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The Kryptonian Cybernet Issue 26
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T H E K R Y P T O N I A N C Y B E R N E T
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http://www.ms.uky.edu/~sykes/kc
Issue #26 - June 1996
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CONTENTS
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Section 1: Superscripts: Notes from the Editor
Price, Quality, and Fun
News and Notes
And Who Disguised As...
Meanwhile in a Bookstore Across Town, a Mind is Stretched
Too Far, by J.D. Rummel
Section 2: There Are Fans, and Then There Are FoLCs
The on-line fan phenomenon, by Kemba Johnson
The Mailbag
Section 3: Reviews
The "Triangle" Titles
Superman #113, by Ken McKee
Superman: The Man of Tomorrow #5, by Rene' Gobeyn
Adventures of Superman #536, by Anatole Wilson
Action Comics #723, by William J. Nixon
Section 4: Reviews
The "Triangle" Titles (cont)
Superman: The Man of Steel #58, by Matt Combes
Other Super-Titles
Superboy #29, by Jeff Sykes
Steel #28, by Dick Sidbury (to be added later)
Showcase '96 #6, by Rene' Gobeyn
Section 5: Reviews
Annuals and Specials
Adventures of Superman Annual #8, by Jeff Sykes
Kingdom Come #1, by Rene' Gobeyn
Merchandise
Section 6: After-Byrne
Blackout: Part 3
Superman: The Man of Steel #6, by Mark Lamutt
Manuscripts of Steel
Superman: Under a Yellow Sun, by Denes House
The Phantom Zone
Into the Archives
Superman #5, by Neil Ottenstein
Section 7: The Phantom Zone (cont)
Super Friends
Brave and the Bold #160, by Joe Crowe
The Girl Friend and the Pal
Lois Lane #96 and #129, by Jon B. Knutson
TELEscopic VISION: Superman on the Small Screen
Episode Reviews
#3-21: "Through a Glass, Darkly", by Shane Furlong
Section 8: TELEscopic VISION (cont)
Episode Reviews (cont)
#3-22: "Big Girls Don't Fly", by Marta Olson
A Love That Risks Nothing Is Worth Nothing
Season Three, by Zoomway
Section 9: Coming Attractions
STAFF:
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Jeffery D. Sykes, Editor-in-Chief
Arthur E. LaMarche, Executive Coordinator of Reviews
Nancy Jones, Executive Coordinator of Lois and Clark Section
Editors: Joe Crowe
Curtis Herink
Ken McKee
Shane Travis
Steven Younis
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
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end
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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
------------------------------------
PRICE, QUALITY, AND FUN
Summer's here, and that means that we're deep in the heart of annual season.
And I'd like to take a moment to thank DC for this season's annuals! No, not
for the "Legends of the Dead Earth" theme -- so far I've read three of these
annuals -- one was poor, one was mediocre, and one was good. I'm not sold on
the concept, at least not yet.
No, what I want to thank DC for is the fact that this year's batch seems to be
taking the fans into some consideration. How do I mean? Let's compare. Last
year's Superman annuals all ran 56 pages, 8 to 10 of which were advertisements.
The cover price was $3.95. This year, at least so far, all of the Superman
related annuals are 48 pages at a cover price of $2.95. The ADVENTURES OF
SUPERMAN ANNUAL had 38 pages of story. And this appears to be holding up
across the board at DC, as well.
I could be completely off in this -- I can imagine there's *some* good business
sense in doing this -- but it seems to me that the primary purpose was to
provide the extra round of stories at a more affordable level. And for that I
thank them -- maybe I won't have to cut the number of annuals I choose to read
for yet another summer. And I'm always happy to have the chance to read an
extra good story.
Now, to segue to my other topic, let me suggest a theme for next year's
annuals. Are you listening DC? How about the "From the Pen of Kurt Busiek"
annuals!? That's right, every 1997 annual written by Kurt Busiek!
Just kidding! Don't want to give Kurt a heart attack!
But I *do* want to draw some attention to the man. You see, I thought I'd
share with you some of the (very few) comics that I read other than the
Superman family of titles. It's easy to develop a very narrow view of the
comics industry when focusing so much on one character, so I decided we should
point out some of the other best that the comics world has to offer. Now some
of these may be very familiar to you, and some of them you may not, but this is
just my opinion.
And I begin with KURT BUSIEK'S ASTRO CITY, which was quite simply the best
superhero comic that I read last year. The characters are designed by Mr.
Busiek and Alex Ross, and the city in which they live and operate is every bit
as fascinating as the characters in which they live. Kurt has am uncanny
ability to tell a superhero story from any perspective, be it that of the hero
or that of the everyday working stiff. It's exactly this which makes ASTRO
CITY such an incredible book. KBAC relaunches this August under Jim Lee's
Homage Comics, and there's a trade paperback of the original six issues due in
July. If you *really* love superhero comics, then you can't do any better than
ASTRO CITY.
And for a quick tour through a couple of other studios... Jeff Smith's BONE is
one of the most charming, witty, funny, cute, fantastic, mysterious books I've
ever read. It's not superhero fare, rather it's a combination of romance,
fantasy, and rolling-in-the-floor-laughing comedy. And LEONARD NIMOY'S
PRIMORTALS has had me enthralled since its first issue. The art has been
gorgeous, and the storyline -- which involves humanity's first contact with and
mass paranoia over aliens who have come to Earth to capture a creature of
immense evil -- is spellbinding. BONE ships roughly bi-monthly from Image
Comics, and PRIMORTALS is published monthly by BIG ENTERTAINMENT (formerly
TEKNO COMICS).
Well what about DC? The absolute best fare DC has to offer right now are the
two Legion titles, LEGION OF SUPER-HEROES and LEGIONNAIRES. These are the
first books I read in a given week (yes, they've bumped Supes from that honor),
and I am absolutely devastated during the dreaded five-week months. Events in
July are going to make August a perfect time to jump in on the Legion, and it
all begins with a Superman guest appearance! These titles are crammed with the
kind of quality storytelling that the Superman books were so juiced with in
1991. There's a great lighthearted feel, which is intermingled with beautifully
interwoven plots and heart-rending emotion. And LEGIONNAIRES is written by MAN
OF TOMORROW scribe Roger Stern! How could you go wrong! :)
Finally, to wrap things up for this month, I'll mention three other books which
rise to the top: FLASH, IMPULSE, and THE POWER OF SHAZAM! Mark Waid writes the
first two, and does so with the most incredible style. IMPULSE generally has
the same kind of lighthearted feel as the Legion books, sort of the way
SUPERBOY began. And I can't say enough about FLASH. Waid simply *knows* what
the Flash is all about -- *nobody* has done Wally West better. Last but not
least, Jerry Ordway's POWER OF SHAZAM! is a great book (with wonderful covers
painted by Da Ordster hisself), with a fascinating array of characters,
including an especially strong supporting cast. It, too, has a generally
lighthearted feel.
In fact, this is what DC does better than anyone else -- fun comics. It seems
the days of angst and of grim'n'gritty have begun to wane, and once again DC is
ahead of the pack -- setting the standards by which others will be judged.
But now, what do you think!? Drop us a note and let us know what *your*
favorites are. What *do* Superman readers read when they're not reading
Superman? Let us know! (sykes@ms.uky.edu or KryptonCN@aol.com)
Until next month, enjoy the new issue!
Jeff Sykes
Editor
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NEWS AND NOTES:
---------------
STILL MORE CD-ROMS
Gryphon Software Corp., a leading graphics software company, has entered
into an agreement with Warner Brothers Interactive Entertainment and DC
Comics to create two new children's CD-ROM titles. Gryphon's technology
will be used to develop "interactive Activity Centers" featuring the
characters from THE ADVENTURES OF BATMAN AND ROBIN and the new SUPERMAN
animated series. The Batman and Robin product is scheduled for release
later this year, while the Superman CD-ROM is targeted for the first half
of 1997. Both packages will make use of hybrid Macintosh/Windows CD-ROMs.
FAMILIAR BUT DIFFERENT
In LEGION OF SUPER-HEROES #85, Superman will meet for the first time the
reboot version of the Legion of Super-Heroes. The story is set up by
events in July's Legion titles, which results in part of the Legion team
stranded in time -- back in the 20th century! Their first experience will
involve tangling with the Metropolis SCU and the Man of Steel. Those of
you wondering how the reboot fits with past Superman continuity should
take careful note of this book, as the issue of Superman's encounters
with the previous incarnation of the Legion will be addressed!
STEEL: THE MOTION PICTURE?
The June 7 issue of ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY finally answers some of those
rumors about Shaquille O'Neal (center for the Orlando Magic, rapper, and
star of this summer's KAZAAM) signing to play a comic book character
named Steel. First, Shaq has not yet actually signed to play Steel, but
he is considering it. Second, the Steel *is* the character originating
from "The Reign of the Supermen", but the part is apparently linked to
its own film, not to SUPERMAN REBORN. In fact, according to EW, the word
is that this is DC's hottest Hollywood property right now!
IT COULD HAVE BEEN A POLO SAMPLE
DC, Ralph Lauren, and ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY marketing are teaming up in
a special back-to-school promotion. In August, direct sales issues of
several DC titles will be polybagged with a free 24-page, 4-color glossy
insert, loaded with articles and graphics for young readers about film
and music. The insert also includes ads for Ralph Lauren's new kids'
sportswear line. Superman related books tentatively scheduled for this
promotion include ACTION COMICS #726, ADVENTURES OF SUPERMAN #539,
SUPERBOY #32, SUPERMAN: THE MAN OF STEEL #61, and SUPERMAN: THE MAN OF
TOMORROW #6. Only U.S. copies will be polybagged with the inserts.
SHHH! MAYBE NOBODY'S HEARD YET!
Due to reported confusion over the previous title, DC's September event
has undergone a name change, from DARKEST NIGHT to THE FINAL NIGHT. The
four-issue miniseries focuses on the tragic discovery that the Sun is
rapidly dying and the heroes' attempts to re-energize it. Many DC issues
will tie in to the miniseries, as the heroes and the rest of the Earth
try to come to grips with the end of the world. Written by Karl Kesel
and illustrated by Stuart Immonen, Jose Marzan Jr, and Patricia
Mulvihill, with science consulting by Larry Niven, THE FINAL NIGHT is
scheduled to begin in September!
QUICK BYTES
A Bizarro miniseries may be in the works for 1997!
The new regular penciller of SUPERBOY will not be Staz Johnson, as we
previously reported. Instead, Ramon Bernado (WOLVERINE, JUSTICE LEAGUE
TASK FORCE) takes over those chores with issue #32.
Dan Jurgens' pencil art will return briefly to the pages of SUPERMAN
in issue #120!
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AND WHO DISGUISED AS...
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A Column of Opinion by J.D. Rummel (jrummel@vulture.creighton.edu)
Meanwhile in a Bookstore Across Town, a Mind is Stretched Too Far.
The first time I made a disparaging comment about Dean Cain's portrayal of
Superman was on a comic listserv when LOIS AND CLARK first hit the tube. I
said I didn't look at Cain and believe he was Superman.
Of course you know, that meant war. The ladies on the list really flew to DC's
defense, reinforcing my belief that looking good in America carries big
dividends. As a result, I write this next paragraph with some trepidation.
Recently, a collection of LOIS AND CLARK paperbacks have been issued. Although
I haven't read them yet, I wanna complain briefly about the back cover of one
(Need a life? Not me). On it, Dean Cain is shown in droopy boots,
Brobdingnagian S symbol, and incorrect belt buckle. Now, while I think this
was from the first season, and somebody on the show does appear to have
straightened this out, I wondered what Dean Cain looked like today in the suit.
I haven't watched in some time.
Regardless, standing there, a deeper thought hit me as I stood looking at Cain
in the drooping boots, and too-large S symbol. Superman is no longer the lofty
guy over whom women have catfights on the covers of magazines. Instead, he's a
lot more realistic. Oh, sure, he can still fly, lift prodigious weights, and
not be hurt by most forces that give Joe and Jane Public pause. Yes, these
considerations set him above everyone else on the Earth and allow him to keep
his stage name, but the early stories of Superman as provided by Joe and Jerry
were male geek fantasies, the sort of tale every boy ever scared to talk to
girls, or strong armed out of his milk money could tell. Superman was a
fantasy figure then, and he is this today, but some of the fantasy has changed.
Superman has grown a whole lot. He has evolved with his audience and what
they want to see:
Still muscular, he is now a fashionably long haired sensitive guy who gets
involved with one woman and works on it (Anyone who is actually in a
relationship will tell you, that really is a job for Superman) because he
recognizes his own needs.
How did he get this way? Well, *we* changed, *we* matured. Sure, as we grow
up we still face bullies, and have problems talking to the opposite sex, but we
have advanced. I have a theory that Superman had something to do with it, too.
Okay, now stay with me on this one. Superman was/is a fantasy figure, right?
He was spawned out of two guys (probably) universal inadequacies. He dealt
with his creators' fears in ways they wished they could have. Who among us
hasn't wanted to pick up a car and fling it when the driver showed no respect
for us as pedestrians? (ACTION #1).
So what if some portion of the audience consciously or unconsciously recognized
these factors and addressed them in less super terms? Just by admitting the
presence of such feelings we have a chance at understanding them.
With other creators taking over, his adventures have reflected the times in
which his tales were being written. As each tale addressed the feelings of the
day, the audience got the chance to understand themselves a little better.
As originally envisioned by Joe and Jerry, Superman was a hard nose. Today,
years after the fact, he has become a true Superman, a capable guy who tries
hard to do the right thing.
It's a curious cycle. We created him, we watch him, he grows and takes us with
him to the next level.
The above is either remotely profound or utter nonsense. In either case, my
job here is done.
Away.
And Who Disguised As... Is Copyright 1996 by J.D. Rummel. Reprinting or
reproduction in any format is illegal without the written permission of the
author.
____________________________________________________________
HERE ARE FANS, AND THEN THERE ARE FOLCS
----------------------------------------
By Kemba Johnson (kembjohn@merle.acns.nwu.edu)
(Reprinted with permission)
Amy Roos isn't very fanatical at all. Yet, every Sunday night as the credits
roll at the end of LOIS AND CLARK: THE NEW ADVENTURES OF SUPERMAN, she switches
her attention to her other screen -- the computer's.
In this electronic disembodiment her keyboard becomes her voice and "Peace" her
name. Here on the Inter Relay Chat, she "talks" on-line with fellow FoLCs or
Fans of LOIS AND CLARK, a loyal following of the fantasy series, in real time.
When Roos, 23, a chemistry graduate student at Northwestern University, first
discovered the LOIS AND CLARK IRC channel this summer, she thought she'd found
heaven on earth. She would spend more than 20 hours a week as "Peace"
philosophizing and conversing with up to 300 FoLCs around the world. Since
school started, she has cut her IRC time to two to three hours a week, but
Sunday nights are still sacred.
"Within five minutes (of the show's end) just floods of people sign on," Roos
says. "You can tell when it ended in different parts of the country because
whole regions will come on at once."
Welcome to the world of internet-based television fan groups, where the hard
core fantasy and science fiction aficionados of shows such as LOIS AND CLARK,
X-FILES, and VR.5 (a virtual reality series canceled in May after only 13
episodes) dwell. Here FoLCs, X-Philes, and VR5ers congregate for hours a week
at town meetings on IRC channels and listservs, and visit picture galleries of
favorite actors and libraries of series-based fan fiction on the World Wide
Web.
This is not a place for the vacuous viewer or ephemeral enthusiast. These
fans, who tape episodes to watch at least once more a week, search for the
nuances of plot and character development that they can only share with their
equally observant Net pals. "The list has changed the way I watch LOIS AND
CLARK," says Dominique Melaragni, a 22- year-old FoLC from the United Kingdom.
"I started looking out for the hidden jokes and appreciated more of the show.
Considering that someone writes those touches in, I think it's only right that
we appreciate them."
They watch these shows like English majors read the classics and theologians
study the Bible, and therefore uncover a wealth of obscure show trivia.
Average LOIS AND CLARK fans know Lois Lane drives a jeep, FoLCs know she drives
a silver Grand Jeep Cherokee. Many X-FILES fans realize Fox Mulder is well
educated, X-philes know he is an Oxford-trained psychologist. VR.5 fans know
there are 5 levels of virtual reality, the VR.5er knows number 3 is flight
simulation.
In short, this ain't your ordinary fan club. Here where interaction is faster
than snail-mail and cheaper than long distance, where information is king and
accessible to the commons, netters have taken fandom to the next level. "In a
fan club, you paid your subscription, got some tacky stuff and a quarterly
newsletter which was often out of date and that was it," Melaragni explains.
"On the Net, we get news everyday, we can put forward our own views and reply
to others before that issue is old news."
But it takes time to be timely. Two years ago Jerry Jones set-up a Net place
for X-Philes to meet-- nothing fancy, just a chat on his carrier America
Online, the equivalent of a diner on the information superhighway. These days
Jones, 29, a production manager at Disney, runs an 8,000-member cyber chain
which includes two forums, 12 weekly organized chats, three discussion folders,
an X-FILES role play and an information browsing place. Everyday he spends at
least three hours shoring up this house that his on-line identity "FoxxMulder"
built. Three hundred e-mail messages fill his box a day, most asking to be
added to the electronic mailing list for his monthly X-FILES forum update.
Jones is also a partner in a Web publishing company, DigiTek, which oversees
the X-FILES forums Web page (http://www.scifiweb.com/XFiles/xfile.html). But
thankfully his partner handles that. "I never expected it to grow into what it
has," Jones admits. "I just wanted to organize a weekly chat after the show
and it has grown to a set of forums with eight staffers."
Dedication of this magnitude often puzzles hopelessly confused loved ones who
think these devotees are prime candidates for straitjackets or have been
overtaken by some inane lust for one of the main characters. "Actually, my
family thought I was crazy often," admits Lisa Cunningham, 33, writer and
executive director of Virtual Storm, a VR5er group dedicated to the show's
return. "Crazy to get so involved, crazy to take on the responsibility."
