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The Kryptonian Cybernet Issue 55
______________________________________________________
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 #55 -- October 1998
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CONTENTS
--------
Section 1: Superscripts: Notes from the Editor(s)
Oh, Yes He Can...
Jeff and Shane address _Wizard_'s assessment of the
Superman titles
Ratings At A Glance
Titles Shipped September 1998
Section 2: The KC Newsroom
Superman newsgroup results, Luthor miniseries, Kesel goes
exclusive, new Superman editor, Sci-Fi Top 100, a flurry
of movie news, Superman videogame release scheduled, and
more animation on the weekends!
And Who Disguised As...
The Dehumanized Superman
J.D. Rummel responds to remarks about his previous column
A Stamp of Approval
G.M. Nelson reports on the unveiling of the new Superman
stamp issued by the US Postal Service
Superman: The Animated Series
"Where There's Smoke"
Neil Ottenstein reviews the third season premiere,
introducing the villainess Volcana
Section 3: New Comic Reviews
DC One Million Week One
DC One Million #1, by Anatole Wilson
Action Comics #1M, by Derek Jackson
Young Justice #1M, by Gary Robinson
DC One Million Week Two
DC One Million #2, by Gary Robinson
Section 4: New Comic Reviews
DC One Million Week Two (cont)
Superman: The Man of Steel #1M, by Mike Smith
DC One Million Week Three
Superman #1M, by Thomas Deja
Superboy #1M, by Rene' Gobeyn
JLA #1M, by Anatole Wilson
Section 5: New Comic Reviews
DC One Million Week Four
DC One Million #3, by Rene' Gobeyn
Adventures of Superman #1M
Supergirl #1M, by Thomas Deja
DC One Million Week Five
Superman: The Man of Tomorrow #1M, by Edward Mathews
DC One Million #4, by Thomas Deja
Section 6: New Comic Reviews
Other Superman Titles
Superman Adventures #25, by Cory Strode
Superman For All Seasons #3, by Douglas Wolk
Superman: The Dark Side #2, by Rene' Gobeyn
The Phantom Zone
Superman #344
Dracula and Frankenstein's monster battle the Man of
Steel in this Halloween story reviewed by Scott Devarney
Section 7: The Phantom Zone
The One, True, Original Superman!
Episode 7 - Early Days and Action Archives #1
Relive the earliest adventures as Bob Hughes takes us
back to the Man of Steel's debut, the birth of a legend
Section 8: The Phantom Zone
The One, True, Original Superman! (cont)
After-Byrne
Superman Stories
Sean Hogan recaps the history of everyone's favorite
fifth-dimensional imp, Mr. Mxyzptlk
Section 9: The Mailbag
STAFF:
------
Jeffery D. Sykes, Publisher and Co-Editor-in-Chief
Shane Travis, Co-Editor-in-Chief and Executive Editor of Comic Reviews
Neil Ottenstein, Executive Editor of STAS Reviews
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 information.
All original material published in The Kryptonian Cybernet, including but
not limited to reviews, articles, and editorials, are copyright 1998 by The
Kryptonian Cybernet and the respective authors. Reprinting in any format
is expressly forbidden without the permission of The Kryptonian Cybernet
and the contributing author.
Opinions presented within this issue belong to the authors of the articles
which contain them. They should in no way be construed as those of any
other particular member of the editorial or contributing staff, unless
otherwise indicated.
This magazine can be distributed, in whole, freely via e-mail. Should you
desire to share this publication with other on-line services, please
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Back issues are available via ftp at oasis.novia.net. These archives can
also be reached via the Kryptonian Cybernet Homepage:
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_____________________________________________
SUPERSCRIPTS: Notes from the Editor(s)
------------------------------------------------------------------------
By Jeff Sykes (sykes@ms.uky.edu) and Shane Travis (travis@sedsystems.ca)
OH, YES HE CAN...
We all know that the Man of Steel has seen better comics days. We may not
agree on exactly when Superman has been at his best, but certainly no one
is claiming the last few years as a candidate. The staff of _Wizard_
recently managed to turn their eyes away from the flashy "hot" books of the
day and focus on the original super-hero in an attempt to determine what
exactly has gone wrong and how to correct those problems. The result was an
article entitled "Clark Can't" that appeared in _Wizard_ #86 (October
1998).
At the surface, their primary conclusion is unmistakably accurate: "DC
Comics has tried to sustain the Man of Steel's success with stunts and
events rather than solid stories." Of course, simply stating that
conclusion would make for a rather short article, so _Wizard_ expanded on
that idea, enumerating in ten categories, "...what makes Superman great,
how he has strayed from these points, and how [they'd] steer the Man of
Steel back in the right direction."
As usual, though, they're not right about everything, so we have decided to
take turns responding to and rebutting their points. Here, then, is what's
*really* wrong with today's Superman comics, and how these things can be
fixed.
STORIES, NOT EVENTS
===================
(Jeff's Opinions)
In brief, _Wizard_ thinks that "practically every story since [Superman's]
'death' six years ago has been a gimmick in a bad suit, at the expense of
simple, entertaining stories," suggesting that storytelling has been
sacrificed for marketing. They think that Superman comics should feature
more one- and two-issue stories, making the big stories that much more of
an event.
I can't disagree with _Wizard_'s general conclusion. It's abundantly clear
that the Superman books are driven by the events, that everything is done
to simply move the Man of Steel from one event to the next. As much as I
don't want to admit it, it would also appear that the potential marketing
of a story has also begun to play into the process. While the books were
just as event-driven before Superman's death, the gimmick/hook of the
events were much less attention-grabbing than they have been since.
Let's be honest. Superman battling Brainiac's attempt to shrink Metropolis
(Panic in the Sky), Superman suffering amnesia (Blackout), and Superman
travelling through time (Time and Time Again) simply will not grab the
attention of the general public in the same way as will Superman's death,
Superman's wedding, a radical change in Superman's powers and costume, etc.
This seems to indicate that the possibility of attention outside the medium
is a much larger factor than it used to be.
That's not to say that these events haven't been good ideas. Having
Superman's identity discovered by a villain, having Superman become
married, having Superman deal with no powers and then radically different
powers -- these are all pretty good concepts. They just haven't been very
well executed, and I wonder if this isn't primarily the responsibility of
editorial. For the first two or three years, the triangle continuity was
tight; stories flowed well from one issue to the next, and it was clear
that the writers and artists were all working well together and with
editorial. This, I think, probably had a lot to do with Mike Carlin. I know
he's not the most-liked man among Superman fans, but I defy anyone to claim
that Carlin doesn't have a deep love and respect for the Last Son of
Krypton. This showed in how the Superman books were run.
As we drew closer to his decision to step aside, though, the continuity
began to become more of a hassle, and the flow between titles dissipated.
No disrespect to KC Carlson or Joey Cavalieri, but neither of them managed
to recapture that flow. The titles now feel like each creative team is
simply passing along the latest paragraph of a group-writing exercise: "Now
you guys pick up where we left off." Since it appears that the triangle
format won't be leaving us any time soon, I hope that Eddie Berganza (soon
to replace Cavalieri) can restore that sense of a unified creative whole.
If not, then the events will continue to be poorly executed ... and the
only way to avert that problem will be in telling shorter stories not
passed along from creative team to creative team.
ROGUES GALLERY
==============
(Shane's Opinions)
If the folks at _Wizard_ had their collective way, Superman's villains
would be, "the most fearsome collection of bad-asses in the universe," and
not, "nuisances like Mr. Mxyzptlk, Prankster, and Toyman." They want him to
face foes who can 'pack a wallop' as well as 'shifty manipulators' who
'test his super-noggin'.
While I can't argue with any of the generalities, I'm afraid I must
disagree with them on the specifics. Any list of 'quality villains' that
includes both Conduit (who was never anything but a crutch for one of those
much-loathed Events) and Mongul (who was really scary pre-crisis, but has
been nothing but a punching-bag since "Panic in the Sky" -- and is
currently dead, besides) is suspect from the start.
As to Toyman, Prankster and Mxy... I'll agree that the current Toyman
belongs in Gotham, not Metropolis, but the Prankster? He made an appearance
in 'That 70's Comic' (a.k.a. _Action_) during the varying timelines, but
before that not for years. Nuisance is certainly the right word for Mr.
Mxyzptlk, though; he hasn't been a 'foe' since pre-death. When he was,
though, was primo; every appearance of this increasingly-malevolent magi
sent shivers down my spine. Currently, he's little more than a pest, but at
least he's an *entertaining* pest. Even Superman needs some levity, and
Mxy's post-death appearances have proved some of the books' best moments.
The super-scribes *have* come up with some interesting concepts in recent
years; nemeses who are short on the world-shattering power levels, but who
are also more than two-dimensional mock-ups. Inkling, Anomaly, and Riot (We
want more Riot!) all fit this category. Too often, though, they are ignored
in favour of yet another round of Intergang clones and the Cyborg (whom
_Wizard_ wisely painted as suffering from overexposure).
The classic villains *are* the best; we know who they are and what they can
do, which (ideally) means we can spend more time developing the story than
explaining their powers and origins. Waid showed us how scary Brainiac can
be. The Contessa seemed to have some dastardly plans for the Bizarros.
Metallo gets more powerful and more cunning every time he shows up.
Luthor's new relationship with his daughter is not a let-down (as the
article implies) but a chance for new growth and examination of the
character. Even the Parasite could, and should, pose a problem to be solved
instead of a bad-guy to be hit.
That, really, is the crux of the issue. Sure, Superman needs foes that can
match him in brute-strength toe-to-toe slugfests, but more than that he
needs villains that force him to *think*. Watching Kal hit the baddie
harder and harder until it falls down does not exactly make for thrilling
stories; we all saw that when Doomsday came to town. Superman's greatest
power is his brain, but the writers haven't made him flex that particular
muscle very hard in recent years.
SUPPORTING CAST
===============
(Jeff's Opinions)
_Wizard_ contends that the supporting cast should be reduced in size,
leaving only Lois, Jimmy, Perry, and the Kents as regular supporting cast
members. From my point of view, that's what we've already got. I can
understand a desire for the Superman comics to focus on the title
character, and there *are* a lot of secondary cast members, but the
majority of those do not appear on anything resembling a regular basis.
Cat Grant shows up now and again for an issue or two, but she hasn't really
been a significant player since the Toyman killed her son. Her primary role
these days is that of an expository device via her role as WGBS anchorwoman
and friend of Lois Lane. Franklin Stern appears rarely, and generally only
in scenes dealing with the operation of the Planet. Professor Hamilton
shows up only as a technological help, a necessity for the post-Crisis
Superman, who does not have quite the high-tech know-how that his Silver
Age counterpart did. Maggie Sawyer and Dan Turpin only appear when the SCU
is on the job, primarily only as background; they are rarely focal
characters. Heck, _Wizard_ even mentions Lori Lemaris and Commissioner
Henderson, though I can't even recall the last time either of them
appeared.
I read the Superman books just as much to see what's being done with the
supporting cast as I do to keep up on the Man. In fact, I'd say that the
stories focusing on the supporting cast have been as good as or better than
the majority of the stories focusing on Superman, at least for the past few
years.
Perhaps an alternative solution could be borrowed from the Silver Age, and
DC could look into reviving the Jimmy Olsen and/or Lois Lane titles. This
would allow for more stories about the supporting cast without diminishing
the focus on Superman in his own books. The only question is whether or not
such a title could sell in large enough quantities in today's market to
justify its existence.
Regardless, _Wizard_'s "solution" of junking cast members is no solution at
all. Indeed, I don't even see much of a problem that needs solving.
POWERS
======
(Shane's Opinions)
The comments of the _Wizard_ staff in this section threw me for a loop.
They want creativity. They want drama. They want to see Superman sweat as
he works to battle his way out of a predicament that super-strength alone
can't fix.
Pardon me if I give a great big resounding, "Huh?" at this point. If that's
what you want, folks, why do you propose people like Conduit, Mongul,
Bizarro, and Doomsday taking numbers to use our boy as a training dummy?
These guys aren't exactly on Mensa's 'must-have' members-list.
This section and the 'Rogues Gallery' section above are very much
intertwined. If your standard tactics (fly in, bounce bullets off your
chest, hit the bad guys, and wrap them in steel girder) are enough to
defeat the foe, there's no reason to go getting all creative. It's only
when these *don't* work that one is forced to improvise and come up with a
better way. Since the current opposition (Luthor excepted) are all written
so that they couldn't outsmart Impulse, we don't see any interesting
applications of Superman's abilities.
Say what you will about Silver Age Superman's god-like level of power, but
one thing was certain; there was never any question that he could defeat
anyone in a straight-up battle. That meant that the writers had to find
various and sundry ways to make sure that Superman never got *into* a
straight-up battle -- at least, not until the last page when he wrapped up
the fight in three panels. Now, we see him wrestling for pages upon pages
with muscle-bound thugs in paint-by-numbers fight scenes. That hardly makes
for inventive ideas.
It doesn't help when you put a bow on a gimmick and call it a gift, either.
There was a perception that Superman was 'stale', and so they gave him a
whole new set of powers -- and made us suffer through a year of Electri-Kal
in the process. What did he do with all these new-found powers? That's
right; fly (zap) in, bounce (catch) bullets off his chest (in his kinetic
field), hit the bad-guys (with a giant energy-fist) and wrap them in a
steel girder (but using magnetism instead of strength). All these
potentially great stories to tell about his interesting new powers -- what
they are, how he learns about and utilizes them, new advantages and
limitations -- and mostly we just got the default settings with new labels.
As _Wizard_ noted, the only truly unique thing Superman did with these
new-found abilities was move the moon back into orbit -- and he had to go
to the pages of _JLA_ to do that.
Cool powers are nice, but they're not why we read Superman. The whole
lesson that we were supposed to take away from Superman's Blue period is
that his main powers are three: his intellect, his heroism, and his
unfailing sense of Right and Wrong. He doesn't *need* big powers to be a
hero; they just help him fight more menacing malefactors, clean up bigger
messes, and get the job done faster. (Remember; this is a guy who beat
Brainiac while trapped in a 10 year-old's body.) Focus on *these* 'powers'
and everything else will come.
In the conclusion of this co-production, your Editors of Steel will set
_Wizard_ straight on the remaining six topics: romance, personality,
history, identities, format, and grandeur. Tune in next month!
_____________________________________________
RATINGS AT A GLANCE: Titles shipped September 1998
-----------------------------------------------------
Prepared by Shane Travis (travis@sedsystems.ca)
Greetings, one and all, from the 853rd Century! We're here to witness a
stunning celestial spectacle, for this is the time when Superman-Prime
promised that he would end his 15000-year self-imposed exile in the heart
of the sun. We've brought the heroes of his time through to the future to
welcome him and we're all anxiously... what's that? I seem to be having
some difficulty with my broadcast... something about increased solar
activity... [end transmission]
Key:
----
Issue -- Issue for which 'Current' Rating and Rank are calculated. The
'Previous' columns refer to the issue immediately prior to this.
Rating -- Average Rating, in Shields (maximum rating is 5.0). The number
in () indicates how many people submitted ratings.
Rank -- The relative ranking of the book among the regularly-published
Superman titles.
Average -- Average of the ratings for this title over the indicated number
of months, based on the book's cumulative average. Each month
is weighted equally, regardless of the number of people rating
the book that month. If this book is averaged over fewer months
than the rest, the number of months is displayed in ().
Current Previous Avg (6Mth)
Title Issue Rating Rank Rating Rank Rating Rank
----- ----- ------ ------ ------ ------ ------ ------
DC1M 4 4.4(8)
DC1M 1 4.3(9)
DC1M 2 4.1(9)
Superboy 1M 4.1(9)
DC1M 3 4.0(9)
JLA 1M 4.0(8)
Superman 1M 3.6(6)
Adv. of Superman 1M 3.5(8)
Man of Tomorrow 1M 3.3(8)
Action Comics 1M 3.3(9)
Man of Steel 1M 3.1(9)
Young Justice 1M 3.1(7)
Supergirl 1M 1.9(5)
S. For All Seasons 3 4.2(9) - 4.3(7) - 4.37(3) -
S: The Dark Side 2 3.9(6) - 4.0(6) - -- -
Superman Adv. 25 3.6(6) ** 1.9(4) 9 3.13 5
** Sort of hard to give rankings when only one of the books is a 'regular
issue'. This is going to cause problems next month, I can just feel it...
"Can I get an Amen over here?"
DC ONE MILLION #1-4 (4.3, 4.1, 4.0 and 4.4 Shields)
- Grant Morrison and Val Semeiks provide us with the most pulse-pounding
cosmic odyssey that DC has seen since it collapsed all the universes into
one about twelve years back with a little thing called _Crisis on Infinite
Earths_. If you're going to write an epic, start looking here; the sense
of scale and grandeur throughout were simply awe-inspiring.
"Speaking of non-sequiturs..."
SUPERGIRL #1,000,000 (1.9 Shields)
- Every single 'one millionth' issue starring Superman or a Superman
family-member did as well or better than it usually does -- all save one.
Peter David ignores the goings on in the rest of the 853rd century and
tells a tale of a god-like six year-old girl who just wants to be your
friend.... Personally, I would have liked some insight into the future of
Linda/Matrix; do merged human/protoplasm beings (or 'earthborn angels' or
whatever the heck she is) age and die like the rest of us?
"Meanwhile, back in the Age of Heroes, Batman had got himself kidnapped."
SUPERMAN ADVENTURES #35 (3.6 Shields, + 1.7 Shields)
- After an abysmal showing last month, Mark Millar finally manages to put
together all his good 'bits' into a good _story_. Teaming up Superman and
Batgirl, we get to go on a bit of a romp through Gotham City and watch as
Superman gets to save Batman's bacon for a change. Maybe this book is back
on the upswing again...
Information for 'Ratings at a Glance' and the ratings accompanying the
monthly reviews of Superman comics are obtained from KC readers. Anyone
interested in contributing may contact Shane Travis <travis@sedsystems.ca>
and will be added to the monthly mailing-list to receive a Ratings Form.
_____________________________________________
THE KC NEWSROOM
-------------------
LET THE DISCUSSION BEGIN
After months of debate, as well as a few painful twists and turns, the vote
on the proposed all-media Superman newsgroup finally took place, and I'm
ecstatic to report that creation of the group passed by a 184-55 margin!
The new group, rec.arts.sf.superman, is scheduled to be created on October
27, though it may take a few days for the group to appear on your local
news server. If rec.arts.sf.superman has not been added to your server by
November 5 (or so), you should contact your news administrator and ask that
he or she add the group.
On behalf of the original proponent KalElFan, my co-proponents Shane Travis
and Edward Mathews, and myself, I'd like to extend our thanks to everyone
who supported this proposal with their vote. Hope to see you in
rec.arts.sf.superman before long!
FLESHING OUT LUTHOR
Newsarama (http://www.mania.com/newsarama/index.html) reports that
Superman's arch-enemy is getting his own four-issue miniseries beginning in
January, courtesy of ex-_Action Comics_ scribe David Michelinie.
Illustrated by Val (_DC One Million_) Semeiks, _Superman's Nemesis: Lex
Luthor_ pits comics' most infamous villain against two new foes -- a spy
within Lexcorp and a new business rival. Over the course of the miniseries,
Luthor will deal with a menace which intends to strip Luthor of everything
he holds dear -- his power, his city, and even his beloved daughter Lena.
"But we're not trying to make Lex Luthor a hero in this series," assures
Michelinie. "We are, instead, trying to round the character out a bit,
explore facets of his personality that the regular Superman titles rarely
have time or space to examine." We'll have more information on the
miniseries' first issue in November's Coming Attractions.
SUPER-KESEL EXCLUSIVE WITH DC
_Superboy_ writer Karl Kesel recently confirmed with Newsarama that he has
signed an exclusive contract with DC Comics. Because the projects in
Kesel's immediate future all involve DC, the deal was kind of a no-brainer
for Kesel: "I'm having too much fun on _Superboy_ to think about leaving,
and the _World's Finest_ maxi-series is turning out to be a blast as well,
and the side projects that I have coming up have me very excited. If DC
wanted to offer me a bonus just to do all of that, I was happy to oblige
them."
OUT WITH THE JOEY, IN WITH THE EDDIE
Newsarama also confirms (Can they get the scoops, or what?) that Joey
Cavalieri will be stepping down from his post as editor of the Superman
titles in order to develop upscale projects. He will be replaced Eddie
Berganza, editor of _Young Justice_ and the upcoming _Titans_ series. I've
seen no indication of exactly when the changes will take place.
THE STUFF OF SCI-FI LEGEND
In the October 16 issue, the staff of _Entertainment Weekly_ released their
list of the 100 greatest works of science fiction. These were "chosen and
judged not just by quality and their influence on pop culture but by their
impact on the collective imagination."
