shaxper
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Post by shaxper on Jul 30, 2020 19:56:23 GMT -5
I don't know if this ever happened in the Silver Age, imaginary story or what not, but I can not ever see Lois and Jimmy being together, even in a fake alien telepathic vision. It just looks...odd. Especially as this wasn't some vision of the future, but rather of the present. At most, Jimmy is in his early 20s, and my Post-Crisis Superman Timeline has Lois 26 years old in 1987. Depending on how time is passing in the comic, that makes her anywhere between 26 and 30 at this point. She is certainly being characterized more like she is 30. Either way, there is a HUGE difference in maturity between early 20s and late 20s. Jimmy is still living with his mom. Yes. Of course, crystalline alien beings and vehicles are not exclusive to Superman: The Movie:  |
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Post by shaxper on Aug 6, 2020 11:59:06 GMT -5
Superman For Earth (1991)  "To Save A World" Script: Roger Stern Pencils: Kerry Gammill Inks: Dennis Janke Colors: Tom McCraw Letters: Bill Oakley Grade: B I'm still not sure what the story behind this one-shot was. Brian Cronin did a short piece about this back in April, but he offered more of a synopsis than anything. Obviously, this was timed to coincide with Earth Day, but did DC have Earth Day organizations pre-ordering mass quantities of this book, did they expect it to turn a profit at the LCS (especially when being overshadowed by the release of Superman: The Man of Steel #1 this same month), or did someone at DC feel the company had a moral imperative to do this, regardless of the finances? I just can't imagine too many casual LCS readers were going to spend five bucks on this thing while DC was already beginning to hemorrhage readers to Marvel with the rise of McFarlane, Lee, and Liefeld. And yet, I have to give respect to DC for how they handled this book. Not only is it printed on carefully sourced 50% recycled paper, but instead of handing this thing off to a second rate creative team, we've got Roger Stern writing, and (be still, my beating heart) Kerry Gammill doing 49 pages of interior art:  Yes, it's 49 pages of mostly preaching (even I got bored around ten pages from the end, and I'm passionate about this stuff!), but it does take an intelligent, relatively unsimplified look at many of the challenges our environment faced in 1991 (and still does today):  Yet the one aspect of this one-shot that I struggle with is the idea of Superman fighting for the environment. He has never given it much thought prior to this, but Lois mentions her concern, and suddenly he's ready to devote his full energies to this thing:  only to decide he can't do much on his own, so he makes a rousing speech at the end, and that's how he helps. Sorry, but I don't accept that. Look, his super powers would enable him to do A LOT to combat environmental issues, and more productively than by cleaning a river bed, one piece of debris at a time:  BTW, where's all that garbage getting dumped, Superman?I'm sure Superman could consult with NASA and work out a way to use his powers to repair the Ozone Layer and thwart global warming, rather than spending his time studying river samples with Professor Hamilton; he could use his freeze breath to save the melting polar ice caps; he could use his super breath and ability to filter air on a massive scale, maybe even pressure politicians to take a firmer stance against corporate pollution. Come to think of it, while the story is expansive in its exploration of environmental issues in the world, it NEVER touches upon lobbyists and anti-environment politicians. Too bold a stance for DC, perhaps? Too bad, as I'd love to see Superman channel his 1938 counterpart and bust down some senator's door at 4 in the morning to demand he steer a clean air bill to the senate floor. Ah well. In the end, I respect the effort, as well as the product, but I don't really buy an environmentally aware Superman that claims the environment is the single biggest threat to Earth that he can help battle. There's a lot more an environmentally conscious super-being can do than this.  Of course, if Superman could stop these issues on his own, the call to action at the end of this issue wouldn't make very much sense, would it? Important Details:- Stern gives us Clark's street address:  Thanks to MDG for pointing out that this was also Clark's Pre-Crisis address. - Clark and Lois have the all important conversation about whether or not to have children:  - If the general population didn't already know Superman was an alien, they do now:  - Once again, we see Superman making efforts to be a protector to the entire world, having learned other languages but admittedly not being fully fluent in them. In Superman #53, we saw that he could speak some Russian. Here, he also seems pretty strong in Portugese:  - Stern reminds us of a few old Superman concepts we haven't seen since Byrne was on the books. The Aura of Invulnerability hasn't been mentioned in ages:  and apparently we are still holding to the idea that Superman vibrates his head at super speeds in order to prevent his face from being photographed or recorded:  chadwilliam and I have ripped apart this silly concept before. Minor Details:- I LOVE when we get panels of Clark and Lois just being a couple. It took entirely too long for us to get invested in this relationship, but now it works quite well:  - Stern hits upon what I believe is the most important clarification for those who claim we are damaging "The Earth" and need to save "The Earth":  It's not the Earth that's in danger; it's us. - Another excellent point for those that preach about preserving the Rain Forest:  Of course, I'm not sure your run of the mill Brazilian thug has any idea what a "Yankee" is. - A nice way of tackling the need to save the Earth in a comic universe in which other populated planets are known to exist:  Though I have to wonder why that class was watching this speech on TV. Superman showed up unannounced to interrupt a totally nonconstructive session in which people were shouting over each other, still discussing procedural rules. You're telling me the teacher had this on for the class the entire time? She must really hate lesson planning. |
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Post by shaxper on Aug 6, 2020 20:01:07 GMT -5
Superman: The Man of Steel #1 (July 1991)  "Man of Steel / Man of Fire!" Script: Louise Simonson Pencils: Jon Bogdanove (pages 1-6, 9-11, 23); Tom Grummett (layouts, pages 7, 14, 17-20, 24, 25, 27, 29); Jerry Ordway (finishes, pages 7, 14, 17-20, 24, 25, 27, 29); Bob McLeod (pages 12, 13, 16, 21, 22, 26, 33-36); Dan Jurgens (layouts, pages 8, 15, 17, 28, 30-32, 37-40); Brett Breeding (finishes, pages 8, 15, 17, 28, 30-32, 37-40) Inks: Dennis Janke (pages 1-6, 9-11, 23); Jerry Ordway (pages 7, 14, 17-20, 24, 25, 27, 29); Bob McLeod (pages 12, 13, 16, 21, 22, 26, 33-36); Brett Breeding (pages 8, 15, 17, 28, 30-32, 37-40) Colors: Glenn Whitmore Letters: Bill Oakley Grade: B- The launching of a fourth Superman title! The team of Stern, Ordway, and Jurgens had come far in the time since they defaulted into running this office in the wake of (first) Byrne's and (second) Perez's departures. They're outselling the Byrne Era, throwing their weight around when clashing with the Legion Office, and (correct me if I'm wrong), but I'm pretty sure this is the first DC hero ever to get four monthly solo titles at the same time. Of course, this is at least partially a response to Spider-Man receiving a fourth monthly title over at Marvel, but this new #1 isn't going to muster anywhere near as much press. In an era in which covers sell books more than