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The Kryptonian Cybernet Issue 63
______________________________________________
T H E K R Y P T O N I A N C Y B E R N E T
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http://www.kryptonian-cybernet.com
Issue #63 -- June 1999
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CONTENTS
--------
Section 1: Superscripts: Notes from the Editor(s)
What I'm Happy About These Days
Jeff shares his thoughts about some of the positive
things going on both for the Man of Steel and in general.
Ratings At A Glance
Titles Shipped May 1999
The KC Newsroom
Those "Karl Kesel is leaving Superboy" rumors, Best
Western's Summer Adventures, sneak peeks at Superman in
September, the future of STAS, honors for Chris Reeve,
and a possible new twist for the Superman movie!
Section 2: And Who Disguised As...
Hail to the King!
J.D. Rummel waxes nostalgiac as he raves about the recent
Hulk/Superman special by Roger Stern and Steve Rude.
The Fleischer Superman - and Popeye?!?
Modemac takes a look at one of the spinach-eating sailor's
cartoons which parodies the Fleischer Superman.
Superman 64: All the Delays for This?
Edward Mathews, Greg Selinger, and Richard T. Spear, III
share their opinions about the newly-released Superman
videogame.
Section 3: New Comic Reviews
The Triangle Titles
Action Comics #755, by Gary Robinson
Superman: The Man of Steel #90, by Mike Smith
Superman #146, by Thomas Deja
Section 4: New Comic Reviews
The Triangle Titles (cont)
Adventures of Superman #569, by Enola Jones
Super-Family Titles
Superboy #64, by Rene' Gobeyn
Supergirl #34, by Thomas Deja
Superman Adventures #33, by Cory Strode
Section 5: New Comic Reviews
Team Titles
JLA #31, by Edward Mathews
Young Justice #10, by Gary Robinson
Miniseries
A. Bizarro #1, by G.M. Nelson
Batman & Superman: World's Finest #4, by Simon DelMonte
Section 6: New Comic Reviews
Specials
The Incredible Hulk vs. Superman, by G.M. Nelson
Superman: The Odyssey, by Shane Travis
Team Superman #1, by Thomas Deja
Young Justice in No Man's Land #1, by Gary Robinson
Section 7: Superman Stories
The Death of Superboy
Sean Hogan reviews the Cosmic Boy miniseries and Superman's
1987 crossover with the Legion of Super-Heroes, which
introduced the Pocket Universe into post-Crisis continuity.
Section 8: The Phantom Zone
Tales of Earth-One
Episode 10: The Modern Prometheus and his Robots of Tin
Part 1: The Arrival of the Robots
In light of the recent re-introduction of the Superman
robots, Bob Hughes begins an exploration into the history
of robots in Superman comics.
Section 9: The Phantom Zone
Superman's Phantom Menace
Scott Devarney looks at Superman #289, in which Superman
must deal with "The Phantom Horseman of Metropolis",
Clark goes bowling, and Superman's costumes turn into...
Hostess Fruit Pies?!?
The KC Mailbag
EDITORIAL STAFF:
---------------
Jeffery D. Sykes, Publisher and Co-Editor-in-Chief
Shane Travis, Co-Editor-in-Chief and Executive Editor of Comic Reviews
Neil Ottenstein, Executive Editor of STAS Reviews
DISCLAIMERS:
-----------
Superman, Superboy, Supergirl, Steel, JLA, Young Justice, and all
associated characters, locations, symbols, logos, and events are copyright
and/or trademarks of DC Comics. This magazine, its publisher and
contributors, and any content related to the Superman family of characters
are not authorized by DC Comics. Use of these copyrighted and trademarked
properties is not intended to challenge said ownership. We strongly suggest
that each reader look to the media sources mentioned within for further
information.
All original material published in The Kryptonian Cybernet, including but
not limited to reviews, articles, and editorials, are copyright 1999 by The
Kryptonian Cybernet and the respective authors. Reprinting in any format
is expressly forbidden without the permission of The Kryptonian Cybernet
and the contributing author.
Opinions presented within this issue belong to the authors of the articles
which contain them. They should in no way be construed as those of any
other particular member of the editorial or contributing staff, unless
otherwise indicated.
This magazine can be distributed in whole, freely by e-mail. Permission is
also granted to advertise subscription information on other on-line
services and/or websites. Should you desire to share this publication with
other on-line services and/or web sites, please contact Jeff Sykes at
sykes@kryptonian-cybernet.com for permission.
THE KRYPTONIAN CYBERNET is available by e-mail -- to subscribe, simply send
an e-mail message with the word "subscribe" in the Subject: field to the
following address:
To: kc-request@kryptonian-cybernet.com
Subject: subscribe
This will subscribe the address from which the message was sent. If the
address is successfully subscribed, you will receive a copy of the list's
welcome message. If you have any problems, contact Jeff Sykes at
sykes@kryptonian-cybernet.com.
Back issues are available via ftp at ftp.kryptonian-cybernet.com. These
archives can also be reached via the Kryptonian Cybernet Homepage:
http://www.kryptonian-cybernet.com
______________________________________________
SUPERSCRIPTS: Notes from the Editor(s)
------------------------------------------
Jeff Sykes (sykes@kryptonian-cybernet.com)
WHAT I'M HAPPY ABOUT THESE DAYS
I'm happy to report that my dissertation is coming along nicely and should
be finished any day now. I'll be defending *and* beginning a move (long
story) in the last week of July, which could signal bad news for a July
issue of KC. We'll just have to wait and see, though. In the meantime, here
are just a few (brief) things that I'm happy about these days -- some of it
even has to do with Superman!
I'm happy that I'm getting my long-stated wish for a hardcover collection
of _Superman For All Seasons_. This will be proudly displayed on my
bookshelf, and I'll probably thrust it upon all my friends as a great book
to have in a child's library. Anyway, now I'll starting wishing for a trade
paperback, for those of you who prefer that format. :)
I'm happy that the new creative staff seems to be generating a ton of
interest in the Superman books again. I've lost count of the number of
people pledging to try the Jeph Loeb and/or Joe Kelly-written books. I've
seen a lot of pleasant reactions to how well Stuart Immonen and Mark Millar
are working together, and I've seen equally many people praising Mark
Schultz and Doug Mahnke's work on _Man of Steel_. I've even begun hearing
positive responses on the direction in which new editor Eddie Berganza
plans to take the books. Even some of the most jaded critics are expressing
at least interest in Superman comics again, and that's bound to be a good
thing!
I'm happy that the triangle numbering system is returning to a reference
tool (think early 1990s -- before "The Death of Superman") and away from a
continuity format, as it exists currently. (Oddly enough, I seem to recall
an editorial a while back where I expressed a belief that new creators and
the dropping of the weekly continuity would have just this sort of
effect... :)
I'm happy that there are some indications that the comic market may have
begun to recover (according to some reported sales numbers), even though
there's clearly a lot of work to be done.
I'm happy that licensed comics (Buffy, Pokemon, Star Wars, etc.) seem to be
bringing new folks into the comic shops. More importantly, books like
Pokemon seem to be bringing *kids* into the comic shops -- this is
*essential* to preserving the livelihood of the industry.
But you know what I'm happiest about? I'm positively thrilled that this
long and weary road is nearly over, that the @#%! dissertation is almost
complete, and that, in a couple of months, I'll be Dr. Jeffery D. Sykes,
Assistant Professor of Mathematics at West Virginia Wesleyan College! (Yes,
I love teaching, and I can't wait to get started with doing it for a
living!)
I'm also happy that you've stuck with me to this point, and I'll be even
happier to see one of you provide us with an editorial for our next issue.
:)
Until then, I'm up, up, and away!
Jeff Sykes
______________________________________________
RATINGS AT A GLANCE: Titles shipped May 1999
-------------------------------------------------------------
Prepared by Shane Travis (travis@kryptonian-cybernet.com)
Wow! Ask, and ye shall receive!
You may recall that last month I was inviting people to join the KC
Ratings Panel, as we had lost a lot of members due to attrition. (Jeff
made a mention in his Superscripts column as well.) I hadn't imagined that
I'd get such a good response; this month, I'm happy to welcome *five* new
members to the team -- Jeremy Bleichman, Glenn Crouch, Johanna Draper
Carlson, Sebastian Lecocq, and Brian Seidman. Glad to have you!
There's always room for more, though; if you have an interest in
contributing to the Ratings Panel, or even if you just want to receive
some information on what it entails, follow the instructions you'll find
at the bottom of this column, and drop me a line.
Another pleasant surprise is watching the Triangle Titles slide up the
ratings charts. Three of them have cumulative 6-month averages of over 3.0
Shields now, (come on, _AOS_!) and I'm expecting that things will continue
to improve as people get more excited about the upcoming (and in-place)
creative teams. This is a good year to be a Superman fan, folks!
Key:
----
Issue -- Issue for which 'Current' Rating and Rank are calculated. The
'Previous' columns refer to the issue immediately prior to
this.
Rating -- Average Rating, in Shields (maximum rating is 5.0). The number
in () indicates how many people submitted ratings.
Rank -- The relative ranking of the book among the regularly-published
Superman titles. (T) indicates a tie.
Average -- Average of the ratings for this title over the previous six
issues, each of which is weighted equally, regardless of the
number of people who assigned it ratings. If the average is for
fewer than six issues, the number of issues is displayed in ().
Current Previous Average
Title Issue Rating Rank Rating Rank Rating Rank
----- ----- ------ ------ ------ ------ ------- -----
Superman/Hulk 1 3.8(9) - -- - -- -
Superboy 64 3.8(10) 1 4.1(4) 1 3.92 1
A. Bizarro 1 3.7(7) - -- - -- -
S: The Odyssey 1 3.6(8) - -- - -- -
Supergirl 35 3.4(9) 2 3.2(5) 3 3.42 4
Young Justice 10 3.4(9) 3 3.8(4) 2 3.47 2(T)
Superman 146 3.4(14) 4 2.9(8) 6 3.08 8
Superman Adv. 33 3.4(5) 5 2.8(4) 7 3.47 2(T)
Action Comics 755 3.2(12) 6 3.8(7) 2 3.22 6
World's Finest 4 3.1(6) - 2.4(5) - 3.12(4) -
Man of Steel 90 2.9(12) 7 3.1(9) 4 3.10 7
Team Superman 1 2.8(12) - -- - -- -
JLA 31 2.6(10) 8 3.0(6) 5 3.20 4
YJ Special 1 2.6(7) - -- - -- -
Adv. of Superman 569 2.4(11) 9 2.7(6) 8 2.73 9
"When it was good, it was very, very good..."
SUPERBOY #64
- Okay, so it slipped a little from the first three parts of the
Hypertime arc, but enough people were impressed that it wrangled its way to
the top of the ratings for a third consecutive month. This book is rapidly
becoming a fan favourite, and is approaching a 4.0 Shields cumulative
average -- something we haven't seen since Scott McCloud was writing
_Superman Adventures_ and only three dedicated fans were providing
comments. <g>
"But when it was bad, it was horrid."
JLA #31
- This book continues on its downward spiral as far as Panelists ratings
go. In the last five months, it has seen steadily diminishing appreciation,
as the ratings have fallen from 3.6 to 3.5 to 3.2 to 3.0 to this month's
all-time low mark of 2.6 Shields. Even more than the "Rock of Ages" arc,
people seem to have become confused and turned off by the multiplicity of
ideas and images thrown at them by the ever-ambitious Mr. Morrison.
"Opinions are like noses; everyone's got one."
SUPERMAN #146
- A new high (14) in the number of people providing ratings and comments
for a single book, partially buoyed by the influx of new Ratings Panelists
and partially because everyone had an opinion they wanted to express,
either on Jurgens' comments on the toy (comic?) industry or the freeing of
Toyman. Ratings ran the gamut from 2.0 Shields to a perfect 5.0, and
everywhere in-between. Most pleasant to see, though, was that the final
part of Marz' Kandor epic is now seven months in the past, which means
that it isn't counted in the six-month average. Without that anchor (and
with this month's relatively good standing) we saw _Superman_'s cumulative
average shoot up from 2.77 Shields last month to 3.08 Shields this month.
Information for 'Ratings at a Glance' and the ratings accompanying
the monthly reviews of Superman comics are obtained from KC readers.
Anyone interested in contributing may contact Shane Travis
<travis@kryptonian-cybernet.com> and will be added to the monthly
mailing-list to receive a Ratings Form.
______________________________________________
THE KC NEWSROOM
---------------------------------
By Joshua Elder (j-elder@nwu.edu)
Greetings to all my fellow KCyberneters. Sorry I missed last month's
Newsroom (much thanks to Jeff) -- finals reared their ugly head and I was
actually forced to study. Fortunately, school is over now and I can
concentrate on the things that really matter, like the Newsroom!
KESEL/GRUMMETT NOT LEAVING SUPERBOY
It appears that the World's Finest Team of Kesel and Grummett are not
leaving _Superboy_, despite Internet rumors to the contrary. The rumors
began after Kesel posted a statement describing his personal frustration
over being seemingly unable to give the fans the Superboy they want. Kesel
later told Another Universe's Daily Buzz
(http://www.anotheruniverse.com/buzz/index.html), "I'd just like to say
that recent rumors have been completely blown out of proportion and that I
have absolutely no plans to leave writing _Superboy_ anytime soon. In fact,
I'm hoping my schedule settles down enough so that I may also ink the book
on a much more regular basis." While that is certainly good news, Kesel
also expressed his disappointment that _Superboy_ has not become the kind
of hit he hoped it would be. Now I can't speak for anybody else, but I feel
that _Superboy_ is in a golden period right now and that it definitely
deserves recognition. So I put it to you, the KC readers, to get the word
out about the great work Kesel and Grummett are doing.
SCHOLARSHIP OF STEEL
Best Western hotels are giving away two college scholarships this summer in
conjunction with their Summer Adventures promotion. Summer Adventures
offers deals to families during the peak summer months, including allowing
kids age 12 and under to stay for free. Kids also receive a DC Comics
activity book featuring the big three: Superman, Wonder Woman, and Batman.
Then there's the scholarship contest. Anyone sixteen and younger can enter
an essay contest called "Who's the Hero in Your Life." The grand prize is a
$40,000 four year scholarship and first place is a $20,000 four year
scholarship. Reservations may be made by calling 1-800-528-1234. So if
you're sixteen or younger and have a hero in your life, I would spend the
night at Best Western next time you go travelling, because forty thousand
dollars is a lot of money -- for that matter, so is twenty thousand.
SUPES IN SEPTEMBER
Dan Jurgens says goodbye to Superman in grand style with _Superman_ #150.
Jurgens most recent installment in the Doomsday saga bears fruit as the
newly robotic Brainiac 2.0 does battle with the Man of Steel. As an added
bonus, he is using Silver Age throwback Vartox to carry out his evil plan.
Art by Steve Epting and Joe Rubinstein. 48 pages, $3.95, ships on Sept. 22
(Collectors edition). 48 pages, $2.95, ships on Sept. 22 (Standard
edition).
In _Legends of the DC Universe_ #22, the first of two parts of a classic
story from _Superman's Pal: Jimmy Olsen_ reinterpreted to fit with today's
continuity, Superman must accompany Dabney Donovan to the monster planet
"Transilvane." The art is by Kirby spiritual heir #2, Jose Ladronn and the
painted covers are by Kirby spiritual heir #1, Steve Rude. This story may
turn out to not be much of anything, but I for one will buy it for the art
alone. 32 pages, $1.99, ships on Sept. 8.
The first of two Superman/Savage Dragon crossovers begin with, _Superman &
Savage Dragon: Metropolis_. Written by Karl Kesel with art by Jon
Bogdanove, this issue pits Superman and Chicago's own fin-headed green guy
against the forces of Apokolips. Look for the second of these two
crossovers, set in Chicago, to be released soon. 48 pages, $4.95, ships on
Sept. 8
Don't forget to catch Superman in the _Day of Judgment_ crossovers running
throughout September, as well. Superman must lead a team to reignite the
fires of hell after Azmodel and Neron succeed in freezing it over, dooming
Earth to die by fire.
A well deserved hardcover edition of _Superman For All Seasons_ will see
release in September. It will feature a translucent vellum dustjacket and a
new illustration by Sale on the cover of the book itself. 208 pages,
$24.95, ships Sept. 22.
The _Superman in the Sixties_ TP is the September offering I probably most
look forward to. This tome reprints 17 stories from this bygone era of the
Man of Steel. It features plenty of wacky stories from _Jimmy Olsen_ and
_Lois Lane_, as well as more serious ones, including the controversial
"Superman's Mission for President Kennedy" published after the President's
death. 240 pages, $19.95, ships on Sept. 8.
Look for information on these and other Superman-related titles in July's
Coming Attractions!
STAS IS OFFICIALLY FINISHED
Paul Dini, executive producer of the _Superman_ animated series, stated in
a recent interview that he and his staff will be devoting themselves full
time to _Batman Beyond_. This means that both the Superman and Batman
animated series are officially finished. The one bright spot is that Dini
confirmed that an older version of Krypton's Last Son will appear on
_Batman Beyond_.
CHRISTOPHER REEVE HONORED
The Niagara Film Festival held its opening with a screening of _Superman:
The Movie_ on June 11. On hand to witness the ceremony were Reeve, Jeff
East (young Clark Kent), and Marc McClure (Jimmy Olsen). Reeve remarked
that "There's just not enough magic in movies today, and that what kids
most need to see." He also stated that Superman succeeded because it
captured that magic. After his speech, Reeve was given an Ara award, the
Canadian Oscar.
PRODUCT NEWS AND UPDATES
According to Diamond's website (http://www.diamondcomics.com), _The
Superman Monster_, scheduled for July has been delayed. All orders have
been cancelled, and the book will be resolicited in an upcoming issue of
Previews.
Also look for the next wave of Previews exclusive JLA action figure
assortments to be solicited in an upcoming issue of Previews. These next
two sets (of five figures each) will include Superman, Superboy, and Lex
Luthor, among others.
SUPERMAN ON THE BIG SCREEN
There's not much movement to report on the Superman movie, but rumors of a
possible World's Finest movie, featuring both Superman and Batman, began to
pick up momentum when _Premiere_ magazine printed just such a report. More
on this if/as it develops.
_________________________________________________
End of Section 1
_________________________________________________
AND WHO DISGUISED AS...
---------------------------------------------------------
A Column of Opinion by J.D. Rummel (rummel@creighton.edu)
[Warning, spoilers included regarding _The Incredible Hulk vs. Superman_!]
Hail to the King!
Last month I had to share with you my disappointment with the awful
Superman/Fantastic Four team-up. Fortunately, the universe continues to
move forward and redemption is offered. Hope is always one good story away.
I'm referring to _The Incredible Hulk vs. Superman_, a brilliant joint
effort between Marvel and DC. Those of you with good collections or
memories will recall the last time the Green Goliath teamed with a DC hero.
Back in 1981 it was Batman. No, I can't tell you why such an unlikely
pairing took place. Without going into too much detail, it was well-drawn
by Jose Luis Garcia-Lopez and written by Len Wein. However, it was not the
greatest event in cross-over history. Looking at it today, I can't make
heads or tails of it as I skim the pages.
So, a quick 18 years later, DC and Marvel decide to try the far more
logical combo of Superman and the Hulk.
Baby oh baby! It was worth the wait! Anyone who reads this space with
regularity knows what a nostalgic sap I am, and during those adventure-
charged pages I was catapulted back to summers trading comics with my
friend Randy. The magic of opening those magazines and having Lee and Kirby
grasp my mind and heart with words and pictures. I'm not saying that good
comics aren't produced every day today -- there is a lot of crap out there,
but both good and bad comics today try to capture the magic that Marvel
often owned in the 60's. This one stands tall and shines brightly in a very
dull field.
Steve Rude, Roger Stern, and Al Milgrom blend their considerable talents to
render this magnificent, memory-stirring tale.
The simple story opens with Lois Lane watching a TV magazine special on the
Incredible Hulk. Her husband flies in the window behind her and he recalls
the first encounter he had with the brute, before the world knew the
monster was a man. Artist and author hurl us all into a comic past that
never happened by evoking those 1960's Kirby panels. There can be no
denying the power of the art. Steve (the Dude) Rude slips into Kirby memory
mode, totally seizing the early sixties style of the King. But this is not
the cheap panel swiping of Rich Buckler or Ron Frenz. Rude never loses his
own eye -- instead he is able to reach back to the Marvel age and capture
the best flavors, the sweetest tastes, yet somehow giving each page his own
individual mark.
As Superman's memory unfolds (and our own if we are old enough), the story
explores events and shows scenes that Superman could not have been privy
to, scenes that those of us who treasure those years remember so fondly.
_Avengers_ #3 is the issue that most often springs to my mind, but many
early Hulk tales are evoked. The steps the story follows are not so
important. We know that Superman and the Hulk will fight. There is no
bitterness when I write that. Although all heroes fight when they meet each
other, when anyone meets the Hulk the outcome is some kind of violence.
Pleasant conversation over tea and scones is not likely (even Batman fought
the Hulk -- no, it's not the finest moment in comic verisimilitude).
The story concludes poignantly with Superman and Lois realizing how lucky
they are and with Banner watching the special through some storefront
window. As he sees wedding photos of he and Betty and then a final image of
his emerald alter ego holding her body, he sinks to the ground with his
grief. Grief over her loss, grief over a life that has been filled to the
brim with tragedy.
This is good comic bookin'. No other medium can do what pages like these
accomplish. Not prose, not poetry, not film. When words and imagery come
together like they do here, something special is happening.
This is a keeper. Put one in mylar, and keep the other for frequent returns
to a magical time.
Away!
And Who Disguised As... is copyright 1999 by J. D. Rummel. Its contents may
not be reproduced in any format without the written permission of the
author.
______________________________________________
THE FLEISCHER SUPERMAN - AND POPEYE?!?
------------------------------------------
By Modemac (modemac@modemac.com)
Neil Ottenstein's presentation of the Fleischer "Superman" cartoons -- and
the three Warner Bros. spoofs -- is informative and entertaining, but it
overlooks one additional take-off of Superman that is certainly noteworthy:
the "Popeye the Sailor" cartoon that not only spoofed Superman, but spoofed
the Fleischer cartoons in particular. Popeye and Superman were both
produced by the *same* cartoon studio, Fleischer/Famous Studios.
Halfway through the "Superman" cartoon series, Max and Dave Fleischer were
unceremoniously expelled from their roles as the heads of Fleischer
Studios, and the business was taken over by Paramount and renamed Famous
Studios. (The details of this are long and complicated, and mentioned in
Leonard Maltin's famous history of animated cartoons, _Of Mice and Magic_.)
It was at some point around this time that they produced a Popeye cartoon
that spoofed the Fleischer Superman cartoons.
