Grant Morrison’s Superman epic continues! Let’s check in with the Man of Steel who checks in with everyone’s favorite nocturnal billionaire, Batman!
Written By Grant Morrison and Sholly Fisch
Illustrated by Rags Morales, Bradley Walker, Rick Bryant, and CAFU
- Superman’s NEW secret identity revealed!
- LOIS LANE continues her investigation into the mystery of Earth’s FIRST Superman!
- Plus, in the backup story: We know where Superman got his armor costume, but where did he get all those “S” T-shirts?
Do not get me wrong, I’ve enjoyed every issue of “Action Comics” for what it was, a story about Superman in his formative years in Metropolis, but it wasn’t quite up to the standards that Grant Morrison’s reputation had set for himself. If his runs on “New X-Men” and “Batman” were any indication of what he could do, along with his past efforts with the Man of Steel in “All-Star Superman” and to a certain extent, “JLA” and “Final Crisis,” the man could tell a Hell of a Superman story. It just wasn’t there.
Until this issue, that is.
Perhaps somewhat tragically, it only now feels like Morrison is getting to tell the kind of story we all know he’s used to telling, and that’s balls to the wall weird sci-fi fantasies that make your brain hurt while you crave more and more (just ask Matt!).
There are two new races introduced in this issue alone, and it hints at a war between these two. First the mechanical “Metaleks” were introduced (or rather, re-introduced; they appeared in Morrison’s “Batman and Robin” a couple years back) as well as a mysterious race called “Nutants” or “Neo-Sapiens” that will replace humanity within the next one thousand years. It actually sounds a bit familiar to Cassandra Nova’s motivations in “New X-Men” albeit one with a DC twist. The Nutants are definitely a head-scratching addition to the Superman mythos, but since these two races of alien beings seem to be coming from the future, perhaps this means a crossover with the Legion of Super-Heroes sometime in the future, and perhaps even an end to that preposterous Time-Lock they decided to erect after “Flashpoint.” And if there’s one person whom I think is most fit to pen a crossover like that, it’s Grant Morrison. His trippy writing can do the future Superman Fan Club justice (which, let’s face, they are) as well as give that much maligned series a shot in the arm post DCnU reboot.
One of the most confusing additions is actually the character of “Johnny Clark.” In the previous issue Clark Kent “died” so Superman could be, well, Superman 24/7. But in Issue #11, Clark has been supplanted by “Johnny Clark” a firefighter from Keystone City. It’s a very noble profession that’s to be sure, but what are we to believe? Clark Kent is alive in the series “Superman” which takes place 5 years or so down the road. Are we meant to accept the idea that Clark will return unscathed and work at the Daily Planet, and Lois will be none the wiser?
There’s also a bit of a confusing segue where “Johnny” appears as Metropolis’ newest firefighter on Engine #1938 (nice touch, Grant. No, seriously). There’s no real explanation given so you don’t really understand what happens until the next page when he pulls people out of a burning building. His explanation is that this way he can be Superman 24/7, but if you want to be Superman 24/7…why not simply be Superman 24/7?
This question, thankfully, is touched upon when he visits Batman in Gotham City, asking for advice. One of the best things DC has been doing in regards to their top tier characters is re-establishing their relationships in new ways that make sense to the characters. Batman is a bit gruff which plays off Superman’s naiveté very well. As much as I don’t want DC to continue adding more Batman books to their repertoire, I would welcome a Superman/Batman book in the vein of the series that ended after Flashpoint ended. Something about their relationship is special in the DC Universe, and feels more real than many others.
The art, while never bad, feels a bit disjointed. Rags Morales is also sharing his pages with Bradley Walker in an attempt to make deadlines, but nearly half of the pages also go to Rick Walker, whose pencils are reminiscent of Lee Burmejo to an extent, albeit brighter and more in tone with what Superman should be. I just would like to see Morales/Walker and Bryant on two separate books rather than sharing one book. Perhaps sharing the deadline alleviates pressure to all those involved, but picking one artist of another would definitely do more for the integrity of the book itself.
Continued belowThe back-up tells the story of those nifty Superman shirts he seems to always have handy. Fisch’s backups are always pleasing little palate cleansers that can elaborate on what happened in the issue or in this case, elaborate on something new that was introduced in the DCnUniverse. Does it ultimately matter in the grand scheme of things? Not really, it’s just a cute little slice of life in Metropolis containing a fair bit of humor. It even has some nice art from CAFU. Nothing wrong here, it’s just the comic book equivalent of Mint Sorbet.
There are a few missteps in the issue and I’m not going to pretend there aren’t. However, the missteps I mentioned don’t affect the quality as much as I might have made it seem. Furthermore, it really feels like Grant is finally getting into his groove and the book itself will be increasing in quality from here on out. Let’s hope so.
Final Verdict: 6.9/10 — Browse/Buy-ish
