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The Kryptonian Cybernet Issue 18
______________________________________________________________
T H E K R Y P T O N I A N C Y B E R N E T
Issue #18 -- October 1995
______________________________________________________________
CONTENTS
--------
Section 1: Superscripts: Notes from the Editor
News and Notes
DC Versus Marvel!
The comic event you thought you'd never see!
With a Little Help From My Friends...
Lois Lane, by Denes House
Section 2: Just the FAQs
What cities have their own Special Crimes Units?
by David T. Chappell
And Who Disguised As...
A Job for a Real Superman, by J.D. Rummel
Not a Fleischer Cartoon
"Super Rabbit," by Neil A. Ottenstein
Coming Attractions
Now that the "Trial" is over, what does December have in
store for the Man of Steel?
Section 3: Reviews: The "Triangle" Titles
Action Comics #715, by William J. Nixon
Superman: The Man of Steel #50, by Arthur LaMarche
Superman #106, by Ken McKee and Arthur LaMarche
Adventures of Superman #529, by Anatole Wilson
Section 4: Reviews: Other Super-Titles
Superboy #21, by Victor Chan
Steel #21, by Dick Sidbury
Showcase '95 #10, by Rene' Gobeyn
Showcase '95 #11, by Rene' Gobeyn
The New Titans #127, by Rene' Gobeyn
Section 5: Reviews: Annuals, Specials, and Crossovers
Action Comics Annual #7, by William J. Nixon
Superboy Annual #2, by Matt Combes
Superman: At Earth's End, by Rene' Gobeyn
Legion of Super-Heroes #74, by Victor Chan
Legionnaires #31, by Victor Chan
Section 6: Looking Back: The Phantom Zone
"Whatever Happened to the Man of Tomorrow?"
Part 1: Superman #423, by Jenny Stosser
The Silver Age Superman
Superman-Red and Superman-Blue, by Bill Morse
Brave and the Bold #150
by Joe Crowe
Section 7: Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman
Sigh-Fi
Lois and Clark and romantic sci-fi, by Zoomway
Episode Review
#3-01: "We Have A Lot To Talk About"
The Season Premiere, by Marta Olson
The Mailbag
An addendum to J.D. Rummel's review last month of
"Superman From the 30's to the 70's."
EDITORIAL STAFF:
---------------
Jeffery D. Sykes, Editor-in-Chief
Arthur E. LaMarche, Executive Editor of Reviews
LEGAL DISCLAIMERS:
-----------------
Superman and all related characters, locations, and events are
copyright and trademark DC Comics. Use of the aforementioned is not
intended to challenge said ownership. We strongly suggest that each
reader look to the media sources mentioned within for further infor-
mation.
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 should be distributed freely via e-mail. Should
you desire to share this publication with other on-line services, please
contact me at sykes@ms.uky.edu for permission. Feel free to advertise
subscription information on other on-line services which have internet
mail availability.
THE KRYPTONIAN CYBERNET is available by e-mail -- to subscribe, send
the commands
subscribe kc <address>
end
in the body of an e-mail message to "lists@phoenix.creighton.edu" (without
the quotation marks). Replace the <address> field with your INTERNET e-mail
address. The program ignores the subject line of the message.
Back issues are available via ftp at acm-ftp.creighton.edu and at
ftp.hiof.no. Archives are also reachable via the Kryptonian Cybernet
Homepage (http://www.ms.uky.edu/~sykes/kc).
______________________________________________________________
SUPERSCRIPTS: Notes from the Editor
------------------------------------
NEWS AND NOTES:
DC VS MARVEL/MARVEL VS DC
For the full details of this Earth-shattering meeting, see the feature
article printed below. But we've got another little point of interest
to pass along. First, the GREEN LANTERN/SILVER SURFER crossover which
is scheduled to ship in November is now rumored to hint at the massive
meeting which follows in December.
Also, according to other rumors, the results of this massive conflict
will not go unnoticed in either company's universe. After-effects of
the miniseries' events will continue to affect each universe in the
months following the conclusion of the crossover. Rumor even has it
that one character from each universe will be PERMANENTLY transplanted
to the other!
THE BOY OF STEEL MEETS THE BOY WONDER
According to the latest CSNsider, DC has a meeting between Superboy
and Robin in the works for early 1996!
KC SUBSCRIPTION COUNT
Just a quick note to let you know that we recently passed the 1200
subscriber mark! Thanks to each of you for helping make KC such a
success!
KC RESOURCES
Beginning with this issue, the KC Resources section is going permanently
AWOL from the magazine. When it has been included in the past, it has
actually only been an update, and I've decided that I'm going to cease
inclusion of even that. But for those of you who use it, don't worry!
I'm not scrapping the KC Resources Index. It will take up permanent
residence in the KC Homepage as of the next update, and a text version
of the most recent update will always be available at the archive sites
for KC. I simply won't be printing it in the issues themselves...
THE 1995 KAYCEES!
We're almost at the end of the comic year, so that means the Kaycees will
be upon us. We'll be printing the voting ballot in next month's issue,
along with a recap of what Superman family comics were published with a
1995 cover date. In addition, I will make this 1995 comic index
available on the web page, and I hope to facilitate the voting process
by setting up a "voting booth" at the homepage, as well. (In fact, if
anyone out there has some experience with html forms, I will probably
need some assistance in setting this up!) Start thinking about what
were the best and worst aspects of the Superman comics in this past year!
As always, enjoy the new issue, and I'll see you back here in another month!
Jeff Sykes
Editor, The Kryptonian Cybernet
______________________________________________________________
DC VERSUS MARVEL!
-----------------
Reprinted from COMING COMICS, as printed in PREVIEWS
They meet...at last!
And YOU decide the outcome!
The battle readers have asked for and dreamed about, wished for and speculated
upon, demanded but never expected, finally happens as Marvel and DC rock the
comics industry with possibly the biggest event in its history. DC VERSUS
MARVEL (from DC Comics) and MARVEL VERSUS DC (from Marvel Comics) is the first
all-out, full-scale, total blowout meeting of the DC and Marvel Universes -- a
cosmic tale of worlds colliding, realities intertwining, and heroes clashing
across a dozen fronts! And because comics readers of all ages have for decades
argued "Who would win?", Marvel and DC are making sure every reader can be part
of the excitement, providing comic-book specialty stores with the means for the
general public to determine the outcome of this explosive rivalry.
DC VERSUS MARVEL/MARVEL VERSUS DC is a 4-issue copublished miniseries in which
two estranged entities conflict when the fragile wall separating their realities
fractures. In the first two issues, as heroes and villains cross over from each
dimension into the other, the celestial beings begin a strange and deadly cosmic
chess game to determine whose universe is more powerful -- and essential.
Pitting their living pawns against each other in contests of wills and power,
the entities bring about battles that readers always believed were impossible:
FLASH vs. QUICKSILVER!
THOR vs. SHAZAM!
ROBIN vs. JUBILEE!
SUB-MARINER vs. AQUAMAN!
GREEN LANTERN vs. SILVER SURFER!
ELEKTRA vs. CATWOMAN!
Following a tense series of shattering preliminary bouts between these champions
and others, the pivotal battles are fought in issue #3, where the major stars of
each universe clash in the Main Event:
BATMAN vs. CAPTAIN AMERICA!
HULK vs. SUPERMAN!
SUPERBOY vs. SPIDER-MAN!
WOLVERINE vs. LOBO!
WONDER WOMAN vs. STORM!
But the outcome of these five fights is left for YOU to decide, as readers vote
in advance of issue #3 for the winner of each of the five battles! Every
comic-book specialty store will become a polling place for the Main Event, using
promotional tools supplied by DC and Marvel. These decisive showdowns -- and
the unbelievable, mind-blowing events that follow -- are certain to be the talk
of the comics industry for years to come.
Each issue of DC VERSUS MARVEL/MARVEL VERSUS DC features at least thirty-two
pages of story, plus backup features such as MARVEL UNIVERSE/DC WHO'S WHO-style
pages to bring newcomers up to date on all the important players.
Artist Dan Jurgens (SUPERMAN, SPIDER-MAN, ZERO HOUR), one of the pencillers on
the miniseries summed up the event this way: "This may be the coolest thing I've
ever worked on! It's what my friends and I used to dream about when we were 14,
but never believed would actually happen. I called Mike Carlin just to thank
him for offering me this gig. It's an incredible amount of fun."
The other creative powerhouses assembled to execute this incredible crossover
miniseries are writer Ron Marz (GREEN LANTERN/SILVER SURFER) on issues #1 and
#3, and writer Peter David (INCREDIBLE HULK, AQUAMAN) on issues #2 and #4. The
two art teams of Jurgens and inker Josef Rubinstein (SUPERMAN); and, penciller
Claudio Castellini (cover artist of FANTASTIC FOUR UNLIMITED, COSMIC POWERS
UNLIMITED) and inker Paul Neary (EXCALIBUR) share the art chores on all four
issues. DC VERSUS MARVEL #1 and #4 are offered by DC Comics. MARVEL VERSUS DC
#2 and #3 will be offered by Marvel Comics.
In addition, SkyBox and Fleer are producing two exciting trading card series
that tie into DC VERSUS MARVEL/MARVEL VERSUS DC, spotlighting the key
participants and events in the miniseries. The first trading card series ships
December 13 to coincide with DC VERSUS MARVEL #1; the second is scheduled to
ship on February 27.
In the first card set, we get Clark Kent's thoughts on what's going on in the
Marvel Universe, while Peter Parker brings his perspective to the DC Universe.
Featuring exquisite painted art as well as spectacular line art, the full-color
trading cards showcase the work of some of the most talented and popular artists
in the business, including Julie Bell, John Byrne, Dave Dorman, Joe Jusko, Barry
Kitson, Joe Quesada, Darick Robertson, Boris Vallejo, and many others.
Plus, DC is offering the DC VERSUS MARVEL RETAIL POSTER, a special oversized,
27" x 40" 4-color poster that captures the essence of this extraordinary event.
Illustrated by Jurgens and Rubinstein, the poster features some of the greatest
heroes from each universe in the slugfest of the century. The poster ships
December 19 and carries a suggested retail price of $7.95 U.S. Marvel will
offer a MARVEL VERSUS DC RETAIL POSTER, scheduled to ship February 27.
DC Universe Executive Editor Mike Carlin said, "This is it -- every reader's
chance to show the world DC's heroes are the coolest, most powerful heroes
who've ever walked the Earth!"
Marvel Universe Editor-in-Chief Mark Gruenwald replied, "That Mike -- such a
kidder! Everyone knows any one Marvel super-hero can beat any three DC
super-heroes...and crack better jokes while doing it! Fans will bear me out on
this!"
DC VERSUS MARVEL/MARVEL VERSUS DC SHIPPING SCHEDULE
---------------------------------------------------
November 1995: DC VERSUS MARVEL/MARVEL VERSUS DC CONSUMER PREVIEW
with ballots, plus promotional kit
December 12, 1995: DC VERSUS MARVEL #1
solicited by DC Comics
SKYBOX/FLEER TRADING CARD SET 1
solicited by SkyBox
December 19, 1995: DC VERSUS MARVEL RETAIL POSTER
solicited by DC Comics
January 16, 1996: MARVEL VERSUS DC #2
solicited by Marvel Comics
February 20, 1996: MARVEL VERSUS DC #3
solicited by Marvel Comics
February 27, 1996: MARVEL VERSUS DC RETAIL POSTER
solicited by Marvel Comics
SKYBOX/FLEER TRADING CARD SET 2
solicited by SkyBox
March 5, 1996: DC VERSUS MARVEL #4
solicited by DC Comics
HOW TO VOTE
-----------
Readers vote either at comic-book specialty stores, by e-mail, or online, in
each case using official ballots obtained at your local comics shop in:
* The DC VERSUS MARVEL/MARVEL VERSUS DC CONSUMER PREVIEW
* DC VERSUS MARVEL #1
* Every pack of the first set of Fleer/SkyBox trading cards
* Issues of selected comic-book and gaming trade magazines
For more information on the crossover, cards, and posters, refer to the October
issues of PREVIEWS and Marvel Comics' advanced information publication.
______________________________________________________________
"WITH A LITTLE HELP FROM MY FRIENDS..."
========================================
a column about the Supporting Cast in the Superman family of books
by Denes House (dhouse@itsmail1.hamilton.edu)
Because of the conspicuous absence of this column due to intense work- load
last month, I thought I'd reward you all with the supporting cast member
you've probably all been hanging onto your chairs in anticipation for. She is
perhaps the most significant person in the lives of both Superman and Clark
Kent, and perhaps the single most important supporting character historically,
in the Superman mythos. That's right, folks -
==============================
LOIS LANE
a.k.a. "Superman's girlfriend"
Historically, Lois Lane has always played an important role in the Superman
mythos, regardless of medium. In today's Superman comics, she has reached her
greatest significance, and has become absolutely crucial to the survival of
the Superman books.
In the beginning, Lois Lane served many functions. She was love interest,
tormentor, hostage, and colleague. The infamous two-person love triangle was
set up, with Clark Kent in love with Lois Lane, Lois Lane in love with
Superman, who was utterly inaccessible. When in the 1986 "Man of Steel"
miniseries Lana Lang declares that "Superman belongs to the world," she is
stating what every pre-Crisis Superman fan knew to the core of their being.
There could never be a possibility of reciprocal love between Superman and
Lois Lane.
Lois' main function, then, was to serve as a continual reminder of what could
never be. She loved the hero, and ignored the nice guy. Many adolescents,
myself included, identified with the nice guy, yearning for the beautiful girl
to realize that there was a hero inside us. Ultimately, though, this fantasy
was an empty one. We knew that there was no chance of that for Superman/Clark.
We were left frustrated. This situation was the background for all of the
Superman stories told up until the Crisis. While Lois was known in the comic
book realm as "Superman's girlfriend," we all knew that the only place she
would ever be "Superman's wife" was in the ironically so-called "imaginary
stories."
In our lives, we knew we had more hope of love than Superman. He *had* to keep
up the charade, because there were dire consequences if folks found out that
Clark Kent and Superman were the same guy. But for us normal Joes, if we were
able to break out of our "secret identity," there was hope. If our Lois Lanes
ever found out we were *really* Superman in disguise, Oh Happy Day!
Interestingly, even near the beginning, this was a possibility even for the
Man of Steel. In an early unpublished Siegel/Shuster story, intended to
introduce "K-Metal," an early prototype of Kryptonite, Clark Kent is forced to
reveal to Lois Lane that he is, in fact, Superman. As he flies off with her in
his arms at the end of the story, they remark to each other that she can now
be his "confidante," something he says he has always wished for. That story
was never published (I only learned about it in the recent book, "DC Comics"),
but today one can easily imagine the impact that story might have had on
Superman history. The incredible tension and frustration would be gone!
Perhaps it is just as well it was never published, because the marvelous
history of Superman comics would be much, much different today if it had.
In the "Adventures of Superman" television show, the romance angle of the
Clark/Lois relationship was downplayed to almost nil. Superman/Clark Kent were
more like heroes/mentors/colleagues to Lois, rather than love interests.
Still, Lois was essential to the mythos, if only as a perennial hostage for
Superman to rescue. However, this weakened Lois' character, making her more
annoying than interesting.
In the comics, the tension finally became too much, and the writers of
Superman decided to recast Lois as a friend and colleague. The romantic
tension was gone, and Superman was not so much concerned with saving Lois
anymore as he was in combating cosmic menaces and natural disasters. The
stories became less interesting, and sales began to slump badly.
