Loving the reviews Shaxper. This is/was the only time i truly followed Superman in any form. Before Byrne i would pick up the occasional Superman issue and bought more of DC Presents depending upon a cover catching my attention of a flip through at the Circle K or 7-11. The best part of Superman before Byrne being the Curt Swan art for me. Once Byrne came aboard i was picking up every Superman title as now there was a flow and continuity to the stories and more varied "big name" artists (who would turn away from a Perez or Ordway or Jurgens drawn Supes?) making their mark. Yes, it was somewhat more drawn out soap opera at times but within all of that there was in general more adventurous and creative fun occurring. Some of the fun was the thrill of the hunt for me running through my neighborhood stores and stores around my college at the time searching for the elusive triangle # issue i was missing and being able to hit the then expanding comic book stores to get whatever i couldn't locate. 

Ouch, only a C+?  This was one of those books that made me hear the Williams theme in my head as I read it...

With a title of "Wayward Son", you should be hearing Kansas.



I didn't know Alan Moore was in the band.

Nah, that's Supernaturals thing.

Superman #43



"The Evil Factory"

story/pencils: Jerry Ordway
inks: Dennis Janke
colors: Glenn Whitmore
letters: John Costanza
assoc. editor: Jon Peterson
editor: Mike Carlin
"Evil Factory" created by Jack Kirby

grade: B


Another (and hopefully the last) "clean-up issue" that exists largely to wipe the slate clean, finally resolving the matter of Jimmy's missing dad (he dead) and mom (she not), putting the Project Cadmus stuff to bed for the moment, and (most importantly) returning Clark's life to normal in the wake of Day of the Krypton Man (and, by the way, advertising the introduction of "The Kryptonite Man" an issue after the conclusion of "Day of the Krypton Man" isn't going to confuse anyone, right?).

Sure enough, the issue begins with Superman helping to restore the Statue of Liberty, the top half of which was transported to the moon during Day of the Krypton Man. And yet, so much like the transporting of the top half of the statue, I find myself asking what the point was for all these things Ordway has stirred up and then put so much work into putting back into place shortly after. Looking at this issue, what was the point of The Krypton Man? He shows up, he doesn't really want to fight Superman, and he's gone. For several months now, I've noted that Ordway seems far more concerned with following and resolving plot points than actually telling a story and so, much like the tidal wave that hit Metropolis a few months back, stuff happens, but none of it seems to further any dramatic purpose. We don't get a rich story out of it. Ordway says "Here's some stuff happening -- and now I'll clean it all up."

That said, one thing Ordway does get right in this story that isn't really telling a story is his characterizations. Simyan and Mokkari come off like an old married couple in a subtle but endearing way that's hard to capture in a single scan:



Never having read the original stories, I wonder if this was suggested by Kirby or was entirely Ordway's doing?


Similarly, the subtle characterization of The Kryptonite Man, a clone of Superman reluctantly forced to be evil but, somehow, instinctively more noble like Superman himself, was quite endearing.



I love that, in the end, when he and Sumyan and Mokkari are trapped in the colorless zone, he goes to rescue them, declaring "This looks like a job for..." I'm then left to wonder what the implications are if Superman's character is somehow a part of his genetics and not the result of life experiences and choices, but I don't think Ordway really intended to open that can of worms.


And I'll admit to being surprised by the revelation of just how small Simyan and Mokkari were.



Ordway did an excellent job of manipulating perspective for the past several issues; I did not see this coming. It allows their final undoing to be played for laughs (something Ordway's been doing well lately). Looking at the Dc Wikia though, it doesn't appear that their size remained canon after this appearance.

I particularly enjoyed seeing Mrs. Olsen smile while believing she was killing them because "don't tell me they didn't deserve it." I was just listening to the 1940 Superman radio show the other night, where Mrs. Olsen is a helpless little widow being intimidated by gangsters, declaring "oh dear" and cowering every five seconds. I like this new interpretation a lot better.


And, of course, how could I get this far in the review without discussing this moment (or at least scanning and embedding it here)?:




So not only has Ordway cleaned up the messes in Clark's personal life, but he's actually moving it forward to a place where Clark's Pre_Crisis counterpart was never permitted to arrive. Byrne was hinting we'd eventually get here as far back as Man of Steel #4 , but it's finally happening.