The Man of Steel easily made the cut, placing 10th: "He was invented by two
teenagers from Cleveland, writer Jerry Siegel and artist Joe Shuster, and
introduced in the premier issue of _Action Comics_ in June 1938. Supe would
become one of the most recognizable characters -- comic book or otherwise
-- in the world. The heart of his appeal: He personified the best of
humankind -- ironic since, technically, he was an alien. The Man soon found
his way into other media, including a 1940 radio show and a series of
beautiful cartoon shorts. Although future TV and film incarnations would
vary widely in quality, his stature in the national mythos never wavered.
He was, after all, Superman."
For those of you wondering, _EW_'s choice for the greatest work of science
fiction was Star Wars. Star Trek, The Twilight Zone, Frankenstein, 2001: A
Space Odyssey, Metropolis, War of the Worlds, Invasion of the Body
Snatchers, Alien/Aliens, and Superman round out the top 10. The only other
works from the comics medium were EC Comics' _Weird Science_ (35), _The
Incredible Hulk_ (82), and _Watchmen_ (98).
SUPERMAN LIVES AGAIN!
There has been a flurry of news on the Superman movie front, spurred
primarily by a report which appeared on Cinescape Online
(http://www.cinescape.com), a report which featured news straight from the
mouth of producer Jon Peters. The highlights:
* A new script has been written by screenwriter Dan Gilroy (credits include
_Outbreak_ and _Freejack_), and Peters is happy with this new script.
* Peters reports that Tim Burton is no longer attached to the project, and
several directors are under consideration for his replacement.
* With the new script, the budget has also been trimmed, and the movie is
expected to be made for between 90 and 100 million dollars.
* Nicolas Cage is still Peters' first choice to play Superman.
* Shooting could begin next summer for a July 4, 2000, release date.
A week after this report, Cinescape offered a follow-up response from a
Warner Brothers source who offered, "The comments were the speculation of a
producer based on an enthusiastic reaction to a new script that everybody
likes but agrees still needs work." This source also indicated that Burton
was not necessarily off the project, that talks were ongoing with everyone
previously involved with the project, but that no decisions had been made.
However, the source did state unequivocally that, "...this movie will be
made."
On the rumor front, Ain't It Cool News (http://www.aint-it-cool-news.com)
reports (via a contact a Warner Brothers) that the new script is better
than the drafts received since Kevin Smith's exit, though he believed that
Smith's script was better than the Gilroy script. He also added that
several directors have been approached, including Brett Ratner, director of
the recent Jackie Chan/Chris Tucker smash-hit, _Rush Hour_. They also
confirm that the traditional Superman costume is set to be used.
SUPERMAN VIDEOGAME RELEASE SCHEDULED
Titus software has announced the release dates for their highly anticipated
videogame based on the Superman animated series. The version for Nintendo
64 will be released at retail on November 16, with the Sony Playstation
version scheduled for November 30. Expect a huge promotional campaign to
include in-store promotions and displays, as well as advertising on
television, online, and in print media. As a bonus to customers, the
videogame will come with a limited edition Superman collectors' comic book
included in the game boxes.
THAT DIDN'T TAKE LONG
The cancellation bug has hit the Kids' WB, resulting in the disappearance
of two of the network's Saturday morning programs, _Brats of the Lost
Nebula_ and _Invasion America_. This is to the benefit of Superman and
Batman fans, however, as Kids' WB has decided to once again expand _The New
Batman/Superman Adventures_ from 60 minutes to 90 minutes. Beginning
October 31, viewers can look forward to three Batman and/or Superman
episodes, airing from 8:00 AM to 9:30 AM Eastern (as usual, check local
listings). No word as yet on how this will affect the previously announced
schedule for Halloween.
_____________________________________________
AND WHO DISGUISED AS...
---------------------------------------------------------
A Column of Opinion by J.D. Rummel (rummel@creighton.edu)
The Dehumanized Superman
An issue or so ago I wrote a column wherein I discussed what might be
considered the downside of being Superman. At least one of you took the
time to write in and take exception to my thoughts, or at least how I
expressed them.
The viewpoint I took was one away from the traditional view of
wouldn't-it-be-great-to-be-Superman that most of us probably carry around.
Yes, most of us idolize Superman. Most of us want to be like him. Why?
Well, there is the super part, being able to leap over tall buildings and
traffic jams has definite appeal, but there is something beyond that, I
believe. Maybe because he is the best of us, because he has all the good,
all the best intentions and he usually fulfills them. But, back to the
Super, the fantasy, the parts of his story that soar over reality. It seems
to me that taken purely on that level we dehumanize him. Yes, he is an
ideal, but what are we doing to him when we don't see him as a rounded
figure, a being of highs and lows?
Back in the '70's, Denny O'Neil was one of the hottest writers in comics.
His Batman and Green Lantern stories won awards for the different, human
approach they took to traditional heroes. O'Neil admitted that Superman was
hard to write for, that Kal-El's very Ubermenchness made writing the
adventures of Superman a rough job. Superman was so alien that O'Neil could
not get a grasp on the character that he felt comfortable with. Who is
doing that today? Who is at least trying? Jeph Loeb is the only one that
springs to mind (and succeeding I might add).
It seems that Superman is usually approached from the angle of supreme
adventurer, ultra cop, the savior who does not die for our sins, but
battles them down. It is so very rare that the writer addresses the man.
Rather, the focus is on the super. One reader commented that Superman has a
life like other men in addition to being Superman. Maybe he does, but at
what price? Read any cop biography to see the effect that being the
authority figure has on an average Joe on the beat, and now magnify that by
whatever factor is involved in being Superman. How do his loved ones suffer
because of who he is? It has been said that after Byrne, Superman is the
fiction and Clark the reality. Is that really so? Superman is who we
idolize, Superman is the one with all the comic titles not Clark. How can
Superman not swallow Clark?
The last few years of Superman stories have been extremely tiring,
uninteresting sagas, epics of vastly uninthralling proportions. Every
*@%$#! summer, it seems the entire world or even universe is threatened. In
recent memory Metropolis has been leveled and rebuilt (including slums!),
the entire Earth invaded, and the sun snuffed out! Yet, obla di obla da,
life just goes on. For Pete's sake, the hero has died and come back to
life. What is left here, people?
Which is more fun to watch? A game where your team easily bests the
opponent, or one where the outcome is in doubt? We have lost the capacity
for doubt where Superman is concerned.
It seems to me that we have the chance to tell wonderful truths about who
we are and where we can go. Instead, we settle for silly, over-reaching
tales of multi-verses that are far-removed from the truth.
Away!
And Who Disguised As... is copyright 1998 by J. D. Rummel. Its contents may
not be reproduced in any format without the written permission of the
author.
_____________________________________________
A STAMP OF APPROVAL
-------------------------------------
By G.M. Nelson (kalel224@aol.com)
If it seems like the last few years have been rough on Superman -- what
with him being turned into energy, getting married and even dying (and
getting better) -- the people who guide his adventures say it's purely
intentional.
"We consider it our job to torture our readers, and we do that by torturing
our characters," observed Jenette Kahn, president and editor-in-chief of DC
Comics Inc. "We put both Superman and our readers through a lot of changes
over the past five years, but both have come through better for it."
Kahn was just one of the dignitaries who attended ceremonies in Cleveland
celebrating the Sept. 10 release of the "Superman Arrives" stamp, one of 15
marking the 1930s in the U.S. Postal Service's "Celebrate the Century"
series.
Though other events, items, and personalities were memorialized in the
1930s stamps -- including "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs," the board game
"Monopoly," President Franklin D. Roosevelt, and Olympic star Jesse Owens
-- the Cleveland celebration centered on the Man of Steel, created by
Cleveland teenagers Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster in the 1930s and first
published in 1938.
"Capturing history on stamps is an important part of what we do at the
Postal Service. That's why appearing on a stamp is such a privilege and an
honor," remarked Michael S. Coughlin, U.S. deputy postmaster general.
The program, hosted by cable game show host David Sidoni, featured Tim Daly
and Dana Delany, who voice "Superman/Clark Kent" and "Lois Lane"
respectively on the WB Network's animated "Superman" series. Jack Larson,
who played "Jimmy Olsen" on the "Adventures of Superman" television series,
also attended the ceremonies.
Joanne Siegel, widow of Jerry Siegel, was unable to attend the ceremony but
issued a written statement expressing her appreciation.
"The Superman stamp is a tremendous tribute," she said.
"There will be changes that we can't even imagine in the next decade, but
there is one thing that will remain the same -- the spirit of Superman --
and that spirit lives inside each of us," she observed. "We use that spirit
when we reach out to help someone, when we do something as simple as giving
someone a kind word, or when we do the right thing because it is the right
thing to do."
Delany described her character as "the perfect role model" for every young
girl. "She's smart, she's sassy, she's stubborn."
Kidding the audience, Daly -- saying he wanted to tell people about himself
-- proceeded into a first-person account of Superman's origin before his
co-star interrupted.
"Tim, you do realize that you're not really Superman? You're okay?" Delany
asked.
"I'm more than okay -- I'm super, man," he responded.
Superman writer/artist Dan Jurgens also journeyed to Cleveland for the
occasion, teaching area schoolchildren how to draw the Man of Steel during
the morning.
"When you work on Superman you're always somewhat intimidated by what he
means and the legacy of a great fictional character, but when you come to
something like this... it really drives it home," he reflected.
Also on hand for the festivities was Paul Levitz. Now DC's vice president
and publisher but a former writer of "Superman" stories probably best-known
for his long stint on "Legion of Super-Heroes," Levitz was sure how
Superman's creators would have felt.
"They would have had such a wonderful feeling being here today," he said.
"It's great to know they're watching."
_____________________________________________
SUPERMAN: THE ANIMATED SERIES
----------------------------------------
Episode #42: "Where There's Smoke"
----------------------------------------------------
Reviewed by Neil A. Ottenstein (otten@tomco.net)
September 19, 1998
Written by Hilary J. Bader
Directed by Dan Riba
Guest-starring Peri Gilpin as Claire Sultan/Volcana
RATINGS:
Average: 2.8/5.0 Shields
Neil Ottenstein:
3.2 Shields
Nathan Bredfeldt:
1.0 Shields - I hated it. What a horribly dull episode to start the
new season with.
Scott Devarney:
4.0 Shields - Superman meets the X-files. I loved Volcana's moral
ambivalence and Peri Gilpin's voice work gave her such a sultry
quality. Nice start to season 3.
Denes House:
3.0 Shields - Pretty decent. Peri Gilpin's voice was sultry, but
Volcana's story was not too compelling. I liked the short doctor,
but found his dialogue a bit forced. And so it goes throughout the
episode -- I liked everything, with reservations. All except for
that blasted "ALL NEW!" ghost in the upper right corner...
REVIEW
Ten years ago Claire Sultan was brought to the Paranormal Children
Institute. There she learned how to cope with her pyrokinesis. She was
taken away by some government men who wanted to make her a living weapon in
the Project: Firestorm program. Two years ago she escaped. She is now using
the codename Volcana and has been on the run ever since, using her powers
to help her rob places and then fence the loot. The story opens up with her
doing just this at a yacht club which was displaying a collection of
nautical memorabilia. Clark Kent happens to be there and he investigates,
learning the above information. In addition to Clark Kent's investigation
and Superman trying to stop Volcana, the men from Project: Firestorm have
finally caught up with her and are determined to get back their investment.
This episode was not what I would have chosen to lead off the third season,
but then the season one finale was a similar poor choice. There just wasn't
anything really special about the episode. There was only a limited use of
the supporting cast. Peri Gilpin, better known as Roz from _Frasier_, does
a decent job as Volcana. She is most recognizable in the scenes where she
is flirting with someone. Volcana's experience with her powers is apparent
in one scene where she is trying to escape Superman and decoys him away
with a fire version of herself. I like it when characters actually do
think. An amusing moment where Superman acts decisively occurs when
Superman is confronted by one of the government men, who believes he has a
weapon which could even damage Superman. He is threatening Superman with
it, but before he can do anything, Superman has taken the weapon away. One
design note is that in a scene late in the episode in a government base,
the uniforms seem quite similar to those used by Marvel's Captain America
villains -- AIM.
_____________________________________________
NEW COMIC REVIEWS
--------------------------------------------
Comics Arriving In Stores September 1998
_DC One Million_ overloads the reviews this month, so there are a few more
books not reviewed this month than usual. _Adventure Comics 80-Page Giant_
#1 contained Superboy and Supergirl stories, as well as a pretty darn good
tale of the Bizarro World that's really worth reading. _JLA in Crisis
Secret Files_ #1 is significant primarily in its reference to Earth-1 and
Earth-2, the first such references since _Crisis on Infinite Earths_ ended
-- for newer DC fans, there's a pretty good run down of the post-Crisis
crossover stories. Superman and the JLA make a guest appearance at the end
of _Hardcore Station_ #5, and Superman joins a guest-cast of hundreds in
_JLA: Year One_ #11.
Finally, because we wanted to make certain that we gave it enough attention
to do the book justice (and because some of us didn't actually get it in
September), we're holding the review of _Elseworld's Finest: Supergirl and
Batgirl_ until November's issue.
Ratings Panelists:
-----------------
AW: Anatole Wilson EM: Edward Mathews MS: Mike Smith
CoS: Cory Strode GN: G.M. Nelson RG: Rene' Gobeyn
DJ: Derek Jackson GR: Gary Robinson ST: Shane Travis
DWk: Douglas Wolk JE: Josh Elder SDM: Simon DelMonte
EJ: Enola Jones JO: Joey Ochoa TD: Thomas Deja
JSy: Jeff Sykes
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.
===============================================
DC ONE MILLION WEEK ONE:
-----------------------
DC ONE MILLION #1 Nov 85271 $2.95 US/$4.25 CAN
"Riders On The Storm"
Writer: Grant Morrison
Penciller: Val Semeiks
Inker: Prentis Rollins
Letterer: Kenny Lopez
Colorist: Pat Garrahy
Separations: Digital Chameleon
Assoc. Ed.: Tony Bedard
Editor: Dan Raspler
Cover: Semeiks and Rollins
RATINGS
Average: 4.3/5.0 Shields
AW: 4.5 Shields
DJ: 5.0 Shields - Great Story! Great Art! One of the best introductions
to a story I have ever read. Couldn't wait for the next week.
DWk: 4.2 Shields - A complicated story, and maybe too full of detail, but
worth the effort. I loved Superman 1M living according to the
legends of Superman Prime ("Up! Up and away!")
JE: 4.6 Shields - The 1 Million concept is both quite interesting and
almost too far-fetched to believe. An exact duplication of the
League in the 853 century? Still, I love the costume designs on
the JL-A, the future Vandal Savage, and Solaris.
JO: 4.0 Shields - DC1M got off to a great start. Vandal Savage is a
great villain and the future JLA looks awesome. Despite that, I'm
always glad when these big events are over and we get back to
our regularly scheduled programming.
SDM: 3.6 Shields - The plot intrigued me but Superman's reaction to
learning about his possible future was a lot more interesting.
The destruction of a real city shocks me; is this the beginning
of an even rougher DCU?
TD: 3.8 Shields - Now *this* was special. A great set-up with nice little
touches (like Superman's disbelief that he's still alive in
853rd century).
For the first time in twelve years (since _Crisis on Infinite Earths_), DC
has come up with a idea for a cross-series adventure where it is actually
worth reading and following through the various other titles the crossover
encompasses.
The basic premise is introduced in this issue. 'Superman Prime' (the 20th
century Superman) has somehow managed to live for another 830 centuries.
For the first time in 150 centuries he is about to emerge from his Fortress
of Solitude (located within our sun). To honor the event, members of the
Justice Legion A (JLA counterparts from the 853rd century) invite the
present JLA members to participate in a series of athletic contests. (It's
important to note that the Earth now has two suns -- one is a formerly evil
super-computer known as Solaris, who was the most infamous enemy of the
Superman dynasty until the 505th Superman gave his life to reprogram it.)
This is wonderfully reminiscent of some '50s and '60s adventures, when
Superman's reputation was galactic and just the mention of a celebration in
his honor (or in one great story, his death) brought out heroes and
villains from every corner of the galaxy. Also, I seem to remember more
than one story where the World's Finest Team took top honors at the
interplanetary Olympics. As I read this, I could almost imagine some of the
panels as Curt Swan might have drawn them.
But this is the '90s, so nothing is as it seems.
While most of the JLA agrees to go to the future, Batman is assaulted and
abducted by the future Batman, whose remarks lead me to believe their story
is not completely kosher.
Meanwhile, Arsenal (A.K.A. Speedy, Green Arrow's former sidekick) leads a
new Teen Titans team (Jesse Quick, Supergirl, and Tempest -- formerly
Aqualad) to recover some Rocket Red armor-suits with nuclear capability
that have fallen into the wrong hands. (One wearer of a Rocket Red suit was
a JLA member for a time). Unfortunately, those hands belong to Vandal
Savage, who defeats the team and places each member inside a Rocket Red
suit. Things get even worse as the 853rd century Hourman falls victim to a
virus that affects both computers and humans. The virus spreads quickly,
and the JLA members who stayed behind are forced to cut communications with
Earth. A day later, Vandal Savage unleashes one of his nuclear weapons on
Montevideo, Uruguay, killing over a million people (and possibly one Teen
Titan?)
Finally, in the future, a much older Vandal Savage and Solaris -- who has
obviously returned to his former evil programming -- toast their plans to
destroy the heroes of two eras.
The best part of this issue are the times when Morrison stops to gauge
reactions. Some highlights were Ted Knight's (the original Starman)
optimistic call to Jay Garrick (the original Flash), a Huntress/Batman
dialogue, and Superman's reaction to just about everything; he's humble,
embarrassed, and excited all at once.
Semeiks and Rollins do an excellent job with the art. I don't know who
designed the Justice Legion A costumes, but they, too, deserve special
praise.
If I have one fear, it's that this great start will fizzle in the issues
ahead. In the monthly _JLA_ comic, Morrison has set up several promising
storylines only to digress or have them end anticlimactically. This is a
wonderful start, however, and it appears to have inspired the writers of
all the other series; I've seen nothing but excitement and good stories so
far.
Anatole Wilson
<awilson@us.oracle.com>
===============================================
ACTION COMICS #1,000,000 Nov 85271 $1.99 US/$2.95 CAN
"Brave New Hero"
Writer: Mark Schultz
Penciller: Ron Lim
Inker: Jose Marzan Jr.
Letterer: Bill Oakley
Colorist: Joe Rosas
Seps: Digital Chameleon
Future Perfect: Maureen McTigue
Future Tense: Joey Cavalieri
Cover: Gene Ha and Pat Garrahy
RATINGS
Average: 3.3/5.0 Shields
DJ: 4.3 Shields
DWk: 2.8 Shields - The tricky ideas of the 1M series dumbed down to
relative simplicity, with Morrison's concepts still resilient,
but too many obvious plot devices and bad dialogue.
EJ: 2.5 Shields - Platinum is the saving grace in this one; it was *very*
good to see her again! Good art, but the story was very confusing
to me.
EM: 4.5 Shields - Negative Gorilla Queen. 'Nuff said.
JO: 3.5 Shields - Looking after the populace, even though they see him as
a bad guy, is what makes Supes the best superhero around. Of all
the Metal Men to survive the centuries, the curvaceous Platinum
was a great choice.
JSy: 3.5 Shields - A promising debut for Mark Schultz, and I'm anxious to
see what he can do on a monthly basis. The art, on the other hand,
needed some help; I know that Ron Lim is capable of better.
TD: 2.1 Shields - Almost as stale as the forgettable _Man of Steel_ entry,
and shows us that Mark Schultz might not have the chops to be a
Super-scribe.
This is Derek Jackson, reporting live from the 853rd century, with the One
Millionth issue of _Action Comics_.
Synopsis:
We start with the 20th century Superman in the year 85271, where numerous
fans are gasping in awe at the legend himself. He is quickly escorted to an
arena so that the world may watch him battle some 'geometrons' -- flying
androids that react to and learn from Superman's abilities. The fight
begins well, with Supes taking out a few of the androids, but soon Solaris
(an artificial sun from _DC One Million_) overrides the programming and
begins to cause Superman's attacks to hit the crowd, all the while
broadcasting false information about Superman being a Bizarro.
The crowd turns on Superman. They use the temporary super-powers granted by
their icons to try and bring him down, but they are untrained and no match
for Superman. He easily fights off a few would-be heroes without harming
them before a group of trained Hawkmen subdues the Man of Steel and
disperses the mob. Superman tries to persuade them that he is not a
Bizarro, and the lead Hawkman decides to give Superman a chance to prove
himself. He is brought to a junkyard where he meets up with Platinum of the
Metal Men, who acknowledges Superman's identity.
Superman realizes that the saboteur of his game may also be endangering the
JLA. He decides to locate the Fortress of Solitude of the current era, but
a constant telepathic transmission called Headnet is screwing up his
senses. Platinum and the Hawkmen help Superman disable the Headnet, and
Superman heads for the Fortress of Solitude.