"Superman: the Movie" re-introduced Lois Lane as romantic as well as
professional foil. In the movie, Lois was allowed to ask all the prickly
questions we had always wanted her to ask, and in Superman II, the wall of
secrecy was finally allowed to break! Even so, Superman had to again isolate
himself from Lois, for her good and for the good of humanity. Even in the
delightfully tense movies, Superman was condemned to be alone. No confidante
for the Man of Steel. Superman belongs to the world.
It is significant that the worst Superman movies removed Lois from her
traditional, strongest, romantic role. In Superman III, she is all but absent
from the film, and in Superman IV, she seems to be going through the motions.
The scene that should have been the best, where Lois and Superman double date
with Clark and his editor, ends up falling flat.
Then came the Crisis, and "Man of Steel."
One of the first things John Byrne did in revamping Superman was to restore
Lois Lane to top billing as a Superman supporting character. He gave her life,
vitality, spunk. Lois was now a professional rival for Clark Kent. Now that
the character of Clark Kent was less geeky than before, Lois needed a new
reason to distance herself from her hunky colleague. Byrne found that reason
in giving Kent the exclusive first interview with Superman. Lois and Clark
became rivals, and a new era of romantic tension was born.
Byrne set the stage for other writers to take Superman where he'd never been
before, real romance and eventually engagement to Lois Lane. By making
"Superman" into a role that Clark Kent played, Byrne opened up the doors to a
love life for Clark. Readers no longer felt that it was impossible for Clark
and Lois to get together. The tension was still there, but the frustration was
gone.
Before I close, a word must be said about "Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of
Superman." To my mind, that show has done a terrific job of telling the
viewers just why Lois is so important. In this season's premiere episode, in a
scene that brought tears to my eyes, Ma Kent thanked Lois for being the first
woman she could talk to about her son. Lois became not only a confidante for
Clark, but also for Ma. I had never thought about how lonely the Kents must
feel, having to keep such a huge secret.
In Lois and Clark's engagement, Superman found what Siegel and Shuster had
wanted to give him all along, a confidante. She is now someone he can share
his life with. She is a safety-valve, as well as a solid connection to real
life. She is no longer just a hostage, but a motivation. She is no longer
annoying. Rather, she has grown into one of the most well-rounded supporting
characters in the Superman books.
______________________________________________________________
****************************************************************
End of Section 1
_________________________________________________________________
JUST THE FAQs
More Details about Frequently-Asked Questions about the Man of Steel
by David T. Chappell
We interrupt the regularly scheduled Frequently-Asked Question of this column
to bring you a brief update on Special Crimes Units. Next month I shall get
back to the previously promised topic as I discuss the pre-Crisis incarnations
of Supergirl (including, but not limited to, Kara Zor-El). Meanwhile, I have
instead devoted my energies to updating my Superman FAQ to Version 2.32 and my
Superman Comics List to Version 3.30. These and related files can be found at
ftp://ftp.hiof.no/pub/Comics/Superman/ as well as on relevant newsgroups
(including rec.arts.comics.info).
"What cities have their own Special Crimes Units?"
In the December 1994 issue of THE KRYPTONIAN CYBERNET (Issue #8b), I introduced
the concept of the Special Crimes Unit as I answered the question "What is the
Metropolis S.C.U.?" The presence of many super-powered villains led the
Metropolis Police Department to establish a special team that had the training
and equipment to handle these "special crimes."
Following the success of the Metropolis S.C.U., several other cities have
established their own Special Crimes Units. When the aforementioned article
was originally printed, only Washington, D.C., and Los Angeles had followed
Metropolis' lead. In the months since then, other Special Crimes Units have
appeared. It is now apparent that Atlanta and New York have joined the
growing list. After the flurry of metahuman activity following in Superboy's
wake, the Honolulu Police Department is considering establishing an S.C.U. as
well.
CITY FIRST APPEARANCE
Metropolis
Washington, D.C. HAWK AND DOVE #4
Los Angeles GREEN LANTERN #55
Atlanta DAMAGE #13
New York GREEN LANTERN #67
Honolulu - in progress - (SUPERBOY)
______________________________________________________________
And Who Disguised As...
----------------------------------
A Column of Opinion by J.D. Rummel (rummel@phoenix.creighton.edu)
A Job for A Real Superman.
Like many of you, I watched Christopher Reeve being interviewed by Barbara
Walters. I'm sure that I am also not alone in my admiration. This guy was
handling things that would reduce most of us to jelly. Hell, admiring him is
easy. One of my secret terrors, one of the things that makes me close my eyes
and jerk away, is the dark night scenario of myself, stuck in a chair, my body
reduced to an unfeeling mass akin to cold beef on a hook, effectively a sack
containing a stranger's bones and blood with my head glued to it. On the
screen before me was a man, once far more active than myself, who was brought
down by a mundane accident. Once he lived my fantasy by yanking off his
glasses and leaping into the air to save the world. Now he was living my
darkest fear. I watched him, and the irony of it was not lost on me. It was
the kind of bullshit reverie that our English teachers tell us is the stuff of
Judith Krantz and Star Trek novels: "How ironic, once he portrayed the mighty
Superman, now he needs a machine to breathe_
In traditional comic books we get off light. We don't really have to suffer or
mourn. We know Superman isn't really dead, it's just a marketing trick. We
know Batman isn't crippled forever, that some special sequence of events will
heal our champion, and return him to his four comic a month habit. After all,
no matter what strides comics have made toward realism, they are still
entertainment mechanisms designed for making cash.
But the man recreated before me in phosphor dots three nights ago was real,
the kind of real that causes that jerk away reaction. I jerk away because I
know that could be me, and I can't easily explain why it's not. That's not to
say I would be as gracious under pressure--I am a great panicking weasel of
Olympic proportions--rather, the similarity is that I could be involved in a
common accident and left so incapable. When he related the loss of his
respirator, when he shared the time he was alone in the dark waiting for
someone to restore his breath I felt something, something it took me some time
to codify. Ironically, in the way English teachers love, I had to go to Funny
Book Land to do so.
There is a vintage Bugs Bunny cartoon wherein the bunny is given super powers.
He dons a cape, a mild mannered secret identity and he uses his powers to
harass a rabbit hunter and his horse. At the story's climax he loses his
powers and is about to be trounced by the two characters whose existence he
has made miserable. Suddenly Bugs looks at the audience and says, "this looks
like a job for a REAL Superman." He steps into a phone booth, and in keeping
with the anti-Axis sentiments of the period, steps out in full Marine dress
blues, bringing about salutes from his opponents. The obvious point being:
Funny book stories are well and good in their place, but there is a real world
where serious things happen. Furthermore, one should never rise above the
other.
[Purely coincidentally, Neil Ottenstein reviews this very same cartoon in his
"The Fleischer Cartoons" column this month. See below! --Jeff]
That night, when watching Chris Reeve speak honestly about his loss, about his
hopes, seeing him rise above his fears--my fears--not grandly or magically, or
cinematically with swelling music, but slowly, with real difficulty, one day
at a time, I knew I was seeing something greater than a triumph over a
renegade scientist, far greater than the saving of the world. This was the
greatest deed he could ever perform. I felt: "This looks like a job for a REAL
Superman_
And he was doing it.
Away.
______________________________________________________________
NOT A FLEISCHER CARTOON:
-----------------------
by Neil A. Ottenstein
Episode : "Super Rabbit"
Released: 4-3-43
Running Time: ~ 8:10 minutes
Faster than a speeding bullet
More powerful than a locomotive
Able to leap the tallest building
"Look up there in the sky, it's a bird."
"Naw, it ain't no bird, it's a dive bomber."
"No, it's Super Rabbit."
"Bugs Bunny - the Rabbit of Tomorrow."
We first learn the origin of this intrepid character. Professor Canafrazz is
experimenting on a super carrot and Bugs Bunny is his experimental rabbit. He
gives the carrot to Bugs, who now eats it. Thus, Bugs becomes Super Rabbit.
Bugs pulls out a news clipping about a rabbit drive - "Cottontail Smith to rub
out all rabbits." He declares, "This looks like a job for Super Rabbit." He
does a shadow costume change and appears as Mary and her little lamb.
Realizing his mistake, he changes again and comes out in a baggy Super Rabbit
costume. He sweeps up a group of super carrots and bids Canafrazz good-bye.
He flies by a horse that is walking in the air. The horse is shocked,
exclaiming, "A rabbit up here!" Bugs soon discovers that he needs to recharge
with another carrot. After doing so, he lands in Deepinaharta, Texas. Loads
of rabbits are running out from the town limits and one warns Bugs about
Cottontail Smith.
Bugs then decides, "I shall assume the disguise of a mild mannered forest
creature." He changes in a phone booth, coming out with glasses and hat,
hopping around. He soon encounters Smith, who upon realizing that he is a
rabbit tells him he's going to "drill you good." Bugs changes back in the
booth and Smith fires. Smith is shocked to see that the bullets don't do
anything except leave a rabbit-shaped pattern for a few seconds. Bugs
suggests he try a cannon. Bugs catches the cannonball and they proceed to
play basketball with it. Bugs then make makeshift stands and gets Smith and
his horse to cheer for him.
The scene switches to Bugs flying in the air. Smith and his horse approach by
plane. Bugs stops it hard and Smith and the horse fly out. They don't realize
what has happened until the horse points out that they are unsupported in
mid-air. The cartoon laws of physics are then obeyed, and they plummet to the
ground. Bugs sends the remains of the airplane down as well.
Bugs' power is running out. He goes to recharge, but drops his carrots.
Without his power, Bugs falls to the ground. On the ground, he sees parts of
the carrots leading to Smith and the horse in Super uniforms. Bugs declares,
"This looks like a job for a real Superman." He changes in the phone booth
and comes out as a U. S. Marine, singing the Marines anthem. They salute him.
He tells them, "Sorry fellas, I can't play with you any more. I've got some
important work to do." He continues the anthem and follows a sign saying, "To
Berlin, Tokyo, and points east."
This is a fun war-time cartoon parody of the Fleischer Superman cartoons. The
opening credits are very similar to those of the Superman cartoons. The parody
of the opening superlatives is one point of fun. Along with the speeding
bullet narration we see a cork popping out of a toy gun. What looks closer to
"The Little Engine That Could" sways along the tracks to the locomotive
phrase. Accompanying the tallest building phrase is Bugs leaping from a
building with a look of absolute horror as he comes down face first.
When Canafrazz describes his super carrot, he uses many adjectives to show
just how super it is. When Bugs talks to Canafrazz, each time he would call
him by a different famous scientist name. The costume changes are similar to
the changes in the shadows in the Superman cartoons. Becoming a mild-mannered
forest creature is another beautiful touch. The cartoon is full of various
Bugs gags. The only wartime references are the dive-bomber phrase at the
beginning and then the very end of the cartoon, praising the US troops as the
real Supermen. The cartoon succeeds on all fronts. Lots of good humor, a
well done parody of the Superman cartoons, and just a bit of wartime
propaganda.
The "Super Rabbit" cartoon may be found on the video collection BUGS AND
DAFFY; THE WARTIME CARTOONS from MGM/UA Home Video.
______________________________________________________________
COMING ATTRACTIONS
------------------
A List of Upcoming Comics Featuring The Superman Family of Characters
Assembled by Jeffery D. Sykes
This monthly section is dedicated to giving you official information
concerning which comics you should watch for in the near future in order
to keep up with Superman, Superboy, Supergirl, and all the rest of the
Superman family of characters.
The information which follows is reprinted without permission from Diamond
Previews and is in no way meant to serve as a replacement for that magazine.
I strongly recommend that each reader find his or her own copy for additional
detailed information on the entire DC Universe! Note that Diamond is now
the exclusive distributor of DC Comics!
Notes: Of note this month is that STEEL and SUPERBOY approach their second
anniversaries as Superman begins to pick up the pieces from his
ordeal in space ("The Trial of Superman," as if you didn't know...).
THE NEW TITANS comes to an end, leaving us wondering what the
future holds in store for Supergirl. (Please not the Justice League
next! Give her some time to herself!)
Only two crossovers this month. First, December brings the
beginning of the landmark DC VERSUS MARVEL/MARVEL VERSUS DC
miniseries from the two comic giants -- see our feature article
for more on this event! In addition, the delayed LEAGUE OF JUSTICE
Elseworlds tale concludes this month.
1. List of Titles by Shipping Date:
-----------------------------------
Date: Comic title and information:
---- ---------------------------
October 3: Action Comics #716
THE TRIAL OF SUPERMAN: Part 4 (of 12)
Michelinie, Dwyer, & Rodier
$1.95
Underworld Unleashed #2 (of 3)
Waid, Porter, & Green
48 pgs, $2.95
October 10: Superboy #22
UNDERWORLD UNLEASHED tie-in
K. Kesel, Grummett, & Hazlewood
$1.95
Superman: The Man of Steel #51
THE TRIAL OF SUPERMAN: Part 5 (of 12)
L. Simonson, Bogdanove, & Janke
$1.95
October 17: Doomsday Annual #1
Various
Cover by Jurgens & Ordway
56 pgs, $3.95
The New Titans #128
Wolfman, Rosado, & Blyberg
$2.25
Superman #107
THE TRIAL OF SUPERMAN: Part 6 (of 12)
Jurgens, Frenz, & Rubinstein
Cover by Jurgens & Rubinstein
$1.95
October 24: Adventures of Superman #530
THE TRIAL OF SUPERMAN: Part 7 (of 12)
UNDERWORLD UNLEASHED tie-in
K. Kesel, Immonen, & Marzan Jr
$1.95
Showcase '95 #12 (of 12)
Supergirl Story
Charles Moore & Phil Jimenez
Cover by Tom Grummett
48 pgs, $2.95
Steel #22
A TRIAL OF SUPERMAN tie-in
L. Simonson, Gosier, & Faber
$1.95
Superman: The Man of Steel Gallery #1
Various Artists
Cover by Kevin Nowlan
32 pgs, $3.50
October 31: Superman: The Man of Tomorrow #3
THE TRIAL OF SUPERMAN: Part 8 (of 12)
UNDERWORLD UNLEASHED tie-in
Stern, Grummett, & Breeding
$1.95
Underworld Unleashed #3 (of 3)
Waid, Porter, & Green
48 pgs, $2.95
November 7: Action Comics #717
THE TRIAL OF SUPERMAN: Part 9 (of 12)
Michelinie, Dwyer, & Rodier
$1.95
Superman/Toyman #1
K. Kesel, Immonen, & von Grawbadger
$1.95
November 14: Superboy #23
K. Kesel, Grummett, & Hazlewood
$1.95
Superman: The Man of Steel #52
THE TRIAL OF SUPERMAN: Part 10 (of 12)
L. Simonson, Bogdanove, & Giordano
$1.95
November 21: Green Lantern #70 (Supergirl)
Marz, Pelletier, & Tanghal
$1.75
The New Titans #129
Wolfman, Rosado, & Blyberg
$2.25
Showcase '96 #1 (of 12)
Steel and Guy Gardner
Beau Smith & Sergio Cariello
Metropolis S.C.U.
