Sigh.
You can't explain this without giving away the whole thing, so... spoilers ahead.
I was going to cover this in my Part 2 of my Action Comics #900 review, but it seems the media is going coo-coo over this one.
No doubt, DC could have been handled better, but its also the sort of thing that you kind of have to expect will be taken absolutely the wrong way as certain parties re-purpose the one panel for their own means. And that's too bad.
The upshot is that Superman realizes that he can't actually act on a global scale without being seen as an agent of the US government intruding on foreign soil. In 2011, with a readership no longer comprised mostly of 13 year-olds with a mystical belief that America = Magic, this move actually makes more sense than Superman just buzzing into any airspace he likes and with no expectation of an international incident bubbling up (by the way, they have played up the "international incident caused by Superman's appearance" angle on numerous occasions).
The story is basically: Superman hears that there are pro-democracy protests going on in Tehran, so he hops over to Iran and stands with the protestors (literally stands and takes no action as any action could go wrong or be taken as the start of hostilities). For anyone actually reading the paper in our world, unsurprisingly the Iranian government of Superman's world declares Superman's appearance to be undue meddling from the West, and the visit causes an international incident.
With a mix of satisfaction that he did achieve his goal of supporting pro-democracy protesters and concern regarding how his appearance is being used on the international stage, Superman comes to an unhappy decision regarding his stated citizenship.
Mindful of what he thinks he should be doing versus what he thinks will happen if he did this again, he has to tell the US Government "look, you guys are great, but I'm not going to be responsible for starting a war and I need to help people all over this rock you call Earth." Its not about turning one's back on America, its about a modicum of self-awareness when one is a super-being who sneezes off nuclear weapons.
I've been asked before it bothers me that in Superman Returns the only mention of Truth, Justice and the American Way was shortened to "Truth... Justice... All that stuff". And I've always said that it doesn't really bother me one way or another. The entire catchphrase was added during a particularly jingoistic era, and when you consider Superman as a globe-trotting, occasionally space-faring alien for whom borders and local politics are at best an inconvenience, I think it makes sense he likes the American Way, but he can't necessarily be as efficient as possible if he's having to show his Visa every time he crosses a border.
And so this is a bit different from dropping The American Way from the Superman's motto. While I get what people decide they want to say "The American Way" means (and they aren't necessarily wrong*), that's not what the story is talking about. Its about whether or not rolling a nuclear missile draped in the Stars and Stripes into Tienanmen Square is or is not going to cause the US some political grief. Or, in fact, if Superman need really be beholden to the US State Department or any US service.
Mostly, I don't think DC was wrong to define Superman's citizenship, or a lack thereof. It wasn't a slam on the US or US policy. By even trying to answer the question, in a lot of ways, the 9 page story was a bit of fan-wank. These are the sorts of questions that keep comic geeks awake at night. "If there was a catastrophe in North Korea, would Superman risk war between the US and North Korea to go in and help people? Should he be beholden to Homeland Security travel warnings?" That's the question the Superman of the story was addressing. Frankly, its the sort of anarchic thing Superman might have done in his earliest, most-free-wheeling days when we didn't think of Superman as Dad/ The World's Oldest Boyscout and/ or the writers weren't worried about being called on the mat by Estes Kefauver trying to drum up some political drama.
I am guessing, however, that certain outlets are having kittens today about a couple of panels in a Superman comic. Which is kind of hilarious. Their beloved Superhero (whose comic, I assure you, they will not have read) has turned his back on America!
By the way, these sorts of little homily stories show up all the time as filler in issues with extended page counts. Likely, the story won't get mentioned again anywhere else. And, no, I didn't think that the story was particularly necessary, and if they were going to do it, it could have been handled much, much better.
Funny thing is: I think if you heard Batman didn't recognize borders in his quest for justice, you'd say "right on, man. That guy is a BADASS. Rock'n'roll!" Little harder to do that with Superman (one of his co-creators, by the way, was Canadian, so chew on that for a while).
*we can discuss whether the US has a divine destiny or is particularly magically blessed some other time
Film. Comics. Sci-Fi. Superheroes. Pulp. Noir. History. Superman. 20th Century Archaeology.
Thursday, April 28, 2011
Wednesday, April 27, 2011
Signal Watch Reads: Action Comics #900 part 1
Wow. 900 issues.