Review:
The One Million stories, while ridiculously far-fetched, have been
incredibly entertaining and well-written. This issue is no exception. We
get great art, a good story, and no annoying subplots!
The art is very good overall. Faces particularly are very well drawn,
especially Superman's. The coloring is excellent. In fact, it's one of the
best overall Superman comics I've seen in awhile; hats off to this team. My
only complaint (and I always have one) is the cover, which is just awful;
Superman looks like the brother from _Everybody Loves Raymond_.
The story itself is also done well. I particularly enjoyed Superman
fighting the would-be heroes. It's nice to watch Superman toying with
people. The deliberate cheesiness of the one-liners uttered by the crowd
was hilarious. I almost wish the fighting could've have continued.
As in many of the 'One Million' stories, we got to see future-heroes
emulating those of the 20th century -- and some of the actual 20th century
heroes. The choice of Platinum and the Metal Men was a good one. Many of
yesterday's heroes (and some villains) were seamlessly included in the
story without making it any more unreal then it was. As an integral part of
the 'One Million' storyline, though, it doesn't really fit. Like many of
the regular hero issues, it was just filler, but at least it's good filler.
We enjoy seeing Superman and the other heroes fight in an arena. In fact,
I'd like to see some sort of Superhero Olympics.
With stories like this, you'd almost like to see Superman stay in the 853rd
century. I have noticed a big upswing in writing lately; hopefully this
trend will continue.
A word of condolence to all the poor comic book dealers who now have to
deal with issue numberings of zero and one million.
Derek Jackson
<djackson@iconstructs.com>
===============================================
YOUNG JUSTICE #1,000,000 Nov 85271 $2.50 US/$3.75 CAN
"Just Ice, Cubed"
Writer: Peter David 1M
Artists:
Main Frame: Todd Nauck and Larry Stucker
Doomsday: Angel Unzueta and Norm Rapmund
Final Night: Craig Rousseau and Sean Parsons
Millennium: Roberto Flores and Wayne Faucher
Colors: Jason Wright
Letters: Ken Lopez
Assistant: Frank McTigue 1M
On A Tangent Editor: Eddie Berganza
Cover: Todd Nauck, Larry Stucker, and Pat Garrahy
RATINGS
Average: 3.1/5.0 Shields
GR: 3.0 Shields
DWk: 2.2 Shields - Somebody really needs to tell Peter David that throwing
a bunch of dumb jokes together doesn't make for a story. Points
lost for not advancing the 1M plot a bit.
EM: 3.0 Shields - PAD should get a better handle on the personalities of
these three. Ok, they are the counterparts from the 853rd Century
so he can get away with this, but keep it out of the regular book.
GN: 3.5 Shields - I still think Peter David could cut down on the gags
in this title, but it worked to the story's advantage this time.
JSy: 3.0 Shields - The 853rd Century characters left me cold, but the
skewed histories were a hoot (hey, there *were* a cow and a deer,
so why *not* a chicken!?).
TD: 3.4 Shields - A lot better than last month's, with its raspberry on
the whole inter-company phenomenon coming at the best time.
Chest-thumping one-upsmanship -- that's the delightful game PAD has the
853rd century counterparts of his rowdy super-adolescents playing in the
"one millionth" issue of Young Justice.
Having discovered a tube which they believe to contain one of their 20th
century ancestors, the boys attempt to thaw him out. (Did I say "boys"? I
should say one boy, one robot, and one, "...personification of random
thoughts of speedsters.") While they wait, they pass the time telling
stories of ancient Crises and Final Nights wherein the original Superboy,
Robin, and Impulse saved the day. Each story is a projection of the
teller's own inflated ego, swelling the deeds of his ancestor. Each tale is
taller and more ridiculous than the one before.
First at bat is the 853rd century Superboy, he of the suped-up shoulder
pads and reverse shark-fin haircut. He tells of how, when Superman failed
to take out "the Doomsday," the first Superboy fooled that bad ol' monster
by appearing to do a handstand. Actually, he was pushing the planet out
from under Doomsday's feet! What a guy!
"You made it all up!" declares the 853rd century Robin, who gives a whole
new meaning to that old query, "Are your eyes painted on?" Appropriately,
he's known as the Toy Wonder. He claims to have thoroughly researched his
chronicle of a Pillsbury Doughboyish-looking "Sun-Eater," of icy darkness,
and depowered superheroes raining from the sky. Lucky for the back-broken
Batman (quickly deposited in "a large body cast that he'd kept in the
Batmobile") that that Olympic-level ice skater Robin was there to save the
day!
No, no, no! It was the 20th century Impulse who was the greatest of 'em
all! His descendant launches into the saga of "THE MILLENNIUM CHICKEN" --
with fresh egg to match! "O my Lord ... It's coming to New York ... to
nest!"
Superboy and Robin won't allow Impulse to further embellish his epic.
Impatiently, they try to speed up the reanimation process so that the Real
McCoy can put at least two of the trio in their proper place. But haste, as
they say, makes waste. The boys end up incinerating their hero -- whoever
he was.
The final, sly panels show the chagrined Young Justice of the 853rd century
unknowingly standing right in the middle of the old adage, "Truth is
stranger than fiction."
I could quibble, I guess, with the fact that these kids committed
manslaughter -- if their 20th century hero was even alive to start with --
but the whole thing is handled with such silliness that all I could think
of was a Warner Brothers cartoon.
Still, there's a touch of realism in the kids' interaction. PAD understands
and appreciates young 'uns. (Does anybody remember a funny little piece he
did with Wolverine lecturing a class of Hebrew-school children on the
meaning of Hanukkah?) He's drawn a bead on early-adolescent boys and
handles them with just the right touch: a grimy, impatient hand grabbing
here, a whiff of male ego there. In the John Wayne film, _The Cowboys_,
Roscoe Lee Browne enters the bunkhouse containing the too-young hands Wayne
has been forced to hire. Sniffs Browne, "It smells of boy in here." Even
though these counterparts are from the far, far future, even though one's a
robot and one's a... a whatchamacallit (I'm still not sure just what the
future Impulse is supposed to be), this issue smells of boy -- and "boy" is
one reason _YJ_ is fun.
Another reason is PAD's wonderfully wry commentary on today's comics. In
this issue he pokes fun at DC's 'Big Events': the Death of Superman, The
Final Night, The Millennium Giants. He's indulging himself, gently nipping
the hand that feeds him. But he also knows that, apparently, Big Events
sell -- otherwise, there'd be no joke.
It's an in-joke, however, and not everybody will get it. Kids have turned
away in droves from comic books. Who, then, is left to appreciate David's
very welcome and refreshing commentary on the state of the industry? Just
we who inhabit the comics ghetto. This observation can't detract from the
quality of PAD's fine writing, but how many people are there with whom I
can share the laughter and who will appreciate the insight? (Present
company excepted, of course.)
For fans, however, this is fresh, funny stuff. I do recommend _YJ_.
Gary Robinson
<robinfam@akron.infi.net>
_____________________________________________
DC ONE MILLION WEEK TWO:
-----------------------
DC ONE MILLION #2 Nov 85271 $1.99 US/$2.95 CAN
"The Day After Tomorrow"
Writer: Grant Morrison
Penciller: Val Semeiks
Inker: Prentis Rollins
Letterer: Kenny Lopez
Colorist: Pat Garrahy
Separator: Heroic Age
Assoc. Ed.: Tony Bedard
Editor: Dan Raspler
Cover: Semeiks, Rollins, and Garrahy
RATINGS
Average: 4.1/5.0 Shields
GR: 3.0 Shields
DWk: 4.0 Shields - 87 different plots going on, and you'd think it'd be
all Morrison could do to juggle them, but we also get Atom and
Oracle's flirtation, Arsenal proving why he's a second-string
hero, and a genuinely unpredictable fight scene. Nice.
EM: 4.9 Shields - Rao above us! Ladies and gentlemen, if this doesn't
scream Earth-1, I don't know what does. "Up! Up and away!"
Superman 1M is SOOOO Silver Age. I love him.
JO: 4.5 Shields - WOW! Just when you thought Vandal Savage couldn't get
more evil!!! A slight continuity problem (Re: the _Arsenal_ mini-
series) but I'm willing to overlook it since the rest of the
story was strong and the art's great!
SDM: 4.2 Shields - The best issue of the miniseries, with the horror of
Savage's attack brought out, great characterization (especially
the Atom, Beetle, and Oracle), and a sense of suspense.
TD: 3.5 Shields - The tension builds well, although I gotta wonder why DC
chose to blow up a real place this time; afraid of raising the ire
of Hawkman fans by nuking Midway City?
I didn't like the tiny computer font that captions Blue Beetle's
descriptionof the nuclear waste that was once a city; it's hard on these
old eyes. Other than that, I got along pretty well with the second
installment in DC's latest summer "event," DC One Million. For all its
futuristic pretensions, there was a lot for a misty-eyed nostalgic like me
to enjoy.
Chapter Two begins with certain members of the 853rd century Justice Legion
A meeting certain members of the 20th century Justice League amid the ruin
and ashes of the city of Montevideo. Each group mistakenly thinks the other
is responsible for the holocaust. The heroes' suffering from preliminary
paranoiac symptoms of the "Hourman Virus" provides a convenient excuse for
a brief battle -- a grand old tradition among super-types -- but the
Martian Manhunter appears and puts a stop to it. These people have more
important things to do, squeezed as they are between the villains Vandal
Savage of the past and Solaris of the future. Talk about a rock and a hard
place! With the future Superman's powers ebbing and a deadly virus rushing
through their systems, the heroes of now and later dash to meet the next
nuclear threat from Savage.
Morrison's engaging script flits merrily through time and space. Woven
through this basic plot is a trip to the JLA Watchtower on the moon
(wherein 20th and 853rd century heroes decide to travel into the future), a
trip through the (deep breath) "reticuloendothilial system" of
virus-infected Barbara Gordon (aka Oracle) and a trip to the end of time
itself, where, on the edge of "unending entropy," the time-protecting
Linear Men discover something BIG. (Could we be near the return of the
multiverse?) The scope is reminiscent of a multi-issue Steve Englehart
story in _West Coast Avengers_ several years ago, "Lost In Time and Space."
The Atom's wisecracking visit to Oracle's lymph glands had me thinking of
Ant Man's journey through the Vision in the now-legendary Roy Thomas
Avengers tale of the Kree-Skrull war -- and Atom's dialogue is much better
to boot!
Want more old-timey stuff? How about the Future-Superman's invocation of a
certain Kryptonian god, not to mention his use of a battle cry invented for
radio? For these I can forgive the none-too-imaginative costume, the
chest-emblem of which reminds me of your average TV remote control.
The choice of that old, old, old villain Vandal Savage is perfect for a
centuries-spanning saga like this. Imprisoned in an atomic death trap, the
heroic Arsenal grates, "Mark my words, Savage! I'm coming back and you're
gonna pay!" Savage replies, "I paid for all this a long time ago; it cost
me sixty barge loads of silver in the days of Thutmose." That's a line of
wonderfully balanced humor and hubris, a small taste of Morrison's
generally fresh dialogue. Like fellow-Britisher Alan Moore, Morrison thinks
of things that are so natural as to go unnoticed. Take, for example, tiny
Atom's remark to Oracle about faces; "They all just look like big moons to
me." Other writers will shake their heads and ask, "Why didn't I think of
that?"
Semeiks and Rollins' artwork is sharp, Garrahy's cover arresting.
Of course, the "future", as sci-fi imagines it, always looks a lot like the
present. Thus, the DC heroes of thousands of centuries from now really
don't look or act much different from their present-day counterparts. As a
matter of fact, this "future" Superman seems almost an amalgam of the
character's incarnations since 1938. But, as we all know, what goes around
comes around. I see _DC 1 Million_ as a celebration of the past, and it
works for me. Marvel is abandoning the Old in favor of the New, complete
with annoying "First Issue" status conferred on practically every book
they're putting out. In view of this foolish contempt for one's heritage, I
find the notion of a million issues of any title highly satisfying.
As the Superman of the 853rd century might say, "By Rao, it's good to know
that some things never go out of style! Up, up, and away!"
Gary D. Robinson
<robinfam@akron.infi.net>
_____________________________________________
DC ONE MILLION WEEK TWO (cont):
------------------------------
SUPERMAN: THE MAN OF STEEL #1,000,000 Nov 85271 $1.99 US/$2.95 CAN
"Fear and Loathing"
Plot: Karl Kesel
Dialogue: Jerry Ordway
Pencils: Anthony Williams
Inks: Dennis Janke
Letters: Ken Lopez
Colors: John Kalisz
Separations: Digital Chameleon
Asst. Editor: Maureen McTigue
Editor Out Of Time: Joey Cavalieri
Cover: Gene Ha and Pat Garrahy
RATINGS
Average: 3.1/5.0 Shields
MS: 1.7 Shields
DJ: 3.8 Shields - Good story, but the way the Hourman virus was portrayed
here confused me. Metal Man fight was cool.
EJ: 2.6 Shields - The art and the Metal Men (whom I love and am so glad
to see again) are the saving graces in this issue. I am lost on
what the virus is, why it was created, etc. as our stupid comics
supplier will not carry _DC One Million_!
EM: 4.5 Shields - First in-continuity appearance of Alloy. Let it be
known that things are adding up to something much bigger than the
DCU proper.
JE: 3.6 Shields - All we get from this interesting future-Superman is a
run-of-the-mill Superman story. The Metal Men were totally out of
character (even with the virus) but Williams' art was impressive.
JO: 4.0 Shields - This future Supes has a ton of kick-ass powers; I'd
hate to see how Doomsday would have evolved if he fought this guy
instead of our Big Blue!
JSy: 3.3 Shields - I'm glad that Kesel and Ordway saw fit to continue the
Lexcom subplot amidst the crossover, but I just can't get into the
design of this Superman.
TD: 1.5 Shields - Ho-freaking-hum. The lowest point of the Superman-
related entries in this storyline.
Pick your doom! Vandal Savage takes over the world in one hour thanks to
his Rocket Red suits carrying helpless superheroes and nuclear armaments.
The "Hourman Virus" kills everybody in less than a day since no one has a
defense against it. And of course, no matter what, we're all at the mercy
of Solaris the Tyrant Sun in 83,273 years. I like option three myself. I'll
be dead by then, and what's the big urchin supposed to do anyway, give me a
bad tan?
Yep, right on schedule, the DC Universe is up the proverbial creek without
a paddle. This year's _Man of Steel_ tie-in actually has something to do
with the event and is much better than anything "Genesis" had to offer in
1997. It's still a disappointment, though, lacking the creativity and
originality that have made the rest of "DC One Million" such a good read so
far.
NOTE: Kal-El isn't in this issue, but the Superman of 85,271 is, so I'm
referring to him as just "Superman" for brevity. Bear with me.
Our story starts with Superman racing to stop a Rocket Red suit from
destroying Metropolis, while in the garish offices of LexCom, Lois, Jimmy,
and Simone catch up on the recent events of the crossover, like the
destruction of Montevideo and the rumored villainy of the futuristic JLA.
Before long, the entire newsroom is infected with that pesky "Hourman
Virus." This is a pointless recap scene since anyone who's been following
_DC1M_ already knew about this, and anyone who hadn't would never be able
to make sense of the little snippets and in-references made in the
newsroom. Moreover, there's a perfectly good text piece on the first page
to explain everything, so the whole scene is about seven pages of wasted
space.
Suddenly, the Metal Men show up and tell Lois and Jimmy about how bad the
Justice Legion is, and how they're gonna take down Superman when he shows
up. Of course, since they're infected with the virus too, they've become
paranoid and erratic. No effort is made to conceal that fact, yet it still
doesn't explain why the Metal Men are visiting LexCom. Did they want to
discredit Superman in a guest editorial? Did they somehow think it was a
clinic for their injured member Veridium? And why do they feel the need to
explain every insignificant and obvious detail about themselves?
Then Superman crashes into town, his powers fading without exposure to the
future Super-Sun. Now, so far I've liked this guy. He has the classic
Superman modesty, and Morrison put a lot of work into giving him cool
powers... yet just before leaving for Metropolis, Superman took down
Firestorm in a moment with his Super-breath. Thirty minutes later, he's
stuck in a five page slugfest with the Metal Men, and what does he use to
stop them? Why, the standard fare of strength, invulnerability, heat
vision, and X-Ray vision. It's ridiculous. Even at a fraction of maximum
power, this guy should still be pretty tough just because he has such a
wide array of abilities! I can't accept that he'd limit himself to just
five in thirty minutes. Surely Kesel and Ordway -- two of the best Superman
writers around -- could think of something a little more interesting. Maybe
they're just not trying, but I can't accept that either.
At this point, a recovered Veridium appears, giving a quick justification
for his teammates' irrational actions, then flies away with them -- leaving
Superman to handle the nuke. Since Superman can no longer fly, he borrows
Veridium's anti-grav vehicle and races off. Savage controls the Rocket Red
suit remotely to blast our hero, and Supes winds up riding horseback on the
suit as it plummets to the ground.
So here's some other ideas Kesel might have used for this situation:
1) Blow the Rocket Red into orbit with Super-breath and call another hero
(perhaps Starman) in to disarm it.
2) Use Super-weather-control to create stormcloud over Metropolis, blocking
Savage's remote control of the suit. Use Super-ESP to help Arsenal disarm
the nuke.
3) Use Super-brain to calculate Savage's most probable location, then
hypnotize him into disarming the Rocket Red. (Get John Fox to help with
transportation.)
4) Ask Veridium to help. Oh, yeah! He's a genius-level roboticist, made of
invulnerable shape-changing metal, and he can fly. Who would be better for
this job? Of course, he wants to repair his team, but that's kind of a low
priority compared to EVERYONE IN METROPOLIS BLOWING UP! Good work, Karl.
By the way... does any of this sound familiar? Alternate Superman blamed
for destroying a city? Alternate Superman forced to fight misguided guest
stars? Alternate Superman rides nuclear device a la _Dr. Strangelove_?
That's right, eighty thousand years later the Super-team is _still_ lifting
plot ideas from 1993's "Reign of the Supermen" story arc.
The only redemption for this story is its single plausible plot point:
Superman realizes that only a sentient sun can decode the Hourman virus, so
to save the 20th century they'll have to build Solaris -- the most evil
being ever! An ironic, interesting, and chilling development, but it's a
set up for some other issue. In fact, this whole comic is a big ad for _DC
One Million_ #3, _JLA_ #1,000,000, and _Superman_ #1,000,000.
In and of itself, all this book has is the artwork. I don't think I've seen
Anthony Williams' work before, but it's pretty good, and it meshes well
with Janke's inks. What really made this issue was the excellent coloring
by John Kalisz. The swiss-cheese plot made this issue eye-candy, but at
least it was _good_ eye-candy. I hope to see more of this coloring in the
future.
Now I have to look back and wonder why. I simply can't wrap my brain around
Kesel and Ordway doing such shoddy work, especially since their previous
collaborations have been fair to good. Maybe it was the constraints of the
larger story. Maybe things had to be stretched out to fill _Superman_
#1,000,000.
Maybe this whole thing would look better on the Headnet.
Mike Smith Prime
<mike_p_smith@hotmail.com>
_____________________________________________
DC ONE MILLION WEEK THREE:
-------------------------
SUPERMAN #1,000,000 Nov 85271 $1.99 US/$2.95 CAN
"Down to Earth"
Writers: Dan Abnett and Andy Lanning
Pencils: Norm Breyfogle
Inks: Scott Koblish
Letters: John Costanza
Colors: John Kalisz
Seps: Digital Chameleon
Asst. Ed.: Maureen McTigue
Ground Zero: Joey Cavalieri
Cover: Gene Ha and Pat Garrahy
RATINGS
Average: 3.6/5.0 Shields
TD: 3.0 Shields
DWk: 3.8 Shields - The best of the Supes crossovers: ace dialogue
(especially the "do they have irony in your time?" routine),
Luthor acting semi-heroically and then showing his true colors,
and Future-Supes' culture shock handled well.
EM: 4.9 Shields - If I haven't mentioned it yet (and I haven't) Gene Ha
is an incredible cover artist. Norm Breyfogle does a bang up job.
I hope these creative teams stay.
JE: 3.9 Shields - The interactions between Future-Supes and Lois, and
him and Luthor, were great. I also enjoyed seeing all of the
future Superman's different powers.
JO: 3.5 Shields - It must be hard when everybody thinks you're evil but
you still have to fight to save their lives; FutureMan proves
he's got the heart of a true Superman.
JSy: 2.5 Shields - How ironic is it that the Superman lineage's greatest
foe was created in part with Lois Lane's blood? Great twist, but
that's about it. None of the rest of the story grabbed me, though
the art was pretty nice.
You know what I hate the most about intra-company crossovers? I mean,
besides the fact that most of them are useless and without any real purpose
except launching new series that don't last (cf. _The New Guardians_ and
_Primal Force_) or mucking with continuity? It's that most of the stories
in the tie-in books are *all middle*. There's no sense of a story, just an
incredible amount of running around trying to propel us into the next
chapter of that week's installment of the crossover title.