Scott Ciencin
Cover by Sergio Cariello
48 pgs, $2.95
Superman #108
THE TRIAL OF SUPERMAN: Part 11 (of 12)
Jurgens, Frenz, & Rubinstein
$1.95
November 28: Adventures of Superman #531
THE TRIAL OF SUPERMAN: Part 12 (of 12)
K. Kesel, Immonen, & Marzan, Jr.
$1.95
League of Justice #1 (of 2)
Hannigan & Giordano
48 pgs, Prestige Format, $5.95
Steel #23
L. Simonson, Gosier, & Faber
$1.95
December 5: Action Comics #718
Michelinie, Dwyer, & Rodier
$1.95
December 12: DC Versus Marvel #1 (of 4)
Marz, Jurgens & Castellini, Rubinstein & Neary
48 pgs, $3.95
Superboy #24
K. Kesel, Grummett, & Hazlewood
$1.95
Superman: The Man of Steel #53
L. Simonson, Bogdanove, & Rodier
$1.95
December 19: The New Titans #130 (Final Issue)
Wolfman, Rosado, & Blyberg
Cover by George Perez
$2.25
Showcase '96 #2 (of 12)
Steel and Guy Gardner, Part 2
Beau Smith, S. Cariello, Leigh
Steel Supporting Cast vs Metallo
L. Simonson, Rosado
48 pgs, $2.95
Superman #109
Jurgens, Frenz, & Rubinstein
$1.95
December 26: Adventures of Superman #532
K. Kesel, Immonen, & Marzan Jr.
$1.95
League of Justice #2 (of 2)
Ed Hannigan & Dick Giordano
Prestige Format, 48 pgs, $5.95
Steel #24
L. Simonson, Gosier, & Faber
$1.95
2. Spoilers:
------------
December 5:
----------
Action Comics #718
Guns blaze as Superman tries to get to the bottom of the mystery of
Demolitia, who hits Metropolis with *very* familiar powers -- namely,
those of the recently deceased Bloodsport!
December 12:
-----------
DC Versus Marvel #1 (of 4)
Two cosmic beings begin a strange game to decide whose universe is more
powerful. Pitting heroes from both universes against each other, the
entities bring about battles readers always believed were impossible!
(See our feature article for more information on this series!)
Superboy #24
Silversword is back and out for vengeance! It's up to Superboy and his
new "partner," Knockout, to stop him. Plus, Knockout's past catches up
to her...
Superman: The Man of Steel #53
A barroom brawl at the Ace of Clubs results in Bibbo getting his big shot
in the boxing ring. Plus, eerie apparitions are spotted at the Daily
Planet, and Lex Luthor's encounter with the Contessa has a surprising
outcome.
December 19:
-----------
The New Titans #130 (Final Issue)
MELTDOWN: The Conclusion -- The Titans gather for their final assault
against the Psions, the Gordainians, and Raven! Witness the final fates
of the Titans in this explosive series finale, including Changeling,
Cyberion, Starfire, Blackfire, Green Lantern, Darkstar, Arsenal, Minion,
Terra, and More!
Showcase '96 #2 (of 12)
Steel and Warrior battle Sledge and the Enforcer in the conclusion of a
2-part story by Beau Smith, with art by Sergio Cariello and Rob Leigh.
Meanwhile, the new, more powerful Metallo returns to Washington, D.C.,
and with Steel occupied, only John Henry's friends can save the city in
a story by Louise Simonson, with pencils by William Rosado. Backup story
about Ares and Circe by Christopher Priest.
Superman #109
Ghost sightings continue at the Daily Planet, but Superman has his hands
full with Kill Fee, a crazed killer whose victims are editors. Plus, a
long-lost friend of Clark Kent returns.
December 26:
-----------
Adventures of Superman #532
It's the return of Lori Lemaris, Clark Kent's college flame, whom he
believed was long dead. And this time, the mermaid has legs! Plus,
life's looking good for Jimmy Olsen as he gets an incredible new
girlfriend.
League of Justice #2 (of 2)
The all-star two-part Elseworlds odyssey concludes: To return home, the
teenagers from Earth's dimension must gather the heroes of a magical world
against the evil warlord Luthor and the super-warrior who champions his
cause.
Steel #24
Steel battles Hazard's armored super-soldier and John Henry's life
unravels when secrets are exposed that will dramatically alter his
career as a hero.
______________________________________________________________
****************************************************************
End of Section 2
______________________________________________________________
REVIEWS
-------
Ratings Panelists:
AL: Art LaMarche JS: Jeff Sykes RG: Rene Gobeyn
AW: Anatole Wilson KM: Ken McKee VC: Victor Chan
DS: Dick Sidbury MC: Matt Combes WN: William J Nixon
As always, the first rating given after the average is that of the reviewer.
THE "TRIANGLE" TITLES:
---------------------
42. ACTION COMICS #715, "Doc Parasite!"
Writer: David Michelinie
Artists: Gil Kane & Denis Rodier
Cover: Kieron Dwyer & Denis Rodier
$1.95 US/$2.75 CAN/#1.25 UK
RATINGS:
Average: 3.5/5.0 Shields
WN: 3.0 Shields - Great Kane/Rodier artwork
AL: 3.5 Shields - Power Superman back up soon, please!
AW: 3.0 Shields - Okay, but just...average.
DS: 4.0 Shields - An excellent issue. A brainy Parasite could be the ultimate
villain. Watching him lure Superman into a trap was
reminiscent of the times when villains used brains as well
as brawn to terrorize the world.
JS: 4.0 Shields - Nice artwork by Kane and Rodier, and who'd have ever
guessed that Superman would be out-THOUGHT by the Parasite!?
This issue seamlessly follows on from S:MoT#2 in which Luthor conspired to
bring Dr. Torval Freeman and the Parasite together. This was done at the
behest of Luthor's new master (Neron). Lex is unhappy with his current
situation. The Parasite consumed Freeman but because of tinkering, Freeman's
mind remains intact. He hasn't realized he has been absorbed until he looks in
the mirror and discovers he's now 'Doc Parasite'.
Superman returns to Metropolis, finds the city relatively peaceful and thinks
about a relaxing evening. Cool, Clark likes the Marx Brothers and endorses an
ice cream for the style-conscious.
In S.T.A.R. Labs, Freeman comes to terms with his situation. Rudy Jones, the
Parasite, and joint occupier of "his" head brings him up to speed on the
melding of minds which has occurred. Jones enlists Freeman's aid, and mind, to
help him get more power.
They want Superman's energy and set up a crisis which only he can deal with.
Next morning, outside S.T.A.R. Labs, Lois and Jimmy meet as rivals covering
the story. Inside, the intelligent Parasite lures Kal-El down into the
basement. Lulled by the Doc's frozen arm, Superman flies full speed at him -
only to be robbed of his momentum by the Parasite. Freeman/Jones grabs him
and begins draining him of his energy. Freeman tries to elicit some sympathy
about the importance of his own life over Superman's as he drains him.
Michelinie leaves us with a cliffhanger, to be continued.
This story sets up Superman's powerless condition for the "Trial", shows the
renamed Team Luthor as the Centurions and was an interesting take on the
Parasite. The "Trial" moves closer and while this story was a lead into it,
there were none of the more overt signs as there have been in the other books.
No bounty hunters, circling spaceships or a run through of Superman's history
(which was well done) were in evidence. If anything, it seemed more linked to
"Underworld Unleashed" with Luthor's role in freeing the Parasite.
Behind a captivating Dwyer/Rodier cover with Superman gazing into the maw of
the Parasite lay some great artwork. No Kieron inside this month, instead we
are treated to some wonderful art by Gil Kane and Denis Rodier. I much
preferred this combination to the Kane/Rubinstein art in Superman of late. The
features and feel all seemed to work better for me here. Details like the Marx
Brothers (and I am biased, I'm a fan) were great. Superman's features were
well-realized, particularly in the basement scenes at S.T.A.R. Labs. There was
a dynamic flow to the art in shots like Clark flying back into his apartment.
He was holding his cape, and the scene conveyed all the nuances of how natural
he found it - and it looked like a small window. Kudos again to Glenn Whitmore
for his colorings. The shadowed Kadabra talking to Luthor (it looks like
Kadabra) and the Parasite himself all had depth.
William J Nixon
=================================================
43. SUPERMAN: THE MAN OF STEEL #50, "Split Personality"
Writer: Louise Simonson
Penciller: Jon Bogdanove
Inker: Dennis Janke
$2.95 US/$4.25 CAN/#2.00 UK
RATINGS:
Average: 3.6/5.0 Shields
AL: 4.0 Shields
AW: 3.5 Shields - Intriguing beginning to the Trial Of Superman saga. Good
writing and artwork.
DS: 3.5 Shields - A pretty good issue. Cleaning up after Parasite seems to
be more interesting than the beginning of the trial. Maybe
it will make more sense when we get deeper into the Trial
of Superman.
JS: 3.5 Shields - A promising start to "The Trial of Superman!" The story was
well told, and Bogdanove and Janke managed to impress me
with their art for a change.
The Earth is ringed by starships as the Trial of Superman begins in this #50
anniversary issue of SUPERMAN: THE MAN OF STEEL. But back on Earth, a
mummified-appearing Superman has an even greater problem. Held firmly in the
grasp of a "super-powered" Parasite, our hero is fading fast as the Special
Crimes Unit attempts to subdue the Parasite and rescue Superman. But they
fail at the first task, and the rescue of Superman costs them dearly. Just
when it appears that everyone will become a meal for the Parasite, Alpha
Centurion appears on the scene with a revitalized Team Luthor -- now called
the Centurions. Alpha Centurion goes one on one with the Parasite as the rest
of the team attempts to extricate Superman and the SCU. Just when it appears
they will make it out, agents of the Tribunal arrive and arrest Kal-El. The
agents recognize him by his uniform, but are confused by Superman's feeble
state. Using the "logic" of Sins of the Fathers, Kal-El is charged with the
destruction of Krypton. As this is occurring, Alpha Centurion claims to know
the newly-arrived beings, and orders the Centurions to get the SCU out of
here, because "...they are no threat to US!" With Superman firmly in grasp,
the agents beam back aboard the starship as quickly as they arrived.
The battle between Alpha Centurion and the Parasite cools down and heats up as
each tricks and is tricked by the other's cleverness. Sorry for the lack of
detail, but as you have probably guessed from my other reviews, I really
dislike this Alpha Centurion guy, and it is growing stronger all the time!
But, back in the Spaceship the real story is developed. As the ship prepares
to sling-shot around the sun, the members of the crew are debating whether
Kal-El's powers have been removed or highly exaggerated. The brute who
captured Superman leads him to a cell and contemplates the events which have
brought them together. Sulking that he did not get the opportunity to fight
Superman, he recalls how his Milk Brother and he are being manipulated by the
Tribunal. The Brute fears that his Milk Brother, Mope, will be killed by the
Tribunal, even though the Brute has done his duty in capturing the Man of
Steel. Outraged, he seeks vengeance for himself and Mope on Superman.
Superman is aware of the Brute's earlier anger and has planed to try to trick
him and escape. Feeding the flames of the Brute's anger, Superman tricks him.
But, the plan is not perfect as in his weakened condition he is slowed, and
he is knocked out of the ship and deep into outer space. Bleeding internally
and losing consciousness Superman, fears he is going to die.
But in the absence of the filtration of the Sun's rays by the atmosphere,
Superman is rapidly restored to full power and MORE! Back on Earth, the
battle between the Parasite and Alpha Centurion continues. "Jim" Olsen and
his video crew run off to get more stunning visual footage, but Lois Lane
instinctively stays and gets the human interest story about how the Parasite
has absorbed Dr. Freeman's intellect as well as his vital force. Alpha
Centurion attempts to subdue the Parasite by reasoning with him through
Freeman's family. During the negotiation the corpse of Freeman is
regurgitated by the Parasite and he is able to escape. Later, we find that
the loss of the corpse was subterfuge and that Freeman's intellect remains
within the Parasite.
Back in space, the Brute gets his chance to battle a "super" Superman. But,
the Brute is unable to contend with Superman and his ever increasing power
levels from the unfiltered sunlight. The fight quickly ends as the Brute is
hurled toward the Sun. Superman quickly flies to the Brute's aid, and they
are both captured by the starship's towbeam and are whisked away. In an
effort to contain his powers, Superman allows himself to be captured by the
paralysis rays that the Brute can generate. As this is occurring, other
agents of the Tribunal arrive and place both the combatants in stasis chains.
Superman and the Brute are brought before the Tribunal, and we begin to see
the true horror of the Tribunal as "justice" is quickly dealt. The Brute is
condemned to death for losing his temper and causing the near loss of
Superman, and he is rocketed towards the sun where he appears to begin to
melt. Superman is outraged, but instead of discussion, the Tribunal charges
him with one billion counts of murder...
This issue raised a lot of strong feelings in me. The Parasite-drained
Superman was painful to look at. He was nearly sucked dry. He looked
horrible, but the effect works. The Parasite sucks the life right out of you,
and that is what appears to have happened. The next aspect of the book which
raised my blood pressure was Alpha Centurion. I do not like him. His "Oh,
well" attitude as Superman is taken into custody really bugged me. But since
it bugged me, I think it is there for a purpose. This guy has a darker side,
and I think it will be exploited in the near future. (Spoiler: read
backwards "eb lliw ti !sey hO" -- dias ehs dna nosnomiS htiw gnikaeps saw I )
There was a lot of fighting in this issue. It gives Bog a lot of chances to
strut his stuff. His flair for the dynamic is one of the best. There are a
lot of good panels here. I liked them a lot. Not only were there a lot of
fights, but The Trial of the Century starts here -- move over O.J!! 8 ) But
at the rapidity that the Brute was judged, I do not think the time in court
will last long for Kal-El. There is a double meaning for trial -- I loved it.
The other great thing about this book is that Superman is powered back up. I
am glad. From the publicity blurbs, I was worried that he would have to go
through this story as a shadow of himself.
I would like to make a public wish, here. I wish that The Brute turns out
okay. I felt deeply for him and his love for his Milk Brother. The "damage"
caused by the sun, where he looks like he is melting, could also be explained
by tears and ah, well, drool. He did not seem too phased when Superman hurled
him too close to the Sun. I hope we get to see a family reunion. If not at
the end of the trial, then somewhere in a future issue. How about it, please?
Arthur LaMarche
=================================================
44. SUPERMAN #106, "Condemned!"
Writer: Dan Jurgens
Penciller: Ron Frenz
Embellisher: Joe Rubinstein
Cover: Dan Jurgens & Joe Rubinstein
$1.95 US/$2.75 CAN/#1.25 UK
RATINGS:
Average: 4.0/5.0 Shields
KM: 5.0 Shields
AL: 4.0 Shields
AW: 3.5 Shields - Decent story--glad to finally be rid of Massacre. Ron Frenz
is a welcome addition to the Superman team.
DS: 3.5 Shields - It becomes clearer. Tribunal justice sez Superman must be
held responsible for the sins of his ancestors -- the BANE
of DC continuity.
JS: 4.0 Shields - A very impressive debut by Ron Frenz, and a chilling look
at the concepts of justice. (Not that I'm gonna miss
Massacre...)
Superman, tightly bound in chains and cuffs, pleads NOT GUILTY to the crime of blowing up Krypton and the murder of its one billion inhabitants. However, the
Tribunal appears to have already found him guilty without the benefit of a
real trial. Helpless, Superman tries to think back through the eons of
Kryptonian history to see why he should be responsible for something that he
had no control over. He realizes there is no reasoning with the Tribunal
Prime.
He breaks free of his chains and realizes his super powers have been erased. A
genetilock is placed on him and he is shot through the transtube to a holding
cell. There he confronts another nightmare--Massacre! And you think YOU'VE had a bad day!!
Though similarly de-powered, Massacre lays claim to Superman and threatens to
kill him long before the Tribunal can. Meanwhile, Superman thinks about what
a great day today has been. The two mix it up for a while, but eventually the
guards show up and put a halt to the brawl. The guards are not planing
something as benevolent as breaking up the fight, instead, they have come for
Massacre.