quality content, John Bogdavove's painted cover may have been a misfire. It has the exaggerated muscles and grimness of a Liefeld cover, but...it's ugly. This is the month in which I will give up reading the Superman comics as an adolescent, and this book was largely to blame. Oh, I see the wisdom in releasing a fourth Superman title as a means to garner more interest in an office doing nearly everything right in terms of quality content, but don't forget the Superman titles had also gone from 75 cents to a dollar six months earlier, so while adolescents like me were feeling their attention called to Spider-Man and X-Force, Ghost Rider, and now the massively hyped Infinity Gauntlet (#1 being released this very same month), keeping up with Superman had nearly doubled from being a $2.25 per month investment to $4 a month as of the release of this issue,and those were dollars I could be spending elsewhere. And Superman For Earth, a tpb that absolutely did not excite a tweenager looking for major events and important first appearances, had just been released last month, further making me question whether this was an office in which I was still invested. I wonder if this was the experience of other readers at the time too. Unless the Superman Office was willing to sell its soul, sacrificing carefully constructed character arcs and painstaking continuity for a grim, gritty, over-exaggerated artist who would demand full creative control without knowing a damn about writing, and then slapping four variant covers, trading cards, and polybags on the thing, this book wasn't going to win many readers to Superman in 1991, and it may have even chased a few away. Perhaps a task nearly as daunting as trying to win over/win back readers with the launching of this new title is the challenge of maintaining the cohesiveness of the Superman Office. Three creators coordinating their efforts each week was challenging enough; adding a fourth--especially a fourth who wasn't even working at this company a few months earlier--was a significant challenge and risk. Weezy Simonson steps up to the challenge, taking the time to illustrate what the death of Luthor has done to the everyday working folks of Metropolis more purposefully than Stern, Ordway, and Jurgens put together:     as well as picking up the drama with Perry White and his wife, bringing back the familiar faces of the Post-Crisis Daily Planet newsroom  Incidentally, that's the first time we've seen Alice, the intern, in ages.and even bringing back the ever-so-minor detail that Clark asked Lois for help with what to get his parents for their anniversary three months back in Superman #53.   In fact, it could be argued that Simonson is too much of a team player in this first outing. After all, this issue, the very first issue in a new title, doesn't have much of a plot. It's a between-stories kind of story that sets up two major conflicts: the return of the Eradicator for Stern, Ordway, and Jurgens to deal with in their titles, and the secret terrorist group Cerebrus, which Simonson will do more with next issue. Casual readers who picked Spider-Man #1 up off the shelf (and, ya, know, actually read it) got the beginning of a self-contained story with a clear focus that wasn't at all concerned with past continuity nor inter-title alignment. This story, on the other hand, offers very little story and a whole lot of references to things a new reader might not understand (like who the hell the Eradicator is). I love how meticulously this office is aligned, but the maiden voyage for this new title should have been a little more accessible to the newcomer, and Simonson should have been given a little more room to breath. Of course, having just quit Marvel over how disrespectfully Bob Harras treated the old guard when new talent wanted more creative control, Simonson may well have been attracted to an office that had this kind of reverence for continuity and team decision-making, and it's clear why she would be so respectful of the old guard here. That being said, one thing that absolutely does feel intrusive about this issue is the constant references to Cerberus as a terrorist organization everyone in Metropolis is already cringing in fear over.    I'm guessing the addition of this fourth title was a bit of a last minute decision in reaction to the hype generated by Spider-Man #1. Otherwise, you'd think the other Superman titles would have made a few references to Cerberus prior to this point, maybe showed one or two of the bombings that have apparently rocked the city even while never being mentioned previously. In the end, it's not the hot new #1 that DC needed, either in terms of story or cover art, but it strongly suggests a Superman office that will remain meticulously aligned even with the addition of a fourth writer to the office. Important Details:- First DC franchise to ever receive a fourth concurrent title - First mention of Cerberus - The Eradicator Device is now an organic and/or energy being  Honestly, I was so happy to see that storyline end all those months back. I truly hope this now more experienced team will have a better idea what to do with it/him this time. Minor Details:- I'm such a sucker for sweet Clark and Lois moments:  - Professor Hamilton (who Superman now calls "Ham" as of this issue) has always struck me as a little unstable/unreliable. It's a bit unexpected that he randomly tells Hamilton about his Fortress of Solitude in this issue, and then even agrees to take him there:  I sense a clumsily executed setup for a future storyline. - Batman asks Superman to drop everything when he finds a dead hobo in Crime Alley wearing a Kryptonite ring, but Clark doesn't even consider calling Batman in when terrorists are literally blowing up Metropolis:  - Clark's "visions" of a crumbling Krypton are eerily similar to the nightmare he had in Superman For Earth. Was Stern trying to foreshadow the return of the Eradicator in a one-shot trade paperback that he likely would have written months earlier? |
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Post by String on Aug 7, 2020 18:03:47 GMT -5
Some thoughts on your last few reviews:
I've never read the For Earth one-shot but as you noted, it says something about DC's commitment to the ideal that you had some top tier talent doing it. However, I am always leery of such projects in which Superman confronts some modern peril or issue. Given his powers, yes, if nothing else he should be able to fix any or all environmental damage. As for stopping it, use his symbolism and heroism to enact some form of behavioural change hopefully or as you said near the end, go Golden Age old-school and have him stomp on a few politicians and businessmen to enact change. But all this does is highlight the difference by having someone that powerful confront such an issue which leads us to question well, why hasn't Superman saved the climate in the DCU? Much like why hasn't Superman stopped all wars on DC Earth? (For me, it's akin to mutant fear and hatred brought closer to symbolize a real form of racism or bigotry. The analogy falls apart under forced scrutiny such as that).
I love the little touches about Clark's life that I'd never consider before now. Like the fact that he's apparently warm-natured due to his solar absorption ability. Being hot-natured myself, that brings a small smile to my face reading that.
MoS #1, yep, bought it back then just because it was a new #1. However, my Superman reading was rather erratic back then. I really didn't follow the books closely even when it just three titles. I merely bought the issues that appealed to me off the racks when I flipped through them. So yes, you have another slight newbie learning more about this run/era right now.