Important Details:

- Clark's life is generally returned to normal. He's been rehired by The Daily Planet, though now he's a freelancer (which makes a LOT more sense; it probably always should have been that way in the Post-Crisis), and he and Lois have agreed to a first date. All that's left unresolved are his relationship with Lana Lang, his being evicted from his apartment, and whatever bad reputation he may have made for himself over at Newstime.


- Superman does not know why the green Kryptonite that the Kryptonite Man (never actually called this within the story) was made from did not affect him. He takes a sample of the same ineffective Kryptonite, lying around the exterior of The Evil Factory, for analysis. Where are they going with this? Mxyzptlk already gave us red Kryptonite in Adventures of Superman #463, so what's this variation of Kryptonite going to do?


- Ordway acknowledges in the letter page that the laboratory from Superman #1, containing all of Superman's secrets, is still orbiting the Earth. I've been waiting A LONG TIME to see that one resolved.


- Ordway comments on the "Still only 75 cents" move the Superman office has made for 1990, stating that:



Sounds like the creative staff was onboard with (or even pushed for) this decision, cutting into their own royalties. I recently determined by looking at the Statement of Ownership numbers that sales for the Superman books were actually UP at this point, beyond the numbers at the beginning of Byrne's run which, themselves, were higher than the numbers during the Pre-Crisis run, so sales weren't low by any means. I'm therefore guessing the intent was to beat out Batman's sales (this was 1990 and Superman had recently slipped to being DC's #2 hero) and make Superman #1 again. Of course, we know in hindsight that won't actually happen until 1993 and, even then, only fleetingly and because of a promotional stunt.



Minor Details:

- What was Simyan and Mokkari's ultimate goal? Yeah, they wanted Superman dead, but only because he'd interfered in their operations. What was the intended end result of creating these monsters and setting them loose?

- Superman engages a potential enemy atop The Daily Planet by coming out of The Planet's roof access door? Isn't that going to raise questions about what he was doing inside of The Planet building? I mean, couldn't he just leap out a window and fly up to the roof instead??

- I respect this Superman clone not automatically having his costume, and really, why would Simyan and Mokkari bother to duplicate it?

- Yup, only one issue after Superman returns to wearing a conventional costume, his cape is already getting torn up again.

- How did The Kryptonite Man end up in the colorless zone at the end? Simyan and Mokkari teleport him back to The Evil Factory, and then we never see him again until the end of the issue, where he is with them in the colorless zone.

- In a recent letter in regard to a previous issue, a fan suggested to Ordway that it was offensive to have a bunch of Construction Workers all calling our hero "Sooperman" as if they were all ignorant. In response to that, Ordway offers this fun moment on the first page:





Ordway still struggles with how to actually tell a story, but I admire his commitment to continuity and enjoy his humor and art.



plot synopsis: Superman helps to restore The Statue of Liberty in the wake of "Day of the Krypton Man," Simyan and Mokkari complete their clone of Superman and teleport it to the roof of The Daily Planet with orders to kill Superman. Just then, Guardian and Jimmy Olsen show up at their hideout, forcing them to engage in two battles at once. They then teleport the Superman clone back to them so that it can help fend off the intruders but accidentally bring Superman along with it. During the struggle, Mrs. Olsen's confinement is broken and she uses one of their own devices on them, seemingly killing them but actually sending them to the colorless zone (along with The Kryptonite Man, somehow?). Somewhere along the line, Jose Delgado accepts a bodyguard job in order to stay afloat financially, Clark gets his job back at The Planet, and Lois accepts his invitation for a date.

Adventures of Superman #466



"The Limits of Power"

writer and layouts: Dan Jurgens
finishes: Dick Giordano
letters: Albert Deguzman
colors; Glenn Whitmore
assoc. editor: Jon Peterson
editor: Mike Carlin

grade: B-


I'm seeing a trend in this month's Superman titles. Both Ordway's Kryptonite Man story in Superman and this story here had a lot of buildup but ultimately concluded far too quickly with very little accomplished. Considering that it's huge news and yet only first being mentioned this month, I'm guessing next month's Dark Knight Over Metropolis storyline was a last minute addition, forcing Ordway, Jurgens, and Stern to immediately wrap up the storylines they'd planned to tell once Day of the Krypton Man resolved itself.