Of course, some people try to make things okay. Case in point: Dan Abnett
and Andy Lanning's guest spin of _Superman_. Abnett and Lanning seem to be
doing a lot of the tie-ins, making me wonder if they were in on the ground
floor plotting. They do their best to come up with a view of Superman that
*isn't* all sweetness and light, and try to really get into the head of one
of the Justice Legion A members and explain how it must feel to be the
outsider.
Those of you not yet perusing the _DC One Million_ reviews need to know
this: Vandal Savage has sent several Rocket Red suits, ready to explode and
containing members of the Teen Titans, hurtling toward various major
cities. The suit containing Arsenal is heading for Metropolis. Superman 853
does his best and manages to stop the Rocket Red from delivering its
payload, even with fading powers. He and Arsenal fall to Earth, where they
are beset upon by legions of Hourman-Virus-infected cityfolk. Luckily, he
escapes with Lois Lane, whereupon he explains that the JL-A (for reasons
not explained until _DC1M_ #3) need to build the sentient sun Solaris to
destroy the virus. That requires a level of technology not yet developed on
Earth, but S853 can cobble stuff together. He already has grabbed material
from Cadmus (courtesy of _Superboy_ #1M) and needs to go visiting Luthor.
Big shock; Luthor, who has found out that both he and his daughter are
infected, wishes to help. Supes853 takes Lois, Luthor and some Lexcom
people to the Fortress of Solitude to grab some equipment, but the security
system refuses to acknowledge the future Man of Steel as its master, so
it's off to Lexcom, where Luthor tips his hand. He is convinced the 853rd
Century Kryptonian holds the key to the virus, and wants to disassemble him
atom by atom. There's the pre-requisite fight with big scary robots, then
the literal Man of Tomorrow realizes there's only one place for him to go
now -- the JLA Watchtower.
Abnett and Lanning don't do such a bad job here. They really try to crawl
into this Superman's head and figure out how it must feel for a character
with such godlike powers to find himself slowly becoming more human. A
constant motif shows the true Man of Tomorrow deciding to utilize one of
his major powers, only to have it fizzle out before the task is done. This
character is the flipside of what Superman *should* be; a man who relies so
much on his powers that he doesn't realize his most powerful weapon is his
mind. (If only other Superman writers realized this... but I digress.) It's
also nice that Abnett and Lanning only once resort to the cliched, "You're
so primitive!" gags that normally infect time travel stories.
Abnett and Lanning should be commended for the way they understand the
supporting characters and work in the subplots; they did so in their
portion of the Supergirl crossover in _Resurrection Man_ and they do it
again here. One of the most memorable scenes is a small turn on page eight,
which shows us Luthor monitoring news reports then switching to a
closed-circuit shot of his daughter, already ill with the virus. These two
say everything they need to with a minimum of words, letting Breyfogle's
art say it all.
Speaking of Breyfogle... this is the second time he has subbed for the
regular artist of _Superman_, and this time I found him a little lacking.
His layouts for action sequences are a tad sparse, and his Superman 853
just does not seem as powerful. When the Rocket Red connects with S853 in
page two's splash, the guy just looks like he's been slapped. There also
seems to be an overemphasis on big panels -- something that seems to be
prevalent across the board these days. On the other hand, Breyfogle's
smaller subtler moments are spot on; in addition to the Luthor scene, the
shot of Lois inspecting a photo on page nine is equally exquisite. (Mention
should be made, however, of one of the more awkward looking Luthors ever;
on p.12 panel 3, Luthor looks like he's imitating the Penguin!)
I want to take a second to commend John Kalisz's colors. There are some
pages (particularly pages two and nineteen) which are wonderfully shaded
and gradiated. I found it very striking at times.
Basically, "Down to Earth" typified why these intra-company crossovers make
me grimace. It was all middle -- rushing about without any real purpose --
and you'll notice that nowhere in this review do I mention that anything is
*resolved*. We just get a lot of running and chasing, with no solid,
absolute ending in sight.
Despite that, I kind of hope Abnett and Lanning's name are kept in mind the
next time a shake-up occurs. In a family of titles that is growing
stagnant, having two Scotsmen who seem to understand the characters might
not be such a bad idea,
Thomas Deja
<tdj723@webtv.net>
===============================================
SUPERBOY #1,000,000 Nov 85271 $1.99 US/$2.95 CAN
"OMAC -- One Million And Counting"
Story Program: Karl Kesel
Graphic Template: Tom Grummett
Graphic Assists: Karl Kesel
Chromotrol: Buzz Setzer
Lettering Robot: Comicraft
Analog Assistant: Frank Berrios
Digital Director: Mike McAvennie
Cover: Tom Grummett, Karl Kesel, and Pat Garrahy
RATINGS
Average: 4.1/5.0 Shields
RG: 4.5 Shields
DWk: 3.4 Shields - Now that we've seen SB as Kamandi, SB1M as OMAC is a
pretty brilliant idea. Nice visual Kirby-isms, but this felt more
like a bunch of cool images crammed together than an actual story.
EM: 4.7 Shields - Kirbyrific! Kesel advances the modern plot through the
future plot and sets up for much bigger things to come.
JE: 4.5 Shields - One of the most fun comics I've read in a while. All
the nostalgic Kirby moments were inspired. Also, Grummett proves
every issue that he is simply the best at drawing Superboy.
JSy: 4.5 Shields - Kesel is incredible. That he managed to interweave his
own story with that necessitated by the crossover, *and* keep it
all interesting -- amazing. Grummett's pencils are, as usual,
gorgeous, though I'm not clear how old Serling is supposed to be.
SDM: 4.0 Shields - Kesel and Grummett do the best work I saw during DC1M
Month. This series is rapidly becoming one of my favorites, with a
great cast in the making and some twists I just didn't expect.
Superboy One Million (OMAC) finds a person encased in ice. Calling on the
powers of his cloned brothers, he shatters the ice to reveal The Guardian,
who has been frozen in suspended animation since sometime in the distant
past. (Wonder where they got *this* Kirby story from?) The superboy-clones
are all curious about how the original Superboy dealt with the challenges
of Solaris in the twentieth century so they take Guardian to Cadmus and
help revive him. His reactions on seeing the future incarnations of his
friends are amusing. With the help of Millionex (a future Dubbilex) they
search through the Guardian's memories to find out what he knows of the
events. They succeed far better than they expect or desire, not only
finding the memories, but somehow creating a time distortion that almost
pulls our Superboy into the future.
Wow. I thought they had just about run out of Kirby creations that they
could put in _Superboy_. Never (in a million years) did I imagine that they
would manage to incorporate OMAC (One Man Army Corps -- a Kirby character
from the seventies). I guess I underestimated the Kesel/Grummett team.
In one of the most entertaining stories of the _DC One Million_ stories,
Kesel manages to tie into the _DC1M_ plot and carries the current Superboy
story forward as well, giving us a few glimpses into our SB's future. All
this while continuing to re-introduce even more of Kirby's creations.
Lest I forget to mention the awesome art, Tom and Karl manage to add to the
story with some of the best art of the cross-over. This isn't meant as a
slam to the art in the other books -- far from it. It's just that this book
had some of the cleanest and most highly detailed art in the series
(excepting the bookends). The perspectives were finely done, the inking was
crisp and well detailed, the colors clear and the figures well
proportioned. See, I don't ask all that much.
I normally find it hard to recommend a single book involved in one of these
mega cross-over, but this one could be read as a stand alone or even as a
part of the ongoing Superboy saga. If you have been holding back picking up
this title, don't wait; you'll be missing some of the best work DC is
producing.
Rene Gobeyn
<bedlam@frontiernet.net>
===============================================
JLA #1,000,000 Nov 85271 $1.99 US/$2.95 CAN
"Prisoners of the Twentieth Century"
Writer: Grant Morrison
Penciller: Howard Porter
Inker: John Dell
Letterer: Kenny Lopez
Colorist: Pat Garrahy
Separator: Heroic Age
Assoc. Ed.: Tony Bedard
Editor: Dan Raspler
Cover: Porter, Dell, and Garrahy
RATINGS
Average: 4.0/5.0 Shields
AW: 4.0 Shields
DJ: 3.4 Shields - Let me get this straight: The JLA backups beat heroes
from the 853rd Century? Come on! Nonetheless, a decent story.
DWk: 4.3 Shields - The planetary assignments of the JLA are such a perfect
idea it's amazing nobody's thought of it before. Close reading
reveals all sorts of delights; the Fox-and-Broome-isms of JLA1M's
dialogue, Plas's hijinks, Steel's willingness to make the tough
decisions.
EM: 5.0 Shields - An absolute must. This issue allows us to see just why
these people were chosen for the League, and it is John Irons who
really shines through.
JE: 4.1 Shields - This and _Martian Manhunter_ were the best of the
_DC1M_ crossovers. Sure it was just one big fight, but what a
great one! I also appreciated the little inserts; they helped
clear up several questions I had about the Legion and Leaguers.
JO: 4.5 Shields - Watchtower was the last place left uninfected by the
virus and the Justice Legion just waltzes on in!? No *wonder* our
JLA was a little hostile!
JSy: 4.0 Shields - Morrison shows once again his great grasp of the
characters; he just flat nails Steel in this issue.
TD: 2.3 Shields - For what could arguably be a 'core tie-in,' this book
read like it was stalling for time. It did have a few 'gosh wow'
moments, though, and the best use of Plastic Man to date.
I remarked last month that Grant Morrison is doing some of his finest JLA
writing in the _DC One Million_ series. Instead of cramming as many
super-hero battles as possible into a small space, Morrison gave the heroes
a non-hostile reason to get together, a reason to mistrust each other,
villains to overcome, and a reason to work together, weaving within the
action strong scenes that actually furthered our understanding of some of
the JLA and Justice Legion A team members.
At this point in the story, the usual JLA starting lineup is trapped in the
future dealing with the problems caused by Solaris -- the evil computer
with the power of a super-sun. In our own era, Solaris has released a virus
that is infecting the entire population of the Earth, and has teamed with
Vandal Savage, who is sending nuclear missiles out across the globe. The
Justice Legion A has been blamed for the plague and disasters spreading
across the planet, so they're not expecting a warm welcome as they storm
the JLA headquarters in search of the resources they need to cure the
plague and defeat Solaris.
Their "reception committee" on the satellite are the JLA "second
stringers": Steel, Huntress, Plastic Man, Barda, and Zauriel. Naturally,
they confront the Justice Legion A and a short fight ensues, halted by
Steel, who thinks things out before escalating the battle. The two teams
resolve to work together to create a new Solaris (reasoning that only the
being who created the plague can discover a cure for it), and at the end
confront the traitor who has been helping Solaris all along.
There were several highlights in this issue: seeing that Batman and
Superman are still the World's Finest team 80,000 years in the future,
Steel's appointment as secondary leader (Steel is one of the most
thoughtful heroes on the team), and Steel's discussion with the futuristic
Superman that leads to both teams standing down all rank among them.
Dell and Porter's artwork was an improvement over the last couple of
issues. I'm sure it wasn't easy to plan the layouts around the over-sized
captions that appeared throughout the issue, yet they made things look
natural and conveyed a sense of action. Zauriel, however, looked cramped
within the satellite, as I suppose he would. Joe Kubert once remarked that
Hawkman's natural element was space or the open air, where he could spread
his wings; Zauriel needs that same kind of freedom.
The low point in this issue was Zauriel's easy capture by the future
Aquaman. Other than what occurred in his origin story, he has yet to prove
himself worthy of JLA membership. If they really need someone with wings on
the team, they should really consider bringing Hawkman back. And, as
always, Plastic Man is less amusing than just annoying.
_DC One Million_ seems to have been created and thought out to a much
greater extent than any other cross-title story since _Crisis on Infinite
Earths_. (Was that really twelve years ago?) The heroes of 85,271 are as
interesting as their modern day counterparts, while the tie-in stories are
not just rushed to show battle scene after battle scene, but enhance our
understanding of the heroes involved as well. It's as if the storyline has
inspired all the DC writers to slow down, think a little bit more, and have
some fun.
For the first time in a long time, I'm actually looking forward to seeing
how a mini-series ends.
Anatole Wilson
<awilson@us.oracle.com>
_____________________________________________
DC ONE MILLION WEEK FOUR:
------------------------
DC ONE MILLION #3 Nov 85271 $1.99 US/$2.95 CAN
"Solaris Rising"
Writer: Grant Morrison
Penciller: Val Semeiks
Inker: Prentis Rollins
Letterer: Ken Lopez
Colorist: Pat Garrahy
Separations: Heroic Age
Assoc. Ed.: Tony Bedard
Editor: Dan Raspler
Cover: Semeiks and Rollins
RATINGS
Average: 4.0/5.0 Shields
RG: 4.5 Shields (Story: 4.0, Art: 5.0)
DJ: 4.2 Shields - Another good story; creates a massive paradox (who
created the technology for Solaris in the first place?)
EM: 4.7 Shields - Wow. DC has managed to create a classic villain, and
it's a thinking flameball!
JE: 4.6 Shields (Story: 5.0, Art: 4.2) - Incredibly enjoyable. Forcing
the Justice Legion to create their own worst enemy was great.
I found the future Starman's dilemma quite compelling.
JSy: 3.8 Shields - Some *great* character bits here, but the creation of
Solaris was not as awe-inspiring as it should've been.
SDM: 2.9 Shields - The weakest part of the story; too much happens
without any explanation. I don't quite get why Solaris had to
be created, or why the Atom is allowed to find a cure but not
to use it. Starman's death sequence, though, was well executed.
TD: 3.0 Shields - Definitely not a 'treading water' issue, with a
*sensible* reason why Solaris had to be created, and the usual
great Semeiks art.
The plot continues from issue #2, where the Hourman Virus is continuing to
attack both the world's computers and populace. It's soon discovered that
the virus isn't quite mindless, but is really the operating system for
Solaris looking for a suitable home. The Justice Legion A is working as
quickly as possible to build and boot-up the intelligent sun Solaris, and
they have only hours to complete their task.
While the Justice Legion and most of the remaining Justice League members
are working hard to build what will be their ultimate foe, Martian
Manhunter and the Teen Titans are trying to defeat Vandal Savage and his
war machines. Both teams succeed at their tasks, leaving it up to the
traitorous Star-man to provide a power-source. He succeeds, and the Hourman
virus leaves Earth to occupy Solaris. As Starman was Solaris' pawn in the
853rd century, he knows much about the sun's systems and sacrifices himself
to save Earth, sending Solaris through a black-hole before it becomes
conscious enough to defend itself. Now they just have to save our heroes in
the future. Huntress has a plan, and sneaky as she is, it will be subtle.
DC has a real winner here. For the first time in many years the summer
cross-over story actually seems to be working (with a few notable
failures). The story line manages to be both entertaining and worthy of a
cross-over, following the main characters as they fumble and cope in the
future, while the future characters try to work without the tools they've
become accustomed to in our socially backward era. Either way, it's a lot
of fun.
One of the things that I have really enjoyed was how the weaker (Big Barda
and J'onn, weaker?) heroes of the League have adjusted to the absence of
the heavy hitters. It gives us a view of these characters that we don't
usually see -- things like the Atom working to weaken the Hourman virus by
erasing parts of the program hiding in the virus, Oracle performing
miracles to keep everyone in contact, and Martian Manhunter and the Titans
(Supergirl, Jesse Quick, Tempest, Speedy) taking the battle to Vandal
Savage. I especially liked the confrontation; they work together to
literally stop Savage in his tracks.
For some reason, the scenes with the 853rd century heroes are less
powerful, possibly because I don't have the emotional connections with
them. I loved the scenes between the future Batman and Starman, leading as
they do directly into Starman's sacrifice. I especially liked the last
panel of the scene where his suit destructs and the flare is shown above
Ted Knight's observatory. A nice touch.
Throughout the entire book the art has matched the story both in overall
quality and in pacing. I hope some of the techniques used to create the
futuristic settings at the beginnings of the book eventually make it to the
monthly titles. They are simply beautiful, with such excellent use of
perspectives that the panels appear to have real depth.
Overall, I have enjoyed this entire arc. While some of the weaker stories
haven't done much for me, and I can't understand why some of the books were
included (especially cancelled titles like _Creeper_ and _Young Heroes in
Love_) except perhaps as extra revenue for DC, most of the stories have
worked better than they have in past years. If you decided that this is a
month to save money by not buying the cross-over books, I think you may
regret it.
Rene Gobeyn
<bedlam@frontiernet.net>
===============================================
THE ADVENTURES OF SUPERMAN #1,000,000 Nov 85271 $1.99 US/$2.95 CAN
"Keepers of Solitude"
Writers: Dan Abnett and Andy Lanning
Pencils: Will Rosado
Inks: Larry Mahlstedt
Letters: Albert DeGuzman
Colors: Carla Feeny
Separations: Digital Chameleon
Asst. Editor: Maureen McTigue
Resurrected Man: Joey Cavalieri
Cover: Gene Ha and Pat Garrahy
RATINGS
Average: 3.5/5.0 Shields
DJ: 4.6 Shields - This is a good book; the idea of switching the
computer to a dead language is good writing.
DWk: 2.5 Shields - Mounds of exposition, fairly sloppy artwork and a very
dull fight. Since when is Resurrection Man a match for Superman in
a brawl?
EM: 4.6 Shields - Mitch Shelley steals the show. I can't wait for Kal-El
and Mitch to become pals.
JE: 3.1 Shields (Story: 3.7, Art: 2.5) - The use of Resurrection Man
was inspired; the obligatory fight between them was not. I did
like how Superman used his mind to defeat Solaris by rebooting the
computer systems in Kryptonian; he proved he can handle menaces
in any century.
JO: 4.5 Shields - I was annoyed at having to read _Resurrection Man_
when it crossed over with _Supergirl_, but Mitch is really cool
in the future with control over his powers and all!
JSy: 3.0 Shields - The art was a little thin, and the story a bit padded,
but it's *awful* hard to speak ill of a Superman story where the
Man of Steel thinks (as oppose to brawns) his way out of a jam.
ST: 3.1 Shields - Abnett and Lanning continue to intrigue me about Mitch
and his effect on the DCU... but I was also so-intrigued by Damage,
and where did he get to? Art is lacking, but a fun story.
TD: 2.8 Shields - Silly in spots, but it does feature a well-integrated
appearance by Mitch Shelley, and some fun.
Synopsis:
Finally returning to the 853rd Century in the Super-titles, we discover
that Superman has indeed found his way into the Fortress of Solitude.
Unfortunately, Mitch Shelley, the Resurrection Man, is still alive in that
time period, has formed some sort of bond with the Superman dynasty, and
now serves as custodian of the Fortress. Of course, a brief fight ensues,
but the two heroes soon come to their senses.
Shortly thereafter, the Justice Legion B (the 853rd Century counterparts of
the original Teen Titans) arrives to help Superman contact his JLA, but
Solaris uses one of the JL-B members to turn the Fortress systems against
Superman and his new compatriots. None of the heroes has much success
against the Kryptonian technology until Superman formulates a plan.
Ordering the Fortress Systems to reset to the default language of Krypton,
Superman wrests control back from Solaris. Mitch and the JL-B then
teleport into the pages of _Resurrection Man_ #1,000,000, while Superman's
adventures continue into _Superman: The Man of Tomorrow_ #1,000,000.
*** No review of this comic was submitted this month. ***
===============================================
SUPERGIRL #1,000,000 Nov 85271 $1.99 US/$2.95 CAN
"When She Was Good..."
Writer: Peter David
Pencils: Dusty Abell
Inks: Norman Lee
Lettering: Comicraft
Colors: Gene D'Angelo
Separations: Digital Chameleon
Asst. Ed.: Frank Berrios
Editor: Mike McAvennie
Cover: Dusty Abell and Pat Garrahy
RATINGS
Average: 1.9/5.0 Shields
TD: 2.0 Shields
ST: 1.0 Shields - A Tangent title disguised as a _DC1M_ tie-in. Unfunny,
unoriginal, and totally predictable, it fails to have any
relevance to either the company-wide crossover *or* the ongoing
series, existing solely to suck another $2.95 out of my pocket.
EM: 2.3 Shields - Eh. I expect much better out of PAD. Amusing, but not
$2.50 amusing.
JO: 2.5 Shields (Story: 3.5, Art: 1.5) - It was cute (which in art I
don't like) and funny but what the *hell* did it have to do with
the future of Supergirl!?!? If David hadn't written it so well I
would have hated it! This reminds me how glad I am that we're
going back to normal soon.
JSy: 1.5 Shields - Excuse me? What the heck was *that* all about?
I gotta tell you something: While I like the bulk of what Peter David
writes, what I really like are the darker, creepier elements that can and
do make their way into his work. I prefer "The Death of Jean DeWolfe,"
let's say, to "The Commuter Cometh." I enjoyed the absolutely horrific
reintroduction of the Leader ending with the creation of 'Gammatown' rather
than the silliness involving the Pantheon. I thought "My Dinner with Buzz"
was simply one of his best pieces of work to date.