As for MoS #1, a small anecdote concerning it. A few years back, Walt and Louise Simonson were appearing at a local convention. I already knew what all issues I wanted signed by Walt but was drawing a blank when it came to Louise. Should I take an X- comic for her to sign? Which one of which X-title? I couldn't really decide but then it hit me, she wrote MoS #1! So, dug it out and yep, she signed it for me. I also took along my softcover paperback of The Death and Life of Superman novel by Stern for her to sign seeing as how she worked on the event. She did and Walt was doing free sketches so I asked him for a Darkseid sketch which he drew on the inside back cover. I thought I could make this copy into a nice collectible for me if I could find other creators that worked on the event and have them sign it too and/or any sketches possible. So far, I've gotten Kesel, Grummett, and Ordway to sign it as well. Ordway even sketched out a cool S-shield emblem with his signature. (And in case you've never met or seen Jerry Ordway, I did a double take when I saw him at his table. He's a near double for Clark Kent! Or an adult Captain Marvel by Beck. It's uncanny!)
A quick question: do you prefer Lois with short/medium hair or with long hair? I ask because in your last few reviews, Lois has a lion's mane worth of hair in some panels. Yikes!
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shaxper
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Post by shaxper on Aug 7, 2020 19:10:41 GMT -5
Some thoughts on your last few reviews: I've never read the For Earth one-shot but as you noted, it says something about DC's commitment to the ideal that you had some top tier talent doing it. However, I am always leery of such projects in which Superman confronts some modern peril or issue. Given his powers, yes, if nothing else he should be able to fix any or all environmental damage. As for stopping it, use his symbolism and heroism to enact some form of behavioural change hopefully or as you said near the end, go Golden Age old-school and have him stomp on a few politicians and businessmen to enact change. But all this does is highlight the difference by having someone that powerful confront such an issue which leads us to question well, why hasn't Superman saved the climate in the DCU? Much like why hasn't Superman stopped all wars on DC Earth? (For me, it's akin to mutant fear and hatred brought closer to symbolize a real form of racism or bigotry. The analogy falls apart under forced scrutiny such as that). Yup. This office began by working so hard to make Superman realistic, and Wolfman even had Superman ponder the issue of getting involved and putting an end to war, but I guess the office was comfortable sacrificing believability in order to have Superman inspire some change in our world. As you suggested, if Superman solved the problem in the DCU, we'd lose the thematic connections to our own predicament, I think he was just being cutesy and not literal, but either way it's adorable. That is awesome. I've met a lot of creators over the years, but never anyone involved with the Post-Crisis Superman Office outside of Perez. I'd love to meet Stern and Jurgens (less so Ordway, as I don't enjoy his work quite as much). And while I respect Louise Simonson, I've yet to read something of hers that I LOVED. I generally appreciate her ideas but find her execution a little lacking. Of everything of hers that I've read, I think I enjoyed her run on X-Factor the most. I really didn't like the Byrne chic short hair. Yeah, she's got a LOT of hair going on right now, but from a sheer nostalgia perspective, this is the comic book version of Lois that I know and love best, so I like it. Just not when Dusty Abell draws it:  |
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Post by Duragizer on Aug 7, 2020 20:06:05 GMT -5
A quick question: do you prefer Lois with short/medium hair or with long hair? I ask because in your last few reviews, Lois has a lion's mane worth of hair in some panels. Yikes! I really didn't like the Byrne chic short hair. Yeah, she's got a LOT of hair going on right now, but from a sheer nostalgia perspective, this is the comic book version of Lois that I know and love best, so I like it. I like it, too. But then, I'm a weirdo with an inordinate fondness for ladies with big '80s hair. |
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Post by shaxper on Aug 8, 2020 12:09:14 GMT -5
Superman #57 (July 1991)  "Return of the Krypton Man" Script: Dan Jurgens Pencils: Dan Jurgens (layout, pages 1-7, 31-38); Art Thibert (pages 17-21); Jon Bogdanove (pages 10-13, 22-23); Bob McLeod (pages 8-9, 14-16, 25); Tom Grummett (layout, pages 24, 26-30) Inks: Brett Breeding (finishes, pages 1-7); Art Thibert (p. 17-21); Dennis Janke (p. 10-13, 22-23); Denis Rodier (pages 8-9, 14-16, 25); Jerry Ordway (finishes, pages 24, 26-30); Bob McLeod (finishes, pages 31-38) Colors: Glenn Whitmore Letters: John Costanza Grade: C+ It's now clear why Stern, Ordway, and Jurgens needed a month off during the Red Glass Trilogy: to help commemorate the launching of Superman, The Man of Steel #1, EVERY Superman comic is 48 pages long this month. I spoke a little about how I felt the launching of SMOS #1 was a misfire in my previous review, but now it becomes even more apparent. If you were someone who had jumped onboard when these books were "Still only 75 cents" the year prior, right after Dark Knight Over Metropolis had caught your attention (and it does seem that this is when many of us climbed aboard), then we have suddenly jumped from a $2.25 per month and 70 pages of reading commitment to $7 this month and 192 pages of reading commitment, NOT counting the Superman for Earth tpb. If you were a diehard fan of this franchise, this was a great thing, but for the casual reader (and, let's be clear -- the zeitgeist had definitively shifted in Marvel's favor in the past year, plus the Superman books had been quality but utterly lacked sensationalism/excitement since Luthor's death half a year earlier) this was taking valuable time and money away from other books you could be reading and buying. Just this month alone over at Marvel, Wolverine is having a long-awaited reunion with Sabertooth in his own title, he's teaming up with Spider-Man against the Wendigo (another long-awaited reunion) in Spidey's new title, and he's having his origin story finally revealed in Marvel Comics presents.    X-Men Classic is reprinting the Dark Phoenix Saga for an entire generation that missed it, Punisher is celebrating his 50th issue, Ghost Rider's got the world's first glow in the dark cover, Deathlok has a chrome-covered first issue for his highly anticipated new ongoing series,     and not only is Infinity Gauntlet #1 on the stands, but anyone catching the Silver Surfer bug in anticipation has Silver Surfer #51, Silver Surfer Annual #4, and the Silver Surfer: Parable tpb to pick up.     