I have a few other anniversary issues of Action Comics. 800, 700, 600, 500 and 400. 300 is actually an amazing comic, but I've only ever read the story in reprints.
Its mostly true that Action has mostly been a monthly comic over the duration of its printing life, but it's not true that Action has run 900 issues over 900 months. There was a year or two in there where Action Comics was released as a weekly comic with a Superman lead feature and then back-ups featuring Green Lantern and other heroes. There have been stunts where Action wasn't released for a month or two, which I believe occurred during the Death of Superman event back in the early 1990's, and in the mid-00's, Action went hopelessly off production schedule for a while and just didn't come out for a few months around 2007.
I have a few other anniversary issues of Action Comics. 800, 700, 600, 500 and 400. 300 is actually an amazing comic, but I've only ever read the story in reprints.
Its mostly true that Action has mostly been a monthly comic over the duration of its printing life, but it's not true that Action has run 900 issues over 900 months. There was a year or two in there where Action Comics was released as a weekly comic with a Superman lead feature and then back-ups featuring Green Lantern and other heroes. There have been stunts where Action wasn't released for a month or two, which I believe occurred during the Death of Superman event back in the early 1990's, and in the mid-00's, Action went hopelessly off production schedule for a while and just didn't come out for a few months around 2007.
Two Signal Watch Invitations: Green Lantern-a-thon and POTA-thon
Although not a frame of the new Superman movie has been shot, I have already promised myself that prior to the release of the movie, I will host a SUPER-MARATHON. At this marathon, we will watch the following:
Frankly, and this may surprise some, I own quite a bit of Superman media. I haven't run the numbers, but I figure if I added up all the cartoons, movies, live TV shows, etc... I've got on hand, we could go for about a straight month without pausing (not really, but we could last for a few days). So, you know, I'm trying to be merciful.
Anyway, I plan to watch all the stuff in the list, sleep, and then go see the new Superman.
Its Not Easy Getting Green
But prior to this, we have the Green Lantern movie coming up. And so I am considering a Green Lantern-mini-marathon
So, coming soon (once I clear this with Jamie), I will put out a schedule and the drill will be that you can come by and join me in the marathon if you're here in town, coming and going as you see fit.
APES FEST
I will also be looking into a possible Ape-a-Thon prior to the release of this year's Planet of the Apes sequel. I now have 10 hours of Apes movies on Blu-Ray, and its hard to see me NOT watching all of the Apes movies back-to-back in a 10 hour stretch of pure primate-madness.
But I am also considering a 2-part Apes-a-Thon.
Part 1: All five original Planet of the Apes movies and the cartoon, if I can secure it.
Part 2: APE FESTAPALOOZA: an appreciation of primates in movies
This is actually a preliminary list
If you want to participate in any part of the Marathons, let me know!
- The first installment of the Kirk Alyn-starring Superman serial
- The first episodes of the George Reeves Superman TV show - aka: The Adventures of Superman (also known as Superman and the Mole Men)
- An episode of the 80's Superman cartoon
- An episode of Lois and Clark
- The pilot movie for Superman: The Animated Series
- Superman: The Movie
- Superman II
- Superman III
- Superman IV (yes. Superman IV)
- Superman Returns
Frankly, and this may surprise some, I own quite a bit of Superman media. I haven't run the numbers, but I figure if I added up all the cartoons, movies, live TV shows, etc... I've got on hand, we could go for about a straight month without pausing (not really, but we could last for a few days). So, you know, I'm trying to be merciful.
Anyway, I plan to watch all the stuff in the list, sleep, and then go see the new Superman.
Its Not Easy Getting Green
But prior to this, we have the Green Lantern movie coming up. And so I am considering a Green Lantern-mini-marathon
- the Superman: The Animated Series Green Lantern episode introducing Green Lanterns and Sinestro
- an episode of Superfriends retelling the Green Lantern origin
- key Green Lantern-centric episodes of Justice League and Justice League Unlimited
- Green Lantern: First Flight from Warner Animation
- Green Lantern: Emerald Knights from Warner Animation
- I will also try to secure a copy of the little-seen Justice League live action pilot featuring a dopey Guy Gardner/ Kyle Rayner hybrid
So, coming soon (once I clear this with Jamie), I will put out a schedule and the drill will be that you can come by and join me in the marathon if you're here in town, coming and going as you see fit.