The folks on rec.arts.animation have informed me that the name of this
Popeye cartoon is "She-Sick Sailors." The title sure doesn't give away the
plot, I'll say that much... Nevertheless, here is a synopsis of the
cartoon, based on what I remember of it:
Popeye goes to visit Olive one day, and finds her engrossed in a comic
book. It's a Superman comic book (the soundtrack echoes the "Superman"
cartoon theme at this point), and Olive waxes poetic about what a great guy
Superman is, and how she'd love to meet him. Bluto happens to be nearby and
he overhears Olive saying this, so he shaves his beard, dons a Superman
costume, and crashes through Olive's window pretending to be Superman. (He
realizes he's left his sailor hat on, and quickly sticks it in an inside
pocket.)
Popeye, being forever jealous of any guy who makes the moves on his goil
Olive, calls him "Stupidman" and says he doesn't believe he's really
Superman. Bluto then suggests that Popeye challenge him with super-feats,
so that he can prove he's really Superman. He drops Olive out of the window
of her apartment building, and "flies" own to rescue her (actually floating
down with a conveniently placed parachute). After that, he stops a
locomotive with one hand (the train just happens to be stopping at a
station to pick up passengers), and gives Popeye a machine gun to shoot him
in the chest. (Of course, he happens to stick a steel plate under his
costume, so that the bullets harmlessly bounce off.)
Popeye tries to duplicate "Superman's" feats, with much less success. He
fails to stop the moving train (leaving a Popeye-shaped hole along the
entire length of it); but when Bluto prepares to shoot Popeye with the
machine-gun, Olive worries for her true love and asks him to stop. He
shoves her aside and shoots Popeye (offscreen), causing the sailor man to
fall down -- is he dead?!? Olive mourns Popeye, but Bluto grabs her and
runs off with her. Olive realizes that this isn't Superman when Bluto's
sailor hat falls out of that hidden pocket in his costume. Bluto ties Olive
to a train track, in the style of the classic villains.
But Popeye isn't dead -- the bullets had conveniently struck his
ever-present can of spinach instead of him! He hears Olive's screams for
help, and eats his spinach... which turns him into Popeye the Sailor, a
superhero in a sailor suit, with a red cape and a 'P' on his chest. He
soars though the sky, causing Olive and Bluto to cry out, "Look! Up in the
sky! It's an eagle! It's a rocket! It's a meteor!" Popeye crashes through
some trees to make his entrance, and says, "It's Popeye the Sailor!"
Bluto pushes over a big rock and rolls it towards Popeye, but the
spinach-empowered sailor just blows at the boulder and sends it rolling
back towards Bluto, where it crashes into a bunch of trees (with Bluto in
them), knocking them all down ten-pin style. But a train is thundering down
the tracks towards Olive, and Popeye has to get there in time. He can't
untie her ropes in time, so he gives the train a mighty blow with his
mighty fist -- and the train falls to pieces.
End of cartoon.
______________________________________________
SUPERMAN 64: ALL THE DELAYS FOR THIS?
---------------------------------------------------------
Reviews of the New Superman Videogame for Nintendo 64
It took quite some doing, but Titus Software's long-awaited Superman
videogame for Nintendo 64 finally hit shelves at the end of May. This game
has been delayed for at least two years for various and sundry reasons,
including the addition of two multi-player modes (perhaps due to the
success of the ever-popular Goldeneye game). You may recall that print and
TV ads began to appear late last fall for a holiday release, but then the
game was recalled for additional work. According to press releases, Titus
took the game to DC for a complete rewrite of the storyline during this
period, reportedly without changing any of the gameplay itself.
Anyway, now that the game has finally hit consoles all across the country,
how has it been received? Initial sales were apparently pretty high, as the
game topped the best-seller charts for May. However, reactions to the game
have been lukewarm at best, which should lead to dwindling future sales.
Before you fork over your hard-earned money, you might want to take a look
at the three reviews we've rounded up for you.
Titus has been planning a PlayStation version of the game for some time,
but last I heard, that has been delayed until around Christmas. If this has
changed, I would appreciate some information. Here, then, are your reviews.
From: Greg Selinger (Kalel3667@aol.com)
I was hoping to be able to finish the game before sending my opinions, but
unfortunately I have not been able to beat the last level, which has been
the most frustrating of them all. Alas, here are my thoughts on the game.
The Superman game has frustrated me from the start. At its over-priced
cost, it still requires that you own the Controller Pak for Nintendo, which
means that you can't save directly to the game, but need to buy the
Controller Pak (around ten bucks, for those of you who don't already have
one) to save your game.
Well, the game does not start off very well. The plot involves Superman
following Lois and Jimmy into a virtual world designed by Lex Luthor and
Brainiac where many villains from the cartoon show have been brought.
Though it does annoy me that the whole game is within Lex's virtual world,
the game would be acceptable, if not for the many annoyances it causes.
The first level is outdoors, where you control Superman, flying through
rings. You must fly through a helluva lot of rings, and save a few people,
to beat the level. What is annoying is that every second level is an
outdoor, redundant level, and half of the game is flying through rings.
As for the indoor *real* levels, they can be fun. I enjoyed fighting
against much of Superman's rogues gallery, but I have faced frustration
when flying quickly around a closed room, turning back towards where the
super-villain stood moments ago, and discovering that he has disappeared
(and because of this, I could not beat the level).
Superman's super-powers (heat vision. x-ray vision, super-speed, and
super-breath), come in item form. You get an icon with a picture of the
power, and then get a certain amount you can use, before running out.
Though the game is based on the animated version, there seem to be comic
references to the energy Superman arc, as Superman passes through the walls
or the floor. Unfortunately, this glitch often gets Superman stuck. This
can cause much frustration, and I can say that hours of playing time have
been lost because of this, disappearing villains, and maybe even a little
because of controls (it can be frustrating getting out of corners while in
mid-air sometimes... and if you are being punched or shot at... ugh.)
I've stood behind Superman for years, and because of that, I've seen much
that did not have exactly the highest of quality. Many people have
abandoned certain representations of Superman, feeling that the legacy of
the character they loved was in some way brought to shame by
misrepresentations. Though this game is certainly one of those cases, I was
able to commit myself to the game, and somehow play until the end. I
recommend this game *only* to persevering video game players, because this
game causes a lot of frustration, and those that quit will hate this game,
while those who do not quit will have a love/hate relationship with it.
All in all, I found it an enjoyable game, but there was much to ruin it. I
really wish that Titus had held back the game even longer to take care of
the many bugs left in the game.
All in all, this was not the incredible game I hoped it would be, but it's
worth trying. If only played for a few minutes, this game isn't that great.
After a few hours of playing, it becomes apparent that this game isn't all
that bad. This may not be the most incredible game of all time I had hoped
it would be, but despite not being that great, I still find it to be better
than most games for the Nintendo 64, and I do not regret buying it.
=====================================================
From: Richard T. Spear, III ()
Well, I'm not a huge Superman fan. I like the comic, but have never
followed it, so I knew I could judge this game objectively. Doing so was
one of the least pleasant gaming experiences I've had in years.
The plot of the game was just a blatant excuse for forcing an extremely
beautiful engine into behaving like a side-scrolling test of dexterity. It
seemed like the guys at Titus came up with the plot when they were nearing
completion of the game. You (Superman) have been coerced into a virtual
version of Metropolis where your friends are being held. You have to fly
around doing various tasks; e.g., you have to prevent cars from hitting
people, or prevent a dam from collapsing and destroying part of the city.
One problem there. They are not really the citizens of Metropolis. There's
no real reason to care if a car hits those imaginary people. It gives you
the feeling of "Why am I messing around here?!?!" If one of these virtual
citizens dies, you restart. They give you a time limit. About 20 seconds
longer than you need. If you fly past a target, it's difficult to get back
in time to finish within the time limit.
You need to get powerups in order to use the various abilities (Cold
breath, heat vision, etc.). The powerup will give you almost exactly how
much you need to finish the stage. You have no room for creative gameplay.
This is by far the most choreographed game I've ever seen.
Flying is fun, but only in the practice mode. It works the same in normal
gameplay, but you have no time to enjoy it. In practice mode, you can do
full loop the loops in the air. The control is great! Lots of fun. They've
effectively rendered the best flying effect I've ever seen boring and
difficult to use.
Then of course we come to versus mode. Multi-player race is not even worth
the effort. It just isn't fun. The evil guys are all in their ships, you
can fly around shooting at each other, and trying to go through hoops.
Multi-player fight is almost exactly like the game Forsaken, except the
control isn't as good -- it's slower -- and the powerups/weapons you can
find are all lame and boring. The main point, of course, is shooting down
the other guys. Superman would've made a nice addition there, flying around
using his abilities, but the man sits this one out.
All in all, it was tedious. It wasn't just boring. I disliked the time I
spent playing. It is a waste of money. Seeing such grand potential being
dropped like that was painful. As a gamer, I plan to actively avoid future
Titus releases.
=====================================================
From: Edward Mathews (em11@is3.nyu.edu)
I'm one of the biggest Superman fans around. If it has a big "S" on it,
chances are I own it, from those pretzels that were eagerly consumed in the
late 80s to the Superman Blue action figure. I have also been raised on
Atari and am no stranger to video games. Playstation fans should take some
small solace in the following fact: Superman will not be released on your
game system. For some reason, Warner Bros. (former owners of Atari) and DC
Comics licensed Superman to the Titus Software Corporation. Sadly,
retailers are going to take a hit on this one, because Titus has managed to
make an annoying game out of what could have been the coolest game on the
N64.
Let's start with the positives: Titus actually came up with an interesting
game engine. Controlling Superman is not that horrible... in practice mode.
He can take off at any point in time, he has the ability to use heat
vision, super breath, x-ray vision, and super-speed at various points in
the game. Flying Superman should be a graceful experience. He can lift
cars, punch, and do all the things a Superman should be able to do, except
for one thing: entertain. With all the effort placed into the game engine,
the actual game is horrendous. The first level has you trying to fly
through these floating rings within a certain time limit. If you miss some
rings, you have to start from the beginning of the level. After that, you
must save some civilians from getting run over by cars, but I am getting
ahead of myself. You see, they aren't "people" because you are caught in a
virtual reality world created by Lex Luthor, where the only "real" people
are Lois Lane, Jimmy Olsen, and an array of Superman villains from the
Animated series, like Metallo, the Parasite, and Darkseid. Regardless, if
you don't move quickly enough to meet this challenge and succeed, you have
to start over with the tedious "fly through the rings" level. Why did Titus
bother to hand us an engine which could allow such freedom of movement,
only to force you into the 3-D equivalent of a bad 2-D side scroller? Sure,
there are 14 levels, but who cares if you don't want to play through them?
Oh, yeah... there is a multi-player mode. Superman, however, isn't in it.
Superman's villains are flying in ships, shooting at each other with
power-ups they grab along the way. Oh, there is also a "race" mode, where
you shoot at each other with power-ups you grab along the way *and* deal
with the flying rings (the ones you hated in the single player mode)
shooting out of the back of the leader. (I still don't get this, but maybe
it's better in the French or Spanish modes the game comes with...)
Ok... perhaps I can forgive a simple plot. I might even be able to forgive
the restrictive nature of the game itself. This would have been contingent
on mind-numbing graphics and awesome sound. Unfortunately, once again, this
game fails miserably on both counts. There is a lot of clipping, the fog is
horrible, and if it was supposed to help out with the framerates, it sure
wasn't noticeable to me. The sound was serviceable, but horribly
repetitious. I can't believe Nintendo actually allowed this game to be
published, let alone receive their official seal of quality.
Don't even get me started on the Joey Cavalieri/Joe Stanton special
"Collector's Edition Comic Book."
To my fellow gamers and Superman fans: own this game only if you are a
truly anal retentive completist and you are collecting N64 games for
posterity or must have everything Superman is in... then never open it or
play it. Maybe this will help you figure out what I am getting at Superman
comic readers: if I could rate this lower than the Lex Luthor mini-series
that just came out, I would. Unfortunately, I can't. 0.0 Shields. This game
is just not fun and I will be returning it for another game.
To DC, please make sure that you only license your big guns to programmers
like the team at Rare who have a track record of excellent games. A good
game can turn people on to comics. A bad one, like this one, will probably
drive people away.
_________________________________________________
End of Section 2
_________________________________________________
NEW COMIC REVIEWS
--------------------------------------
Comics Arriving In Stores May 1999
Third month in a row with everything reviewed! Fifteen whole titles
reviewed for your enjoyment, including comments from several new ratings
panelists. Enjoy!
Ratings Panelists:
-----------------
BS: Brian Seidman GN: G.M. Nelson RG: Rene' Gobeyn
CoS: Cory Strode GR: Gary Robinson SDM: Simon DelMonte
DWk: Douglas Wolk JB: Jeremy Bleichman SL: Sebastian Lecocq
EJ: Enola Jones JDC: Johanna Draper Carlson ST: Shane Travis
EM: Edward Mathews JSy: Jeff Sykes SY: Steven Younis
GC: Glenn Crouch MS: Mike Smith TD: Thomas Deja
As always, the first rating given after the average is that of the
reviewer. The average rating given for each book may correspond to a
larger sample of ratings than what is printed following the average.
================================================
THE TRIANGLE TITLES:
-------------------
25. ACTION COMICS #755 Jul 1999 $1.99 US/$3.25 CAN
"Necropolis"
Plot: Stuart Immonen
Dialogue: Mark Millar
Pencils: Shawn Martinbrough
Inks: Jose Marzan, Jr.
Letters: Bill Oakley
Colors: Glenn Whitmore
Separations: Digital Chameleon
Assoc. Ed.: Maureen McTigue
Editor: Joey Cavalieri
Cover: Stuart Immonen, Jose Marzan, Jr., and Patrick Martin
RATINGS
Average: 3.2 Shields
GR: 2.0 Shields
BS: 2.5 Shields - This issue had some heart, but the crux of the comic
took place in an imaginary scene making it feel like this issue
went nowhere.
EM: 4.0 Shields - I'm almost ready to forgive the Superman teams for that
outrageously long story arc based on the aftermath issues. This
one shines.
GC: 2.6 Shields - I found the story disjointed, and the art seems to make
Superman and Luthor too small. Good to see Ron & Lucy again.
JSy: 3.5 Shields - Millar's producing some of the best dialogue in the
Superman titles, but the scene with the cab driver felt forced.
The art, however, was a bit too angular for my taste.
SDM: 3.0 Shields - Millar makes the whole issue, especially the dream-
sequence, better than Immonen could ever have made it on his own.
I'm also impressed with how well Superman's loss of credibility is
handled.
ST: 1.8 Shields - Martinbrough's art turns me right off, and the center
bit shows that Immonen hasn't been dissuaded from trying things
like this -- and he should be.
SY: 3.8 Shields - Touching story with some good character interaction.
Nice to see the people of Metropolis actually involved in a
Superman comic.
TD: 3.7 Shields - Even though the prose gets a little 'tortured artist
purple,' a very well done piece of work, making Millar and Immonen
the team to beat in the upcoming New creative team Sweepstakes.
Review by: Gary D. Robinson <robinfam@akron.infi.net>
In the wake of Dominus' foiled plot to take over the world in the guise of
Superman, the Man of Steel must work to rebuild humanity's trust. Although
he saves the life of a little girl in the beginning of our story, he faces
bitter recriminations and deep cynicism. En route to Ron Troupe's
mysterious new job, Clark, Lois, and Lucy Lane are subjected to the taxi
driver's tirade against Superman. Clark imagines what might have happened
had he actually continued to force his agenda upon the world. He dreams of
a city of the dead, a Necropolis, as his legacy. The story concludes with a
visit to the homeless shelter where Ron now works. Clark and Lois decide to
volunteer there.
Did I like anything about the story? I really liked some of Mark Millar's
dialogue. He can be direct and vigorous, as when Superman says to sleazy
landlord, "Frankly, I don't like people who prey on the weak." The Landlord
comes right back at him, "Oh, sure... except when you're pulling on your
jackboots and trying to take over the world, right?" He can be light and
playful, e.g., Clark to Lois, "You think you're pretty smart, don't you,
Ms. Lane?" Replies Lois, "If I was smart, I'd have married your pal over in
Gotham." There's also a bit of comedy when, forced to make the switch from
tights to civvies even faster than usual, Clark forgets to put on his
shoes.
Millar also handles a couple dramatic scenes very well. When the
recently-formed Department of Extranormal Operations refuses to support the
manufacture of synthetic kryptonite, Luthor oozes with sarcasm and
invective. Millar very capably displays Luthor's unreasoning hatred of the
Man of Steel. Earlier in the book, Superman saves a little girl from a
collapsed building. At first, he can't get to her because he can't see
through all the layers of lead paint. Although it's certainly a logical
obstacle to Superman's X-ray vision, I don't recall any previous mention of
a problem with lead-based paint. Millar (or Immonen) is to be commended for
thinking of something so obvious as to go unnoticed. What's more, I'm a
sucker for saving little kids. There's something primal in the image of
Superman carrying a child in his arms. I don't care who paints the picture,
it always touches me.
So, the first eight pages are really pretty good; too bad your average tale
runs twenty-two pages. What begins to drag the script down is the speech
given by the cabbie. He starts out crudely, and believably. Then, somehow
he metamorphosizes into a weird mix of university professor and talk-show
host, preaching about the "human perspective" and "Dr. Laura-style insight"
(Let's give credit for another probable first; this may be the first time
that little family counselor has ever been mentioned on the funnybook page.
I'm thinking of faxing the dialogue to Dr. Laura.) The driver isn't a
character. He's a mere plot device, a contrivance to bring on scenes of the
cover-heralded Necropolis.
Once that nasty hook has been inserted firmly into the flesh of the book, a
cable drags it down, down into the murky depths. Superman dreams he has
"sucked the life out of the entire world." I guess he means people and
cities, since, in his dream, the Great Outdoors continues to flourish with
flora and fauna. Here, the passages are so stilted and redundant, I didn't
know whether to laugh or cry: "Listen well, maybe-monarchs and would-be
kings! Free chaos is not the human spirit's master, but neither is the iron
grip of tyrannical command. Humbled is the ruler who meets his subjects on
the soil of their ancestors." Who wrote this stuff? Millar doesn't really
write like this, does he? Although I don't always thrill to his work over
in Superman Adventures, I rather doubt that he's responsible for this
sludge. I wonder if the purple stuff isn't the product of Stuart Immonen,
the story's plotter. Or maybe Editorial got hold of the script and shot it
to death; it's been known to happen. Regardless of who wrote like this,
however, he or she should be ashamed -- for failing to heed Strunk and
White ("Omit needless words.") if nothing else.
If I was frustrated by the downward spiral of the writing, I was bored by
the subject matter that eats up the latter half of the book. I'm sure that
for newer readers the question whether Superman is -- gasp!-- more
dangerous to the world than he realizes is novel and intriguing, but for a
guy who remembers having to consider Elliott Maggin's thoughtful query,
"Must There Be A Superman?" in 1972, not to mention all the variations on
it since, the issue has grown bone-weary. So, too, has the "social
consciousness" that keeps popping up in these pages. I thought that went
out when the Lantern split from the Arrow in the early 70s. What? I'm
supposed to believe that Superman can do more for humanity as Clark Kent
serving lunch at an isolated homeless shelter now and then than he can
plugging volcanoes and flying kids out of collapsed buildings? I don't
think so.
As for the art, Shawn Martinbrough's pencils are interesting, and, given
the issue addressed in this story, even appropriate. He makes Superman look
at times like a Twelfth-Century mosaic of Jesus Christ. And what are we
dealing with here if not a besmirched icon, "a man of sorrows and
acquainted with grief"?
Superman, however, isn't Jesus. Jesus came back from the dead, while it
seems that Superman can't even come back from the doldrums.
================================================
26. SUPERMAN: THE MAN OF STEEL #90 Jul 1999 $1.99 US/$3.25 CAN
"A Girl And Her Robot"
Writer: Mark Schultz
Penciller: Mike Collins
Inker: Tom Nguyen
Letterer: Ken Lopez
Colorist: Glenn Whitmore
Separations: Digital Chameleon
Assoc. Ed.: Maureen McTigue
Editor: Joey Cavalieri
Cover: Doug Mahnke, Tom Nguyen, and Patrick Martin
RATINGS
Average: 2.9/5.0 Shields
MS: 2.5 Shields
BS: 2.7 Shields The "Phantom Fortress" is an interesting idea; I was
kind of disappointed that it wasn't made more official as the new
Fortress. Collins' art was also very good, combing with brilliant
colors to make an exciting desert scene.
EM: 3.3 Shields - I wouldn't want to get in an argument with Lois Lane
over what kind of donuts we should pick up for coffee hour. :)
Sensitive, Rusty?
GC: 3.2 Shields - I like Rusty but couldn't see much use for the Phantom
Fortress; I would have thought it better to find Kandor and all
those people.
GR: 2.9 Shields - Interesting: the Fortress in the Phantom Zone. At least
there's hope the Fortress, a Superman tradition, will return to
this reality.
JB: 4.0 Shields - Fun story, highlighted by Superman's speech to Luthor,
but why couldn't Lois have a more active role? Mike Collins does a
great job filling in for Mahnke.
JDC: 2.0 Shields - Ah, for the Lois of yesteryear, who'd have found a way
to get a story out of having her own Kryptonian bodyguard. Now,
she just hangs around twiddling her thumbs.
SY: 2.5 Shields - A phantom Fortress. Umm... yeah. Whatever. Who comes
up with these ideas?
TD: 3.0 Shields - Not bad at all, although a bit frenetic in the 'Let's
Try This' Department. Schultz and Mahnke have turned what was the
worst of the Triangle titles into something not only readable, but
*gasp* enjoyable.
Review by: Mike Smith <mike_p_smith@hotmail.com>
Finally, we've reached the last epilogue to the "King of the World" story
arc. Don't get me wrong; I enjoyed the story a lot, but that was partly
because of the satisfying _conclusion_ a month ago. While I'm pleased that
there's still a lot of lasting repercussions from the story, it's time to
start moving on to the next big thing.
That leads to the final loose ends of Superman's mad grab for power: his
arsenal. Lex Luthor managed to level the Fortress of Solitude by dropping a
Building Full of Kryptonite on it from orbit, and Lex also has custody of
the only remaining Superman Robot -- the one programmed to defend Lois Lane
at all costs. So when our story opens with Lex Luthor chewing out Lois Lane
for botching LexCom's exclusive Superman interview, the robot reactivates
and escapes its captivity to race to the rescue. Seems that battle damage
has rendered the robot ultra-sensitive to perceived threats to Lois'
safety, and the tension of her hard day at the office was enough to set him
off.
Of course, it doesn't take long for Superman himself to notice the errant
robot, and when his creation refuses to follow his orders he heads to the
Fortress of Solitude to get some technical support. In the midst of the
rubble, Superman finds the head of his faithful robot servitor, Kelex, who
warns his master of a disturbance in the immediate area. Before he can
explain further, they get sucked into the phenomenon. Apparently, when
Luthor dropped the Building Full of Kryptonite on the Fortress, the extreme
shock of the impact, combined with Dominus' reality warping properties,
transformed the Fortress into a ghostly form outside of reality.