The money spent on a month worth of Superman comics could get you 7 of those 12 books, and the time spent reading those 192 pages of the Eradicator's return and Ma and Pa Kent's cruise with Perry and Alice White could instead be spent reading 9 of those mega hot books. This is not to say that those were better works, but rather that they were the trending books of the time that everyone wanted, and the Superman titles inadvertently positioned themselves to be an obstruction in the way of fans obtaining those books. This is the month that both I and brutalis turned our backs on the Superman Office, and I sincerely doubt we were the only two. As for whether we missed out, I guess that's what these ensuing reviews will be determining. This particular issue doesn't seem to suggest that is the case. While meticulous continuity and a rich focus on Superman's supporting cast remains in play, this office still struggles with providing actual interesting conflict for The Man of Steel now that Lex Luthor isn't in the picture. We've now spent half a year trying to dredge the Post-Crisis rogues gallery for interesting villains, and now, in a particularly desperate move, the Eradicator Device is somehow back and an energy being:  No, it doesn't make any sense. I respect the idea -- what better way to create a meaningful villain with a meaningful relationship with Superman than by having him be the only other survivor from Krypton, as well as the embodiment of all the ideals Clark has now turned his back on, except that it's done poorly. For example, I genuinely LIKE how morally gray the Eradicator's mission is. He truly does want to build a better world:  But Superman's response is embarrassing. The Eradicator had just converted a slum into a spire and insulted its slum lord to his face. Superman interrupts this and thus comes off as defending wealth inequality, corrupt slumlords and the like in thwarting the Eradicator's mission to create change, and, on top of that, he comes in swinging.  Really, what was the plan, here? Punch the Eradicator so that he would agree? Worse yet, while the Eradicator is out there CHANGING THE SUN INTO ONE THAT WON'T SUPPORT HUMAN LIFE, Clark sends his parents off on a cruise and returns for a full day of work at The Planet instead of looking for The Eradicator or seeking a means to stop him.  He finally checks in on Prof. Hamilton at the end of the work day (Oh good! "Hammy" can help him determine how to save the sun or stop The Eradicator!), but no...he came to take Prof. Hamilton on a trip to the Fortress of Solitude:  Recent issues had characterized Superman as intelligent and determined, but here he feels like the super-powered fool Byrne depicted all over again. I shouldn't like the villain more than the hero. Also, as much as I personally love the smaller stories of Clark and Lois working through their new relationship, or catching up on the supporting cast at The Daily Planet, I really really didn't need a forced first meeting between the Kents and the Whites:  Seems totally insignificant, as well as totally improbable that they chose to go on cruises at the exact same time, to the exact same destination, and on a ship larger than the Kent Farm (Pa's words, not mine), and they end up right across the hall from one another. Important Details:- The Eradicator is now a being of pure energy that can manipulate all forms of energy. Solar energy from the Earth's core, in particular, proves effective against Superman. - The Post-Crisis Fortress of Solitude is kept under a constantly moving sheet of ice, requiring both X-Ray vision and Heat vision to find it.  - The Lincoln Monument is destroyed.  Seriously, how's that going to work? Is Mike Carlin going to send a memo to all DC offices and writers telling them not to use the Lincoln Monument from now on? Minor Details:- More exploration of how much Luthor's death has hurt Metropolis:  But, while it's been seven months in real time since Luthor died, time in the Superman comics was moving far slower during the Byrne Era. Superman Annual #3 suggested that time in the comic was now moving at the same speed as time in the real world, and that would almost have to be true here too. I can't see things getting this desperate only a few weeks after Luthor's death. - I'm actually kind of on Sam Foswell's side. Who are Clark and Lois to criticize him for supporting The Eradicator and laying off people in order keep the lights on at The Planet?  He may not be making great decisions, but they're out of line. - "Cleric" removed the Eradicator Device from Krypton in approximately 199000 BC (our time). Jor-El and Lara were born at least 100,000 years later (see my Post-Crisis Superman Timeline), so why does the Eradicator know anything about them?  - Lois' mother is apparently now leaving the hospital, and I have questions:  Clark and Lois have spent the past month having heart to hearts about everything from having kids, to the state of the environment, to Jimmy losing his job, to what Clark should get his parents for their anniversary, but her mother finally coming home after spending ages at death's door never came up? And let's be clear -- Luthor was portioning out a partial cure in exchange for Lois' loyalty (and perhaps affection) while secretly retaining a permanent cure Lois knew nothing about. Are we to infer that someone at Lexcorp found out about this and just gave her mom the cure? It doesn't make sense. - I think the Superman Office enjoys switching off on art chores for these major stories (if you can call this a major story), but some of it is distracting, here. I really really don't like Thibert's new Lee/Liefeld/McFarlane approach to drawing Superman:  and why is McLeod drawing an artificial being of pure logic as looking so crazed and angry?  - A being devoted entirely to logic and efficiency, able to shape himself into any form, gives himself a butt?  Maybe he just cloned Superman's body. - Are we supposed to know who the guy on the bottom right is?  All in all, a poorly done story exactly when the Superman Office needed to knock one out of the ballpark and prove to readers that this franchise was worthy of their time and attention. |
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Post by shaxper on Aug 11, 2020 8:33:53 GMT -5
Action Comics #667 (July 1991)  "The Final Chapter" Script: Roger Stern Pencils: Jerry Ordway (pages 1-4, 8-9); Jim Mooney (pages 5, 10-11, 14-15); Tom Grummett (layouts, pages 6-7, 12-13, 19); Denis Rodier (finishes, pages 6-7, 12-13, 19); Art Thibert (pages 16-18, 28-29); Jon Bogdanove (pages 20-23, 38); Curt Swan (pages 24-27, 30); Dan Jurgens (layouts, pages 31-37); Brett Breeding (finishes, pages 31-37) Inks: Dennis Janke (pages 1-4, 8-9, 20-23, 38); Jerry Ordway (pages 5, 10-11, 14-15); Denis Rodier (pages 6-7, 12-13, 19, 24-27, 30); Art Thibert (pages 16-18, 28-29); Brett Breeding (pages 31-37) Colors: Glenn Whitmore Letters: Bill Oakley Grade: B- I've given a lot of focus as of late to the fact that DC, and the Superman Office in particular, is beginning to lose significant ground to Marvel. The Superman Office is doing its best to react, launching a new Superman title and a high profile #1 issue, bringing on Jon Bogdanove as someone who draws more in the Liefeld/Lee/McFarlane style, changing up the cover logo for Action Comics, even changing up the letter column title and logo this issue -- Carlin and DC are really trying to make the Superman titles look visually new and improved. But then we have this cover. Let's ignore the fact that it's impossible to tell what Superman is even punching on that cover (and seriously, the Eradicator is an AWESOME looking bad guy who has gotten zero cover presence across this four part story arc), let's ignore that the composition/pose isn't all that dynamic for such an explosive punch, let's ignore the fact that the Superman Office declined to name this major event nor give it a catchy logo on the cover, and instead just savor one of the final times in comic book history that a cover would use a speech bubble un-ironically.  