For all the hours of on-line discussions, episode taping and line memorization,
these fans have as firm a grip on reality as they do on their mice. "They have
a life outside of their fandom," says Zoomway, a FoLC who has been researching
and writing about television for 16 years. "They let LOIS AND CLARK be part of
them and their day, but don't go to McDonald's and order a hamburger and say,
'Make it so.' In fact, the group is so varied people might have mistaken us
for some gathering of CPAs or something."
There's a method to this not-so-madness. From fantasy and science fiction
creativity springs eternal, and it takes time and dedication to gather all the
droplets, Zoomway says.
"The X-FILES and LOIS AND CLARK have one thing in common in the fact that both
take the real world and wedge the fantastic into that real world," she
explains. "Shows outside of fantasy and science fiction have their fandoms
too, such as FRIENDS, but the level of frenzy just isn't present. They may
love the show and never miss it, but it just doesn't seem to hit the same
fanaticism level. It may be that science fiction (and) fantasy gives more
latitude to themes, ideas, philosophies and the like."
So, when FOX canceled VR.5 without warning, hard core net fans entered battle
mode and formed Virtual Storm. Headed by "The Committee," which shares its
name with a secret organization on VR.5, Stormers write letters and host
on-line chats with show producers and writers to complete their mission: the
return of VR.5 to television through a FOX Tuesday Night Movie at least.
For now the movie deal is on. But anything can happen in the cold-waresque
drama being played out between the network and the Stormers. There are enough
mystery FOX informers funneling top secret information to start a virtual
branch of the CIA. But Cunningham, who has a couple of secret sources herself,
has been assured that a script is in development, and maybe soon the two sides
can seek equable peace. Until this stalemate ends, Stormers will have to rely
on on-line connections and network spies, like their self-labeled Deep Throat
who communicates through one Stormer only.
"That Stormer and I have managed to as much as figure out who the person in
question is but not why he feels the need to protect his identity," Cunningham
admits. "There has frankly been a ton of that on this campaign. Most of the
sources have wanted to remain anonymous, working through one or two Storm
connections only."
Relations between on-line fans and the powers that be, a Net fan term for
network executives and show producers, don't usually resemble international
espionage. With post-reading producers, Web-browsing writers, and cyber
chatting celebrities, net fans are headed toward true interactive television.
After the X-FILES creative team shows up at one of Jones' America Online chats,
upcoming episodes may feature X-philes' names, screen names, or lines from the
discussion, Jones says. He saw himself in an episode where his namesake, Jerry
dies after his parachute doesn't open, appropriate since Jones had told writer
Glen Morgan he'd broken his legs in a skydiving accident.
"Glen Morgan once said that when he was writing an episode, he often thought
about what he had read in the discussion folder or seen at chats," Jones says.
"We are at a place in time where the producers, writers and directors can get
instant feedback on their show. Never before have the fans had such access."
Or vice versa. Once a week on the set of LOIS AND CLARK actors and producers
huddle around a stack of papers. It's not the script, but the week's
highlights from FoLC postings. Like prayers, FoLCs' musings, likes and
dislikes have made their way to the only people who can answer them. This
dialogue continues more directly on the IRC where show stars and producers,
including Teri Hatcher, who plays Lois Lane, and K Callan, who plays Martha
Kent, have been known to stop by for a chat.
"The fans generally are treated better by the powers that be of LOIS AND CLARK
than any show I can think of in recent memory and that has been mutually
beneficial for both sides," Zoomway says. "Listening to the fans and giving
them what they want, in turn, allowed the network and December 3rd Productions
see that the Net FoLC simply seem to be a reflection of the larger audience out
there."
Or more like a subculture of the larger audience. In this world of acronyms,
esoteric references, and inside jokes the newbie or new person in the Net group
may feel more than a little confused during heated discussions.
This is where LCWS (LOIS AND CLARK Withdrawal Syndrome) is a serious affliction
which may be remedied by writing fanfic (fan fiction) or watching old eps
(episodes). Where anger over the lack of WAFFs (warm and fuzzy feelings) in an
episode should be taken TPTB (to the powers that be). Where ROTFL (rolling on
the floor laughing) at one of the gutterisms (referring to metaphorical place
where FoLCs can discuss Lois and Clark's sexual relationship) in Zoomie's
(Zoomway's) posts is common.
"There is a definite FoLC culture," Melaragni says. "I find myself using the
terms WAFFy and ROTFL because they're so descriptive. The list is a living
entity. I find myself LOLing (laughing out loud) at some of the posts, though
if someone asks what I'm laughing at, I can't explain because to them it
wouldn't be funny. They don't know the history and context of it."
This is where groups pen top ten lists, drinking games, and holiday jingles
based on their shows. Here X-philes complain about UST (unresolved sexual
tension) between the lead characters, Mulder and Scully; Stormers rely on DT
(Deep Throat) for the latest info; and FoLCs protest the stupid uses of green
and red K (kryptonite).
In an environment where people type as fast as they think and fans share an
important hobby, unexplained acronyms and references form a Net community
specific to each show.
"There is indeed a subculture at work here," Cunningham says. "We have a large
variety of nicknames and abbreviations -- so much so in fact there is a
breakdown in our nine-part FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions), like references to
the various levels of virtual reality without explanation, abbreviations or
shortened versions of episode names."
But cyber connections are not enough. Zoomway's August journey led her to a
Burbank Holiday Inn where she met people she knew only from typed words on her
computer screen or, in some cases, those spoken on the phone.
As she stepped onto the elevator, familiar voices caught her ear. "I didn't
say who I was, I was just having fun," Zoomway admits. "Something must have
clicked with them though, because about five minutes later, they were knocking
on my hotel door."
The FoLCFest had begun.
"How dumb was she?" screamed over 70 FoLCs in unison with the villain loved for
taunting Lois Lane's ignorance of Clark Kent's secret identity. During the
night the group sat crammed into a suite watching homemade videos of LOIS AND
CLARK set to music and fingering through presents for the show's cast and crew.
The next day the pilgrimage ended in the FoLC metropolitan Mecca in Warner
Bros. studios where they met the powers that be and the show's stars. "We were
literally roaming the streets of Metropolis," Zoomway says. "We walked all
through Clark's apartment and even spun the wine rack hiding his Superman
costumes, and stood on his balcony where he daydreamed about being with Lois in
'The Phoenix.'"
But in general Net meetings are more about connecting off-line with names from
computer screens than with the stars on television ones. Most FoLCFests and
Stormer soirees are small, intimate gatherings focused on devotees talking to
each other. They take place in fans' homes or in public where Clark Kent or
Sydney Bloom on VR.5 don't stop by unless captured in the thoughts of fans or
on their video tapes.
Cunningham, whose friends don't believe the Net can snag real friendship, has
formed several close relationships, including a writing partnership, with
fellow Stormers and Committee members.
"Now I am the first to admit that the Net can be misleading -- people can be
what they want," she says. "But in most cases, over time you will come to know
the true person on the other end of the computer, so to speak. I became very
close to a few people in the group which certainly motivated continued
participation, even at the worst of times, as they were there to encourage, to
guilt-trip, and to hold my hand or offer a hug when it was needed."
It's into this cyber Shangri-La that Roos signs-on every Sunday night as
"Peace." This place where the views are free and the friendships are
priceless. Where the sister of a FoLC logged-on the IRC to tell the group that
the FoLC was comatose after an automobile accident. But that courtesy makes
sense.
"She thought we would want to know," Roos says. "It's like calling relatives."
____________________________________________________________
THE MAILBAG
-----------
KC Responses are indented and begun with ****
=================================================
From: David Thomas Chappell (dtc@acpub.duke.edu)
In KC #25, Jack Grimes (LBMGMD@aol.com) wrote a letter about which possible
upcoming Superman comic issues could include a major event such as the wedding
of Lois and Clark. While it has become standard fare in comics to have major
events on "anniversary numbers," I would like to challenge the entire
assumption. First off, the entire idea that numbers which are multiples of 10
or 25 are special is merely a human invention based on the fact that we have 5
fingers per hand and 10 fingers total. Nothing about the universe favors 10 or
25 to make those comic stories inherently special. Although I can partially
forgive the idea of those stories being a little nicer, I think the industry
has gone far overboard. Now, every time a comic book hits some special number,
they've got to have some mega story-arc begin or end on that issue. With
Superman, the problem is compounded because there are 4 1/4 regular titles and
thus 4.25 times as many special issues. The problem of the creators forcing
too many special stories can lead to things such as the generally-disfavored
"Death of Clark Kent" and "Trial of Superman" arcs: were there no special
issues involved, I suspect that the stories would neither have been hyped up so
much nor dragged on so long. Thus, I prefer a return to the days when issue
#25 is no different than any other and #100 is just a long story with a
guest-artist cover and no forced special events. OTOH, I must point out in
defense of the industry standard that it was such thinking that led to the
Death and Return of Superman, so at times it does come out good. However, even
those who love big events and long involved stories will probably agree that
too many "anniversary" issues have unnecessary enhanced covers that merely
drive up the price. The creators' goals are to drive up sales, but they can do
that without an expensive book with a story that is forced to be special.
Instead, concentrate on the story and the art, and the fans will follow rather
than depart.
=================================================
From: Cole Odell (coleo@Biggs-Gilmore.com)
Laurel Kent spent the majority of her time at the Legion Academy and in no way
that I can discern ever "filled in" for Supergirl -- after Crisis, and before
Giffen started Legion v4, there were no Super-Surrogates. I can confirm the
Superboy/LSH 230 appearance; pre-Crisis, Laurel was most definitely Superman's
descendant, who had only his invulnerability as a power -- in a Levitz annual
she is shot with a Kryptonite bullet -- post-Crisis the Superman relation is
relegated to myth, and she is a sleeper robot, contradicting the previous
continuity's story where she bled real blood. Again, she was never more than a
minor supporting character with no discernible connection to Supergirl in any
of her various forms.
**** Perhaps my use of "filled the gap left by Supergirl" was incorrect.
However, in regards to David's original column, the simple fact that
Laurel Kent was a super-powered female tied to the Superman mythos
warranted her inclusion. In that sense, she *was* a super-girl of sorts.
Also, the word "contradict" is generally improper when applied as above.
Since CRISIS revamped almost all of DC's continuity, a more appropriate
word would be "retcon" or "revamp". But of course, that's a whole
'nother bag of worms! :)
=================================================
Keep your letters and comments coming! Until next month, keep believing
that at a man can fly!
-- Jeff Sykes
____________________________________________________________
REVIEWS
-------
Ratings Panelists:
AW: Anatole Wilson KM: Ken McKee VV: Vic Vitek
DS: Dick Sidbury MC: Matt Combes WN: William J Nixon
JS: Jeff Sykes RG: Rene' Gobeyn
As always, the first rating given after the average is that of the reviewer.
The average rating given for each book may correspond to a larger sample
of ratings than what is printed following the average.
THE "TRIANGLE" TITLES:
---------------------
Uniform Credits:
Colorist: Glenn Whitmore
Separator: Digital Chameleon
Assistant Editor: Mike McAvennie
Editor: KC Carlson
24. SUPERMAN #113, "Secrets"
Writer: Dan Jurgens
Art: Ron Frenz and Joe Rubinstein
Letters: John Costanza
Cover: Ron Frenz, Joe Rubinstein, and Patrick Martin
July 1996
$1.95 US/$2.75 CAN
RATINGS:
Average: 3.0/5.0 Shields
KM: 2.0 Shields
MC: 3.5 Shields - An average ish. I thought for sure someone would get the
wrong idea with Lois's note about "C. marrying L.L." I thought
perhaps someone would confuse all of it up ... with all the L.L.s
around, and Clark and Contessa both bearing the C. initial. Good
art by Frenz, good writing by Jurgens. I'm curious about the new
S.T.A.R. Labs director Thompson and his ulterior motives.
DS: 3.5 Shields - Lois is a reporter again, just like the good old days.
JS: 4.0 Shields - Gorgeous splash on pages 2 and 3! Frenz and Rubinstein are
doing a phenomenal job with this book. Though why were Doc Parasite
and Brawl on the cover? Jurgens deftly handles the myriad subplots
going on in the Super-books -- we're well on the way back to a level
of story complexity not seen since the years before Doomsday.
VV: 2.0 Shields - Let's see. We have Bibbo, JO/Cat Grant, Ron Troupe/Lucy
Lane, Alpha Centurion, and Lori Lemaris subplots going, and a Lord
Satanus subplot hanging out. What do we need? MORE SUBPLOTS! I
don't think so. So, let's have a STAR Labs subplot and a Perry White
subplot added to the mix. I guess that means Emil Hamilton and Maggie
Sawyer are due up next. Anyway, the Lois part of the story is good,
and Supes does his Monster-of-the-Week battle (hohum). At least the
Lex/Contessa subplot is moving along and heading for a peak (although
not the finale).
SMALLVILLE
The Kents are suddenly awakened from an early morning slumber by their super
son, who is working hard plowing out the back forty. He tells his folks that
it is time to get on with his life and quit "moping around like a lovesick
puppy." In spite of his joyous facade, Martha doesn't buy it. She knows Clark
is deeply hurt by the loss of Lois.
METROPOLIS
Jimmy knocks on the door of Lois' apartment with a peace offering of bagels and
coffee. Lori, dressed in a bathrobe, nearly scares him out of his skin when
she answers the door. Sheesh, does that babe live in the bathtub?
LEXCORP EXECUTIVE SUITE
The ravishingly beautiful, sophisticated, always debonair, refined, and oh-so
charming Contessa Erica Alexandra Del Portenza is being pampered by her deaf
eunuchs (okay, so I'm being presumptuous) while dear sweet Dmitri displays his
painting of his boss/taskmaster/master. She tells him it is exquisite and
sends him off to the bakery to check on the wedding cake. Ouch! Watch out for
her claws!
CARLISLE'S BAKERY
Meanwhile, Lois has already arrived at the bakery disguised as Contessa's
executive assistant. She looks pretty good as a bleached blonde. She finds
the wedding cake with figures of the bride and groom on top, but the grooms
face is not finished. "Who is this mystery man?" she asks herself. An
unexpected disturbance quickly sends Lois outside a nearby window. She
discovers that Contessa's mysterious husband-to-be is none other than Lex
Luthor.
THE DAILY PLANET
Clark tells Lois that even though the engagement has been broken off they can
still be friends...right? Lois hastily agrees and tries to tell Clark her big
news. Unfortunately, he has to rush off to find out what sort of trouble is
brewing at S.T.A.R. Labs. Lois decides to leave Clark a note on his desk about
what she has discovered.
S.T.A.R. LABS
Superman is intercepted by the new director of S.T.A.R. Labs, Burton Thompson,
before he can find the cause of the disturbance. He ignores Thompson's order
to evacuate the premises and quickly flies underground, only to come
face-to-face with a really ugly looking monster -- evidently one of S.T.A.R.
Labs' escaping residents. A brief struggle renders the creature helpless;
Superman suddenly realizes he can feel emotions coming from the creature. But
before he can find a way to communicate with him, the creature is knocked
unconscious by Thompson. Superman doesn't have time to unravel this mystery
due to another matter, but he promises to see Thompson at a later time.
THE DAILY PLANET
Jimmy accidentally spills coffee on Clark's desk and finds the note left by
Lois. Being the dedicated friend that he is to Lois and Clark, he does the
only honorable thing he can think of...he steals it, leaving Clark to wonder if
Lois really left the note.
In a word, this story *stunk!* Come on, am I suppose to believe that Lois, who
has basically suspended all communication with Clark, now wants to share her
biggest story with him? And when Clark doesn't have time to talk with her she
LEAVES HIM A NOTE ON HIS DESK???? Lois wouldn't share this story with anyone.
She sure isn't going to just leave Clark a note where anyone could walk by and
pick it up. E-mail would have been the answer, and it would have been more
believable if Jimmy had been trying to hack his way through Clark's computer
looking for information.
The artwork saved this issue even though the cover was pretty lame.
Ken McKee (stdkrm01@shsu.edu)
=====================================================
25. SUPERMAN: THE MAN OF TOMORROW #5, "To Have and to Hold?"
Writer: Roger Stern
Art: Tom Grummett and Brett Breeding
Letterer: John Costanza
Cover: Tom Grummett, Brett Breeding, and Patrick Martin
Summer 1996
$1.95 US/$2.75 CAN
RATINGS:
Average: 3.9/5.0 Shields
RG: Story: 4.0 Shields - Too much angst, but a great Luthor plot twist.
Art: 4.5 Shields - Excellent backgrounds and fine detailing add
element of depth.
MC: 4.3 Shields - Very nicely done. The whole wedding setup sure had me
fooled. I also enjoyed looking in on Clark's "sweet" version of
apprehending Lex Luthor, and his despair over Lex and Contessa
getting married, when it should be him and Lois.
JS: 4.0 Shields - Now *this* is classic Lex Luthor. Brilliant, conniving,
and thinking *way* ahead of the authorities. Good to have him back!
I don't know about this use of Superman as the bad cop, although it
certainly seemed to work well. Wonderful art, but I still prefer
Hazlewood inking Grummett. Nice misdirection with the cover.
AW: 3.0 Shields - Luthor's wedding should have been a bigger deal somehow.
Good art, though.
VV: 4.0 Shields - It is nice to see Superman have to use his brains instead
of his strength for a change. It is also good to have him outsmarted
at the end and try to pull a CYA with the help of his friends and law
enforcement officials. Some good misdirection on Stern's part as
well with the radar.
What can I say? Roger Stern has produced yet another great Superman/Luthor
story. I've missed the by-play between these two, and nobody can play them off
against each other the way Stern does. I can't give too much detail in the
story without tipping the surprise <well, they tried> ending, but I will say
that the setup and presentation were classic Luthor, and far and away the best
I've seen lately.
I'm a bit depressed about the way the Contessa is taking a back seat to Luthor
now that they are together. When she was first introduced I had high hopes of
her being a "Luthor" class manipulator, but I've seen little of that lately.
She does have the capability of holding her own against Luthor as seen in
recent issues, but I had hopes she would pit herself against Kal-El, not
Luthor. Oh well, perhaps she and Lex will start looking at Supes and
Metropolis as a game board as each tries to gain the advantage over the other.
