Warning: Some moderate spoilers for Action Comics #1 ahead.
A lot of people have this irrational dislike for Superman. Most semi-geeky individuals with a basic knowledge of the Donner films and a box-set of ‘Smallville’ will say that he is just too damned powerful. Where’s the sense of danger and excitement when we know that Earth’s yellow sun makes the Man of Steel into an invincible demigod that can’t be beaten?
Up until a few years ago, I definitely fell into this camp. However, over time, I began to see what made Superman great; not his physical battles but his emotional struggles and crises of identity. Eventually, Superman and his alter ego, Clark Kent, would go on to help inspire me to become a journalist.
This first issue of the new Action Comics series seems to be focused on placating those that take issue with the Blue Boy Scout’s perceived invincibility. Events are kicked off with a much younger, less powerful Superman; hardly more than a Superboy. He can still take a punch and throw a few too but with his latest de-powering, thanks to the universal reboot, Krypton’s last son can now be hurt by relatively conventional, a.k.a. human, weapons. This leads to moments Peter Parker-esque dual identity covering up that fits in pretty nicely with his new, less experienced persona.
Speaking of conventional, it’s nice to see Superman using his powers to take the fight to some common criminals. Superman vs. The Mob might not sound incredibly exciting on paper but it does make a lot of sense in the context of an early villain while setting up our pal Superman as something of a hero of the common man, something that I feel fits in pretty well with his homegrown, farm boy roots (assuming that’s still how things happened in the new universe). No doubt this is reactionary to current events between the rich and the poor but that’s not a new concept in any medium, much less comics.
This isn’t to say that it’s not nice to see some classic villains enter the fray. While Superman might not be bringing his A-game just yet in this timeline, he may have to soon as Lex Luthor is just as cold and dangerously intelligent as he ever was. For my money, Grant Morrison’s depiction of Lex is among the best I’ve ever read; with his constant affectation of referring to Clark as “it”, “thing” and “the creature” certainly standing out as a chilling reminder of just how he feels about his foil. His definition of the Man of Steel as a dangerous, overpowering parasite is both unsettling and actually makes a lot of sense, in a twisted sort of way. This along with the way that he deals with Superman, almost out of hand, reminds brings me back to Alan Moore’s depiction of the super-villain during his run on “Swamp Thing” and serves as a grim reminder of just how dangerous Lex Luthor remains in this new universe.
On the artistic side of things, Rags Morales’ art is clean and gets the point across but feels a little inconsistent. At least one major plot point, Superman’s busted-ass face, seems to only appear when the story requires it and then mysteriously disappears. It’s probably just growing pains from working on a new design of the classic character but I still found it distracting. Hopefully this won’t be an issue as Morales and Morrison get more comfortable with Clark and his new set of limitations and abilities.
While I wouldn’t have thought these newly imposed restrictions to be necessary before, as I believe that the classic Clark Kent/Superman stands on his own as an emotional character, I must admit that it does make Superman feel much more personable; more human. I’m almost afraid of the implications made throughout this first issue that his newfound vulnerability will only be temporary. Writer Grant Morrison has proven time and time again that he has no problem making drastic changes to flagship characters (see Batman) and I wouldn’t be surprised, possibly disappointed but not surprised, if we see a pre-Crisis style Superman in upcoming issues of “Justice League”, which will feature the new Superman later in this further along in this new timeline.
Even a small bit of sketchy continuity and some worrisome prospects of the future cannot take away from what is otherwise a very solid, well-drawn and detailed first issue. I haven’t been a huge fan of Grant Morrison’s own personal brand of character development in the past, so I’m I’m definitely interested in how he handles the last son of Krypton after enjoying this debut issue so much. It’s a definitely must-buy for fans of Superman or anyone just getting in on the New 52.
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