Even if Jurgens was going for kitsch here, it's simply the wrong time to try this. We needed a cover like this:  along with a flashy logo advertising "Revenge of the Krypton Man: Final Chapter". We've seen so many iconic covers from this office as of late -- covers that made adolescent me almost salivate to open them up and read them:     ...but those were all Kerry Gammill covers, and now, when image matters most, Gammill doesn't seem to be doing covers for this office anymore. Well that was a particularly long rant. Hope I didn't startle any of you into exclaiming your inner thoughts aloud with accompanying exaggerated poses. So let's talk about the conclusion of this Eradicator storyline, if you can even call it a storyline. So the Eradicator shows up with a plan to transform Earth's sun into Krypton's sun and also change Earth and its people/culture into Krypton's people/culture. He does this by standing around, speaking his thoughts aloud a lot, and making two statues look more Kryptonese. That's...all he accomplishes in four 48 page issues, even with Clark mostly ignoring the problem and going about his life throughout this storyline. And if you were expecting Superman to have some big, meaningful victory -- one that validates the qualities that make him a hero and also distinguishes him from Krypton's troubled past -- it ain't coming. Instead, it's a deus et machina last-minute victory that doesn't even end up being Superman's idea.  and the ultimate explanation makes no more sense than the explanation we got for the Eradicator's transformation into an energy being in the first place:  Sure. Okay. And, of course, Superman just assumes at the end that, with his energy dispersed, The Eradicator won't be coming back again. Because this is somehow a more final solution than launching him into the sun? And, speaking of the sun, I guess that's just going to get better on its own now? No explanation needed, apparently. I think the only thing I enjoyed about the central plot in this final issue is this minor scene with Pete Ross and Lana Lang (did I really just admit I enjoyed a scene focused on Lana Lang??). Whereas Superman didn't appear to be taking this threat very seriously, nor did Lois, nor Jimmy, nor really any of the central characters of these books, the scene with Pete and Lana made it feel so much more real and terrifying from the ground level:  I felt the anxiety here. And, of course, there were the B plots in this issue. It was interesting to see Ma and Pa Kent playing hero (a nice contrast to the Eradicator, representing Clark's Kryptonian legacy. Stern is ensuring we make no mistake where Superman's heroism came from):  but Perry White's contribution felt silly and tacked on. How many average joes out there know a newspaper editor in chief by name, or are familiar with his/her temperment and personality? In the end, this little team-up between the Whites and the Kents was never earned. Would have been nice to at least have this moment provide a transformative impact for Perry and Alice, who took this cruise in order to escape from troubles threatening to tear their marriage apart. Yet Alice White isn't even IN this scene. Oh, and what crowd did those kids lose their parents in, exactly? This giant cruise ship looks surprisingly under-populated and quite spaced-out just a few panels earlier:  I also always love being reminded that the Post-Crisis Lois is no damsel in distress:  The teaming up of Bibbo Bibowski and Adam Grant strikes me as the best thing since Powerman met Ironfist:  and I positively cannot wait to see where this is going:  There is so much this office is still doing right, but they're bungling their big (maybe final) opportunity to win readers away from Marvel this month with this plot and these covers, and it hurts to watch. Important Details:- Never mind. Superman restored the Lincoln Monument. - New power: Superman has super-fast healing - Jose Delgado is back as gangbuster (at least on an "as needed" basis):  Minor Details:- Where the heck is this?  It's not the Fortress of Solitude, and I can't imagine Superman is sitting around like that at the Daily Planet, so either Superman has a secret Metropolis loft where he tracks crime (I can't imagine Clark can afford rent on two spacious apartments in Metropolis), this is part of Clark's apartment (with lockers built into the walls and enormous computer display screens??), or the artist got very confused about what he was drawing here. The coffee suggests to me that this is Clark's place. - LOVED the opening of this issue   ...even if SUperman flies off a moment later and just sort of gets better on his own. |
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Post by shaxper on Aug 12, 2020 9:46:24 GMT -5
Could that control room have been a JLA HQ? I think the Justice League still had an alphabet of teams at this time.. Superman was not all that involved, but I could see him pitching in for monitor duty now and then. Well, he's refused to be a member of the Justice League three times now, so I doubt he'd be doing monitor duty for them. Also, do they have an HQ in Metropolis? This was only a few blocks away for Lois. |
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Post by shaxper on Aug 12, 2020 23:16:09 GMT -5
Superman: The Man of Steel #2 (August 1991)  "The Kid Who Talks to Superman" Script: Louise Simonson Pencils: Jon Bogdanove Inks: Dennis Janke Colors: Glenn Whitmore Letters: Bill Oakley Grade: D Two issues in, and problems are already apparent. Whereas every other Superman title is weaving one continuous narrative right now, with B plots progressing throughout all three titles, there's absolutely none of that visible here. Jimmy's employment hunt aside, it's all A plot, and even much of that isn't jibing with what's happening in Superman's other three titles right now. For example, the folks at The Planet are worried they won't get the raises they asked for.  The unnamed (and never before depicted) colleague who articulate this concern is so stressed that she leaves for the day. C'mon, Simonson. It was in this very title last month where Foswell announced layoffs: incidentally, this new unnamed colleague was nowhere to be seen in those panels among the old familiar supporting castso it's a little weird to be worrying about raises if you weren't already worried about losing your job. But the inconsistencies don't stop there. Let's talk a little bit about how Simonson has Superman talk in this issue: Superman suddenly uses more slang/contractions  Minor, maybe, but I just can't hear Superman saying "gonna". I definitely can't hear him saying "omigod"  and (my personal favorite) he calls the bad guy a "jerk"  Oh, and while I'm sure this was totally unintentional, it's more than a little troubling to see Superman refer to a Black child as "boy" and then proceed to note that he's "more guts than brains".   Yikes. Come on. How was Carlin letting this stuff through? this Superman is just so not the same guy I've been reading for the past few years. And, dialing back to that last panel I posted, let's talk about Jon Bogdanove's contributions here, a bit. Better yet, just look at them:     Oh, his art manages to hit it right exactly twice in this issue, but even then I think it's just mostly decent shot composition, with Janke's inks compensating for the rest:   I have zero confidence in this creative team after only two issues. I love Simonson, but her work does not fit this office, and Bogdanove...! As for the plot, there isn't all that much of one. The unfolding mystery of Cerberus is progressing at a snail's pace. I did, however, love the basic conceit that was the foundation of this story -- the child who prays to Superman as a guardian angel.  