, always a bonus.

On to the fun!

Review: Superman/Spider-Man #1 Main Story

Superman/Spider-Man #1, the DC version of this historic crossover, came out this week! It's been 50 years since the original team-up so the time was right to put this out. And after the success of Batman/Deadpool and Deadpool/Batman, this made sense.

I'll start by saying that there are a million variants out there and for once I am completely on board with the sheer number of them this time. The covers delve into the deep benches of both IPs to come up with some cool concepts! Supermobile and Spider-Buggy?? Black suit Spidey and Black Suit Superman? Spider-Punk and Conner Kent? Peter Porker and Krypto! Too fun. Love the 70s Supergirl and Spider-Woman by Adam Hughes!

But it all comes down to the story. Mark Waid and Jorge Jimenez are on task for the main story, my coverage today and they nail it.

Obviously Waid is going to have a deep understanding of the characters' histories. So seeing some homages to classic Spidey made sense. Seeing Super-supporting characters from the Bronze Age made me smile. But seeing the two heroes so easily interact with each other was the special sauce. I used to read Spidey as a kid (haven't in decades) so there was a page filled with quips that made me honestly laugh out loud.

Jimenez brings the fun too. I like his Clark/Peter pages almost as much as the action stuff. But his take on STAR Labs made me want him to do a whole book with that cast. I might be biased!

It's pricey at $8.99 but I think it is worth it! There are a chunk of other Super/Spider stories after this main one I will cover in a couple of days!

On to the main tale!

Review: Batman/Superman World's Finest #49

Batman/Superman World's Finest #49 came out last week, the finale of a quick two-parter sending our heroes to Earth-3. The first part really threw out a lot of ideas that I thought could be mined. But this one came and went quickly setting up next issue's anniversary fiftieth issue.

Mark Waid is joined by writer Mark Russell on this story. I wonder why that happened. Waid has been writing a lot of titles and took over Flash during DCKO. So perhaps he needed a little script help? The other thought I had was that this was some sort of backdoor pilot for Russell. I can imagine a Earth-3 mini-series by him with villains as heroes and heroes as villains. Regardless, this is a bit of a sprint to the finish which sort of left me feeling a little bit empty after the full joy of part one.

Marcus To is on art and gets to play in the sandbox, bringing in a bunch of characters from the DCU into the story including a team of 'heroes', classic DC villains flipped on Earth 3. I had to grab this variant by Nathan Szerdy with Kara and Dick out for burgers and perhaps dishing a bit about the other date we see in the shadows.

I loved the last issue as we got to see the other 'syndicates' on Earth-3. So I hope that Waid (and/or Russell) gets to explore this world again some time.

On to the book.

Review: Action Comics #1096

Action Comics #1096 came out last week, another chapter in Mark Waid's look at Superman when he was a boy and part of the 'Reign of the Superboys' event. I have thought this whole look back as a sort of 'Superman Year One' has been pitch perfect. This issue has a little bit of timey wimey stuff that was a little tough to follow but continues to show how Superman became Superman.

Waid continues to put a modern sort of take on classic elements of Superman's mythos. Pete Ross knows the secret identity, Lana loves Superboy while Clark pines, General Lane has always been suspicious. It all works. In this issue, we see Superboy dealing with the fact that there is always an emergency he could be dealing with. How does he go about his own every day life when he could always be heroing?

The cliffhanger definitely brings up a time travel conundrum of how Superman doesn't remember meeting other heroes in his past? Hopefully Waid answers that question.

Skylar Patridge is back on art and continues to shine. Clark looks like a teenager. Lana looks like that perfect 'girl next door' who would entrance Clark. And the action continues to be dynamic. To be honest, if there was a 'Superboy's girl friend Lana Lang' special with Patridge art, I would be there!

Dan Mora's cover is fun, with Superboy lacing up his Chuck Taylors. But who is the ghostly hand? The post-KO Superman? Or one of the guests we see at the end.

On to the book.

Review: Batman/Superman World's Finest #48

Batman/Superman World's Finest #48 came out last week, the first part of a new arc focusing on Earth-3. There is a lot to love about this issue as the story unfolds. First, this book has done such a great job of riffing off the idea of World's Finest duos, so why not an World's Un-Finest? Focusing on Owlman/Ultraman makes perfect sense in this book. 

