Superboy #9 – Review

By: Jeff Lemire (writer), Pier Gallo (artist), Jaime Grant & Dom Regan (colorists)

The Story: It’s like looking in a mirror, isn’t it?  Make that several hundred mirrors.  In 3D.

The Review: It’s sometimes difficult to take teen superheroes seriously partly due to their smaller scale adventures.  Their villains tend to be sub-par versions of more famous counterparts (not unlike the heroes they face off with), and even when they manage some degree of originality, they rarely pose the kind of serious threat Justice Leaguers face on a daily basis.

Superboy sure has come a long way from sparring with King Shark off the Hawaiian coast.  Ever since he saved the universe during Infinite Crisis, his caliber of villain has definitely gone up a notch.  Limiting his flying grounds to Smallville seemed on the surface to hold him back, but this issue proves there’s plenty of dastardly stuff happening in the Midwestern farm town, and let out of control, the world will no doubt suffer.

Of course, the fact Phantom Stranger is involved should be proof enough that Superboy faces nothing short of an epic challenge, especially considering the fedora-wearing man’s unusually urgent behavior of late.  This recent take-charge attitude turns out to be a ruse for a pretty significant plot twist, one with half a chance of surprising you.  Although Lemire does a fairly good job using Stranger’s cryptic clauses to cover up the big reveal at the end, let’s face it: old P.S. has been acting rather out of character (read: grim and patronizing) lately.

Actually, we get quite a lot of major developments this issue, as Psionic Lad’s (Psion, I should say, as he and Simon agree the “Lad” part sounds more like something his great-uncle would’ve really dug) loyalties finally get put to the test.  While it’s comforting to see his moral compass remains squarely in goodhearted territory, it all becomes a moot point when the mission in Smallville’s underground Hollowville takes a turn for the worse.

Superboy #8 – Review

By: Jeff Lemire (writer), Pier Gallo (artist), Jamie Grant & Dom Regan (colorists)

The Story: Superboy and the Chamber of Secrets.

The Review: The moment Lemire launched this title, he injected a supernatural tone to the Smallville mythos that he many times said he would expand in time.  The Phantom Stranger’s multiple appearances heralded significant horrors to come for the Boy of Steel, but till now we’ve gotten radio-controlled frogs, time-traveling psychics, and plants from outer space.  Superboy seemed well on his way to joining his cousins in primarily sci-fi-based heroics.

Then this issue comes, and magic once again rears its unpredictable head, in the form of the Hollow Men, your classic creepy farmers with a twist of zombie.  This isn’t your usual Western European tradition of mysticism: witches and warlocks, nonsense words and fairy creatures.  Lemire takes a much more primal kind of magic and gives it a mad-scientist spin, a union that really suits the earthy, Midwestern backdrop of Smallville and Superboy’s scientific roots.

The arcane elements in this issue are equal parts alchemy, necromancy, and druidism, a perfect match for the eerie frontier of Smallville’s Wild West, the setting for Nathaniel Kent and Albert Valentine’s encounter with the town’s darker side.  It’s got all the stuff that makes great ghost stories: the banished Puritan doctor and his disturbed family; hidden spaces with macabre secrets; shudder-worthy murders; the inevitable building gone down in flames.

Like all great ghost stories, these details inevitably come back to haunt the real world once more, as the entire town falls into a stupor right before Connor’s eyes.  The answer lies of course in the “broken silo,” his only clue to the mysterious events of #2, and the place Nathaniel Kent found has more to it “than life and death,” in the words of crazed surgeon-occultist Eben Took.  Our payoff: the final splash showing what’s “below” Smallville, a stunner of a reveal if there’s any.

Superboy #1 – Review

by Jeff Lemire (writer), Pier Gallo (art), Jamie Grant (colors), and John J. Hill (letters)

The Story: Superboy defends Smallville from a major member of Superman’s rogues gallery.

What’s Good: Reading this first issue of Superboy, it’s clear that there are two different Jeff Lemires at work here. There’s the contemplative, indie creator attuned to the tone and rhythm of rural life and then there’s the gleeful, DC fanboy eager to use his new toys in explosive fashion. The fact that these two sides of Lemire are perfectly balanced is why Superboy #1 is such a success.

It’s clear right from the get-go that Smallville itself is not only key to the book’s atmosphere, but is such a presence that it almost constitutes a character in its own right. Lemire has managed to use Smallville to give the book an affable, friendly, and joyful tone; Superboy reads a lot like the superhero cartoons you loved as a kid, the sort that had that happy innocence but also never condescended. Smallville makes this book lovable, what with its intimacy and its nuances. It influences Connor, forcing him into contemplation as he interacts with nature itself in almost Romantic fashion and is also a vulnerable figure that needs protecting.

Then the DC fanboy Lemire steps in. The DC figures (Phantom Stranger, Parasite) are so opposite to Smallville that they create a sort of dissonance the lends the book a kind of goofy weirdness while creating some real excitement. Once the action starts flowing or Parasite is shown sucking the life out of Smallville, it’s clear that Lemire is having the time of his life, and that joy is infectious.

The transition between Smallville contemplation and comic book action is also expertly done and Lemire’s sense of pacing throughout the book is fantastic. Part of this is thanks to those moments where the indie Lemire and the DC fan Lemire bounce off one another, which is also when the book is at its most interesting. Take, for instance, Lemire’s choice of Parasite as a first victim; big and purple-skinned, it doesn’t get any more comic-booky and Lemire goes on to show the villain destroying and rotting out Smallville’s farmland wherever he sets foot. It’s as though the DCU is poisonous to the sanctity of Smallville innocence.

Then there’s the wonderful link between the book’s beginning, which features lovely narration as Connor ponders thoughtfully over a field, and how that very physically foreshadows how Connor defeats Parasite. It was definitely a fist-pumping moment where, in a way, Connor uses Smallville’s natural setting to defeat the outsider, Parasite.

Pier Gallo’s artwork is also a wonderful choice for the book and reminds me of a simpler, stream-lined, and softer Frank Quietely. Gallo’s work is subdued and homey, and thus perfect for Smallville. This, however, contrasts wonderfully with his depiction of Parasite, who is a lumpy monstrosity. Jamie Grant’s colors are also wonderful match for Gallo, enhancing everything that makes his work strong while glossing over and smoothing out any weaknesses. His tones a bright, happy, and, in a way, innocent, mirroring both Gallo’s work and Smallville itself.