Well, that's what Kelex says it is. Meanwhile, the Fortress and the
automated defenses in it perceive Superman and Kelex's head as
extradimensional intruders and turns on them. Kelex reasserts control by
having Superman overlap his head with that of another servitor robot in the
Fortress. This allows him to interface with the Ghost Fortress and figure
out the problem with Lois' "protector" at the same time. They return to
their own world and Kelex orders the Super-Robot to stand down. See, the
trick is to do it in Kryptonian, since the robot had gone to the Kryptonian
default settings. Kelex teaches Superman to control the Superman robot, and
he sends Rusty to stand guard over the phantom Fortress. Finally, Superman
confronts Luthor, who started the whole mess by tampering with the robot in
the first place. Just to rub it in, Superman reminds Lex that even when
Supes' popularity was at its lowest, Lex still couldn't destroy his
reputation.
It's a fun little story, with plenty of outlandish concepts like the ghost
singularity, the misguided yet loyal robot, and Kelex once again sticking
it out through thick and thin for Superman. Still, I found much of the
setup contrived. Kelex's pseudo-scientific explanation for what happened to
the Fortress is shaky at best; the line about Kryptonian quantum physics
accounting for it just makes it all the more laughable. Even worse is their
escape. Kelex tells Superman to fly at 245,921 kilometers per hour to
diverge their "quantum probabilities" from the Fortress. This just
transcends comic-book science and becomes absurd.
And of course, while we're dealing with that, the draw of the story (for
me, anyway) goes underplayed. This was solicited as a tale of Superman and
Lois dealing with a over-protective robot, and I had expected something a
little more dramatic. Instead, Supes whacks him with a boulder and points
Kelex's head at the big gray lug. It's more than a little anti-climactic.
Still, it's great to see Superman take a few parting shots at Lex, and Mike
Collins makes a pretty good showing as a fill-in penciller. It's an average
Super-issue, but it makes a decent final installment for the major story
arc.
================================================
27. SUPERMAN #146 Jul 1999 $1.99 US/$3.25 CAN
"Rough Day At The Office"
Story and Layout Art: Dan Jurgens
Finisher: Joe Rubinstein
Letterer: John Costanza
Colorist: Glenn Whitmore
Separations: Digital Chameleon
Associate Editor: Maureen McTigue
Editor: Joey Cavalieri
Cover: Dan Jurgens, Joe Rubinstein, and Patrick Martin
RATINGS
Average: 3.4 Shields
TD: 2.0 Shields
DWk: 2.9 Shields - So is S.T.A.R. going to examine _every_ batch of toys
made by a deranged murderer? Does not compute... Also, the moral
is really heavy-handed.
EJ: 5.0 Shields - Now THIS is Superman! The kindness, the humour, the
compassion! Helping Toyman to possibly rehabilitate, being a
husband to Lois -- LOVE the crack about his last cape.
EM: 2.0 Shields - WHAT!?!? Isn't letting Toyman make toys for tots the
equivalent of asking Michael Jackson to babysit? Jurgens' not-so-
subtle dig at the change in creative teams isn't even amusing,
coming from the man who brought us Doomsday and Sparky Superman.
GN: 4.0 Shields - Another solid insight into the Man of Steel by Jurgens
(with perhaps a dig at the coming change of direction?). The art
represented some of Jurgens' best on the character.
GR: 2.9 Shields - I appreciate the loss of childhood, a true blight on
our society, being addressed. but if the Toyman is truly as
demented as we're told, I doubt mere toy-making can cure him.
JB: 4.7 Shields - Jurgens goes out with a bang. It's always nice when
Superman shows he can do more than just hitting stuff, and it's
always nice to get some art out of Jurgens.
JDC: 3.0 Shields - Characters talk to the reader instead of each other.
Narration tries to be clever but just seems bitter. The book is
redeemed, however, by providing an uplifting happy ending to a
single-issue story.
JSy: 3.5 Shields - Jurgens' commentary really struck home with me. My only
problems were that Superman seems to conveniently ignore Schott's
recent mental instability, and the ink job seemed a bit weak.
SL: 4.1 Shields - A fantastic story about the possible salvation of a man
who loves children and toys more than his own life.
SY: 4.5 Shields - Showing Superman's compassion for even the worst of
society proves he's the ultimate superhero.
ST: 2.1 Shields - This idea would have been *perfect* for the original
Toyman, but is so totally inappropriate for this psychopathic
version... I just kept wondering how Cat Grant will feel when she
hears how Superman treated her son's murderer.
Review by: Thomas Deja <blackair@gis.net>
Ah, well -- it looks like it's business as usual at Casa de Jurgens. After
a run of issues that seemed to indicate that Jurgens wanted to go out with
a bang, he turns around and produces one of those horrid 'relevant' issues
that's the bane of my existence.
Superman comes home late for dinner with a tattered cape and a dour face.
He tells Lois that today's been a busy day; Plastic Man behaved like a boob
at the JLA meeting, there was a volcano, there was a collapsed bridge,
there was a bank heist... but that's not what's getting to Clark.
He then proceeds to tell Lois how he witnessed a publicity stunt by GoToys,
a toy manufacturer who's renamed themselves GoTronics andupdated their
most famous game into a modern, bloody-minded video game. Before you can
say, "Winslow Schott," the life-sized scale replica of the game comes to
life and tries to kill the owner of GoToys. ("GoTronics, if you please...")
Superman saves the day and gets into a dialogue with the company owner. Big
Blue speculates that the assailant does not approve of the violent nature
of this game updating, and the owner replies that this is what kids want.
According to the owner, kids don't want substance, they want violence and
flashy effects, and in fact the plan is to update the game every two years!
Supes naturally goes to confront the usual suspect, Winslow Schott a.k.a.
The Toyman. It soon becomes obvious, though, that the worst thing Winslow
is hiding in his cell are toys, and that the true evil mastermind behind
the assault is (wait for it...drum roll coming...)
The Prankster.
Yep, didn't make sense to me, either.
So Supes jails the Prankster, but is troubled by what he assumed about
Winslow and wonders what he could've done to prevent the Toyman from going
insane. Superman works with the warden at Strykers to give The Toyman a new
chance, by putting him to work on building toys for an orphanage.
Okay, so what's awful about this story? Well, the art for one. Jurgens is
*really* asleep at the switch here, producing a Man of Steel who looks like
a cartoon wrestler, a decidedly mannish Lois, and some absolutely
befuddling layouts. There are some montages, in fact, that have to be seen
to be believed. Particularly hilarious is page 11, in which -- honest to
God -- it looks like Winslow is studying a doll's head sticking out of a
dying man's butt. Every time Jurgens pulls out for a long shot he displays
a shocking lack of detail, and he seems to be going for the dull
composition every time. It's amazing how bad this art job is; even Joe
Rubinstein's inking cannot salvage this disaster.
Then there's the return of the wincingly bad Jurgens dialogue. All the
minor progress Jurgens has displayed in the past few months goes down the
drain, replaced by a steady stream of pure exposition disguised as
conversation. I find it very hard to believe that Jurgens thinks people
talk this way.
Finally, there's the weird condescending tone that has affected the bulk of
Jurgens' "relevant" stories stretching back to "They Call It Suicide Slum!"
The whole book reads like a Sunday School lesson, to the point of taking
the Toyman and making him into a simpering Renfield-type. Even worse is the
transformation of the Prankster into a killer; one of the points made by
Byrne in the last post-Crisis appearance was that Oswald Loomis *wasn't* a
killer. To make his point, though, Jurgens throws all that out the window.
Jurgens has only two issues left. I was really thinking that he was going
to leave on a high note, but if this is what he's planning for his final
run, then it's gonna be pretty damn sad.
_________________________________________________
End of Section 3
_________________________________________________
THE TRIANGLE TITLES (cont):
--------------------------
28. THE ADVENTURES OF SUPERMAN #569 Jul 1999 $1.99 US/$3.25 CAN
"Power"
Writer: Louise Simonson
Guest Layouts: Tom Morgan
Finishes: Denis Rodier
Letterer: Albert T. De Guzman
Colorist: Glenn Whitmore
Separations: Digital Chameleon
Assoc. Ed.: Maureen McTigue
Editor: Joey Cavalieri
Cover: Tom Grummett, Denis Rodier, and Patrick Martin
RATINGS
Average: 2.4/5.0 Shields
EJ: 3.0 Shields
BS: 0.5 Shields - The metahumans in this tale were annoying, hackneyed,
and utterly boring. This issue only got points to encourage an
all-SCU issue.
JB: 1.6 Shields - We get introduced to not one, not two, but four
completely uninteresting new supporting characters who'll
probably be forgotten within the year. Why do they bother? Even
the return of Riot couldn't save this one.
JDC: 2.5 Shields - Not really a Superman story, and I liked it better when
it was set in the Legion Academy. Plus, the character designs are
ugly.
SL: 3.4 Shields - Four very original metahumans join the S.C.U. -- an
interesting idea which, I hope, will be developed in the future.
TD: 2.0 Shields - Ooooh, geez... a reminder of why there is a change of
guard coming. Simonson's writing is pretty painful and, what's
worse, we get gratuitous Riot. I know some of you guys dig him,
but I'd like to dig this character a grave.
Review by: Enola Jones <jennynesmith@hotmail.com>
PLOT:
When a typhoon isolates several islands from the rest of the world,
Superman steps in, leaving Metropolis on its own for a few days. Riot
chooses this opportune time to bust out of Stryker's Island, and the SCU
team is hard-pressed to recapture him. Once that is accomplished, and over
Sawyer's objections, the SCU is ordered by the mayor of Metropolis to
accept metahumans into its ranks. Four are chosen: Freight-Train,
Fireworks, Badmouth, and Roo. Mayor Sackett and Luthor have a bull session.
No sooner do the new recruits demonstrate their powers than a monster
escapes from S.T.A.R. Labs. Badmouth and Freight-Train are downed,
Fireworks makes everything worse, and ultimately some teamwork between the
SCU and Roo takes the monster down. Superman arrives to clean up, and
agrees that the four will do well in the SCU.
REVIEW:
What can one say about an issue with dynamite art but a plodding, mainly
predictable story? Not very much. _Adventures_ #569 had an intriguing
premise, new potentially recurring characters, and a rare glimpse into the
inner workings of the SCU.
Too bad all these exciting elements gelled into a merely mediocre issue.
I gasped aloud when I saw the cover. The thought of Superman actually
judging the new SCU recruits intrigued me. When I read the issue, however,
and found that not only was that *not* the case but that he was absent from
most of the book, I was disappointed.
As it turned out, that was not the only thing that disappointed me about
the story. "Power" had a premise that tantalised me for weeks in the blurbs
-- meta-humans joining the SCU. What I expected was a tale full of
meta-humans trying and washing out with a good measure of angst and
prejudice thrown in. What I got was a tale of four meta-humans fully
meshing with the SCU on their first case. There was one moment of angst,
but the fight scene was so predictable that I found myself yawning in the
middle in sheer boredom.
Each of the five new characters had potential. The only human-normal
newcomer, Chidi, I hope is developed further. She struck me as fiery,
spirited, and a good addition to the SCU. In my opinion, the four
meta-human additions also had potential to be something better than they
turned out to be.
Freight-Train and Roo were the biggest disappointments to me, the former
being just too stupid for any productive SCU work, and Roo coming off as
just silly. Even his turning out to be the hero of the piece was
overshadowed by the silliness factor.
The other two I found to be much more interesting. Fireworks -- awful pun
about being hot enough aside -- was intriguing as well as confusing. I am
baffled as to how her powers function, since this was not shown clearly in
the demonstration. I was more intrigued, though, by the verbal sparring
back and forth between her and Chidi. Though her hotheadedness (pun
unintended) predictably got her in trouble, I still would like to see more
of her.
As for Badmouth? I just flat-out like him. His calm handsomeness when he is
not using his power contrasts completely with his insane ugliness when he
is. His self-effacing humour ("Hard on the ego, even harder on the
wardrobe!") made me laugh. I felt he was underused and want to see more of
him.
The behind-the-scenes glimpses of the inner workings of the SCU and
Metropolis's dirty politics could have been handled better. Except for
Sawyer's remarks to Lois, all-too-justified in the light of recent events,
it appeared all we saw of the SCU was them standing around gawking at the
four's power displays. I was glad to see some interaction between the SCU
members, but would liked to have seen more.
In the dirty politics arena, I was both pleasantly and unpleasantly
surprised by the scene in Sackett's office. It was interesting to see
Sackett acting unilaterally without Luthor's consent, but the art in that
particular section was off-putting; it doesn't even appear to match the
dialogue. Sackett's words are those of a salesman, trying to sell Luthor on
his plan, but his body language is that of a cringing child.
So overall, how does _Adventures_ #569 measure up? It has excellent art
that only falters in the one scene in Sackett's office. It has an
intriguing premise that deteriorates into predictability. It has two
interesting new characters and two others that should best be forgotten.
It shows revealing glimpses of both the SCU and Metropolis's political
machine. This, combined with the art, saves what could have been a
mind-crushingly boring story and transforms it into one that is merely
average.
______________________________________________
SUPER-FAMILY TITLES:
-------------------
SUPERBOY #64 Jul 1999 $1.99 US/$3.25 CAN
"Hypertension! Part Five: Zero Tolerance"
Storytellers: Karl Kesel & Tom Grummett
Colors: Buzz Setzer
Letters: Comicraft
Ass't Editor: Frank Berrios
Editor: Mike McAvennie
Cover: Tom Grummett, Karl Kesel, and Patrick Martin
RATINGS
Average: 3.8/5.0 Shields
RG: 4.0 Shields
BS: 3.2 Shields - Not the best part of Hyper-Tension. This issue was
exciting, and I liked the way it thrust "our" Superboy into a
leadership position, but I didn't like the inconclusive ending.
GC: 4.1 Shields - This arc is worth publishing in a Trade Paperback; good
art, good action, good characters. SB is developing as a unique
character, and for a change, the Challengers are handled well.
JDC: 2.5 Shields - Overwritten Kirby riffs and bad pseudo-science. Copout
ending to a saga that didn't live up to its billing. Cramped
panels strangle what should have been great.
SDM: 4.3 Shields - Kesel and Grummett saved the best for last! This
gripping adventure is helped along by great characterization and a
lot of imaginative action.
SL: 3.5 Shields - Since his debut, Superboy has become more mature, and
this story demonstrates to us that his personality is complex.
I really appreciate it, as it can lead in to some very good tales.
Review by: Rene Gobeyn <rgobeyn1@rochester.rr.com>
Definitely not a good place to try to join this story arc. Wait until next
month; I suspect that the fun is just beginning. Superboy is easily my
favorite book in the DCU at this time, and if you take a chance it could
easily become one of yours. The book is making it fun to read comics again.
At the end of last issue, the Knockout of one of the Hyper-Earths
sacrificed herself to free Superboy and the Challengers of the Unknown from
the Doomsday chamber. She didn't gain them much time. One of the scientists
of this Cadmus notices that the Doomsdays are breaking free. Black Zero
simply sends all of them to a dead Hyperzone -- problem solved. (I had
hoped for a bit more of a challenge from the creature that killed
Superman.) Meanwhile Superboy and the Challengers have broken into the
chamber where the captured Superboys are being kept.
They are trying to figure out how to free the other Superboys when Black
Zero and the Stormguards catch up to them. Black Zero easily freezes them
in place, and all looks lost until Zero presses the button on the signal
watch given to our Superboy by the Clark Kent Superboy. The signal awakens
Clark so he can free himself and, inadvertently, all the others. This
distracts Black Zero enough that Superboy and the Challengers are also
freed.
A grand battle erupts between the Superboys and Black Zero, one that could
easily have gone either way but which is short-circuited when the
Challengers convince Metron to end his grand Hypertime experiment. He
agrees to use Superboy's reality as a control so that he can see how things
progress without Black Zero's intervention.
Having made this decision, Metron simply sends all the Superboys and
Stormguards back to their home realities -- all save Black Zero, who is
released on (our) Superboy's recognizance; SB hopes that he can
rehabilitate BZ. Metron gives the Challengers one of the Hypertime
transports to use for their trip home, and all goes well until Black Zero
wakes up and damages the ship, and all of them are lost in Hypertime.
What a cop out! This is a good ending to a great story arc, and one that
will be talked about for a long time to come, but not necessarily in a
favorable way. The actual ending of the story (before they go off to get
lost in Hypertime) was about as satisfying as finding out it had all been a
dream. My real complaint is that we never really got a chance to meet many
(any) of the other Superboys (and at least one girl), and that it was all
over much too soon. The ending felt rushed; the story arc easily could have
been extended into a sixth part to allow time to resolve some of the
issues.
Now, I don't mean this to sound too negative. It was a great story and a
decent ending. There was a lot going on, and a lot that needed to be
cleaned up. I simply didn't care for the way Metron just sort of waved his
hand and put everything back. It was too easy. After all the build-up from
the last four issues, the ending wasn't what I had hoped for. Maybe with
Superboy lost in Hypertime we'll get to see a bit more of it before he gets
back, but somehow I doubt it.
The art in the book was excellent, styled after Kirby, with flourishes
added by both Kesel and Grummett. I was a big fan of Kirby's Challengers of
the Unknown. They were always one of my favorite DC books; I'm hoping that
this may be a way of bringing them back into the mainline DCU and not just
another tease like the Wild Lands turned out to be. There are so many
under-utilized cast members in this book already that we really don't need
any more.
================================================
SUPERGIRL #34 Jul 1999 $1.99 US/$3.25 CAN
"We'll Always Have Parasite"
Writer: Peter David
Penciller: Leonard Kirk
Inker: Robin Riggs
Colorist: Gene D'Angelo
Seps: Digital Chameleon
Letterer: Bill Oakley
Asst. Ed.: Frank Berrios
Bougoise: Mike McAvennie
Cover: Leonard Kirk, Robin Riggs, and Patrick Martin
RATINGS
Average: 3.4/5.0 Shields
TD: 3.8 Shields
BS: 3.0 Shields - Peter David succeeded in making the Parasite scary
again, and I thought all that character interaction was good, as
usual. I hope we won't have a cliched Parasite battle next issue.
EM: 4.2 Shields - I know PAD must have pick Paris just for the puns, but
with the Parasite the puns are delicious.
GR: 3.1 Shields - PAD continues to paint an absorbing portrait of
Supergirl. Imagine, a superhero fighting out of pure rage because
something she created with her own hands had been destroyed!
JDC: 2.0 Shields - Speaking of a never-ending story... this book is
schizophrenia overlaid on a bad sitcom plot. Too many superheroics
for satisfying soap opera, and too much soap opera for a
satisfying superhero book.
SL: 3.9 Shields - As a frenchman, depictions of Paris or France in comics
almost always make me laugh, but this time, the Louvre and the
Tuileries are near-perfect. There are some mistakes about language
(the French employed are not very Frenchy) but it's not due to
the quality of the work by Kirk and Riggs. The story is very
consistent and i'm waiting impatiently for part two.
Review by: Thomas Deja <blackair@gis.net>
The DEO are in the sewers of Paris trying desperately to find the Parasite,
who has escaped en-route to his new home. The agents, dressed in Hazmat
suits, are joking nervously about feeling like Javert in Les Miz, and
discussing why they can't call in Superman, or the like. One of the agents
sees a desiccated rat float by.
"So he drained a rat. Big deal," says another agent.
And another drained rat floats by... and another...
And the Parasite rears up out of the water.
This is the type of writing Peter David should be known for. His talents
lie in the ability to take old, familiar characters and to see new ways to
utilize them, and in writing truly unsettling set pieces. Here we have a
version of a tired old Supes villain that, due to Peter's handling of his
dialogue and the character's actions, is actively scary. It's one of the
reasons this story works so well.
The plot, when you come down to it, is relatively simple. Linda and Mattie
are in Paris for Linda's opening at the same time the Parasite is kicking
ass. A suddenly-remembered speaking engagement that Cutter has set up for
Supergirl forces Linda to teleport to Columbus just as Parasite wrecks the
gallery hosting Linda's show. Linda returns, sees Parasite standing over
the squirming bodies of Dick and Elizabeth Perske, and loses it. She brings
Parasite to the ropes, but the Doc part of the energy vampire's mental
makeup is no fool; he severs the cable connected to the Eiffel Tower
elevator. Predictably, The Maid of Steel goes to save the passengers and is
caught in the Parasite's clutches.
Once again, what saves this from being a mindless slug-fest set-up is not
the bad vaudeville (which includes a tortured Jill Thompson shout-out
set-up, an embarrassing Linda-reacts-to-Mattie-dating-Cutter scene, and a
gratuitous Young Justice cameo) but the nuances going on between Supergirl
and the Parasite. David handles the dialog between Rudy Jones and the Doc
perfectly; there is contempt between them, but also a sort of weary
acceptance of their shared fate. Most interesting to me is that Supergirl
goes into battle with the Parasite not because he's hurting countless
French citizens, not because he's threatening Dick Malverne and Elizabeth
Perske, but because the monster destroyed her sculptures. David is once
again implying that Linda is slipping into the selfish. That might be what
Cassandra was hinting at when she implied last month that Linda has to
become more like Ember before she defeats the third Earth Angel.
Artwise, it's great to have Kirk back, doing his usual magic with facial
expression and action. I particularly like the way he and Riggs have
remembered that there's a face on Parasite's head; the malevolently smug
close-mouthed smirk the monster wears on page 18 is scarier than any of the
open-mouth-and-drooling shots we've seen of the Parasite down the years.
The sequences in the sewer are wonderfully atmospheric, as Riggs' inks
mingle with d'Angelo's color to create a dank, despairing little corner of
claustrophobia.
I like this issue a lot, even if it could've done without the jokes and the
screaming at Cutter's name. It may just be a breather before Carnivean gets
his mitts on our Maid of Might, but it's still entertaining.
================================================
SUPERMAN ADVENTURES #33 Jul 1999 $1.99 US/$3.25 CAN
"Clark Kent Is Superman - And I Can Prove It!"
Writer: Mark Millar
Penciller: Neil Vokes
Inker: Terry Austin
Letterer: Phil Felix
Colorist: Marie Severin
Separations: Zylonol
Assistant Ed.: Frank Berrios
Editor: Mike McAvennie
Cover: Mike Manley, Terry Austin, and Marie Severin
RATINGS
Average: 3.4 Shields
CoS: 4.5 Shields - What could have been a hoary retread of ancient plots
is instead a nostalgic and well done story that hits the same old
highlights, but in a new and refreshing way.
GC: 2.9 Shields - The ending was classic Silver Age _World's Finest_ and
was predictable as soon as Waynetech was mentioned, but it was
still an enjoyable read and my six-year-old liked it as well.
GR: 2.7 Shields - Nice to see the Brad Wilson character resurrected from
the movie, and also redeemed. Otherwise, a standard outing.
JSy: 3.2 Shields - A nice story idea that kept me guessing, though the
script was perhaps a little verbose. I still don't think that
Vokes does a very good job with the animated style, though, so
I hope Amancio returns soon.
SY: 3.8 Shields - I don't think today's Superman stories concentrate
enough on the secret identity bit, so this was a nice change.