I have commented on how Mark Waid seems to be able to take classic DC ideas and freshening them up. Here, he moves beyond the classic Earth-3 idea that the Crime Syndicate rules the whole world and instead expands it wonderfully. The unholy Trinity is one syndicate. But other hero groups form other syndicates running their turfs. It opens up the world for way more stories, showing us evil versions of other heroic teams. This issue gives us a little bit of a quick tour of a few of these groups.

But in what I love as a meta take, Waid is looking back at this book and having teams that aided our World's Finest now fighting this World's Un-Finest. This has to be intentional. And as a fan of the book I love it.

Marcus To is on art for this arc and he brings an inkier, more shadowy style than I am used to seeing for him. This makes sense for an evil world. In places, and perhaps appropriately, it reminded me of Richard Case's work on Grant Morrison's Doom Patrol. 

I have read many Earth-3 stories. This one felt completely fresh. Kudos to the creative team! On to the book.

Review: Action Comics #1095

Action Comics #1095 came out last week, a look at the Superboy myth from Pete Ross' perspective. Last issue ended with Pete secretly discovering that Clark is Superboy. This issue shows us the fallout. Clark and Pete are best friends. Pete can't help but wonder why Clark didn't share this info.

Writer Mark Waid has the unique talent of taking an old concept (Pete Ross knowing Clark is Superboy; heck even the existence of Superboy) and updating it to make sense for our modern world. It is hard for me to ponder that Superboy was active in the 2000s. That means I am old. But there are elements in this story that shift us far away from 1950s Smallville. What I really love about this is how Waid makes Pete Ross just an incredibly nice, empathetic, good guy. His coming to understand Clark's view is well handled.

Patricio Delpeche remains on art and has a sort of Chris Samnee/Alex Toth approach to the art. This inky style works very well for one of the ending scenes and harkens back to more classic comics which feels right here. 

I grew up seeing Pete Ross peeking out his tent and seeing Clark turning into Superboy. I grew up seeing Pete help Clark by creating a diversion so Clark could skip out. I grew up with Pete keeping that secret. And now I get to grow old with this wonderful addition to the mythos again.

On to the book.

Review: Batman/Superman World's Finest #47

Batman/Superman World's Finest #47 came out this last week, the finale of the Absorbascon storyline pitting the Batman/Superman Fusion against the Lex/Joker Merger. And boy, it ends ... quickly, neatly, and semi-easily.

Writer Mark Waid is almost always a fun and entertaining read and this title has been a revelation in the four years it has been out. This story seems to have some elements that fit the quality of this book. Seeing how the fused heroes work together while the meshed villain minds sometimes are fighting each other is a good insight into the characters. Seeing how our heroes deal with their secret identities revealed also has some meat on the bone to delve into. (Indeed, the Lois scene in this book is my favorite.) And perhaps this characterization deep dive was the impetus for this story. But the plot, with the Absorbascon as a deus ex machina becoming both a receiver and a transmitter that needs to be shut down then saved then reverted seemed too big to wrap up. This was a three parter! But honestly, I don't know if a longer version of this story would make the ending more palatable.

Adrian Gutierrez gets to really stretch in this arc with crazy action, a large cast of cameos, and some emotional beats. It is a rapid fire book going from magical battles to quiet apartment conversations to fistfights. That is a lot for one tiny issue. It must be hard to step into Dan Mora's shoes but I have come to really like Gutierrez's style on this book. There is an energy here that works. 

On to the book.

Review: Action Comics #1094

 Action Comics #1094  came out last week, another chapter in Mark Waid's exploration of the introduction of Superboy to the DCU. I have been very pleased with this run of stories and this issue is no exception as Waid answers questions I think have been in the back of my mind as a reader. Why would the military not try to control or co-opt Superman when he first revealed himself?

The bulk of the issue is Superboy doing what he does best, trying to save lives and do what is right. But this time that is by helping the US military extract men from a foreign nation. It is Superboy entering war, being given orders, and still assisting because that is what is needed. But appropriately questioning his role afterwards. I think we are just scratching the surface of this confrontation with General Lane. 

But surrounding the main title is that exploration of Clark's feelings and dealing with this. He is still just a kid. He is still crushing on Lana. He is still doing silly little Smallville tasks. But now he has seen things that most people won't ever see, the horror of war, and has to find a way to deal with it. That is a story worth telling.

The art on the issue is done by Patricio Delpeche, whose work is new to me. There is a raw feeling here. There is as sort of Sean Phillips feel to the work too. Given the darker tone for most of this issue, the pencils and shadow work all works wonderfully here.