APES FEST
I will also be looking into a possible Ape-a-Thon prior to the release of this year's Planet of the Apes sequel. I now have 10 hours of Apes movies on Blu-Ray, and its hard to see me NOT watching all of the Apes movies back-to-back in a 10 hour stretch of pure primate-madness.
But I am also considering a 2-part Apes-a-Thon.
Part 1: All five original Planet of the Apes movies and the cartoon, if I can secure it.
Part 2: APE FESTAPALOOZA: an appreciation of primates in movies
This is actually a preliminary list
- Any Which Way But Loose
- King Kong (the original and/ or the 1970's version)
- Might Joe Young
- Gorillas in the Mist
- Greystoke: the Legend of Tarzan
If you want to participate in any part of the Marathons, let me know!
Monday, April 25, 2011
No Post Tuesday
Upside for me is that The Dug is here. Downside is that there's no post tonight. Tough noogies, kids.
I dunno. I feel bad for the lack of content. Here's Gloria Grahame.
 |
| The man you can blame who has kept me from blogging. |
Sunday, April 24, 2011
So, then I watched a bunch of stuff I'd already seen before
Saturday evening I had the unique and bizarre experience of watching the entirety of Birdemic with Jamie's parents. We thought they would just want to see the first ten minutes or so in order to understand what we were talking about, and then... we were watching the end of the movie. So, if you're keeping score, that's 3 viewings for Jamie and me, 4 for Doug and now one a piece for Jamie's folks.
James Nguyen owes us something.
We also watched the RiffTrax synched with Return of the Jedi, and given how many times I've seen Jedi, it was nice to see the movie under a bit of a new light.
This evening all five of us headed down to the Alamo Ritz to see a screening of the 1983 feature The Dark Crystal. I assume most of you raised properly on a diet of matinees in the 1980's have seen The Dark Crystal, a Jim Henson feature film that's just an exemplary fantasy flick that may not have even been state-of-the-art in 1983, but is so embedded in classic camera tricks, puppetry, practical effects, etc... that the film is just mindboggling to watch in this day and age. In short - what we'd now create in lush digital, generated by somebody sitting on their duff in a chair somewhere in an office park was actually physically created, with bellows or strings or hydraulics in order to make it work. And when you see that... well, my eyes can forgive the mistakes and flaws pretty when your eye isn't lying to you about the fact that these things are actually there.
I won't lie and say things like "Avatar is a sham! I'm a practical effects purist!" I'm not. Avatar is a sham for completely different reasons, but its a neat thrill ride. I just hate to think of the craftsmanship that's being lost in movie making as the answer is now, invariably, to make sets, non-human characters, etc... out of bits instead of, I guess foam or whatever they used to do for muppets.
And you have to also think: what level of detail are we currently missing as studios go for digital over practical? I mean - I was looking at the costumes and textures and layering on all these characters, and its hard to believe that anyone would think that was a good idea except for people actually cutting and sewing to make things to scale for a movie like this.
Anyhow, it was fun. I should really try to watch something this week I haven't seen before at least twice.
James Nguyen owes us something.
We also watched the RiffTrax synched with Return of the Jedi, and given how many times I've seen Jedi, it was nice to see the movie under a bit of a new light.
This evening all five of us headed down to the Alamo Ritz to see a screening of the 1983 feature The Dark Crystal. I assume most of you raised properly on a diet of matinees in the 1980's have seen The Dark Crystal, a Jim Henson feature film that's just an exemplary fantasy flick that may not have even been state-of-the-art in 1983, but is so embedded in classic camera tricks, puppetry, practical effects, etc... that the film is just mindboggling to watch in this day and age. In short - what we'd now create in lush digital, generated by somebody sitting on their duff in a chair somewhere in an office park was actually physically created, with bellows or strings or hydraulics in order to make it work. And when you see that... well, my eyes can forgive the mistakes and flaws pretty when your eye isn't lying to you about the fact that these things are actually there.
 |
| all of this was made as props and set dressing and muppet |
 |
| This scene is just ridiculous |
 |
| this just looks like a really awkward family photo |
Horus follows up on the question of "culling" and "surrendering" to the mass of possibilities in media
Some of you commented about my post the other day discussing strategies for dealing with the sheer volume of material out there, and what it means to be well-read in 2011. Or if that phrase has meaning anymore. And... thanks! Its an interesting discussion.