Review by: Cory Strode <Solitaire.Rose@worldnet.att.net>
One of the conventions of the Superman mythos is the secret identity. Back
in the 30s and early 40s this tied into the wish fulfillment aspect of the
character; Superman was, in reality, timid, weak Clark Kent, and only he
knew how powerful and special he was. From the 50s up until the current
era, it was more a plot device. Under Weisinger, many convoluted stories
came out of Superman hiding his secret identity from Lois Lane, or one
villain or another. In the Julie Schwartz era, it was just one of the
secrets Superman guarded, and while few stories turned on the secret ID, it
was mentioned in every issue. By the end of the Schwartz era, there was
again some of the wish fulfillment, as Clark Kent would use his powers as
Superman secretly to get revenge on Steve Lombard for his practical jokes.
At present, the secret identity of Superman is largely there to give the
creative teams more soap-opera aspects of Superman's life to work with. In
the current story-lines, Clark Kent really doesn't have much to do, since
he's out of work and doesn't seem to be all that concerned about getting
another job.
_Superman Adventures_ continues its streak of good stories that use the
trappings of the Silver Age, but in a way that doesn't fall back on the
tired old plot devices that Mort Weisinger's stable of writers beat like
the proverbial dead horse. Mark Millar deserves a lot of credit, not just
for his improvement on this title, but for doing what Alan Moore tries to
do on Supreme to much more critical acclaim. He has learned that the plot
devices of the Silver Age still have life in them, if used properly. The
one he uses this issue is that someone has figured out that Clark Kent is
Superman. Sound like you're read it before? Well, you have, but this issue
proves that it's not always the tale but sometimes the teller who makes for
a good story.
The story starts with a bang as Clark Kent comes in to work at the Daily
Planet, where the phrase "Clark Kent is Superman and I can prove it" is
painted on the wall with yellow paint. Clark Kent is amazed that he is the
only one who seems to see it when he gets a phone call from a man who says
he knows his secret identity and he is going to sell it for the highest
price he can get. For now, though, the man is 'revealing' this secret in
ways only Superman can see -- the yellow paint is only visible to
Superman's enhanced vision, and later TV broadcasts revealing the secret
are attuned only to Superman's super-senses.
When Clark returns to his apartment, the man who has been behind these two
events is waiting there. It's Superman's most heated rival... Brad Johnson!
What?
You don't know who Brad Johnson is?
You're sure?
I guess it's OK that you don't know who Brad Johnson is, because Clark
doesn't remember who he is either.
Brad Johnson was the head of the Smallville football team, and after high
school his life slowly slid downhill... only now that he has put the pieces
together about Superman's secret identity, he figures he'll be rich, as
soon as he gathers the necessary proof. Clark hustles him out, but Brad
shadows him everywhere he goes, waiting to see Clark become Superman.
Finally, Brad takes a page from the Silver Age Lois Lane's book and throws
himself off a building as Clark meets with Lex Luthor. As he falls, Brad
watches Clark, waiting for him to change into Superman, but his smugness
turns to terror as Clark just watches him fall. Just as he panics, Superman
swoops to his rescue and deposits him back on the top of the building ...
right next to Clark Kent.
Brad at first is puzzled, but then realizes that Lex Luthor is missing. He
figures that Luthor has to be Superman, and cowers in fear from a man so
powerful in so many ways. Superman hints that he shouldn't ever talk about
it, if he knows what's good for him. Afterwards, Superman thanks Batman for
helping him out with the ruse. Yep, it's the old plot twist of Batman
helping Clark preserve his secret identity by playing Clark, allowing Clark
(who plays Luthor) to fly to the rescue. Bruce Wayne helps out one more
time, giving Brad a job at Waynetech and a chance to put his life back
together.
As you read over the plot synopsis, you might think that you've read the
story before, and in a way you have. You might also think that the story is
simplistic, and on that count you'd be right as well. You might even think
that there's no way that story could be entertaining, but on that count
you're dead wrong. Millar has learned how not to tip his hand while still
giving us a story that hits the familiar notes of a classic. The story
unfolds at a near-perfect pace, and feels neither stretched out with
padding nor crammed with too many details.
One of my problems with Millar was that he used to have plot holes that
would ruin the enjoyment of the story, but the only hole I could find this
time around was wondering where Brad would get the money he would need for
his "tricks" if he's fallen on hard times and turned to being a petty
criminal. Like most good writers, though, Millar moves the plot at such a
brisk pace that I didn't notice that fault until the second reading, when I
was looking at the details.
Vokes' art is also a joy on this book. In his early outings, he was very
good with the characters created for the story and less sure with the main
ones who already had designs from the cartoon series, but he has worked
through that problem. His Superman is a figure of power. Vokes has also
mastered the part of the animated style that seems to be the hardest for
artists -- conveying emotion. Even without reading the words, you can tell
how the character feels, conveyed simply and effectively through facial
expression and body language.
There are a number of powerful pages, but the one I must hold up as an
example of Vokes' talent and skill is the splash page. You open the cover
of the comic, and the image pulls you right into the story. The title is
painted in a sloppy, rushed style, and the bottom half of the page is taken
up by the back of Clark Kent reacting in surprise to the revelation. The
normalcy of the rest of the newsroom offsets the scene, as people go about
their business, and Lois look totally unconcerned. That's the hook -- the
pull that makes you have to turn the page to figure out what is going on.
Most comic creators seem to have lost this ability to "hook" the reader, so
when you see it, it's refreshing.
In fact, that's probably the best word I could use to review this issue.
Refreshing.
_________________________________________________
End of Section 4
_________________________________________________
TEAM TITLES:
-----------
JLA #31 Jul 1999 $1.99 US/$3.25 CAN
"Crisis Times Five, Part Four: God & Monsters"
Writer: Grant Morrison
Penciller: Howard Porter
Inker: John Dell
Letterer: Ken Lopez
Colorist: Pat Garrahy
Separations: Heroic Age
Assoc. Ed.: Tony Bedard
Editor: Dan Raspler
Cover: Porter and Dell
RATINGS
Average: 2.6/5.0
EM: 3.3 Shields
BS: 2.8 Shields - A disappointing end to the JLA/JSA team-up. The JSA
stood around while the JLA punched each other out, and I felt like
more could have been done, and has been done in other JLA stories.
DWk: 3.9 Shields - A lot of fascinating ideas. Unfortunately, there are
too many to juggle effectively, so the story's rather a mess. The
bit where Superman wakes up pushes it up a few notches, though.
GC: 2.8 Shields - I'm a big JLA/JSA crossover fan of the Silver Age, but
this series just didn't have the spirit of the JSA. What was the
point in rescuing the Spectre? (Besides that the new JSA needs
him...) I expected more, and was sadly disappointed.
JB: 4.2 Shields - Grant pulls a great ending out of the confusion. And we
got to see Mxy's girlfriend!
JDC: 1.5 Shields - Ugly fight scene leavened with mischaracterization.
Hasn't everyone gotten tired of the thoughtless big event writing
style yet?
JSy: 1.2 Shields - Morrison has a great understanding of Superman, which
I love, and he's obviously got a ton of great concepts running
around his head. Lately, however, they're just spilling out as
an incoherent mess. I hope he's more readable for the Mageddon
storyline coming up.
Review by: Edward Mathews <em11@is3.nyu.edu>
Synopsis:
<Dear God, help me through this one...>
<Deep breath...>
The story thus far: The JSA and the JLA are watching helplessly as Keystone
City is being torn apart in a war between two earthbound 5th Dimensional
Imps, Yz (Johnny Thunder's Thunderbolt) and Lkz (Triumph's genie). A third
imp, Qwsp, who used to be an Aquaman ally (though Grant Morrison insists he
was an old Aquaman villain), has gone grim-n-gritty in an effort to emulate
his former pal. The Spectre is finally released from imprisonment. Batman,
Aquaman, and later Superman and Steel take on Triumph and a mind-controlled
Gypsy and Ray at the JLA Watchtower. Wildcat dies, but he gets better.
Green Lantern and Captain Marvel save the day. Oh, and Zauriel finally does
something.
Normally, I would say, "Wacky hi-jinks ensue," but I think that's a given
this time around.
Review:
In the latest installment of Imps of Ages, er, Crisis times Five, Morrison
tries to pull together all the pieces to the puzzle he laid out in the
first three installments, and proves one thing: this should have gone on
for at least one more issue. Grant "The Idea Man" Morrison has indeed come
up with some fun ideas to throw at the reader. In this case, however, as
with Rock of Ages, it is too many ideas at once making everything feel
rushed and fully satisfying none of the subplots.
The issue is not without its charm. Page 7 will remain eternally quotable
when Triumph says "Uh-oh. [several panels of blue and red streaks crashing
through walls] Superman woke up." Back in the 5th Dimension, Green Lantern
and Captain Marvel are standing before hehe the council of Imps. Cameo
appearances by Bat-Mite (out of costume) and Mxyzptlk's "quinto-partner"
(which I assume means wife) make this the most amusing Deus ex Machina ever
employed. You see, they are going to save the JLA by arresting Qwsp for not
following the "Only mischief is permitted on the 3rd Dimension" rule
because "Your flatland is my quinto-partner's hobby; if we don't protect
Earth, Mxyzptlk will never leave the house again!" I was rolling on the
floor. It was such a ludicrous reason that it made sense in this story arc.
There are enough wonderful moments like these to keep the book
entertaining, despite the lack of a cohesive or satisfying conclusion.
So, Steel saves the day in the Watchtower by using the Watchtower as his
new suit, Green Lantern saves the day (with the help of Captain Marvel)
with the Imps by getting the colors to mix instead of wage war, Morrison
starts to answer how a 70 year old JSAer can remain youthful and fit by
killing him and bringing him back in the same issue, the Spectre turns
Triumph into a popsicle with Zauriel stopping him from smashing him into a
million pieces, and we find out that Mxyzptlk has a wife named Gsptlnz.
Although all of this is mildly amusing, none of it is totally satisfying.
The biggest clue that a story arc hasn't lived up to its potential is when
the characters in the story start complaining about how pointless the
adventure was. I kid you not as I am paraphrasing Plastic Man's line to
Zauriel on the second to last page. There are many wonderful bits in this
final installment, but wonderful bits don't necessarily add up to a great
story.
Did I ever tell you how much I don't like the idea of bringing "The
Quintessence" into current continuity instead of leaving them in Kingdom
Come? If not, then let me express it in clear terms: they don't even make
good narrators. These five hanging together makes no sense in the current
DCU. Highfather is dead, for pete's sake. Oh, well at least they don't
interfere.
Last month, Anatole Wilson asked for some resolution on a number of
questions in issue #30. Hopefully, he is satisfied with at least one
situation: Zauriel does something useful. I may be one of the few people
who really likes the idea of Zauriel, an earthbound angel and heaven's
representative on Earth. Standing up to the Spectre is no small feat of
bravery, especially since Spectre (another Siegel and Shuster creation)
lacks a human host to ground him in reality. Unfortunately for Anatole,
J.J. is alive and well and the newly combined T-bolt (now purple, because
pink and blue make purple) has a name that better fits his speech pattern.
I'm convinced that "YLZKZ" will translate into "Y'all suckas." Sound it
out. Tell me I'm wrong.
Art:
Porter has a field day in the 5th Dimension, as he should artistically. I'm
not typically fond of "action figure" art, but it works well with this
book. If Morrison intends to keep writing action movie plots, you can't
fault Porter for taking it to the special effects extreme. Porter is hot or
cold for me and this issue is no exception. I loved how he drew Thunderbolt
and the rest of the imps. Superman is well proportioned, as are all of the
other characters. Well... the other characters that aren't female, anyway.
The female characters can hardly fit in the top half of their costumes. I
mean, how big does the eagle have to get on Hippolyta's costume? The imps
and Thunderbolt push me just enough over the edge to declare this month's
art as pretty darned good.
Conclusion:
Have you been following this story arc? No? Don't get this issue. Wait for
the trade paperback and read it in one sitting. It'll make more sense, but
you'll be hoping it had more to it. Come back next month and try Waid and
Grayson in their 2 issue fill-in job. If you have been following this story
arc, it is entertaining enough to warrant a purchase -- if only to resolve
the questions left dangling from before.
================================================
YOUNG JUSTICE #10 Jul 1999 $2.50 US/$3.95 CAN
"Kali'd Away"
Writer: Peter David
Pencils: Todd Nauck
Inks: Lary Stucker
Colors: Jason Wright
Seps: Digital Chameleon
Letters: Ken Lopez
Asst. Ed.: Frank Berrios
Editor: Eddie Berganza
Cover: Nauck and Stucker
RATINGS
Average: 3.4/5.0 Shields
GR: 3.1 Shields
BS: 3.0 Shields - This two-parter was better than I expected. Impulse's
imitation of Batman was hilarious, but as usual, the good was
mixed with the bad. Red Tornado can't get a break!
GC: 3.5 Shields - YJ is slowly working out its teamwork, and Bart's
delusion that he was an Adam West style Batman was classic. I'm
not sure that more tragedy was needed for Tornado though.
JB: 4.5 Shields - Peter David turns in a winner. Todd Nauck gets better
every month.
JDC: 1.0 Shields - Important story points are over-explained or not
explained at all. Inappropriate events used purely for shock
value. Story takes a far back seat to overplayed jokes.
JSy: 4.0 Shields - From Bart's hysterical Adam West riff, to the growing
bond between Superboy and Wonder Girl, to the horrifying plan
of Kali's followers, this one's all over the map -- but in a
completely engrossing and entertaining way.
SL: 2.7 Shields - A special guest appearance of Batman, or is it ? No,
it's... Bartman! This is a great idea, and watching Robin get
driven to desperation by Impulse's attitude is great fun. Still,
only an average story with good art -- no more, no less.
Review by: Gary D. Robinson <robinfam@akron.infi.net>
Some day I'd like to sit down with Mr. Peter David, that estimable writer
of stuff, and have a long talk about life and death and kids and God. I'll
come back to that thought in a minute. Right now, our favorite super-kids
are about to be done in by a creepy crew in Calcutta.
Last time, YJ had discovered that the resurrected cult of Kali was using
the Teletubbies -- excuse me, I mean Hugga-Tugga-Thugees -- to turn
children into patricidal maniacs. The trail led them to an Indiana
Jones-type stronghold and into battle with the forces of the soon-coming
Kali. In this issue, that bizarre battle is offset by the domestic scene of
Red Tornado, his estranged wife, and their daughter spending a quiet
evening together -- quiet, that is, until little Traya tries to kill her
mother.
The fight with the Thugees is the usual blend of action and absurdity we've
come to expect in these pages. What makes this particular entry so funny is
Impulse's concussion-based delusion that he is Batman: "If only he hadn't
taken my utility belt..." "You're not Batman, for cryin' out loud!" cries
Robin. "You don't know me? What have they done to you, old friend?" It
seems Impulse has not only become the Caped Crusader, he's become Adam
West!
Along the way, the Acolyte (who is later revealed to be a kind of evil
god-broker) reveals that he intends to replace the God we have with Kali.
Arrowette thinks he's nuts. No, as far as the Acolyte is concerned, it's
the present God who's the lunatic. Among His alleged failures is the gift
of free will coupled with restrictive commandments. As I said, I'll come
back to that thought in a minute.
For all his theological aspirations, the Acolyte is still just another
long-winded villain whose speech gives Robin time to pick the lock that
binds him. (Impulse: "Good going, old chum. I've taught you well.") The
kids stave off the approach of Kali and run off her familiar. The victory
is muted, however, by tragedy in the Red Tornado family.
It'd be easy for me to award this issue of _Young Justice_ a decent mark
and be done for another thirty days. It moves along, it's funny, I dig the
colors, etc. Unfortunately, since last I wrote, a little thing called a
massacre occurred in a little place called Columbine High School. It got me
to thinking about life and death and kids and God -- all of which are fair
game for PAD whenever he sets his sights on a keyboard.
Of course, when PAD wrote this tale, he couldn't have foreseen the tragedy
in Littleton, CO, though in the wake of five other such killing sprees in
the past year, this one was not entirely unpredictable. I just wonder if
maybe he's looking at his work now and thinking some of the things I'm
thinking. As I say, I'd like to sit down with him and talk awhile. He
posits a situation wherein TV turns kids into killers. I'd like to ask
Peter, are television and movies basically harmless media or is the steady
stream of violent images -- violence without consequences -- seeping into
the souls of our children? I'd ask him about page 16 of this story, where
we see a horde of red-eyed youngsters brandishing knives. Peter, would you
consider this to be a vision of the future? A harder question: Do such
depictions of violent children trivialize a serious national problem? What
would the parents of the slain in Colorado say if you showed them this
page?
Then there's God. PAD brings him into the picture too. I'm curious, Peter.
You've dealt with God a lot in your work. Sometimes I think you're for Him,
sometimes I think you're against Him. Your Acolyte spews forth a diatribe
against God as cruel and erratic. He calls Him a lunatic, in fact.
Naturally this is the bad guy talking, but I'm uncertain whether you mean
this to be funny. I don't know whether it's the villain speaking or you.
Again, though, I remember Columbine, and the simple testimony of a
teen-aged girl before she died. "Do you believe in God?" her murderer
asked. "Yes," she said. His gun blew her into eternity. Perhaps at the time
you penned "Kali'd Away" you thought of the Acolyte's speech as somewhat
clever -- whatever your personal beliefs about God. If so, I wonder what
you think now. In a world where everything she thought nailed down had
suddenly popped loose, where everything steady had become wildly erratic
and everything sane lunatic, Cassie Bernall, 17, still held onto God. It
seems to me that, whether one believes in God or not, the faith and courage
He inspires in others ought at least to be respected. What do you think,
Peter? Don't you think God has been trivialized, marginalized, not to say
blasphemed, enough in pop culture?
"It's just a funnybook, Gary." "PAD means no harm." You're right and you're
right. Still, I'd sure like to sit down with Peter David, a very good
comics writer, and just talk awhile.
______________________________________________
MINISERIES:
----------
A. BIZARRO #1 Jul 1999 $2.50 US/$3.95 CAN
"Vivisimilitude"
Writer: Steve Gerber
Penciller: Mark Bright
Inker: Greg Adams
Letterer: Steve Dutro
Colorist: Tom Ziuko
Separator: Digital Chameleon
Assoc. Ed.: Maureen McTigue
Editor: Joey Cavalieri
Cover: Bright and Adams
RATINGS
Average: 3.7/5.0 Shields
GN: 3.6 Shields
BS: 4.0 Shields - I expected this miniseries to disappoint me, and I was
entirely wrong. This was witty, moving, and had some turns that
were completely surprising. I'm looking forward to the next issue.
DWk: 3.3 Shields - Nice execution, but just not that compelling an idea.
I admire Gerber's craft at updating _Howard the Duck_'s concept of
a loner in a world he doesn't understand, I just couldn't bring
myself to enjoy it.
JDC: 4.5 Shields - Great stream-of-consciousness dialogue reveals more on
each reading. Fascinating exploration of human identity AND
Superman continuity concepts. Terrific Mark Bright art captures
needed emotion.
JSy: 4.1 Shields - An intelligent, logical story, but completely, well,
bizarre. Gerber's characterization of Luthor is great, as is the
confusion he portrays in "Al".
SY: 2.5 Shields - Funny in places but stupid in most others. Not much
more I can say.
TD: 3.9 Shields - Very funny, surreal look at how Luthor's ruthlessness
wrecks the life of one of his peons, and you know things are going
to get weirder next issue, with Supes' introduction into the mix.
Review by: G.M. Nelson <KALEL224@aol.com>
It am easy to say this be worstest story of year....
No, forget it. I am not gonna try to write this entire review in "Bizarro
speak." Just thinking about it gives me a headache, and I can never keep it
straight, so writer Steve Gerber gets points just for that. More
importantly, he gets credit for a lot more in this first installment of
what looks to be a pretty engaging story.
This latest mini-series from the Superman office follows the adventures of
the "Bizarro" duplicate of Lexcorp public relations man Al Beezer (for
simplicity's sake, we'll just refer to him as Bizarro). Using the
duplication technology employed by Dr. Teng in the _Man of Steel_
mini-series which created the first Bizarro duplicate of Superman, Lexcorp
scientist Sydney Happersen produced the Beezer Bizarro during experiments
he conducted when Luthor's clone body was dying a few years ago. Storing
the new Bizarro away, Happersen later died and the duplicate was kept in
storage until a freak accident restores it to life -- well, as alive as any
Bizarro gets.
(In Byrne's reworking of the Bizarro tale back in the _Man of Steel_
mini-series, Superman's alien physiology was responsible for the
aberrations seen in the Bizarro Superman, but this story suggests that
another element is at play.)
Bizarro follows his fractured memories to the apartment of Beezer's now
ex-wife, who first gets drunk with him, then shoots him over her ex-hubby's
infidelity. Bizarro ultimately makes his way to Beezer's apartment, where
Bizarro finally meets the man after whom he was modeled. Trying to seek
wisdom from his donor, Bizarro is urged to get away from Lexcorp, which is
now on his tail, and to "remember all the choices I made in life -- and do
exactly the opposite," which is as close to the pre-Crisis Bizarro code as
anybody is going to get nowadays.
To some longtime readers of Gerber's work, some elements of this story
might seem a bit familiar -- the whole "lost in a world he never made"
theme sounding a lot like his classic "Howard the Duck" series. However,
where Gerber often used humor as a bludgeon during that series (Dr. Bong?
The Kidney Lady?), here he is more subtle and precise, and the story
benefits from the approach. The reader pretty easily is able to develop
sympathy for Bizarro; indeed, most everybody comes off pretty well in this
story. The scene between Beezer's ex, Olivia, and Bizarro in her apartment
could have come off as ludicrous but Gerber handles it for more than just
laughs.
As for the art, I've always liked Mark Bright's pencils -- his work on
_Green Lantern_ a few years back was enjoyable -- and here he blends pretty
well with inker Greg Adams. Ordinary people, not always drawn well in
comics, are realistically rendered, and he too helps make Bizarro a
sympathetic figure.
All in all, this is turning out to be a pretty enjoyable tale, and I'm
looking forward to Bizarro's encounter with Superman as foreshadowed in the
last panel.
================================================
BATMAN & SUPERMAN: WORLD'S FINEST #4 Jul 1999 $1.99 US/$3.25 CAN
"Year Four: Underworlds"
Writer: Karl Kesel
Penciller: Dave Taylor
Inker: Robert Campanella
Colorist: Alex Sinclair
Letterer: Clem Robins
Assoc. Ed.: Joseph Illidge
Editor: Darren Vincenzo
Cover: Taylor and Campanella
RATINGS
Average: 3.1/5.0 Shields
SDM: 2.9 Shields
EM: 4.0 Shields - Now I remember why Bruce Wayne isn't such a total jerk.
Clark still has no idea that he may have an alien origin. Why
shatter his illusion? Good call, Dark Knight. ;)
GC: 2.9 Shields - I have been a little disappointed in how Superman seems
to become dumb around Batman, rather then emphasising how they
complement one another. Batman in Cadmus was good and saved the
issue.