It's very very cute when it isn't being kinda' sorta' inadvertently racist. The most recent issue of Adventures of Superman introduced an aspiring black journalist that, after only one page, you just knew was someone important and worth watching out for:  while this story asks us to pity the homeless, parentless black kid with more guts than brains. Well intended, but damn embarrassing in hindsight. Minor Details:- Okay, so did Lois' colleague die in that missile attack? The story doesn't bother to mention casualties. Sure, Superman averts some of it, but there's still an explosion and massive fire. - What a lucky coincidence Superman showed up JUST as Jimmy was about to pass out from smoke inhalation  except that all the other Superman titles have been making a big point as of late about how Jimmy is wearing the signal watch again. I guess that's another memo Simonson didn't get, as well as an error that Carlin missed. - Where'd Superman's cape go for the first quarter of this issue?  Sure, he was rescuing Jimmy from a fire, but he didn't know he was about to go save someone from a fire, and even if he did, he's wearing the cape later in the story when he goes out, planning to prevent the city being burnt to the ground by Cerberus. I've often said of Louise Simonson that I deeply respect her ideas but often find her execution clumsy. Unfortunately, in this case, the lack of coordination between this title and the other three really takes my disappointment with the story to a whole other level, and that's without even discussing Bogdanove. |
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Post by shaxper on Aug 17, 2020 9:02:44 GMT -5
Superman #58 (August 1991)  "Fangs of the Bloodhounds" Script: Dan Jurgens Pencils: Dan Jurgens (layouts); Brett Breeding (finishes) Inks: Brett Breeding Colors: Glenn Whitmore Letters: John Costanza Grade: D+ Apparently, Ordway isn't the only one moving off of pencilling duties in order to focus more on writing. While Jurgens is still providing breakdowns, it looks like he'll now have someone else finishing his art for a long while to come while he starts giving his primary attention to writing. Unfortunately, while I love Jurgens' energy, his writing is still clunky at this point. Let's start with the basic premise, espoused by the thoroughly lackluster cover he himself drew -- let's introduce an exciting new team of characters, except they don't play a key role in the plot, we never learn their powers, and they don't even exhibit any real personalities. One of them keeps saying he can't wait to take down Superman, and then also keeps saying he can't believe they have to take down Superman. That's really all we get. And then there are the logic gaps: so the director of Project Cadmus wants Superman brought in so that Dubblex (a mind-reader, for those that don't know) can probe his brain, transfer everything Superman has ever known or thought into a computer for analysis, and Cadmus can then determine how to take Superman down if he ever becomes a threat again (referencing the now three-year-old Gangbuster incident, as well as the original Krypton Man saga from a a year and a half earlier). Dubblex and The Guardian are morally opposed to this and so pretend to help while actually planning to help Superman escape. So then why does Dubblex actually probe his mind and explore his deepest/darkest secrets? Wasn't the entire point NOT to do that? So much of the dialogue is stilted and unnatural too. Like this relevation/twist that came out of absolutely nowhere because we've never spent even a panel on the director of Cadmus' personality, beliefs, nor backstory ever before in these pages:  GREAT idea, horrendous execution. Oh, and the way in which The Bloodhounds even took down Superman was absurd:  You have seconds to take down a man who moves faster than the eye can see when he's already seen the guy he's fighting signal for backup? So they're going to climb up those ropes in mere seconds WITHOUT Superman's super-hearing picking any of that up? Oh, wait...  Because of course Clark would be both stupid enough not to realize what that signal was and lazy enough not to be paying attention to his surroundings long enough for these guys to sneak up behind him. Oh, and for some reason, Jurgens (whose art I generally really like) is trying to be a little more Liefeld in this issue. Just look at this character design:  or Dubblex pulling a "Cable":  even though Dubblex proves to be totally benign in this story, so why the sinister visual foreshadowing? Because it looked cool, I guess. At least this moment in the issue amused me:  although I really don't think Jurgens grasps this super-speed thing. If Clark is moving fast enough that Foswell can't see him right there, kissing Lois, then there is no way he could have slowed down the speed of his kiss enough to not go right through Lois' cheek and skull. Important Details:- Apparently, Superman's aura can be traced  and is inexplicably linked to his other powers:  The original concept behind the Post-Crisis Superman's powers was that, "his abilities are enhanced versions of human abilities. Just think of anything you can do. magnify it to the Nth degree -- and that's how well Superman does it" (Andy Helfer), and his aura of invulnerability was based upon something humans do electromagnetically, so why would that be connected to his other exaggerated human powers? Of course, heat vision isn't really an exaggeration of something humans do, I suppose. Minor Details:- We're getting some really mixed signals about how time is now working in the Superman Office. We've seen several recent references suggesting Superman's stories are flowing in realtime, where a month here is a month there, most recently when, in Superman Annual #3 (also written by Jurgens), Waverider saw that Superman would be fighting Brainiac a year from now (Panic in the Sky is a year away). This makes sense for a franchise that's getting a book out every week of the year, but this scene below utterly confuses me, then:  As mentioned earlier, the "ordeal" Guardian is discussing, which he says happened a few months back, occurred three years ago in realtime. And what Westfield goes on to describe as having occurred "last week," happened a month ago:  So does three to four days in our world equal one in theirs, or are they writing in realtime? Jurgens doesn't seem to know. Final thought; this office was in such a stronger place a year ago. Maybe these are just growing pains--Jurgens will come into his own as a writer, Louise Simonson will get better alignment with the other writers and titles, Jon Bogdanove will get less terrible on Man of Steel, and all that will really be lost is Kerry Gammill's covers. But, for the moment, I'm not feeling great about this Office anymore, and I'm wondering if brutalis and I made the right call back in 1991, jumping ship when we did. |
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Post by shaxper on Aug 20, 2020 13:11:15 GMT -5
