Hardly. It's all a matter of personal opinion. It worked for me; it didn't work for you. Some comics are unquestionably bad, and some are unquestionably good. This one had lots of good and lots of bad. Plenty of room for questioning.



I don't have the issue in front of me, but I believe he says something to the effect that he knew it wasn't really them, not that this makes much sense. And then, if the guy has super speed, how did they catch him by surprise at all?

Really, in spite of all the efforts to de-power the guy, Superman is still too powerful for most conflicts to be at all believable for him. Maybe that's why the Superman Office spent most of its time up until now down-playing the significance of his battles and playing up the human drama instead. A deadline is a far more believable threat for Clark than a giant robot.


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Yeah. Again, he was really written out of character on this one, and I have to wonder if someone was ghost scripting for Jurgens.




Byrne was never given the choice. Contrary to how he sells his own involvement in the franchise, the rules of the Post Crisis reboot were already decided upon by Frank Miller, Steve Gerber, Andy Helfer, and Marv Wolfman long before Byrne signed on to the project. Byrne always wanted to bring back the Pre-Crisis components of the Superman franchise, and once he was squarely in charge of the Superman Office, he began reintroducing those more fantastic elements (including Mxyzptlk and a Pocket Universe Superboy) by the fall of 1987.




That's a really good point. Maybe this had been a file story, written by Jurgens in 1990 amidst all the crossover and cross-continuity madness, that finally found publication here. Assuming #473's guest appearance of Guy Gardner and Hal Jordan was a sales decision and not Jurgens' idea, and considering that Jurgens is trying to create a tradition with making the first issue of each year a social issues story, this was really the first "free" issue Jurgens has had in nine months. I'd concluded previously that some of the 1990 crossovers seemed to have been planned last minute (Soul Search, in particular, disrupted stories that were already in progress), so this could easily have been an older story that had been gathering dust for a while, maybe even Jurgens' first script for the office since it's so inconsistent in characterization.

EDIT: I just did a little more looking and realized Jurgens had only ever written one story prior to this that was neither part of an inter-title crossover nor a guest hero issue presumably mandated to boost sales (The Hank Henshaw story in #466 and #468). It's possible he was getting input/help from others on the crossovers, and that this is what his own solo work looks like at this early point.

Or it's a solo story he'd been sitting on, written over a year earlier, when he thought he was going to have more independence as a writer.

Either way, you're right that it doesn't fit.



I didn't realize he had his origins in the Pre-Crisis. Yes, the Western "Pard'ner" bit is a tad forced, but characters are often a little awkward in their first few appearances. It's more the execution that is awkward than the idea itself; I can see it working better down the road.



Oh god no.

It's really not the character that I mind, though. It's that acknowledging his existence means acknowledging the story in which he was first introduced, and I truly want to forget.

You didn't know about the original Terra-Man? Well, hang on pard'ner..........













His debut is even witnessed by Archie and da Dingbat......



The only thing that anyone remembers fondly is that origin story, with Neal Adams art, which got reprinted in the Sacret Origins of Super-Villains limited collector's edition...



(Just once I want to see someone spoof that layout with someone tripping)

I want Terra-Man in the next attempt at a Superman film and I want him played by "Stone Cold" Steve Austin......

"Hell, son; you go paradin' around in your blue tights and little red cape, spoutin' your proverbs and folksy sayin's; well Terra-Man 3:16 says I just whooped your ass!"

"And that's the bottom line 'cause Tera-Man said so!"

Real Funny ... LOL

Action Comics #662 to me it is a noteworthy issue of Clark revealing to Lois that he is Superman; but you mentioned that it is a lame way of (the execution) it is puzzling why you say that. I think this issue is groundbreaking, epic, and revelation of it was truly a memorable issue I may add here.

I've always liked this cover. Maybe it's Kerry Gammil's art, maybe it's Lois' hairstyle (I seriously love many of those late '80s/early '90s female hairstyles).

Seriously, why wasn't Gammil doing the interiors of these issues? He's a far better illustrator than McLeod.