Lastly, the ending of the book synchs up a favorite Silver Age moment with these modern times. I smiled. Kudos to Waid for his usual walking the tightrope of honoring the old while refreshing it for today.

On to the details.

Review: Batman/Superman World's Finest #46

Batman/Superman World's Finest #46 came out last week, the second part of the Luthor/Joker team-up arc and basically a issue-long brawl between our main characters ... but with a twist.

This is a standard Mark Waid story, digging into some old DC concepts like the Thanagarian Absorbascon while giving it a nice updated feel. Last issue, the Joker and Luthor fused into one body. This issue we get to explore what that mind is like, with two completely dueling mindsets trying to work one body. Through some plot shenanigans, we get a fusion Superman/Batman being (harkening back to World's Finest #4 ). So we then get to see what two minds thinking together sound like as opposed to the villains. It is a nice little writing trick, giving us a nice dive into the thoughts of our main protagonists and antagonists.

But the real joy of this issue is the art by Adrian Gutierrez. It probably isn't the best word but there is a frenetic feel to his art. There is a wild energy to it. And in this issue where two fused beings are just throwing down, the art just sizzles. This just feels like a Dragon Ball episode with overpowered fused-form beings are zipping around the skies trading blows. I don't mind a brawl issue now and then.

I don't know why this issue got a Chuma Hill variant cover with Supergirl and Catwoman but it is an interesting composition.

On to the story.

Review: Action Comics #1093

Action Comics #1093 came out last week and was another fun chapter in this Superboy stint in the comic. Writer Mark Waid has been giving us some nice looks into these early days of super-heroics, including how the ethos of Superman was created. It is a mix of Kent-wisdom and experience that clearly are forming who this young Clark will become.

One of the questions that always plagued me as a kid reading comics is why Clark would allow the Kents to financially struggle. Or what would he do if the Kents were about to go bankrupt. Can't he wring diamonds out of coal? Waid specifically answers that here in a fun story that also shows how Superman has learned to work around laws of discovery and care. We are done-in-one here! Classic.

Another plus for the issue is the return of Skylar Patridge on art. Patridge brings a youthful look over the whole tale. As I have said, I especially love her take on the young Clark, Pete, and Lana. The art shines here.

On to details.

Review: Batman/Superman World's Finest #45

Batman/Superman World's Finest #45 came out last week and it is hard for me to think this book is almost 4 years old. The format of intermittent adventures from some elsewhen in the past has worked perfectly in giving us fun, entertaining stories reaching into the deep recesses of the DCU with a both a classic feel and a modern sensibility. Time flies!

This issue starts a new arc bringing us a Joker/Luthor team-up, the perfect contrast to our heroes. Throw in a guest star and some nods to some Silver/Bronze age goodness and you have another win. Writer Mark Waid has been walking that tightrope of classic and new for a while and definitely continues to shine. For me, the best part of this set-up issue is that a Lex/Joker team-up would not be an easy alliance. These two would not get along even if they have similar difficulties with heroes.

Adrian Gutierrez remains on art and his scratchy, energized style works very well with this story. An intangible Lex falling through a building? A violent Hawkman lashing out against the villains? A mash-up of Lex/Joker? All those things leans into his strengths and he hits it out of the park.

This is an opening chapter to an arc so we are just starting out here but there is a zaniness to this story already which was refreshing. 

On to the book.

Review: Action Comics #1092

Action Comics #1092 came out last week, the first part of the next Superboy arc in the title by writer Mark Waid. 

Waid has been doing a good job of re-establishing Superboy as part of the Superman mythos here, slowly showing us early Clark discovering his powers, stretching his limits, and trying to become a public hero. The first arc showed us his reveal to the public. This arc he is more of a known commodity but still figuring it out. For long time readers, there have been hints at well established pre-Crisis moments perhaps coming back. But even Zero Hour friend Kenny Braverman has shown up.

This arc seems like it will focus on Superboy's public persona and how that aligns with the military and General Lane. I guess here is where the lifelong hatred starts. It is pretty interesting to see our hero stand up to Lane for the first time. 

Cian Tormey is on art this time and brings a sort of smooth if slightly cartoony style. Slightly! But it works for a flashback story with a sort of teenage dorky Clark. He does well with some powerful character moments here, building the panel to accentuate the proceedings.

I am liking this stealth Superboy book. Hoping others are too! On to the book.