Sure, there's humor in all of these things, but in the case of the best
material cited above, the humor proves to throw the horror surrounding it
into sharper relief... which is prolly why I'm not too thrilled with this
story that must've evolved when David said, "Wouldn't it be funny if
Elmyra, (The Elmer Fudd-like little girl from _Tiny Toons_) was set loose
in outer space with super powers?"
The plot is simple. Two border worlds are at war: one of the worlds,
populated by these mollusky things, summons Dura -- a refugee from the
Andromeda system to their side. Dura is supposedly the bravest warrior
these aliens know, but when he sees that a six-and-a-half year-old
skateboarding entity called Supergirl is heading for the enemy fleet, he
starts packing. That little girl, he claims, is the destroyer of worlds,
the harbinger of death, and if the aliens knew any better they'd turn tail
and run.
Of course the aliens don't know any better, and choose to observe as Elm --
uh, Supergirl invades the enemy ships, wreaks havoc with the controls and
power source, and causes an armada-wide catastrophe that both destroys the
aliens' world and sends the fleeing Dura spinning into the sun.
The resolution of this story is simply not very clear, as there are
intimations of a familial relationship between the Lil Orphan Annie-like
Supergirl and the warrior Dura. Dura agrees to take Supergirl with him,
only if she behaves herself -- a promise, we realize, that is prolly not
going to be kept.
Reading this story was like watching _Blues Brothers 2000_; a pointless
exercise in carnage for humor's sake. At no point after the set-up of the
tale does the story deviate from its track, save for the 'surprise ending'
that came up so abruptly I didn't know what to make of it. I did not laugh
once at this story, even though David was hitting me over the head,
shouting, "Funny! Funny! Funny!"
I know David has an absolute contempt for Company Crossovers (look at
_Young Justice #1M_ to see that writ large in flaming letters), but did he
have to do such a lazy job in this contribution to this one? It is painting
by the numbers for him, and that's incredibly sad.
Much better is the artwork of Dusty Abell, a penciller who spends far too
little time doing what he does. For this story, Abell affects a style that
is reminiscent at times of Ty Templeton and at others of Mike Mignola. He
emphasizes very clean lines and simplistic, almost abstract drawings. It's
interesting to note that the only two humanoids are Supergirl and Dura; the
other aliens are a sort of mullosky race and piles of slime. He does do the
best he can about making the proceedings look lighthearted and cartoony,
although I don't think it quite works.
_Supergirl_, as a title, is in the middle of a run of very, *very* good
stories. It's a shame that this example of lazy writing showed up in the
middle of it.
Thomas Deja
<tdj723@webtv.net>
_____________________________________________
DC ONE MILLION WEEK FIVE:
------------------------
SUPERMAN: THE MAN OF TOMORROW #1,000,000 Nov 85271 $1.99 US/$2.95 CAN
"Future Story"
Writer: Mark Schultz
Penciller: Georges Jeanty
Inkers: Denis Rodier and Dennis Janke
Letterer: John Costanza
Colors & Seps: Rob Schwager
Millionairess: Maureen McTigue
Broke: Joey Cavalieri
Cover: Gene Ha and Pat Garrahy
RATINGS
Average: 3.3/5.0 Shields
EM: 4.8 Shields
DJ: 2.2 Shields - Now that we know the entire history of Superman, do
we need to continue reading about him?
GR: 3.0 Shields - I've always been intrigued by stories of an immortal
Superman. The storytelling device works for me.
JE: 2.9 Shields (Story: 3.6, Art: 2.2) - I enjoyed seeing the history of
the S-man dynasty, but the narrative didn't seem to flow at times.
One great was Gene Ha's painted cover; amazing.
JO: 4.5 Shields - Platinum's a great story-teller, Solaris is an
interesting villain, and I'm glad that Clark and Lois *are*
genetically capable of having offspring (unlike 'that' TV show).
JSy: 4.0 Shields - I'd *love* to see some of this Superman "history"
fleshed out more. Jeanty's pencils are beginning to grow on me,
but I really wish we hadn't had the 'thick twins' inking this.
ST: 2.9 Shields - The story was good, but there were some 'huh?' moments
in the setting and details. A super-intelligent sun can be goaded
into changing his plans? And why don't they have stories in 85271?
TD: 2.0 Shields - Ho-freaking-hum. That's two for two from Schultz --
not a very good story, even by 'album' standards -- and Jeanty was
wildly unpredictable on the art. Why is Platinum still here?
Synopsis:
Superman is in the 853rd Century trying to get together with the rest of
the JLA on Jupiter to try and stop the assassination of Superman Prime (who
may or may not be Kal-El). In order for Superman to get up to speed on
Solaris, the Tyrant Sun and would-be assassin, Platinum of the Metal Men
recounts the tale of the Superman Dynasty while having the tale broadcast
over the "headnet," which is an elaborate mental internet of sorts.
Solaris gets ticked off at the tale. Wacky hijinks ensue.
Review:
I don't believe I have ever seen this creative team before, but I like
them -- a lot. This book had a very Silver Age Fun Vision of Hope factor
involved. The writing was clear and had the fun of some of the old
_Adventure Comics_ (most notably the debut of the Legion of Super Heroes).
Thanks to the design of the 1 Million event, the frontpiece kept you up to
speed on all information needed to enjoy this story while the footnotes in
the issue showed you where to find the other tales in case you were
interested. Parts of the history that Platinum retold were inconsistent
with the current DCU, such as the Legion coexisting with a version of the
JLA in the 29th Century, but I don't think this was a research mistake on
the part of the writer or the editor. Something seems to be coming down
the road and it looks like a lot of fun.
Art:
If I had to use one word to describe the art, I'd choose 'clean'. Clean
pencils and clean inks combined with vibrant colors made this issue for
me. Several redesigns on the Superman costume motif are done in the
various ages of the Superman dynasty. I hope these guys get on one of
the regular books if they haven't been assigned one already.
Pros:
- This issue greatly enriched the Post-Crisis Superman mythos. The Legion
of Executive Familiars. Krypto 9. Heh.
- Solaris is the best new villain I've seen in a long time.
Cons:
- Much of these enrichments are probably going to be gone as an alternate
future.
Edward Mathews
<em11@is3.nyu.edu>
===============================================
DC ONE MILLION #4 Nov 85271 $1.99 US/$2.95 CAN
"Death Star"
Writer: Grant Morrison
Penciller: Val Semeiks
Inker: Prentis Rollins
Letterer: Ken Lopez
Colorist: Pat Garrahy
Separator: Heroic Age
Assoc. Ed.: Tony Bedard
Tyrant Sun: Dan Raspler
Cover: Semeiks and Rollins
RATINGS
Average: 4.4/5.0 Shields
TD: 4.5 Shields
DJ: 3.9 Shields - Why does Grant end his stories too quickly and
confusingly so he can introduce a new storyline? The Green Lantern
idea was cool, and the trick played on Vandal Savage in the end
made the book worth every penny I paid for it.
DWk: 4.4 Shields - Huntress as mob-trained strategist, Kyle proving his
mettle, the _great_ plot twist, and the payoff of Lois's blood
donation... this certainly didn't disappoint.
EM: 5.0 Shields - C'mon. I'm a big softie. GL steals the show, but seeing
Kal-El reunite... anyway. :)
JE: 4.5 Shields - This issue was nothing less than amazing. From the
future Superman punching through time, to Green Lantern containing
a supernova, to Vandal Savage dying in Montevideo, to Superman
Prime returning from the sun, the whole issue held me enthralled.
JO: 5.0 Shields - Superman with the GL power ring -- that's one mighty
will power he's got there! Lois Lane being his eternal lover was
great; you know *someone's* going on a second honeymoon!
JSy: 4.6 Shields - "It felt like the whole universe was being put right
somehow." Wow. Morrison manages to express exactly my feelings
on the basics of the Superman mythos. I don't think I could have
been any more satisfied than I was with this ending.
SDM: 3.6 Shields - A satisfactory, but rushed and slightly muddled ending.
While I don't know what to make of the future of our Superman, his
wink at Kyle was priceless. Credit to Morrison for making me care
about Kyle and Huntress for the first time. I want him to write a
Superman story soon!
*Whew*
You know what I ask for in an inter-company event? I want a 'Gosh-Wow'
experience that makes me feel that every character involved *had* to be
involved, and that the Universe is changed. _Crisis on Infinite Earths_
worked by setting the benchmark in both categories. _Millennium_ didn't
work; its only message seemed to be, "Buy _New Guardians_." _Final Night_
worked as a Gosh-Wow experience (at least for me); _Genesis_certainly did
not.
There is *so* much 'Gosh-wow' going on in _DC One Million_ that I'm
breathless trying to keep up. Not only that, Morrison and Semeiks manage to
(with one exception that I'll get to) come up with a climax that does
require all the characters set up as major players.
Solaris, the sentient computer sun is now on a rampage. As it cuts a swath
through the DC Heroes of 853rd, its intent to poison our sun and kill
Superman (who, you will recall, has been living in the sun for a couple of
millennia and is about to emerge from his self-imposed exile), *our* JLA
sit in the Justice Legion A headquarters, ready to put into action a plan
that J'Onn J'Onzz and Mitch Shelley (aka Resurrection Man) devised near the
beginning of the heroic age. Meanwhile, Superman 853 is trying to punch a
hole through the time barrier so he can assist Green Lantern in causing
Solaris to go supernova and contain the explosion!
The combined might of Green Lantern and Supes 853 does the trick, but not
before Solaris shoots the Knight fragment -- a rock of Kryptonite -- into
our sun. J'Onn and Mitch have one final surprise for Solaris, though. (And
Chronos has a final surprise for the 853rd century Vandal Savage...)
This is what a major event should be about. Morrison dives into this climax
and never comes up for air, gleefully ticking off the seconds for us as
Solaris' plan comes closer to fruition. The JLA's plan to stop him requires
something from everyone -- but not necessarily what we would expect: to
take full advantage of Justice Legion A's battle simulation computer (which
can calculate probabilities at lightning speed) Batman assigns the Flash to
run it; to maneuver the mobile JLA 853 headquarters, he assigns Wonder
Woman, who uses the liquid controls of her aircraft as a template. The only
person who doesn't shine is Aquaman, who sorta sits in the headquarters
worrying. Part of the reason I'm so ecstatic is because Morrison gave
Resurrection Man -- one of my favorite newer characters -- a major role,
even if he has to die his final death to get it. He also allowed Kyle
Rayner to shine. I'm sorry, Hal Pals, but as far as I'm concerned, Kyle is
the better character.
Morrison also doesn't forget plot threads -- throwaway lines in other parts
of the series make for resolutions here (the defeat of Solaris hinges on a
throwaway line about there being no evidence of a Green Lantern for years).
Hell, even seemingly arbitrary plot points like Lois Lane contributing her
DNA to help build Solaris in the present day get tied up.
But the greatest thing about this issue is that Morrison and Semeiks know
we want big moments and they don't skimp. From page one's depiction of
Superman 853 hitting the time barrier so hard that seconds are being
knocked off the clock to Solaris wiping out scores of super-heroes, to the
actual appearance of Superman Prime on page 17, there are plenty of moments
to savor.
Of course, all this writing would be for naught unless the artist delivers
the goods, and Semeiks does so in spades. Granted, his layouts sometimes
generate panels too small to convey the sweep of what is being depicted
(take page 7, which is supposed to depict Solaris' "Collection of orbiting
corpses" but is only able to show us three non-descript bodies), but the
power of his characters as they do what has to be done cannot be denied.
Even a simple three-panel page like page four, showing us the JLA plotting
Solaris' demise, has a cinematic oomph to it.
I question the addition of pages 21-23, which seem to be there only to give
us vague set-ups for the Kingdom Event (I assume). Even these have some
good moments, though, including what may be the best line in the issue:
Steel's niece Nat claiming "I want my uncle to save the universe. It's so
post-ironic." The last page, depicting Vandal Savage's final fate -- and
involving another of my favorite new characters -- is choice.
_DC One Million_ may be the best inter-company crossover since the
grand-daddy of them all, and I can only hope it is the coda for this
particular type of story. I can't think of anything the next guy in line
can do to top this, and that's the way it should be. Let's make these
crossovers special again by not jamming another one down our throat next
year...
...or after _Kingdom_. (Why do I get the impression this will be the
equivalent of letting the Watchmen enter DC continuity? *shudder*)
Thomas Deja
<tdj723@webtv.net>
_____________________________________________
OTHER SUPERMAN TITLES:
---------------------
SUPERMAN ADVENTURES #25 Nov 1998 $1.99 US/$2.95 CAN
"(Almost) The World's Finest Team"
Writer: Mike Millar
Penciller: Mike Manley
Inker: Terry Austin
Colorist: Marie Severin
Separations: Zylonol
Letterer: Lois Buhalis
Asst. Ed.: Frank Berrios
Editor: Mike McAvennie
Cover: Rick Burchett, Terry Austin, and Marie Severin
RATINGS
Average: 3.6/5.0 Shields
CoS: 3.5 Shields
GN: 3.2 Shields - Superman and Batgirl make an interesting -- if not
always comfortable -- team. A follow-up could be intriguing
someday.
GR: 2.7 Shields - Aw, come on! What's this "Gotham has its own rules"
stuff? Show me a town Superman can't handle, and I'll show you an
Imaginary Story! The enmity between Superman and the Bat-family
has always seemed forced and arbitrary to me.
JE: 4.5 Shields - A fun read with a fantastic cover, showing off the
dichotomy between the methods of Superman and the Dark Knight.
Superman buying coffee for the stoolie he just roughed up is one
of the funniest moments in a Superman comic in some time.
JSy: 4.0 Shields - Unmistakably Mark Millar's best outing to date on this
title. Let's see *Batman* threaten his snitches with a jumbo jet.
ST: 3.6 Shields (Story: 4.0, Art: 3.0) - An entertaining story with some
nice pieces, but points off for the art: Gordon looks like he's
in chemotherapy and Batgirl looks like an anorexic 12 year-old.
I wonder what Bruce was trying to say to the Hatter?
It's been no secret that this book has fallen on hard times. After the last
couple of issues I was reluctant to read this issue, and put it off until
the last minute. Every week, I bring home my books from my local, stack
them in order of anticipation. I read the first few before going to bed and
the rest throughout the week. The ones at the bottom of the stack are saved
until Monday night, so that I can decide whether to drop them before going
to my local on Tuesday. Lately, _Superman Adventures_ has been a
bottom-of-the-stack book. This month, that was a mistake.
The story opens with the Mad Hatter holding Bruce Wayne at gunpoint,
announcing on a pirate TV broadcast that Wayne dies if Batman's cowl isn't
delivered by midnight. Millar establishes that Nightwing is too far away to
help, and Robin has already been defeated by the Hatter. Commissioner
Gordon lights the Bat-signal (not knowing that the Hatter already has
Batman in his grasp), but is met on the roof by the Metropolis Marvel
instead of the Caped Crusader.
Meanwhile, Batgirl is beating up the Mad Hatter's henchmen (who are
bringing in mind-controlling hats for the next phase of the plan), trying
to get some information. Superman arrives on the scene. He wants to help,
but his reputation precedes him, and the thugs refuse to talk. Why? They
know that Superman won't hurt any of them (or even let them get hurt) while
they aren't sure just how far Batgirl would go to get information.
Batgirl takes Superman to shake down another underworld figure, reminding
him to "Think Gotham." In response, Superman carries the crook high into
the path of an oncoming jumbo jet and tells him to spill his guts before
the flight comes through. The tactics scare the thug, but do no good, as he
knows nothing. It does show Superman that things are different in Gotham
City.
Superman and Batgirl are at a dead end, when a casual remark from the
scared thug points them to Gotham Police HQ. The Hatter, however, has
ordered a mind-controlled Robin to attack the city in one of the bat-planes
in an effort to stop Superman. While Supes saves Robin, Batgirl takes care
of the Hatter. She relieves him of his mind-controlling headgear but he is
able to escape down the sewers -- hatless -- with Batgirl in pursuit.
After losing the Hatter in the lead-lined sewers, Superman decides to give
him what he wants; an announcement that he can have Batman's cowl, no
strings attached, causes him to come out of hiding. As Superman returns to
Metropolis, Batman reminds Robin and Batgirl that his presence has made
Gotham a little brighter.
Manley's art in this issue is fluid and smooth, telling the story in such a
way as to gloss over the plot-holes. He knows that the point of the story
is the contrast of Superman's bright, gaudy costume with Gotham's dark,
foreboding design and he makes the most of it. Compare the first appearance
of Superman -- where he is bright and smiling, his hand out in friendship
-- and Batgirl's, where she is more a shape in the shadows than a human
figure. Both are shown from a low angle, but their appearance drives the
story point home without hitting you over the head. Austin's inks are
always a joy, his thick brushstrokes serving the art without overpowering
it. I would also like to point out Marie Severin's masterful job of
coloring, showing the light/dark contrasts without making Superman seem too
out of place.
While the story moves fast, it still suffers from Millar's flaws: poor
story construction, shocks that seem out of place, and a conclusion that is
reached in a jump rather than a steady build. The scene where the leader of
the Hatter's gang shoots the other hoods, knowing that Superman would stop
the bullets, struck me as over the top and gratuitous. There were a lot of
ways to show that Superman wouldn't go for the threats of violence that
Batgirl would use, and a more believable one could easily have been found.
The midnight deadline (a nice story device) was thrown out the window as
the Mad Hatter changes the rules. Finally, the way Batgirl and Superman
find the Hatter is poorly done; they just come up with the answer, rather
than putting clues together.
All in all, this issue was above average. The idea behind this story was a
good one, even if the execution was weak. More importantly, Millar showed
that he has the skill to pull off this admittedly hard-to-do book; his
sequence of Superman figuring out how to operate in Gotham was very well
done. Hopefully, things are back on the right path.
Cory Strode
<Solitaire.Rose@worldnet.att.net>
===============================================
SUPERMAN FOR ALL SEASONS #3 Nov 1998 $4.95 US/$7.50 CAN
"Book Three: Fall"
Words: Jeph Loeb
Pictures: Tim Sale
Color: Bjarne Hansen
Letters: Richard Starkings
Cover: Tim Sale and Bjarne Hansen
RATINGS
Average: 4.2/5.0 Shields
DWk: 4.7 Shields
GN: 4.5 Shields - The best chapter so far. Luthor's evil is chilling,
and Superman's frustration is palpable. Can't wait for the end.
GR: 4.0 Shields - Talk about being drawn in! I've never hated Luthor so
much! I'm worried about Clark! This is just a funnybook?
JSy: 4.4 Shields - Weakest issue of the series, but that isn't saying
much. I'm still completely enraptured by this absolutely
brilliant piece of art. And shall I ask again? Hardcover, please.
SDM: 2.9 Shields - I still love the art, but Loeb makes both hero and
villain too two-dimensional in this part. His Supes is getting to
be a bit more of a rube that usual and I think I'm finally tired
of the all-evil Luthor we see almost every month.
TD: 4.0 Shields - And now it's time to bring the pain. Consistently one
of the best depictions of Supes in a long while, and the smarmy
nastiness of Luthor is a real trip.
By the beginning of the third and pivotal installment of this extraordinary
miniseries, Superman is firmly established as the hero of Metropolis. Lex
Luthor, who narrates this issue, is not at all happy about it. After
spending the night in jail for the first time, he's picked up by a Lexcorp
helicopter, which takes him home under Superman's watchful eye. Lex plots
his revenge -- a revenge involving Jenny Vaughn, the woman Superman saved
last issue. He's torturing andbrainwashing her into his servant.
At the Daily Planet, Lois Lane sneaks a look at a letter Clark Kent is
writing home, and confronts him about the identity of the "L.L." he
mentions. He explains that it's Lana Lang just as Lois collapses from an
unknown disease that has also felled the rest of the Planet staff. Superman
swoops out of the building, saves a monorail from crashing, and goes to
S.T.A.R. Labs to get the scoop on the virus that has attacked Metropolis.
He confronts Luthor, who suggests that perhaps Superman himself is the
source of the disease. Luthor introduces him to Jenny Vaughn in her new
identity as Toxin. Superman flies off with her to seed the clouds with her
anti-viral solution; as the rain falls with the cure, the city is saved,
but Vaughn collapses and dies from overexposure to the virus. "Go back to
_wherever_ you came from before you fail us all," Luthor sneers, and a
beaten-down Clark returns to his parents in Smallville -- which, after all,
is his idea of where he came from.
