Action Comics #1052 review

The unveiling of the new Steelworks building in Metropolis has been hit by an explosion, and Metallo has risen from the wreckage. Luckily the entire Super Family is on the scene. While our two Steels – Natasha and John Henry Irons – get in some good blows, it’s Superman who ends the immediate Metallo threat with a different kind of blow.

Kudos to Phillip Kennedy Johnson for giving us one of Superman’s lesser-seen powers, freeze breath. And how cool does it look as depicted by illustrator Rafa Sandoval and colourist Matt Herms? They do a similarly great job with the other story beats. These include a Super Family conflab about why Steelworks was targeted by, likely, Lex Luthor acting as Metallo’s puppet master.

Ha, that’s what I thought too!

Meanwhile, Metallo drifts in space where he’s been punched by Superman, dreaming of a dark incident from his childhood that’s given a lovely nostalgic air by Sandoval and Herms. Metallo, aka John Corben, returns to Earth at the bidding of his sister Tracey, who has been kidnapped by Lex Luthor to force him to do his bidding – the deal was that if he attacked Steelworks, she’d get her freedom.

I don’t think that’s a live projection of Tracey, I reckon it’s a deep fake.

Johnson’s dialogue conveys the desperation Metallo is feeling, while the artists give us a chilling depiction of space, as Metallo floats, weightless.

The story ends on a note of foreboding, as Metallo encounters members of the alien-hating Blue Earth movement.

The bigots also come up in my favourite scene, as Superman’s explanation of his secret identity to the super ‘twins’ (they aren’t actually the same age) the Kents have taken in sparks a question about the Blue Earthers. The girl, Otho, has been putting on a brave face, but her sleeping mode puts the lie to the idea that she’s totally relaxed now she’s escaped Warworld, where Mongul’s slaves were conditioned to embrace chains as a sign of strength.

A surprising moment sees Superman argue that Lex isn’t behind the return of Metallo,

Surely Superman knows Lex is tricky enough to fake innocence?

Our hero’s usual level of wisdom is present and correct in that scene in which he gives Otho his thoughts – lettered by the splendid Dave Sharpe – on bigotry. And there’s a wonderfully playful moment, nicely staged by Sandoval, as Lois and Clark teach the kids about oral hygiene.

One thing this latest instalment of the Never-ending Battle doesn’t have is an explanation as to why everyone is hanging around Lois and Clark. They clearly don’t have enough chairs. Don’t Kara, Kon, Natasha, John Henry and Kong have homes to go to? And responsibilities? And what is the deal with the new looks, did Kelex move into fashion design?

Overall, this was another terrific instalment, and I understand that soon Action Comics and the new Superman book will be in synch, as in the classic Triangle days. I can’t wait, but meanwhile we have two separate, excellent series.

As well as the Superman lead, the new-look Action Comics has two back-ups. The first sees tween Jon Kent encounter a space princess who shows up at the Kent farm.

Writer Dan Jurgens, artist Lee Weeks, colourist Elizabeth Breitweiser and letterer Rob Leigh bring us a tight little tale that gives Jon a chance to learn that he’s not quite the fully formed hero…but he tries hard, and I love him! The artwork is simply stunning.

Supergirl, who doesn’t have much to do in the main strip beyond pass Jon a chocolate and deny Krypto same, shows up in the Power Girl strip as the latest hero needing a hand from psychic shrinks Peege and Lilith, the former Teen Titan. Actually, I should say ‘Omen’, the superhero name she used for about five minutes in the Nineties, as writer Leah Williams, as last month, doesn’t use the name ‘Lilith’. Anyway, Kara is finding herself unable to speak in English for reasons unknown. Lilith – oops, sorry! – boosts Power Girl into Supergirl’s mindscape where she cures Kara sharpish by basically annoying her beyond reason. According to Williams, Kara and Karen don’t get on. Worse, Power Girl is the red-headed stepchild of the Super Family.

That’s Power Girl in a new outfit totally in the style of the new Super Family uniforms. Power Girl who has happily teamed with Supergirl several times. Power Girl who was on pretty great terms with Superman just a month ago, in publishing terms, in Harley Quinn Romances.

OK, we have different editors, but if Karen is on the outs, we need at least a flashback to show when things changed.

And then there’s the way Power Girl lays down Supergirl’s state of mind.

Give me a break. Give Kara a break. We had the Future State Superwoman mini-series in which Kara had basically given up, then Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow in which Kara was friendless, in constant pain and happy to take a kid to a stoning. Now we have a Supergirl who supposedly believes she must be Princess Perfection. Why would she do that, no one is judging her? No one is claiming that Superman is putting on a front because he represents the whole of Krypton. Can’t modern DC writers simply accept that Kara is a good person?

The idea is also reductive of Power Girl, reframing her occasionally spiky persona as a reaction to Supergirl, her dimensional duplicate.

More positively, we learn that the problems Lilith and Karen are solving have been caused by an outside force, one who sends a definite message to them on the final page. That’s good, hinting that Williams has a finite story in mind here, meaning we can enjoy it for what it is and Karen can then get back to what she does best – punching first. And I’m pleased to see that Williams has cut down on the, not psychobabble because it sounds authentic, but the dry detail behind the mental problems superheroes are suffering.

And Marguerite Sauvage’s art is once again eye-wateringly beautiful, full-colour frames of well observed body language, easy-to-read facial expressions and powerful action. Every panel is a joy. Becca Carey deserves a nod, too, for her lettering choices, which observe and underline the drama of the script.

Steve Beach’s cover is another winner, with the Super Family gathered to protect the planet… but where’s John Henry? That’s two issues in a row without him in shot. He’s a good-looking guy, why so shy? The air inflating the twins’ looser outfits is fun – it’s obviously amusing them – and I love the heavier stubble on Kon, making it easier to distinguish him from the almost identical Jon.

Two issues in, I’m enjoying the new Action Comics, and looking forward to seeing how the back-up slots are used. How about you?