Brandon Borzelli's Geek Goggle Reviews
Adventures Of Superman #1
DC Comics
Parker, Lemire, Jordan, Samnee, Lemire & Rossmo
The digital-first, out of continuity, anthology about the Man of Steel sees print this week with a nice collection of stories. DC has not been able to put together any sort of plan for one of their chief characters for a number of years now. They've got Earth One stories, re-boot stories, anthology stories and free comic book day stories that all provide different continuity, costumes and character roles. To say Superman is a mess is an understatement. If you are looking for simple Superman stories that stick to the iconic version of the character that seemed to exist for decades then this is the comic to pick up.
The comic is made up for three stories, each with different creative teams. The first, by Parker and Samnee, is fantastic. The story puts Superman against a super-powered civilian that seems to have mind-control abilities as well as strength and other powers. Superman is trying to save this individual from hurting himself or others. The story comes to a terrific conclusion with a nice chilling twist at the end. Samnee's art is fantastic. Samnee has a soft touch to the characters but with rich depth that makes the comic feel old-school with modern details. It's a perfect story with perfect art.
The second story is written and drawn by Jeff Lemire. It's a good story but it really has an aspect to it where any DC hero could have been plugged into it. The story is about a pair of kids playing Superman and villains together. It's a nice story that is more sweet than substance. Lemire's art doing Superman is certainly interesting and brings something new to the table. I liked the story but it doesn't top the first story.
The final installment is by Jordan and Rossmo and is a classic Superman against Bizarro story. Obviously the challenge for Superman is that he can't understand how Bizarro communicates and a wrong move gets a matched-strength punch. It's a good story but there felt a little bit of overlap with the second story. Obviously the frustration of understanding Bizarro's communication skills is a shared one. The artwork is crisp and detailed and definitely follows the more traditionally super-hero look.
Overall, this is a good comic book. Honestly, at this point this is the only book that Superman is currently appearing in that I might consider purchasing in the future. At least the character appears to be more in line with what a traditional Superman book might be like and I think there is an audience for that out there. If the creative talent and their output stays at this level then I think this book can be a success. It is certainly off to a good start.
4 out of 5 Geek Goggles