_Superman For All Seasons_ is great, of course, and if you care about
Superman and haven't been reading it then you really should, but it's also
worth noting as an example of all sorts of things that are missing from the
triangle titles -- things that there's no reason they couldn't include,
with a little more care and thought. In no particular order:
* Well-considered coloring. Bjarne Hansen's coloring here isn't just
carefully modeled and sometimes even impressionistic; from the rough lines
of paint on the first page's cell door to the high-contrast purple skin and
orange eyebrows of Luthor's face at the end of the story, it serves the
flow of the story itself. The palette he uses goes, very gradually, from
autumnal tones at the beginning, with muted greens and browns everywhere
Hansen can fit them, to the darkness of just-before-winter on the last few
pages.
* Visual details that show, rather than tell. The opening close-up of
Luthor's finger being pressed onto a fingerprint sheet says a lot about his
humiliation, and his expression in the next panel makes it explicit. His
posture when he stands in the shower is that of a powerful, humiliated man;
the three-panel page of Lex at his desk as the day goes by says everything
about his quiet, furious determination. The extreme close-up of Clark's
face as he says Lana's name balances Lois's cartoonishly
indignant-but-flirtatious pose in the next panel. And look at Superman and
Toxin's body language in the two-page spread where they're flying: his cape
is spread out evenly and he's absolutely straight-arrow serious, holding
her by the waist like a good Boy Scout because it's the safest way to carry
her; her hair billows around her and she's got her knee bent and a little
smile on her face, looking like she finds the whole thing not unerotic.
* Visual details that are there for artistic balance, even though they
don't have much to do with the story. Those birds in V-formation; I can't
think of the last time I've noticed something like that in a triangle
title, and they're great.
* Cool images that aren't telegraphed by the words next to them: Clark
jumping down an elevator shaft as he pulls his shirt open, followed by the
right-angle streak of colors as he flies out of the building.
* A sense of depth to Luthor's character. Too often in Superman comics,
he's a bad guy because he's a bad guy -- somebody who spends so much time
being evil you can't see how he's managed to stay on top of his empire.
Here, we see on every page how he's been curdled by his wealth and fame,
but also how he's earned them. The scene where he forgives the woman who
nicks him as she's shaving him makes it clear that he's not insanely
vindictive, and also that he believes his forgiveness carries real weight.
"She was my fair lady. I've grown accustomed to her face." The allusion to
the musical suggests his cultural background, even as it hints at the plot
of _My Fair Lady_ or _Pygmalion_, in which a haughty man's creation moves
beyond him.
* Careful use of expository dialogue. There's an awful lot of exposition in
this issue, but it's all used in contexts where one character has to
explain something to another in a hurry. You don't get the sense that
things are being explained for the sake of readers who don't yet know
what's going on.
* Finally, a willingness to put style above consistency. There's a reason
_SFAS_ doesn't look like any other Superman title: it's not supposed to.
It's Loeb, Sale and Hansen showing off what _they_ can do, and the results
are elegant and distinctive. The familiar characters provide all the
continuity the story needs.
Douglas Wolk
<dbcloud@panix.com>
===============================================
SUPERMAN: THE DARK SIDE #2 Nov 1998 $4.95 US/$7.50 CAN
Words & Story: John Francis Moore
Pictures: Kieron Dwyer
Inker: Hilary Barta
Letterer: Steve Dutro
Colorist: Trish Mulvihill
Separator: Jamison
Cover: Dwyer, Barta, and Mulvihill
Logo: Todd Klein
RATINGS
Average: 3.9/5.0 Shields
RG: 4.5 Shields (Story) - They don't come much better than this.
5.0 Shields (Art) - Stunning; the best I've seen since _Kingdom Come_.
DJ: 3.2 Shields - Can't Superman *ever* be a bad guy? Where are these good
impulses coming from? This story is heading in the wrong direction.
JE: 4.5 Shields - I just love this whole concept. The idea of a Superman
raised by Darkseid is just too intriguing for words, and Kieron
Dwyer is turning in the best art of his career. Kal's change of
heart in this issue is truly heartening, showing us that good will
always triumph over evil in men's hearts if given the chance.
JO: 3.5 Shields - Cool! Superman raised by the ultimate evil still has
the heart of a hero! You can't corrupt that!
JSy: 4.0 Shields - After _Elseworlds' Finest_ and this series, I'm just
about ready to chain Moore, Dwyer, and Barta to a desk and force
them to do nothing but Superman Elseworlds stories. First time
the New Gods have been really interesting in a long while.
ST: 3.6 Shields - I still say that Kal has no reason to have a conscience
after growing up in Darkseid's care, but I enjoyed this chapter
more than part one. Marks would have been higher had the price
been lower; $7.50! Ouch!
Lois Lane has just rescued Kal-el from drowning in Metropolis harbor. She
didn't quite realize that he was an alien, instead thinking him to be an
escaped mental patient. As she is in a hurry to spy on an Intergang arms
deal, she doesn't stay with him any longer than necessary. She arrives in
time to witness Mannheim getting a shipment of weapons from someone who
doesn't look quite human. The gang spots her and attacks. She is rescued by
Kal-El and the Metropolis SCU, who arrest Kal after he tosses Dan Turpin
through a crate.
Meanwhile the survivors of New Genesis are making their presence known in
Metropolis. Bugs are raiding stores, and New Gods are seen flying above the
streets. The police van carrying Kal crashes and he escapes, aided in his
efforts by a street kid named Olsen and his friend Bibbo. While hiding in
Suicide Slum, Kal finds that his emotional conflicts again make him a hero
when he routs a Parademon that is attacking a free clinic. It seems that
Darkseid is abducting people; we later learn that he is looking for the
Anti-Life formula that is supposed to be hidden in human genetic structure.
During the battle in the clinic, a new god named Fastbak was killed; Kal
takes his Mother Box, which in turn leads him and Lois to the other New
Gods. When Orion attacks Kal, the Mother Box saves him and integrates
itself into his armor. Kal leaves with Big Barda and they are both captured
by Lex Luthor and Scott Free, at which point Darkseid arrives to take Kal
back to Apokolips. Luthor tries to cut a deal and is transported to Granny
Goodness for his efforts. Desaad unlocks the Anti-Life equation from
information encoded in Kal's DNA. The conquest of Earth begins.
They don't come much better than this. While the story is a little weaker
than the first issue (more fights, less characterization), it amazes me how
much better it is than what we see every month in the regular books. It
would be too much to ask that all the books be this good all the time, but
I could hope for one or two such stories a year.
I've re-read this one six times now for this review (OK, I enjoyed it too)
and each reading has exposed more details. I'm finding that it's the little
things that are making the story so enjoyable. The differences between the
Metropolis here and the regular Metropolis are subtle, but telling.
'Regular' Metropolis is bright and clean. Even the slum sections are
amazingly clean for such a large city. This city shows its dirt. Whole
sections of it have been closed down due to funding problems. Lex Luthor
(still a sleaze) didn't play such an active role in shaping the city,
instead making his mark by turning STAR Labs into a money-making
enterprise. Lois is a freelancer, Bibbo never hit it rich, and Jimmy is a
street kid.
It's been interesting watching Kal change from heartless warrior to
childlike adult full of a sense of wonder. Truly a stranger in a strange
land he finds that nothing in his training has prepared him for the
situations now confronting him. Needing a guide, he floats from situation
to situation, reacting to the people around him, but never quite
understanding, helping when and as he can.
While on Earth his powers slowly begin to develop. As they do, even the
color of his skin begins to change from the pallor of Apokolips to more
human flesh tones. The changes in his attitudes are most apparent in his
meetings with the New Gods; he tries to reason with them rather than
attacking. The New Gods recognize that he is being guided by the Source,
and back off, but don't try to aid him either.
In the end, as he is being tortured by Desaad and Darkseid for the
Anti-life equation, he admits that he can no longer follow Darkseid.
Darkseid shows him a (faked?) recording from his father that implies he was
being sent to Earth to conquer it and rebuild the glory of Krypton. What a
place to end the book.
As to the art, what can I say? It is some of the most beautiful and
detailed work I've seen since _Kingdom Come_, though in a significantly
different way. Like that series, it is lavishly detailed, with excellent
perspectives, and wonderful layouts. This one has everything I look for.
I can't wait for next month.
Rene Gobeyn
<bedlam@frontiernet.net>
_____________________________________________
THE PHANTOM ZONE: Reviews of the pre-Crisis Man of Steel
------------------------------------------------------------------
SUPERMAN #344
----------------------------------------------------
Reviewed by Scott Devarney (devarney@ll.mit.edu)
"The Monsters Among Us"
Script by Paul Levitz, from a story by Len Wein
Art by Curt Swan and Frank Chiaramonte
Colors by Glynnis Wein
Letters by Ben Oda
Edited by Julius Schwartz
February 1980
Rating: 2.0/5.0 Shields
In the spirit of Halloween, a review of a spooky Superman story was in
order. Unfortunately, this story is rather pedestrian. Lois and Clark are
covering a seance. During the seance, medium Cassandra Craft inadvertently
brings Frankenstein's monster and Dracula into the world from some
netherworld to which they'd previously been banished. Dracula and
Frankenstein's monster immediately attack Ms. Craft but Superman repels
them. The two monsters flee before Superman's might but vow to make another
attempt on Ms. Craft.
The next night, Superman is guarding Lois and Ms. Craft when the monsters
attack again. This time Dracula goes after Superman intending to drink his
blood and become invincible. After knocking out Frankenstein's monster,
Superman softens up Dracula just in time for a surprise guest star to
spirit the monsters back to the world of nightmare.
Superman versus Dracula and Frankenstein's monster seems like such a
classic story idea. It's amazing that this story is so lackluster,
especially since Len Wein, co-creator of Swamp Thing, came up with this
idea. A major problem is the art. Curt Swan doesn't do spooky stories well.
His forte is the traditional super-heroics and science fiction stuff, but
the gothic elements of this story don't mesh with his style. The story is
hurt by being drawn using mostly long and mid-range shots with an average
of 7 panels per page. Ideally, close-ups should have been interspersed to
convey the horror, but the few close-ups that are used lack impact because
of the small panel size. The inking doesn't help. In a story like this,
inking can add mood and increase the eeriness. Frank Chiaramonte just inks
the artwork without adding much to it. It's competent, and doesn't detract
from the artwork, but it should have been more.
The story was OK but it does suffer from a few problems. Chief among them
is that it treats Dracula and Frankenstein's monster as just two more
super-villains for Superman to fight. These are two of the horror genre's
archetypes, yet none of their unique personality traits are displayed. As a
result, neither of them felt very threatening.
The deus ex machina appearance of the surprise guest star on the last page
to capture the monsters for Superman is another problem. Considering that
Cassandra Craft was a supporting character in this person's series in the
70's, his appearance isn't a total shock, but it would have been better had
he appeared earlier and been an integral part of the story. This may have
also had the effect of adding more mood to the story.
Yet another problem has to do with the manner that Superman counters
Dracula's attack during their climactic battle; he uses super pressure and
heat vision on a _hydrogen_ filled balloon to create an artificial
miniature sun. Now, Superman is shown getting this balloon from a park
vendor earlier. Isn't it rare, and convenient, to find a balloon vendor
using hydrogen, when most use _helium_? Another convenient thing about this
balloon is that it never floats out of Superman's cape pouch during his
fight.
There were some things that are done well in this story and these tend to
be the more traditional Superman story elements. Superman's personality is
dead on (pun intended), from his self-deprecating wimpy act as Clark, to
his steadfastness in protecting Ms. Craft against this supernatural threat,
to his resourcefulness in preparing for his final battle with Dracula. The
fight scenes with Frankenstein's monster are well-written and
well-choreographed. It's as if the creative team were more comfortable
writing Superman confronting another super-strong foe. The scene in the
WGBS board room, with Morgan Edge ranting about the cost of repairing
damaged newscopters was good for a chuckle. Finally, kudos must be given
for using Cassandra Craft, an existing DCU character, instead of creating
another throw-away character for this story.
Overall, as a thriller, this story was a disappointment, although the
regular story elements worked well. For a well-done Superman horror story,
read _Superman vs. Aliens_.
_____________________________________________
THE ONE, TRUE, ORIGINAL SUPERMAN!
---------------------------------------
by Bob Hughes (rhughes3@ix.netcom.com)
(or see my web page, "Who's Whose in The DC Universe" at
pw2.netcom.com/~rhughes3/whoswho.htm)
Episode 7 - Early Days and Action Archives #1
Superman fans today are living in one of the most incredible eras in the
history of comics. When I was a youngster, old comics were nowhere to be
found, except maybe coverless ones, in some disreputable soda shops, sold
for a nickel after ostensibly being returned for credit. Later, as fandom
created a network of dealers, old comics quickly began to be priced out of
reach. Now for the first time a Superman fan can get his hands on a
substantial portion of the complete adventures (in any medium) for
relatively little money. In 1989, DC Comics began a program of reprinting
their earliest books in hardcover. It's been stop-again, start-again for
several years, but this year saw the release of two volumes of Superman's
earliest adventures in _Action Comics_, and promises to bring out the first
three years of the newspaper strips by Christmas. It is truly a great time
to be a Superman fan.
So here's part one of a trip through the earliest adventures of Superman,
presented in chronological order. Just follow along in your copies of DC's
_Superman Archives_ vol 1 and _Superman In Action Comics Archives_ vol 1
(and if you want to be a Superman fan you're *required* to own these,
unless, of course, you have the originals) while the life of Superman
repeats before your eyes....
Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster first met at Glenville High School in
Cleveland, Ohio in 1930, where both were on the staff of the high school
newspaper. Shuster had moved to Cleveland from Toronto, Canada, when he was
10. Jerry was already a science-fiction pioneer at that time, having
published the first science fiction fanzine, Cosmic Stories, in 1929 when
he was 14 years old. It was done on a typewriter with carbon paper. In
October 1932, the two collaborated on a new fanzine, called Science
Fiction, this time mimeographed and featuring the work of professional
writers like Raymond Palmer, author of "The Girl in the Golden Atom". (No,
the fact that the Sixties version of the Atom had a secret identity of Ray
Palmer is not a coincidence.) The third issue of that magazine, published
in January 1933, featured a Jerry Siegel story called "Reign of the
Superman" about a fantastic villain who used his super brain for evil. The
splash page from that story (reprinted in Comic Book Price Guide #18) shows
a giant who looks suspiciously like Luthor hovering over a bread line. Yes,
the evil Professor Smalley took advantage of the depression gripping
America to recruit subjects for his hideous experiments.
Shortly after this story was finished, Jerry was seized with a new idea.
Instead of having the evil Superman prey on the victims of the depression,
why not a good Superman who would avenge the misfortunes of the
downtrodden? Quickly, he got Joe Shuster busy sketching the new character
and working the story up -- this time in comics format. A new company,
Humor Publishing, had just released two album-sized comic books, Detective
Dan and Ace King. Siegel contacted them and they seemed eager to add
Superman to their line, so Joe Shuster drew up an entire Superman story,
including two cover sketches. Unfortunately, Humor stopped publishing
comics after those two one-shots and the deal was never concluded.
Depressed, Joe tore the original Superman story to shreds. Only the two
cover sketches survive, which can be seen in _Comic Book Price Guide_ #18
and _Comic Book Marketplace_ #36.
Eventually, Jerry and Joe began reworking the Superman concept into a comic
strip. They put together several weeks worth of samples and sent them
around to the syndicates with no luck. But with each rejection, they
repacked them and sent them on to the next prospect.
In the meantime, a new company had arisen which actually managed to get
comic books to the newsstands on a semi-regular basis. Jerry and Joe sent
an envelope full of story ideas to Malcolm Wheeler-Nicholson, the publisher
of _New Fun Comics_ in New York, and received a response back in June 1935.
Two features were accepted, Henri Duvall and Dr. Occult, on the condition
that Joe redraw them on proper drawing paper. They were so poor, the
originals had been done on the backs of old wallpaper rolls! For the grand
total payment of $20, the boys were now in the comic book business! Henri
Duvall (a French Musketeer strip) and Dr. Occult first appeared in _New Fun
Comics_ #6 in October 1935. They soon added Federal Men, starring Steve
Carson, for _New Comics_ #2 in January of 1936. (4 whole pages!) Ominously,
the name of the publishing company changed from National Allied to More
Fun, Inc. The editors disappeared and were replaced by new faces. And
promised payments failed to materialize. But Siegel and Shuster soldiered
on. Joe used his mother's bread board as a drawing board and worked late at
night after finishing his day job delivering groceries (at least that
actually paid.) Two stories they did for Nicholson mysteriously appeared in
Centaur Publications' _Comics Magazine_, a Doctor Occult story, retitled
Dr. Mystic, and Federal Agent Bart Regan, a four page story done for a
proposed new Wheeler-Nicholson title that hadn't even been scheduled yet.
Had the former editors skipped with some art work to make up for never
having been paid? Or did Wheeler-Nicholson give it to them, in lieu of
money he didn't have?
In July 1936, Calling All Cars, starring Sandy Keen replaced Henri Duvall
on the Siegel and Shuster roster. They did six pages that month, total, for
new editor Vin Sullivan. Finally in March 1937, that promised new title
appeared. _Detective Comics_ #1 featured 17 pages of Siegel and Shuster
material, but at the new (lower) page rate of $6 a page! Four pages of Bart
Regan- Spy were joined by 13 pages of Slam Bradley. Now Shuster could
really go to town. His artwork opened up with large, crowded panels and
action scenes on every page! His style began to really develop. But, with
25 pages a month of artwork to do, Shuster needed help. So Paul Cassidy, 4
years Shuster's senior, came on staff as his assistant.
_Detective Comics_ was, if not a hit, financially solid. The new owners,
Harry Donnenfeld and Jack Liebowitz, paid their bills (though they never
made good on Nicholson's debts). Siegel and Shuster stretched their wings.
Dr. Occult battled Koth and the 7 in a four part story, in which Occult
flew and wore a red cape! The Federal Men strip moved to the 30th century,
featuring a police officer named Jor-L. Slam Bradley out did even that and
went into the future to 2 Billion AD! (Beating out even DC's current _One
Million_ series!)
In June 1938, Siegel and Shuster did 31 pages for Detective Comics, Inc.--
not including a new series for their latest title. For over a year editor
Vin Sullivan had been trying to assemble some good features for a proposed
companion magazine to _Detective Comics_, sometimes called _Thrilling
Comics_, sometimes _Action Funnies_, without much luck. Comic books were a
chancy business and it wasn't worth launching a new title without something
catchy to make it work. At the same time, 21 year old Sheldon Mayer (who
had left More Fun, Inc when Wheeler-Nicholson didn't pay him) was working
for the McClure Syndicate looking at new comic strip submissions. He found
Siegel and Shuster's Superman and loved it, passing it on to his boss, M.
C. Gaines. Gaines, who sold printing on the side, decided to send the strip
to Vin Sullivan, hoping to get the contract to print the resulting comic
book. Sullivan loved the strip and realized the people who did it were
already working for him.
Soon, the strips were winging their way back to Cleveland. They needed to
be redone as comic book pages -- now -- today, with not a minute to spare.
Out came the scissors, out came the white paint. An _Action Comics_ logo
was pasted across an early drawing of Superman (which features a completely
different 'S' design than was ever used again). Panels were tossed away.
Sequences were shortened. Thirteen pages were assembled and mailed back to
New York. There they were bundled with some other features on hand and sent
off to the engravers, where Ed Eisenberg colored the Superman story and
left most of the rest of the book in black and white. On April 18, 1938,
_Action Comics_ #1, starring Superman, went on sale.
The cover shows Superman lifting an automobile over his head and smashing
it into a big rock. People are running in all directions. There is nothing
on this cover to indicate whether the central figure is a hero or villain.
If anything, he appears to be an engine of wanton destruction. Clad in dark
bluish-grey tights, still heavily shaded for the intended black and white
newspaper publication, Superman has a long red cape, red boots and shorts,
a yellow shield on his chest with a red 'S'. If you look closely, you can
see the boot design goes much higher up his legs than the coloring does and
features some kind of ornamental design. Inside, the costume is much
simpler. The shield becomes a triangle. The 'S' is embossed, rather than
drawn, and is yellow, not red. The boots are blue and appear to be laced up
his shins.
As we read this 13 page segment, (it isn't really a story, just a series of
fragments) we actually find out very little about Superman. The one page
origin tells us: "As a distant planet was destroyed by old age, a scientist
placed his infant son within a hastily devised space ship, launching it
toward Earth! A passing motorist, discovering the sleeping babe within,
turned the child over to an orphanage." Attendants were astounded at the
infant's strength. As he grew older he could "leap an 1/8th of a mile,
hurtle a 20 story building, run faster than an express train and nothing
less than a bursting shell could penetrate his skin." He appears in costume
for one panel and is said to have the proportional strength of an ant and
grasshopper. "Early Clark decided he must turn his titanic strength into
channels that would benefit mankind. And so was created... Superman!
Champion of the oppressed, the physical marvel who had sworn to devote his
existence to helping those in need!"
That's it -- nothing about Krypton, nothing about Jor-El and Lara, or Ma
and Pa Kent. For all we know, he stayed in that orphanage until he was an
adult. There is also nothing about fighting crime or evil. Superman does
not avenge. He helps. He's the champion of the oppressed, not the
establishment. This is still the Depression, and Joe Shuster is still
living in an unheated apartment.