Massacre is brought before the judges and found guilty of his heinous crimes
against the cosmos. The sentence is a vicious beating by survivors of
Massacre's homicidal offenses. Superman is outraged over this perverted
miscarriage of justice and realizes he cannot escape without help.
Back on Earth, Jim Olsen conducts a televised interview with Alpha Centurion
(*Grrr* -- Art) Alpha Centurion nearly breaks his arm patting himself on the
back and refers to Jimmy as "boy". After the interview, the arrogance
continues. Alpha Centurion tells the team to "... Call again should the need
arise." and then he tries to flatter Lois with really cheesy lines. Not
knowing where else to turn in her attempt to locate her fiancee', Lois has to
play Alpha Centurion's game and follows him to his ship. It is there we get
another view of what has bothered me since Alpha Centurion's arrival -- his
ship larger then Superman's monument, clearly stationed above it. Alpha
Centurion is obviously making up for an inferiority complex, in my opinion.
With his hand firmly upon Lois's shoulder, the flirting continues and the
search is begun. The computers are unable to help locate Superman, but we the
readers are better able to see that Alpha Centurion is BAD NEWS!
Art: This issue was beautifully drawn, and the expressions and body gestures
are well done. There is also great use of color. The colors seem to leap
right off the page. The stuff is beautiful. There are also more subtle
things, like the red used in the execution of Massacre, that add a lot to the
book. The Trial of Superman (and for Lois for that matter) really starts to
shift into high gear in this issue. We clearly see that this trial will not
last long and Superman will be condemned. Even Cochran and Clark working
together could not sway the Tribunal rock-heads. There is a brief fight for
the action conscious, but this issue has much more psychological action. We
see the darker side of Alpha Centurion really spreading out. Now Lois has to
deal with him -- his hand is on her shoulder, but clearly removed in the next
panel. But most importantly we see a very closed-minded Tribunal. Their way
is the correct way and it is not open for discussion.
Ken: This story has some real possibilities. I especially appreciate all the
history that is being told about Krypton, the clone war, and the Eradicator.
Ken McKee
Arthur LaMarche
=================================================
45. ADVENTURES OF SUPERMAN #529, "Jail Break!"
Writer: Karl Kesel
Penciller: Stuart Immonen
Inker: Jose Marzan, Jr.
$1.95 US/$2.75 CAN/#1.25 UK
RATINGS:
Average: 4.0/5.0 Shields
AW: 4.0 Shields - Finely-balanced combination of action and characterization,
with great artwork and exemplary coloring to boot!
AL: 4.0 Shields - still good stuff!
DS: 3.5 Shields - This story (so far) seems to be more interesting than I
feared. At this stage it's better than DoCK and light
years ahead of Dead Again.
JS: 4.5 Shields - Exquisite art (especially lovely renditions of Supergirl &
Steel), and wonderful characterizations by Mr. Kesel. So
far, I'm *very* pleased with "The Trial of Superman!"
It's a terrible thing to contemplate, but a few more issues like this, and I
may have to turn in my "grouchy critic" badge. [*crash* Art just fell out of
his chair. Hmm.. who can I find to replenish that role? 8 P ] Try as I
might, I can only think of nice things to say about AOS #529
This story has several layers to it; there's the ongoing trials of Superman
and his "pod mates," Leeya, Smitty, and Mope, and their escape from the
Tribunal; there's the Alpha Centurion, gathering the Superman Rescue Squad to
attempt Superman's rescue; there's Jimmy Olsen and Cat Grant, earning the
professional respect of their peers; and there's Lois Lane, holding her own
professionally and emotionally in the wake of her fiancee's disappearance.
Kesel manages to balance these layers effectively, giving us enough action to
keep the story moving along, while at the same time spending enough time with
each character to let us know something more about each of them.
I find the mix of pod mates interesting; two powerful, savage beings, one
small, cowardly being, and one of the galaxy's greatest heroes, all "guilty"
of varying degree of crimes, and all chained together.
What do I mean by "varying degrees of crime"? Well, the only being I would
consider truly evil would have to be Smitty. His race's campaign of galactic
genocide is clearly reprehensible. But by following the ages-old tradition of
patricide, Leeya is simply guilty of carrying out the traditions of her
people. Do we think it's wrong? Certainly, especially in the light of the
existence of "synthetic substitutes." But would this tradition be more
effectively deterred by punishment or by cultural education and enlightenment?
While Superman's case clearly shows the Tribunal's methods to be wrong and
narrow-sighted, Leeya's case, in a less obvious fashion, shows the error of
the Tribunals "extreme punishment" version of law enforcement.
I have to admit, I'm still a little confused about Mope. Just what was he
doing with a "missing" shipment of potion? Is he guilty merely of ignorance,
or is there more to this than we think?
The Alpha Centurion's motives are a little more obvious; he clearly has
something unpleasant planned for Superman, and probably the rest of the
Superman Rescue Squad. What is he up to exactly? I don't know, but he knows a
little too much about the Tribunal not to be involved (though his remark,
"Fate forces my hand too soon," puzzles me). I think I know his true identity
(and no, I'm not going to spoil it for anyone else), but I can't figure out
what he wants with the rest of Superman's closest allies. [I think I know,
also, and I know what "he" would want with the rest of the team-- I wonder if
we are thinking about the same person -- Art]
Finally, nods to the treatment of the Superman supporting cast. I like Cat's
new assertiveness and Jimmy growing into a dynamic, respected reporter in his
own right. Now, if they just keep their eyes on that villainous Morgan Edge
hanging out in the background...
Oh--and I'd be remiss if I don't mention the subtle touches of humor and
nostalgia Kesel added to the mix. For example, Jimmy's remark that "I'd
believe Superman had a big, red ant head before I'd believe he was a coward"
recalls one of the more bizarre red Kryptonite stories of the '60's. And I
don't know about you, but Superboy's crack to Alpha Centurion, "Hey- you need
a spit-curl to get on this ship," cracked me up.
Immonen and Marzan do their usual excellent job on the artwork. I'd also like
to say how much Glenn Whitmore adds to the issue. His subtle coloring gives
the art an almost three-dimensional texture that does credit to the new
printing process. This is one of the few comics where I think that the extra
price is really worth it.
I didn't have a lot of hope for the original premise of the "Trial of
Superman" storyline, but issues like this have made me begin to eagerly
anticipate the next chapter in the saga.
Anatole
______________________________________________________________
****************************************************************
End of Section 3
_________________________________________________________________
OTHER SUPER-TITLES:
------------------
SUPERBOY #21, "Making History!"
(Future Tense: Part 1 of 3)
Writer: Karl Kesel
Artist: Tom Grummett
Inker: Doug Hazlewood
Cover: Tom Grummett & Karl Kesel
$1.95 US/$2.75 CAN/#1.25 UK
RATINGS:
Average: 4.0/5.0 Shields
VC: 4.0 Shields
AL: 3.5 Shields
AW: 4.5 Shields - Superboy fits well into the new Legion. Well done!
DS: 4.0 Shields - In this story the Legion looks interesting enough for me
to follow the rest of this story line to conclusion.
JS: 4.0 Shields - A rip-roaring fun story, yet again courtesy of Karl Kesel.
Must admit, though, that Grummett's Legion looks a bit older
than teenagers.
As Superboy is sweating out a history exam, a group of denizens from the 30th
century materialize somewhere in Hawaii. Brainiac 5, Cosmic Boy, Triad,
Chameleon, and Saturn Girl arrive, freezing from effects of time travel. XS is
the only teammate not to have appeared, and although Cos is determined to
retrieve her before continuing their mission, he's persuaded by Brainiac 5,
who assures him that with time travel technology, he'll be able to rescue her
at any moment in history.
Subsequently, Saturn Girl telepathically scans for Superboy and locates him at
the compound, where he is lamenting over his implanted knowledge, or rather
the lack of it. As he is discussing his academic problems with Roxy, the
Legionnaires are below ground, beneath the compound, after tracking Superboy
to it. Chameleon changes into a Buzekian stone-borer, a green behemoth who
tunnels upwards and breaks through the floor of the complex.
Fearing an attack, Superboy quickly flies upward with Chameleon while the rest
of the Legionnaires exit the underground cavern and follow suit. In the air,
the Legionnaires attempt to restrain him as Roxy, in a futile attempt, tries
to stop Saturn Girl from mentally subduing him. Dubbilex rushes out from the
(mental) commotion and at Superboy's request, telepathically links everyone
except Roxy to each other.
When told of the mission, Superboy takes the Legionnaires to S.T.A.R. Labs.
There, he explains how he saved Valor by sending him into a stasis zone.
Saturn Girl deduces that Superboy may still have subconscious memory of that
event that she could transfer to Brainiac 5 in order to construct a similar
device. She enacts the memory transfer and before Brainiac 5 can even begin
any work, he is severely annoyed at the primitive technology at his disposal.
Frustrated, and without warning, Brainiac 5 sends his team and Superboy back
to the 30th century!
In the meantime, Knockout has decided to leave the dancing club and move into
the compound -- much to the shock of everyone there!
Wow, what a long build-up to this storyline. I think it was worth it just to
see SB give Brainiac 5 a few funny comments. Kesel carries his (Brainiac's)
arrogance into the 20th century perfectly. As a matter of fact, I think that
this collaboration will probably be one of the better crossovers in the DC
universe this year for the simple fact that the writers on SB, Legionnaires
and LSH are all great writers.
I admit there weren't very many surprises in the plot but I think the
subsequent parts to the story-arc holds much promise. Personally, I wonder if
the LSH know that Superboy isn't really a young Clark Kent - that could hold a
lot of fun in store. Anyhow, Kesel, has done a good job of transporting the
team over from the 30th century, their personalities intact, and strangely
enough, it doesn't faze Superboy, who's grown up with implanted knowledge and
MTV.
In the meantime, it seems that Kesel, Mark Waid, Tom McCraw and Tom Peyer are
planning on revitalizing the 30th Century *their* way. Events that seem to
bear resemblance to the Silver Age Superboy and the LSH seem to me to be
amusing. Live Wire lost his arm, and now the LSH is trying to save Valor. In
a way, it's like history (or is that the future) is repeating itself. Similar
events, just different contexts.
The writing was still solid even for a somewhat predictable plot. The
dialogue made up for that aspect I think. In addition, I am glad to see Tom
and Doug back at the drawing boards! I don't think the readership could take
it if they had to leave this series.
Overall, this first of three parts had a simple premise and story, but the
character interaction and the art helped beef it up. I'm looking forward to
the next two parts (in LSH #74 and LEGIONNAIRES #31) when the Kid will get his
first glimpse into the future.
Victor Chan
=================================================
STEEL #21, "Stalker"
Writer: Louise Simonson
Penciller: Phil Gosier
Inker: Rich Faber
$1.95 US/$2.75 CAN/#1.25 UK
RATINGS:
Average: 3.75/5.0 Shields
DS: 4.0 Shields - One of the best issues of Steel in ages.
JS: 3.5 Shields - One of the better Steel stories I've read. Steel and
Metallo seem like a natural match-up.
Tie ins: Underworld Unleashed, Trial of Superman
Well the first team is back this month for one of the best issues of Steel in
recent memory, in fact one of the best ever.
Steel is helping capture looters during a riot, when a couple of massive
explosions occur. After saving the victims of the explosions, Steel is
confronted by Metallo -- a new and improved version who was given special
powers by Neron. Steel makes quick work of Metallo, hitting him in the head
with his hammer and completely severing it from his body. Unfortunately, this
fight occurs in a junk yard and Metallo's head morphs a bunch of old auto
parts into a new body! He shoots Steel with the gasoline still in the tank of
the morphed car and pummels him with his fists, now made out of car engines.
Steel escapes and manages to knock Metallo's head off again and this time he
knocks it into the Potomac river. Steel returns to the scene of the second
explosion and rescues more victims. He briefly talks to Lt. Beryl about his
fight with Metallo. Meanwhile, Metallo's head has managed to find a bunch of
stuff that has been dumped in the bottom of the river over the past hundred
years and constructs a new body. He then commandeers a police boat, attaches
the boat's gun to his arm, and goes off in search of Steel.
Upon finding Steel, he prepares to kill him but decides to grant Steel a last
request. Metallo explains his new-found power. Neron gave a bunch of DC
Universe villains candles. If the candles were burned at both ends at
midnight on one particular day, the villains were transported to a demon
realm. Each villain was offered a power of his (or her) choosing in return
for the promise to serve Neron. Metallo chose the power to never again have
his head separated from his body -- which means that he can create a new body
from any metal that his head finds. So, Metallo takes the next logical step
-- he decides Steel's armor would make an ideal addition to his body.
But it doesn't work. Steel slugs Metallo again and breaks his head off. He
gives the head to Shauna Beryl with instructions to take the head to S.T.A.R.
labs and to keep it away from metal on the way.
Meanwhile, another bomb is located in the sub-basement of Washington General
Hospital. The bomb has a metal casing and is tamper proof. Steel grabs the
bomb and flies away with it. Naturally Metallo escapes by taking Shauna's
revolver and then quickly gets a new body and comes after Steel. How can
Steel save the city and defeat Metallo? Is there any hope for our hero?
Well, let's see. The bomb casing is made of metal so Metallo takes the bomb
from Steel to make it part of his body since he can now control metal objects.
Our hero is doomed. Well, almost. Unfortunately the explosive mechanism in
the bomb being controlled by Metallo is not metal, it is plastique. BOOM!!!!
No more Metallo. The shock wave from the explosion knocks Steel out. As he
plummets to earth, he is grabbed by the Alpha Centurion, who recruits him to
join his trip to save Superman.
I like to include a few examples of dialogue, but I couldn't remember any that
cried out to be included. So I reread the entire issue specifically looking
for something humorous or unusual or foreshadowing. I found none.
This issue was mostly a fight issue exhibiting courage, heroism and
intelligence, particularly on the part of Metallo. As such there was no
subtle characterization that Simonson is known for.
Phil Gosier continues his style of very sharp images with numerous splash
pages, most of which are overlaid with story panels. Rich Faber's inks match
this style very well. There is very little background to most of the panels.
The colors are crisp. The expression on his face when Metallo discovers the
bomb is plastique is almost worth the price of admission. (For those of you
who do not read Steel, it's on page 20, if you want a quick look.)
If you are not turned off by stories that are mostly fights, you should read
this issue. If you don't like it, then Steel is definitely not for you.
Dick Sidbury (sidbury@cs.uofs.edu)
=================================================
SHOWCASE '95 #10, "Rock Bottom"
Starring Gangbuster
Story: Jerry Ordway
Art: Joe Staton & Horacio Ottolini
Cover: Ron Frenz & Dennis Janke
$2.95 US/$4.25 CAN/#2.00 UK
RATINGS:
Average: 3.9/5.0 Shields
RG: Story: 4.0 Shields - Strong stand-alone story, good characterization.
Art: 3.5 Shields - Nicely drawn and inked, but too dark.
JS: 4.0 Shields - Wonderful story by Jerry Ordway, but the art was a bit dark
for my tastes.
Jose Delgado (Gangbuster) is still on the run from the law in Metropolis, where
he has been charged with assault by some gangsters that he put in the hospital
(see the "World Without a Superman" and ADVENTURES OF SUPERMAN #500 for
details). He has been drifting from city to city, unable to get or keep a job.
This story picks up from where he left Brick City (see BLACK LIGHTNING).