The artwork leaves little to be desired, Grummett and Breeding are my favorite
Superman artists. They work off each other so well it's almost impossible to
tell where one leaves off and the other begins. The superb layouts, fine
detailing, and well executed backgrounds were perfect for this story.
Luthor and the Contessa are getting married. While it is supposed to be a
secret, Lois has gotten wind of it and has alerted the police, and tried to
alert Superman. Thanks to Jimmy's intercepting a note she left for Clark (see
SUPERMAN #113), Superman nearly arrives late at the bakery where the wedding
cake was made. No matter, since Luthor has escaped the authorities yet again.
We are also beginning to see a sneakier side of Jimmy. I suspect that Cat is
due to have a few words with Jimmy about some of his recent activities.
After coordinating with the Metropolis SCU and the FBI, Lois, Superman, and
Jimmy are all on their way to the Bahamas to intercept the Lexcorp yacht, where
the wedding is taking place. When Superman tries to intercept the yacht, he is
met by Team Luthor. After a *very* brief fight, Superman and the law crash the
wedding on the yacht, springing Luthor's trap in full sight of Jimmy in the GBS
news copter. Score another one for Luthor and the Contessa.
Rene' Gobeyn (gobeyn@kodak.com)
=====================================================
26. ADVENTURES OF SUPERMAN #536, "Identity Crisis, Chapter One: Cages"
Writers: Tom Peyer and Mark Waid
Pencils: Chris Renaud, Curt Swan, Steven Butler, and Chris Marrinan
Inks: Dick Giordano and Pam Eklund
Letterer: Albert De Guzman
Cover: Alan Davis, Mark Farmer, and Patrick Martin
July 1996
$1.95 US/$2.75 CAN
RATINGS:
Average: 3.3/5.0 Shields
AW: 2.0 Shields - Okay start for the story, but the shallow treatment of
subjects like shock therapy were disturbing.
MC: 4.9 Shields - Boy, did I love this! The artwork was just great -- it was
nice to take a break from Immonen's work for an ish. Pages 17 and 20
were my absolute favorites. I've been looking forward to this guest
creative team idea since it was announced, and by looking at the
first issue of it, I'm definitely not disappointed.
DS: 3.75 Shields - I was puzzled by Clark's claim in AOS 536 that the
reason for his breakup with Lois was because of his overly
protective nature. It looks like the writers were watching
LOIS AND CLARK instead of reading the Superman books.
JS: 3.0 Shields - Intriguing beginning to the story by Peyer and Waid, but
the pacing seemed a bit slow. I also think four different pencillers
was a mistake. The differences between artists was vividly
noticeable and distracting.
VV: 3.0 Shields - Chas' doctor's behavior is the key to taking some points
off, but overall a nice setup for the spring "break" for the regular
Super team.
With the beginning of this latest Brainiac story, the Superman teams tread on
some serious ground -- treatment of psychiatric patients. I have to say, it
doesn't look like they did their research, which greatly affected my view of
this story.
First, let me congratulate the team on the first three pages, which at least
starts to answer my request of two months ago, when I asked that Superman be
allowed to be a hero. It's a small incident -- Superman stops a group of kids
from spray-painting a bridge, and gives one girl some good advice about staying
out of trouble and being herself.
Then we come to the main story. For reasons beyond me, Brainiac has not only
been transferred from prison to a mental hospital, but he is also being held
with only minor restraints. Naturally, he quickly subdues the doctor.
Then we see a boy who thinks he's Superman, and his brutal treatment by two
stereotypically sadistic aides.
Brainiac sets a trap for Superman, and when Superman arrives, the great brain
switcheroo goes into effect: Superman's brain is in the boy's body, the boy's
mind is in Brainiac's body, and Brainiac's mind is in Superman's body. The two
aides take the opportunity to beat the kid up some more, and then "Superman"
leaves.
In the final scene, the psychologist orders shock treatment for the
boy/Superman, and the guards gleefully drag him off.
If we can assume the doctor is still under Brainiac's control, this last scene
might make some sense. Otherwise, the rapidity of the decision and its
execution makes no sense. Such treatments are not so casual (we're talking
about burning off some brain cells here); doesn't the boy have some legal
guardians somewhere?
I'm not saying that this issue should have been a treatise on mental health
care in this country. I do think, however, that for the sake of convenience,
the team took some superficial stereotypes of mental hospitals, hoping that
their readers wouldn't give it too much thought.
In the art department, none of the art was particularly outstanding, but the
team did an adequate job.
Anatole Wilson (awilson@vnet.ibm.com)
=====================================================
27. ACTION COMICS #723, "Identity Crisis II: Keys"
Writers: Tom Peyer and Mark Waid
Pencils: Chris Renaud, Curt Swan, Chris Marrinan, and Steven Butler
Inks: Dick Giordano and Pam Eklund
Letterer: Phil Felix
Cover: Dave Johnson and Patrick Martin
July 1996
$1.95 US/$2.75 CAN
RATINGS:
Average: 4.0/5.0 Shields
WN: 4.0 Shields - Brainiac tests his new powers while Superman remains
trapped in Chas' body. Great art and a compelling storyline.
MC: 4.7 Shields - *Loved* the cover. The only way that could've been better
is if they had just removed the excess hair on the right side of his
head.... Anyways, the story has certainly gotten intriguing. I love
how Peyer and Waid have made it so hard for Superman to be able to
get people to figure out that he really *is* Superman. I'm glad the
aides got their dues (not having one killed, but getting fired); they
were making me angry at their treatment of the patients, especially
Chas.
DS: 3.75 Shields
JS: 3.5 Shields - A little better pacing than part 1, as Brainiac's plan gets
set into motion. The art was just a bit smoother, but there's still
a big difference between artists.
VV: 4.0 Shields - It is nice to see Superman have to use his brains instead
of strength for a change. A little HOME ALONE-ish, with stereotypes
as "orderlies", but a good issue overall. Yes, the Clark/Lois story
is more-or-less on hold; on the other hand, it *should* be in an arc
like this.
A striking cover by Dave Johnson colored by Patrick Martin kicks off this issue
as Identity Crisis hits part two. "Super"-Brainiac is testing the limits of
his new powers while Clark/Chas remains in Lovelace Psychiatric hospital.
Brainiac's clever twist in swapping Superman into a psychiatric patient who
believed he was Superman has serious consequences. Subjected to shock
treatments and bullied by thuggish aides, Clark is in a situation where he has
no power. A sobering change for Superman, but he is resilient and not alone.
Aminah, a fellow patient is on his side. She shows him her secret route to the
roof, where she dreams of the world outside. Their reverie is interrupted by
James and Eric, whisky drinking orderlies who chase them back inside. These
guys are serious malcontents who delight in preying on the weak.
In Metropolis, Brainiac rescues Lois. Superman seems distant with her and Lois
ascribes his cold, unfeeling looks to their recent history. Brainiac tests out
his x-ray vision using Lois as his subject.
Clark hits on a plan to escape from Lovelace by enlisting Lois' aid. He makes
a call to her from Doc Guinness' office. Aminah provides a burst of song to
divert the good doctor.
Brainiac explores the South Pacific with the help of his super-senses.
Superman's brain, though, cannot contain all of the knowledge Brainiac is
gathering. He knows he needs to break through the finite barrier of Superman's
brain to move forward with his new freedom -- and his cruel intent.
At Lovelace that evening, Lois arrives in the rain. Clark has James and Eric
chase him to down to Doc Guinness' office where Lois is waiting. The Doc
pronounces them ex-therapy aides, although there is a distinct impression that
he turns a blind eye to their unorthodox practices. Clark realizes the
jeopardy he could place Lois in, if Brainiac finds out, and fakes a seizure to
avoid talking to her.
Brainiac has built a huge 'brain dome' on Mount Everest. To enact his plan,
though, he needs a way to access peoples minds, to find the 'portal to their
souls'. He uses his super-senses to discover ... television. A brilliant page
shows the pervasive influence of television across the globe from the President
and sharp political satire to a popular lifeguard program watched by tribal
people. Most frightening, though, is the face of Superman grinning with
malevolent glee. He arranges with WGBS to make a live address to Metropolis.
Clark sees the ad for the broadcast and decides to break out of Lovelace. He
takes Aminah's route to the roof but is chased by Eric and James. In an
unfortunate mix of drink, rain, and naked rage, James runs at Clark, slips and
slides off the roof. The security guard sees Chas/Clark on the roof and checks
James, lying face down on the ground. James is dead. The Guard reports an
inmate on the loose, adding, an inmate who is a killer.
Identity Crisis is shaping up to be a classic Superman tale. Strong art, great
writing, and a mind-blowing plot combine to make this compulsive reading. With
just a change of expression or look, Brainiac's Superman is a horror to behold.
It's interesting to take a walk on the other side though and to see the way
the artists render a Superman out of control (and out of his mind). I am
looking forward to the final installments to see how it's all resolved.
William J Nixon (W.J.Nixon@lib.gla.ac.uk)
____________________________________________________________
THE "TRIANGLE" TITLES (cont):
----------------------------
28. SUPERMAN: THE MAN OF STEEL #58, "Identity Crisis III: Snares"
Writers: Tom Peyer and Mark Waid
Pencils: Chris Renaud, Curt Swan, Steven Butler, and Chris Marrinan
Inks: Dick Giordano and Pam Eklund
Letterer: Phil Felix
Cover: Howard Chaykin and Patrick Martin
July 1996
$1.95 US/$2.75 CAN
RATINGS:
Average: 4.1/5.0 Shields
MC: 4.9 Shields - I've noticed that the issues since this arc began have had
covers that pertain to nothing within the book -- and I love that.
I also enjoyed the fact that they took the title off again to make
way for more space for the art on the cover. As I said before, this
whole plot line is intriguing.
DS: 3.75 Shields - I like the idea of taking one team and having it do an
entire story. That's what the Superman books should be doing.
On the other hand I do not like the idea of so many artists that
the work changes from page to page instead of book to book. But
any excuse to get Curt Swan back on Superman is good.
JS: 3.8 Shields - Loved Curt Swan's Supergirl, and the art flowed even more
smoothly than before. Also enjoyed the secret identity and traffic
jam scenes! Even without the regular subplots, this was a pretty
busy issue.
VV: 4.0 Shields - The plot is moving along nicely, although I do wonder if
anyone outside Metropolis was affected if they saw the show. And the
drivers stuck outside because of "another" force field was a great
scene! I am really enjoying this arc -- good characterization of
Superman *and* Lois *and* Supergirl, in my opinion.
Lois is left wondering if there might have been some kind of reason that the
happenings in the last issue...well...happened. She can't shake the feeling
that the way Chas looked at her, and the way Superman glared at her and flew
off without a word, had some kind of significance. In her search for an
answer, she's interrupted by the new "flirt" in her life -- Seely. Perry gets
in an uproar when Lois asks Seely if he's heard of Lovelace Psychiatric
Institute; it seems she's been ignorant of the story on the front page of the
latest edition of the Daily Planet.
After reading about Brainiac's attempts to levitate and fool the Man of Steel,
Lois puts two and two together and comes up with the possibility that
maybe...just maybe...there's a connection between Clark acting strange and Chas
acting like Superman. After calling Lovelace to check on Chas, she discovers
that he's escaped, and according to them, killed an aide in the process.
Meanwhile, Clark, in Chas' body, roams around outside Metropolis, and saunters
into a hole-in-the-wall restaurant where many prepare to hear Superman's
"speech" to the public. In the middle of the address, Brainiac cuts off all
communications from Metropolis, and effectively seals the city off from the
outside world. Not knowing of Brainiac's devious plan, the news moves on to
report on the escaping of a fugitive from Lovelace...a 15-year old named Chas
Cassidy. The attendees in the restaurant whip around, expecting to find the
orange-haired, freckle-faced youngster who they remember entering the
establishment, but instead find an orange-haired, freckle-faced youngster with
slicked-back hair and glasses. Guess Clark is good at that, no matter *what*
form, huh?
Back in Metropolis, Brainiac has overloaded the residents' minds with
information, causing them to spit out random data and draw equations on
everything they find (wow...here's a graffiti people might not mind). Brainiac
has a short interaction with Supergirl, and convinces her that he's really
Superman, and that Brainiac has controlled his mind. To keep her from the same
fate, he asks her to leave, and she does.
Clark/Chas navigates his way into Metropolis through the sewer system, and
discovers the people in the state Brainiac has put them in -- as he says, "so
smart they're stupid." He makes his way to the Daily Planet building,
discovering that everyone he knows, even Perry, have been subjected to the
overflow of data. He then discovers what it is that has done this: Brainiac's
monumental structure atop the Lexcorp building.
I'm really enjoying this whole "Identity Crisis" plot line. I'm always for
guest artists trying out their wares on the Supes titles, and although I can't
tell who did what pages in these books (except Swan), I really think they look
great. Peyer and Waid have also done a great job writing this 4-issue mini
epic, and I noticed there are a lot fewer thought balloons describing every
little thing that Superman (or anybody else, for that matter) thinks about or
is in the process of doing -- that's good. It really annoys me when we're told
*in detail* what we can plainly see on paper.
I wondered a bit as to how Brainiac (in Superman's body) and Supergirl suddenly
appeared *inside* the force field around Metropolis one page after they were
shown *outside* the field, and when Supergirl had no success in penetrating the
field with her psychokinesis blasts. A small but nonetheless noticeable plot
hole in the story.
And I'm not sure exactly who might have this information, if it can be found in
a Who's Who or from a pro, but I am certain that Superman cannot fly from Mt.
Everest to Metropolis, New Troy, in under a second. I mean, really now, even
with Brainiac's mind in there -- which shouldn't make much of a difference in
his strength/speed/powers anyway -- Superman is just *not that fast.* If he
is, he's definitely never done it before; we've seen the "fly faster than ever
before!" line in the comics one too many times, and it definitely isn't that
fast. Then again, in the Superman movies...ah, well, it's just a small fact.
Guess I'll live withit.
Matt Combes (NandoX@aol.com)
=====================================================
OTHER SUPER-TITLES:
------------------
SUPERBOY #29, "Imminent Eruption!" (Losin' It: Part 5 of 6)
Writers: Karl Kesel and Steve Mattsson
Penciller: Staz Johnson
Inkers: Doug Hazlewood and Dan Davis
Colorist: Tom McCraw
Lettering: Richard Starkings and Comicraft
Assistant Editor: Chris Duffy
Editor: Frank Pittarese
Cover: Tom Grummett and Karl Kesel
July 1996
$1.95 US/$2.75 CAN
RATINGS:
Average: 3.0/5.0 Shields
JS: 3.5 Shields - Decent art, mostly good story.
MC: 2.9 Shields - I haven't been following SUPERBOY lately. I know about his
gal pal, Knockout, and I'm really not enjoying her character. While
I am a Superboy fan, it's just because the storylines in the book
don't excite me (that and my seeming lack of money) that I don't pick
it up. Perhaps if they made a big change happen, it might perk my
interest enough to get this title regularly
DS: 2.5 Shields - This is probably an homage to some silver age villain whom
I've never heard of, but the story is just plain dull. The Kid is
not very interesting.
AW: 2.5 Shields - Corny villain, and I didn't believe Superboy's reaction at
the end -- a little too extreme.
VV: 3.5 Shields - only for the facts that (a) even Superboy might be getting a
glimmer of Knockout's evil, and (b) the arc is mercifully coming to an
end. I don't know if these issues were planned to set up the Kid for
Marz' run, to give him a harder edge, or whatever. It should be
interesting to contrast the Marz Superboy with Kesel's in SATR.
I had one major problem with this story. But we'll get there later. First the
art. Staz Johnson is no Tom Grummett, but he's certainly light years beyond
the garbage we were given last issue. A lot of background detail and very
clean inking make this issue much more easy to look at than the previous one.
To the story. As we've seen through the first four parts of the story, a major
undersea volcano eruption has produced a new island. Scientists finally land
on the island to find that the temperature is unnaturally comfortable and that
there are no toxic gases. Then they're surprised by golden robots bursting out
from within the island.
Using newly developed control of his tactile telekinesis, Superboy stops some
of a gang of bank robbers, while Knockout stops the rest of the gang via a
head-on collision. Knockout vs. a car -- no contest. But when Superboy
arrives on the scene, he finds Knockout sitting on the hood of the demolished
car, reading the newspaper -- surrounded by seriously injured gang members.
You'd think the boy would begin to notice the girl's callous disregard for
life...
Meanwhile, the Hawaii SCU has heightened its preparations for taking down
Knockout and the Kid. Dubbilex walks into the training area, but he doesn't
hear Makoa's mental warning and gets pelted by paint bullets. Not sure where
they're heading with his loss of powers, but I have to wonder if it's a parting
gift to Marz and company.
Having read about the scientists, Knockout takes Superboy to the new island,
gleefully announcing how it reminds her of Apokolips. Sick girl, huh? Before
they can get to "the final lesson," they are set upon by the golden robots.
During the ridiculously short fight, Knockout again refers to "the final
lesson." It seems to me that she is attempting to mold Superboy into someone
to take the place of the Furies in her life. The final lesson seems to involve
both sex and violence, a hallmark of the Furies. After the fight is over, out
pops Victor Volcanum, the island's creator.
In another part of the island, the scientists have been allowed to examine
artifacts, but one gets overeager and injures himself trying to get into a room
he shouldn't be in. This leaves a small pool of blood, and we all know that'll
figure in again. He is taken to get medical attention. The others, which we
now discover includes Tana Moon, are taken to a safer area.
Volcanum, after reassuring a very suspicious Superboy that the scientists are
well, treats Superboy and Knockout to his origin. A balloonist from the 19th
century, Volcanum had fallen into the cone of a volcano and become marooned in
a vast underworld. It was here that he began drinking lava, which has
sustained him for so long! In the underworld, he discovered a robot and got it
into working condition, and it in turn built others. They spent the following
years exploring the underworld. At this point, Knockout reveals that the
robots are antique versions of Apokoliptian follower drones.
HOLD THE PHONE! We seem to have glossed completely over this in the book, but
does it disturb anyone else to know that there's a cache of Apokoliptian
technology at the center of the Earth!? I think Superboy should, at the very
least, be wondering how this technology got there! I can't believe that Kesel
would introduce something like this without a future purpose, so I believe
we'll be hearing more about this in the future.