JSy: 3.2 Shields - The writing swings back towards the quality of the
second issue, but the art takes a turn for the worse, as Taylor
really struggles with Desaad and Apokolips. Am I mistaken, or
isn't it a bit late in his career for Superman to still not know
of his origin?
SL: 2.8 Shields - This 'year four' story makes me think of a French
anecdote, where a former President of France would sit down for
his Christmas dinner with a completely anonymous French family,
just like a "common human" -- as Superman did in the end of the
book.
SY: 2.8 Shields - Not the best of this series. Superman just came off as
too lightheaded with Batman looking in on him in a fatherly sort
of disapproving way. Didn't sit well with me.
Review by: Simon DelMonte <sdelmonte@aol.com>
On the third anniversary of Harrison Grey's death, Batman journeys to
Metropolis less to mark the date than to find out who is pointing a
satellite camera at Superman. After helping Supes rescue a family from a
burning building, the World's Finest team tracks the signal to a warehouse
where Intergang is being outfitted with Apokolipsian weapons by DeSaad. The
heroes easily dismiss the Intergangers despite the power of the weapons
involved, but it turns out that Intergang had only tapped into someone
else's signal. DeSaad makes his escape but asks Superman if he is a New
God, allowing him a shocking glimpse of Apokolips through a Boom Tube.
Supes is horrified by what he sees and can't believe that he could possibly
be from such a hell.
While Supes cleans up at the warehouse, Batman continues his investigation
alone, following the signal to the Red Horse Garage in Suicide Slum. He
discovers the secret labs of the Cadmus Project, and while there finds a
Dabney Donovan DNAlien, the maturing new body of Jim Harper, and the source
of the spycam -- Paul Westfield. Westfield is hoping to gather info to
create a Superman clone but Batman makes it very clear that if Cadmus
doesn't stop this effort, he'll reveal them. Westfield agrees, and all is
right again.
Once again, the story is rather simple, and again there's little sense of
what makes Superman so super. What works in this issue is Kesel's depiction
of Batman; he's dark, mysterious, and efficient... but human. He still
feels responsible for Grey's death and is starting to show a deep respect
for Superman. Batman's voyage into Cadmus is rather harrowing, and we see
his horror at what's going on even though we all know what he'll find
there. Superman plays a rather small role here, and while showing us his
reaction to the possibility that he's not from Earth and might be from
Apokolips is a good idea, it doesn't resonate.
The art continues to slide. While some of the action sequences are very
well done, the faces of most of the characters are weak. The faces of some
of the people Batman encounters at Cadmus are drawn in an inappropriately
cartoony fashion. Taylor and Campanella just don't have a handle on this
series and their imminent departure can only help.
As dissatisfied as I am, I'm still willing to give this series one more
issue to prove its case. Kesel uses some of his strengths this time, such
as his gift for characterization (in the case of Batman) and his love for
Kirby's contributions to the DC Universe. If he plays to those strengths,
he could save the rest of this series. If not, if he continues to tell
average stories despite the above-average heroes, I will give up on World's
Finest before it completes its run.
_________________________________________________
End of Section 5
_________________________________________________
SPECIALS:
--------
THE INCREDIBLE HULK VS. SUPERMAN #1 Jul 1999 $5.99 US/$8.99 CAN
"Double Lives"
Writer: Roger Stern
Penciler: Steve Rude
Inker: Al Milgrom
Letters: Jim Novak
Colors: Steve Oliff
Book Design: JG & Comicraft's Eric Eng Wong
Editors: Joey Cavalieri and Glenn Greenberg with Tom Brevoort
Cover: Steve Rude
RATINGS
Average: 3.8/5.0 Shields
GN: 3.7 Shields
EJ: 5.0 Shields - If you buy only ONE special this year, buy THIS one!
The art and storyline were reminiscent of the early Hulk books of
the 60s (my personal favourites). I was riveted from panel one.
EM: 4.5 Shields - This apparently takes place on Earth-Crossover, where
Superman and the Hulk exist in the same universe and always have.
Rude does a great Kirby tribute. Stern puts forth an interesting
plot that doesn't reduce this to a slugfest. Worth the $6.
SL: 3.5 Shields - I was never really a fan of Hulk but in this story with
Lex, Lois and Rick, the chemistry is near perfection. The only
regrets are the paper and colors used; it decreases the quality of
the whole book.
SY: 3.5 Shields - Pretty good plot, but too many inconsistencies with the
DC/Marvel universes; it makes out like Superman and the Hulk exist
in the same universe, which we know they don't!
Review by: G.M. Nelson <kalel224@aol.com>
It's another crossover between the DC and Marvel universes, this time
bringing together the mightiest of each pantheon: Superman, the last son of
Krypton, and the gamma-spawned goliath, the Hulk. On the whole, this book
pretty much delivers.
Aside from a framing sequence set in the present -- with Lois and Superman
happily married and Banner on the run once again, his wife, Betty, dead --
the story primarily takes place in the past, during the early years of
Superman and the Hulk, when Bruce Banner is still working for the
government under General "Thunderbolt" Ross, his identity as the Hulk is
still a secret, and Lois Lane is still steamed at Clark Kent for scooping
her on the first Superman story. Unlike the recent teaming between Superman
and the Fantastic Four, this time Superman and the Hulk are shown to be
living in the same world.
Following a battle out west between Superman and the Hulk, both Clark and
Lois head out to New Mexico -- as does industrialist Lex Luthor (making, I
believe, his first appearance in one of the DC/Marvel crossovers since the
teaming with Dr. Octopus in the pre-Crisis _Superman/Spider-Man_). Lex
hopes to enlist Banner's genius and, particularly, the power of the Hulk,
who he sees as the perfect weapon in his campaign to destroy Superman.
After a battle between the Man of Steel and the Green Goliath set up by --
who else -- Luthor, the two have to team up to save the base from Luthor,
who misuses one of Banner's creations in an attempt to destroy the Hulk and
his true target, Superman.
Writer Roger Stern has strong credentials with both characters, having a
memorable run on the Hulk's book back in the late '70s and early '80s as
well as being a part of the Super-team from his days on the Superman strip
in _Action Comics Weekly_ until just a few years ago. His experience with
both characters and their supporting players serves him well here; both
casts are perfectly in character. I got a kick out of Superman, stopping
for a root beer float, telling Lois that her rival Kent had come out west
along with Luthor, then flying off and leaving her to her frustration.
Interestingly, in keeping with the "early years" tone of this tale, the
Hulk here is not the childlike, monosyllabic behemoth Stern is best known
for writing, but the angry man-monster with a mountain-sized chip on his
shoulder. This Hulk is not eloquent by any means, but is basically
articulate, and it's certainly not a detriment to the story.
Characterization without sacrificing either action or plot is a hallmark of
Stern's writing. Here that trait is once again apparent, as shown in scenes
between Lois and Betty, and Clark and Bruce. The poignant framing sequence
effectively contrasts the fate of the characters -- the happily married
Kents and the tragic Banner, again on the run after recent personal events
that include the death of his wife, Betty. Even the inevitable clash of
titans (well, the title does say Hulk versus Superman) late in the book,
set up by Luthor using a robot Hulk, never seems to degenerate into cliche.
(On the first read, I thought trying to create a connection between the
lead characters through Superman's musing about him and Banner being alike
because both characters' lives were changed by explosions was a bit of a
stretch, but as flaws go it's a pretty minor one.)
As far as the art, Steve Rude and Al Milgrom certainly mesh here better
than I would have expected. The art evokes the early incarnations of both
characters, the Joe Shuster-rendered Superman and Jack Kirby's Hulk -- the
latter thankfully rendered without being a direct swipe of the King's work,
as has been done so often in recent years. You almost can't help but see
George Reeves when Clark Kent -- wearing a hat complete with a press pass
in the band -- shows up at the base and introduces himself to Bruce Banner.
This wasn't a story that fandom was waiting for breathlessly, but it's
certainly turned out to be a pretty fun tale in its own right, with just
the right blend of characterization and action, and top-notch artwork
capping it off.
================================================
SUPERMAN: THE ODYSSEY Jul 1999 $4.95 US/$7.95 CAN
Writers: Graham Nolan and Chuck Dixon
Artist: Graham Nolan
Letterer: Tim Harkins
Colorist: Noelle Giddings
Separator: Digital Chameleon
Assoc. Ed.: Maureen McTigue
Editor: Joey Cavalieri
Cover: Graham Nolan
RATINGS
Average: 3.6/5.0 Shields
ST: 3.7 Shields
BS: 3.8 Shields - A lot of thought went into this story. It's an
interesting study of the philosophies that make up a person like
Superman. I like the idea of one title's creative team tackling
another hero (in this case, the Batman team covering Superman).
GC: 2.9 Shields - I expected to learn something about Clark's pre-costume
days, but we already knew he had been to Paris and Bhutran, and
that he's a good bloke. Reasonable art and story, but there should
have been more for the price.
JDC: 3.0 Shields - Pleasantly surprising. A bit too Batman-like for my
taste, and overpriced, but a nice tale.
SY: 4.2 Shields - Great story, touching, exciting, romantic, with great
insights into the "missing" years of Clark's adolescence.
Review by: Shane Travis <travis@sedsystems.ca>
Synopsis:
While cleaning out a terrorist hideout, Superman is made aware of the death
of Terri Chung, the spiritual leader of Bhutran. In his sorrow over the
news he thinks back to when he and Terri met, ten years ago in Paris...
Having travelled to Paris as part of his globe-spanning effort to see the
world and learn more about himself, Clark witnesses an auto accident.
Desperate to get to the injured child, he throws the now-vacant car over
his shoulder so that he may attend the girl. This display of strength sends
all the onlookers running -- all but one. That one is Terri Chung, a
beautiful, exotic, intelligent and spunky young woman from Bhutran. The two
get closer -- much closer, when Clark saves her from a Chinese Army
assassination team by demonstrating his imperviousness to bullets -- and he
agrees to travel with her back to her homeland for a reconciliation with
her father. It is not until they arrive (their plane having been shot down
on the way, necessitating a flying rescue by our Smallville boy) that Clark
learns that her father is the current Rhana Bhutra.
The Rhana is happy to see his daughter again, yet even as he hugs her and
fills her in on the increased pressures China is placing on the small
mountainous country, he also upbraids her for the lack of direction in her
life. The next morning Clark seeks out the cigar-smoking holy man, and
learns that Terri has told her father of Clark's... gifts. No sooner has
the soul-stricken young man opened his heart to the elder in search of some
guidance, though, than he must fly (literally) to save Terri from an
avalanche. After this third rescue, the romance between the two really
blossoms.
Clark seeks, and gains, permission to stay in the monastery and examine his
inner self, so that he may meditate on how best to act with his abilities
far beyond those of mortal men. It is an idyllic time, full of learning and
love, but also filled with mounting tension as the Chinese army growsever
bolder in their advances.
After a self-imposed period of solitude and introspection, during which
Clark comes to the realization that Popeye was right when he said, "I yam
what I yam and that's all that I yam," -- that being Clark and doing the
right thing is *enough* and that his abilities are a gift, not a burden --
he returns to find the Chinese Army trundling into Bhutran. The Rhana has
gone to meet the force so that he might exchange his personage for the
safety of his people, but is greeted only with a bullet. Enraged at this
senseless killing, Clark routs the Chinese army (moving at invisible
super-speed) making them think that the power of the Rhana Bhutra is doing
it all. With the death of her father, Terri realizes that she does have
responsibilities; she gives Clark one last kiss goodbye...
... and we are brought back to the present. We witness a tear-stricken
Superman as he gazes at the matured face of Terri Chung on the video screen
and thinks, "She became the Rhana Bhutra, [and] I never saw her again...
until now."
Opinion:
This is a well-crafted story. It is filled with various conflicts: there is
the physical conflict of the framing sequence, the self-turmoil of Clark
and Terri as they seek to grow up and come to terms with who they are and
find their respective niches, the familial tension between the Rhana and
his daughter, and the territorial aggression of the Chinese army as they
seek to scourge the peaceful nation of Bhutran. These various devices are
deftly woven among one another, resolving and rearing their heads
throughout the tale.
There are strong positive emotions in evidence: Clark's determination to do
what is right as he saves the young girl, the budding romance between Clark
and Terri, the obvious love of a father for his child despite the
disapproval of her choices, and the willingness of the Rhana to stand up
for that in which he believes, even at the cost of his own life. None of
this is forced, and all of it flows well from the characters as they are
portrayed.
The characterization is likewise excellent. Both Terri and her father,
newly-introduced within this tale, are brought to life as individuals. (The
cigar-habit was an inspired touch, breathing personality into what could
have been the stock Holy Man figure.) Clark is young and wide-eyed, still
excited at what he can do, but suffering from the confusion of his
new-found maturity, open to guidance, approval, affection and friendship
from those around him. He learns who he is -- who he was all along -- and
it rings true to what we know of him.
The art is strong. Splash pages are used only when necessary and to good
effect. People are unique individuals -- even down to the Parisian gawkers
and hawkers and the Red Army soldiers. Young Clark is visually different
from present-day Superman without being a caricature of himself or
unrecognizable. The backgrounds and buildings are well-drawn and nicely
detailed. Most importantly though, people communicate not only through word
balloons, but also through their gestures, their facial expressions, and
their body language.
As I said, this is a well-crafted story. And yet...
And yet...
Despite its obvious strengths, it left me strangely unsatisfied, and I
couldn't quite put my finger on the problem. I liked the revelation of a
previously unknown romance. I enjoyed the amazement with which people
viewed Clark's powers in a world still bereft of suits and capes and
power-armored metahumans. I cheered as Clark lost his temper and drove back
the invading Red Chinese. Oh, sure, there were flaws; the framing sequence
was a little lame, and the appearance of a kryptonite jewel was not only
gratuitous and superfluous, but also totally against known continuity.
Still, these were not mortal blows.
It wasn't until someone else pointed out to me just how *generic* the story
was that I realized the story's major failing; this isn't really much of a
Superman story.
Now, that's not to say that we don't see Superman -- of course we do. It's
just that this story could have been re-worked *so easily* to suit almost
any first-string hero in either Marvel or DC. I can easily picture a
younger Tony Stark or Steven Strange or Hal Jordan making this same trek,
acting the same way, and coming to the same conclusions as did young Clark.
This realization is only highlighted by the insertion of a young Bruce
Wayne into the story. For my money, this appearance of proto-Batman served
no real purpose and did nothing to enhance the story but served more as a
distraction than anything else.
Perhaps the generic quality I perceive in the story is a weakness in the
genre, demonstrating how interchangeable many of the major players are.
Perhaps it's a weakness in the writing. Perhaps this *was* a stock story,
adapted to suit Superman when the opportunity arose. Perhaps it isn't there
at all, and I'm entirely off the mark with this hypothesis. It wouldn't be
the first time.
In the end, though, not even this ill-defined uneasiness was enough to make
me dislike this special, although the price very nearly put me off. At $8
(Canadian), these one-shots quickly add up and bloat the budget. Too many
of these are getting published, and while some of them are exceptional,
many of them don't really deserve the format, or the attention. In the end,
I think that this one falls just on the side of those that can be
considered deserving.
After all, it was a very well-crafted story.
Final Thought: I'd like to thank misters Nolan and Dixon for one thing
above all else -- that they named Clark's travelling companion/girlfriend
Terri Chung and not Leslie Ling or Lynne Lo-tzu or some other LL
combination. It's a small but pleasant deviation from the unwritten rule
that all significant females in Kal-el's life must bear those particular
initials. Had you chosen to shoehorn in this Silver Age convention, it
would have thrown a jarring bucket of cold water on my suspension of
disbelief, and ruined much of the story's charm. Good decision, guys.
================================================
TEAM SUPERMAN #1 Jul 1999 $2.95 US/$4.50 CAN
"They Died with their Capes On"
Writer: Mark Millar
Penciller: Georges Jeanty
Inker: Doug Hazlewood
Letterer: Bill Oakley
Color and Seps: Rob Schwager
Editor: Maureen McTigue
Cover: Brian Stelfreeze
RATINGS
Average: 2.8/5.0 Shields
TD: 2.0 Shields
BS: 2.0 Shields - The concept is great, but this was a disappointing
outing. The interaction between Steel, Supergirl, and Superboy is
basically banter, and I would sooner see them have the interaction
that Team Batman does.
DWk: 4.5 Shields - Exactly the kind of story I'd love to see more of in
the triangle books: clever, unpredictable, very tightly plotted,
and driven almost entirely by character, not to mention a great
entry point for a new reader.
SDM: 3.0 Shields - A mixed bag saved by the intriguing Anti-Hero, Millar's
always-adept handling of Superman, and the idea that the current
version of the Superman Family deserves to have its own place to
shine.
SL: 3.6 Shields - A great team for a not so great super-villain. How can
someone with all the powers of the anti-hero be defeated, though?
Still, the essential thing is to have our four shield-bearers
reunited in a great story. I really love the final panel!
Review by: Thomas Deja <blackair@gis.net>
One thing to my mind is evident: Mark Millar knows Superman. It's his
co-writing on _Action_ that has made it my favorite triangle title.
As much as I think Millar understands Superman, though, I don't think he
understands the characters surrounding him -- a theory borne out by what we
see in _Team Superman_ #1.
The story is simple: Superman fails in saving a planeload of people from a
hijacking attempt. Filled with remorse, Supes takes off for the stars,
never to interfere with humanity again.
Except it's *not* Supes, but a serial killer given the imaginative name of
'The Anti-Hero.' The Anti-Hero has spent eons travelling the universe,
hunting, trapping, torturing, and killing super-heroes, and now he has come
looking for Big Blue. He's really looking forward to it, as he specialized
in Kryptonian torture techniques in serial killer school or something.
This should be your first indicator that this is not going to be a
top-notch special; hell, Millar is the first to point out the unlikely
coincidence of a super-villain who just *happens* to specialize in
Kryptonian torture....
Of course, Lois doesn't believe that the Superman who took off is *her*
Superman, and asks Supergirl for help. Supergirl is quick to point out that
Clark, being an alien, is "not exactly human." (This is indicator number
two, by the way, as I suspect our Supergirl would be a little more
confident in Lois' knowledge of her husband.)
Lois, as much as it pains her to do so, is ready to reveal Clark's secret
ID to get help for him. Supergirl asks for 24 hours to find him, gathers up
Superboy and Steel (who's been brooding in the monitor womb up at JLA HQ,
one of the few bits of characterization that ring true) and, as Team
Superman, they help in a worldwide search for their mentor. Their section
of the globe is the Arctic Circle, and Superboy literally stumbles into the
Anti-Hero's lair. (By the way, indicator three and four happen in this
sequence, when Superboy makes a salacious comment about Supergirl's, ummm,
underwear and Steel scolds him for it, both of which seem out of character
for these heroes).
The Anti-Hero makes short work of our heroes, picking them off one by one
and dropping them in his hero-holding pods. The trio breaks out of said
pods utilizing some highly dubious means, free Superman, and kick the
Anti-Hero's rosy red ass in a fight scene that's a little confusing. Their
victory comes from Steel's ingenuity in using a power totally at odds with
the way his armor has been portrayed in the past. (That's indicator five,
for those keeping score at home.) Finally they rip the Anti-Hero's mask
off, realize what a small problem this yutz is, and haul him off to
S.T.A.R. Labs.
This is a very sad little issue. Written in a tone that seemingly wants us
to be in awe of the storytelling, "They Died With Their Capes On" is
actually shoddy, badly paced and surprisingly ill-structured. It's
obviously a story from the 'Making Stuff Up As We Go Along' School of
Plotting. Millar literally seems to be writing on the fly, to the point of
admitting he doesn't have a background for his villain (although the
dialogue Millar gives the Anti-Hero for these sequences is pretty cool).
It's very odd, because this one-shot, trumpeted to all the world as being
something special, ends up being sort of shabby and less-than-ordinary.
The art is a true mess. I have liked Jeanty's artwork on some of the
fill-ins he's done in the past, but the combination of Hazlewood's
extremely heavy inks and Schwager's primary-color-mad palette serve to
blunt whatever power he has. Thanks to these heavy lines that blot out
detail in some pages, _Team Superman_ is actively unpleasant to look at.
Coupled with this rather pathetic story, you don't have much worth spending
$2.95 on.
Granted, there are a few nice set-pieces -- the pin-up style shot of the
four S wearers emerging from the Arctic waste is a great comic moment --
but there's not enough in this tired little _Marvel Team-Up_-style
schoolyard kid's story to justify it being a special. "They Died with Their
Capes On" should have died on the drawing board.
================================================
YOUNG JUSTICE IN NO MAN'S LAND #1 Jul 1999 $3.95 US/$6.25 CAN
"Road Trip"
Story: Chuck Dixon and Scott Beatty
Pencils: Andy Kuhn
Inks: Chris Ivy
Colors and Seps: Digital Chameleon
Letters: Comicraft
Assoc. Bat-Guy: Joe Illidge
Young Jedi: Eddie Berganza
Cover: Scott McDaniel and Danny Miki
RATINGS
Average: 2.6/5.0 Shields
GR: 2.4 Shields
GC: 3.4 Shields - Enjoyable, but the "No Man's Land" theme was not used
to it's potential, and why didn't the girls get to go to Gotham?
I enjoyed seeing Kobra get a beating from the boys.
JDC: 1.5 Shields - Pointless (why does any of this happen?) out-of-date
(there are girls on the team now) event-driven story. Everyone's
out of character. All the potential fun is sucked out of the story
by the depressing setting.
JSy: 2.0 Shields - And the point of this was? To convince me that the
girls are every bit as important as the boys in making this team
interesting? To convince me never to buy any more YJ stories by
Chuck Dixon? Oh, well then... well done.
SL: 3.0 Shields - Even if the story is a bit simple, it's a great fun to
read. Batman makes his point with Robin and we are reminded of the
major "No Man's Land" storyline, which has been great to follow.
The interaction between our young heroes is always fun to read
when it is well-written.
Reviewed by: Gary Robinson <robinfam@akron.infi.net>
Welcome to _Young Justice in No Man's Land_ #1, or Much A-Spent About
Nothing. Indeed, I haven't forked over so much dough ($4 plus, including
tax) for so little plot since I can't remember when! It whirls like a
carnival ride and dissolves as quickly as cotton candy. Of course,
carnivals themselves are pretty darn expensive these days, but I digress.
We start off the coast of Gotham City with a smaller, cuter version of the
Creature From The Black Lagoon. One of a group of amphibious "Land Lovers"
hailing from Atlantis, the aptly named Lagoon Boy is exploring far from
home. He hopes to visit the fabulous Gotham City, maybe have some famous
Gotham cheese fries. His first shock arrives in the form of some very
unfriendly torpedoes from a serpent-marked submarine. The next shock comes
with the sight of the "No Man's Land" Gotham has become. In and around the
ruined city, he runs afoul of, in turn, the super-criminal organization
Kobra Prime, some hungry good ol' boys who mistake him for walking tuna,
and a curvy, albeit spiky, female creation of Poison ("The lady with the
fig-leaf bathing suit") Ivy.