Horus popped up over on his site and carried on the conversation, so I think you should go over there and see what the man has to say.
Horus popped up over on his site and carried on the conversation, so I think you should go over there and see what the man has to say.
Star Wars Day at Austin Books and Comics
Today was a pretty cool day at Austin Books and Comics. Actor Richard LaParmentier was in town and came by Austin Books to do a signing. If you're wondering who Richard LaParmentier is, let me remind you:
He's the only guy you see in the the original trilogy talk smack to Vader, and, of course, things go poorly for him.
Once Mr. LaParmentier was on the bill for Saturday, it kind of became a thing, and Austin Books held a very special Star Wars Day! I couldn't believe the crowds, and I really couldn't believe the numbers of kids. Man, little boys and girls still really like Star Wars. And that's pretty cool.
I'm not the Star Wars fan I was until, well... Episode I was released. But I still like a good Storm Trooper, and I'll always have a warm spot in my heart for the original trilogy (and Princess Leia).
I realize looking at these pictures that I waited too long between haircuts, but this is me getting an autograph from the man himself.
I'm not going to scan it, but the picture I had him sign was his profile with the Death Star. He drew a neat little arrow and wrote "my office", pointing to one of the little blips of light on the Death Star. Very clever guy.
He's not looking at the lens in the picture because Jamie and The Doug both lifted cameras at the same time. So, stereoscopic pics, I guess.
Speaking of Jamie and Doug, they got to meet one of their favorite stars of the movies.
I ran into ObiWan while he was looking at some prestige art books. He was kind enough to have his pic taken, but I got to say... I think I have a foot on the Jedi Master.
What I also learned is that when Vader and the 501st show up, you don't take a page from General Motti's book and confront Vader about his policies and hokey religion.
Luckily, Vader did not choke me out.
Anyway, it was a really fun time! And it was great to see so many folks out enjoying the nice day and the fun ABC put together.
I didn't stick around for the signing by the comic writers for the Star Wars comic (not sure when that happened) and I didn't stick around when BioWare came by to recruit for QA personnel. But I think we had a grand time. Austin Books has been a great shop for years, but now its becoming also a hub of pop culture madness here in town. And its kind of great.
And, we wrapped it up this evening with a screening of Return of the Jedi with RiffTrax.
 |
| The fellow on the right, General Motti |
Once Mr. LaParmentier was on the bill for Saturday, it kind of became a thing, and Austin Books held a very special Star Wars Day! I couldn't believe the crowds, and I really couldn't believe the numbers of kids. Man, little boys and girls still really like Star Wars. And that's pretty cool.
I'm not the Star Wars fan I was until, well... Episode I was released. But I still like a good Storm Trooper, and I'll always have a warm spot in my heart for the original trilogy (and Princess Leia).
I realize looking at these pictures that I waited too long between haircuts, but this is me getting an autograph from the man himself.
He's not looking at the lens in the picture because Jamie and The Doug both lifted cameras at the same time. So, stereoscopic pics, I guess.
Speaking of Jamie and Doug, they got to meet one of their favorite stars of the movies.
 |
| Doug and R2 both keep flamethrowers in their torsos |
 |
| Ben Kenobi was really very cool and I think was having a good time |
 |
| right before they led me to the Squad-Speeder for booking |
 |
| late edit: Doug sends along further evidence of Imperial Injustice |
Luckily, Vader did not choke me out.
Anyway, it was a really fun time! And it was great to see so many folks out enjoying the nice day and the fun ABC put together.
I didn't stick around for the signing by the comic writers for the Star Wars comic (not sure when that happened) and I didn't stick around when BioWare came by to recruit for QA personnel. But I think we had a grand time. Austin Books has been a great shop for years, but now its becoming also a hub of pop culture madness here in town. And its kind of great.
And, we wrapped it up this evening with a screening of Return of the Jedi with RiffTrax.
Friday, April 22, 2011
Signal Watch Reads: Superman 710
Superman 710
Written by J. MICHAEL STRACZYNSKI and CHRIS ROBERSON
Art by EDDY BARROWS, TRAVEL FOREMAN and J.P. MAYER
Cover by JOHN CASSADAY; 1:10 Variant cover by ADAM HUGHES
It would be interesting to have been in the room during any number of calls between writer Chris Roberson and editors Matt Idleson and Wil Moss.