Impatient, Superboy again demands to see the scientists. Volcanum, himself put
out by Superboy's lack of decorum, angrily points the Kid in the right
direction. As soon as Superboy leaves the room, Knockout makes a move on
Volcanum, catching him quite a bit of guard. He tries to resist her powerful
feminine wiles, but it looks like it's been a long time for old Vic.
Superboy finds where the scientists were and discovers the pool of blood. (See,
told ya!) He wigs out and races back, bursting through the now closed door to
find Knockout in Volcanum's arms. Volcanum flips at Superboy's discourtesy,
but Knockout commands Superboy to "champion" her. The two boys scuffle, and
Volcanum throws one of his lava drinks in the Kid's face, but he simply TKs it
away. In a rage, Superboy lays Volcanum out and exclaims that he doesn't
deserve to live. Knockout, an evil grin on her face, urges Superboy to kill
Volcanum for her.
This ending is where I had the major problem. Let's take the worst case
scenario. Superboy believes that Volcanum has killed the scientists. Suppose
also that when he burst in on the two of them, he decided that Volcanum was
about to rape Knockout. Yeah, I know this archaic dork would have no chance of
taking advantage of Knockout, but the Kid's got jealousy and some very
questionable training working against him. So he's all worked up, and this
object of his anger fights back. I *still* don't think Superboy would even
*consider* killing the guy. I could believe the desire to start a fight, but
this is too much.
Other than this last page, the book was much better done than the recent issues
of this title have been. Kesel and Mattsson have done an excellent job in the
past two issues of showing exactly how twisted Knockout is. It's almost
certain now that the title "Losin' It" refers to the Kid's innocence. But I
certainly hope they bring the Kid to his senses real quick in the conclusion.
Jeff Sykes (sykes@ms.uky.edu)
=====================================================
STEEL #28, "The Drowning Room"
Writer: Peter J. Tomasi
Penciller: Andrew Robinson
Inkers: Jim Royal and John Dell
Colorist: Stu Chaifetz
Letterer: Pat Brosseau
Assoc. Editor: Chris Duffy
Editor: Frank Pittarese
Cover: Phil Gosier and Rich Faber
July 1996
$1.95 US/$2.75 CAN
RATINGS:
Average: 3.1/5.0 Shields
DS: 2.75 Shields - Better than last month, but my enthusiasm is still not
where it should be. I just prefer a real human hero with nobility,
which appears to be out of fashion these days.
JS: 3.5 Shields - This issue gave me some hope for the title. Watching Steel
deal with the problems of having his secret identity revealed should
be fascinating. Tomasi takes a good look at how being used against
a family member takes its toll. The guest art, however, wasn't so
good. Look forward to getting Gosier and Faber back.
Due to a computer mishap, this review is having to be rewritten. It will be
added to the web edition of this issue once it is completed.
Dick Sidbury (sidbury@cs.uofs.edu)
=====================================================
SHOWCASE '96 #6, "Supersymmetry"
Featuring the Demon in Superboy: The Animated Series
Writer: Kelly Puckett
Layouts: Mike Parobeck
Finishes: Ande Parks
Colorist: Dave Grafe
Letterer: Ken Bruzenak
Assoc. Editor: Chris Duffy
Editor: Frank Pittarese
Cover: Mike Parobeck and Howard Porter
July 1996
$2.95 US/$4.25 CAN
RATINGS:
Average: 1.9/5.0 Shields
RG: Story: 1.5 Shields - Substandard, even for what is a cartoon Superboy.
Art: 1.0 Shield - Lack of detail, two dimensional, no backgrounds.
My parents taught me that if I can't say something nice about
something, not to say anything. Well OK, since this is a review
I suppose I can say something. How about, "Avoid this book."
JS: 2.5 Shields - Liked the Parobeck/Parks art on the Superboy story, but
since I never really cared for The Demon, the story didn't do anything
for me. The Firestorm story was very well-written, but the art comes
close to ruining it. And I hope that Dan Jurgens' use of the Atom in
TEEN TITANS is more interesting than Martinez's was here.
The story is based on the "Animated Adventures of Superboy". Something that
started as a gag in the main title, but at least they made an attempt to make
the story readable. This one left me cold.
The Demon has always been one of my least favorite characters in the DC
Universe. Couple this with a truly transparent plot, and two-dimensional
artwork, and you have my entry for the worst Superman cast story of the year
(so far).
"Storm's Clearing, Part 1: Drying Out" (Part 1 of 2)
Starring Firestorm
Writer: Robert L. Washington III
Artist: Randy Duburke
Letterer: Gaspar
Editor: Ruben Diaz
No "Super" content - not rated
Firestorm is trying to break his dependence on alcohol.
"Reunion"
Starring The Atom
Writer: Tony Martinez
Penciller: Derec Aucoin
Inker: Jason Martin
Letterer: Gaspar
Colorist: Carla Feeny
Editor: Peter J. Tomasi
No "Super" content - not rated
IMHO the only decent story in the book.
Thanks to ZERO HOUR, Ray Palmer (The Atom) has been rejuvenated to the age of
17. He decides to attend his high school reunion anyway -- via his powers. He
manages to stop an old girl friend from committing suicide.
Rene' Gobeyn (gobeyn@kodak.com)
____________________________________________________________
ANNUALS AND SPECIALS:
--------------------
ADVENTURES OF SUPERMAN ANNUAL #8, "Superman Forever"
Writer: Tom Peyer
Pencillers: Derec Aucoin and Mike Collins
Inkers: Jason Martin, Karl Story, and Barb Kaalberg
Colorist: Gene D'Angelo
Separators: Digital Chameleon
Letterer: Albert De Guzman
Assoc. Editor: Mike McAvennie
Editor: KC Carlson
Cover: Jerry Ordway
1996
$2.95 US/$4.25 CAN
RATINGS:
Average: 2.7/5.0 Shields
JS: 3.3 Shields - Nice story, nice art, but not overwhelmingly so.
MC: 2.0 Shields - Ugh. None of these "Legends of the Dead Earth" annuals are
very entertaining. Dull to say the least. Art was nice, though.
DS: 3.0 Shields - Better than the Supergirl annual, but not much.
VV: 2.5 Shields - A friendly story that obeys the first law for physicians:
do no harm. Nothing exciting or earth-shattering, only a simple
message that it isn't the powers that make a Superman, but rather the
character. Hmmmm. Something that the regular books have been missing
in recent months.
Far in the future, a Coluan (Brainiac's race) and a large chunk of the long
dead Earth are taken by the Sarkons, a race of space-faring pirates. But when
the pirates begin to excavate the Earthrock, one of their slaves, Willigig,
accidentally activates a holographic message -- that left by Jor-El for his son
Kal-El many, many years ago.
Willigig eventually convinces himself that he is the Man of Tomorrow and sets
forth to free his people from the yoke of slavery. In his first act, he swoops
in, powered by a backpack rocket, and rescues Xurl Dox, the Coluan, from his
captors. Dox then proceeds to tell Willigig the true story of Kal-El. But
before he can convince Willigig that he is not truly Kryptonian, the Sarkons
recapture them both.
When the two awake, they are chained to the chunk of Earth, and the Sarkon
captain has taken Willigig's heat-vision goggles and rocket pack. He activates
the recording once again, and he then begins to burn Dox with his heat vision.
As Dox screams in pain, he reveals that the Sarkons had lied -- Willigig's
people are the natives of the planet. The Sarkons had told them that *they*
were the invading aliens, and that they had folded when the Sarkons resisted.
Willigig, suddenly realizing the truth, leaps in front of the beams, which burn
through his bindings. He knocks the captain to the ground and then activates
the jet pack. They both fly up into the air, but then Willigig retakes the
pack and allows the captain to fall to the ground. Unfortunately, the rocket
exhaust ignited the Earthrock, and Willigig must rescue Dox and the Captain,
removing them from the now-burning building.
Willigig then launches into the air, leaving a fiery trail across the sky which
spells out the message, "We're the natives! Sarkons lied." Realizing their
failure, the Sarkon leader executes the captain, and he then blasts Willigig
out of the sky. As the hero passes, he does so knowing that he has brought his
people the truth. Spurred by this selfless act, Willigig's people rise against
the Sarkons and retake their planet. And upon his return to Colu, Dox erects a
statue in memorial to Willigig -- Superman!
Tom Peyer, currently best known for his work on LEGION OF SUPER-HEROES, gives
us a nice story on the nature of heroism. When Willigig "learns of his true
heritage," he at first spurns the rest of his people, still believing the lies
told to them by the Sarkons. But as he discovers the truth about his people,
he finally also discovers the truth about Superman: "Superman ain't about where
you're born or even what your powers are. It's all in how you act." And in
his final heroic stand, he acts selflessly to bring the lies of the Sarkons
into the open, revealing the truth to his people and truly becoming a Superman.
Derec Aucoin's and Mike Collins' pencils are refreshingly simple, a throwback
to the silver age of comics. The inks get to be a little bit heavy in places,
but generally, they are very complimentary to the pencils. There are some
marked differences from page to page, as the inkers styles do not mesh well.
The art has a great bit of detail, especially in the backgrounds, and there's
never a feeling that the work was in any way hurried. This contributes to a
very clean look.
In general, this was the best stab at the "Legends of the Dead Earth" concept
that I've seen so far. But even with the quality with which the book was
produced, the story just isn't very gripping. It just kind of happens -- I
realized and appreciated the morals of the story, and I enjoyed the tale, but
there was nothing specific to point to as being outstanding.
Jeff Sykes (sykes@ms.uky.edu)
=====================================================
KINGDOM COME, Book One: Strange Visitor
By Mark Waid and Alex Ross
with Todd Klein
Painted Cover by Alex Ross
July 1996
$4.95 USA/$6.95 CAN
RATINGS:
Average: 4.7/5.0 Shields
RG: Story: 4.0 Shields - Interesting plot, terrific background.
Art: 5.0 Shields - Out of 5, I can't go higher! Beautifully detailed,
fully painted.
DS: 4.6 Shields - A very good beginning. The art is just what you'd expect
from Alex Ross, and the story has enough intrigue to fit that
category of superhero story that makes you say, "If superheroes were
real, this is how it would be."
JS: 4.8 Shields - I can't even begin to express how good this was. In fact,
if I wasn't leaving some room for the subsequent issues, this would
definitely score a 5. Hard to believe, but Ross' art here puts his
work on MARVELS to shame. And I challenge *anyone* to keep their
heart from stopping when Superman first reappears in costume!
Simply phenomenal.
VV: 5.0 Shields - Okay, so Superman isn't in much of the story. As we used to
say in college, Big Fat Hairy Deal. Incredible artwork, and a setup
that promises one of the biggest fight scenes of all time, and a ton
of characterization, extrapolation, and expectation of today's heroes
and us, the comic book readers. BTW- I am usually ambivalent about
painted art, but this stuff is *good*.
AW: 4.5 Shields - I don't agree that humanity would just give up their
aspirations because meta-humans are physically superior. What about
the arts and sciences? Otherwise, beautiful art and a well-told
story. Superman's reappearance at the end left me breathless.
What defines a hero, and where did they all go? That seems to be the question
that is being asked in opening sequences of this story. We are treated to
scenes and memories of a not-so-different world than the one to which we are
accustomed, except that the heroes we have known and loved through the years
have taken a slightly different path. That is the premise and the promise of
the Elseworlds stories.
This is the series that the Elseworlds concept was created to bring out. It
has a breath and power long missing from the comics that are being produced
today. As a series, it seems to be primarily concerned with the concepts and
definition of the hero in society, and what society could easily turn to in a
world of real super powers. We see the edges of a society, where pride in
human accomplishment, and the joy of striving to excel has been snuffed out.
Why should normal unpowered humanity strive to excel when even the weakest of
the metas can far outstrip their greatest accomplishments without even stopping
to think about it?
As the story opens to scenes of beasts and monsters in battle, the words of the
Revelations play in the background like horrible premonitions. We find that
the images are from the mind of Wesley Dodds, the golden age Sandman, whose
visions of future events drove him to acts of heroism and desperation in the
opening days of the second world war. He is dying, and trying to get people to
see the truth of his visions. He fails. If there is one ongoing message at
the beginning of this story, it is that sometimes even heroes fail.
We get a few glimpses of the effects of the battles being played out in the
streets on the lives of the common man. The damage, the pain, and the complete
devastation that they leave behind, and beneath them. It takes a staggering
tragedy to even gain their attention, but when it happens it shakes them to the
core. No one doubts that it will never be the same again. What happens, and
how, are played out as scenes from the newscasts. The effect on the lives of
the common man are reflected through the eyes of Rev. Norman McCay, the last
friend of Wesley Dodds.
After Wesley's lonely funeral, we take a walk with Norman as he journeys
through the city, dodging the debris of the meta-human battles, looking on the
remains of a humanity without hope. The current generation of metas has nearly
destroyed the ranks of the super-villains, and without them, they are left with
no one to battle save each other. They fight because that is what they do.
Battling each other without cause and without caring about the humanity they
are supposed to be protecting.
The Spectre enters the story to take Norman on a quest for justice that he
doesn't know he seeks. The first stop is what appears to be small midwestern
farm, where he comes upon this world's Superman, a defeated brooding man,
hiding from humanity and himself. Wonder Woman joins him briefly, trying to
convince him to rejoin the world and lead the heroes of his generation to try
to stop the madness. Here we learn that there was some tragedy a decade ago
where Kal lost his parents and wife. At this time he turned his back on
humanity, and when he left, the heroes of his generation lost heart. Some
retired, others continued their efforts but restricted their activities.
Others, like Superman, went into seclusion, leaving the world to the new
generation of violent heroes. Diana has come to Kal with news that a tragedy
has again struck, and that he and the older heroes are again needed. He sends
her away.
As the Spectre continues to show Norman the fate of yesterday's heroes, we
learn that many of them are still around, haunting the shadows, out of the site
of the people they serve. As he finishes the tour, Norman shows a bit of the
spark that the Spectre was looking for, just as Superman rejoins the fight for
justice, only to go up in flames.
Rene' Gobeyn (gobeyn@kodak.com)
____________________________________________________________
SUPER MERCHANDISE
-----------------
Information on Forthcoming Superman Merchandise
Assembled by Jeffery D. Sykes
The information which follows is reprinted without permission from Diamond's
PREVIEWS and is in no way meant to serve as a replacement for that magazine.
For further information on (and in many cases, pictures of) the below
merchandise, see recent issues of PREVIEWS!
ABBREVIATIONS:
-------------
FC: Full color
HC: Hardcover
PB: Paperback
PI: Inquire about price
SC: Softcover
Unless otherwise indicated, the product is from DC Comics.
Also keep in mind that dates listed are when Diamond will be able to
distribute the product in question. For some merchandise (books and toys
especially), you may be able to find the item at a retailer earlier
than this given date.
These monthly updates only list new merchandise solicited by PREVIEWS.
For a full listing of Superman-related merchandise, visit the Kryptonian
Cybernet Homepage!
____________________________________________________________
AUGUST:
------
DC VERSUS MARVEL TRADE PAPERBACK
Written by Ron Marz and Peter David
Pencilled by Dan Jurgens, Claudio Castellini, and Jose Luis Garcia-Lopez
Inked by Josef Rubinstein, Paul Neary, and Kevin Nowlan
DC VERSUS MARVEL/MARVEL VERSUS DC, the event that rocked the comics
community, is now available in a single, mind-blowing trade paperback,
co-published by Marvel Comics and DC Comics! Collecting all four issues
of the miniseries, DC VERSUS MARVEL is written by Ron Marz and Peter
David, and illustrated by two art teams: Dan Jurgens and Josef Rubinstein;
and, Claudio Castellini and Paul Neary. This collection also includes
DOCTOR STRANGEFATE #1, written by Marz, with art by Jose Luis Garcia-Lopez
and Kevin Nowlan. The cover of this trade paperback is the art from the
DC VERSUS MARVEL RETAIL POSTER by Jurgens and Rubinstein.
Scheduled to arrive on August 14
SC, 7x10, 192 pgs, FC
$12.95
KINGDOM COME WRAPAROUND T-SHIRT
Painted art by Alex Ross
All-new painted art by Alex Ross featuring the heroes of KINGDOM COME
adorns both sides of this white, 100% cotton wraparound T-shirt.
Scheduled to arrive on August 14
L-XL, $22.95
DCU OVERSIZED TOWEL
Hit the beach in style with this plush towel featuring the DC Bullet
surrounded by color art of Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, and The Flash!
This white velour towel measures 35" x 60", and comes folded and
polybagged.
Scheduled to arrive on August 21
FC, 35" x 60", $24.95
SUPERMAN: KRISIS OF THE KRIMSON KRYPTONITE TRADE PAPERBACK
Written by Various
Art by Various
Cover by Jerry Ordway
More sensational stories of the Man of Steel are collected in this trade
paperback, including SUPERMAN #49-50, ADVENTURES OF SUPERMAN #472-473,
ACTION COMICS #659-660, and STARMAN #28 (previous series). KRISIS OF THE
KRIMSON KRYPTONITE features the work of writers/artists Dan Jurgens and
Jerry Ordway, writer Roger Stern, and artists Brett Breeding, John Byrne,
Scott Hanna, Kerry Gammill, Dave Hoover, Dennis Janke, Bob McLeod, Curt
Swan, and Art Thibert. Ordway supplies a new cover for this collection.
Scheduled to arrive on August 21
SC, 7x10, 176 pgs, FC
$12.95
KINGDOM COME CARDS (Skybox)
The comic book event of the decade is now the trading card event of the
decade! Mark Waid and Alex Ross' KINGDOM COME has arrived, and now Skybox
presents the KINGDOM COME cards based on the fabulous series. All cards
are oversized, capturing more of Ross' phenomenal artwork. It's the
future of the DC Universe, and all the heroes are choosing sides for the
ultimate conflagration, as Armageddon rolls steadfastly towards the
present. The world is about to end -- you've read the story, now collect
the cards.