As a result, there isn't much to this story beyond it being Hank Henshaw's first full appearance (he made a cameo last month) and origin story. Essentially, it's a clear nod to Marvel's Fantastic Four



with a more thought-out Modern Age explanation for their powers. We have a guy made of pure radiation who looks like The Human Torch, an unspeaking mass that was once their quick-to-anger pilot who comes across as a more tragic Thing, the wife of the leader/scientist who is fading into another dimension, giving her the basic powers of The Invisible Girl, and the leader/scientist himself, Hank Henshaw, who is the only one not to receive a power that coincides with the original Fantastic Four. In fact, we're never told what his power is beyond watching his skin peel off



and watching him slowly lose his mind




These two factors provide Jurgens with an out for bringing Henshaw back after Dark Knight Over Metropolis (though no suggestion is offered anywhere in this issue that the story isn't over)



He could still be alive (though wouldn't Superman be able to hear his heart beating?) and he might be deranged enough to want to fake his death.



Jurgens' treatment of two of the astronauts is remarkably endearing and tragic:





but the whole thing just comes off as rushed and a tad pointless. What was the purpose of introducing a team that Superman fails to save from death by the close? The title of the story would suggest Superman should somehow be affected by this, but he isn't. He goes right back to Lois' apartment and does this without batting an eye:




which is hugely important, in and of itself, but comes off as a serious FU to the A storyline of this issue. Again, Hank is coming back in two issues, but nothing about this one suggests the story will continue. It just appears to resolve itself completely unsatisfactorily.

I have to admit the kiss caught me off-guard. I'd always thought that Superman #46 had been Clark and Lois' first kiss. This one seems...rushed. Keep in mind that, while fans of the classic Superman have always wanted to see these two get together, we haven't seen them spend all that much time together in the Post-Crisis. There have been a few striking moments of romantic tension, but there was no natural progression to this specific point. With all the inward reflection Superman has done as of late, we've never once seen him thinking of this, or even considering the point Maxima made just recently in Action Comics that she was the only woman around who was genetically capable of procreating with him. I suppose the implicit point is that seeing Henshaw and his crew die made him decide that life is short, but that still makes this moment pretty abrupt. It feels imposed instead of the culmination of careful long-term development, something this office is usually quite good at.

Who knows though? We haven't seen Lois' reaction to this kiss yet.


Important Details:

- Clark and Lois' first kiss (note: Superman and Lois' first kiss was way back during Superman and The Earth Stealers)

- Some early Byrne stories suggested that Superman had an advanced understanding of technology and sciences, but that is either not the case or it has significant limitations, as he has no idea how to help the astronauts in this story, stating that, "if only I knew more about Krypton's advanced sciences, I might be able to cure him."



Minor Details:

- I generally love Dick Giordano's inking, but Jurgens' faces look SO MUCH better when finished by Art Thibert.

- FINALLY we have acknowledgement that Jimmy Olsen and Lucy Lane's having previously dated is still in continuity:




- Jurgens isn't letting Clark off the hook as easily as Ordway did. He's still going to face some consequences for leaving The Planet the way that he did while under the influence of The Eradicator Device:







Plot synopsis: Hank Henshaw's spaceship crashes on Earth and the four astronauts begin to gain fantastic powers akin to The Fantastic Four. They head to Metropolis and Lexcorp for help. Clark and Lois begin their date, but Perry interrupts with an urgent assignment for Lois, leaving Clark behind since he's only freelance now. Meanwhile, Mannheim makes it clear to Morgan Edge that Intergang will still help him but is no longer under his control. We also learn that Jose Delgado's bodyguard job is protecting Cat Grant during the Morgan Edge trial. Soon after, Superman arrives at Lexcorp to figure out what is happening with the super-powered astronauts attacking there. He hears their story and attempts to help, but he is too late to save all but one of them (Hank Henshaw's wife). One loses his mind and flies into the sun, another commits suicide via Magnetic Resonance Imaging Booth, and Hank Henshaw simply appears to die naturally. Clark then returns to Lois' apartment and, upon her return, he tells her he wants things to move forward and kisses her, all while Jose Delgado watches from the hallway.