Elsewhere on these boards is a thread discussing the question of whether or not DC "de-uniqued" their characters with their multiple iterations of Superman, Batman, etc.  It isn't entirely relevant to this one, but it does help explain why I can't get excited about this issue's big revelation - given how many Superman's there have been since Crisis (post-Crisis, post-Birthright, Secret Origins, Flashpoint, whatever came after Flashpoint, etc) , it's impossible for me to think of any of these guys as anything but impermanent imitations of an imitation.  I'm saying this not to knock this issue or dismiss its importance to the history Shaxper is chronicling here, but to instead establish that my opinion isn't being influenced by a "well, any issue that's as important as this must be spectacular" attitude you get when wearing rose-colored glasses.  To me, this is just a story and with that said...

I actually really liked this one.

I read it when it came out and while The Silver Banshee may only have limited potential, I can certainly vouch for the fact that she makes a great first impression.  Of course, as this issue notes, this is something like her fourth appearance, but you know, I can certainly see why DC tried to make her a foe who would appear with some regularity.  The strength of Superman's Rogues Gallery never really lay in its numbers but in its diversity.  Though it's pretty slim pickings after you get past Luthor, Brainiac, Mxyzptlk, Bizarro, Parasite, Metallo, Toyman, and The Prankster, there does still seem to be an adversary for any type of story a writer might want to conjure up.  You want an epic, high stakes, yarn which taxes Superman's might and intellect while hitting at the very core of his identity, you've got Luthor; a sci-fi space opera with all sorts of alien beings in the background, you have Brainiac; surrealism - Mxyzptlk; comedy - Bizarro; a simple slug-fest, Metallo; a let's see what Superman can do without his powers yarn - Parasite; you could even bring in Terra-man for a western shoot-out. But...

Superman doesn't really have a supernatural foe and for a version of the guy who doesn't run into kryptonite as much as the previous guy did, that's probably a missed opportunity since kryptonite and magic are supposed to be his two weaknesses.  Where is the go-to villain for 'Superman fights the supernatural'?  Sure, The Silver Banshee might not have much going for her beyond a great look, but it would be weird if DC didn't at least try to do something with her.

On the other hand, her appearance here underscores the fact that she doesn't really have an interest in being Superman's foe, of course, and that hurts the character.  It sort of feels like having Superman go up against The Riddler, for instance - sure, he's the issue's bad guy and that guy's Superman so of course they're going to do battle, but you sort of have to wonder why the writer is deciding to go with that particular villain at this particular moment.  I'll agree that on this score, The Silver Banshee makes an odd opponent, but at the same time, she does provide certain attractions as well:

1.  At the same time that Superman is contemplating the rest of his life, The Silver Banshee almost kills him effortlessly.  A villain who could kill Superman with but a scream?  Whatever else you might think of her, she is a hell of a threat.  Having Superman seem so mortal nicely validates the worry Lois will have to endure as Mrs. Superman.  Past stories always stressed the threats Superman's lifestyle would bring to Lois' life - this one makes it clear that it's actually Lois who should be worrying.  Superman almost dies when The Banshee takes him unawares as Clark Kent, he only survives because she couldn't see through his disguise.  When they meet at The Daily Planet, she once again handles him with ease and renders him comatose instantly.  When he recovers, it's implied that he only survived her final attack through the dumb luck of not putting down the magical axe he took from her.  It's hard buying into the idea that a Lois married to Superman would be analogous to a police officer's wife worrying whether her husband will come home safe that evening - he's Superman, after all - but it works.

2.  The nighttime setting of this tale coupled with the element of the supernatural just makes this issue feel... errie.  This isn't quite a horror tale, but it isn't sunny Metropolis with the lights turned out either.  There are things lurking in the shadows; a fist through a door at the most seemingly innocuous moment; lights going out; a Metropolis that's, well, a metropolis which seems so sparsely populated at this time of night - it's a weird juxtaposition to the intimate set-up at the start and end of the story.  It starts so warm and cozy and just leads to something unusual for a Superman story.

By the way, I credit Bob McLeod for this and I'm baffled by the thought that anyone could take issue with his work.  His characters are attractive without looking glamourous or striking weird poses; they convey real emotions - whether it be Clark's pensiveness as he prepares to tell Lois his secret or Lois seeming to mentally trail off to some distant memory as she recalls her family life or even her 'be careful' utterance when she accepts that Clark has to "find Superman" seeming like it's being delivered by a wearied, worn down human being who is accepting that the person she loves will regularly be in danger - McLeod just seems like the kind of artist who is constantly thinking about how his characters should feel at all times.  Whatever it is Shaxper's seeing, I'm completely missing it.

