It’s the penultimate issue of Jon Kent’s mini-series and he has a big decision to make. Does he leave the alternate universe version of his father to his mission to keep his Earth safe by keeping everyone under his thumb? Or does he join Batman’s rebel group, formed after something snapped in Superman following the murder of wife Lois and their unborn child by the Joker and Harley Quinn. He lost his world that day, says Batman.
Awkwardly, Harley Quinn is on Batman’s team and she wants Jon’s forgiveness.
Elsewhere, Superman loyalist Damian Wayne has a present for his chief.
As Superman plots a raid on Batman and co made possible by Damian having placed a tracker on Jon, the Teen of Steel plays a message his mother gave him before he left Earth Prime.
Pass the sick bucket, Alice. I really don’t like being told how amazing a character is – Jon’s actions show what a decent cove he is. Is HoLois there to give a pep talk, or to bring poignancy to the situation? I dunno, I just don’t need to hear yet again that Jon is, by implication, better than his father. For the second time in the issue! I mean, ‘Clark fought for truth. Lois lived it.’ What does that even mean?
The scene with Harley is powerful, and shows that in this world she’s grown as a character. Jon’s final words to her – which I haven’t spoiled – make sense for him. The best scene in the issue, though, comes after Jon listens to HoLois in this earth’s Fortress of Solitude. It turns out that Superman has had Jonathan and Martha Kent holed up there for years, for their own protection.
The book ends with the rebels in big trouble.
I really hope that next issue is the end of the Injustice story Tom Taylor has been telling for years. As Jon says early in this chapter, ‘This is such a dark timeline’. While Jon does get strong scenes this time, as described, this series has become an Injustice comic, with Jon’s multiverse trip giving Taylor a chance to continue his saga. My big hope for Jon after this is that he gets a six-part mini in which he teams up with Ralph Dibny, Mazing ‘Man and Gimmick Girl to rescue the Legion of Super-Pets from the Fifth Dimension. Or something. Anything that will give him reason to smile. Given everything that’s happened to Jon in the last several years – imprisoned in a volcano by the abusive Ultraman for years, and then released to take part in unrelenting dark adventures – I don’t blame him for regular bouts of dourness. The character he was deserves a little of the Super-Sons lightness – otherwise he’s going to wind up in counselling for ever.
After a few issues away, Clayton Henry is back on art and his compositions and character work are excellent, with the sad, repentant Harley especially well done. I do wish he’d been required to draw a few more action pages, we get three or four great ones, with the rest of the issue being talking heads. Henry doesn’t cheat with photostats, he keeps boredom at bay and the conversations are often compelling, but more bashing and blasting would be great.
Jordie Bellaire picks up the slack where once an inker would have provided the embellishment. She’s one of comics’ best colourists and always does a great job, but I do miss seeing inkers do what only inkers can do. A lot of the backgrounds are pretty flat in tone, something that likely wouldn’t be the case were Bellaire not having to spend time adding shadows and solidity to the figures.
Wes Abbott, on letters, gets to concentrate on his designated role and his font work is comfortable throughout.
Henry draws the cover and Marcelo Maiolo colours it; the finish is moodier than the interiors, and the image is a fib. Jon, as ever, looks grim.
I found this issue more impressive than enjoyable. The level of craft is pretty darn high – I’m just weary of being on ‘Earth-Injustice’, where joy is outlawed. We were sold a mini-series in which Jon would confront Ultraman. Well, the Earth 3 Superman was killed pretty sharpish and it turned out we were getting a stealth Injustice Year Six. I’d quite like to see some Adventures of Superman: Jon Kent.
Too Dangerous For a Girl 2 
As usual, we are on the same page here.
I like that ‘you sound like Lois’ moment because Jon is a mix of his two parents and she is just as important as Clark. But I also didn’t understand the line.
And the Lois message might be her asking him not to kill Ultraman but it definitely made no sense given this issue. How can Jon’s greatest powers be empathy and compassion when he yells at the repentant Harley?
I just feel like somewhere along the way Jon has gone from loveable Super Son to unlikeable young adult hero. And this series isn’t changing my mind.
Lovely art.
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This was Anj by the way
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I’m with you. I wonder if he’s getting another mini after this? I don’t hear a lot of excitement around it, and the social media heat centred on the bisexuality business seems to have vanished.
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