Adventures of Superman #481 (August 1991)  "The Big Drain!" Script: Jerry Ordway Pencils: Tom Grummett Inks: Doug Hazlewood Colors: Glenn Whitmore Letters: Albert DeGuzman Grade: B+ I swear, I've seen this cover somewhere before. I think I read a backstory about a ghost train that visually resembled this in Haunt of Horror back in the day, but I also feel like there was a Wrightson or Wrightson-esq cover that looked like this, maybe for House of Mystery or House of Secrets? Anyway, Tom Grummett's first solo pencilling gig for this office does not disappoint:  Perhaps more importantly, the Superman Office has now spent 8 months and 25 issues struggling to find a worthwhile villain for Superman now that Luthor is "dead". We've tried Mr. Z, Terra Man, The Toy Man, Thaddeus Killgrave, Silver Banshee, The Linear Man, Baron Sunday, Cerberus, and The Eradicator, but Killgrave and The Toyman have been the only ones that proved at all memorable. Finally, finally, we've got new hope with Parasite, a classic Superman villain that hasn't wandered into this Post-Crisis office until now. Not only are his powers a significant threat to Superman, but his characterization is rich and memorable, whether he's being deliciously creepy:   a disturbed (if somewhat endearing) simpleton:   or just plain gross:  This character has serious potential as a regular Superman nemesis. I hope Stern and Jurgens can use him as well as Ordway does here. This issue also seeks to repair the poor inter-title alignment that we've been seeing as of late, acknowledging the devastation that Cerberus has caused for Metropolis (Cerberus has never been acknowledged outside of the Man of Steel title until now!) while acknowledging the recent toll The Eradicator has taken on Metropolis as well.  It's a much needed complete picture of the beatings Metropolis has been taking in the past two months, all while crime is up and employment is down in the wake of Luthor's death. Metropolis is a scary place to be right now. This little exchange also resolves the ridiculous coincidence of the Whites and the Kents ending up across the hall from each other on the very same cruise ship. Now, apparently, it was planned from the very start. And, as a more minor (but important) point, we are learning how this power couple does breakfast in the age of '90s feminism. No, Lois does not cook for them both; they take breakfast together at Dooley's. I guess this also further emphasizes both how busy they are as working professionals (no time to cook) and that they are successful enough that they can afford to eat out three meals a day. Anyway, while Metropolis grows darker, these titles themselves remain bright and full of hope. I love that Superman remains a thinking superhero more committed to the public good than vengeance and punching, as this issue gives considerable attention to Clark ensuring that his underground battle with Parasite won't hurt the structural integrity of the subway tunnels:  What other superhero title concerns itself with issues of collateral damage? Well, Damage Control, I guess... I also continue to love the familiar, reassuring elements of the Daily Planet that keep getting inserted into these titles. The letting go of a significant portion of the Daily Planet staff has not gone forgotten a month later. Those characters are made to feel important to us; the Daily Planet staff grieves for them as any tight knit group of colleagues would. And further reinforcing this sense of closeness is the return of Dooley's Pub and its concerned/involved proprietor, Kevin Dooley:  It took me several months, but I finally figured out what Dooley's reminds me of. It's easy to draw a comparison to Cheers, the most famous fictional bar in American culture, but that was a place for middle-class drunks to waste their lives away. This is a higher class bar where upscale professionals let down their hair at the end of the day and grow closer together. The place this reminds me of is Phil's, from the (then) hit TV show Murphy Brown, on it's fourth hit season at the time of this issue's publication:  I strongly suspect this was the inspiration for Dooley's. After all, Murphy Brown and her colleagues were the big hitters at a premiere news organization too, and while the show isn't really talked about today, it was huge in 1991. Important Details:- First meeting of Superman and Parasite in the Post-Crisis. Parasite has absorbed some of Superman's memories and may know his secret identity.  - Ronald Troupe, first introduced as "Ron" last issue, finally gets a full name and earns the assistant job at Newstime Magazine that Jimmy Olsen was applying for.  Strong foreshadowing that he will ultimately help the magazine's owner, Collin Thornton, in his bid for mayor. I'm still not sure why Ordway is giving him so much attention, though, and inviting us to care about what happens to him. - I'd been noting lately that "Time and Time Again" made the overt point that Superman's costume had been turned "jet black" and yet all the artists and colorists seemed to have forgotten about this. The letter column for this issue explains that his costume just sort of reverted back to its original colors. Apparently, the edgier look they were going for, perhaps more in-line with Batman's image, while Metropolis became more Gotham-like, has been discarded. Minor Details:- Ordway is actually making me feel for Sam Foswell. I love it:  - Lana moves across the country for Pete Ross, but they're still living in separate apartments, Pete inviting her over for occasional dates?  Does Lana Lang have any self-respect at all? And how is she going to pay DC rent by herself? Does she even have a job lined up? Overall a MUCH better story that feels in keeping with what this title was before everything went awry a few months back. Hopefully, this is a sign that all the titles will be finding their footing again and that it won't just be Ordway keeping the office afloat. |
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Post by String on Aug 21, 2020 21:44:07 GMT -5
Remember all those interlude scenes in Time and Time Again?
Obviously, we've moved on with Lois and Clark.
Bibbo is Bibbo. 'Nuff said.
Olsen had his date ruined, moved out on his own finally, got fired and is looking for a new job.
Perry and his wife have left on a cruise in hopes of helping repair their strained marriage. (And yes, it does kinda-sorta-maybe make sense that their pairing with the Kents on the same cruise was prearranged but reading over that dialogue, it sounds more like that was all Lois' idea and not necessarily Clark's).
However, what about LexCorp? All those scenes about the board trying to figure out what to do in lieu of Luthor's demise. Has any of that been addressed in some way in these later issues? Yes, they keep stressing how Metropolis has suffered from Luthor's passing. However I would think someone as meticulous as Luthor would've had some contingencies planned for just such an emergency as his dying.
I mean, wouldn't that be a big point for Luthor? He wanted to be the major player and Big Man of Metropolis and from all these accounts, it certainly seemed like he was. And that was before Superman even showed up so then Luthor doubled down on that motivation as being more supreme and more 'heroic' to the public than Superman.
Yet he dies and it all collapses? That's Luthor's legacy? I'm not so sure. Yeah, it'd be one way to show his importance (without me, you're nothing!) but on the other hand, building something that would last, outlast Superman, that could also be a driving force I think for Luthor.
But it doesn't seem like the board has decided on anything. Unless I've missed something, at the moment, I've yet to read these more recent issues you've reviewed, so please, let me know if I have overlooked something.