By the time Lagoon Boy meets this "Veggie Supreme," he has teamed up with
more boundary-crossing kids in the form of Young Justice. Egged on by the
hyper Impulse and hormonal Superboy, the bored Robin has disobeyed Batman's
orders and invaded Gotham. Of course, these young'uns are in way over their
heads. In the wake of that great and ruinous earthquake, what's left of the
city has truly become a wild and crazy place. The story is told in episodic
fashion, with the boys meeting one challenge after another, including one
royally peeved Batman. It concludes with them deep-sixing the Kobra goons,
foiling a plot to take over the city.
It's a fast, fairly funny, read. I got a kick out of Blubber, another Land
Lover whose timely appearance helps YJ win the day. Blubber is a sentient
whale with robotic arms. I guess you could call him The Six Million Dollar
Mammal (allowing for inflation, of course). There's some cute dialogue,
e.g., this exchange between boy fish and boy wonder:
LB: "Guess those guys don't like out-of-towners."
ROB: "You're not from around here?"
LB: "Can't you tell?"
ROB: "Listen, we have human bats, a crocodile man, and a giant killer moth.
In Gotham you blend."
Lagoon boy himself is a charming "innocent abroad," thrilled to be with
these super-hero wannabes, ecstatic to be rescued by the legendary Caped
Crusader himself.
Really, though, the whole thing seems jury-rigged. It's evidently designed
to further cash in on the current, well-received story arc of the
Bat-titles. A plot? Forget it. Characterization? Minimal. Even Robin's
usual deliberation is discarded just to let these Ferris Bueller-types take
their day off. The panels get larger and fewer as we zip along. Like an
action flick minus the dirty language and blood, it's all wisecracks and
explosions; a buddy movie. Obviously, our writers and artists didn't need
38 pages to tell this story. Three panels seem to have been stuck in merely
for padding: two show Red Tornado, one shows Arrowette, Secret, and Wonder
Girl (remember them?) back at the Justice Cave.
In spite of its faults, I kinda liked "Road Trip." I just hope I don't
shell out so much for so little again -- at least, not for a while.
_________________________________________________
End of Section 6
_________________________________________________
SUPERMAN STORIES
------------------------------------------
By Sean Hogan (shogan@intergate.bc.ca)
The Death Of Superboy
Last month I reviewed the _Legends_ miniseries and mentioned the brief role
played by Cosmic Boy from the Legion of Super Heroes. A four issue spin-off
miniseries called _Cosmic Boy_ followed his adventures, leading back into
the regular titles of Superman and the Legion for an epic battle with the
Time Trapper and the death of Superboy.
The miniseries was written by Paul Levitz (regular Legion scribe at the
time) and lists Keith Giffen, Ernie Colon, and Bob Smith as artists. Giffen
must have done the layouts as the series shows some of the experimentation
he was doing with panel grids and extreme closeups.
For those who aren't familiar with the Legion, it is a group of super
powered teens set 1,000 years in the future. Founding members Cosmic Boy,
Saturn Girl, and Lightning Lad first appeared in _Adventure Comics_ #247
(April 1958) in a story where they invited Superboy to try out for
membership.
From those humble beginnings, the Legion evolved first as back up stories,
co-starring with Superboy, eventually taking over Superboy's own comic
until eventually earning its own series. At the end of this article, I'll
review some of the Legion's history and recommend some issues.
When the Superman continuity was rebooted, it caused a major problem for
the Legion. John Byrne's version had Clark Kent becoming Superman as an
adult -- the new DC Universe did not have a Superboy. This problem was most
significant to the Legion, as Superboy was an integral part of their
history.
In _Cosmic Boy_ #1, the title hero (real name: Rokk Krin) travels back in
time with his girlfriend Shadow Lass (Lydda Jath) to visit the late 20th
Century. Unfortunately for them, they arrive at a time when Darkseid is
inciting the public against superheroes. Cosmic Boy gets beaten up, but
meets the JLA, some Teen Titans, and Superman. Far more disturbing than his
physical injuries, Rokk is shocked when Superman fails to recognize him. As
he tells Lydda, "He had no idea who I was. I'd known him since he was
Superboy -- and he didn't remember me."
Some research reveals two disturbing details. The first confirms that
Superman first appeared as an adult and never had a career as a Superboy.
The second is that this world uses nuclear power for weapons, not towards
peaceful uses and for space travel as in the Legion's history. (This
'peaceful use of nuclear power in Legion history' bit is new as far as I
know. I believe it was something created for the purpose of the series,
allowing for a protracted storyline about nuclear power.) Lydda wonders if
they somehow interfered with the time stream when they traveled to the past
and notes that, "it was one of the first time trips after the great
Crisis."
Over the rest of issue #1 and #2, Rokk and Lydda become involved in
protecting a NASA experiment to send a nuclear payload into space. The
nuclear plot has little to do with either the _Legends_ series or the Time
Trapper.
In issue #3, they decide to return home, but their Time Bubble encounters a
barrier in the time stream that forces them to return to 1986. With the
help of a NASA scientist and Cosmic Boy's own magnetic powers, they finally
succeed in smashing through the barrier. However, the Time Bubble fails to
stop at the Legion's time, instead hurtling through the time stream and
finally crashing at the end of time -- the domain of the Time Trapper.
The Trapper, one of the Legion's greatest foes, is a mysterious robed
figure who toys with time and the Legion. The villain captures the two
heroes and, true to his nature of playing games, he sets up a test for
them. He gives them one hour to try to recapture the Time Bubble from him
and to return to their own century, musing, "In the end, destiny proclaims
that I shall win, so I need not be petty about it. You have your fair
chance. According to my word -- and, of course, my rules."
Rokk and Lydda succeed, barely, in reaching the Trapper's throne room and
their Time Bubble. The Trapper confronts them, but allows them to escape
saying, "Go home to your century children -- you may travel through time
safely by my leave. But this will be your final journey through time. The
next occasion when a Legionnaire breaks through the time barrier will be
the last. The end of all time is coming children ... and the year 2987 will
be its first stop. Soon."
As Cosmic Boy rushes to assemble the Legion, the Time Trapper pauses in
front of statues of Superboy and Krypto musing, "Yes, it's finally begun.
The grandest game of all ... he doesn't dream that time itself is stacked
against him!"
And so ends the miniseries. Ya gotta love that Trapper as a villain though.
Mysterious and nearly omnipotent, he is continually and conveniently
pontificating and musing aloud to inform the reader of his plans. In
addition, he frequently bursts out with loud, wicked laughter, and he has a
seriously warped and changing set of values. Yep, the Time Trapper is the
perfect comic book villain.
The story continues in _Legion of Super-Heroes_ #37 with a cover showing
Superboy bursting through a Smallville billboard before a number of
Legionnaires. The writer of both Legion issues is Paul Levitz, with art by
Greg LaRoque and Mike DeCarlo. Although, in true Legion fashion, the comic
has a number of sub-plots going on, people reading only for the Superboy
story could easily ignore those pages and concentrate on the main plot.
A squad of Legionnaires assemble inside a modified Time Bubble, using
Mon-El's power and Brainiac 5's instruments to break the time barrier. The
Time Trapper, watching from the end of time, decides to allow them passage
-- "I will give them everything and take it all away. How sublime." Ya
gotta love villains who talk like villains. Too bad he doesn't have a wax
mustache to twirl. Or a face for that matter. Anyhoo...
The Legionnaires arrive in Smallville and four of the group, dressed in
civilian clothes, head off to find Superboy. Everything seems normal --
even Superboy's pal Pete Ross (an honorary Legionnaire) recognizes them.
Pete mentions that everything has been fine since Superboy saved them from
"those weird red skies and that energy wall" a few weeks ago (hallmarks of
the _Crisis On Infinite Earths_) but that Superboy has been laying low ever
since.
Sitting down to dinner with Ma and Pa Kent, the group speaks about
Superboy, and Rokk says, "He was the inspiration for the whole
organization. He was the greatest hero in history." Just then Clark arrives
and greets them. He brings them to his secret basement and, distracting the
Legionnaires, attacks them with a time-stasis machine, leaving them frozen
like statues.
Pete Ross warns the four remaining Legionnaires (Brainiac 5, Sun Boy,
Invisible Kid II, and Blok) to escape. As they use the Time Bubble to
re-enter the time stream, they see Superboy try to capture them with the
stasis beam. The Legionnaires look back with shock as they fade into the
time stream.
Superboy, for reasons yet unknown, decides that he has to track the
Legionnaires through time until he captures all of them. "It's awful, but I
have no alternative. The Earth, Smallville, maybe the whole universe is
depending on me." The issue ends with that wonderful laughter from the Time
Trapper.
The two Superman issues are written and penciled by John Byrne. _Superman_
#8 is dedicated to the memory of Edmund Hamilton -- one of the well known
science fiction writers that Superman editor Julie Schwartz convinced to
write comics for DC. While we're on the topic, _Legion of Super-Heroes_ #38
is dedicated to the memory of E. Nelson Bridwell, who had a long history
with DC, Superman, and the Legion. It's particularly appropriate that these
writers be acknowledged during a story about the Time Trapper -- a reminder
that time is the ultimate thief.
Byrne obviously began his contribution to this saga with the assumption
that his readers knew nothing about what has gone before -- most of
_Superman_ #8 is a fight and recap story. It begins with a comic book
standard: a mutual misunderstanding leading to a fight and then team-up.
Clark, visiting Lana and his parents in Smallville, hears the Time Bubble
arrive at the old Simonson Limestone Quarry. Superman's powers are
malfunctioning (one of Luthor's plots that is explained in a later issue),
causing his heat vision to blast the Legionnaires. They believe Superboy is
attacking them and respond in kind until Brainiac 5 erects a forcefield to
calm everyone down.
Brainiac 5 tells Superman about the Legion, recapping _Adventure Comics_
#247 and explaining Cosmic Boy's discoveries and the events in _Legion of
Super-Heroes_ #37. While everyone is absorbed in the story, Superboy
arrives and uses the stasis beam, telling his frozen friends, "you've got
to know how much I hate having to do this. But I have no choice. You must
die Legionnaires ... so that the whole universe can live!"
It appears that, during his recent trips into the time stream, Superboy has
been coerced by the Time Trapper into taking theatrical villain speech
lessons.
Finally, _Action Comics_ #591 (featuring a great cover of Superboy
attacking Superman in the skies of Smallville) provides an explanation for
the strange events that have been going on. Superboy carts off his four
frozen former friends. Superman, left behind, finds himself able to move
and takes off in pursuit. Superboy, faster and more powerful than Superman,
enters the time stream under his own power, and Superman's only hope of
following is to grab Superboy's boot and be carried along -- until Superman
loses his grip and falls.
Meanwhile, the Time Trapper finally begins his mandatory villainous
revelation, musing to himself at the end of time. He recalls observing the
Legion's formation and how they modeled themselves after "a long vanished
champion known as Superboy!" However, the Trapper's control of time allows
him to learn that no Superboy ever existed. The Legion's history was in
error.
So the Trapper somehow reached into the far past and snared, "a sliver of
time so slender it could not be measured. Yet containing an entire
universe!" He culled this universe to shape Krypton and Earth, culminating
in a Superboy that matched the Legion's legends. Whenever the Legion
entered the time stream, the Trapper diverted them into his Pocket Universe
(copyright and trademark pending by Time Trapper Inc).
Meanwhile, Pete Ross has found Superman in a crater outside Smallville
(Pete sure is a useful pal, isn't he -- not like that Jimmy Olsen who's
always getting into trouble). Pete assumes this is his pal Superboy, who
has been aged by red kryptonite. A weakened Superman plays along, noting
the differences between this Smallville and his own -- "It looks like an
idealized version of a typical small town." For some reason, never fully
explained, Pete has decided to let everyone know he is aware of Clark's
secret identity and takes Superman to the Kent home.
Superboy arrives and attacks Superman while a confused Krypto (The original
super-dog! Accept no substitutes!) looks on in confusion. In one fun scene,
Krypto decides to help by grabbing Superman's cape. Expecting the standard
indestructible cape, Krypto is caught off guard when the cape rips and he
is sent hurtling away.
Krypto decides that the only way to stop a Kryptonian is to use kryptonite.
He willingly exposes himself to gold kryptonite (which permanently removes
super-powers) to save his master, Superboy. Unfortunately, the exposure
also removes his super-intelligence so that his sacrifice appears to be in
vain -- until Pa Kent finds Krypto and likewise gathers the numerous
kryptonite samples. Pa exposes Superman to the kryptonite samples -- which
have no effect.
Superman's analysis of the samples indicate that while the rocks have the
same elements as kryptonite, "the radiation they produce is completely
different from the stuff I know." Superman also realizes that Superboy is
not fighting as hard as he should be. He explains, "Meeting your Ma and Pa
Kent was really the clincher. They're not quite the same people who raised
me, but they're from the same stock. I knew they'd have given you the same
solid, moral foundation my foster parents gave me. I could never betray my
friends. I knew you couldn't either."
Superboy admits that he wanted Superman to come after him because, "it
seemed like the only way I could escape this nightmare! The only way I
could save the Legion ... without sacrificing everyone I've loved! If
Superman could only defeat me in battle".
Although the reason for Superboy's actions is not revealed, the two heroes
defrost the four Legionnaires and agree to pursue the Time Trapper, who has
the other Legionnaires. However, Brainiac 5 convinces Superman not to come
with them as the risk of danger is too great. "You belong to the 20th
Century, Superman. There is still too much for you to do there to make our
time possible!"
Superman agrees to respect their decision. As they return Superman to his
original time, Superboy adds, "Goodbye Superman! I've got a feeling we'll
never meet again!" and Superman thinks, "I hope he'll find the peace he's
earned."
With the omens aligned and the prophecies in place, it's time for the
conclusion to our epic tale, in _Legion of Super-Heroes_ #38. It begins
with Superboy's confession. He tells his friends about the red skies of the
great Crisis. Inch by inch, his adopted planet was disintegrating while he
watched helplessly, until the Time Trapper appeared, with a proposition.
Cut to the Time Trapper himself (conveniently located in the Smallville
High School gym), who is gloating over the frozen figures of Cosmic Boy,
Shadow Lass, Ultra Boy, and Mon-El. Superboy arrives with the apparently
frozen remaining Legionnaires and the Trapper orders him to kill all of
them.
Rebelling, Superboy and the Legion members try an all out attack on the
Trapper. The Trapper reveals his plan and his hold over Superboy -- he had
provided a device that would save this world from the effects of the Crisis
if Superboy would destroy the Legion. As he reveals his plan, the Time
Trapper deactivates the device and vanishes. The red skies reappear and
Superboy's world is again beset by disaster.
The Trapper (never one to let a good plan go un-bragged) appears before
Brainiac 5 to gloat, "This never was your past, Legionnaire. Only a
whispery possibility I connected you to when you were presumptuous enough
to try to travel through time. Each time you 'broke' the time barrier, I
sent you here ... until this Earth began to fall apart and the jest paled."
Desperately, the heroes try to repair the Trapper's anti-Crisis device.
Superboy realizes that the only way to repair the machine is to find some
way to channel its energies. He places himself in the machine, allowing the
energies to course through his body -- until he feels the energy pull the
planet away from the Crisis "into somewhere else".
With the world safe, Superboy finally allows himself to collapse. Ma and Pa
Kent watch in horror as the Legionnaires try to save the injured Superboy
by bringing him back to the 30th century.
Despite his injuries, Superboy realizes that he can't allow the
Legionnaires to rely on their Time Bubble because of the Trapper's boast
about his control over their technology. Superboy tosses his friends into
the Bubble and carries it through the time stream himself to bring his
friends home.
Superboy tells his friends, "I -- I always could travel through time -- get
to your Metropolis on my own. Maybe 'cause of something the Trapper did to
me, or maybe it was the time beacon ... or maybe just because I always
could do anything I really, truly had to do! And I'll be damned if I'll let
the Time Trapper -- or anything -- stop me now!"
On arrival, Mon-El bursts out of the Time Bubble and gathers Superboy into
his arms. He rushes Superboy to the medical lab -- but is too late.
Superboy dies in the arms of one of his best friends -- and, probably not
coincidentally, the person most like him in personality and power.
Later, the assembled Legion vows revenge against the Time Trapper,
"somehow, someday ... soon". The issue ends with the tearful Legion of
Super-Heroes gathered before Superboy's coffin and the statues of their
previously deceased comrades -- including that of Supergirl, another victim
of the great Crisis.
While Superboy's story ended on this sad note, the Legion continued with
its history and memory of Superboy intact. The Legion's vow was dealt with
in _Legion of Super-Heroes_ #50 as a select team of Legionnaires decided to
seek final revenge against the Time Trapper in "Life and Death and The End
Of Time". To find out what happened, you'll have to read the issue yourself
because I'm out of space. Good story, though.
Next time, we will return to the Pocket Universe Earth as Superman becomes
judge, jury, and executioner.
LEGION HISTORY
The 30-year history of the Legion began in April 1958 with _Adventure
Comics_ #247. DC apparently had no expectation that the Legion was to be
anything other than another one-shot story. The concept proved popular
enough with fans that the Legion soon reappeared (with revised costumes and
new members beyond the original three) in various Superman comics,
including _Adventure Comics_, _Action Comics_, and _Superboy_. The
popularity of the Legion increased enough that the title of Superboy's own
comic became _Superboy and the Legion of Super-Heroes_. Eventually,
Superboy was forced out of his own book and it became _The Legion of
Super-Heroes_.
There have been four different series titled _The Legion of Super-Heroes_
(_LSH_). To distinguish them, they are commonly referred to by fans with
their version (or volume) number. The first title, v.1 was a four-issue
reprint series. The second, v.2, began in 1980 with the Legion's takeover
of Superboy's book.
The team of writer Paul Levitz and artist Keith Giffen on v.2 became so
popular, that the Legion was awarded a new title in the "deluxe" format in
1984 (v.3). The former title was re-named _Tales of the Legion of
Super-Heroes_ (_TotLSH_) as of #314 and ran new stories for a year. After
that, it re-ran stories from the v.3 _LSH_, so that _TotLSH_ #326 is the
same story as v.3 _LSH_ #1.
Levitz ended his run on the Legion in 1989 with issue #63 and shortly
afterwards, Keith Giffen, along with Tom & Mary Bierbaum, began v.4 of the
_LSH_ -- a darker, grittier (and, to many, confusing) version that began
with tales set five years after the end of Levitz' stories.
Along the way, another version of the Legion was discovered held in stasis.
Referred to as Batch SW6, this second set of younger heroes (some with very
different personalities from their older twins) were given their own title,
_Legionnaires_ (_L*_).
When the Legion was re-booted after the _Zero Hour_ miniseries with one new
set of Legionnaires, the editors continued the numbering of the v.4 series
and the current stories are commonly referred to as v.4.5. The current
Legion stories intertwine through _LSH_ and _L*_ much like the Superman
triangle titles.
For more information, the best guide to Legion sites on the web is the
Legion of Super-Resources (http://www.idyllmtn.com/rac/dc/lsh/lsh_res.htm)
maintained by Michael Grabois.
Everyone got that? Now, take your aspirin and let's get on to story
recommendations.
RECOMMENDED LEGION READING LIST: PART 1
We begin with the current, post-Zero Hour version of the Legion that began
in 1994. The entire first year was enjoyable, starting with the origin
issues (_LSH_ #0 and _L*_ #0) and the regular issues of both titles (_LSH_
#62 and _L*_ #19). If you can't find these issues, they will be reprinted
in a trade paperback to be released in August 1999 called _Legion: The
Beginning of Tomorrow_, collecting the issues from the zero issues to _LSH_
#65 and _L*_ #22.
The balance of the issues from that first year are also well worth
collecting as the Legion battled the racist group White Triangle (led by
super powered Daxamites) through _LSH_ # 71, _L*_ #28, and the climax in
the _LSH Annual_ #2 (1995).
The current Superboy ties into the Legion's history through Lar Gand (known
pre-Crisis as Mon-El and post-Crisis as Valor). Similar to pre-Crisis
history, Superboy is forced to send Valor into a "Phantom Zone" to save his
life in _Superboy_ #18-19. The Legion, discovering Valor's imprisonment
1,000 years later, returns to Superboy's time in "Future Tense" (_Superboy_
#21, _LSH_ #74, and _L*_ #31). Lar Gand takes the name M'Onel in _L*_ #37.
The Legion earns its political freedom and deals with the new Fatal Five in
five terrific issues starting with _LSH_ #78-80 and _L*_ #35-36 (the Legion
titles have numbering similar to the Super-titles; these issues are
1996:5-9).
The Legion battles one of its greatest enemies, Mordru, for the first time
in _L*_ #48-50. Another arc worth reading is the battle against the Dark
Circle in _L*_ 62-65 and _LSH_ #106-108 (numbered 1998:13-19)
RECOMMENDED LEGION READING LIST: PART 2
For anyone interested in the pre-Zero Hour stories of the Legion, a good
place to start is the 7-issue _Who's Who In The Legion of Super-Heroes_
from 1988. The first two issues have a good summary of Legion stories and
history to that date and the rest of the issues contain an alphabetical
listing of characters.
Pretty well any of the _Adventure Comics_ or _Superboy and the Legion of
Super-Heroes_ issues are stand alone and can be read and enjoyed on their
own. For those with interest and money, DC's hardcover Archives series
includes eight volumes collecting the early Legion tales.
The only trade paperback collection is "The Great Darkness Saga"
(collecting v.2 _LSH_ #290-294 and including a prequel from #287 and sequel
in v.2's _LSH Annual_ #3). When this story originally came out around 1983,
it was a tremendous tale with a mysterious villain. The cover to the
collection has a huge picture of the villain, so much of the fun of reading
the original story is spoiled (I won't reveal who it is here).
The cavalcade of costumed heroes in the story can be confusing, but the
tale is still enjoyable to new readers and moreso on later readings after
you learn more Legion history. The collection should have also included a
second sequel in v.3's _LSH Annual_ #2 (1986) (the cover has Lightning Lad
and Saturn Girl trying to save their infant son from the monstrous Validus)
-- if you read "The Great Darkness Saga" and v.2's _LSH Annual_ #3, you
absolutely *must* read the second sequel.
Levitz and Giffen started their new series with a bang -- having a newly
formed Legion of Super-Villains capture the planet Orando (home of Princess
Projectra and Karate Kid) in _LSH_ v.3 #1-6 (or _TotLSH_ #326-331) leading
to the death of one of the Legion's popular members. Incidentally, a
happier story about the marriage of Princess Projectra and Karate Kid is
_LSH Annual_ v.2 #2 from 1983.
The next popular storyline by Levitz was the mystery, "Who is Sensor
Girl?". The disguised female joined the Legion in _LSH_ v.3 #14 and
subsequent issues raised all kinds of questions and hints about the true
identity of this heroine. The answer was revealed in _LSH_ v.3 #24-27 in a
battle against the Fatal Five.
Some other popular issues from that run are "The Universo Project" (_LSH_
#32-35), and a running story against a villain named Starfinger (_LSH_
issues 29, 40-41, 47-49 and _LSH Annual_ #4 (1988)).