Next follows a 3 page segment, all that is left of the second proposed
newspaper strip continuity. "A tireless figure races thru the night.
Seconds count. Delay means forfeit of an innocent life." Superman leaps
through the air, a bound and gagged blonde woman under his arm. He lands at
the governor's mansion, drops her and says, "Make yourself comfortable! I
haven't time to attend to it." Superman demands to see the governor, but is
rebuffed. He carries the butler up the stairs and breaks through the
governor's solid steel(!) bedroom door. The butler tries to shoot him, but
"the bullet ricochets off Superman's tough skin!" Superman gives the
governor evidence to show Evelyn Currie is innocent of murder and an
execution is averted. The real murderer, he tells them, is tied up on the
front lawn.
In the next six page segment, we find that Clark Kent already works for the
Daily Star. The editor (a young blue-black haired fellow, who is not named)
assigns Kent the job of tracking down this mysterious Superman. Clark takes
it but is distracted by a tip about a wife-beater. Returning to the office,
Clark finally wrangles a date with Lois, the Star's sob sister ("I suppose
I'll give you a break for a change"). At the night club, gangster Butch
Matson tries to horn in on a dance, and when Clark backs down, Lois calls
him a coward and leaves. Matson follows and kidnaps her. But Superman
catches the fleeing car, shakes the occupants out, and smashes it against a
rock. (The cover!) Superman flies off with Lois. Her first words to him, if
any, are not recorded.
The last 3 page segment begins when the (same?) editor sends Clark to San
Monte (in South America) to be a war correspondent. Kent instead goes to
Washington, where he confronts Senator Barrows. Barrows, Superman finds, is
trying to embroil the US in a war with Europe. Superman grabs the lobbyist,
Alex Greer, and races with him across telephone wires, dangles him from the
roof of the Capitol, and then tries to jump to the next building and
misses.. ...To be continued.
The stories from _Action_ #2-6 are not included in this _Action Archives_
volume, but they were included in the first _Superman Archives_ volume as
they were reprinted in early issues of Superman's own title. The cover to
_Action_ #2 shows a man with a gun and a blonde clinging to the same
parachute. When publisher Harry Donnenfeld saw the cover to _Action_ #1,
depicting Superman lifting the car over his head, he was horrified. He
found the idea so fantastic that he was sure no one would ever buy it. So
no more Superman covers.
The second Superman story begins with no intro whatsoever: "As they topple
like a plummet to the street below, eighty stories distant, Greer shrieks
insanely." But Superman lands on his feet, shattering the pavement, and
exclaims "Say! Wasn't that fun?--Let's do it again!." The lobbyist is
terrified and tells Superman that Emil Norvill, the munitions magnate, is
behind the war talk. At Norvill's headquarters, Superman tosses a "dozen"
bodies out the window, machine guns wrapped firmly about their necks. (John
Byrne would probably consider these early examples of Superman committing
murder, but we don't know what floor the office is on.)
Then Superman takes Emil Norvill to San Monte where he forces him to join
the army so he can see first-hand the pain and suffering caused by his
munitions profiteering. There, Clark unexpectedly runs into Lois Lane (last
name revealed for the first time). She has been sent to get "the woman's
angle" on war, something she considers a big career move away from advice
to the love lorn columns. Superman rescues Lois from a firing squad! He
hurls a torturer "behind a grove of distant trees." He battles an airplane
single-handed. Then he forces the two generals to settle the war in
personal combat, at which point they make peace, rather than fight
themselves. "It's obvious you've been fighting only to promote the sale of
munitions." he scolds them. Norvill, the munitions maker, promises never to
make weapons again if Superman will only return him to the USA.
This is a rather naive view as to the causes of war, but it was rather
prevalent on both the right and left at this point in American history. In
April 1938, Mussolini had been in power for 16 years, Hitler for five.
Japan had invaded Manchuria in 1931 and had been at war with China for over
a year. Spain had been embroiled in a civil war since 1936, heavily
financed by both the fascists and the communists. Hitler had annexed
Austria the month before. Mussolini invaded Ethiopia in 1935. Meanwhile,
the United States has been suffering in the throes of depression since
1929. The election of Franklin Roosevelt in 1933 had brought some measure
of relief, but a major setback occurred in 1937 after Roosevelt, under
pressure from the Republicans, had tried to balance the budget. Wars and
rumors of war abounded in all directions, but many were convinced we had to
concentrate on solving our own problems first. Thus, Superman's second
adventure showed Siegel's attitude towards foreign wars and entanglements,
an attitude shared, perhaps by a majority of Americans.
No location had been mentioned for the first Superman story, but in this
tale Clark Kent mails war correspondence to the Evening News in Cleveland,
Ohio, Siegel's home town. In the previous issue, Clark worked for the Star,
which was the name of the paper in Shuster's home town, Toronto, Canada.
The third Superman story showed what Siegel thought of America's domestic
problems. They were caused by unscrupulous, money-grubbing capitalists.
When a mine shaft in Blakelytown caves in, Superman literally runs to the
rescue. There, Clark "falls" down the elevator shaft and finds the mine
filled with poison gas which doesn't affect him. He single-handedly frees
the trapped rescue party and the injured miner, but discovers the collapse
was caused by unsafe mine conditions which the owner refuses to correct.
"I'm a business man, not a humanitarian", Blakely tells Kent. When Blakely
decides to have a wild party in the mine for all his rich friends, Superman
(disguised as a miner) knocks a support beam down and traps them all below
ground. Blakely's friends panic when they find none of the safety alarms
work. After the rich men collapse, unable to dig themselves out, Clark
finally rescues them. Interestingly, Superman appears in costume in only
one panel in this 13 page story.
_Action_ #4 descends a little from the high politics of the first three
issues. It concerns cheating in college football games, as Dale
University's crooked coach hires three ringers to help him beat Cordell.
Clark is apparently still working for the Evening News.
_Action_ #5 (reprinted in _Superman_ #3) brings Superman into conflict with
the forces of nature as he faces a flood in the town of Valleyho. The
furious editor fires Clark after Lois sends him off on the wrong
assignment. But that doesn't stop Superman from racing the train to
Valleyho. And it's a good thing, too, because he has to hold up the
flood-weakened bridge to keep it (and Lois) from crashing into the river.
But even Superman can't stop the huge dam from collapsing. He does rescue
Lois from a watery death. Then he knocks a mountain top into the water's
path and cuts it off. As a reward, Lois kisses him. "Wow!-What a Kiss!" he
exclaims. Lois tells him she loves him. He responds "Perhaps we'll meet
again!" Lois is ecstatic, but it's Clark that calls in the scoop that gets
his job back at the Daily Star.
In November 1938, Joe Shuster did 44 pages of art for Detective Comics,
Inc. It's not surprising therefore, that _Action_ #6's Superman story shows
the first signs of artistic helping hands. There is a crisper line to the
inking, Superman's cape starts to flow more dramatically and is clearly
tucked in to the front of his shirt, as opposed to the rear. The 'S' symbol
is not triangular but five-sided. The last panel promo for future issues is
decidedly not Shuster, with Superman's cape wrapped completely across his
chest and thrown over his left shoulder. Apparently, this is the work of
Shuster's assistant, Paul Cassidy, helping out on Superman for the first
time.
Clark Kent, now ace-reporter of the Daily Star, is surprised when he meets
Nick Williams, who claims to be Superman's manager! Williams is signing
contracts for Superman to endorse all kinds of products. Unfortunately for
Williams, Lois Lane has met the real Superman and charges his client with
being a fake. Lois gets tossed out of a window into the real Superman's
arms.
In one of the few flaws in the _Action Archives_, the frontispiece is
actually a picture of the phony Superman from this story (which isn't even
in the book!). At this point in time, DC had not yet started any sort of
merchandising of Superman or any comic characters. Jerry Siegel claimed
that he was the first to realize the potential of such merchandising.
Apparently, he was also the first to realize the possibility of being
ripped off over it. This story also features the first appearance of an
inquisitive office boy that some claim to be Jimmy Olsen.
By the time _Action_ #4 came out, Donnenfeld and Liebowitz had noticed that
the book was outselling any of their other titles, but they didn't know
why. A trip to several local newsstands revealed that kids were asking for
"the comic book with Superman in it." So, with _Action_ #7, Superman was
back on the cover. This time, Superman had the red boots that we've come to
know and love, and a rather well defined red 'S' on his triangular chest
emblem (but still no red border). The cover depicts Superman leaping past
some skyscrapers, while dangling a fellow by his shoe. Once again, it's
impossible to tell from the picture whether Superman is the hero or the
villain.
Inside, Superman wears yellow boots for the only time in his career.
Shuster is once again soloing on the art. We are introduced to a new member
of the supporting cast, a reporter named Curly, who delights in picking on
meek, mild Clark Kent. Clark gets him back later by using his super-powers
to play a practical joke on him. Years later, Cary Bates would derive the
entire Clark Kent/Steve Lombard relationship from this one story. The
amazing Superman appears in public for the first time when he takes the
role of a circus strongman in order to help the owner stave off creditors.
Superman wasn't on the next cover, but inside Jerry Siegel returned to his
social gospel, taking on the subject of juvenile delinquency. Upset that a
young boy is being sentenced to two years in the reformatory, Superman uses
super-hearing to overhear whispered conversations. "He's like all the other
boys in the neighborhood", his mother pleads, "hard, resentful,
underprivileged. He might have been a good boy except for his environment."
He finds out that all the kids in the neighborhood are working for Gimpy
the fence, but the gang is irate because Gimpy had promised to keep them
all out of jail. Worried, Gimpy tries to set them all up for the police,
but Superman intervenes. Superman decides the only way to get decent
housing for these people is to destroy the entire slum so that the
government will have to rebuild it. The National Guard tries to stop him,
but to no avail. Finally they send in bombers, which level the area, but
Superman vanishes. Police Chief Burke tells Clark Kent that he will spare
no effort to capture Superman, but privately he thinks Superman did a
splendid thing.
Superman is, however, in trouble now. Not content with simply threatening
criminals and committing acts of reckless endangerment, he's actually
destroyed private property! In _Action_ #9, Chief Burke imports Detective
Captain Reilly to help capture Superman.
Lois, meanwhile, tells Clark she despises him -- loathes him -- and calls
him a contemptible weakling; then finally confides she's in love with
Superman. This causes Clark (when alone) to break out into hysterical
laughter! (This idea was reused in an early 70's Superman tale to much less
effect. Obviously, someone at DC had been visiting the library). The police
offer a $5000 reward for Superman, and the story turns into a comedy of
errors as civilians and police trip over each other trying to corner the
elusive Super-vandal.
Superman is not on the cover of issue 9, but there is a blurb indicating
he's inside. The blurb on issue 10 states "Superman! Appearing in this
issue and in every issue" as Superman punches out an airplane. Inside, Paul
Cassidy returns to help out for a panel here and there, particularly the
splash, which depicts Superman soaring high above the city skyline, one leg
tucked way up under his butt and the other outstretched, his right arm
forward to indicate the direction of his impending dive. Superman sports a
red 'S' on his shirt from the beginning to the end of this story. Up to
now, it's been mostly yellow. Clark gets himself admitted to Coreyville
Prison, where his clandestine photos and the confession Superman forces out
of the Prison Superintendent soon lead to prison reforms.
(continued in Section 8)
_____________________________________________
THE ONE, TRUE, ORIGINAL SUPERMAN!
---------------------------------------
by Bob Hughes (rhughes3@ix.netcom.com)
(or see my web page, "Who's Whose in The DC Universe" at
pw2.netcom.com/~rhughes3/whoswho.htm)
Episode 7 - Early Days and Action Archives #1
(continued from Section 7)
Siegel and Shuster's original dream for Superman finally materialized on
January 16, 1939 when the McClure Syndicate released Superman as a
newspaper strip. Readers finally found out where this amazing character had
come from: "Krypton, a distant planet so far advanced in evolution that it
bears a civilization of Supermen!" Krypton's foremost scientist, Jor-L,
races faster than the fastest express train for miles, then leaps to the
balcony to meet his new born son, Kal-L for the first time. In the days
that follow, Krypton is rocked by quakes, Jor-L is mocked by the Science
Council and finally, Kal-L is rocketed to Earth. Fortunately, that passing
motorist comes by to take the baby to the orphanage, where, once again,
Clark grows to manhood with nary a foster parent mentioned.
Doing a newspaper strip is like adding another 12 pages a month of comic
book art to your workload. Joe quickly unloaded his other features onto
Cassidy and Boring and began to concentrate full time on Superman. Still,
_Action_ #11 is primarily penciled by Paul Cassidy. Cassidy had a totally
different sense of layout and design than Joe did, as can be seen in the
splash panel of Superman landing on a roof top with *both* legs tucked
under him and his arms outstretched sideways, rather than forwards or above
his head. He also restored the five-corned shield design, last seen in
issue 6. Cassidy loved back views, cape tricks, and reclining figures, and
was clearly a superior draftsman to Shuster. But somehow he failed to
capture the power of the Man of Steel (a nickname Superman gained in this
very story). Superman convinces some swindlers that their fake oil well
actually has oil in it, causing them to buy back their own phony stock. For
the first time "Superman's x-ray eyesight and super-acute hearing permit
him to see and hear all that is occurring in the shabby room."
Shuster, meanwhile, was concentrating on the newspaper strip and produced a
story that was later reprinted in _Superman_ #2, often referred to as
"Larry Trent, Heavyweight Champ". Here, Superman saves a fellow trying to
commit suicide and realizes he's Larry Trent the ex-heavy weight champ. His
crooked manager caused him to lose and he's now lost faith in himself.
Superman decides to take his place and rebuild his career using his super
disguise skills. It's not clear here that there's anything super about
this, but eventually Superman developed the power to change his facial
features at will.
Shuster and Cassidy appear to be trading pages in _Action_ #12, as Superman
takes on the vexing problem of reckless drivers. Once again resorting to
super-vandalism, he smashes all the autos in the police impound lot. Then
he carries a drunken driver (car and all) through the air, leaping over
bridges and running with the car at super-speed down the wrong side of the
road. At the end of this perplexing performance, the driver decides to
swear off alcohol forever. Then Superman smashes an auto factory that he
claims builds inferior cars. Finally, he kidnaps the mayor and accuses him
of murder, due to his failure to enforce traffic laws. After being forced
to witness the carnage caused by bad driving, the Mayor vows to clean up
the city. (I wonder if we can get Superman to come to Boston?) The story
ends with Clark Kent being given a parking ticket.
Over in the newspapers, Clark gets a promotion for his work on the Larry
Trent story, while Lois is demoted back to the lovelorn column. The boy who
may or may not be Jimmy Olsen makes another walk-on. (This story is
reprinted in _Superman_ #3). Lois gets back at Clark by tricking him into
taking her to a tough night club where she meets gangster Lew Frawley.
Clark gets his face bashed in, Lois gets kidnapped and Superman ends up
racing a bullet to save her life (but Clark gets the scoop).
In April 1939, things started to really heat up for the Man of Steel. Not
only did he get another cover shot in _Action_ (this time stopping a
railroad train), but he appeared on a second comic as well. The management
of Detective Comics had scored a deal to produce the official comic book of
the New York World's Fair. The 96-page book was originally on sale for
$0.25 and only at the Fair, but eventually it was sold mail-order for
$0.15. Superman helps protect the Fair grounds and stops Nick Stone from
stealing the priceless Rahnee jewels. Apparently, Superman has now moved
from Cleveland to New York and taken his newspaper with him!
_Action_ #13 introduces Superman's first recurring super-villain, although
the Ultra-Humanite doesn't appear until page 10. Superman's attempts to
trace the power behind the city's protection rackets leads him to a cabin
in the woods where he meets a strange, bald-headed man in a white lab coat.
His "fiery eyes burn with terrible hatred and intelligence." The Ultra
Humanite gloats, "a scientific experiment resulted in my possessing the
most agile and learned brain on earth! My goal? Total domination of the
world!" Ultra (as he is usually called) knocks Superman unconscious with a
huge blast of electricity, then tries to kill him with a lumber saw, but
the blade flies to pieces. (If he's so smart, why did he think such a
stupid idea would work?) The Ultra-Humanite tries to escape in his special
air-plane, but Superman rams it out of the sky, then searches the wreckage
in vain, unable to find a body. Thus began the career of Superman's first
recurring super-villain. He and Ultra would face off several times over the
coming year.
In yet another first for this issue, Superman has an 'S' symbol on his cape
on page 6. It only shows up for one panel, even though the back of the cape
is plainly visible several times. This is probably an indicator of multiple
inkers helping to finish off a late story.
The "Important Announcement about Superman" mentioned at the end of this
story is a 2-page center spread ad for _Superman_ #1. "64 pages! All in
color of Superman's daring exploits! On sale May 18th!" Apparently the
release date of the July _Action_ was being postponed until June 2 to give
readers the incentive to buy the _Superman_ book. One year and one month
after his first appearance, Superman got his own comic "album". At a time
when the few comics there were still featured multiple features, many only
one or two pages long, to give an entire book to an original comic book
character was unheard of (although Superman was now in the newspapers, so
maybe it was okay.) Still, the powers-that-be weren't totally committed to
the idea. The cover bore no issue number, nor did the interior indicia,
which also gave no indication the book was a periodical. The amount of new
material was minimal (6 pages), not even including the cover, which was
cobbled up from the splash panel of _Action_ #10. But none of this stopped
the book from reportedly selling 900,000 copies in three print runs!
Inside, two pages were devoted to a recap of Superman's origin. Krypton is
mentioned for the first time in a comic, but dismissed in one panel. The
editors probably felt the recent newspaper story was sufficient space to
spend on a planet which would never be seen again. In a new twist, Clark is
found by the Kents, rather than a passing motorist, and adopted from the
orphanage. Mary Kent is named. They are the ones responsible for training
him in the use of his powers and imparting to him the twin ideas of "hiding
from people" (Dad) and "assisting humanity" (Mom). The passing of Ma and Pa
Kent prompts Clark to "turn his titanic strength into channels that would
benefit mankind."
The remainder of the book was devoted to reprinting the Superman stories
from _Action_ #1 through #4. Four new pages were added to the beginning of
the first story, allowing readers to finally find out who that girl was
that Superman was carrying under his arm in the first panel of _Action_ #1!
The new sequence begins with Clark applying for a job at the Daily Star
where he is turned down by the still-unnamed editor. But in a nearby alley,
Clark changes to Superman and leaps for the editor's window. There, he
overhears a phone call about a mob attacking the county jail. Off Superman
goes to rescue a prisoner about to be lynched. "Who are you?" asks the
warden. "A reporter," Superman answers and then proceeds to interview the
prisoner. The man tells him that he and Evelyn Curry are being held for the
murder of Jack Kennedy. Evelyn Curry is sentenced to die in the electric
chair that very evening, but Bea Carroll is the real murderer. For some
reason Superman decides to believe him, so, after Kent turns in the story
and gets hired, he tracks down Bea Carroll as Superman and forces a
confession out of her. The written confession in hand, Superman tucks the
night club singer under his arm and leaps out the window ... which is where
we came in at the beginning of _Action_ #1.
The four new pages feature the current Superman, with red boots and a
distinct red 'S' symbol and yellow belt. The change to the reprinted pages,
which still contain their black and white newspaper shading and laced blue
boots, is rather disconcerting. Still, to a fan holding an entire book of
Superman stories in 1939, this probably wasn't important. If he or she
didn't even realize they were holding a reprint of _Action_ #1 (the fact
isn't mentioned anywhere in the issue) that probably wasn't important
either. What was important was that in 1939, the oppressed of the world
finally had a champion, who was willing to stand up to politicians,
business men, crooked lawyers and cops, and even topple whole governments
if necessary, in order to fight for truth and justice.
---------
End Part 1
Bibliography:
------------
"Big Bang Theory of Comic Book History" Bob Beerbohm, Comic Book
Marketplace 50 (8/97)
"The Superman" Bob Beerbohm, Comic Book Marketplace 36 (6/96)
"Of Supermen and Kids With Dreams" Thomas Andrae, Comic Book Price Guide
#18 (1989) reprinted from Nemo #2
"DC Before Superman" Gary and Kent Carter, Comic Book Price Guide #13
(1984) Letters from Siegel and Shuster, Detective Comics # 512 (3/82)
"New Fun: Birth of An Industry" Jon Berk, Comic Book Marketplace 53 (11/97)
"DC's Tangled Roots" Will Murray, Comic Book Marketplace 53 (11/97)
_____________________________________________
SUPERMAN STORIES
------------------------------------------
By Sean Hogan (shogan@intergate.bc.ca)
Mr. Mxyzptlk
General Introduction: The purpose of these articles is to give readers
pointers for hunting through the back-bins in search of good stories. I'll
try to keep spoiler to a minimum, so you can enjoy the issues when you find
them. If you have suggestions for villains, pals, heroes or other
characters, or just some notable issues, drop me a line at
shogan@intergate.bc.ca
The imp known as Mr. Mxyztplk (later changed to Mxyzptlk) first appeared in
our dimension in _Superman_ #30 (1st series, 1944) in a story by Jerry
Siegel with art by John Sikela. For those who haven't seen the original
story, you can find it in _The Greatest Superman Stories Ever Told_ trade
paperback. The bald little fellow in the purple suit and green bowtie
creates all kind of havoc -- including animating a naked statue he calls
McGurk. Mxy describes himself as a "court-jester" from another dimension.