Jose is escorting 12 year old runaway Daphne back to her family in Fawcett
City. After he delivers her to her parents, he goes down to the dock looking
for work. He doesn't find any, but he does get involved with a local bare
knuckle fight promoter. After doing one fight for the guy, he decides to take
his winnings and leave town, but the promoter has other ideas. After framing
Jose for murder (that never happened), the promoter tells Jose that he can get
the charges dropped if he does one more fight. Jose reluctantly agrees,
fights, and wins, only to find out that it is supposed to be a fight to the
death. The crowd is out for Jose's blood when the police raid the place,
arresting everyone. Jose thinks he's finally had it, only to find out that he
has actually been rescued by Daphne and her (Chief of Police) father.
This was an excellent, stand alone story that anyone could read and enjoy. It
deals closely with the personality of Gangbuster, a very under-used member of
the Superman supporting cast. This is the type of story I was hoping to get in
this book when I found out that Showcase was going to deal with the cast of
Superman this year. It was truly one of the best stand-alone stories I've read
in the title.
My only complaint was that while the art was nicely detailed and inked, the
overall darkness of the scenes made it look muddy. I know that it was supposed
to add to the overall feel of the story, but many of the details were nearly
lost.
"Benefactors," starring Darkstar Ferrin Colos
Writer: Michael T. Collins
Penciller: Jesse D. Orozco
Inker: David A. Roach
Colos shows a conquered people that the Anzodorl (the aliens who had rescued
them), who were being worshipped like gods and ritually feeding off them,
could be defeated. This means that the people could revolt and eventually take
back their world. A nice story. Read like one of the old Adam Strange stories
of the seventies, but didn't involve any member of the Superman cast.
"Be Careful what you Wish for," starring Hi-Tech (Part 1 of 2)
Writer: Barry Kitson
Penciller: Lee Sullivan
Inker: Ray McCarthy
RG: Story: 3.5 shields - Nicely narrated part one, would rate higher if it
was a stand alone.
Art: 4.0 shields - Clean, well-detailed art, nicely inked.
JS: 4.0 Shields - An interesting "near-Elseworlds" tale by Kitson, and nice
art by Sullivan.
Hi-Tech dreams of a second chance in a fairy world where magic rules and she is
good and kind. She is in love with Superman, and in her dreams he comes to
love her. At least until the Troll King and his Dark Legions come and capture
them. Superman's mind is taken over, and Hi-Tech gives her soul to the Troll
King to release him. She then wakes to discover that she was under the control
of Killgrave the entire time. The story concludes next issue.
A nice quiet imaginary story that is used as a lead-in to next month's. I
enjoy seeing some of Superman's more reluctant foes being given a chance to
show their true colors in these stories. I would have enjoyed it more if it
hadn't been continued, but we don t always get everything that we want.
The art in the story was clean and well detailed, making the fairy tale
atmosphere much more enjoyable. The inking added shading and depth.
Rene' Gobeyn
=================================================
SHOWCASE '95 #11, "The End"
Starring Agent Liberty
Writer: Dan Jurgens
Layouts: Joe St. Pierre
Finishes: Rod Ramos
Cover: Dan Jurgens & Mike Sellers
$2.95 US/$4.25 CAN/#2.00 UK
RATINGS:
Average: 2.4/5.0 Shields
RG: Story: 4.0 Shields - Strong, well-written and complete, nicely done.
Art: 1.5 Shields - Dark and over inked, perspective and proportions
wrong.
JS: 2.0 Shields - While this was an interesting idea, the execution fell flat.
This one starts off with Ben Lockwood (Agent Liberty) trying to find out who
the Sons Of Liberty are that are trying to blow up the government buildings in
Washington DC. The police are against him, as he was known to be a member of
the Sons when the original group tried to take over the government by
subversion and assassination.
He manages to stop one of the bombings and save the life of the bomber, only
to find out that the new group practically worships him. He manages to trick
the bomber into taking him back to the headquarters of the group. The New Sons
are a bunch of weekend warrior types, overweight and under-trained. Ben finds
out that the leader of this group is actually the leader of the original Sons,
an old friend named Paul Devlin, who Ben thought had died. Naturally Ben and
Paul fight. The New Sons decide to help their boss, but since they are so
badly trained, they end up shooting him instead of Agent Liberty. Paul truly
dies in Ben's arms this time, and Ben disarms and routs the Sons. He is so
disgusted that the group had misunderstood his aims and ambitions that he
burns his costume, totally destroying what had given him his powers and
abilities.
Agent Liberty is dead, giving birth to a now whole and healthy Benjamin
Lockwood. I hope we haven t seen the last of him.
"Escape," starring Arkham Asylum
Writer: Archie Goodwin
Art: Gene Ha
An escape from Arkham Asylum. It's not quite what you expect. A decent story
with slightly above average art. A good read, but it has nothing to do with
Superman or his cast.
"The Price," starring Hi-Tech (Part 2 of 2)
Story: Barry Kitson
Pencils: Lee Sullivan
Inks: Ray McCarthy
RG: Story: 4.0 Shields - Tight story, good intro. to Hi-Tech and Killgrave.
Art: 4.0 Shields - Nicely detailed and inked, excellent layouts.
JS: 3.0 Shields - The art wasn't as good as the first part. Though this
degenerated into a slugfest, I am somewhat curious as to
what will happen next.
The story picks up from where it left off last issue. Hi-Tech has just
discovered that Killgrave rescued her from where she was being held at
S.T.A.R. Labs. He built her a new body, and now expects her to use her power
to completely control machinery to help him in his project to kill Superman.
After seeing how she truly feels about Superman last issue, it is
understandable when she lashes out at Killgrave and refuses to help him. At
this point, Superman crashes in and tries to capture them. There is a brief
(thankfully) fight and Hi-Tech discovers that it is really a robot and not
Superman. She tries to destroy Killgrave and escape, only to discover that the
body Killgrave gave her is not organic, but robotic, and he added a feature
that allows him to shut her body down anytime he wants to.
All-in-all a well done little story. I m glad that it was done here instead of
in the mainline Superman titles. This will probably turn into a lead-in to a
new Superman plot involving Killgrave and Hi-Tech. I do hope it's short.
Killgrave has never been a favorite of mine, but Hi-Tech as an ally could show
some promise.
Rene' Gobeyn
=================================================
THE NEW TITANS #127, "A Desperate Search" (Meltdown #3)
Writer: Marv Wolfman
Penciller: William Rosado
Inkers: Will Blyberg & Fred Fredericks
$2.25 US/$3.25 CAN/#1.50 UK
RATINGS:
Average: 4.0/5.0 Shields
RG: Story: 4.5 Shields - Starts to wrap things up, Damage leaves.
Art: 4.5 Shields - Well done, fine details, excellent backgrounds.
JS: 3.5 Shields - Since I'm only buying this title for Supergirl, I was
disappointed that she didn't appear even once.
Nonetheless, Wolfman's started a pretty good story here.
Since Supergirl doesn't even appear in this book, I'll keep this short.
The Tamaran in the Vegan system is under attack by Gordanians. Queen Komand'r
and an injured Koriand'r are trying to reach Earth to get help. Meanwhile,
Mirage is ill and is being teleported to S.T.A.R. Labs Hospital for treatment.
Damage quits the team and leaves because of Arsenal's attitudes.
Meanwhile, the Technus have rescued Komand'r and Koriand'r and come under
attack by the Gordanians. The Technus entity Cyberion and the Tamaranians win
the brief fight and discover that the Gordanians are on the way to Earth.
Meanwhile, the Titans arrive at S.T.A.R. Labs to discover that Changeling has
escaped and is tearing the place up to find them. The Titans have fought and
defeated him when Cyberion, Komand'r and Koriand'r arrive. Technus puts a
shield around him to protect Changeling. This is when we discover that
Cyberion is really Cyborg, one of the original New Titans.
Well, most of the gang is now together again. We have Changeling, Cyborg,
Wonder Girl (Donna Troy - Darkstar), and Starfire (Koriand'r). We all know
that Raven and Nightwing and the original New Titans will all be together
again. I am not sure how Marv is planning to bring in the others, but somehow
I'm sure he will. With only three more issues to the end of the title, he had
better hurry. A truly fun read, some good bits of characterization and plenty
of history for new readers. The art in the book is spectacular, lots of
detail, good use of perspective and shadows for depth.
This title is going to go out with a bang!
Rene' Gobeyn
______________________________________________________________
****************************************************************
End of Section 4
________________________________________________________________
ANNUALS, SPECIALS, AND CROSSOVERS:
---------------------------------
ACTION COMICS ANNUAL #7, "Loss and Space!"
Writer: David Michelinie
Penciller: Darick Robertson
Inker: Brad Vancata
With a tip of the concept cap to Brett Breeding
Cover by Walt Simonson
$3.95 US/$5.50 CAN/#2.50 UK
RATINGS:
Average: 3.75/5.0 Shields
WN: 3.5 Shields - Some great space art, but Superman seemed almost arrogant
about his powers.
AW: 3.5 Shields - Young Superman's and pacifist society's attitudes were
intriguing and well-written.
DS: 3.5 Shields - My vote for the best Superman annual this year.
JS: 4.5 Shields - Best Superman story Michelinie's written. Period.
Very nicely illustrated, as well.
The final "Year One" annual for Superman this year, and the spotlight is turned
on space -- Superman's first trip beyond Earth and some realizations about his
limitations. To some extent, I thought this annual should have been entitled
"I'm Superman" - there was a self-sure (almost) arrogance about this young Man
of Steel. Where was the unsure figure who saved the Constitution? The
characterization was critical, though, in exploring the lessons which Clark
learned about himself. He is a young man suddenly liberated by his costume and
the knowledge that bullets bounce off him. He feels the rush that being
Superman brings, who wouldn't be a little overwhelmed?
So, to the story. Superman hears a distress signal from the moon. Clark has
never left Earth and flies to the moon to find a dying alien. The alien asks
for his help in defending their planet from the genocidal H'tros. A spacecraft
carries Kal-El to their world and he defeats these marauders. He learns fear
as he runs out of oxygen and panic as he tries to remember how to get home.
Suddenly he knows he could die. He returns to Earth. The H'tros turn their
attention to Earth, and while Clark has some momentary frissons of fear he
knows what he must do. He goes to fight them. He discovers their leader, who
created these "peacemakers" during the fray. Without the H'tros to sustain
him, the leader commits suicide. Back on Earth he receives a victory parade.
Superman realizes he still has a lot to learn and talks it over with Pa. Pa
tells him that they raised a good boy who has become a good man. Clark was
taught to do what was right for the deed -- not the consequences.
I liked this annual. It was part space opera, part down-home homily and it
worked for me. I loved the art -- Robertson and Vancata did some great set
pieces: the destroyed mother ship inside the S-Shield, Superman escaping
Earth's gravity and the brilliant two-page change of outfit scene. Clark in a
double-breasted suit in a wonderful '40's homage, transforming into the Man of
Steel. Great. Their space shots, with colorist Pat Garrahy gave new depth to
Earth. Annuals seem to be moving into the graphic novel look, and it was
interesting comparing the look of this one to S:MoS's this year which was
released in the non-glossy paper. I liked the look of Action. Lots of little
details were cool, too. An entire wardrobe of outfits at the Kents farm,
Martha must have been busy.
This was Superman's first trip into space, and it's a trip I enjoyed.
William J Nixon
=================================================
SUPERBOY ANNUAL #2, "The Lost Boys"
Writers: Karl & Barbara Kesel
Penciller: David Brewer
Inkers: Andre parks, Pam Eklund, Ken Branch, & Wayne Faucher
Cover: David Brewer & Karl Kesel
$3.95 US/$5.50 CAN/#2.50 UK
RATINGS:
Average: 3.5/5.0 Shields
MC: 4.0 Shields - Great story, but Brewer's art didn't interest me at all.
AW: 3.0 Shields - Average action, but good segments with Bizarro SB and
Superman at the end.
JS: 3.5 Shields - While David Brewer's art did absolutely nothing for me,
Karl Kesel's story is a fun ride.
Superboy does his good deed for the day as we start the story, attending a
birthday party for a handicapped child. Superboy (by my own preference called
SB herewithin) takes him for a few laps around the clouds to perk up the boy's
special day. He even goes so far as to show him how to "pick up babes," as he
swoops down and picks up Tana Moon, who just happens to be covering a
broadcast *live* at the time.
The boy's mother thanks SB and tells him his parents must be proud of him, and
SB isn't reluctant to tell her of his true heritage as a clone.
Afterwards, SB returns to his beachfront home in Honolulu, to find Dubbilex
groaning from the pain of a mental contact with Guardian at Project Cadmus.
Dubbilex tells SB that there's "urgent business" waiting for them at Project
Cadmus.
Next we see, SB, Dubbilex, and Guardian travel through the aftermath of what
was once Project Cadmus, 'til they meet up with Gilotina, a girl from the
slave-ridden world of Apokolips. She guards the entrance to the "secret
chamber" that holds the "urgent business" SB and Dubbilex were sent to
investigate.
Soon the directors of Project Cadmus arrive, all waiting to see what waits for
them behind the doors. As Guardian opens the door, SB, Dubbilex, and the rest
of the gang are astonished as they gaze upon (Surprise!) a room full of
Superboys (Like we didn't know that from the front cover)!!! Ones with big
heads, skinny ones, tall ones, and one that looks *very* similar to our
resident S-Shield wearer.
As Doctor Packard proceeds to explain his involvement with these clones, we
find out that these clones are the first twelve unsuccessful tries of cloning
Superman , until they happened upon our SB, the thirteenth try. While
explaining, a loud noise emanates from the air shaft, meaning only one thing:
The Newsboy Legion! (Who else?) And knowing how careless the Newsboys can
sometimes be, Scrapper accidentally leans up against the control panel of the
pod that holds the very similar SB clone. Everything seems to be all right
once checked out by Doc Packard, that is, until later, when, from another
room, they hear a loud crash and find one of the SB clones missing; the first
one to be exact. And so the hunt begins......
Turns out the first clone was made using the same technique Lex Luthor (Ol'
baldy himself) used in creating the Bizarro Superman. So now we face the new
and improved Bizarro Superboy!!( Y'know, I always felt sorry for those
guys.....) After the BS makes a fatal mistake of chasing after Gilotina, she
absent-mindedly uses her powers, which crack the faulty ground that Guardian,
the Newsboy Legion, and Charlie are on. (Oh, didn't I mention Charlie? Yeah,
big pink monster. Pretty much sums him up.)
In the meantime, Dubbilex gets his clock cleaned by the BS, prompting a fight
between pale face and the real thing. As all Super-Bizarros seem to do, the
BS sees the attack as a need to prove that he is the *real* SB. And all the
while, SB is cracking jokes.......don't ya just love it? And being the
(sometimes) clever guy he is, he devises a plan to both stop the fight and
save Guardian, Gilotina, the Legion, and Charlie from the seemingly bottomless
chasm. In the process of saving them, the BS gets the living daylights
knocked out of him when he gets hit by a large chunk of the floor.
Taken to the medical lab, Doc Packard acknowledges that this is, indeed, the
same process that L.L. used to make the Bizarro Superman, and that there is no
plausible way to save him. Things couldn't get worse. Couldn't, that is,
until Director Gabrielli gives SB the news that he's wanted to know ever since
he found out he wasn't cloned from Superman: Who exactly *is* he cloned from?
And the winner is(drumroll, please)...........
...............................Paul Westfield! Yes, as in the long-dead,
slimy, evil, filthy snake of a man, and the Executive Director of Cadmus on
the side. And also SB's greatest fear: that Westfield is his "dad."
In all the confusion and disbelief, the BS dies, but dies with a happy
thought, believing that he was cloned from a "great man" with "great honor."
