Review: Absolute Superman #18

Absolute Superman #18 came out this week and was another whirlwind of an issue, pushing the old Al Ghul plot forward while introducing not one but two new Absolute characters.

After the wonderfully paced first arc which lasted 14 issues, establishing the world and informing us about Clark, Jason Aaron has really sped things up over the last three months. A battle with Hawkman. A new Parasite. Jimmy and Lois settling into civilian roles. Talia trying to rescue her father.

In this issue, Talia gets to her father and is trying to bring him back to world prominence. At the same time. Lois is ready to get some old school revenge on the Al Ghul's for killing her father. Superman is trying to stop Lois from becoming a murderer. And then ... they show up. 

I am quite impressed with how fully formed all these characters feel. I think I 'know' Kal and Lois and Talia. I truly think that simmering first arc really gave Aaron a defined world to now write fully.

Rafa Sandoval is back on the art and continues to shine. I like his version of Clark on the farm. I like the design of the two new Absolute characters in the book. And, as always, the action is energetic and palpable. 

I continue to be impressed with this book. Kudos to all involved.

Review: Absolute Superman #14

Absolute Superman #14 came out this week, the culmination of a long first arc building the world and showing us who this Superman is. It was clear that the end of this was going to be a bare-chested sword fight with Ra's Al Ghul, perhaps a nod to the early O'Neil/Adams Batman stories with Ra's himself.

Now all along I have been praising writer Jason Aaron for the pacing of this book. Unlike the frenzy of Absolute Batman, Absolute Superman was a very deliberate title, showing us Krypton, this new world, and giving us a lot of backstory for not only Superman but also Jor-El, Lara, Lois, Jimmy, and even the Al Ghul's. This is a fully formed world. I feel we have learned who this Clark is. 

The action has been ramping up over the last few issues as Ra's kept pushing Clark to take a step towards evil. And we finally get it in this issue, a bloody, brutal brawl that has me questioning how either combatant survives. Unfortunately, while the opening is a bang, the end of the fight is a whimper. This tremendously layered, long, complex arc just sort of ends. 

Rafa Sandoval is back on art and gives us in incredible issue of melee and gore. I have loved Sandoval's work for a long time but I feel that his work on this title has been his best. I'll be sad to see him go. 

Should this sudden ending to this arc sully the tremendous work which got me here? I'm not sure yet.

On to the book.

Review: Super Sons #14

 Super Sons #14 came out this week and very nicely ended the Mother's Day story in which Talia Al Ghul tries to lure Damian back to the dark side. I was very impressed with this arc as it both answered the much asked question 'Where is Talia in all this?' as well as pushing forward the characterization of both of the titular sons. As I have said in the past, the friction and differences between Jon and Damian is such fertile ground for story-telling. Writer Peter Tomasi definitely knows how to mine it!

The thing that I have liked about this is how both Jon and Damian are being influenced and inspired by the other. They come in as Batman and Superman writ small. But I wonder if this friendship and this mingling of ideas during adolescence is what is missing from the Bruce/Clark friendship. They met later on in life and in heroing career. It is, as they say, harder to teach an old dog new tricks. But here when we see Damian's rough edges being sanded down by Jon's optimism, or Jon bending the rules when necessary when nudged by Damian ... well it all works.

Carlo Barberi and Art Thibert really bring a dynamic and definitely youthful feel to the book, with zany expressions and great, sorta anime, qualities. So that jibes well too.

In the end, it just reminds me how sad it is that this book is ending.