Action Comics #7 – Review

By: Grant Morrison (writer), Rags Morales (penciller), Rick Bryant (inker), Brad Anderson (colorist)

The Story: Ooh—I love your miniatures in a bottle collection.  Wait, is that my house in there?

The Review: I tend to feel Superman has the same problem as the Flash in terms of appeal.  The whole heart of the Man of Steel is he’s one of the finest and purest superheroes you can think of, a blank perfection which makes him respected and admired, yet also inaccessible.  To exacerbate matters, he’s just so darn powerful that he can afford to stick to his guns; if you have the ability to solve any problem without sacrifice, you never have the problem of making tough choices.

In All-Star Superman, Morrison overcame these obstacles by giving our hero big, Herculean challenges which allowed him to actually struggle.  Morrison’s attempting something like that here by taking away a sizable amount of Superman’s strength and knowledge, putting him on a lower footing than his problems.  It’s certainly raised the stakes for him across the board, but for us readers, seeing him wheeze as he jumps hurdles that wouldn’t have even made him blink some months ago has been a rather jarring gear-shift.

That’s why this coming showdown with Brainiac (I’m pretty sure we all saw him coming some time ago, so I won’t even bother calling this a spoiler) is a very welcome event.  Superman’s not only going to have to fight without the benefit of his peak abilities, he’s going up against one of his greatest foes of all time—don’t let that “1.0” designation fool you.  Brainiac, like Luthor, derives his menace from his mind, not his brawn.  Even though Superman spends only a very brief part of this issue physically fending off Brainiac’s various robo-guards, he’s under attack the entire time as Brainiac constantly strives to screw with his mind.  The climax of all this is Brainiac’s attempt to force Superman into one of those sticky choices that plagues so many of his heroic peers from time to time: save the people of his origin or those of his adoption?

Ultimately, while the question may be a nail-biter for the rest of us, it’s a moot point for our hero.  For one thing, Brainiac miscasts the decision as a “nature versus nurture” problem, as if Superman choosing to save either Kandor or Metropolis is a symbol of loyalty.  The issue is Clark knows nothing—or at least, very little—of his pre-Smallville life.  So the real question is whether his desire to learn more about his background is powerful enough for him to betray the life he lives now.  No matter how you slice it, the answer is probably not.  Besides, this is Superman; he would never allow anyone to force him into such a quandary: “I won’t choose between any one life and another!  All of these people are under my protection, you got that?”

WCBR’s Top Picks

Dean’s Top Picks

Best From The Past Week: Orc Stain #7 – It’s been a long time coming, but Orc Stain is such a special comic due to the art and design capabilities of James Stokoe.  It’s hard to even describe the detail that the guy puts into his art.  Just go Google Image search “stokoe orc stain“.  I know that we all want comics to “come out on time” but with art like Stokoe produces, it’s easy to understand why it might take awhile.  And the story is so simple, that you won’t get lost waiting for the next issue.

Most Anticipated:  Avengers: The Children’s Crusade #9 – This is the finale of a series that has taken almost 2 years to come out.  Remember, it began just after Siege!  But, all along it has featured glorious art from Jim Cheung and a catchy story as the Young Avengers go in search of the Scarlet Witch.  Then all of a sudden, shit got real around issue #6 as Scarlet Witch was located and she started giving mutants their powers back.  Who knows, this issue could be a big wet fart.  Or it could feature something that plays heavily into Marvel continuity, like reversing M-Day. Even if you haven’t read the series so far, you should check this one out just to see if something cool happens.

Other Picks: Fairest #1, Sweet Tooth #31, Manhattan Projects #1, Amazing Spider-Man #681, Rachel Rising #6

Alex’s Top Picks

Best From The Past Week: Spaceman #4 – Honestly, not a lot happened plot-wise in this book….and yet I didn’t really care.  Azzarello and Risso have created a fully realized world that is a joy to inhabit for 20 pages.  Really, it’s a rare case where the trip, the world, comes first to the plot, leading itself to a unique vision and experience.  This is a really fantastic book that science fiction fans should be sure to pick up in some format.

Most Anticipated: The Manhattan Projects #1 – Jonathan Hickman – creator-owned.  There’s not much more that you need to know.  It’s another big concept with lots of revisionist history, a bizarre melding of Hickman’s brand of science fiction with WWII historical fiction.  If Hickman’s creator-owned work is known for something, it’s blowing your mind.  I’m looking forward to an engrossing, challenging read.

Other Picks: Action Comics #7, Swamp Thing #7, Animal Man #7, Fatale #3, Venom #14, Winter Soldier #3, Wolverine #302