The not very bright imp laughingly tells Superman that there is no way he
can be tricked into saying the magic word "Klptzyxm" that will return him
to his own dimension. Oops. Saying the word, Mxy vanishes.
A note at the end of the tale says, "If you enjoyed the antics of Mr.
Mxyztplk and would like to read of his further encounters with Superman,
let us know on a penny postcard." Obviously, Mxy was a big hit and returned
many times.
The first of the re-booted Mxyzptlk stories is in _Superman_ #11. Mxy
stories are always a lot of fun, as we will see in this review. John Byrne
re-introduces Mxyzptlk in a way that brings us many of the elements of the
Silver Age imp. When we first meet Mxy, he uses the name Ben DeRoy (I
presume that's a reference to someone or something, but I can't get it --
anyone else?).
Mxy introduces himself to Superman and says that his real name would never
translate to an Earth language. Animating a billboard typewriter, he
decides to make up a name and types out Mxyzptlk (pronounced
Mix-yez-pittle-ick as he so helpfully tells Superman). Actually, he prefers
to be called *Mister* Mxyzptlk.
Mxy takes on the form of a short imp dressed in an orange and purple
jumpsuit-type outfit, with a tiny purple bowler on his head. He has two
triangular puffs of white hair sticking out from the side of his head and
smokes a huge cigar.
Mxy tells Superman that he is from a parallel dimension that Superman would
call the Fifth Dimension. He describes himself as a gamester and gambler
who has been observing the Third Dimension for a while and says that he is
looking for Superman to provide him with a good challenge.
He tells Superman that they will play the Name Game -- if Superman can get
him to write, spell, or say his name backwards, he will return to his home
dimension and all effects of his visit will vanish.
Mxy turns Lois into a mannequin, sets people on fire, alters Superman's
appearance (I love the Alfred E. Neuman look and big-headed Superman) and
animates the Daily Planet building, which goes on a walkabout, but Superman
eventually wins the war of wits and Mxy vanishes. Superman later tells Lois
that some theoretical physicists believe that the optimum transfer
interface between the dimensions won't occur for another 90 days. Doncha
just love those theoretical physicists?
This story nicely re-introduces Mxyzptlk with much the same character as he
had before the re-boot. His look, powers, mischievous personality and
fixation on Superman are much the same, and the 90 day rule is set in
place. Fortunately, there is one important change to the mythos in Mxy's
next appearance which adds a new twist to allow for a greater battle of
wits between Mxy and Superman.
In _Adventures of Superman_ #441, Mxy shows up in Hollywood where he
changes the famous sign into his own name. Superman rearranges the letters
so that Mxy reads his name backwards, expecting Mxy to disappear again. Mxy
replies, "Hate to burst your bubble, Supey ... but that was last time!"
Now, each time Mxy appears, there is a new game with new rules. In this
issue, the challenge is for Superman to get Mxy to paint his face blue.
Byrne and Jerry Ordway come up with a nice twist on the new Mxyzptlk. In
previous stories, the key to getting rid of Mxy was always making him say
his name backwards. Having Mxy create new rules for every visit makes the
stories a lot more flexible and a lot more interesting. Mxy doesn't have to
be the higher being of lesser intelligence who can always be tricked into
saying his name backward in a mere 22 pages (after all, it's not like
kltpzyxm is a common word -- how hard can it be to avoid saying it?) Mxy
also now has (his own) code of honor in setting up and following those
rules.
As usual, there is lots of fun in this second appearance, with Mxy turning
Superman into a cartoon and having him fight Smurfs and other cartoon
critters, as well as animating objects and turning a popular game show into
the Wheel of Torture. Also as usual, Superman wins on Mxy's terms and the
imp vanishes.
Mxyzptlk next appears in _Superman_ #31, while Superman is in his outer
space exile. Not finding Superman in town, he decides to take on the next
best thing: Lex Luthor. Luthor proposes a game, but then cheats and gets
Mxy so angry that he leaves voluntarily. Mxy behaves like a angry child,
saying that the place is no fun and vows to never return. After he
disappears, Luthor's aide worries that Luthor has taught Mxy to lie.
Mxy does return and shows that he has learned to lie in _Adventures of
Superman_ #463. He arranges for a race around the world between Superman
and the Flash (Wally West). His rules are that if Superman wins the race,
Mxy will go away again for another 90 days. Flash is promised a special
prize, selected just for him if he wins. At the end of the race, Flash
wins.
Mxy swears and says that he now has to go home. He had tried one of
Luthor's tricks and been setting up a false deal. Despite what Mxy had
said, he was only planning to leave if Flash won. He says, "You win because
I have to abide by my own rules and go! I should have known it wouldn't be
easy to lie to myself!" By Mxy's twisted code of honor, even though he has
learned to lie and be deceitful about what the rules of the game are, he
still has his rules and still feels bound by them.
During the race, Mxy finds Luthor searching for a kryptonite meteor and
decides to make a gift to him of some red kryptonite. Luthor leaves it
behind, believing it to be useless. The red K takes center stage during the
Krisis Of The Krimson Kryptonite (_Superman_ #49, _Adventures of Superman_
#472, _Starman #28_ (the Roger Stern penned series), _Action Comics_ #659,
and _Superman_ #50 -- collected in trade paperback).
Mxy turns himself into a red K rock (with derby) and tells Luthor to make a
wish. Luthor's wish robs Superman of his powers. Mxy's rule is that Luthor
can't tell Superman that Mxy is involved. Luthor decides that if he can't
tell Superman, he can at least tell Clark Kent, who can pass on the
information. Oops. Mxy pops back in and wants to know, "Who is this Clark
Kent?"
Mxy sets up a new game with Superman, offering to leave if Superman punches
out Luthor. Mxy arranges to get his way (in a weird way) and disappears. We
also learn that Mxy has other dimensions that he visits in different forms.
In this issue, he turns into the Marvel Universe's Impossible Man, to have
fun with the Fantastic Four.
Mxy returns to plague Metropolis, and specifically Luthor, in _Adventures
of Superman_ #496. He changes the city into his image, with everyone
(except Clark and Luthor) wearing bowlers and dressed in orange and purple.
Superman is now Mxyman and Luthor has tattered clothes and a hook for a
hand (as he gets ejected from MxCorp). Mxy says that he will leave if
Superman gets Mxy's guards to spell MxCorp backwards. Superman does, but
Mxy doesn't leave saying, "Don't you get it? That was ... ta-da ... my
first lie!" (Obviously, Mxy is lying here, since his first lie was in
_Adventures of Superman_ #463.)
There is a terrific scene of Lex trying to open a can of beans with his
hook, followed by a murder scene ripped from the opening of the classic
Watchmen mini-series. Sight gags and humor abound in the issue. Mxy puts
Luthor in an electric chair and forces Superman to guess which of three
identical imps is telling the truth. Superman figures it out and, as Mxy
returns to the 5th Dimension, all returns to normal.
Mxy does appear briefly in the Dead Again! story arc (_Action Comics_
#705), but only for four panels and only to deny his involvement. Mxy gets
more play in his later appearances, notable in the two part story in
_Action Comics_ #721 and _Superman: The Man Of Steel_ #56.
Both issues are recommended, but the jewel is the second half -- most
notably due to the efforts of Louise Simonson and Jon Bogdanove. Mxy gives
everyone in Metropolis one wish -- leading to multiple lottery winners,
giant coins, and walking buildings. The transition scene between the two
issues has Mxy appearing naked in Clark Kent's shower. Mxy also reveals
that he knows Superman's secret identity.
Mxy's real interest is in re-uniting Lois and Clark (who had broken off
their engagement at the time). Mxy (or, as he says, "the name's MISTER
Mxyzptlk!") puts the couple through some knee-slapping changes. He tempts
Superman to wish that Lois will fall in love with him again. Superman
appears to consider the offer, but uses his wish to make Mxy return home.
This storyalmost made the entire break-up worthwhile.
Bog gets another crack at Mxy in the recent _Superman: The Man Of Steel_
#75, titled "The Death of Mxyzptlk!" My favorite scene is when
BadaBingBadaBoomsday grows one bony protrusion too many. There's a lot of
good writing and visual humor. Since Bog is leaving _Superman: The Man Of
Steel_, I suggest DC hire him to do quarterly specials on Mxyzptlk and a
Golden Age Superman (maybe both together).
Bog (with 'kibitzing' by Louise Simonson) plays Mxy with broad and
outrageous humor. Mxy is still fixated on Superman (and Lois) and will go
to any lengths for attention. As Plastic Man does for the JLA, so does Mxy
for Superman.
Mxyzptlk has also had a couple of specials aside from the regular titles.
The one-shot, prestige format _Silver Surfer/Superman_ has Mister Mxyzptlk
teaming up with the Marvel Universe's Impossible Man. George Perez writes a
fun tale, with lots of magic and mayhem. The contrast between the morals of
the two imps and their battle against each other highlight the story. Mxy
is in his 'post-Luthor' phase of lying and manipulation. It's actually the
Impossible Man who seems more like a combination of the early, innocent imp
and the outrageous Bog Mxyzptlk.
The most recent special was _New Year's Evil: Mr. Mxyzptlk_ #1. Alan Grant
gives us the first view of the 5th Dimension and its other inhabitants. The
first seven pages, where we see Mxy and his fellow citizens, are terrific.
The rest of the issue isn't bad -- it's just different from the slapstick
tone of the setup. To escape the "Invader From The 10th Dimension", Mxy
enters the worlds of his weird comic book collection. and the rest of the
story focuses on parodies of comic books, rather than Mxy.
_Young Justice_ #3 (which arrived a few weeks ago) has Peter David
presenting a young Mxy, who is a serious young fellow from the 5th
dimension. The boys aim to keep Mxy on the straight and narrow path until
the resulting damage to the integrity of the timestream forces them to set
Mxy on a more twisted path. PAD uses the insidious techniques of A
Clockwork Orange and the equally insidious Stooges to alter the young lad
forevermore. One hopes, anyway. All that and the secret origin of McGurk!
It's been long past 90 days since (the current day) Mr. Mxyzptlk last
appeared. I hope he returns soon. Much as I like to see Mxy having fun with
Superman, I'd like to see him play with other DC Universe characters. Just
imagine Mxy with Batman. Or Blue Beetle and Booster Gold. Or taking on the
JLA. Or with some villains -- especially the Joker and Lobo.
I have two wishes that I would like DC to grant. The first is for a World's
Finest team-up with Mr. Mxyzptlk and Bat-Mite (Superman and Batman
optional) and the second is for a Mr. Mxyzptlk and Ambush Bug special.
(Bog? You listening?).
That's all for this month! Next time: Batman
_____________________________________________
THE MAILBAG
-------------------------------------
(sykes@ms.uky.edu, KryptonCN@aol.com)
KC Responses are indented and begun with ****
=========================================
From: Benjamin Grose (kryptonkid@juno.com)
I read Derek Jackson's review of _Superman: The Man Of Tomorrow_ #11, and
wanted to respond to some things he said.
"And why are we seeing the return of characters from what is essentially an
Elseworlds story? Didn't somebody tell Simonson that they're called
Elseworlds for a reason?"
I think this issue is another hint at 'a' multiverse returning. Kaleb
mentioned that maybe killing our Lex Luthor may not stop his Lex Luthor
from existing, because his future may be an alternate timeline.
"And hey! If Earth has been destroyed (a la 'Legends of the Dead Earth')
then how do we make it to _DC One Million_, with Superman alive and well in
the 853rd century?"
Again, I think the different futures will all exist (Kingdom Come, DC1M)
because at some point they will split from the current DCU (The Kingdom?).
**** This would be a safe bet. By specifically bringing up the idea of an
alternate timeline in the story, DC is telling us that we can't expect
that there is only one timeline any more. I'm sure we'll all know in a
couple of months.
=========================================
From: David Young (young_d1@popmail.firn.edu)
[In response to my comments in last month's Mailbag.] _Superboy_ (the
television series) was one of the first two TV programs which I began
taping every week (the other being _Star Trek: The Next Generation_). The
show was a half-hour one which usually aired with some other dreadful
syndicated show (I think first it was _War of the Worlds_, which may have
not been bad but I never watched it, and later it was _Super Force_ ,or
_Super Patrol_, or something like that I think).
**** Packaging of syndicated programs, if I recall correctly, didn't really
begin until the Prime Time Entertainment Network (which included shows
like _Time Trax_ and _Kung Fu: The Legend Continues_), so whatever
programs aired near _Superboy_ were probably determined by the local
station. For what it's worth, one of my roommates and I were big fans
of _War of the Worlds_ when it was on, so I'm not going to tolerate
any bad-mouthing of that particular show. :)
I've seen several different numbers in terms of episodes made. I've seen at
least a couple of sources which claim that 100 episodes were aired (or at
least filmed). These sources usually include episode summaries, so chances
are they were filmed. I have 75 of the 100 on tape. Since the series has
not been rerun in syndication, I haven't had the chance to fill in the gaps
in my "collection" or to see if these other episodes really exist. I agree
that the Sci-Fi Channel would be an excellent place to rerun the series.
They could make a block including _Superboy_, _The Flash_, _Swamp Thing_,
and _Wonder Woman_, which are all series which are currently aired aside
from _Superboy_.
(If you want to talk about an overlooked series, how about _Swamp Thing_?
It ran for quite a few years on cable (USA Network I think) and yet DC
never did a thing to promote it except for maybe a one-page ad. There was
never a "television-version" Swamp Thing special (as there was for _The
Flash_), a fancy trade paperback (as for _Lois and Clark_), and definitely
not an ongoing series (as there was for _Superboy_). I've never read _Swamp
Thing_ regularly, but as a comic shop employee I had access to the books,
and I don't think I ever once saw any reference to the TV show on any
_Swamp Thing_ letters pages. I remember it seemed wrong to me that DC did
absolutely zilch to promote the series, which was really a pretty
innovative horror/suspense series, and an episode guide at the time would
have been greatly appreciated.)
In terms of how I felt about the series, I remember that I liked the first
season. I liked the first actor because he looked kind of like a young
Christopher Reeve and he played Clark Kent pretty straight. He didn't do
very much "wimp" stuff. (Remember, this was right about the time that the
new "John Byrne" Clark Kent was in the comics, which affected the way I
looked at the character.) When the second actor came on, he immediately
resumed the wimp Clark Kent, trying to recapture the character as it was
portrayed by Reeve in the movies, or so I presume. I didn't like it. It
made the series seem campier than it really was. I also seem to remember
the special effects being really good for the first season (including
movie-quality flying effects and a really cool alien battle), but then the
effects slipping in the later years. The series shifted gears after a year
with the new actor and switched to darker stories and the show picked up
steam again, enough that when the show went off the air it was a
disappointment (to me at least). The new actor they got for Luthor was
particularly good (sorry that I don't have any of the actor's names on me
right now, but I read that this guy was a front runner for the voice of
Luthor in the new animated series, and will be a voice on the new _Batman
Beyond_ cartoon), and the actress who played Lana was stunning and the only
constant in the entire series (she later showed up on the first season of
_SeaQuest_). One thing that hurt the series was someone's insistence that
the show have a silly sidekick supporting character, first the son of Perry
White and then someone named "McAllister" I think.
**** Sherman Howard played Luthor (and will provide the voice of the main
nemesis on _Batman Beyond_), and Stacy Haiduk played Lana Lang.
Well, now I've gone and blabbed again. I guess I just don't know how to
write a short letter to KC. Keep up the great work and thanks for
mentioning my "Golden Age Superman Index" website.
P.S.--You almost didn't make a September issue did you? I was wondering,
but you managed to get it in my mailbox on the last day of the month. (You
couldn't complain about not getting 12 issues of each Superman title a year
and then skip a month for KC, now could ya? Just teasing...)
**** Yeah, but we're not making anyone pay for this publication. <g> In all
seriousness, readers will probably find us struggling with publication
dates for the next few months, as both Shane and I have extraordi-
narily busy schedules for the foreseeable future. Still, we've only
missed one month in over four years of publication, which is not a bad
track record for a fan publication with such a great volume of both
contributors and volume. We don't intend to detract from that record.
=========================================
From: Jason Deas (deas@u-c-s.com)
Just wanted to pass a nod on your article about DCU crossovers. IMHO, the
first and still best one of these was Invasion. If you read the miniseries
alone, you were fine. You could pick up individual titles and see how your
favorite hero was dealing with the mass alien invasion... but still not
need to read the miniseries.
Then it just got worse year after year. In fact, I was really disappointed
in Genesis... but I like DC One Million pretty well! I guess it just
depends on the execution.
**** My first crossover was Millennium, and it's what got me into reading
several DC titles instead of just the Superman books. It also intro-
duced me to the direct market, teaching me the difference between
that and newsstand distribution. No matter how bad it may look in
retrospect, it'll always hold a special place in my memory as my
introduction to the rest of the DCU.
I was also quite pleased with Invasion, which still ranks as one of
the biggest and most sweeping DCU storylines that I've read. (Perhaps
only Crisis was a bigger story, but I read that several years after
the fact, and I was simply not at all familiar with most of the
characters.)
In general, I tend to think that DC's crossovers are at their best
when they are done simply because they are too big to fall within the
pages of a few titles. Crisis, Invasion, and Final Night (for example)
all met that criterion and were handled well both within the limited
series and within the crossover titles. I still think having a cross-
over each year is forced, and that DC should take a couple of years
off before their next. (Besides, we're now getting mini-crossovers
every three months with the fifth-week events, which just makes the
full-blown yearly crossovers that much less special.)
=========================================
From: Paul Bobenmoyer (pbjb1@ykt0.attnet.or.jp)
To Whom it may concern;
My name is Paul Bobenmoyer. I am in the US Air Force, stationed at Yokota
Air Force Base, Japan. I have been here for almost two years now. I am a
huge fan of Superman and have been collecting comic books and action
figures, along with any other super-hero memorabilia for about 20 years. I
am thirty now and raising a son who I have turned on to this. What I have
been doing is searching the net for old cartoons that I use to watch when I
was a kid and buying them and showing my son. He seems to like them, but to
my shock he really notices the difference between older generation cartoons
and the ones today.
Why I am writing to you today is to see if there is any way you may be able
to help me obtaining the Superman TAS episodes. Or if you may be able to
point me in the right direction to someone who might have copies and would
be able to dub them for me. I will gladly pay any expenses including
shipping and handling. The base is in the process of getting cable pumped
in from California, unfortunately Kids WB is not one of the channels
offered. So could you please help me out? This is kinda a father/son
project and would really mean a lot to us. If you have any info please let
me know. I would like to thank you for your time, and please excuse me if I
caused too much trouble. I look forward to your reply, and hope to hear
from you soon.
**** So how about it readers? Surely someone out there has the ability to
help out Paul and his son. (I'd help myself, but I've not taped all of
the episodes yet, and I don't have a second VCR for dubbing.) If you
can be of assistance, contact Paul at the address above.
=========================================
From: Drew J. (Mekaleka2@aol.com)
I was given your e-mail address by Lee Fink, another Superman fan online.
I'm trying to figure out which specific comic issue an old Superman story I
remember reading as a kid is in. Lee didn't know the answer to my question,
but thought you might be able to help me. If you wouldn't mind, I'd
appreciate it if you could let me know if you can point me toward what
issue it was in.
It was a long time ago but, if I remember correctly, the art was probably
Curt Swan's, and I'd guess the comic was from the early '70's. The story,
as I recall it, was about this deadly seed-pod flying through space on a
collision course with Earth. Apparently, these type of seeds are known to
flourish and choke out other life on all planets they hit, and are
unstoppable once they sprout, even for Superman. So he creates this big
tamped and fused area of the Earth's surface and pushes against it to
momentarily stop the Earth's orbit so that the seed misses it.
I remember being really impressed by that story as a kid, because it seemed
to me to be Superman's greatest strength feat that I'd ever seen. So now
that I'm beginning to collect again a bit as a adult, I'd like to locate a
copy of that issue, but don't know which one to search for.
Any help would be appreciated.
**** And one more request for our readers, most of whom by now know that my
pre-Crisis Superman knowledge is limited. I'm sure that we've got some
Superman trivia experts out there who can figure out which issue Drew
is referring to. (Either that or we're going to have to find some way
to get Mark Waid on staff to answer these kinds of questions...)
-- Jeff Sykes
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End of Section 9/Issue #55