And so goes life. And life goes on. And so does SB, as he returns to his home
in Honolulu. And a surprise visitor pops in to greet him. None other than
the most legendary of all super-heroes: Superman!!! Supes and SB have a
man-to-man (man-to-boy?) talk about what has happened with SB finding out that
he was actually cloned from Paul Westfield. Supes, being the cool guy that he
is, helps SB to deal with his newfound heritage. SB, feeling confident now,
decides to confront his homework that he skipped during this whole saga.
Returning to the house, he finds that all his friends have gathered to
celebrate his very first birthday! It's been exactly one year since he
escaped Cadmus, and his friends weren't about to let something like that slide
by. Oh, and we get to learn a moral in this story, kids! Friends stay beside
their friends. (Can everybody say "Awwwww"?)
I specifically enjoyed this whole story. I've wondered exactly who it was
Superboy was cloned from ever since it was reported that it *wasn't* Superman.
I'm not too thrilled with who it truly was, but it was intriguing
nonetheless.
I wasn't exactly put on by Brewer's artwork. To me, it looked like a bad try
at copying Mike Wieringo's artwork.
In any case, I still enjoyed it enough to give it 4 shields. Here's to SB and
many adventures to come!
Matt Combes (NandoM@aol.com)
=================================================
SUPERMAN: AT EARTH'S END
Writer: Tom Veitch
Artist: Frank Gomez
$4.95 US/$6.95 CAN
RATINGS:
Average: 1.5/5.0 Shields
RG: Story: 2.5 Shields - Superman did not stay in character.
Art: 4.5 Shields - Beautiful fully painted art worth the price.
AL: 0.0 Shields - "Oh, I will use a gun to avenge my friend Bruce's death.
He would want it that way, and while I am at it, why don't
I kill everybody around and myself?" -- YEA, RIGHT!!
GET REAL!!
DS: 2.0 Shields - Elseworlds are supposed to be out of continuity. But
Superman using a gun is hard to swallow and Superman
deliberately killing individuals is impossible to believe.
JS: 0.5 Shields - I'm ashamed that DC let this get published. You can't
simply place Superman's shield on a big guy with guns and
expect people to buy him as the Man of Steel. This was
putrid.
Before I get started, please remember that this is an ELSEWORLD(tm) book.
Please do not confuse this book with anything remotely having to do with
continuity.
It is a strangely powerful story, but I had a little trouble with it because
the Superman in the story was slightly out of character. [Slightly? For the
Punisher, maybe... -- Jeff] He gives in way too easily, both about guns in
general, and about killing. It could be that he is just tired, but it didn't
seem that way to me. It wasn't much, but it was enough to spoil the latter
part of the story for me. I think that if the main character had been anyone
but Superman, I wouldn't have minded, but to have Superman go against his own
principles for such a limited gain totally ruined my enjoyment. In many ways,
the story reminds me of some of the old imaginary stories of the '60s. It was
a lot of fun, but what really made the book was the artwork. The fully painted
artwork made the images almost jump off the page. It is just about the best
artwork I have seen in an ELSEWORLD book so far.
This book picks up about a year after "Kamandi: At Earth's End" ended.
Superman has been living with Ben Boxer and his Bio-mechs aboard Sky City, a
huge flying city that floats above the polluted ruins of the Earth. Ben has
just announced that he has scheduled Gotham City for destruction, and Superman
disagrees. He leaves the city and is immediately attacked by bat-creatures who
bear a strong resemblance to Bruce Wayne. The creatures take him off-guard,
and he is rescued by a cycle gang of kids.
The kids talk him into trying to rescue their parents and at the same time
regain Bruce's remains from the DNA dictators. A battle ensues and Superman
ends up employing "Big Guns" to win the battle. At the end, he decides that he
can no longer live in what has become of his world and commits suicide.
Rene' Gobeyn
=================================================
LEGION OF SUPER-HEROES #74, "Prisoner of the Super-Heroes"
(Future Tense: Part 2 of 3)
Co-Plotters: Tom Peyer & Tom McCraw
Scripter: Tom Peyer
Penciller: Lee Moder
Inker: Ron Boyd
Cover: Alan Davis & Mark Farmer
$2.25 US/$3.25 CAN/#1.50 UK
RATINGS:
Average: 3.75/5.0 Shields
VC: 4.0 Shields
AW: 3.5 Shields - Um, the Scavenger's 1000 years old? Weird. Superboy and the
Legion together--verrry nice.
DS: 3.5 Shields - I seldom buy crossover stories that move into other books.
I'm glad I made this an exception.
JS: 4.0 Shields - I don't particularly care for Moder's style, but his ability
to draw facial expressions really contributes to a wonderful
continuation of the tale.
Hurtling through the timestream, the Legionnaires and Superboy find themselves
in the 30th century. Almost immediately, Brainiac 5 starts work to free Valor
and immediately displays an overbearing attitude towards Superboy.
When Cosmic Boy instructs Triad and Chameleon to take Superboy on a tour,
Triad's personality splits, literally, as one aspect of her (call her Triad3)
decides to go with Superboy instead of waiting for Valor's recovery.
Instantly, a feud starts among the three. Cosmic Boy, noticing the commotion
surrounding Valor's return, declares the mission Top Secret.
Cham and Triad3 take Superboy to the Monitor Room, where he mistakenly blabs
about Valor's return while there is an open channel. The alien at the other
end of the line immediately tries to profit by spreading the word. The trio,
with Triad recombined, and Invisible Kid, Shrinking Violet and Leviathan, take
a spacecraft to retrieve components for the Stasis Zone device from the planet
Korr. Minutes later, Superboy encounters Ultra Boy, who informs him that he
came to see what he could do to help in restoring Valor. At that point,
Superboy knows how much of a faux pas he had made in the Monitor room.
Reaching Korr, the team's advised that the item they need has been purloined.
Hurrying to the location given to them, Superboy is face-to-face with
Scavenger, who's convinced Superboy had been pursuing him among the centuries!
A fight ensues, with Scavenger wielding the paraphernalia of several heroes
of the 20th century.
Superboy gains an upper hand by telekinetically disassembling the Blue Devil
trident that Scavenger had been attacking with. Scavenger picks up an
innocuous-looking rock that Superboy deems as non-menacing. He dares Scavenger
to throw it. Instead, Scavenger reveals that he is holding the Philosopher's
Stone and transmutes the air surrounding Superboy into Inertron! He quickly
sends Cham into a crystal prison, transforms the air around Shrinking Violet
to ammonia, Triad2 and Triad3 to birch and gold, and sends Triad1 and
Leviathan into a pool of tar...
Well, Superboy's penchant for little slips came up big-time in this issue. If
the rest of the populace are half as fanatic as Triad about Valor's return,
there could be some serious rioting going on. Superboy seems to adapt very
well to his new environs, that is if there are pretty women nearby. That, of
course, doesn't sit too well with some of the male Legionnaires, but he *is*
Superboy. Brainiac points out also that Superboy is *not* a younger Superman.
This issue was pretty fun. Superboy's first trip into the 30th century and he
doesn't faze easily. Brainiac must have thought that bringing Valor out of the
Stasis Zone may have been easy, but what was to have been a simple recovery
mission for the Legionnaires and Superboy turned into a puzzling appearance of
the Scavenger.
The story had a nice twist with Scavenger's appearance and even more so when
he bested the entire group by himself. Peyer and McCraw have kept Superboy
true to his character and Lee Moder's pencils suit the comic and Superboy very
nicely. Good job on this issue, guys!
Victor Chan
=================================================
LEGIONNAIRES #31, "One Thousand Years of Solitude"
(Future Tense: Part 3 of 3)
Plot: Tom Peyer & Tom McCraw
Script: Tom Peyer
Pencils: Jeffrey Moy
Inks: W.C. Carani
$2.25 US/$3.25 CAN/#1.50 UK
RATINGS:
Average: 3.75/5.0 Shields
VC: 3.5 Shields
AW: 3.5 Shields - Amazingly, the quality kept up through all three parts of
this story. I really enjoyed it.
DS: 3.5 Shields - A reasonable ending to a thoroughly enjoyable story. Maybe
I'll pick up a few more issues of LSH books to see if they
are uniformly this good. [A tip -- they are! -- Jeff]
JS: 4.5 Shields - A fantastic finish to the crossover! And Jeff Moy (no bias
because of his name, honest! :) is fast becoming one of my
favorite artists.
As Cosmic Boy supervises an energy discharge to allow Valor to be seen from the
Stasis Zone, he reassures R.J. Brande and Madame President of Earth on the
rescue of Valor from the Zone.
Of course, Cosmic Boy doesn't realize the extent of the situation the other
Legionnaires have found themselves in. Faced with imminent death, Scavenger
gloats in front of them, transmuted elements barring any of their actions.
That is until Chameleon transforms into a ferocious beast and shatters his
crystal cage. As the Scavenger is beset by Cham, he loses grasp of the
Philosopher's stone. Triad, sinking in a pool of tar, is able to hang on to
it.
Scavenger escapes from Cham's attack by grabbing the Atom's belt among the
powerful equipment scattered around and shrinking out of sight. Fortunately,
Violet had recovered from the ammonia attack and makes her move, striking
Scavenger unconscious.
With Superboy's help, Ultra Boy is able to use his Ultra-vision and recover
the device needed to complete the Stasis Zone device. Upon their return to
Earth, the rest of the away team realize that Superboy had let the cat of the
bag, thus generating all the mass hysteria at Legion HQ.
Cosmic Boy and Superboy entreat Brainiac 5 to find a solution, to render the
Valor mission secret again. Superboy and Brainy take the device outside to the
Main Plaza in front of many dignitaries and a huge throng awaiting Valor.
Moments after they get the device working, it's disrupted and it shatters into
pieces. Immediately, the Legion beat a hasty retreat while a mob ensues.
Later in a desert in Qurac, Superboy and Brainiac are able to bring Valor out
of the Stasis Zone in private and quickly apply the lead-poisoning serum to
him. Upon arriving at Legion HQ, Triad immediately fawns over him, something
that Valor finds very unsettling. Because of that kind of behavior, Cosmic Boy
asks Valor to maintain a low profile. The statement angers him, and he blames
the myths and devotion surrounding him to be the culprits of his unwanted
popularity.
As Superboy leaves, he gives a crying Triad a few encouraging words, resulting
in a passioned response. Brainy accompanies Superboy to the Time Platform - he
will be searching for XS once he's returned Superboy to the 20th century. Just
before he leaves, Superboy is given two things from Cosmic Boy. One is a
Legion flight ring and the other is an open invitation for membership with the
LSH. Superboy returns to the past, leaving them in various states of emotions.
As Future Tense concludes, I have to mention again that this has been one of
the year's best multi-title story arcs, IMO. Although Jeff Moy's artwork is a
little more 'cartoonish' than Grummett or Moder, it still lends itself to the
young, fresh aspect of the Legion titles. The writing was quite good, and it
shows that Peyer, McCraw and Kesel really got their ideas to mesh throughout
the three issues of this series. I thought the idea to fake out the population
on Valor's return was a genuinely great idea. Unfortunately, the Legion saw
more of Superboy's clumsy side, but he did do his best to save Valor. It was
his original deeds that convinced Cosmic Boy to bring him to the 30th century.
Superboy comes across as a 20th century screw-up with good intentions, but I
think that if he wasn't so girl-crazy, he'd make a fine Legionnaire. With this
story arc, I'm hoping to see more of the Kid kicking 30th century butt!
Victor Chan
______________________________________________________________
****************************************************************
End of Section 5
_________________________________________________________________
LOOKING BACK
------------
Again we've no post-Crisis reviews this month, but we'll make up for it with
three pre-Crisis reviews this month, including new contributions from regular
writers Joe Crowe and Bill Morse, as well as the first part of a special
look at Alan Moore's "Whatever Happened to the Man of Tomorrow," by Jenny
Stosser.
Also note that we've changed the name of the pre-Crisis section to THE
PHANTOM ZONE, hopefully to serve as a fond link to the great stories of
the past!
______________________________________________________________
THE PHANTOM ZONE: Reviews of the pre-Crisis Man of Steel
--------------------------------------------------------
"WHATEVER HAPPENED TO THE MAN OF TOMORROW"
----------------------------------------
Written by Alan Moore
Review and Comments by Jenny Stosser
Being the last Superman story, it was inevitable and necessary that this work
wrap up a lot of loose ends in the Superman saga. Given that Alan Moore
writes as cleverly as he does, it was also inevitable that there be some
unexpected plot twists. We all thought we knew Superman and his "family" of
characters, but this story really surprised many of us. Alan Moore has a way
of taking the known and making it unfamiliar and unexpected.
Part One: SUPERMAN #423, September 1986
The story begins with a reminder of the old silver age stories, saying that it
is an "imaginary story, which may never happen, but then again may" (the
Silver Age Imaginary Stories always began that way). The twist is that the
intro finishes with the words: "This is an imaginary story... Aren't they
all?"
Lois Elliot (nee Lois Lane) is to be interviewed for an article in the Daily
Planet's Superman Memorial Edition, the article entitled, "The Last Days of
Superman". It appears that Lois is happily married and their baby is asleep,
so the timing for the interview is fine. The journalist is a bit nervous
about interviewing someone like Lois, but she guides him with a deft hand.
(It is apparent that she is no longer a working journalist.)
We are quickly drawn into the story, and we learn that two of Superman's more
humorous enemies, The Parasite and Terra-Man are no longer a threat, while Lex
Luthor is nowhere to be found, and Brainiac's body is no longer viable, taking
care of two of his more serious enemies. At the time Lois speaks of, Superman
apparently now spends his time doing research for the government.
Quite suddenly, things start to go wrong. Bizarro appears and wrecks
Metropolis, having destroyed the Bizarro home-world, Htrae, and eventually
committing suicide, because according to his warped (er, Bizarre?) logic, if
Superman is alive, Bizarro must be dead to be a perfectly imperfect duplicate.
A short while later, at WGBS (where Clark Kent and Lana Lang are on-air
anchors for the nightly news), a box of altered Superman dolls are delivered
for Clark. The alteration has them shooting lasers at Clark, and destroying
his suit, revealing him to be Superman to the world. Superman wastes no time
trying to deny the truth or even to deal with his friends' reactions, but
moves immediately into his Superman persona. It turns out that the toys were
sent by two more of the humorous villains, The Toyman and The Prankster.
Another one of the toys has a radio transmitter through which the villains
speak to Superman, and they reveal that in another package they have sent to
Clark is the dead body of Pete Ross, who was brainwashed (tortured?) into
telling them The Secret Identity. (If you recall, Pete was one of the few who
knew Superman's identity in the pre-Byrne continuity, although he doesn't in
the current version.) Superman traces the radio waves back to the villains,
and they give in immediately. Suddenly they become once again the simple
people they used to be; it would appear they had been mentally coerced into
becoming murderers.
At Pete's funeral, Superman worries: "If the nuisances from my past are coming
back as "killers"... what happens when the "killers"come back?" Cut to Luthor
trekking through the arctic wastes, and finding the head of the robot Brainiac
in the snow. Apparently the consciousness of the robot villain has been in
hibernation in the head, and much to Luthor's surprise, it manages to take him
over and take control of his body. They vanish over the horizon.
Meanwhile in Metropolis... an army of Metallos attacks the Daily Planet,
intending to kill all of Clark Kent's friends ("the way Kent killed my
brother"). Jimmy calls Superman on his signal watch, and Superman arrives
just in time to save Lois from falling from the building. Superman manages to
stop the Metallos and have them imprisoned, then arranges for all of his
friends (Lana, Jimmy, Lois, Perry and his wife Alice) to stay at his Fortress
of Solitude at the North Pole for safety. Krypto, Superman's pet dog arrives
shortly after that, although it isn't explained how he knew to turn up.