J. Michael Straczynski is beloved amongst sci-fi fans for his creation of Babylon 5 (a show I was oddly loyal to during my college years), and wrote the well-regarded film Changeling, which was directed by Clint Eastwood and has a considerable writing career in television and movies. He's also occasionally been a favorite writer in comics, and I was a fan of, oh.... the first half of his work on Amazing Spider-Man.
DC landing JMS was supposed to be a coup. The comic nerderati enthusiasm for the Geoff Johns reboot of Superman with Infinite Crisis had been squandered with the sprawling New Krypton storyline. JMS would arrive, tell some kick-ass Superman stories and all would be well. He had professed publicly to a great love for Superman and told (repeatedly) a story about stopping thieves himself thanks to Superman's inspiration. It was going to be a thing. And then the interviews started to hit...
JMS was planning to send Superman on a 1-year walking tour of the US where he would meet and greet with everyday people. I've already talked about this, and I don't think I need to rehash the details, but... it didn't go well for either JMS or for the readers. I could only be in so much denial about what a misfire the Grounded storyline felt like, even as I could see there was a nugget of a great idea in there.
Roberson, a writer who's star has been on a crazy meteoric rise the past two years, was somehow handed the book, and he's working alchemy, turning lead to gold. Honestly, I had only heard Roberson's name in conjunction with iZombie before I picked up his Superman title and read the first iZombie issue before trade-waiting it.
Again, I don't know what those conversations were like between Roberson and editorial, but he's doing something only a few writers do that I absolutely love, and which Geoff Johns does practically as an art-form. He's taking some of the flubs of the JMS-penned issues and mining them for story points, both including them in the narrative and assuring readers "no, DC did not go completely crazy".
From comments in interviews, it seems Roberson only ever got an outline from editorial as to what JMS planned to do before he basically quit both Superman and Wonder Woman mid-story. So that's a bit of context.
In this issue Superman wanders into Ogden, Utah where he saves a woman from beings truck by a car. Returning her "home", he's directed to an archaeological site, but the real story is the flashback sequence embedded in the issue. Talking to the archaeologist, Superman sees an "S" shield projected onto the clouds with ultraviolet, and flies off to see who is looking for him.
Fair warning: from here on out there are plenty of spoilers
For, really, the first time since Final Crisis, Superman gets to have a chance to speak with Bruce Wayne/ Batman (he had previously spoken with Dick Grayson in the Batman costume about 6 issues ago). The two recall a meeting that took place prior to either assuming their names and costumes, and its a bit of fan-wank, but... Several years ago a one-shot entitled Superman: The Odyssey was released. Mostly forgettable, the one shot did feature a brief meeting of a young Clark Kent and an unnamed Bruce Wayne on the steps of a temple.
Clearly, the same image stuck in Roberson's head that caught in mine, and it was fun to see Roberson take an opportunity to explore that meeting and place it directly into continuity. What follows is a tale of an early meeting of the World's Finest, and how it would presage their careers. The great thing is that, from a fan service perspective, Roberson also namedrops the first meeting "Superman" and "Batman" from Man of Steel, and a short story by Jeph Loeb and Tim Sale in which a young Bruce Wayne is taken on a cross-country trip in the family limo by Alfred, and the tire pops in Smallville.
After a decade of writers coming to Superman with no terrific love for the character and seemingly just hop scotching across titles at DC, its stupendous to see a writer who knows his Superman AND can write around this background as a shared history rather than a tangle of continuity or just namechecking.
While the flashback sequence is great (I won't take anything away from 20-somethings Clark and Bruce taking on a force they don't understand yet as Vandal Savage), the climax really comes as Bruce talks to Clark, and says what we've all been thinking: you're not quite right because you've been grieving.
In the mind's eye of the public (both in the DCU and in our own), Superman does not grieve. But given the events of the Superman titles since the first Brainiac robot showed up a couple of years ago in the Superman books, Superman has a lot to grieve for, and might not even know how to do so. Unlike the original comics in which Superboy lost his parents at the age of 18 and Kandor never ceased to exist, or the movies in which there is no Kandor and Jonathan's death occurs around the age of 18, Superman in this continuity has lost his father and his civilization (and chance for belonging) in one fell swoop.
Its not a stunning revelation, but its also a new era at DC if Batman is allowed to have such a conversation with Superman without shouting at him to get it together. For once, you can see why Superman would bother to talk to Batman outside the context of JLA meetings.