8 cards per pack, 36 packs per box
CAUTION: All information is subject to change, may ship late
PI
DC SUPERHEROES HYBRID CD-ROM COMICS (No Company Indicated)
Exclusive to PREVIEWS
Experience the future of comic books with these multi-media adventures
starring your favorite DC Comics heroes! Heroes leap from comic panels
into animated cartoons! Every panel has animation, a hotspot, or
morphing! Feature animation from campy classic TV cartoons of the 1960's!
Includes character profiles, bonus puzzles, and games. Package comic size
with comic style covers for collectibility! Much more involved and user
friendly than previous releases from other companies, with many value-added
features. Each CD-ROM also features a full-length original soundtrack.
Works on both Macintosh and IBM/Windows computers.
IBM: 486/33mhz, 8MB RAM, 2x speed CD-ROM drive, Mouse, Windows 3.1 or '95,
MS/PC DOS 5.0 or higher, Super VGA (640x480, 256 colors), MPC
compliant sound card
MAC: 8MB RAM, 2x speed CD-ROM drive, Mouse, System 7.0 or higher,
Quicktime 2.0, MAC 14" monitor with 256 colors
NOTE: Though no company was indicated, these sound like the CD-ROMs from
Inverse Ink that we mentioned in the May News and Notes.
Aquaman: War of the Water Worlds, Superboy: Spies From Outer Space,
Batman: Partners in Peril, Superman: The Mysterious Mr. Mist
CAUTION: All information is subject to change, should not ship later than
90 days past its scheduled shipping date.
$10.00 each
SUPERMAN CHAINS T-SHIRT (No Company Indicated)
The Man of Steel proves his mettle, bursting free of chains on the front
of this ash-colored T-shirt!
L-XL, $16.00
SUPERMAN: COMIC STRIP T-SHIRT (No Company Indicated)
Superman soars into action on the front of this white T-shirt, the
background to which is a page from the comic series!
L-XL, $16.00
SUPERMAN: DAILY PLANET T-SHIRT (No Company Indicated)
The Action Ace flies through a giant-sized Daily Planet front page
on this white T-shirt!
L-XL, $16.00
SUPERMAN LOGO HOCKEY JERSEY (No Company Indicated)
They'd have to be insane to mess with you on the ice while you're wearing
this pro-style embroidered tackle twill jersey, emblazoned with the mighty
Metropolis Marvel's symbol on the front!
XL, $64.00
SUPERMAN: MAN OF STEEL T-SHIRT (No Company Indicated)
(The art is darkened, but it looks like a more modern style)
The Man of Steel strikes a powerful pose on the front of this royal
blue T-shirt!
L-XL, $16.00
SUPERMAN: MAN OF TOMORROW T-SHIRT (No Company Indicated)
(Looks like Joe Shuster art)
A classic, stylized image of Superman appears on the front of the
stone-hued T-shirt!
L-XL, $16.00
SUPERMAN SECRET SOCIETY T-SHIRT (No Company Indicated)
(Looks like Joe Shuster art)
You may have missed out on the original Superman Secret Society decades
ago, but now you can feel like a charter member with this cool white
T-shirt!
L-XL, $16.00
SUPERMAN 50TH BIRTHDAY COMMEMORATIVE POSTER (No Company Indicated)
(Possibly Curt Swan art)
Here it is folks! For the serious collector/fan comes this two-sided
poster that shows the Man of Steel in both identities. The two classic
poses shown are Clark Kent ripping his shirt open to display the crimson
"S" as he rushes into the phone booth, and Superman rocketing into the
skies above Metropolis. Poster ships rolled. Limited to 4000 copies.
18x36, FC, PI
SUPERMAN LIFE SIZE STAND-UP (No Company Indicated)
Now you can frighten away villains of all types with this way-cool
life-size stand-up of the one and only Man of Steel!
$25.00
SUPERMAN CLARK KENT LIFE SIZE STAND-UP (Offered Again, No Company Indicated)
This cardstock stand-up features Clark Kent ripping open his coat and
shirt to reveal the familiar Superman "S" beneath.
$25.00
OCTOBER:
-------
SUPERMAN/DOOMSDAY BOOKENDS
DC takes its exquisite cold-cast porcelain sculptures to the next level
with the SUPERMAN/DOOMSDAY BOOKENDS, based upon designs by Dan Jurgens
and sculpted by William Paquet. These limited-issue bookends depict the
Man of Steel slugging the Armageddon Creature through a shattering wall.
NOTE: If orders exceed production capacity, an announcement will be made
on August 8, 1996, that the bookends will be delayed, with a new release
date.
Scheduled to arrive on October 9
$215.00
____________________________________________________________
AFTER-BYRNE: Reviews of the post-Crisis Man of Steel
----------------------------------------------------
BLACKOUT!
---------
by Mark Lamutt (markdl@netcom.com / mdlamut0@wcc.com)
Title: SUPERMAN: THE MAN OF STEEL #6
Written by: Louise Simonson
Pencilled by: Jon Bogdanove
Inked by: Dennis Janke
Cover Date: December 1991
Cover Price: $1.00 US/$1.25 CAN/60p UK
"Blackout 3"
The story thus far: Superman and Mr. Z, both suffering from amnesia, are
stranded on a South Pacific island - not knowing who or where they are. At
this moment, dinosaurs are charging at them. Back in Metropolis, the city is
experiencing the worst power failure ever recorded. The outage was caused by
Professor Hamilton, attempting to reach Superman through a special
communications helmet he had built. Lex Luthor II has just arrived in the
city, and is promising to help in any way he can. And now, on to part three.
As the rampaging dinosaurs approach Mr. Z and our hero, Mr. Z exclaims, "We're
gonna die!" At the last moment, Superman takes hold of Mr. Z's arm and flies
them out of harm's way. Unfortunately, one of the flying dinosaurs, a
Pterosaur to be exact, clamps down on Mr. Z's leg. As Superman struggles
against the flying creature, the scene shifts to Metropolis.
Lex Luthor II is promising the people of the city that he will devote LexCorp's
revenues to aid the city that his father loved so much. Meanwhile, running
through the streets, Lois Lane and Professor Hamilton attempt to make their way
back to his laboratory. Looters and rioters are clogging the streets. The
crowd is turning ugly. Daily Planet strikers threaten to burn the building to
the ground. Fights are breaking out everywhere you look.
Fighting with the airborne creature, Superman just about pulls Mr. Z in half,
when Mr. Z tells him to let go. Replying, "Well if you really think it will
work..." Superman releases his hold. The dinosaur and Mr. Z go tumbling head
over heels in the air. Just as Mr. Z is about to hit the ground, Superman
swoops under him, saving his life. As they lay there on the ground, a great
shadow passes overhead, and the next thing they know, they have been stepped on
by a giant Brontosaurus. As the two struggle to free themselves, the dinosaur
moves on, and they are able to dig themselves out of the mud. Looking up, they
find themselves surrounded by a tribe of island inhabitants. Trying to
communicate with them, Mr. Z believes that they think the two strangers to the
island must be gods. Superman is unconvinced, especially when the guards
advance on them with their spears.
Back in Metropolis, Lois and the professor duck into Bibbo's Ace of Clubs to
get out of the streets. As they enter, a motorcycle is thrown through the
front window. Very closely thereafter, Guardian follows, flipping though the
air and landing on his back. Lois very quickly brings him up to date
concerning the whereabouts of Superman. Guardian promises to return with the
Whiz-wagon to search for the Man of Steel, just as soon as he has dealt with
the looters outside the building.
Meanwhile, Superman and Mr. Z are brought before the tribe's chief. The
chief's daughter is obviously enamored with the Man of Steel, claiming that she
saw him flying. Her father isn't convinced such a thing is possible, until he
witnesses the act with his own eyes. Superman mistakenly attempts to protect
the chief's daughter from a dinosaur running at her, which just happens to be
her pet. She realizes that his motivations were honorable, if mistaken. A bit
afraid at what he saw, the chief orders Superman and Mr. Z to be tied up at the
edge of the camp while he considers what to do with them.
Flying through the skies towards Antarctica, Guardian, Lois, and Professor
Hamilton approach the site where Superman was last known to be.
Approaching Superman, the chief's daughter attempts to communicate. She
manages to get Superman to realize that she is telling him her name, Lola-la.
Seeing what his daughter is doing, the chief grabs her by her hair and drags
her away from the Man of Steel. Angry now, Superman easily breaks free of his
bonds and rushes to protect the maiden in distress. He raises the chief over
his head, preparing for the final blow, when Lola-la intervenes. Somehow,
Superman realizes that she is asking him not to kill her father, that he is
just trying to protect her. Setting the chief down on the ground, Superman is
struck across the back with the chief's club. He is of course uninjured.
Lola-la convinces her father that she wants Superman to be her own, and that he
would be a great addition to the tribe. Her father agrees and tells her to
prepare for the wedding ceremony.
Examining the site where Superman and Mr. Z fell to the earth unconscious,
Lois, the professor, and Guardian discover no bodies, so they assume that the
two must still be alive. Receiving a radio message about a rescue effort in
the South Pacific, they board the Whiz-wagon and prepare to take off. The
report continues that the rescued were a group of French scientists who tell
the reporters that Superman has lost his memory. The three fly towards the
rescue site.
Back on the island, all of the natives are having the time of their lives
celebrating. Superman and Mr. Z still have no idea what is going on -
especially as the chief pulls Superman to his daughters side in front of the
tribe. He asks her a question, sounding very serious. Then he asks a question
of Superman. At that moment, Mr. Z deduces what the situation is and tells
Superman, "This is a wedding ceremony! One more word from you and you'll be
hitched to her for life!"
First, let's take a look at the way this book was written. Louise Simonson
picks up the story where we last left off. She explores a bit about the tribal
culture on the island, which was a good thing. Unfortunately, in this
reviewer's opinion, she translated every word that the natives said to each
other, spoiling the mystery as seen by Superman and Mr. Z. Had she left some
of their dialog untranslated, there would have been more tension introduced
into the story. I'm not saying that we should never have had a clue what was
going on, just that there was something a little bit missing from the story.
And of course, the other characters in the story were all but ignored. This
book, more than any of the others in the arc, focuses much more heavily on
Superman.
On the other hand, I was very impressed with the artwork in this book. And I
very rarely can say that about Jon Bogdanove. I have never been a fan of his
pencils, but they really work for this story. His harsher lines set the
natives apart from everything else, and almost gave them depth that the story
didn't give them. The native women are all portrayed very sensually - which is
something that isn't done well very often in this medium. I would have to say
that the art is excellent.
All in all, this book gets 3.5 shields out of a possible 5. Stay tuned next
time for part 4 of Blackout in SUPERMAN #62.
____________________________________________________________
MANUSCRIPTS OF STEEL
--------------------------------
Reviews of After-Byrne Superman special stories
by Denes House
(dhouse@itsmail1.hamilton.edu)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
SUPERMAN: UNDER A YELLOW SUN
Written by John Francis Moore
Novel Sequence:
Art by Eduardo Barreto
Colored by Sherilyn van Valkenburgh
Metropolis Sequence:
Art by Kerry Gammill and Dennis Janke
Colored by Glenn Whitmore
Cover by Gammill Barreto
1994
Prestige Format, $5.95 US/$8.00 CAN
Rating:
3.5/5.0 Shields
---------------------------------------------------------
Great Lines: "Three ninety-eight? It's been remaindered? Now I'm really
annoyed."
I doubt there's a good writer of fiction out there who hasn't been asked the
question, "Where do you get your ideas?" Well, in SUPERMAN: UNDER A YELLOW
SUN, we find out where Clark Kent, best-selling author of THE JANUS CONTRACT
gets his ideas.
UNDER A YELLOW SUN is set up with the conceit that it is Clark Kent's fourth
novel. Some of my favorite touches are in the production design of the title
pages and Library of Congress information. Exactly *when* was CK born? Kudos
to Brian Pearce, credited with Publication design.
The book is split into two parallel stories: The narrative of the novel, UNDER
A YELLOW SUN, and the background events in Clark Kent's life as he writes the
story. Each storyline is drawn and colored by a different team of artists,
setting them apart from each other, but subtle humor is drawn from how the two
stories converge.
The novel pits "Guthrie. David Guthrie," former Navy Seal and lawyer against
Preston Trager, a "ruthless entrepreneur" with a taste for beautiful women and
power. Hard-boiled and grimly serious, the novel sequences provide a fantasy
life for Clark Kent. Through Guthrie, Clark can work out some of his
aggressions, and vent the frustrations he cannot act on, even in his alter-ego
of Superman. People from Clark's life show up as characters in the novel.
Trager, of course, is modeled after Lex Luthor. Lois Lane shows up as Rebecca
Carr, former reporter for the Gotham Globe, now relief aid worker in
civil-war-torn Corto Maltese. Joanna Da Costa, seen from time to time in the
Superman family of comics as a LexCorp lawyer, plays a major role in this book,
showing up in the novel as Angela Zessoules, Trager's beautiful aide, and a
strong feminine temptation for Guthrie.
In the Metropolis sequences, we find Lex Luthor supplying weapons to street
gangs - supplying both sides of a gang war, and scheming to get rid of a barge
full of garbage. The relationship between Lois and Clark hits some bumps, and
Clark has intense writer's block with his novel due in a few days. There is
humor as Clark ducks his agent ("I've been leaving messages all over town for
you, sweetie. My God, you'd think you were leading some sort of secret life.")
and discovers his first novel has been remaindered. But most of the humor
comes as Clark's life interacts with the novel. A pilot tells Guthrie, "We get
this wrong, you fly home yourself." Guthrie replies, "If I have to."
The novel allows Clark to play out his fantasies. As Clark becomes attracted
to Joanna Da Costa, he writes her into his novel. Clark needs to be faithful
to Lois. Guthrie does not. Clark as Superman gets frustrated with Luthor's
scheming. Guthrie puts a bullet in Trager's head.
But Lois brings Clark back to reality - killing is not a solution. Clark
scraps that ending and writes a new one, as in real life he and Lois work out
solutions to both main problems in a nice dovetailing of plot lines.
John Francis Moore's story is complex, with multiple layers in the plots of
both sequences. He brings all the plot lines together nicely and gives the
story a satisfying ending. The parallelism of the novel and Clark's life is
solid, providing humor, drama, and a great deal of character development. The
characters themselves are well-constructed, and Moore handles relationships and
plot complications with ease.
The chief problems with the writing have to do with the difficulty juggling so
many storylines at once. One gets the impression, on reading the novel parts
straight through, that this would make a pretty bad novel, with a couple of
false-starts that don't seem to pay off. Perhaps this is intended to show
Clark's writer's block? The first false start becomes an important component
later on in the story, but others, like Guthrie's foray into Suicide Slum legal
work, seem to be plot line dead-ends. Also, some of the Superman supporting
cast members show up in the novel almost just to have them in there. They
don't seem to help the plot much; they are just there to be seen. We forgive
these flaws because it is fun to see the cast portrayed in a slightly different
light, but some tighter work on those aspects of the novel sequences would have
made it considerably more fluid.
In the Metropolis sequences, the major obstacles - the gang war and the garbage
scow, at times seem like minor inconveniences instead of the major threats they
should be, dramatically. Guthrie is up against tougher situations in the novel
than Superman is in Metropolis.
The art is great in both sequences. As regular readers of this column will no
doubt have figured out, I love Eduardo Barreto's artwork. This book is no
exception. His slick, moody drawing style perfectly accentuates the pulp novel
feel of the writing. His Angela Zessoules is stunningly beautiful, his Preston
Trager menacingly evil. Guthrie's square-jawed heroism and Rebecca Carr's
strength and humanity make a believable combination. Barreto inking himself
lacks the dynamism of his work inked by Adam Kubert in LEX LUTHOR: THE
UNAUTHORIZED BIOGRAPHY. Sherilyn van Valkenburgh's limited palette of
full-process color sets a fabulously moody tone, and the overall look is
impressive.
Kerry Gammill, Dennis Janke, and Glenn Whitmore do an exceptional job of
contrasting the Barreto/van Valkenburgh team. I love Gammill's Superman, and
the high emotional content of the Lois/Clark tension, the frustration against
Luthor, and the attraction to Da Costa are all skillfully portrayed. Gammill
is a fine storyteller with exceptional pacing and expressiveness. To the
point, the novel sequences gain a great deal from the fine work done in the
Metropolis sequences, and vice versa.
Capsule review:
Story: Complex but interesting, with layers upon layers. The concept of this
book is its best feature, but the actual story may be hampered by the
constraints it demands. 3 Shields out of 5.
Art: Well done in both storylines. Barreto turns in fine work, though not his
best. Gammill and Janke are solid. This book is a great example of the
colorist's art. 4 Shields out of 5.
Overall: Not spectacular, but a good addition to any Superman fan's bookshelf.
3.5 Shields out of 5.
Denes House
____________________________________________________________
THE PHANTOM ZONE: Reviews of the pre-Crisis Man of Steel
--------------------------------------------------------
INTO THE ARCHIVES
-----------------
by Neil A. Ottenstein (otten@gluon.umd.edu)
SUPERMAN #5, Summer 1940
This issue was the last of the quarterly SUPERMAN issues. The following issues
were bimonthly. Starting with the fourth issue, actually, there were no more
reprints of ACTION stories or newspaper strips. The first two and fourth
stories in this issue all have a brief summary of Superman's powers, while the
third story gives some general background behind the economic state of the
country. All four stories are 13 pages in length.
1) Superman fights the evils of a slot machine racket. I'll discuss this story
in more details below.
2) Alex Evell, a crooked politician buys a rival newspaper, The Morning
Pictorial, puts it towards his own ends, and tries to destroy the Daily Planet.
Superman plays guardian angel when their actions become destructive against
the Planet and he eventually deposits Evell with the police.
3) Similarly to the third story in the previous issue, this one deals with the
prosperity of the nation being in danger. This time, though, Luthor is behind
the action, enslaving prominent men with a narcotic incense. Superman once
again uses his ability to disguise himself, though, that doesn't fool Luthor.
He once again believes he has permanently removed the menace of Luthor.
4) A new medicine is used to enslave the people who need it once racketeers get
their hands on it. Superman stops the racket and delivers the racketeer,
Carlin, to the state parole board in order to release one of his victims.