A few points raised by Shaxper that I want to address:

- Let's move on from the question of why top reporter Lois Lane couldn't figure out Clark's secret on her own and discuss how an ENTIRE OFFICE full of the top reporters in the world can't pick up a major clue about who's been living among them from this comment "What chicanery is this?!  His psychic imprint lingers on these very walls but he is nowhere to be found!  Where is he?  Where?!"

I'm sure they're going to be discussing this story for days after at the water cooler, but I guess no one's going to say, "Why'd she attack us again? Oh yeah, she said she sensed Superman all over our office. Well that's strange; I don't think he's ever been here..."

OK, at no point does The Silver Banshee mention Superman and as you've noted, Superman doesn't really have a connection to The Daily Planet that anyone knows about (beyond appearing in their papers).  I guess you could ask, "well, who else would an enemy of Superman be looking for?" but I'm going to have to still say that it would be weird if anyone - even seasoned reporters - made the jump from 'Where is he?' to 'Oh yeah, she must be talking about Superman'.  Mxyztplk?  Brainiac?  Sure, absolutely "he" = "Superman" but who is The Silver Banshee anyway?  Does the public even know who she is other than someone who does a bunch of unexplainable things and has to be stopped by Superman because that's what Superman does?  When she first appeared, she tore up bookstore after bookstore shouting "Where is it?  Where is it?!, when next she shows up it's to do the same before fighting a member of the McDougall clan who looked like Thor, and her third appearance likely didn't make the papers.  "Where is it?!  Where is he?!  Where am I?!" just seems like the ravings of a crazy, albeit powerful, lunatic who could be looking for the ghost of Leif Erickson for all anyone knows.  Again, The Daily Planet doesn't have any connection with Superman, therefore why make the leap in logic?

I do think it's a bit lame that while Mary Jane can piece it together with common sense, top reporter Lois Lane can't solve the mystery for herself even while written as being empowered and every bit Clark's equal in this Post-Crisis reboot. If the powers that be were going to allow her to know the secret, she deserved the right to learn it on her own, or to at least have suspected. She is caught so very blind-sided here.

I think Byrne kind of made this impossible with his revelation that Lois simply believed that Clark Kent and Superman were brothers both raised by the Kents. I can't remember the issue (one of his last Actions, I believe) but it's pretty hard to go anywhere from there.  Lois did suspect, did point blank ask Clark if he were Superman, and did get an answer.  Because that answer was so nonsensical (was Superman raised in an attic with a blanket over his head while Clark went to school, played football, and hung out with friends; why do neither of them ever act like they're brothers or seem to know anything about one another the way brothers would; how does 'We, The Kents, discovered and raised Superman as a baby to adulthood' hide the fact that The Kents discovered and raised Superman as a baby to adulthood which is the whole point of a secret identity?; etc, etc, etc) there was no way to go forward with Lois suspecting Clark's secret without dredging up Byrne's convoluted mess.  I think it was probably best to leave it be.

Plus, Superman isn't so much keeping his identity a secret from Lois so much as not telling her.  Semantics?  Maybe, but there is a subtle difference.  "Er, um, uh, me?  Superman?  er, uh, ha ha, what a crazy imagination you have Lois!" is alright if Clark and Lois are co-workers but once they're engaged, it's unethical for Superman to expect Lois to invest herself emotionally in him while lying to her.  Sure, he's still deceiving her by not bringing the subject up, but outright lying to her as she gets closer to the truth?  That's pretty ugly.  You don't like that splash of Clark Kent pulling open his shirt in front of Lois now?  Imagine replacing Clark's dialogue with "GOTCHA!" instead.  I think it works here only because Clark has been avoiding the truth rather than twisting it.  You know, perhaps that's why their engagement came out of the blue.  Had we seen Clark and Lois fall in love over a period of time and move towards engagement at a natural pace, it would have meant seeing Clark deceive Lois far too often for us to still think of him as the good guy.  A couple of issues of deceit?  Weellllll, OK, maybe, but 20 or 30 issues?  Probably not.

And while I think McLeod's art is great, I will also agree that Gamill's cover is fantastic.