Superman in the Post-Crisis Era (reviews by shaxper)
Aug 12, 2020 23:16:09 GMT -5
chaykinstevens likes this
Post by shaxper on Aug 12, 2020 23:16:09 GMT -5
Superman: The Man of Steel #2 (August 1991)
"The Kid Who Talks to Superman"
Script: Louise Simonson
Pencils: Jon Bogdanove
Inks: Dennis Janke
Colors: Glenn Whitmore
Letters: Bill Oakley
Grade: D
Two issues in, and problems are already apparent. Whereas every other Superman title is weaving one continuous narrative right now, with B plots progressing throughout all three titles, there's absolutely none of that visible here. Jimmy's employment hunt aside, it's all A plot, and even much of that isn't jibing with what's happening in Superman's other three titles right now.
For example, the folks at The Planet are worried they won't get the raises they asked for.
The unnamed (and never before depicted) colleague who articulate this concern is so stressed that she leaves for the day. C'mon, Simonson. It was in this very title last month where Foswell announced layoffs:
incidentally, this new unnamed colleague was nowhere to be seen in those panels among the old familiar supporting cast
so it's a little weird to be worrying about raises if you weren't already worried about losing your job.
But the inconsistencies don't stop there. Let's talk a little bit about how Simonson has Superman talk in this issue:
Superman suddenly uses more slang/contractions
Minor, maybe, but I just can't hear Superman saying "gonna".
I definitely can't hear him saying "omigod"
and (my personal favorite) he calls the bad guy a "jerk"
Oh, and while I'm sure this was totally unintentional, it's more than a little troubling to see Superman refer to a Black child as "boy" and then proceed to note that he's "more guts than brains".
Yikes.
Come on. How was Carlin letting this stuff through? this Superman is just so not the same guy I've been reading for the past few years.
And, dialing back to that last panel I posted, let's talk about Jon Bogdanove's contributions here, a bit. Better yet, just look at them:
Oh, his art manages to hit it right exactly twice in this issue, but even then I think it's just mostly decent shot composition, with Janke's inks compensating for the rest:
I have zero confidence in this creative team after only two issues. I love Simonson, but her work does not fit this office, and Bogdanove...!
As for the plot, there isn't all that much of one. The unfolding mystery of Cerberus is progressing at a snail's pace. I did, however, love the basic conceit that was the foundation of this story -- the child who prays to Superman as a guardian angel.
It's very very cute when it isn't being kinda' sorta' inadvertently racist. The most recent issue of Adventures of Superman introduced an aspiring black journalist that, after only one page, you just knew was someone important and worth watching out for:
while this story asks us to pity the homeless, parentless black kid with more guts than brains.
Well intended, but damn embarrassing in hindsight.
Minor Details:
- Okay, so did Lois' colleague die in that missile attack? The story doesn't bother to mention casualties. Sure, Superman averts some of it, but there's still an explosion and massive fire.
- What a lucky coincidence Superman showed up JUST as Jimmy was about to pass out from smoke inhalation
except that all the other Superman titles have been making a big point as of late about how Jimmy is wearing the signal watch again. I guess that's another memo Simonson didn't get, as well as an error that Carlin missed.
- Where'd Superman's cape go for the first quarter of this issue?
Sure, he was rescuing Jimmy from a fire, but he didn't know he was about to go save someone from a fire, and even if he did, he's wearing the cape later in the story when he goes out, planning to prevent the city being burnt to the ground by Cerberus.
I've often said of Louise Simonson that I deeply respect her ideas but often find her execution clumsy. Unfortunately, in this case, the lack of coordination between this title and the other three really takes my disappointment with the story to a whole other level, and that's without even discussing Bogdanove.
"The Kid Who Talks to Superman"
Script: Louise Simonson
Pencils: Jon Bogdanove
Inks: Dennis Janke
Colors: Glenn Whitmore
Letters: Bill Oakley
Grade: D
Two issues in, and problems are already apparent. Whereas every other Superman title is weaving one continuous narrative right now, with B plots progressing throughout all three titles, there's absolutely none of that visible here. Jimmy's employment hunt aside, it's all A plot, and even much of that isn't jibing with what's happening in Superman's other three titles right now.
For example, the folks at The Planet are worried they won't get the raises they asked for.
The unnamed (and never before depicted) colleague who articulate this concern is so stressed that she leaves for the day. C'mon, Simonson. It was in this very title last month where Foswell announced layoffs:
incidentally, this new unnamed colleague was nowhere to be seen in those panels among the old familiar supporting cast
so it's a little weird to be worrying about raises if you weren't already worried about losing your job.
But the inconsistencies don't stop there. Let's talk a little bit about how Simonson has Superman talk in this issue:
Superman suddenly uses more slang/contractions
Minor, maybe, but I just can't hear Superman saying "gonna".
I definitely can't hear him saying "omigod"
and (my personal favorite) he calls the bad guy a "jerk"
Oh, and while I'm sure this was totally unintentional, it's more than a little troubling to see Superman refer to a Black child as "boy" and then proceed to note that he's "more guts than brains".
Yikes.
Come on. How was Carlin letting this stuff through? this Superman is just so not the same guy I've been reading for the past few years.
And, dialing back to that last panel I posted, let's talk about Jon Bogdanove's contributions here, a bit. Better yet, just look at them:
Oh, his art manages to hit it right exactly twice in this issue, but even then I think it's just mostly decent shot composition, with Janke's inks compensating for the rest:
I have zero confidence in this creative team after only two issues. I love Simonson, but her work does not fit this office, and Bogdanove...!
As for the plot, there isn't all that much of one. The unfolding mystery of Cerberus is progressing at a snail's pace. I did, however, love the basic conceit that was the foundation of this story -- the child who prays to Superman as a guardian angel.
It's very very cute when it isn't being kinda' sorta' inadvertently racist. The most recent issue of Adventures of Superman introduced an aspiring black journalist that, after only one page, you just knew was someone important and worth watching out for:
while this story asks us to pity the homeless, parentless black kid with more guts than brains.
Well intended, but damn embarrassing in hindsight.
Minor Details:
- Okay, so did Lois' colleague die in that missile attack? The story doesn't bother to mention casualties. Sure, Superman averts some of it, but there's still an explosion and massive fire.
- What a lucky coincidence Superman showed up JUST as Jimmy was about to pass out from smoke inhalation
except that all the other Superman titles have been making a big point as of late about how Jimmy is wearing the signal watch again. I guess that's another memo Simonson didn't get, as well as an error that Carlin missed.
- Where'd Superman's cape go for the first quarter of this issue?
Sure, he was rescuing Jimmy from a fire, but he didn't know he was about to go save someone from a fire, and even if he did, he's wearing the cape later in the story when he goes out, planning to prevent the city being burnt to the ground by Cerberus.
I've often said of Louise Simonson that I deeply respect her ideas but often find her execution clumsy. Unfortunately, in this case, the lack of coordination between this title and the other three really takes my disappointment with the story to a whole other level, and that's without even discussing Bogdanove.