On the inside back cover there is an advertisement for the "Superman
Krypto-Raygun" which shows a "28-scene picture story of Superman's thrilling
adventures." Other pieces around and between the stories: "Super strength
rules for summer living" along with a short Jowett "strong-man" exercise strip;
a Supermen of America advertisement; "Power of the Press" by George Shute with
art by Bernard Baily (the original artist on the Spectre) about a new reporter
who gets surprised when seeing the ventriloquist the Great Gordon; the same
advertisement for "the 'big six' comic magazines" as in the previous issue;
"Murder in the Wind" by Jack Wallis in which the new sheriff of Oswato County
solves a murder; a "Shorty" strip by Fred Schwab which features the antics of
two dogs this time (strangely enough the coloring in the sixth panel is off);
"jest jokes" half pager of illustrated jokes; an advertisement for the Superman
radio show listing many of the radio stations which carry it; advertisements
for the first issues of ALL-STAR COMICS and BATMAN; and an advertisement for
ACTION COMICS - "the world's largest selling comic magazine!"
The first story begins with Lois and Clark on their way to the Daily Planet.
They see some youngsters repeatedly lose money in a slot machine and warn them
they haven't a chance to win. They are chased out of the store by the owner.
Lois is upset that Clark didn't "thrash that thieving scoundrel." One of the
children notices that he needs to rush to school and runs in front of a
speeding truck. Clark risks revealing his Superman identity by tackling the
youth and holding him on the ground between the wheels. When Lois praises him,
saying she "always hoped [he'd] be like this -- brave, daring -- not frightened
of [his] own shadow," Clark faints to keep up his weakling pretense and make
sure that they get no idea of his "real identity."
Going into Jensen's Food store to get something to calm Clark's nerves, they
discover another slot machine. They find out that "Slug" Kelly's men put the
machine there under the threat of smashing his business. Lois is determined to
confront Kelly so he discontinue such actions.
To Clark's surprise, Lois knows Kelly's hideout, leading him there. They
request an audience with "Slug." He tells them he'll give a donation to
charity as he is "always a chump for the widows an' orphans!" Lois asks him to
stop preying on the small change of children. He informs them he is not going
to give up on the easy money. Lois then warns him that unless he leaves town
the Daily Planet will blast him "sky-high." His men lock Lois and Clark in
separate rooms as Clark pretends to be scared out of his wits.
"Slug" comes up with a scheme to take care of the Daily Planet. Threatening
Clark's life, he asks Lois to sign a paper revealing that her editor George
Taylor is a partner in the slot-machine racket and Lois is a go-between. This
would make anything written against "Slug" suspect. Not wanting to see Clark
to come to harm, Lois signs, and the false admission is sent to The Morning
Pictorial.
Clark has now changed into Superman and breaks out of his room. He finds dozens
of slot machines and destroys them. The racketeers fire on him, but he is
unharmed. He pretends to be harmed by a narcotic gas "just for laughs." The
racketeers attack him with an axe and other implements of destruction, but it
is those weapons which are harmed and not Superman. They then try to attack
him with fire-brands, but this also fails.
They run behind a steel door, but Superman bursts through that. "Slug" then
thinks he has tricked Superman into being trapped into a vault. One of the
fire-brands has now set the next room afire and the racketeers leave thinking
this will be the end of Lois, Clark, and the "strong guy." Superman bursts out
of the vault with records of the racketeers' activities and sees that Lois has
been overcome by smoke. He saves her and goes back "to rescue [Clark]."
Clark appears with the "Slug's" records, while at the offices of the Daily
Planet, George Taylor is shocked to see The Morning Pictorial story linking him
to racketeers. Lois explains the situation and they are ready to use the
records to "settle Mr. Kelly's hash!"
Clark quickly uses his powers to memorize the list of where all the slot
machines are. Superman proceeds to visit those places and destroy the
machines. Lois is kidnapped by "Slug" upon leaving the Planet building. They
warn the editor to hold the story for 24 hours or Lois won't be released alive.
Jensen is about to destroy the slot machine from his store, and "Slug" stops
the car to persuade him otherwise. Superman arrives before Jensen can be hurt,
he removes Lois from the car, has "Slug" confess the slot machines are fixed
before a yard full of school children, and then deposits the racketeers at a
police station. He is told that even though they confessed, they can't be held
without witnesses and hundreds of school children arrive as witnesses.
Weeks later the trial is finished, the connection between the racketeers and
the Daily Planet was disproved, and Lois is about to write an editorial giving
Superman full credit for the reform. The story ends with a panel with Superman
urging all readers "not to waste their money wastefully into slot-machines!"
As evidenced by the actions of the racketeers, not everyone knows about
Superman or his powers. They still try to attack him quite unsuccessfully.
The dynamics of the relationship between Lois and Clark are explored more here,
but in order to protect his identity Clark falls quite short in Lois' eyes.
____________________________________________________________
SUPER FRIENDS
-------------
by Joe Crowe (j.crowe4@genie.com)
This month, the main reason we and this magazine are here makes a triumphant
return to this column. After a two-month hiatus, I'm back to reviewing a story
featuring Superman. Also returning this time is the only superhero I know of
who's more well-known for something he says than for anything he's ever done.
DC COMICS PRESENTS #33-34
Superman, Captain Marvel, and the Marvel Family
"Man and Supermarvel"
"The Beastman that Shouted Hate at the Heart of the U.N.!"
May and June 1981
Writer: Roy Thomas
Plot: Gerry Conway
Artist: Rich Buckler
Inker: Dick Giordano
3.75/5.0 Shields
Clark Kent spies an imminent train wreck, and goes to change into his working
clothes. He yanks open his shirt, revealing the familiar yellow lightning
bolt? The "puny little cape"? For some reason, Clark is wearing Captain
Marvel's costume, complete with his powers. That doesn't deter him from his
mission, of course, and he saves the day. Later, he recalls their very first
meetings (I reviewed them in KC #17). He recalls that, in order to get to
Captain Marvel's Earth-S, he must fly around the Rock of Eternity. Just as he
leaves, his irascible old foe Mr. Mxyzptlk pops in. He and a "silent partner"
are behind the whole thing.
Superman appears on Earth-S, and runs into a bunch of escaping crooks. A blue
blur zips past him and collars the ruffians. It's Captain Marvel wearing
Superman's outfit. When the two super dudes compare notes, they realize that
neither of them has a clue. Well, duh.
Cap asks Superman to say his magic word (you know the one). This turns him
back into Clark Kent, but minus his powers! We know this because he falls off
a building and almost splatters all over the concrete. Of course, Cap makes
the save. A big tentacled monster crawls out of the alley where he fell. Two
and a half seconds later, the monster is whipped. Then Mr. Mxyzptlk appears,
declaring that his magic is stronger on Earth-S, and he's stuck Superman there
forever.
Cap (in Superman's clothing) is able to change back to Billy Batson by saying
"the word". Mxyzptlk listens in on the good guys with his partner in villainy,
revealed as the crime worm, Mr. Mind!
They both use the word up (it's the code word). Then both Superman and Captain
Marvel are back in their correct outfits. They hook up with Mary Marvel and
Captain Marvel Jr. The kids (and Uncle Marvel, too) go on patrol while the two
majors head for the Rock of Eternity. There, they find the old wizard asleep,
rendered that way by Mxyzptlk. Mr. Mind makes his appearance, as does King
Kull, the Beastman.
Supes and Cap take their best shots at Kull, but he's been given a magical
boost, and the duo bounce off without fazing Kull. Teaming up, they try
simultaneously, but that bounces them out of this dimension altogether. Kull
wants them back. He wants to kill them. Mr. Mind wants to use Mxyzptlk's
power to enslave worlds. The mischief-making imp finds he's in way too deep;
he just wanted to irritate Superman.
Mxyzptlk's ticked off. After all, he zapped the Rock of Eternity, causing Kull
to receive an equal dose of magic lightning whenever anybody passes the word
(Thunderbird). He trades two people from the dimension where he sent Supes and
Cap, so he can peep in on them. In that dimension, our two heroes answer a
call for help ... from a cartoon rabbit.
Back on Earth-S, Kull goes to the United Nations, ready to put a big hurt on
the people of Earth. The Marvels show up, but are dropped, much like bad
habits. Two cartoon rabbits appear on Earth-S as well. Naturally, the cops
round them up, because being cartoon rabbits is a punishable offense. Millie
faints dead away, leaving Hoppy free to say the word. SHAZAM!!! There! I
said it! He's secretly Marvel Bunny! He faces off against King Kull all
alone.
Mr. Mind appears in the funny animal dimension, driving a cartoon rabbit robot.
Mxyzptlk gets sick of Mr. Mind and says his own name backwards, thus returning
to his home dimension and undoing everything his magic did. That removes the
magical power from the bad guys, allowing Superman, Captain Marvel, and Marvel
Bunny to each dispatch their foes. Everybody meets up, and Marvel Bunny tells
Superman that Superman's always been his favorite comic book character.
Roy Thomas, I'll just say up front, is a big favorite of mine. He started out
as a fan, one of the first fanzine creators, and very frequent letter writer.
He somehow ended up doing what many little comics nuts dream of, writing the
very characters that he read about as he grew up. There's a great sense of
wonder in the best of his stories, and a sly acknowledgment of his fannish
roots in most everything he's done. In other words, he writes the kind of
stories that comics fans have always wanted to read.
These two issues of DCP are notable for a couple of reasons. They were the
first DC comics work Roy ever had published. They appeared just before ALL-
STAR SQUADRON debuted. Sort of a warm-up, if you will. Also, this was the
first regular-size team-up of two heroes, who have, for some reason, run
parallel tracks over the years. They did share a few panels in JUSTICE LEAGUE
#137, but the main event was in the tabloid SUPERMAN VS. SHAZAM! How Superman
could fight an exclamatory noun, I'm not sure. But he could do anything else,
so why not?
The inherent goofiness of Captain Marvel stories was peddled right along with
the not-quite melodramatic tone that most Superman stories of this era had.
They had enough emotional content to draw you in, but that's not what they were
there for. Likewise the Captain, whose adventures before and since this story
have quavered back and forth between attempts at straight superheroing and
outlandish nuttiness. Current POWER OF SHAZAM! author Jerry Ordway has
captured Cap's heart, while adding more of the cartoony elements than I
expected, but making them work.
There were a few noticeable holes in the plot this time around. If their
powers had really switched, Clark would've had to say the word to change, and
Captain Marvel would've been stuck in adult form, only able to change clothes.
Whatever. I just picked apart a story that doesn't call for such things.
Superman even mentions that. Roy Thomas was pretty good about answering
questions that nobody had asked yet. Cap asks Superman how he stops himself
from using his x-ray vision for a peep show, and Superman asks him how he stops
himself from saying the S-word (no, not THAT one) all the time.
The charm of this story was Superman and Cap. They pal around like they've
known each other forever. None of the usual rivalry between heroes of similar
abilities -- these two are obviously buddies. Plain old friendship isn't dealt
with often in comics. Natural heroic bravado or deep psychoses prevent it.
Team-ups across the parallel Earths were always a big hit with me. You'd think
the Earth-1 guys would get tired of hanging out with each other all the time.
There's still something special about meetings between the Man of Steel and the
World's Mightiest Mortal, even if there are no longer parallel Earths. The
best adjective I can think of right now is "neat."
Next time, the most-requested story I've received so far. It's the 3-part DC
PRESENTS # 27-29, featuring Martian Manhunter, Supergirl, and the Spectre.
Tell me your thoughts. The request line is open at j.crowe4@genie.geis.com.
____________________________________________________________
THE GIRL FRIEND AND THE PAL: LOIS AND JIMMY INTHEIR OWN COMICS
----------------------------------------------------------------
By Jon B. Knutson (jonknut@eskimo.com)
This issue, it's all-Jimmy, as I review SUPERMAN'S PAL, JIMMY OLSEN #102,
keeping the column a little shorter in length this month to help keep up on
deadlines!
The cover of JO #102 (June 1967) appears to be a Swan job. Poor Jimmy's in a
straitjacket, and Superman's holding him by the collar. Jimmy's shouting that
he's not crazy, Superman is Clark Kent, and he can prove it (yeah, right)...
Superman tells the attendants that Jimmy must be kept in solitary at the asylum
until he gets over his delirium. With a cover like that, you've got to be
getting one great issue, eh?
It turns out that the cover feature is the first story of this issue.
"Superman's Greatest Double-Cross!" (artwork apparently by Costanza, no writer
credit given) has as its splash page Jimmy duking it out with Clark in a boxing
ring (with Clark thinking, of course, that if he didn't roll with the punch,
Jimmy'd break his knuckles). As the issue opens, Jimmy hasn't had a scoop in
weeks, and Perry's upset about it. Jimmy and Clark hear on a radio about a
lightning storm that's knocked out power in Capitol City, and Jimmy plans to
get the story. Clark feigns a headache so he can change to Superman while
Jimmy gets into the Planet's 'Flying Newsroom' helicopter. When Superman
arrives in Capitol city, his superbrain "devises an ingenious circuit,"
attaching cables to his body. When asked why, Superman tells him "to compete
with the Image superheroes out there." No, sorry, I'm kidding. What he
*really* says is "To tap my super-power and convert it into electricity to feed
your power lines until the generators are repaired!" Yeah, I remember reading
you could do that in my science class.
Of course, Superman needs some super-task to help generate his own super-power
(!), and he is told to demolish an old abandoned power plant they were going to
tear down anyhow. Strange nobody thought to have Superman repair that power
plant... it might've come in handy during that blackout. Anyway, Superman's
idea works, and power is restored. Jimmy returns from Capitol City, telling
Perry everything was back to normal by the time he'd arrived. Jimmy is upset
to learn that Clark got the story (Clark says Superman gave him a personal
interview and on-the-spot story). Jimmy's upset ... he figures as Superman's
best pal, *he* is entitled to the scoops. He doesn't feel much better when
Perry writes a bonus check for Clark on the spot.
The next day, Jimmy gets a tip that a championship fight is going to be fixed.
Investigating the tip, he finds a rigged bell, set to go off if the fixer's
fighter is losing. Clark shows up, and Jimmy figures CK's trying to steal
another scoop from him, and starts fighting Clark. Thanks to CK throwing the
fight, Jimmy wins, but when the cub reporter leaves the ring, he is captured by
the police, who spotted him breaking and entering. Well, it's not really the
police, but Felton, the gambler who tried to fix the fight. Felton figures
that fixing the fight is small potatoes, but Superman's secret identity would
be worth plenty. Jimmy says he doesn't know it, but Felton doesn't believe
him.... and tortures him for the information. Desperate, Jimmy hypnotizes
himself to believe that Clark is Superman's identity... "the one guy he can't
be... that fink..." Satisfied with Jimmy's answer, Felton lets him go, but
Jimmy starts walking around telling everybody CK is Superman! Superman spots
this, and has Jimmy put in a sanitarium. Later, a gang invades the Planet
offices, and starts firing off their machine guns at CK... who strips off his
clothes to reveal himself as Superman! After defeating the goons, a Clark
robot appears to cover his secret identity, and Jimmy is released once Superman
snaps him out of the self-hypnosis. Jimmy gets the scoop, and he and CK are
good buddies again. Whew!
The next story in this issue, "Jimmy Olsen -- Campus Hero!" starts with Jimmy
covering the trial of a famous criminal who, as he's led off to prison, says
that his gang, Homicide, Inc, will pay him back for his testimony. In the days
that follow, Jimmy is shot at and narrowly escapes a booby trapped Superman
statue. Perry suggests that Jimmy hide out, disguised as a student at Stanhope
College, until things cool off. Jimmy agrees, and wouldn't you know it... the
first person he runs into at Stanhope is Linda Lee Danvers... aka Supergirl.
Jimmy tells Linda why he's there, and Linda offers to help him fit in with the
crowd. After he's introduced to some of Linda's friends, he finds that he's
apparently irresistible to them, and his black book gets filled quickly. Jimmy
thinks that "being a college man could be a real gas!"
Little does Jimmy know that Homicide, Inc. has already tracked him down, and is
sending Mr. Quick, master of disguise, after him. The next day, Mr. Quick
spots Jimmy as Superman's Pal figures he should try out for the football team
to impress the girls. Mr. Quick booby-traps a football to blow Jimmy up, but
Linda spots it, and secretly helps save Jimmy's life by blowing the football
miles away. The coach isn't happy about losing the ball and refuses to let
young Olsen on the team. Next, Jimmy tries out for the fencing team, and Mr.
Quick plots his demise there, as well... but Linda again spots it, and makes
Jimmy accidentally cut off a professor's beard in the process! Jimmy then
joins the campus newspaper, but Mr. Quick plans to poison one of the typewriter
keys with contact poison. Linda, who's keeping an eye on Mr. Quick (but hasn't
captured him yet), borrows Jimmy's typewriter to wipe off the poison. Jimmy
then gets an assignment to cover the annual fall dance, and Jimmy, with his big
head, writes the story in advance... figuring him as the most popular man at
the dance. At the dance, Jimmy finds that no matter which girl he dances with,
another one wants to cut in... and another... and another! He finally realizes
each girl is offering $5 to anybody who will cut in, and he leaves, ashamed.
The next day, the college president learns he wrote the story before it
happened, and Jimmy's expelled.
Mr. Quick goes to the clock tower on campus so he can shoot Jimmy as he leaves.
Jimmy says good-bye to Linda when Mr. Quick starts firing. Jimmy pushes Linda
to safety before finding cover himself, and uses his signal watch to contact
Superman. Linda changes to Supergirl (keeping her Linda wig on so Jimmy will
think she's Superman), and knocks out Mr. Quick. Jimmy calls the police, gives
them the story, and now that the girls on campus know who he really is, he's
popular again. Oh, why did Supergirl want Jimmy to think she was Superman?
She thought that if Jimmy saw Supergirl and Linda at the same place, he'd
deduce the two are one and the same. Talk about going overboard... Jimmy
couldn't tell the difference between the black-haired Superman whose legs are
covered and the brown-wigged Supergirl, who wears a mini-skirt and has bare
legs? All the years he hasn't figured out Clark is Superman, as in the first
story? Sheesh.