But in having this conversation, Roberson also works some of that alchemy. And this is where I'd refer to how interesting those conversations must have been at the DC offices. Roberson IS a good writer, and he's worked wonders, but I'd love to know if it was him bringing ways to address the problems the readership had with the story or if it was the editors. Frankly, I hope it was Roberson, because the moment of "can we do this?" would have been some serious gold for those of us who like awkward moments.
One of the most derided scenes in early issues of Grounded featured Superman lecturing a man on the street about morality and that man's duty. It went over... poorly. Superman, when will written, wins hearts and minds mostly by example and action, not pedantic lecturing. Roberson's Batman actually refers to the scene and in a bit of metatextual apology to readers tells Superman he was behaving out of character, but we have to forgive him as he forgives himself.
It may be a bit forced or a bit clunky to read months and months later, and will most certainly read better one day in a collected edition where one hasn't pondered that sequence with months inbetween installments, but it does so much to rehabilitate a broken narrative, as so much of what Roberson has written has done.
Flat out, DC can't afford to kowtow to writers anymore if it isn't in service to their staple characters. They can be in the business of name writers, but they also have a longterm duty to first serve their licensed characters to make sure there's a wealth of information that people can enjoy in comics and which can be looked at for treatment in other media. Making these kinds of adjustments mid-story is a pleasure to read, even if it isn't as streamlined as it could be.
And if there was one last bit of gold I enjoyed - it was the suggestion to Superman that a SQUAD of Supermen might be a good thing, too, if Batman was willing to go worldwide.
So, yes, DC... I would read that. And I hope that's where you're going with this whole Doomsday thing.
Oh, right... the art.
I don't know if there's much new to add from previous statements about Barrow's art. I've been very pleased with recent issues, and I think the look is right for the most mainstream Superman book. The flashback sequences also looked pretty great, drawn by Travel Foreman and meant to ape the style of The Odyssey.
Written by J. MICHAEL STRACZYNSKI and CHRIS ROBERSON
Art by EDDY BARROWS, TRAVEL FOREMAN and J.P. MAYER
Cover by JOHN CASSADAY; 1:10 Variant cover by ADAM HUGHES
It would be interesting to have been in the room during any number of calls between writer Chris Roberson and editors Matt Idleson and Wil Moss.
J. Michael Straczynski is beloved amongst sci-fi fans for his creation of Babylon 5 (a show I was oddly loyal to during my college years), and wrote the well-regarded film Changeling, which was directed by Clint Eastwood and has a considerable writing career in television and movies. He's also occasionally been a favorite writer in comics, and I was a fan of, oh.... the first half of his work on Amazing Spider-Man.
DC landing JMS was supposed to be a coup. The comic nerderati enthusiasm for the Geoff Johns reboot of Superman with Infinite Crisis had been squandered with the sprawling New Krypton storyline. JMS would arrive, tell some kick-ass Superman stories and all would be well. He had professed publicly to a great love for Superman and told (repeatedly) a story about stopping thieves himself thanks to Superman's inspiration. It was going to be a thing. And then the interviews started to hit...
JMS was planning to send Superman on a 1-year walking tour of the US where he would meet and greet with everyday people. I've already talked about this, and I don't think I need to rehash the details, but... it didn't go well for either JMS or for the readers. I could only be in so much denial about what a misfire the Grounded storyline felt like, even as I could see there was a nugget of a great idea in there.
Roberson, a writer who's star has been on a crazy meteoric rise the past two years, was somehow handed the book, and he's working alchemy, turning lead to gold. Honestly, I had only heard Roberson's name in conjunction with iZombie before I picked up his Superman title and read the first iZombie issue before trade-waiting it.
Again, I don't know what those conversations were like between Roberson and editorial, but he's doing something only a few writers do that I absolutely love, and which Geoff Johns does practically as an art-form. He's taking some of the flubs of the JMS-penned issues and mining them for story points, both including them in the narrative and assuring readers "no, DC did not go completely crazy".
From comments in interviews, it seems Roberson only ever got an outline from editorial as to what JMS planned to do before he basically quit both Superman and Wonder Woman mid-story. So that's a bit of context.