They got out of Metropolis just in time, as The Kryptonite Man arrives in town
on a rampage. He is taken on board by the new Luthor-Brainiac "team" as an
assassination weapon against Superman.
In the Fortress, Alice & Perry go to separate beds (apparently they had been
going through a rough patch in their marriage), but Lois & Lana, though having
been "rivals, uneasy friends and finally strangers," comfort each other,
talking about their fears for Superman, and eventually fall asleep. Superman,
who doesn't need sleep, wanders the fortress with Krypto, and as he passes a
portrait of the late Supergirl (Kara Zor-El, who was killed recently in the
Crisis on Infinite Earths), he is visited by a young version of The Legion of
Super-Heroes from the 30th Century, including the young Supergirl. (I'm fairly
certain the costume she is shown wearing is the first one she had - straight
blue skirt with a ruffle at the hem?)
Brainiac 5 begins to explain to Superman that they are there to present him
with a statuette of himself holding a Phantom Zone projector. Superman takes
Brainiac 5 to task for allowing Kara to join them on this trip (and the
suggestion is there that Supergirl hears this conversation, though she doesn't
say anything about it), as she is dead in this era. The other side of the
coin is that Invisible Kid is also in the LSH contingent, and he dies later in
the 30th Century, though Superman can't tell them that.
Superman becomes convinced that he is going to die, and that is the reason for
all the loose ends tying up and the Legion's visit. The Legion returns to
their time in their time bubble, and although Lois was never told the whole
story of what happened that night, it appeared to her that Superman also cried
the rest of the night out.
This "imaginary story" concluded in Action Comics #583, and my review of that
conclusion will be in next month's Kryptonian Cybernet.
A few words about the execution of this wonderful story before I finish for
this month:
The artists were well chosen for such an important story in the Superman saga.
Curt Swan is one of the artists whose work will always be associated with
Superman. I don't know how long he worked on the Superman books, but whenever
I think of old Superman stories, images of his artwork and Kurt
Schaffenberger's stick in my mind. George Perez had worked on Superman prior
to this story, and at the time that this appeared, he was definitely a
fan-favorite (in part due to his work on Crisis). (And mine, too!) The
overall effect of the art is one of clarity. It should also be remembered
that Alan Moore is known for describing in great detail how he wants his
stories to look, so images such as the beads of sweat on Luthor's face when
he/Brainiac abduct The Kryptonite Man or those during the Legion's visit,
where Supergirl's presence is not revealed until the second panel of their
arrival (p21) and the impression that she has heard Superman and Brainiac 5
discussing her demise are certainly intended to be there by the writer.
It is not through images alone that this story is told - Alan Moore uses words
beautifully to describe images: When Superman catches Lois falling from the
Planet building she reminds us that "the reds and blues ran together... so
that's how he looked when he flew... a violet comet." (p23); And the shiver
still goes down my spine every time I re-read Superman's explanation to the
young Supergirl as to why she is not immaterial here and now even though (to
her knowledge) she still lives in this era: "Right now, Supergirl...
Supergirl is in the "past"." (p23)
Finally, I wanted to mention the Metropolis Mailbag, which in this issue is
not a letters page, but rather a history of Superman in his own title, written
by the late, great (Answer Man) E. Nelson Bridwell. All in all, this first
part of the last Superman story is a great one for remembering all the great
stories and characters of the past.
Jenny Stosser
jennys@melbpc.org.au
______________________________________________________________
THE SILVER AGE SUPERMAN
-----------------------
by Bill Morse (billmorse@aol.com)
Superman-Red and Superman-Blue
Another of the most satisfying Silver Age Superman stories is, not
surprisingly, an Imaginary Three-Part Novel. Unlike my last review, the
Silver Age Death of Superman, this story is a real UP. It's a fantasy about
what would happen if Superman could finally solve all of his problems, and
live happily ever after.
"The Amazing Story of Superman-Red and Superman-Blue" first appeared in
Superman #162, in 1963. It was most recently reprinted in "The Greatest
Superman Stories Ever Told". Just in case you haven't read any of my other
reviews, this book is truly the best Superman stories. No need to hype it -
it's great. I believe the hardcover version is out of print, but the trade
paperback is still available. If you don't have it, GET IT!!!
The story was by Leo Dorfman, and the art was by Curt Swan, inked by that
Silver Age staple, George Klein, except for cameo inking of Lois' and Lana's
faces by Kurt Schaffenberger.
We begin on a day in which Superman is confronted with his failures. Clark's
co-workers all get raises, but not Clark. Then the Kandorians remind him of
unfulfilled promises: he has never enlarged their city, he has never found a
cure for Kryptonite, he has not eradicated crime on Earth. The Kandorians
issue an ultimatum: either live up to his promises within six months, or step
aside and allow one of them to take over his role as Superman. Talk about
ungrateful! Yeah, sure, you liberated us from Brainiac, and saved the
universe a dozen times last year, but what have you done for us lately?
With Supergirl's help, Superman takes a desperate gamble: he exposes himself
to the rays of all types of Kryptonite combined, in an experimental machine he
has been working on, called the Brain-Evolution Machine. Supergirl warns him
against the risks, and offers to take his place, but he insists. He orders
Supergirl to turn it to maximum power. He feels his mind expanding, and then
the booth explodes!
When the smoke clears, he has been split into two Supermen. They note that
this effect happened once before, cause by red Kryptonite. But then they
announce that this time is permanent, and that each of them has increased his
brain power by a factor of one hundred. They are identical except for their
costumes: one is predominantly red, the other blue. Hence their new names,
Superman-Red and Superman-Blue.
They don't waste any time before digging into their problems. Within a matter
of hours, they transport Kandor to the edge of our solar system, and create a
planet core out of an element they developed, Hyper-Magneton. According to
their calculations, the core will attract all of the Kryptonite in the
universe, and fuse it together, reversing the process which made it deadly.
When this has been accomplished, they "terraform" it back to the way it was
before Krypton exploded. Next, they enlarge Kandor to its full size. The
Kandorians, super-powered under our yellow sun, continue the process of
restoring Krypton's natural features, restoring oceans, plant life, even
cities, all over the planet. After the restoration is complete, the
Kandorians decide to move it to its original position under its red sun, so
they can live normal, un-super lives.
Next up is a distress call from Lori the mermaid, in Atlantis. Having
observed what the Superman have accomplished for the Kandorians, Lori requests
a watery world of their own, where mer-people won't be considered freaks. No
sooner asked than done.
Then they develop an anti-evil hypno-ray, which they mount in satellite
projectors, to blanket Earth and surrounding space. The ray even serves to
make Communists embrace Capitalism! Proof that it was an evil empire, after
all. Alien invaders who come too close to Earth reform their ways. Luthor
reforms, and invents a super-serum that cures all known diseases. (Although I
would bet his own formidable intellect was surely outclassed by the Supermen's
enhanced Kryptonian brains.) Suddenly, the blind, lame, even the bald, are in
perfect health. Supergirl releases the Phantom Zone criminals, who of course,
are no longer evil. They decide to journey to New Krypton, and Supergirl
reveals that she wants to join them there.
Luthor alerts the Supermen to a sighting of Mr. Mxyzptlk. But the imp, too,
is permanently reformed.
Their problems solved, the Supermen turn to their own lives. They want to
marry. Blue reveals that he loves Lana, and fortunately, Red loves Lois. They
reveal their identities, and have a double wedding. Since there are so many
good vibes in the air, Jimmy Olsen and Lucy Lane make it a triple wedding.
Then it turns out that Red longs to go live on New Krypton. Lois is only too
happy to oblige. Blue prefers to stay on Earth, and that pleases Lana. He
announces his retirement, and programs his robots to handle natural disasters.
Both Supermen start families, and both have twins. For once, everyone is
happy, and the universe is a utopia. But in the last panel, as Jimmy and Lucy
look at a scrapbook of the two super-families, Jimmy muses that they have all
gotten what they wanted. Lucy has the last word, though, as she says, "Hm! I
wonder!"
This story doesn't have the undercurrents of tragedy that the best of the
Imaginary Stories share, but it is a refreshing change to see how everything
could have turned out for Superman and his friends.
______________________________________________________________
BRAVE AND THE BOLD #150: Batman & ?
"Today Gotham...Tomorrow, the World!"
May 1979
Writer: Bob Haney
Artist: Jim Aparo
Cover Price: .40
Rating: 2.9 shields
Batman shadows a businessman whom a murderous terrorist gang called the
Battalion of Doom has targeted for kidnapping. In broad daylight, the gang
nabs the businessman. Batman leaps after them, but they make their escape. The
Battalion leaves a message: their next victim will be Bruce Wayne.
A museum curator friend of Wayne calls him to inform him that a print from his
father's art collection has been stolen. Wayne hangs up the phone -- and it's
been booby-trapped. Wayne is knocked out by an electric shock, and wakes up in
a cell. His kidnappers inform him that all the other hostages are being held
separately, and they will be executed if Gotham doesn't surrender all power to
them. Wayne will be guarded by Keeper Karns, a giant goon.
Wayne tries to escape, but Karns clobbers him. Wayne thinks that he could've
gone full blast, but Karns would get suspicious. After Karns leaves, Wayne
makes a rope from the bed and exits through the roof. As Batman, he finds that
Alfred has also been snatched. Batman disregards as meaningless information
about the stolen print of his father's: it was a drawing of an old mining
company's location in Gotham.
As Wayne, Batman heads back to his prison and gets reeled in by his rope. It's
Karns, and he clobbers Wayne again. Then the Battalion comes in with the
businessman they captured earlier. They execute him in front of Wayne, then
tell Keeper to take him out and dump him.
Later, Bruce yanks off a bedpost and challenges Karns. The goon *phases*
through the wall. Bruce whacks him anyway with the post, and Karns goes down?
Not bothering to wonder why, Bruce escapes again and becomes Batman. He meets
Commissioner Gordon at the morgue, where they find the body of the
businessman. The guy then sits up on the gurney. His wounds have been tended
to "as if by a master surgeon!" Batman exits, and runs into Keeper on the
street. Keeper calls him "Wayne" and at superhuman speed, Karns books back to
the Battalion's nest with Batman.
Batman wonders what super-villain has all the powers that Keeper has
displayed. The Battalion says that Wayne AND Keeper are in trouble, and that
they will detonate an atomic device in Gotham if their demands aren't met.
They bring in Alfred, and line him up to be shot. Karns steps in front of the
shots, and Bruce and Alfred cut out. Karns follows them. The terrorists fire
at them -- and Karns zaps the bullets out of the sky with heat vision. Keeper
Karns is really (surprise!) Superman.
The Big S reveals that he had to go undercover because Jimmy Olsen was also
kidnapped by the Battalion, and that they said they would cack Jimmy if
Superman came to Gotham. Superman wasn't sure if the silo was bugged, so he
couldn't reveal his secret to Wayne. He had no idea that Bruce would be
kidnapped as well -- so he let Bruce escape, hoping that as Batman he could
solve the crime while he was free, and get him back to his cell on time so the
Battalion wouldn't suspect.He also did super-surgery on the businessman to
save his life.
A clue found by Alfred helps the World's Finest boys find the hostages, and
Commissioner Gordon orders a raid. The police free all the hostages, but
nobody finds Jimmy Olsen. He's apparently with the atomic device, to keep
Superman from interfering. Finally Batman figures out the deal with the stolen
art print. It was the only clue to the location of their headquarters. It's in
a mine, and the lead walls kept Superman from finding it.
Disguised as a sewer inspector, Superman busts in there, rescues Jimmy, and
throws the bomb into orbit, where it explodes harmlessly.
This was a pretty neat little story. Batman and Superman teamed up every
single month in WORLD'S FINEST, but this was better than most of those. The WF
formula consisted of one of the two big guys having a problem, calling up
their best buddy, the taking care of business together. And that was it.
Here, Superman and Batman were on different ends of the problem, and meeting
each other was really just a happy accident. There was even a threat worthy of
a team-up.
There aren't many super-hero team-ups where one of the stars is a mystery.
Probably because the main purpose of a team-up is to pump sales up by
plastering the guest star all over the cover. However, the B&B people didn't
worry about that. They let the story sell the book. Those were the days.
There also weren't any real clues to Karns' identity -- we never saw his
thought balloons. Batman's the greatest detective in the world and Superman's
concerned about keeping his ID secret too -- he really thumped on Bruce pretty
good. Maybe Superman was so worried about Jimmy, and Batman was so stymied by
the situation, that neither of them were at full throttle. But there you go --
weaknesses of two franchise characters coming to play in a single story. In
1979, that was a freaky occurrence. Super-freaky. :)
Joe Crowe (j.crowe4@genie.geis.com)
______________________________________________________________
****************************************************************
End of Section 6
________________________________________________________________
LOIS AND CLARK: THE NEW ADVENTURES OF SUPERMAN
----------------------------------------------
(Boy could we use a real title for this section! :)
Before we get to Zoomway's article and the review of the season premiere,
I wanted to briefly introduce the forces behind the third season. While
the cast remains the same (excepting Teri Hatcher's wonderful new hairdo),
the executive staff has undergone some changes and shuffling:
Co-Producers: Chris Long
Grant Rosenberg
Jim Michaels
Producers: Philip J. Sgriccia
Jimmy Simons
Supervising Producers: Chris Ruppenthal
John McNamara
Co-Executive Producers: Eugenie Ross-Lemming
Brad Buckner
Executive Producer: Robert Singer
Let's hope these guys can make it through an entire season (Hey! It's
yet to happen!) In addition, here are the writing and directing credits
for the four episodes which have already aired:
1. "We Have A Lot To Talk About" (9/17)
Writer: John McNamara
Director: Philip J. Sgriccia
2. "Ordinary People" (9/24)
Writers: Eugenie Ross-Lemming & Brad Buckner
Director: Michael Watkins
3. "Contact" (10/1)
Writer: Chris Ruppenthal
Director: Daniel Attias
4. "When Irish Eyes Are Killing" (10/15)
Writer: Grant Rosenberg
Director: Winriche Kolbe
And one final programming note. Sunday night's episode (10/22) will
*not* be pre-empted by the World Series. NBC will be covering that
game. However, if the series goes a full seven games, the final game
will be Sunday night, 10/29, on ABC. This will cause L&C to be pre-
empted that night. However, as far as I know, if the Series is over
by then, the show will air as expected.
Jeff Sykes
______________________________________________________________
SIGH-FI
-------
by Zoomway (Zoomway@aol.com)
Way back, maybe my first article for this august publication, I stated that I
did not consider "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman" to be
science fiction, and felt it more deserving of the title fantasy. Fortunately,
there is a new term, 'sigh'-fi. It refers to a brand of soft SF with an
emphasis on characterization, and a generous nod to romance. There was no
doubt, as season three premiered with WE HAVE A LOT TO TALK ABOUT, that Lois
and Clark is 'definitely' sigh-fi.
In WE HAVE A LOT TO TALK ABOUT, Lois removes Clark Kent's glasses and lets
Clark, and the television audience, know that she has figured out his secret.
This was so startling to some viewers that they thought it had to be a dream
sequence. It was so powerful a shock that in CONTACT, the third episode aired
this season, many felt that after Lois was knocked unconscious, she would wake
up and forget the secret, but she still knows. Lois knowing Clark's secret
has added depth to the characters, the humor, and opened avenues to storylines
that would never have been possible with Lois left in the dark.
