Arguably the most iconic super hero of
all time is the Last Son of Krypton. When DC decided to do the
reboot, they chose A-List comic talent like Grant Morrison, Rags
Morales, and the legendary George Perez.
Action Comics was the comic that
premiered Superman in the 1930's with Superman getting his own solo
title a few years later. The two books also are separated in time.
Morrison and Morales would take on Action Comics, where the
duo would tell Superman's origin story while Perez and artist Jesus
Merino would chronicle his modern adventures.
Morales is a fantastic artist and he is
a good fit for Action Comics. His styles lends itself to
subtleties in facial expression and body language. But Morrison is
often opaque to me. There is no denying that he is some kind of
genius. I remember finishing one of his stories and thinking “I
have no idea what just happened, but I think it was impressive.”
His work on JLA was legend (wait for it) -dary. But his take
on Batman and the debacle that was Final Crisis was all
just too, for lack of a better word, weird.
I think that I am in the minority with
this opinion of his Superman works as well. All-Star Superman
is considered by many comic critics and fans to be the greatest
modern Superman story. I, however, often found it confusion and
cold. I prefer works like Mark Waid's and Alex Ross' Kingdom Come
(review of this coming later). In Action Comics, feels much
more like an alien outsider than previously. I hate the decision
that was made to kill off Ma and Pa Kent. I know that this more
accurately reflects the original version of the character. But as I
mentioned in my Smallville article, the Kents are who teach
Clark how to be a good man. Without them, Superman feels more
isolated and inaccessible The stories are very imaginative and the
action is exciting. Morales takes Morrison's convolution and makes
it watchable.
I do have to say, though, that now with
origin story out of the way, things have calmed down. Issue #10 was
probably my favorite issue thus far because of Superman's
interactions with the Justice League and the staff of the Daily
Planet. I now feel like I am getting to know Morrison's Superman a
little better. I also have to say that the backup story in issue #5
was beautiful. It is a flashback of Jonathon and Martha Kent and
their struggles to start a family. After years of disappointment,
the turn to their pastor who tells them that they are not being
punished but that God is preparing something wonderful for them.
As
someone going through the adoption process, currently in the “No
Man's Land” of waiting, I found this particularly touching.
While Action Comics is a fun, if
sometimes confusing, the Superman series was a mess.
Perez is
my favorite comic book artist of all time. But he is not the
greatest writer. Just as they took away the Kents in the reboot,
they also took away Lois and Clark's marriage. I know that many
comic writers hated the loss of the “will they/ won't they”
element, but I thought the series became better when the two were
together. But I do have to admit the best parts of Perez' run were
the times that we see Clark pining for an oblivious Lois. There is
one scene where he walks away from her apartment and his super
hearing cannot block out the thoughtless things she says about him
nor the amorous banter she shares with the man who is with her.
But that is the only memorable scene
from that entire run for me. I hate to say it, but the book was
boring. I was about to drop it, but then a new creative team of
writer Keith Giffen and Dan Jurgans took over.
Jurgans is one of the
most established Superman artists around. And Giffen's writing was
like a breath of fresh air. He brought something to the book that
was lacking in it before: fun. A Superman book should be heavy on
action and excitement, but it should also be fun. He is not Batman,
with the shadows and intrigue. He wears a bright costume and a
brighter personality. After I finished Giffen's first book, I
realized that I had been smiling the whole time because I was
enjoying the book so much. I cannot wait to read more of these
stories. If you like your Superman books fun and flashy, then right
now I would say that this is the Superman a better buy than Action
Comics.
Action Comics: 3 stars
Superman: 4 stars
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