Yeah, Jimmy doesn't come out too good in this issue. In the first, he's
spiteful and vengeful, ready to toss his friendship with Clark aside over petty
jealousy... and in the second, thinking he's God's gift to girls, he commits a
serious journalistic ethical error. Of course, Jimmy doesn't notice this
himself. I'd give this entire issue two shields for the artwork, but only one
shield for the story.
Next month: Short reviews of the contents of LOIS LANE GIANT #113, October
1971. If you have any issues of JIMMY OLSEN or LOIS LANE you'd like to see me
review in future issues of KC, or just want to offer some comments on this or
other reviews, feel free to e-mail me at jonknut@aol.com.
____________________________________________________________
TELEscopic VISION:
------------------
Superman on the Small Screen
EPISODE REVIEWS:
----------------
Episode #3-21: "Through A Glass, Darkly"
----------------------------------------
by Shane Furlong <Shane.Furlong@evolving.com>
US Airdate: May 12, 1996
Guest Starring: Justine Bateman as Sarah
Jon Tenney as Ching
Kenneth Kimmins as Dr. Klein
Joyce Guy as Mrs. Hofaker
Joe Pichler as the little boy
Kyla Pratt as the little girl
Lawrence Maki as the announcer
Written by: Chris Ruppenthal
Directed by: Chris Long
This episode contains some nice moments of interplay between Clark and Lois as
well as a major mystery building up for the season ending episode. In the
short three year tradition of this show, it seems to hold back its best for the
season's end.
In the opening scene Clark and Lois are discussing their mutual desire to get
married sooner rather than later, while a suspicious-looking man listens in on
their conversation. You just know that their plans are going to go astray and
this man will be involved.
After Lois and Clark make it to work they are approached by Sarah, the mousy
new research clerk played by Justine Bateman, Mallory from FAMILY TIES. She
apparently has a crush on Clark. While Lois and Clark talk to Perry about
their upcoming fishing trip with Jimmy, the televisions spring to life in the
Planet with news that a UN space station is in trouble. Someone, the
suspicious man from the beginning of course, has activated the thrusters on the
station, and if it is not stopped, it will burn up while reentering the
atmosphere.
In a scene with pretty good special effects for network series TV, Clark stops
the space station and returns it to orbit. After he returns to Earth, it's
nice to see the obvious pride that Lois shows in his accomplishment. The duo
trace the transmission to a house in Metropolis with some help from STAR Labs.
While looking around the house for clues, they again encounter the mystery man
as he poses as a real estate agent.
This scene and others like it in the episode show Lois pulling away somewhat
from Clark as he starts talking about settling down maybe a little too much for
her. She suddenly seems to be figuring out what this whole marriage thing
means, especially to a small town boy like Clark brought up in such a
traditional country family. Look for this clash in dreams to erupt again in
the future, like when (if?) they get married and start thinking about children.
On to the main plot. We learn that Sarah and the mystery man, Ching, are
connected and that the space station, as well as two different bomb threats,
are meant as tests for Clark. They are trying to determine if he is "worthy"
and they are aware that Clark is Superman and his real name is Kal-El. What he
is supposed to be worthy of we are not told. We also find out the man is
extremely strong and that the pair may not be from around here.
In the climactic scene Ching, out to prove that Clark is not "the one", sets up
a Kryptonite force field around himself and threatens to kill himself if Clark
doesn't try to save him. Clark, though he risks his own life, makes the leap
and stops Ching. With the Kryptonite leaving Clark stunned on the balcony,
Ching and Sarah fly away. Lois is amazed to see them fly.
After Clark recovers, Lois asks him, "Do you think they're not from Earth?"
Ching and Sarah answer that in the final scene when they say Kal-El must leave
Earth forever. Couple the use of Kal-El and Ching's use of the term Kryptonian
law with his strength and their flying ability, and I believe Clark is no
longer the last remaining son of Krypton. The episode ends with the dreaded
"To Be Continued", but if it's as good an ending as the lead-in was a beginning
I don't mind waiting a week.
____________________________________________________________
Episode #3-22: "Big Girls Don't Fly"
------------------------------------
by Marta Olson <molson@raisinets.den.mmc.com>
US Airdate: May 12, 1996
Guest Starring: Roger Daltrey as Tez
Justine Bateman as Sarah
Jon Tenney as Ching
Rosie Lee Hooks as Mrs. Cutler
Shanna Moakler as the pretty girl
Written by: Eugenie Ross-Leming and Brad Buckner
Directed by: Philip J. Sgriccia
This episode allows us a glimpse into the people of a place called New Krypton.
We find out that Kryptonians communicate telepathically, they have no time to
waste on feelings, passion, caring or kindness, yet they do still feel these
things. They have created a new world from a barren rock. We also find out
that their government is very similar to a form of government that was
prevalent in Europe many years ago. There are noble families who rule, and
their rule is solidified by marriages between these families. We also find out
that Clark is from one of these families and that he is next in line to rule
New Krypton with his birth wife Zara.
We are also introduced to a new character, an assassin named Tez, who has been
hired by Kal-El's "competition" on New Krypton, Lord Nor. If for any reason
Kal-El does not return with Zara to rule, Lord Nor is next in line to marry
Zara and rule New Krypton. This would begin a civil war. Tez is from a planet
where they are bred to become assassins for hire and possess several unusual
skills. He is able to change form to look like anyone he chooses, and he can
also reflect whatever force is used against him back at the source, making it
more powerful. We see Tez as Jonathan, Martha, and Jimmy, each in different
situations. I must admit that one of my favorite moments was when Tez, as
Martha, tries to kill Clark.
Clark's spaceship is conveniently back from wherever Mindy Church kept it.
Lois, Clark, Zara, and Ching go to the spaceship, and Zara reads the Kryptonian
symbols. Following the instructions there, Clark and Zara place their hands on
the ship that turns on a hologram message from Jor-El. In it he references
both Kal-El and Zara, his birth wife. He also refers to everything as "my
legacy and your destiny," and urges Kal-El to take his rightful place. This
helps to convince Clark that Zara and Ching are legitimate.
This episode seems to be more about duty and destiny than about anything else.
Zara has feelings for Ching, and he has feelings for her, but in order to
fulfill their destiny she must remain married to Kal-El. Clark and Lois are
very much in love but are asked to give it up also. It reminds me of "the
needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few, or the one." Lois confronts
Zara and asks if she will ever love Clark. Zara tells her about her feelings
for Ching and that she does understand what it means. Lois says "You're asking
me to sacrifice everything for a world I'll never see." Zara's response, "I'm
asking you to save a world that is robbing us both of the men we love" allows
for a certain kinship between Zara and Lois.
The episode ends with Clark in a new black and blue uniform, holding Lois'
wedding ring. He tries to send her a telepathic message saying he loves her.
She hears him and goes to the window in time to see his ship leave. She is
left alone, standing at the window, looking up into the stars.
This episode is very emotional and moving at points. From Lois being informed
that Clark is already married, to when he as Superman says good-bye to the
world, it is an up and down experience. While I really feel that there is no
real suspense to the cliffhanger, I am looking forward to seeing how they
resolve this current situation. If you have not seen this episode, please
check it out. It is almost guaranteed to have even the most jaded viewer in
tears.
____________________________________________________________
A LOVE THAT RISKS NOTHING IS WORTH NOTHING
------------------------------------------
by Zoomway (Zoomway@aol.com)
Well, it's time for a review of another season gone by. Third season of LOIS
AND CLARK: THE NEW ADVENTURES OF SUPERMAN was all about taking risks, and about
love. It was also about taking risks from a programming and network
standpoint. I will cover that later. I'll go with the better before I
appraise the bitter.
The first risk taken was Lois revealing that she knew that Clark was Superman
in the season premiere, "We Have a Lot to Talk About." Perhaps had it been
anyone else but Lois, no risk would have been taken. Another woman might have
simply gone along with Clark's masquerade, accepted his proposal, let him
perform a revelation in his own good time, and that would have been that. But
*that* would not have been Lois Lane. She could not allow Clark to get away
with a half-truth, and expect her to make the most important decision of her
life based on a lie. There was also the fact that Lois saw Clark still keeping
the secret from her as a lack of trust, and that hurt and angered Lois. So
began the third season.
Episodes 1 through 7 dealt with Lois becoming accustomed to this new and
sometimes overwhelming aspect of Clark Kent, while at the same time keeping the
answer to Clark's proposal up in the air. There were also overlapping
sub-themes such as whether their relationship put Lois too much at risk, or
where exactly Lois fit into the Superman equation of their relationship and
their partnership.
Wow
Though Lois had mentally adjusted to the fact that Clark was Superman, that
still did not seem to prepare her for the emotional reality. The moment Clark
had to change into Superman right before her eyes, brought home the reality of
how unprepared Lois was for the visceral shock value. "Wow!" she had said, and
seemed dumbfounded by the transformation. Once Clark was in the Superman
persona, it was clear that Lois still had a dichotomy viewpoint. Superman was
Superman, and Clark was Clark. She was still unprepared at that time to
congeal them into one man.
"It was easier talking to Clark." "You still are." "That's just it. I don't
know anymore."
Though Clark, by his own admission, had been prepared for Lois to be angry once
she discovered the truth, it had apparently never occurred to him that Lois
would have a difficult time adjusting to the truth. This may be because Clark
has always thought of himself as Clark whether in the costume or not, but Lois
had rather high flung ideals about Superman, and what he stood for, and it was
too much for her to deal with all at once. Clark, unwisely, proposed to Lois
again at this peak point of turmoil for Lois, and he did so as Superman. Lois
said, "No, I can't. Not yet."
Clark sees this as a blanket rejection. His reaction, though petty and even
childish, is rather fascinating. He felt Lois rejected him "because you found
out something about me that you didn't like." He was almost reacting as if he
were being rejected as an "entity" rather than as a suitor. This on top of not
realizing that Lois wasn't rejecting him at all, but just needed time to
adjust. Their non-meeting of the minds was eased by the intervention of
Clark's parents, and once Clark realized that time was the issue, they were
able to get on with the discovery process.
Lane!
This was the first time the audience got to see Lois and Clark working as a
team, with Lois completely aware of Clark's super abilities, and almost knowing
instinctively how best to exploit them. Lois also seemed well on her way to
adjusting to the duality of Clark Kent. This was helped enormously by Clark
being petty in both personas. It seemed to bring the Man of Steel down to
Earth.
Saving the world from killer bees
Adjusting to Clark and Superman continued to run more or less smoothly, but the
implications behind the reality did prove a bit more vexing for Lois. He
literally was a boyfriend who could satisfy her every whim and request, but he
was also a boyfriend who was needed by the world. Unlike a doctor or fire
fighter, there was no stand-in for Superman. So, as Lois seemed to come to
grips with the truth about Clark, other side orders of adjustments appeared.
We temporarily interrupt this relationship for a road block
The episode "Contact" was seen as a rather transparent attempt to introduce
conflict into Lois and Clark's relationship. The premise being that Lois'
association to Superman put her too much at risk, and so Clark felt nobly
obliged to break off the relationship. While the reasoning behind the breakup
was faulty and slipshod, the discoveries made by both Lois and Clark were
almost worth the detour.
The green-eyed monster
Clark learned that he could not have his cake and eat it too. He could not
break up with Lois, and then expect her not to get on with her life, and that
of course would mean other men. Jealousy aside, Clark learned that he could
not go back to that empty emotional place he had lived all his life. He made
the attempt to express this to Lois, but found that condemning Lois to return
to the emotionally empty life she had lived before falling in love with Clark
caused her to summon up the strength to resist a reconciliation. At least on
Clark's terms alone.
I survived it...this time
There was no doubt that Lois was deeply in love with Clark, but the true
evidence of this was the fact that Lois rejected out of hand Clark's attempt to
set things right. With all the joy, warmth, and contentment a true love can
inspire, Lois learned the unbearable flipside of that coin. With a pain so
deep, Lois would not allow Clark to inflict such pain again. She did not
reject Clark's reconciliation attempt out of revenge, but rather out of self
preservation, "I survived it, this time. I don't think I would again." She
also made a resolve to never have someone else, no matter how much she might
love them, or perhaps especially if she loved them, call the shots in her life:
"No one has the right to run my life. Not you, and not Superman."
Did we just make up?
Lois and Clark continued to work on their problem. Well, Clark continued and
Lois resisted. However, with a close quarters assignment, and therefore forced
to talk, they reached a place of understanding. Lois admitted that she had
never opened up to anyone in her whole life as much as she had opened up to
Clark, and that it hurt when she felt that the element of trust was not
returned. Clark admitted that saying "I love you" did not give someone the
right to rule another's life. Lois also learned something very important about
Clark. He had never been in a relationship before, and so a bit of slack was
granted.
Lois, don't make my job harder than it has to be
An unresolved element, one that had been placed on the back burner during their
breakup, returned with a vengeance. Lois wanted to "get into the act." She
seemed to want to be Superman's partner as much as Clark's. This of course was
a hindrance to the smooth operation of Superman. The issue was a black and
white one for Clark, "Superman doesn't have a partner." It was much grayer for
Lois, who had just gotten to the point of seeing Clark and Superman as the same
person, and that person was her partner. It may have been an issue for Lois
that Clark seemed to have a greater role, or perhaps having a role in which she
had no counterpart. No identity personally outside of their relationship and
no identity professionally outside of their partnership. It became clear,
however, as events unfolded, that Lois was as important to the equation of
Superman as was Clark. That Superman in reality was not so much an identity
for Clark, but a "venture" or enterprise, and as such, Lois was the main
support system that kept the venture operational. They also learned that
sublimating their fears, and not discussing them, only made them worse. Once
they broke their conspiracy of silence, they discovered that taking a chance is
what their relationship was all about.
Walk a mile in my boots
Had the "Ultra Woman" episode come earlier in the line-up of episodes, it would
have been a much too convenient resolution to the many problems and identity
crises that Lois had been suffering. However, coming on the heels of Lois'
discovery that her behind-the-scenes function in the Superman franchise was
every bit as important as Clark's center stage role, "Ultra Woman" provided
more of a reverse angle on the franchise. Since the early exploration of
Superman in season one had been more about Lois loving Clark in the Superman
persona, and ignoring Clark as himself, there was not much room to explore the
cost of being Superman in terms of his personal life, other than facets of
being a celebrity ("I'm Looking Through You") and the *idea* versus the
*reality* of Superman (what he can do is enough for someone to build hopes
around). The second season explored the cost the *secret* took on Clark's
personal life and his relationship with Lois as he became closer to her as
Clark and not Superman.
In reality, "Ultra Woman" provided a glimpse into aspects of what Clark must
have suffered early on, but that the viewers never actually experienced with
him. How *did* Clark feel the first time he could not get there fast enough?
Since this aspect was actually played a bit more for humor in first season,
having Lex rescue Lois because Superman did not get there quick enough in
"Requiem for a Superhero," we mainly saw Clark sulking and Lex gloating. We
didn't see Clark truly suffering from the effects of a botched rescue attempt
(except with Mayson Drake, though because he never verbally expressed this
failure, we learned little), but we do know, through his tender ministrations
to Lois, it has happened to him, and he has learned to accept that facet. What
we also learn, is that Lois will be Ultra Woman if fate has decreed so, but
that she really does not want to be the superhero (as we learned in the
previous episode). She feels it is something Clark was born to do, and
therefore ascribes an innate quality to being a superhero. We discover that
Lois is correct when we view Clark without his powers. He is still a hero and
that fact is inescapable. Clark feels his powers, whether temporarily
belonging to Resplendent Man or Ultra Woman, are still Superman's, and thus
should be used as Superman would use them. The "franchise" notion again.
What Lois does gain from this experience is somewhat comparable to a person who
has never been a parent, suddenly put in charge of children over a weekend.
That person would still have no real concept of what being a parent means, but
would come to understand, and admire the enormity of the task and
responsibility, and thus have gained a workable empathy. Lois' discovery came
from the understanding that it is all of the things Clark cannot do, the
instant choices, and the things denied that better define Superman. However,
it is the fact that he remains undaunted in the face of all of this that leads
Lois to a discovery. She loves Clark more. More than she ever has, and more
than she thought she could love anyone. This leads to Lois proposing to Clark,
and Clark of course accepting.
Episodes 8-10 deal with the issue of sexuality. What were Lois and Clark's
sexual histories before falling in love with each other? Had Lois and Clark
reached this point without being intimate with each other? The sexuality issue
was brought to the forefront when a woman claimed her super powered son was
Superman's love-child. Though Clark tells Lois he does not have a "checkered
past," and that the only real woman in his life is wearing his ring, Lois
remains doubtful, and angry. Her anger is even difficult for her to define.
She realizes that what either of them did before they fell in love should not
matter, but for some reason it does. This issue is further complicated by the
fact that Lois has to try and believe the word of a man who had lied to her for
three years. However, after weighing all of the evidence, and though it does
strongly indicate that Clark must be guilty, Lois decides that the truth is
what he tells her, and what she tells him, because that is the kind of
relationship they have. The best aspect of this, is that Lois chooses to
believe Clark before the woman claiming to have had an affair with Superman is
unmasked as a liar.
In "Super Mann," it was hinted that perhaps Lois and Clark had been waiting for
marriage before becoming intimate, because yet another brush with death starts
both of them thinking about how brief and unpredictable life can be, and so
initiate an attempt at lovemaking. They are, of course, interrupted. The
viewer was left wondering if they ever went back and finished what they
started. This question, and the rest, were answered in "Virtually Destroyed."
Lois and Clark *were* waiting, and both were happy with that decision. Most
startling to Lois was discovering that Clark was a virgin. This was not an
easy confession for Clark to make, obviously, because he had not even been able
to confess the truth to his parents a couple of weeks earlier. Clark reached
this decision more from a sense of ethics than morality. Not being from Earth,
he wondered if he had the right to pass himself off as a "regular" man, and
decided the woman he finally made love to would have to know the whole truth
about him.
Episodes 11-14 dealt with the preparation of marriage, meeting both sets of
parents, and worrying about having what it takes to be a parent. The Kents met
the divorced Lanes, and Sam and Ellen were a sharp contrast to the loving and
still married Kents. Sam had left the marriage for his own selfish needs. He
had felt burnt out by the medical profession and life itself, and unfortunately
for Lois and Ellen, his family were part of the life he chose to escape from.
