Superman #705 – Review

By J. Michael Straczynski (writer), Wellington Dias and Eddy Barrows (pencils), J.P. Mayer with Eber Ferreira (inks), Rod Reis (colors), John J. Hill (letters)

The Story: Superman encounters a very young, very special fan who needs rescuing from an all too ordinary villain.

What’s Good: JMS writes the character of Superman well, I’ll give him that. Not that Supes is the most complicated character in the comic book pantheon, but JMS gives him a strong and suitably wholesome voice. He writes Superman’s young fan suitably sympathetic as well—again, not the most difficult of authorial tasks, but it works well within the story.

I’m digging the artwork, especially Rod Reis’ colors. The pencil work walks a fine line between trying to look realistic while still maintaining the fanciful, slightly cartoony look that serves a character like Supes so well. The colors contribute greatly, both by being visually appealing, and by maintaining the upbeat, primary-color infused palette that is a Superman hallmark. In spite of their bold nature, the colors never become so oversaturated that they are overwhelming or distracting.

What’s Not So Good: So Supes looks like Supes, and he sounds like Supes, but here’s the problem: this story is not worthy of Supes. Now don’t take that the wrong way (small spoiler warning ahead); domestic violence, and ESPECIALLY child abuse, is very serious, and nothing to belittle. In fact, it’s exactly the heinousness of the offence that makes it so maddening here, to see it used for nothing but cheap and ham-fisted emotional manipulation.

I’m already on the record as saying that I like the entire concept of this story arc, and I still do. Superman taking some time off from world-saving to reconnect with his human side is a great idea. And if handled well, this sort of domestic violence plot, while a tad cliché, still seems like a natural sort of every day problem for Superman to solve.

Except, the whole arc—and this issue in particular, which finally made me lose my patience with the whole thing—is not being handled well at all. Where the book’s art strikes a nice balance between realism and cloying cartoonishness, the writing takes a flying leap off of that balance beam. None of the supporting characters have any development at all beyond their very basic archetypes—the cute kid, the abusive father, and so forth. It’s grating, juvenile and insulting.

Conclusion: I came into this arc loving the concept, and wanting to like it in the worst way. I gave JMS every benefit of the doubt (see my review of #702), but I have to draw the line somewhere. Putting Superman in an after school special about why it’s EVERYONE’S responsibility to prevent domestic violence is ridiculous, does nothing to further the character, and does nothing to help achieve his set goal of reconnecting with humanity. While it’s hard to argue with the overall message of the book—beating your kid is bad, yo, and you should tell someone if you see a child getting slapped around—is hard to argue with, the insultingly ham fisted and sanctimonious way in which it’s delivered is just too much.

Grade: C-

-SoldierHawk

A SECOND OPINION

Wonder Woman #603 – Review

By J. Michael Straczynski(writer), Don Kramer, Eduardo Pansica and Allan Goldman (pencils), Jay Leisten and Scott Koblish (inks), Alex Sinclair (colors), Travis Lanham (letters)

The Story: While trying to escort the Amazon refugees to safety, Diana is attacked by the Keres—evil spirits of death—and is dragged down to the Underworld. She escapes with the help of Charon, the one-time Ferryman who is ruling the Underworld in Hades’ absence. Upon returning to her refugees though, Diana finds that she’s gone straight from the frying pan and into the fire.

What’s Good: While I’m still not…really…sure…where they’re going with this story (it’s been three issues; we should have at least some idea by now, right?) I still really enjoyed this issue. The combination of Greek mythology and Wonder Woman mythology is pretty damned inspired. I find it strange that this storyline has added so much of the Greek mythology back into Wonder Woman–she was fighting space aliens before this arc–while simultaneously divesting her of so many of her personal mythological elements. It’s an odd dichotomy, but it works well. Watching a “normal” human working their way through the creatures of Greek mythology while attempting to realize their godly potential is compelling stuff. It’s what makes all of the original tales of demigods so timeless, and it’s a very effective device here as well.