In this issue Superman wanders into Ogden, Utah where he saves a woman from beings truck by a car. Returning her "home", he's directed to an archaeological site, but the real story is the flashback sequence embedded in the issue. Talking to the archaeologist, Superman sees an "S" shield projected onto the clouds with ultraviolet, and flies off to see who is looking for him.
Fair warning: from here on out there are plenty of spoilers
For, really, the first time since Final Crisis, Superman gets to have a chance to speak with Bruce Wayne/ Batman (he had previously spoken with Dick Grayson in the Batman costume about 6 issues ago). The two recall a meeting that took place prior to either assuming their names and costumes, and its a bit of fan-wank, but... Several years ago a one-shot entitled Superman: The Odyssey was released. Mostly forgettable, the one shot did feature a brief meeting of a young Clark Kent and an unnamed Bruce Wayne on the steps of a temple.
Clearly, the same image stuck in Roberson's head that caught in mine, and it was fun to see Roberson take an opportunity to explore that meeting and place it directly into continuity. What follows is a tale of an early meeting of the World's Finest, and how it would presage their careers. The great thing is that, from a fan service perspective, Roberson also namedrops the first meeting "Superman" and "Batman" from Man of Steel, and a short story by Jeph Loeb and Tim Sale in which a young Bruce Wayne is taken on a cross-country trip in the family limo by Alfred, and the tire pops in Smallville.
After a decade of writers coming to Superman with no terrific love for the character and seemingly just hop scotching across titles at DC, its stupendous to see a writer who knows his Superman AND can write around this background as a shared history rather than a tangle of continuity or just namechecking.
While the flashback sequence is great (I won't take anything away from 20-somethings Clark and Bruce taking on a force they don't understand yet as Vandal Savage), the climax really comes as Bruce talks to Clark, and says what we've all been thinking: you're not quite right because you've been grieving.
In the mind's eye of the public (both in the DCU and in our own), Superman does not grieve. But given the events of the Superman titles since the first Brainiac robot showed up a couple of years ago in the Superman books, Superman has a lot to grieve for, and might not even know how to do so. Unlike the original comics in which Superboy lost his parents at the age of 18 and Kandor never ceased to exist, or the movies in which there is no Kandor and Jonathan's death occurs around the age of 18, Superman in this continuity has lost his father and his civilization (and chance for belonging) in one fell swoop.
Its not a stunning revelation, but its also a new era at DC if Batman is allowed to have such a conversation with Superman without shouting at him to get it together. For once, you can see why Superman would bother to talk to Batman outside the context of JLA meetings.
But in having this conversation, Roberson also works some of that alchemy. And this is where I'd refer to how interesting those conversations must have been at the DC offices. Roberson IS a good writer, and he's worked wonders, but I'd love to know if it was him bringing ways to address the problems the readership had with the story or if it was the editors. Frankly, I hope it was Roberson, because the moment of "can we do this?" would have been some serious gold for those of us who like awkward moments.
One of the most derided scenes in early issues of Grounded featured Superman lecturing a man on the street about morality and that man's duty. It went over... poorly. Superman, when will written, wins hearts and minds mostly by example and action, not pedantic lecturing. Roberson's Batman actually refers to the scene and in a bit of metatextual apology to readers tells Superman he was behaving out of character, but we have to forgive him as he forgives himself.
It may be a bit forced or a bit clunky to read months and months later, and will most certainly read better one day in a collected edition where one hasn't pondered that sequence with months inbetween installments, but it does so much to rehabilitate a broken narrative, as so much of what Roberson has written has done.
Flat out, DC can't afford to kowtow to writers anymore if it isn't in service to their staple characters. They can be in the business of name writers, but they also have a longterm duty to first serve their licensed characters to make sure there's a wealth of information that people can enjoy in comics and which can be looked at for treatment in other media. Making these kinds of adjustments mid-story is a pleasure to read, even if it isn't as streamlined as it could be.
And if there was one last bit of gold I enjoyed - it was the suggestion to Superman that a SQUAD of Supermen might be a good thing, too, if Batman was willing to go worldwide.
So, yes, DC... I would read that. And I hope that's where you're going with this whole Doomsday thing.
Oh, right... the art.
I don't know if there's much new to add from previous statements about Barrow's art. I've been very pleased with recent issues, and I think the look is right for the most mainstream Superman book. The flashback sequences also looked pretty great, drawn by Travel Foreman and meant to ape the style of The Odyssey.
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