Ellen was left bitter by the experience, and never seemed to move on with her
life past that bitterness. Lois, having been a victim of the selfishness and
bitterness from early on in her childhood, had been an amalgam of that
bitterness and selfishness for a good portion of her life. Not until she began
to make room in her heart for Clark did those tendencies begin to be displaced.
Sam is at least partly aware of the toll his selfishness took on his daughter.
He admitted her inability to trust was partially his fault. Ellen, on the
other hand, seemed to hang on to her bitterness, and saw little of how
adversely it effected Lois until a heart-to-heart was shared much later (into
the non-wedding arc).
The preparations for the wedding were mainly in the hands of Ellen, and in the
checking account of Sam. It was hard to tell if Ellen was trying to create a
wedding she felt Lois would enjoy, or whether she was adding up a list of
ingredients that would cause Sam's bank account to flatten. Ellen, perhaps in
her own way, was trying to make up for a lot of things she had short-changed in
the mothering department where her relationship with Lois was concerned.
Speaking of parenting, Clark's fear (expressed earlier in "Don't Tug on
Superman's Cape") of whether or not he'd be able to have time in his life to be
a good father became an issue again. This time, however, he expressed those
fears to Lois. Lois, taking an outside view of the issue was able to see that
just the fact that Clark worried about whether he'd be a good father showed he
had what it would take to be a good father: "It's not the job, it's the man."
Meaning even if Perry didn't have time for his family, or Jimmy's dad had no
time for him, neither seemed to have family as a priority, but we've known
since the pilot of the series, that this has been a priority with Clark.
Episodes 15-l9 involve the non-wedding arc, which I've covered previously.
They serve no other purpose. No evolution of the characters happened here,
because Lois did not remember anything throughout the arc, and since no resolve
came of the arc for Lois and Clark to dash out and get married, then there was
no evolution once the timeline continued. The only thing the arc did (besides
anger viewers) was to orphan episode 20, "It's a Small World After All." This
episode would have actually been part of Lois and Clark's newly married life
together, but because the risk of a real wedding was not taken, then episode 20
serves as a bookmark between the wedding that never happened and the show's
two-part finale cliffhanger.
The finale explores various concepts for Lois and Clark. The concept of what
"home" means. The concept of virtual, real, and emotional marriage. The
concept of loyalty, duty, and destiny. We learn that for Clark, home means an
escape from chaos, but for Lois, it means a descent *into* chaos, both concepts
formed by their childhood experiences. Clark, never a part of the stars or the
Earth, never knowing where he fit in, until he met Lois, needed that stability
in his life. Putting down roots for Lois, on the other hand, represented
stagnation, and a trap. This issue will not be resolved until Clark's return.
Clark had to leave Earth at the end of the finale. This decision had nothing
to do with the worthiness of the cause. It was, in essence, not Clark's fight,
and the two representatives from that world were not likable, sympathetic, or
even memorable. However, that made Clark's decision one of a much purer, and
less cluttered nature. This became an issue of what Clark has always stood
for. In "Strange Visitor," Clark says he is there to help. In "Whine Whine
Whine," Clark says that because he is Superman, there are certain things he
can't have and some things he may never have, but "When I save a life, in that
instant, I know two things that most people will never know. Why I am here,
and how I can make a difference." Clark goes to New Krypton because they need
his help, and because he can make a difference.
This is all regardless of how "worthy" others might judge the Kryptonian cause,
and regardless of the fact that Clark is himself a Kryptonian. He would do
this if they were from Vulcan, Melmac, or Ork. Perhaps Clark's *Superman*
philosophy was best expressed in "The Eyes Have It": "I really do believe that
we're all put here on this Earth, or whatever planet we're put on, to do better
than we think we can. To be kind, helpful, generous, and forgiving." The man
who said that, and meant that, could not turn his back on New Krypton.
However, he now needs extra strength to stand by such a conviction, because
when he had said those words, Lois had not been in love with him, nor planning
on sharing a life with him.
Lois had to be the stronger of the two, because there was a definite conflict
of philosophy, love, and loyalty for Clark. Lois means more to Clark than his
own life, so leaving her behind was not an easy decision, and so it was fitting
they made the decision together. They also confessed that even though they
were not married in reality, they were married emotionally to one another, and
that went beyond any untying, even if separated by time and space. This is
where Lois and Clark's long journey together through third season ended. They
made tremendous advances in growing closer, understanding each other, and
making the risks worthwhile.
The only risk not taken was on a network level, when ABC, either fearful of a
ratings loss (the reason they did not allow a revelation last season) or greed
in wanting an assured ratings grabber for next season, pulled the wedding rug
out from under the fans and casual viewers alike. This led to a flood of
protest mail to ABC, and the alphabet network had the unhappiness spelled out
for them. So, a wedding early on in fourth season seems a done deal. In the
end, it may actually be better the wedding happens in fourth season. Lois and
Clark have had their angst, and now, perhaps next season, they can have some
fun. What direction the show takes next season beyond a real marriage is not
known, but I'll have my own personal thoughts on that next month.
____________________________________________________________
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 the
exclusive distributor of DC Comics!
NOTES
---------------
There were fourteen books in July? We can do better than that! Let's
give 'em fifteen in August! Whoopee.
The main titles continue the saga of the strange bottle city which
began last month, Supergirl battles a demon, and -- oh boy -- Steel
battles an Armorbeast. The ACTION COMICS ANNUAL features a tale of a
future Bizarro by David Michelinie, and SHOWCASE brings Shadowdragon
out of limbo to match up against Lady Shiva.
BUT WAIT! THERE'S MORE! Superboy finds trouble with King Shark in
his original title (with new regulars Ron Marz and Ramon Bernado), with
the law in his new title, and with the truant officer in DETENTION
COMICS #1. Troublesome month, eh kid!?
BUT WAIT! IT GETS EVEN BETTER! Seriously, this time! Superman makes
an appearance in LEGION OF SUPER-HEROES #85, as half the Legion becomes
stranded in 20th century Metropolis -- good time to jump on board the
Legion, folks! The coming together of the mighty Justice League
continues in A MIDSUMMER'S NIGHTMARE, and KINGDOM COME draws to its
phenomenal conclusion! And last but not least, we've got the
Eradicator coming to terms with his inner child ... or something like
that. :)
Gentlemen, start your wallets...
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LIST OF TITLES BY EXPECTED ARRIVAL DATE
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Arrival Date: Comic title and information:
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June 5: Showcase '96 #7
Mary Marvel and Gangbuster
Written by Jerry Ordway
Art by John Statema and Mike DeCarlo
Cover by William Rosado and Klaus Janson
48 pgs, $2.95
Steel #29
Written by Louise Simonson
Art and Cover by Phil Gosier and Rich Faber
$1.95
Superman #114
Written by Mark Waid and Tom Peyer
Art by Curt Swan and various
Cover by Kieron Dwyer
$1.95
June 12: Adventures of Superman #537
Written by Karl Kesel
Art and Cover by Stuart Immonen and Jose Marzan, Jr.
$1.95
Kingdom Come #2 (of 4)
Written by Mark Waid
Painted art and Cover by Alex Ross
48 pgs, Prestige Format, $4.95
New Gods #10 (Superman)
Written by Rachel Pollack
Art by Stefano Raffaele and Brian Garvey
Cover by Stefano Raffaele
$1.95
Superman Annual #8
Written by David Michelinie
Art by Scot Eaton and Pam Eklund
Cover by Jerry Ordway
48 pgs, $2.95
June 19: Action Comics #724
Written by David Michelinie
Art by Tom Morgan and Denis Rodier
Cover by Tom Grummett and Denis Rodier
$1.95
Superboy #30
Written by Karl Kesel
Art by Tom Grummett and Doug Hazlewood
Cover by Tom Grummett and Karl Kesel
LOSIN' IT: Part 6 (of 6)
$1.95
June 26: Eradicator #1 (of 3)
Written by Ivan Velez, Jr.
Art and Cover by Roger Robinson and John Lowe
$1.75
Superboy Annual #3
Written by Barbara Kesel
Art and Cover by Anthony Williams and Andrew Lanning
48 pgs, $2.95
Superman: The Man of Steel #59
Written by Louise Simonson
Art and Cover by Jon Bogdanove and Dennis Janke
$1.95
July 3: Justice League: A Midsummer's Nightmare #1 (of 3)
Written by Mark Waid and Fabian Nicieza
Art by Jeff Johnson, Darrick Robertson, Jon Holdredge,
and Hanibal Rodriguez
Cover by Kevin Maguire and John Dell
48 pgs, $2.95
Showcase '96 #8
Superman and Superboy
Written by Karl Kesel
Art by Tom Grummett and Josef Rubinstein
Supergirl
Written by Peter David
Art by Terry Dodson and Karl Story
Cover by Tom Grummett and Doug Hazlewood
48 pgs, $2.95
Steel #30
Written by Louise Simonson
Art by Phil Gosier and Rich Faber
Cover by Howard Porter
$1.95
Superman #115
Written by Dan Jurgens
Art and Cover by Ron Frenz and Josef Rubinstein
$1.95
July 10: Adventures of Superman #538
Written by Karl Kesel
Art and Cover by Stuart Immonen and Jose Marzan, Jr.
$1.95
Kingdom Come #3 (of 4)
Written by Mark Waid
Painted Art and Cover by Alex Ross
48 pgs, Prestige Format, $4.95
Supergirl #1
Written by Peter David
Art and Cover by Gary Frank and Cam Smith
$1.95
July 17: Action Comics #725
Written by David Michelinie
Art by Tom Morgan and Denis Rodier
Cover by Tom Grummett and Denis Rodier
$1.95
Superboy #31
Written by Eddie Berganza
Art by Kris Renkewitz and Brad Vancata
Cover by Tom Grummett and Karl Kesel
$1.95
July 24: Superboy & The Ravers #1
Written by Karl Kesel and Steve Mattsson
Art and Cover by Paul Pelletier and Dan Davis
$1.95
Superman: The Man of Steel #60
Written by Louise Simonson
Art and Cover by Jon Bogdanove and Dennis Janke
$1.95
July 31: Alpha Centurion Special #1
Written by Barbara Kesel and Stuart Immonen
Art by Dean Zachary and Wade von Grawbadger
Cover by Stuart Immonen and Wade von Grawbadger
48 pgs, $2.95
Eradicator #2 (of 3)
Written by Ivan Velez, Jr.
Art and Cover by Roger Robinson and John Lowe
$1.75
Superman #116
Written by Dan Jurgens
Art and Cover by Ron Frenz and Josef Rubinstein
$1.95
August 7: Action Comics Annual #8
Written by David Michelinie
Art by Kieron Dwyer
Cover by Jerry Ordway
48 pgs, $2.95
Justice League: A Midsummer's Nightmare #2 (of 3)
Written by Mark Waid and Fabian Nicieza
Pencilled by Jeff Johnson and Darick Robertson
Inked by Jon Holdredge and Hanibal Rodriguez
Cover by Kevin Maguire and John Dell
48 pgs, $2.95
Showcase 96 #9
Lady Shiva and Shadowdragon
Written by Joan Weis
Pencils by Kevin West
Inks by Keith Champagne
Cover by Ron Frenz and Brett Breeding
48 pgs, $2.95
Steel #31
Written by Louise Simonson
Art and Cover by Phil Gosier and Rich Faber
$1.95
Superman: The Man of Tomorrow #6
Written by Roger Stern
Art by Paul Ryan and Brett Breeding
Cover by Tom Grummett and Brett Breeding
$1.95
August 14: Adventures of Superman #539
Written by Karl Kesel and Jerry Ordway
Art by Ron Lim and Klaus Janson
Cover by Stuart Immonen and Jose Marzan Jr
$1.95
Detention Comics #1
Superboy story:
Written by Ron Marz
Art by Ron Lim and Andrew Hennessy
Cover by Joe Phillips
64 pgs, $3.50
Kingdom Come #4 (of 4)
Written by Mark Waid
Painted Art and Cover by Alex Ross
48 pgs, Prestige Format, $4.95
Supergirl #2
Written by Peter David
Art and Cover by Gary Frank and Cam Smith
$1.95
August 21: Action Comics #726
Written by David Michelinie
Art by Tom Morgan and Denis Rodier
Cover by Tom Grummett and Denis Rodier
$1.95
Superboy #32
Written by Ron Marz
Art and Cover by Ramon Bernado and Doug Hazlewood
$1.95
August 28: Eradicator #3 (of 3)
Written by Ivan Velez Jr
Art and Cover by Roger Robinson and John Lowe
$1.75
Legion of Super-Heroes #85 (Superman)
Written by Tom Peyer and Tom McCraw
Art by Lee Moder and Ron Boyd
Cover by Alan Davis and Mark Farmer
$2.25
Superboy & The Ravers #2
Written by Karl Kesel and Steve Mattsson
Art and Cover by Paul Pelletier and Dan Davis
$1.95
Superman: The Man of Steel #61
Written by Louise Simonson
Art and Cover by Jon Bogdanove and Dennis Janke
$1.95
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SPOILERS
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July 31:
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Superman #116
In the conclusion of the bottle city saga, Superman must kill the Daxamite
sent to destroy him or become the city's newest permanent resident!
August 7:
--------
Action Comics Annual #8
The "Legends of the Dead Earth" Annuals continue: In the far future, the
tortured creature known as Bizarro still survives, but he has fallen on
hard times. After a successful period of celebrity in which he starred in
his own vid-show and erected the Bizarro World Theme Park, Superman's
imperfect duplicate encounters a new threat. Quedzl is an 8-foot tall,
4-armed, fluffy media creation who is poised to become the era's next
megastar. Now Bizarro must choose to fight for media supremacy ... or a
much nobler cause.
Justice League: A Midsummer's Nightmare #2 (of 3)
While meta-mercenaries threaten to overrun the Earth, Batman and Superman
awaken from Dr. Destiny's hypnotic control. But freeing the other heroes
proves more difficult, as some actually *prefer* the illusory lives
Destiny has fabricated.
Showcase '96 #9
When Lady Shiva and Shadowdragon cross paths, their chance encounter
becomes a test of skill and honor when Shiva challenges Shadowdragon to
a duel -- to the death! Story by Joan Weis, with art by Kevin West and
Keith Champagne. Also, a Martian Manhunter tale by Peter J. Tomasi and
Eduardo Barreto, and a Dr. Light story by Joseph Illidge, ChrisCross,
and Caesar.
Steel #31
When a horrific Armorbeast seeks to destroy Steel, he's forced to confront
not only the creature, but the fact that he has somehow created it.
Superman: The Man of Tomorrow #6
It's a rematch between Superman and the wild west vigilante known as the
Jackal. Plus, a new addition to the Daily Planet staff is hired over the
protests of both Perry White and Clark Kent.
August 14:
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Adventures of Superman #539
Guardian and the Newsboy Legion return in this in-depth look at Project
Cadmus, while Superman faces the new villain known as Anomaly!
Detention Comics #1
September's near, and DC's prepared this one-shot as the perfect survival
kit to help you bust out of the back-to-school blues. Three stories of
crises, comedy, and costumed heroes unfold with Robin, written by Dennis
O'Neil, with art by Norm Breyfogle and Klaus Janson; Superboy, written by
Ron Marz, with art by Ron Lim and Andrew Hennessy; and Warrior, written by
Ruben Diaz, with art by WILDC.A.T.S. artists Joe Phillips and Dexter Vines.
Kingdom Come #4 (of 4)
This is it. The mind-blowing conclusion of the most eagerly anticipated
miniseries of the last decade. And you know what? We're not telling you
anything about it. No hype, no synopsis, no hints. We're not even gonna
show you the cover. You deserve better than to have this story spoiled
for you. It's KINGDOM COME #4. If you think you need to know more than
that, you just having been paying attention. [Don't you hate it when they
get like this!? :) ]
Supergirl #2
The Girl of Steel battles the demon Chakat, the entity responsible for the
strange goings-on in Leesburg. Also, Supergirl discovers a sinister side
to Linda Danvers -- the young woman whose life is now inextricably linked
to Supergirl's.
August 21:
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Action Comics #726
Superman battles Barrage, the villain introduced in "Krisis of the Krimson
Kryptonite." Plus, more is revealed about the bottle city ... and the
mystery of Lori Lemaris deepens.
Superboy #32
Superboy faces the jaws of his most dangerous enemy when the carnivorous
King Shark returns with one thing on his mind: lunch! This issue marks
the debut of new regular writer Ron Marz (GREEN LANTERN, DC VERSUS MARVEL)
and of new regular penciller Ramon Bernado (WOLVERINE, JUSTICE LEAGUE TASK
FORCE).
August 28:
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Eradicator #3
Superboy guest-stars as the saga of this star from "Reign of the Supermen"
concludes: The Eradicator seemingly abandons Earth while the Composite --
the evil embodiment of Kryptonian intolerance -- terrorizes his human
family. Plus, the Eradicator and Superboy discuss their unique problems
as artificial lifeforms, and the Eradicator makes a decision about his
place in the universe.
Legion of Super-Heroes #85
A startling new direction begins for LEGION OF SUPER-HEROES, guest-starring
Superman! Flung through time and space by the awesome power of the Emerald
Eye, a contingent of Legionnaires finds itself stranded on Earth in the
20th century! Now Brainiac 5, Cosmic Boy, Saturn Girl, Ultra Boy, Spark,
Gates, and several others must make their way on a primitive planet of
living legends and deadly dangers equal to any they faced in the 30th
century! When their actions in Metropolis are met with force by the
ever-vigilant Special Crimes Unit, it soon becomes a job for the city's
resident Man of Steel!
Superboy and the Ravers #2
The party may be over before it's even begun when Superboy finds himself
in trouble with the law yet again as he and Kaliber are pursued by
InterC.E.P.T. -- and they take no prisoners. Plus, the Khund gang known
as the Red Shift wreaks havoc upon a small town on Earth.
Superman: The Man of Steel #61
Superman takes on Riot, a new villain with startling powers. Plus, the
Last Son of Krypton and Professor Hamilton head for the Antarctic Fortress
of Solitude on a mission to save the bottle city!
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End of Section 9/Issue #26