By letting the characters evolve, as all 'real' people must, the
writers/producers have set up a kind of empathy with Lois and Clark that most
viewers are completely unfamiliar with. Viewers, especially American viewers,
are jaded, and that's why they expected the revelation to be a dream, and that
Lois would forget the secret. They simply are not prepared for a show to move
forward and make it 'real'. They are so used to being yanked around,
frustrated, and set back, that having a show move counter to those deeply
ingrained truisms of TV is causing an ever widening audience to tune in, some
just to see what rule they will break next. The majority of new viewers,
however, have found a show they never knew existed, and they are having fun
with the discovery. "Lois and Clark", in part, can thank the competition for
many of these new viewers.
NBC, conceding defeat in the head-to-head competition between "seaQuest" and
"Lois and Clark", moved out "seaQuest" and moved in one of its few power
hitters, "Mad About You", and its follow up show from Thursday nights, "Hope &
Gloria". CBS, wanting to win over a piece of the youth market on Sunday night,
where higher advertising dollars are spent, moved its ratings champ, "Murder
She Wrote", and replaced it with "Cybill" and a lesser known sitcom, "Almost
Perfect". This left "Lois and Clark" all alone as the only one hour program
in the 8-9 time slot, and the only non-sitcom as well. This shortsightedness
on the part of the competition has given "Lois and Clark" the best ratings for
a fledgling season to date.
Audiences seem to be responding to the sigh-fi approach, and the unique
signature it gives an already unique television program. I mean, how many
other shows would have a woman shouting to her boyfriend, "That is so unfair!
You know I can't fly!" as he ascends into the night sky? What other show could
have a couple engaged in a lover's quarrel that would include this exchange:
"What took you an hour?" "A nuclear reactor meltdown in Philadelphia. What's
your point?"
And yet, the show can turn right around and have Clark telling Lois how he
feels about her, in a very real, and touching way, and not even miss a beat.
No other show can do this, and no other show has ever tried. Why do the
surreal elements of Superman and his universe of unconventional villains blend
so well with an honest approach to a romance? Well, let's just say it's
magic, because even analyzing the show's appeal in the more conventional
sense, still seems to add up to magic, or, considering how many rules this
show has broken, maybe 'miracle' would say it better.
Now the show is in motion for the new season; Lois knows that Clark is
Superman, she is contemplating his proposal of marriage, they are learning how
to be a team on new levels, and as with any relationship, they have problems
to overcome, except with Lois and Clark, the problems are a bit more irregular
than most. Lois now knows that when Clark gets that 'look', the one that used
to precede lame excuses like checking out his cheese of the month shipment, it
actually means Clark is hearing someone who needs Superman, and Lois has to be
prepared for damage control when he leaves. Knowing the answer to why Clark
had always dashed off mysteriously finally sets Lois' mind at ease about Clark
having a fear of commitment to their relationship, but it also leaves her with
the question of where she fits in to his commitment to Metropolis. The first
three episodes have just barely scratched the surface on the possibilities
facing Lois and Clark in the season(s) ahead. The future actually does look
like the Lois and Clark Expedition.
========================================================
EPISODE REVIEW:
---------------
Episode #3-01: "We Have A Lot To Talk About"
--------------------------------------------
by Marta Olson <molson@raisinets.den.mmc.com>
US Airdate: September 17, 1995
Special Guest Stars: Bruce Campbell, and Peter Boyle as "Bill Church"
Guest Starring: Jessica Collins and Sal Viscuso
Written by: John McNamara
Directed by: Philip J. Sgriccia
Clark, on bended knee, opened the ring box and asked THE question "Will you
marry me?" Rain coming down all around them, Lois paused. I paused too. Even
though I had heard what her answer would be I held my breath. Would they
really do it? Or would everything from the last episode of season two ("And
The Answer Is...") be forgotten. I watched as Lois leaned forward, took
Clark's glasses off and said "Who's asking, you or Superman?" THEY ACTUALLY
DID IT!
I felt like sitting and chanting, "Lois knows, Lois knows," but then the show
was back. So was the emotional roller coaster we left several months ago.
Lois now knows Clark's deepest secret. She has conflicting emotions and could
not say yes - yet. Unfortunately Clark heard only the no. Of course, it
would not be this show if their conversation were not interrupted with a cry
for help. Only this time, Clark hesitates and Lois urges him to go on.
We, the fans, had been asking for four things from the show. In this episode
we were given three of them - the revelation was the first. The second was
later when Martha and Jonathan come to Metropolis. Martha has a talk with
Lois and we find out more about Clark's background and the loneliness he has
always felt. At the age of 13 he made the decision to hide who he really was,
and as a consequence never felt like he fit in. This scene also has one of
the more memorable lines from this episode - "almost thirty years and you're
the first woman I can talk to about my boy."
This episode has many lines that are great, mostly from Lois. "That is so
unfair! You know I can't fly." as Superman leaves when Lois turns down his
proposal. "I'm the one who was lied to, don't you be petulant!" during an
argument. After Lois says, "You're Superman," Clark replies "A little louder,
I don't think they heard you in Gotham". My favorite, though, is when Lois
says "When were you going to tell me, our first anniversary? When the kids
started flying around the house?"
There is one scene that, to me, was really symbolic of how Clark is feeling.
As Clark, he takes the ring he offered to Lois with his heart and throws it
into space after an argument. As it floats through space, Superman appears
and reaches out to grab it. Then almost as if he changes his mind, he opens
his hand and lets the ring float away again, only to firmly regrasp it -- as
if his decision is made and he will not let her go away from him.
The third thing we had been asking for was a "flying makeout scene." We were
given that at the end. I won't say too much about it other than to say how
wonderful it was, and that it did remind me of E.T.
I haven't mentioned the villains yet or their deeds. We are reintroduced to
Bill Church, who has had a change of heart and has pledged to use the Church
fortune to make the world a better place. He starts out with creating an
organization called "The Church Group" which virtually renders Superman
unneeded. Bill Church has remarried a woman named Mindi who turns out to be
something different than she appears. Bill Church Jr. comes back to town after
being in the Orient and settling a territorial spat with the Yakuza. The
result? CostMarts going up all over the Orient.
There is so much more in this episode - Lois finds out that a bomb specialist
is in town and has his sights set on the museum. They decide to kill her but
need to get rid of Superman first. Superman is out of town fixing a reactor
leak while Lois is jumping for her life. At the end, Lois and Clark have to
work together to disarm the bomb at the museum. I don't want to say too much
more about this episode. If you haven't seen it yet, please do. It is well
worth the time.
______________________________________________________________
THE MAILBAG
-----------
Rich Morrissey has provided us some additional information about "Superman
From the 30's to the 70's," which was reviewed last month by J.D. Rummel in
his AND WHO DISGUISED AS... column:
Dear Jeffery,
Just got KC #17 online: it came through very nicely! I enjoyed it all, but my
favorite sections were "Just the FAQs" by David Chappell and the review of
"Superman From the 30's to the 70's" by J.D. Rummel. Since he expressed his
disappointment at the lack of credits in the book, I'm sending both you and
him a copy of a list I worked out with my friend Martin O'Hearn, an expert on
both writing and art styles at Golden and Silver Age DC. Most of these
credits, especially those to Jerry Siegel, Otto Binder, and Alvin Schwartz,
have been confirmed by the writers.
This list includes both the aforementioned book and its later reissue,
"Superman From the 30s to the 80s," whose missing apostrophes reflect a change
in preferred style. I've made notations made as to which stories appeared in
only one or the other of the books. Titles in parentheses are descriptive ones
for originally-untitled stories.
1. ("Revolution in San Monte, Part I")
(w)Jerry Siegel (a)Joe Shuster
Superman #1, Summer 1939, expanded from Action Comics #1, June 1938.
(First 9 pages in color in "Superman From the 30's to the 70's," first
two pages in color in "Superman From the 30s to the 80s")
2. ("Revolution in San Monte, Part II")
(w)Jerry Siegel (a)Joe Shuster
Action Comics #2, July 1938
3. ("Luthor and the Earthquake Machine")
(w)Jerry Siegel (a)Joe Shuster
Superman #4, Spring 1940
4. ("The Sky-Sub Intrigue")
(w)Jerry Siegel (a)Joe Shuster shop
Superman #10, May-June 1941
5. ("The Light")
(w)Jerry Siegel (a)Leo Novak
Superman #13, November-December 1941
6. ("The Archer")
(w)Jerry Siegel (a)Leo Novak
Superman #13, November-December 1941
7. ("The Napkan Saboteurs")
(w)Jerry Siegel (a)Leo Novak
Superman #15, March-April 1942
("Superman From the 30's to the 70's" only)
8. "How Clark Kent Met Lois Lane"
(w)Bill Finger (p)Al Wenzel? (i)John Sikela?
Adventure Comics #128, May 1948 (out of sequence!)
9. "Man or Superman?"
(w)Jerry Siegel (a)Joe Shuster shop
Superman #17, July-August 1942
(In color in "Superman From the 30's to the 70's," page 7 missing in
both versions)
10. "Case of the Funny Paper Crimes"
(w)Jerry Siegel (p)Ed Dobrotka? (i)John Sikela
Superman #19, November-December 1942
11. "Superman, Matinee Idol"
(w)Jerry Siegel (a)Joe Shuster
Superman #19, November-December 1942
(minus one page and with some dialogue concerning Siegel
and Shuster changed)
12. "America's Secret Weapon"
(w)Don Cameron (p)Sam Citron (i)John Sikela
Superman #23, July-August 1943
13. "The Mysterious Mr. Mxyztplk"
(w)Jerry Siegel (a)Ira Yarbrough
Superman #30, September-October 1944
14. "Lois Lane, Superwoman"
(w)Alvin Schwartz (a)John Sikela
Superman #43, March-April 1947
(Taken from a British reprint that made some unusual changes, most
notably the change of dollars to "guineas")
15. "The Battle of the Atoms"
(w)Don Cameron (a)Sam Citron
Superman #38, January-February 1946
("Superman From the 30s to the 80s" only, in which it is slightly out
of sequence)
16. "The Origin of Superman"
(w)Bill Finger (p)Wayne Boring (i)Stan Kaye
Superman #53, July-August 1948
("Superman From the 30's to the 70's" only)
17. "Black Magic on Mars"
(a)Wayne Boring
Superman #62, January-February 1950
18. "The Mightiest Team in the World"
(w)Edmond Hamilton (p)Curt Swan (i)John Fischetti?
Superman #76, May-June 1952
("Superman From the 30's to the 70's" only)
19. "The Girls in Superman's Life"
(w)Edmond Hamilton (a)Al Plastino
Superman #78, September-October 1952
20. "The Terrible Trio"
(w)William Woolfolk (p)Wayne Boring (i)Stan Kaye
Superman #88, March 1954
21. "The Girl in Superman's Past"
(w)Bill Finger (a)Wayne Boring
Superman #129, May 1959
22. "The Supergirl from Krypton"
(w)Otto Binder (a)Al Plastino
Action Comics #252, May 1959
(Superman From the 30s to the 80s only)
23. "The Super-Duel in Space"
(w)Otto Binder (a)Al Plastino
Action Comics #242, July 1958
("Superman From the 30s to the 80s" only -- out of sequence)
24. "How Luthor Met Superboy"
(w)Jerry Siegel (a)Al Plastino
Adventure Comics #271, April 1960
("Superman From the 30s to the 80s" only)
25. "The Untold Story of Red Kryptonite"
(w)Otto Binder (p)Curt Swan (i)John Forte
Superman #139, August 1960
("Superman From the 30's to the 70's" only)
26. "The Son of Bizarro"
(w)Otto Binder (a)Wayne Boring
Superman #140, October 1960
("Superman From the 30's to the 70's" only)
27. "Superman Meets Al Capone"
(w)Otto Binder (a)Wayne Boring
Superman #142, January 1961
("Superman From the 30's to the 70's" only)
28. "Bizarro Meets Frankenstein"
(w)Otto Binder (p)Wayne Boring (i)George Klein
Superman #143, February 1961
("Superman From the 30's to the 70's" only)
29. "Superboy's First Public Appearance"
(w)Jerry Siegel (a)Al Plastino
Superman #144, April 1961
("Superman From the 30's to the 70's" only)
30. "The Showdown Between Luthor and Superman"
(w)Edmond Hamilton (p)Curt Swan (i)George Klein
Superman #164, October 1963
("Superman From the 30s to the 80s" only)
31. "The Origin of Superman"
(plot and layouts)Carmine Infantino
(script)E. Nelson Bridwell (p) Curt Swan (i) Murphy Anderson
The Amazing World of Superman, Metropolis Edition, 1973
("Superman From the 30s to the 80s" only -- published in color)
32. "The Pied Piper of Steel"
(w)Leo Dorfman (p)Curt Swan (i)Murphy Anderson
Action Comics #398, March 1971
(First nine pages in color in "Superman From the 30's to the 70's" only)
33. "Superman Breaks Loose"
(w)Denny O'Neil (p)Curt Swan (i)Murphy Anderson
Superman #233, January 1971
("Superman From the 30's to the 70's" only -- out of sequence)
34. "Superman, You're Dead-Dead-Dead"
(w)Leo Dorfman (p)Curt Swan (i)Murphy Anderson
Action Comics #399, February 1971
35. "Duel of Doom"
(w)Leo Dorfman (p)Curt Swan (i)Murphy Anderson
Action Comics #400, March 1971
("Superman From the 30's to the 70's" only -- "Geoff Browne" was
an acknowledged pseudonym of Dorfman)
36. "The Miraculous Return of Jonathan Kent"
(w)Cary Bates (p)Curt Swan (i)Frank Chiarmonte
Action Comics #507, May 1980
("Superman From the 30s to the 80s" only)
37. "The Secret World of Jonathan Kent"
(w)Cary Bates (p)Curt Swan (i)Frank Chiarmonte
Action Comics #508, June 1980
("Superman From the 30s to the 80s" only)
A good article on kryptonite, though I'll acknowledge that I don't find Byrne's
version any more logical than the one Bill Finger first developed in SUPERMAN
#61. Kryptonians are clearly different enough from Earth people to have all
those powers, why is it impossible that they might also be susceptible to
certain types of radiation with little or no effect on human beings. And does
Luthor's being affected by kryptonite radiation indicate some distant
Kryptonian ancestry on his own part? (Come to think of it, why can't the
people who gave Luthor a working artificial hand do the same for Aquaman? I
wish they'd at least TRY to keep technology consistent in the DC Universe.)
Byrne's contention that kryptonite had different powers in different universes
also flies in the face of established DC lore, in which kryptonite was the
same no matter what universe it was in (as when Superman went to Earth-2 or
some other parallel Earth). Ah, well...
Rich Morrissey
RMorris306@aol.com
========================================================
I enjoyed David T. Chappell's Kryptonite FAQ in the last KC: "A Rainbow of
Rocks" indeed! Very informative and covers more varieties I think than
Michael Fleisher did in his now-outdated Encyclopedia. I only wish Mr.
Chappell had included some issue numbers, or at least some dates or creative
teams, in his history lesson.
All in all, I usually enjoy the Silver Age articles the most and wish that
someday we could see a feature on some of the comic book artists from that
period like Swan/Anderson and Wayne Boring. If anyone has had a chance to
flip through the recently published "Good Taste Gone Bad," it becomes apparent
just what an affect these artists have had on the popular imagination.
Bryan Munn
bmunn@uoguelph.ca
______________________________________________________________
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End of Section 7/Issue #18