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Post by chadwilliam on Aug 21, 2020 23:47:46 GMT -5
Action Comics #668 (August 1991)  "The Ghost of Luthor" Script: Roger Stern Pencils: Bob McLeod Inks: Denis Rodier Colors: Glenn Whitmore Letters: Bill Oakley Grade: B+ For pretty much all of 1991 thus far, the Superman Office has felt directionless. They played every possible ace in 1990, and then things just seemed to drop off. Even the multi-part Time and Time Again and Return of the Krypton Man storylines didn't help this franchise find a focus. But finally, eight months in, we have direction again. This issue plants all the seeds for the eventual rise of Lex Luthor II. We have the media obsessed with the question of whether Luthor faked his own death, average citizens complaining about how Metropolis has fallen apart without Luthor and yearning for his unlikely return, and Superman having an oddly precognitive dream that could be considered the first appearance of Lex Luthor II:  Is this how the Superman Office originally envisioned that Lex Luthor II would end up looking, or is Clark was just remembering the way Luthor I looked when he and Superman first clashed? I'm certain it's the latter. Dream-Luthor is quoting Byrne's Luthor from Man of Steel #4 - the moment is significant for it marks Byrne's Luthor throwing down a gauntlet and making it clear to Superman that they are now enemies locked in a struggle which Luthor predicts will end only with Superman's demise. Now that Luthor is dead it makes sense for the moment at which the two became foes to be lodged in Superman's brain especially with Luthor's "one day, very soon, you're going to die" prediction now turning out to the be opposite of what happened. Now, it's quite possible that the Superman offices intended for Luthor to come back differently from how he would, but I can't imagine that at any point, Lex Luthor the Younger was going to look exactly like his dad did five years ago (or ten years or whenever) since it would defeat the purpose of having a younger heir step into the role. "What do you mean I'm my father? Preposterous! My father was completely bald whereas I have hair in the back!" "But didn't Luthor Sr. have hair in the back too about six, seven years ago?" "...aw f**k, that's right!!" It does bring up an interesting question and one which I've wondered about for a while now - was Luthor's death something Byrne planned for and which later writers picked up on (ie. I believe that Superman's breakdown after his execution of Zod and the others was contained in Byrne's notes which were fleshed out by his replacements) or are we well past the point of following whatever guidelines Byrne left when he exited the series? Did Byrne intend to kill Luthor and bring him back or was the mechanical hand the only real price he'd have to pay for wearing that kryptonite ring? I suppose once Byrne gave Luthor that ring he had to come up with some way to get it off him since Superman falling to his knees every time they met was going to get repetitive (especially with Luthor having to come with some excuse not to use this to his advantage and kill him every time as well) but was there more to it than that? It seems strange to me that the gimmicks the Superman office have been coming up with seem designed to tease bigger and bolder things - the engagement, Lois learning Clark's secret - while having his number one foe (and honestly, at this point in post-Crisis history, his only major foe) die is just... odd. Has anyone taken credit for this idea or shared what the team thought would be gained with Luthor's death and/or resurrection in the form of his own son? I mean, "Clark and Lois get engaged! Think about it - how does she take to learning his identity, how does the nature of their relationship at work and at home change, perhaps they'll have kids, who knows where we can go with this!" sounds like an idea full of potential whereas "Luthor dies and is replaced by himself as his own son" seems more like an idea which would need more convincing to green light. When Carlin replies "but why not just keep him as he is? What does him pretending to be his own son bring to the table?" what does his writers say? "Yeah, but this way we get to give him an Australian accent! Think of it! 'Oi! Superman! Toss another one on the barbie!' 'Oi! Superman! Who put this 'roo in my office!'" Seems like something completely out of left field. Was Luthor in some way becoming a hindrance to the series that he needed refreshing? |
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Post by shaxper on Aug 22, 2020 2:04:52 GMT -5
I'm certain it's the latter. Dream-Luthor is quoting Byrne's Luthor from Man of Steel #4 - the moment is significant for it marks Byrne's Luthor throwing down a gauntlet and making it clear to Superman that they are now enemies locked in a struggle which Luthor predicts will end only with Superman's demise. Now that Luthor is dead it makes sense for the moment at which the two became foes to be lodged in Superman's brain especially with Luthor's "one day, very soon, you're going to die" prediction now turning out to the be opposite of what happened. Now, it's quite possible that the Superman offices intended for Luthor to come back differently from how he would, but I can't imagine that at any point, Lex Luthor the Younger was going to look exactly like his dad did five years ago (or ten years or whenever) since it would defeat the purpose of having a younger heir step into the role. "What do you mean I'm my father? Preposterous! My father was completely bald whereas I have hair in the back!" "But didn't Luthor Sr. have hair in the back too about six, seven years ago?" "...aw f**k, that's right!!" Good argument. I'll edit my review to reflect this. Thanks! My understanding has always been that the reason the Exile storyline meandered as long as it did was because there was no direction forward planned for the series beyond Superman losing his mind and becoming Gangbuster. Evidence suggests Byrne left abruptly, and also that he hurried to get through as many of his remaining plot points as he could in the days before he left, so the Superman Office was left directionless for a good long while after Byrne departed and before Carlin had decided to let Ordway and Stern drive the ship in his place. I've also argued how The Eradicator Device, the next major plotpoint after the Exile storyline, was George Perez's idea. Superman knew Luthor's address. Without the Kryptonite ring, it was only a matter of time before Luthor went so far that Superman would just smash through the windows and take him down. I don't imagine Byrne did have a plan beyond that. I think it worked well. It seems clear to me that 1990 was all about trying to make the Superman franchise DC's top selling office. The "still only 75 cents" price point, the obligatory crossover with Batman, the multiple multi-part story arcs (some of which were clearly introduced last minute), the first kiss between Clark and Lois, the engagement, the death of Jerry White, and finally the death of Luthor. It was all an effort to boost sales. I certainly doubt the office ever planned to have Luthor stay dead, but how they would bring him back may well have been a work in progress. After all, we don't learn until this past issue (8 months later) that Superman scoured the crash site for Luthor's remains and then had them checked against his medical records to verify a body. The way the original death played out, all Superman had found was the cybernetic hand. And I'm still not 100% clear on what the final plan ends up being. I know Luthor II actually ends up being Luthor, and I believe cloning is involved, but I never read those stories previously and don't know all the details (no spoilers please!). Yes, but only in the sense that he was Superman's only serious antagonist. 1991 has been mostly about bringing back old rogues and introducing new ones in an effort to find villains who aren't Luthor because, during Byrne's run, literally every villain Supes ran into was ultimately working for Luthor or was the byproduct of something Luthor had done. It always extended back to Luthor. |
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