If you want to read about the young Batch SW6 Legion members,
_Legionnaires_ #1-6 has a good dust up against the Fatal Five.
The muddied history of the Legion came to a finale in 1994 (tying into the
_Zero Hour_ miniseries) in a story arc called "End of an Era" (which runs
through _L*_ #17-18, _Valor_ #22-23, and _LSH_ #60-61). Suffice to say, the
Legion's 36 year continuous history comes to an end, making way for the
current Legion. "End of an Era" finally reveals the true identity of the
Time Trapper. It's a great plot twist, as the villain turns out to be
someone essential to Legion history. The bittersweet tale nicely sheds a
new light on one of the Legion's strangest foes.
The "End of an Era" storyline isn't for the casual Legion reader. If you
have enough knowledge of Legion lore, and want to appreciate the story
fully, start with the Mark Waid arc, "DOA" in the series _Valor_ (issues
#12 on), about the death of Lar Gand, as well as _LSH_ v.4 #54-59, about
the adult Legion on the run, before reading "End of an Era".
_________________________________________________
End of Section 7
_________________________________________________
THE PHANTOM ZONE: Reviews of the pre-Crisis Man of Steel
------------------------------------------------------------------
TALES OF EARTH-ONE
--------------------------------------
by Bob Hughes (bobhughes@ttlc.net)
(or see Bob's web page, "Who's Whose in The DC Universe"
at pw2.netcom.com/~rhughes3/whoswho.htm)
Episode 10
The Modern Prometheus and his Robots of Tin
Part 1: The Arrival of the Robots
Robots seem to have become rather popular in the current Superman story
line, so I thought I'd go over their history for awhile. For fifteen years
or so, robots were pretty ubiquitous in the lives of both Superman and
Superboy, and readers could almost never be sure if an appearance of the
Man of Steel was steel or flesh. When Julie Schwartz became Superman
editor, he dumped the robots, along with a lot of other motifs associated
with the Weisinger era. The post-Crisis version continued along those lines
up until the past few months when robots were suddenly everywhere.
The word "Robot" first appeared in 1922 in Karel Capek's play "R.U.R."
which stood for Rossum's Universal Robots. The word was derived from the
Czech "robata" which refers to statute labor and in the original play
referred to a group of android slaves which were supposed to be symbolic of
the treatment of the working class. They were popularized as mechanical men
due to Fritz Lang's 1926 film _Metropolis_, which featured a beautiful
female robot created by the evil scientist Rotwang to incite revolt among
the workers.
Robots soon became one of the major pre-occupations of pulp science fiction
writers, many of whom later went on to have connections with Superman. Otto
Binder wrote "I, Robot" in 1939, the first in a series of stories about
robot Adam Link's quest to be declared a free man. The series later was
adapted as an Outer Limits episode and a series of stories in Warren's
_Creepy_ and _Eerie_. (If the title sounds familiar but misplaced, it may
be because Isaac Asimov began a series of robot stories in 1940, which were
later collected -- over his objections -- under the same title.) Mort
Weisinger edited the pulp _Captain Future_ in 1940-1. The stories, which
were mostly written by Edmond Hamilton, concerned a space explorer who was
accompanied by both an android and a robot on his adventures.
The 1951 motion picture _The Day the Earth Stood Still_, based on an
earlier SF story, featured a humanoid robot named Gort and an alien named
Klaatu who came to Earth to save humans from their own war-mongering folly.
This hugely popular film spawned a whole school of robot films which lasted
throughout the fifties, though most of those robots were big, clunky,
shuffling things, which didn't much resemble humans at all.
DC had their own robot series in "Robotman", which began in _Star Spangled
Comics_ in April 1942 and later moved to _Detective_. Originally done by
Jerry Siegel and either Paul Cassidy or Leo Nowak from the Shuster shop, it
was one of the longest running heroes series of the Forties and lasted
until 1953. Robotman was extremely human. Indeed, he had a human brain in a
robot body, thus side-stepping the question of whether a machine could be
truly intelligent and self-aware.
With such a heritage behind them robots would seem a natural pairing with
the Man of Steel, but robots did not become important in the Superman
mythos until the Fifties. The first robot to appear on an _Action Comics_
cover was in October 1952 (one of those clunky looking film style robots).
The first Superman robot did not appear on a cover until _Action_ #225 in
1957. Humanoid robots sort of snuck into the strip when nobody was looking.
Before I begin, I should warn you that most of the following synopses give
away the endings of the stories. In these stories, the robot is almost
always the gimmick that resolves the plot, the deus ex machina, or, in this
special case, the machina ex deus.
The saga of the Superman robots begins in a most unlikely place, "The
Anti-Superman Club" from _Superman_ #71 in August 1951, by Ed Hamilton and
Al Plastino. The splash page depicts men picketing against Superman. "Down
with Superman!" read their signs. Seems men are upset with Superman because
their girls are swooning over him instead of them. They perceive him as
unfair competition. Even Clark Kent is jealous of Superman, because Lois
won't give him the time of day when Superman is around!
"There you go raving about Superman again! How about devoting a little
attention to me?" he sputters.
"Clark you're a nice fellow, but there's nothing SUPER about you!"
So a bunch of Metropolis men who can't take all this rejection anymore form
a club and elect Clark Kent the leader (without his knowledge). They reason
he's the man in Metropolis who's style is most cramped by the Man of Steel.
(I'm not sure why they know this. The Daily Planet must be one strange
newspaper to broadcast stories about its reporters' love lives all over the
city.) Clark thinks the whole idea is crazy, but he reasons he has to
accept the club leadership in order to protect his secret identity!
The club members demand Clark contact Superman so that they can confront
him with their problems. (Ah, that's the real reason they need Clark!)
Through super ventriloquism and the clever use of a nearby statue, Clark is
able to pull off a quick interview (although Superman must have seemed
remarkably stiff, and his lips certainly didn't move, because they were
made of stone!) Superman scoffs and blames the men's problems on newspaper
hype. He tells the poor abused males to bring their girlfriends to the
building show tomorrow and he'll open their eyes.
At the building show, Superman uses a set of large blocks to construct
models of the Great Pyramid and the Parthenon and then a recreation hall
for the children of Metropolis. Then Superman tells the people not to look
up to him, because the real heroes of the city are the average joes who do
their jobs day in and day out. It backfires because the women are even more
impressed with his modesty.
Frustrated, Superman offers to date the girlfriends of each member of the
club so he can show them how awful being Superman's girlfriend would be. He
constantly leaves them behind to go off on missions, thinking this will
bore them and make them feel insulted, but instead they're impressed by how
important he is. The only woman he succeeds in getting rid of is Lois,
who's mad at him for dating all those other girls. She drops him for Clark
Kent. But that gives him an idea!
Superman builds a robot Superwoman, who looks completely alive. The
brown-haired Superwoman wears a costume which is a modified version of his,
with a red skirt and boots and bare legs. Then he brings her to the next
meeting of the Anti-Superman club and the guys go ga-ga over her, driving
their girlfriends into fits of jealousy. Heartbroken, the girls all start
to go off in tears, but Superman points out that Superwoman is only a
robot. Her face is a composite of the faces of all the girls, thus she
reminded each man in the club of his own girlfriend. Brought to their
senses, the club members and their girlfriends find that the reason they
were attracted to Superman and Superwoman was because they were reminded of
their own true loves. Their relationships restored, the club breaks up. But
Superman's cleverness has set Lois on about him again and caused her to
dump Clark. "I give up!" he says. "I can't win."
Advice to the lovelorn is all well and good, but Superman's real metier is
fighting crime. In _Action_ #165 from February 1952, Superman had to track
down the Crime Czar, but first he had to deal with "The Man who Conquered
Superman". The story begins when Perry orders Clark to track down the
mysterious new Crime Czar. At the same time, astronomers sight a mysterious
space craft in the sky. It lands conveniently in Metropolis Park. A hatch
opens and out steps an alien from the distant planet Mercury. He looks
remarkably like Superman, though his hair is straight, not curly. He's
dressed in yellow with green trim (short pants and no sleeves) and wears a
glass bubble over his head. Superman lands and shakes the visitor's hand.
"My name is Krag!" he says, as Lois and a Planet photographer excitedly
document the first meeting between two aliens on the planet Earth. Krag is
honored with a ticker tape parade, during which he reveals that he too has
super powers. He catches a large advertising sign that has come loose and
fallen towards the crowd.
Lois gushes over the new contender, who seems to like her too. (But inside
she's still loyal to Superman in her fashion. She notes how jealous he
appears of her new relationship and wishes Clark were here to see it too.)
But all is not as it seems. At a warehouse that night, the Crime Czar's
henchmen try to steal a shipment of gold, when Krag flies in. He quickly
knocks out the watchman and RI-I-IIIPs the door off the safe. Krag tells
the gangsters that he has escaped from a Mercury prison and intends to rule
the underworld on Earth. But the Crime Czar has no time to meet with him,
because he's busy trying to get rid of Superman. "No problem," says Krag.
"I can take care of that for you."
The next day "all Metropolis stands in awe, as two defiant titans rush
forward like crashing thunderclouds!" (Actually I hope they were moving
faster than that!) No finesse here. No boxing skills exhibited. The two
super beings just butt heads with a resounding CRASH! No manhole cover, no
street light is safe from these super-powered vandals intent on bludgeoning
each other into unconsciousness. Finally Krag creates a giant thunderstorm,
and after Superman is felled by a bolt of super lightning, he hurls the
body far out to sea.
The smirking Krag lands next to Lois and demands a kiss for the victor, but
all he gets is an angry slap (for which Lois gets a very sore hand.)
Shortly afterward, Superman wearily crawls onto shore, beaten and resigned.
The Metropolitans are dismayed. "It's like the end of the world."
The triumphant Krag is brought face to face with the Crime Czar at last,
and he wastes no time in taking over. Krag slams his fist into the Czar's
filing cabinet and the drawers all shoot out across the room, felling the
gangsters. For Krag is really Superman and it was all a highly convoluted
plot to smoke the Crime Czar out of hiding. The earlier Krag had been a
robot that Superman operated by remote control and voiced with that
ubiquitous 50's super-power, super-ventriloquism.
The early 50's were a strong period for Superman, and this Bill Finger
scripted story exhibits that strength. Wayne Boring and Stan Kaye provide
convincing pre-Code fight scenes which lay waste to large portions of the
scenery. Everyone gasps, leers, and moans convincingly. Oh, that the Code
(and decreasing page counts) hadn't sucked the life out of everything only
a few short months later!
Having mastered the art of constructing convincing humanoid robots, it
wasn't long before Superman thought of using that technique to duplicate
himself. I reviewed _Superman_ #76's "Mrs. Superman" from June 1952 several
months ago, as part of an article comparing Superman and Lois in the
fifties to Lucy and Desi. When Superman tells Lois that he would never
marry her because it would be unfair to Clark, Lois hatches a scheme to get
rid of him. (No, not that way! She wants to marry him off to someone else.)
She tries to fix him up with Lorraine Jennings. She invites Clark and
Superman to double date! Oh, woe! It's back to the robot workshop for the
Man of Steel and soon a reasonable Clark facsimile is escorting Lorraine
into the Tunnel of Love. Their relationship begins swimmingly and it looks
like sparks will fly... which they do, and the robot ceases to function. In
the darkness, Superman bores down to the center of the Earth, grabs some
dinosaur bones, and builds a convincing monster display right around the
next turn to give Clark a legitimate excuse for "fainting". Curiously,
nobody else faints. The girls scream well though. Lorraine finally marries
someone else, leaving Clark, Lois, and Superman back at square one.
That was it for four years, until Ed Hamilton and Wayne Boring produced
"Superman's 3 Mistakes" for _Superman_ #105 in May 1956.
"Up from Metropolis streaks mighty Superman on the most urgent mission of
his entire career!" (Proof positive of an Ed Hamilton story, by the way.)
Clark receives a letter which indicates that someone knows his secret
identity. (Clark is wearing a light purple suit. He alternated between
purple and orange at the time, probably reasoning that being seen in a blue
suit, like he usually was in the Sixties, would make him look too much like
Superman. I'm not quite sure what being seen in purple and orange suits
said about him.) "Search through your past and you'll find the mistakes
that betrayed you."
Superman racks his memory trying to figure out what he did that could have
revealed his identity. There's a one panel recap of the Kents' finding the
rocket (drawn in Wayne Boring style, with no attempt to reconcile it to the
current Superboy version). He remembers Pa Kent yelling at him not to fly
in the window because people might see him. He remembers the "Rip Van
Winkle of Smallville" (_Adventure_ #208). He remembers an emergency when he
was taking the train to Metropolis for the first time when a cave-in
blocked the tunnel, but he was able to change to Superman in the darkness.
He remembers battling "It" (_Action_ #162) and his greatest nemesis, Lois
Lane, to protect his secret identity.
He remembers plugging a hole in a dam while dressed as Clark because he
just didn't have time to change. He flies back to erase Clark's shoe prints
(pressed into the dam while carrying the heavy boulder) but wonders if
anyone has already seen them and used them to track him down. He remembers
hurling a meteor back into space to keep it from striking a desert town.
But he doesn't think anyone saw him except a passing plane pilot. He
remembers battling a robot duplicate of himself made by Lex Luthor that he
hurled into the stratosphere to keep from blowing up (_Action_ #199). He
remembers battling a brontosaurus in Metropolis park and wonders if anyone
took his picture changing. There are so many times and places someone could
have seen him changing and no way to determine which one it was.
Finally, Clark Kent invites all his suspects to appear on a radio program
on unusual professions and gets Superman to be a surprise guest star (well,
he does have an unusual profession!). None of the suspects registers
surprise at seeing Clark and Superman together, so Superman is stumped.
Then he realizes that the letter didn't actually mention his secret name
and reasoned only one person would be that careful. So how did Superman
pull off the dual appearance? By using "that Superman robot I keep around
for emergencies".
It seemed to be a good month for making robots, for Superboy had to
construct one of his own in _Adventure_ #212's "Superboy's Robot Twin" with
art by Curt Swan. The Mount Globe Observatory calls Superboy because a
runaway sun is blazing through space and may soon collide with Earth's.
Superboy attempts to push away the alien sun, but something in its chemical
makeup affects him. He manages to deflect it by hurling planets at it, but
by the time he gets back to Earth, his head is spinning and his powers are
deserting him.
Superboy disappears. Criminals begin to make plans for spectacular
hold-ups. A scientist decides to build a Superboy robot and stage fake
emergencies for it to handle so that people will think Superboy is all
right. But Angles Anthony figures out that the truck everybody saw Superboy
lift is really made out of cardboard. Combing the town he tracks the
Superboy robot down and steals it.
Meanwhile, Clark finally regains consciousness, but can't remember who he
is! Discovering he's wearing Superboy's costume, Clark hopes that Superboy
will be able to tell him who he is, so he goes off in search of the Boy of
Steel. He finds the robot on a mountain top, but as soon as he asks the
question, a bolt of lightning strikes them. The lightning has restored
Clark's memory, so all is right with the world again. Or is it? The robot's
camera has taped Clark showing off his Superboy costume and claiming he
can't remember anything before the flames. And the robot has disappeared.
Even the dumbest criminal could figure out his secret ID with that
evidence! In the end, Superboy has to build a Clark Kent robot himself in
order to convince Angles that Clark isn't Superboy.
The Superman robot in _Superman_ #105 didn't actually do anything except
walk across a stage. The first Superman robot that flew and exhibited super
powers appeared in _Superman_ #110 in January 1957. "The Defeat of
Superman" by Bill Finger(?) and Wayne Boring is a great Fifties story. Al
Plastino's cover features Superman battling a giant ant. Superman is below
the ant, trapped amidst its legs, as a foreground figure screams, "Run!
Even Superman is no match for the giant ant!" Wayne Boring's splash depicts
the same scene, except Superman is above the ant, punching it. A flying
saucer hovers over head. The running figure's dialogue is the same even
though there is no way to tell whether Superman is winning or losing the
battle. In this particular showdown between the rival Superman artists,
Plastino wins.
The story begins with the citizens of Metropolis confronted with a flying
saucer. Unperturbed, a sidewalk salesman hawks toy soldiers. Suddenly, his
toy drummer starts to grow to giant size. The noise the wind-up figure
makes is deafening, but Superman comes to the rescue. Amazingly, Superman
has trouble. The toy fights him off. Finally he uses a telephone pole to
topple it. The public decides the flying saucer not only created the giant
toy, but has somehow weakened the Man of Steel.
We switch to a flashback of Luthor bragging about his new enlarger machine,
with which he is going to enlarge a tiny speck of kryptonite to one big
enough to kill Superman. (See,back in the Fifties, kryptonite was rarer
than natural plutonium). Luthor plans to use this machine to conquer the
world. He can enlarge an army of criminals to giant size and take on any
nation. His first plan is to show off his machine by making harmless
things, like the toy soldier grow. But the aliens in the flying saucer have
upset his timing and gained credit for his cleverness. Luthor tries again
with a giant top, but once more the flying saucer appears. Superman
disposes of the top, but ignores the saucer, which departs with a burst of
incredible speed. Lois muses that Superman must be afraid of the aliens.
Luthor, having just come from a monster movie matinee, decides to attack
Metropolis with giant ants. Superman captures them by weaving a spider web
of steel cables. Suddenly the saucer speaks. The aliens intend to take over
the world, and they place Superman in charge because he has passed their
tests.
This really cheeses off Luthor. After all his efforts, Superman gets to
rule the Earth? No way! He decides it's time to pull out the giant
kryptonite meteor. But Superman just stands there. Furiously Luthor punches
him and almost breaks his hand. Then Superman uses Luthor's ray to reduce
the kryptonite back to speck size.
"Why didn't the kryptonite affect Superman?" wonders Luthor, as the flying
saucer descends. The real Superman steps out and announces that the one
they were watching all along was just a robot he operated with remote
control. It was all a plot to flush Luthor out in the open so Superman
could dispose of the kryptonite without danger to himself.
All of these robots were pretty much operated by remote control. The first
Super robot that seemed to be self-aware appeared in "The Two Boys of
Steel" in _Superboy_ #63 in March 1958. Jerry Coleman, Curt Swan, and Stan
Kaye are responsible for this one. The story starts when Clark decides to
go out in a thunderstorm to test his kryptonite powered lightning rod. (I
swear I have no idea where that boy got the idea he had a super-brain.) A
lightning flash breaks open the lead kryptonite container and -- Presto!
Ol' Clark has amnesia. Again! Off he wanders, leaving a worried Ma and Pa
calling after him. Seeing it's an emergency, Pa Kent activates the special
Clark Kent robot that Superboy made for just such occasions. Clark, minus
glasses, shows up at Lana's house where he asks for help. Neither Lana nor
her mother recognize Clark without his glasses (proving that they both need
glasses themselves, I suppose). But Lana quickly discovers the unknown boy
is Superboy when he accidentally picks up the piano.
Under the guise of helping Superboy recover his memory Lana sets out on a
new scheme to discover his secret identity. (Lois at least had a shred of
decency, but Lana was shallow, venal, and conniving through and through).
She gets Clark a fake mustache and tells him to pretend he's her cousin
Andy while they try to figure out his real identity.
Just then, the Clark Kent robot comes in and asks Lana if she wants to go
to the movies. Superboy is immediately jealous of Clark but smirks when his
X-ray vision determines that Clark is a robot. ("Wait till I tell Lana!" he
thinks.) But Superboy is continually distracted by other things, so he
never gets around to it. Nor does he ever wonder why the Kents have a robot
for a son. That lightning must have whacked him hard.
The situation continues to deteriorate until the Kents' house catches on
fire, because Clark's lightning rod doesn't work and Superboy has to put
that out. As they watch Superboy fly away, heartbroken that he doesn't
recognize them, Jonathan realizes that the kryptonite is still up on the
roof. Once removed, Clark's memory is restored.
Well, using robots to help cover up his secret identity didn't always work
out the way Superboy wanted it to. Of course it would have helped if he
wasn't always catching amnesia somehow. The point was that the robot was
supposed to help him out as Clark, not replace him. He already had enough
trouble being his own rival as Clark and Superboy. The robot just turned
the Clark/Lana/Superboy triangle into a rectangle.
Mort Weisinger spent a significant portion of the late 50's "retconning"
the early life of Superman, so it was only natural that he would eventually
come up with a story about the first robot Superboy ever built. And to make
it especially memorable, he threw in another 'first' for extra credit.
"Superboy's Last Day' (_Adventure_ #251, August 1958 by Otto Binder and
George Papp) begins as Superboy cleans out his closet one day, trying to
make room. All of us fans know how difficult that is, but at least we don't
have six Superboy robots stuffed in there. Superboy can't dispense with any
of them because each robot has unique talents which can come in useful from
time to time. Dad Kent says Robot #1 is outmoded -- it's made of lead
instead of the lightweight materials the others are made of. But Clark
refuses to dismantle it because of its sentimental value.
Back in the first year of his Superboy career, Clark was quite arrogant and
sure of himself. After all, nothing could hurt him, he was quite sure. He
even had time to work on his rock and mineral collection for his school
geology class. Dad Kent volunteers to help and is sure his son would like
the strange green glowing rock he finds by the side of the road.
Dad thinks, "This is the very spot where Superboy's rocket landed. This
green glowing rock must be a piece of the exploded planet Krypton. Some
nuclear change must have made the meteorite turn green and radiate rays, it
seems." Remember, back in the thirties, people didn't realize how dangerous
radiation was. Why, people wore glow-in-the-dark radium wristwatches, so
Dad thinks nothing of stuffing an obviously-radioactive mineral in his
pocket to bring home to his son. He plunks it down in the rock collection
while Clark is still at school, so when Clark comes home and becomes dizzy
he has no idea as to the cause. Worried, Ma Kent puts him to bed.
Selflessly, Clark worries about Smallville facing emergencies while he's
laid up, so he asks Dad to activate the special robot he made for just such
an occasion. The robot has a mechanical voice and brain and is capable of
acting on its own, but Dad Kent will serve as backup and operate controls
from a tv console that Clark has built. Clark names the robot "Friday".
Operating a robot long distance is difficult and Dad makes a few mistakes,
like placing a house upside down on its foundation. It's really difficult
when the robot has to do two things at once, like dispose of a dangerous
bomb while there's a plane flying overhead. Clark is able to mumble some
advice, but then passes out as his temperature goes up, so Jonathan moves
the console into the other room, leaving Friday to watch over Clark.
Suddenly, Clark seems to recover. Soon he's putting on his costume and
going off to do his own super deeds. So it's back in the storeroom for
Friday. But no sooner does the door close than the dizziness is back and
Clark is slumping onto his bed. (To make sure no one misses the point, this
scene is shot from inside Clark's book case with the glowing kryptonite
meteor in the foreground. Never mind that no one could possibly be viewing
the room from that position.)
Desperately, the Kents call in a specialist, but the doctor is stumped and
says Clark cannot last more than a day. Dad tries to cheer Clark up by
showing him the green rock, but he isn't interested. As Dad walks behind
the robot to put the rock back, Friday offers his condolences and suddenly
Clark starts to perk up. Then the robot moves away again and Clark's
condition worsens. Suddenly Clark realizes the robot's lead body is
blocking the rock's radiations. He knows what his problem is, but by now
he's too weak to tell anybody!
Dad vows that even if Clark dies he'll continue to work on the robot and
Superboy's legacy will continue. But as he looks over the plans, he too
realizes that the robot and Clark's recoveries are connected. He places the
green rock inside the leaden robot to see what will happen and Clark
regains consciousness! What a Dad!
So Superboy can never dismantle Friday because the robot saved his life and
it will always have an honored place in his secret closet!
Once the premise has been established that Superman can build robot
duplicates of himself and deploy them at will, the question becomes, what
does he do with them? So far they seem to have two main uses, to protect
Superman's secret identity and to protect Superman from kryptonite. Of
course, if they were actually any good at either task, Superman's
adventures would become deadly dull. So the robots are generally set up to
fail. The next story introduces the third main use that robots were put to:
cannon fodder.
In "The Indestructible Robot" (_Superboy_ #69, December 1958, art by George
Papp) the army asks Superboy to dispose of some dangerous weapons,
including one containing kryptonite which was seized from a renegade
scientist. The general doesn't even want Superboy to tell him where the
weapons went. (They were so trusting in those days, during the Cold War,
not like nowadays when the world is a much less dangerous place and we can
afford to be paranoid.)
Superboy dumps the stuff at sea, but "Ace" Farrow, Public Enemy #1 owns his
own submarine and just happens to be cruising in the area. He and his crew
fish the stuff back up. "Jumping Jailbirds! It's a cache of secret army
weapons!" he exclaims.
He immediately starts using the weapons to rob jewelry stores. Superboy
dives to the rescue, only to discover exactly what that renegade
scientist's weapon is. It's a kryptonite flame thrower! Ouch, that's gotta
hurt! And hurt it does. Superboy falls to the ground, but uses his
invulnerable body to smash through and be carried away by an underground
stream. Once out of range of the kryptonite however, he does not recover.
Dad wants him to go to bed. "You have kryptonite fever. Another exposure
might kill you."
This is a job for the Superboy robots! Unfortunately, Clark, the inveterate
tinker, has taken them all apart for upgrading, except for one. Clark drags
himself over to the remote control center and sends his Superboy robot off
to face the horde of secret military weapons. It finds Ace picking up an
armored car with a giant magnet attached to an airplane. Ace blasts the
robot with the kryptonite flame thrower and the force of the weapon is so
strong, it knocks the robot's arms right off. Then Ace drops the truck. How
can an armless robot catch the truck and save the driver from certain
death? By flying at super speed and dragging the truck through the air in
its backwash.
Unfortunately, Superboy is still too weak to fix the robot, so the armless
Superboy robot is sent off once again to track down Ace Farrow. This time
Ace knocks its head off with a disintegrator ray, but not before the
robot's X-ray vision has put a hole in Ace's boat. The robbery is foiled,
but Superboy now only has an armless, headless robot to stop Ace's next
scheme -- robbing a bank with an armored buzz-saw mobile. Superboy dips the
robot's feet in molten metal and then has the robot stand on the armored
carrier. His feet melt right through the surface. Ace is really hacked off
this time and blows the robot to smithereens. Now that his vehicle has
holes in it, though, the cops can throw tear gas into it, so he makes a
hasty departure. Superboy and his robot have foiled him again.
But all that's left of the robot are three tiny pieces with rocket jets
attached: one red, one blue, and one yellow. "I've got to think of a way
those three parts can help us fight Farrow's weapons!" moans Superboy to
Dad Kent.
Ace's next attack begins immediately, with a round green octopus-looking
thingy that sprays chemicals into the air as it rolls along. Superboy
thinks Ace is trying to put the entire city to sleep. Telling Dad to
operate the "robot", the still weakened Superboy flies off unsteadily after
Farrow's gang. Dad wonders if he'll ever see his brave son again.
It doesn't take Superboy any time to tie up the octopus arms on the gas
machine, but Farrow wheels out the flame thrower. Only Dad Kent and the
"robot" stand between Superboy and instant death. Desperately operating the
controls, Dad has the three colored fragments spin madly in circles around
Farrow's head. The whirling colors soon hypnotize him into immobility,
allowing Superboy to move in and destroy the flame thrower. (KRUNCH!) The
robot has saved the day -- but only by making the ultimate sacrifice.
From this point on, the life of a Superboy robot was sure to be short and
unhappy. Face it, if the robot idea worked, there really wouldn't be
anything for Superboy to do. But once their existence was established, they
had to be dealt with, else readers would question their absence. So
Weisinger would duly trot out the robots in almost every story and blow
them to bits in about two panels. Supposedly, this helped to establish how
deadly a menace Superboy faced.
Even after being given artificial intelligence, the robots never seemed to
be very smart either. After all, if you were a fully self-aware being,
would you be content to spend your existence locked in a closet? Or would
you want a life of your own?
Next: The Rebellion of the Robots
_________________________________________________
End of Section 8
_________________________________________________
SUPERMAN'S PHANTOM MENACE
-------------------------------------------
By Scott Devarney (devarney@ll.mit.edu)
With all of the hype of the latest _Star Wars_ movie, I couldn't resist
reviewing this story of Superman dealing with his own "phantom menace".
SUPERMAN #289
July 1975
"The Phantom Horseman of Metropolis"
Written by Cary Bates
Art by Curt Swan & Bob Oksner
Edited by Julius Schwartz
Poor Professor Jasper Pepperwinkle! It's the day of the big inventors'
convention and he can't find his latest invention anywhere! On top of that,
his wife Elaine is trying to convince him to skip the convention and spend
some time with her. Convinced that his invention must have been stolen,
Jasper goes to file a police report. Elaine turns on the television which
is showing a John Wayne western.
In Metropolis, Clark is out with Steve Lombard and Steve's latest
girlfriend when they encounter a strange phenomenon -- a white silhouette
of a mounted cavalry officer riding up the street. As the shadow goes
through a wall, it dissolves the wall. Superman tries to stop the phantom
but fails. Meanwhile, Elaine turns off the television and the horseman
vanishes. Later, Superman meets Jasper at police headquarters. Jasper
explains that his invention spawned the horseman. The horseman was composed
of solidified photons to which none of our physical laws apply and these
solidified photons disintegrate anything they collide with.
Meanwhile Elaine turns on her television to watch Big Bertha, her favorite
roller derby queen. Sure enough, a phantom roller derby queen begins racing
through the streets of Metropolis. Superman quickly disposes of the threat
by getting the phantom onto a treadmill and hurling it into space. During
this the ragtag Metropolis Revolutionary Army calls Morgan Edge to claim
credit for the phantoms and to extort money. Superman and Jasper quickly
track them down and defeat them.
In the Revolutionary Army's hideout is a television showing the roller
derby and Superman recognizes Big Bertha's moves as those of the phantom
roller skater. This gives Jasper an idea as to where his invention really
is. He and Superman fly to his home and discover his invention camouflaged
as the antenna on Elaine's television. Elaine confesses that she hid
Jasper's invention hoping that he'd have to miss the convention and could
take her dancing; it is, after all, their 25th wedding anniversary. Later,
after the convention, Jasper does take Elaine out on the town; he'd made
the reservations weeks in advance.
This story is a light-hearted comedy. The phantoms don't come across as a
very deadly threat and Superman deals with them pretty routinely. The fun
is not in the mystery of the phantoms but in how Superman and Jasper figure
out where the phantoms are originating. Early in the story, Jasper shows
Elaine a sketch of his invention and throughout most of the story whenever
the television is shown, the machine is shown. Superman's recognition of
the skater's moves and Jasper's recognition of his wife's favorite roller
derby queen were logical ways of solving the mystery.
Jasper and Elaine are likeable characters. Cary Bates did a good job of
making these two people so enjoyable to read. Elaine is clearly long
suffering and wants some attention from her husband. She feels genuinely
sorry about going to such lengths to get her husband to notice her. Jasper
is a decent guy and his heart is in the right place. He remembered their
anniversary but apparently wanted to surprise Elaine. He just didn't
realize that his silence made him appear insensitive.
The story's only real flaw is an inconsistency in depicting the phantoms.
If they disintegrate anything they collide with, the ground under their
feet should have dissolved. This would have made Superman's use of the
treadmill to stop the phantom skater ineffective. There is also no
explanation given as to why the phantoms are appearing on the streets of
Metropolis instead of near Elaine's television.
One final note, the cover of this issue is very striking. It's a photo of
four men on a city street staring in fear at a superimposed drawing of
Superman tackling the phantom horseman. The four men could be the creators
of this story; I think I recognize Curt Swan and Julius Schwartz.
THE PRIVATE LIFE OF CLARK KENT
"Right Down My Alley"
Story by E. Nelson Bridwell
Art by Curt Swan & Jose Luis Garcia-Lopez
Because of Steve Lombard's mouthing off about how men are always superior
to women in sports, Clark finds himself roped into a men vs. women bowling
game. Wanting to be fair, Clark hypnotizes himself so that he can't use his
powers while bowling. During the game, it is announced that there's a bomb
in the building. Everyone evacuates, but Clark gets trapped under a falling
beam. Because of his hypnosis, Clark can't move the beam, but he manages to
briefly hypnotize Lois into believing that she's strong enough to move it.
Thanks to the power of suggestion and an adrenaline rush, Lois does indeed
lift the beam long enough for Clark to get free.
The thing that I really liked about this story is Clark's sense of
fairness. He realizes that using his powers would be unfair to the women,
yet he also realizes that his klutz act would be just as unfair to the men.
The self-hypnosis is a great way to even the odds.
Steve Lombard's chauvinism is certainly in character. Between Steve's
chauvinism in this story and Jasper Pepperwinkle's seeming insensitivity in
the first story, men certainly take it on the chin in this issue. :)
SUPERMAN & HOSTESS FRUIT PIES
"The Spy"
A nosy reporter in Clark's apartment finds Clark's secret closet containing
his spare Superman costumes. Unbeknownst to the snoop, Superman witnesses
this with his telescopic vision. Later when the reporter tries to publicly
unveil his discovery, he finds the closet filled with Hostess Fruit Pies!
Superman's secret is safe, the reporter is promptly fired, and the
assembled reporters think Clark has great taste!
What could I possibly add? This is another fine installment of one of the
most loved and well-remembered comic book ad campaigns ever. In fact, a
cherry Fruit Pie sounds good just about now ...
______________________________________________
THE MAILBAG
-------------------------------------
(mailbag@kryptonian-cybernet.com)
KC Responses are indented and begun with ****
==========================================
From: Lou Mougin (lomougin@wf.net)
I would tend to disagree with Brother Bob Hughes about the Superman
Earth-One/Earth-Two cutoff, but that's all right, since we all know it's as
subjective as heck. That goes for Batman, Wonder Woman, Green Arrow, and
Aquaman, too. Any attempt to set a dividing line is going to cause
problems.
My "dividing line" is set in 1954, just before the first ish of _Jimmy
Olsen_ and the Superman/Batman team-ups in _World's Finest_. It isn't
perfect, by any means. There are a few stray stories that happen before
that time, such as the Superman/Batman pairing in _Superman_ #76, and Lana
Lang's first appearance with Superman, which I relegate to Earth-One. Also,
some of the discrepancies in Golden Age stories with modern-day "Earth-Two"
stories are better off chalked up to "chroniclers' errors" and not worried
about too much.
The first real appearance of the Earth-One Superman, of course, is the
first Superboy story in _More Fun Comics_ #101. Superman of Earth-One
appeared first, as far as I know, in a "flash-forward" story in _Superboy_
#1. There are discreps aplenty, such as Superboy living in Metropolis until
the time of about _Superboy_ #10 (chroniclers' error again) and Perry
White's less-than-consistent history, but we can't make everything fit, nor
are we expected to.
IMHO, E. Nelson's Earth-Twoing of "Superman vs. the Futuremen" won't wash.
The story is too far down the line, and he himself set the Mr. and Mrs.
Superman stories in the early Fifties. I think it's an Earth-One, and we'll
have to find other ways to explain the boneheaded plot contrivances in it.
If we threw out all the Silver Age stuff that had such inanities, we'd end
up with practically no Silver Age Supes stories being canonical!
This is not a dis at Bob, by any circumstances. We have different cutoff
points for our Earths, and each can argue the merits of his viewpoints,
which is what I have done here. So much for that.
==========================================
From: Neil A. Hansen (Neil4161@aol.com)
As usual, another great issue. The reason I'm writing is to bring up a new
topic about which other KC readers may have an opinion.
As everyone recalls, _Batman: Black & White_, with its black and white
format and interesting array of contributors, sold very well for DC, enough
to warrant a trade paperback reprint edition. My question is why can't they
do that for Superman?
Granted Superman isn't necessarily easy to translate into black and white
terms because he is so colorful. However, I think it would be an
interesting touch to get different aspects of the character in similar
formats to _Batman: Black and White_. You could have stories not ordinarily
seen with the Man of Steel.
Contributors I'd love to see include: Jim Steranko, Al Williamson, Kurt
Busiek, Paul Dini, Brian Bolland, John Buscema, Jose Luis Garcia-Lopez,
Alex Ross, Neal Adams, Katsushiro Otomo, John Bolton, Garth Ennis, Bruce
Timm, Bill Sienkiewicz, John Prentice, Moebius, Garry Leach, Russ Heath,
John Severin, Mike Deodato, Berni Wrightson, Mike Kaluta, Tom Yeates,
Alfredo Alcala and Jim Lee.
I'd love to hear other opinions.
**** I think it's a great idea. My personal opinion is that there ought to
be an outlet for talented creators to contribute the occasional story
without it disrupting the continuity of the monthly books -- and
without the story having to be stretched into a miniseries or extra-
long prestige format book.
Of your list of contributors, Busiek and Garcia-Lopez alone would make
it worth my buying (Dini, Bolland, Ross, Timm, and Lee certainly
wouldn't hurt). I might add Art Adams, Gene Ha, Frank Miller, and Walt
Simonson, to name just a few.
==========================================
From: Jon B. Knutson (waffyjon@execpc.com)
In May's "And Who Disguised As..." (Hey, that's my wife's and my wedding
anniversary, y'know), J.D. Rummel said, "You know, has any writer ever
tackled *why* Galactus retains a human form and the various accoutrements
of a biped with opposable thumbs? The concept of Galactus is brilliant, but
his execution at the hands of so many writers has been stunningly
unimaginative."
I never thought my FF knowledge would come in handy for KC, but... in John
Byrne's Fantastic Four run, during "The Trial of Reed Richards" (In an
earlier issue of the FF, the Four plus some Avengers and Doctor Strange
battled Galactus to a standstill, leaving him drained and his body
consuming his own energies to try to stay alive. Reed used his technology
to give Galactus a "booster" to keep alive long enough to find a world to
satisfy his hunger, justifying it by saying that Galactus was above good
and evil... he's a force of nature, who does what he does to survive. A
bunch of alien races put Reed on trial for saving the Big G's life.), it
was revealed that each race which encounters Galactus sees him as a
gigantic member of their own race. So, a Skrull would see the Big G as a
giant Skrull. This is kind of similar to an old issue of Roy Thomas'
"Invaders", in which it's revealed that when Thor speaks, you hear him
speak in your own native tongue... but I digress.
==========================================
From: Sean Hogan (shogan@intergate.bc.ca)
In his letter to KC last month, Douglas Tisdale Jr wrote: "One thing which
has always been prevalent in the Elseworlds that [Sean] did not touch upon,
however, was that the story always ended more or less the same, with the
character at the end in some variation of his familiar red-and-blue
costume, invariably with some sort of pentagon (or triangle) on his chest
and the same sort of moral impetus in his heart."
Good point. I always loved those imaginary stories, knowing that however it
started it would end up with a variation on the standard Superman model.
"For example, in _Superman: A Nation Divided_, which takes place during the
American Civil War (one of the best of the recent Superman Elseworlds and
yet not one which Sean cared to mention... did he not read it?)"
Nope -- didn't read it. I can only afford so many Prestige titles and,
being a Canadian, I wasn't particularly interested in the background. As
you note, many of these tales are similar stories in different settings. I
skimmed the issue in the store and liked what I saw, just not enough to
convince me to buy. I'm wonder if any non-Americans who read that issue
would like to comment on it.
I also prefer not to review too many recent issues since other reviewers in
KC are doing that -- which is why I didn't include _JLA: The Nail_ and
_Superman: The Dark Side_ (which you mentioned), both of which I loved.
"What does all this mean? I think it means that the character traits of
Superman are so strong that they will exist for him no matter what setting
he might be in, that his goodness is so inherent that even in the darkest
of situations (such as Apokolips), the good man that is inside him will
eventually surface and triumph."
My next article (in issue #64 of the Kryptonian Cybernet) deals with
Superman's execution of the Phantom Zone criminals. Byrne intended to use
this as the basis for Superman's code against killing. In the Silver Age,
Superman's moral code was an inherent part of him -- partly as a result of
his upbringing by Ma and Pa Kent and partly because of his nature. He
didn't need to kill to know taking a life was wrong. Byrne apparently felt
Superman needed a stronger motivation for his 'goodness'. I'm interested in
readers' comments as to this story, looking at it over 10 years later.
Should DC have allowed a story where Superman deliberately killed? Was it a
positive contribution to the Superman legend? Did it make a difference to
you as a reader?
"And, lest this phenomenon be thought to be only existent in Elseworlds,
there are even examples of it in the pre-Crisis "Imaginary Tales" which
Sean mentioned. A chief example of this is the tale of Superman's "other
life," in which the Batman and Robin show Superman how his life might have
turned out had Krypton not been destroyed. What Sean took for amazing
"coincidences" I choose to see as reflecting the inevitability of which I
speak -- even had he not been transported to Earth, Kal-El would have wound
up as protector of the world he called home."
I put 'incredible coincidences' in quotes in my article because these were
obviously editorial directives that, to a great extent, continue today to
ensure that Superman will 'inevitably' be the hero. I'm not critisizing
that policy, as I believe strongly that Superman is an icon and should be
treated as such. I continue to enjoy re-reading those Silver Age "Imaginary
Stories", despite their similarities to each other. I also enjoy the
somewhat darker "Elseworlds" stories where writers are allowed to play with
that 'inevitability' by having Superman act as a villain (_Superman: The
Dark Side_) or even die (no spoilers here).
Should there be at least some stories where Superman is not a hero by the
end of the tale? Is anyone interested in a story with an unrepentantly evil
Superman? Or should Superman always be (at least by the end of the story,
if not throughout) an icon of "truth, justice and the Canadian way!"
Well, he is an international symbol, eh? ;-)
==========================================
From: David Young (young_d1@popmail.firn.edu)
Hi. I received another excellent issue of the Kryptonian Cybernet today
(#62), and I was reading it when I came upon something which I had to
comment on. It was the column/review by J.D. Rummel. Granted, it's merely
one person's opinion (it's even titled "A Column of Opinion"), but I
couldn't stand how he completely trashed the _Superman/Fantastic Four_
special. So I wanted to give you a quick opposite opinion.
I thoroughly enjoyed this special, from its beautiful Alex Ross/Dan Jurgens
cover, to its impressive format. Galactus has never appeared so massive as
on treasury-size paper. Jurgens has risen over the years to being my
favorite Superman artist of the 1990s (pencil artist that is... no one
holds a candle to Alex Ross in painting Superman). I thought he captured
each character well. I've never read _Fantastic Four_ on a regular basis,
but after more then 17 years of collecting and reading both DC and Marvel
comics I think I know them pretty well. I particularly liked the
interaction with young Franklin Richards, and that last panel of Franklin
with Superman's cape was precious (I also liked the Thing getting upset
that he had missed the "Superman" cartoon).
Although the concept isn't exactly a new one (Galactus possessing someone
as his newest "herald"), I thought the near omnipotence of a Superman
infused with the power cosmic was very well depicted. In short, while not
the greatest Superman comic to come out this year (_Superman: Peace on
Earth_ of course still beats it in the larger format category), I feel that
it is one of the best Superman crossovers to be released (only _Superman vs
Aliens_ comes to mind as a better crossover, although I am looking forward
to _The Incredible Hulk vs Superman_ by Roger Stern and Steve Rude).
In closing, I'd like to tell you about my father. When I started collecting
comics in the early 1980s, my father also started a comics collection. At
one time, his collection was just as large as mine, and we decided not to
"double up" on titles. For instance, I'd get _Justice League of America_,
he'd get _New Teen Titans_. I'd get _Avengers_ and the Spider-Man titles,
he'd get _Fantastic Four_ and _Uncanny X-Men_. Anyway, after a while my
father decided to more or less quit collecting comics to devote his time
and money to another hobby, sports cards. The one comic book which he
decided to keep collecting and reading was _Fantastic Four_. He still
collects it to this day. After reading my copy of _Superman/Fantastic Four_
(I was always crazy enough to buy all the crossovers, specials, and guest
appearances, while my Dad pretty much stuck to the main titles), I liked it
enough to buy an extra copy which I plan to give to my Dad for Father's
Day. Sure hope he likes it as much as I did.
P.S.: In answer to Mr. Rummel's question about who has been clamoring for
this particular crossover. While it never was one of the first "dream"
crossovers to come to my mind, I always thought it made a lot of sense.
After all, Superman was the premiere DC super-hero (and first super-hero in
general), while the Fantastic Four issued in the new "Marvel Age" of
comics. So their status as trend-setters and their overall importance to
comics history makes them a logical team-up. Also consider this: How many
of Marvel's characters are powerful enough that they have villains who
could give Superman a run for his money? Maybe the X-Men's Magneto, the
Avengers' Thanos, or Thor's Norse opponents. Otherwise, only the FF have
baddies tough enough: Dr. Doom, Galactus, Annihilus, etc. (Just about the
silliest thing I think I've ever seen was Venom throwing Superman around
like a rag doll in one of the DC/Marvel "Access" crossovers. If Venom was
really that strong, Spider-Man would have been a Spider-Smudge on the wall
a long time ago. But that's a topic for another day.)
For the next Superman/Marvel crossover, how about a Superman/Thor oversized
special by the current _Thor_ creative team of Dan Jurgens and John Romita
Jr. Seeing Superman fighting back-to-back with Thor against powerful Norse
warriors and monsters could be really cool (if done right).
**** I've never been much of a Thor fan, so I've got other ideas. I'd love
to see a new take on Superman/Spider-Man -- if you *really* want to
stack the odds against Spidey, how about a story where the Venom or
Carnage symbiote takes control of Supes? Or if you want another shot
at a Luthor story (to make up for that hideous recent miniseries), how
about Luthor versus Kingpin?
Regardless, I'm not much of a fan of the treasury format. It's just
too big a financial gamble for something new to me. For that matter,
I'd just as soon see Prestige Format used a lot less often than it is.
-- Jeff Sykes
______________________________________________
***************************************************************
End of Issue #63
