The Reign of the Superboys mini-event begins with young Clark Kent stunned when a pleasantly rainy day takes a surprising turn. A mature oak tree explodes, prompting Superboy to save neighbour Lewis Lang from death by branch. After setting Lana’s dad to one side, Superboy takes the opportunity to ask him something he’s wondered for awhile.
So the notebook will remain a mystery, along with the fact the tree was destroyed before a lightning bolt appeared.
Soon after, on a sunnier day, Lana is with Clark and best pal Pete Ross as they visit the Metropolis Expo, first seen in Action Comics #1087. And there’s more strangeness.
Clark and Lana also seem to have everlasting ices, and across the exhibition site other odd things are happening.
Clark figures he should be ready for more trouble as Superboy, and Lana and Pete looking away gives him the chance to take to the skies. And in a way, he does get a glimpse of the future.
The nuttiness keeps on coming, and finally Superboy ends up back at the Expo’s Space Museum, where he hears a tiny voice, calling out to him from the mini-satellite dish seen on his previous visit. And with some concentration he manages to find the unseen owner of the voice. And he’s not alone.
Booster Gold, Mary Marvel and Martian Manhunter are free, but they’re being pursued, and we see by whom on the final page. Who is it? Beats me, I don’t recognise them at all, and they certainly don’t look tough enough to scare three top-tier heroes. We don’t have a name yelled out. And yet the trio from the future are terrified!
Now, solicitations tell me who they’re going to be facing, and had we got a clear shot of them, with a namecheck, at least longtime readers might have enjoyed the recognition factor. Not been excited by – we’re talking a C-list JLA foe – but perhaps intrigued.
Ah well, that apart this is another cracking issue. Seeing Superboy’s first experience with time shenanigans, and how cleverly he approaches a bizarre situation, is heartening – mistakes aren’t the only way to learn, you can grow by thinking things through logically, step by step.
Seeing the mystery museum exhibit from the first chapter of this serial again is fun, I certainly didn’t guess it was a prison for time-lost friends of Clark.
How this ties into the Reign of the Superboys crossover starting in the Super Family books this month, I don’t know; maybe it’ll be thematic rather than literal ties. What I do know is that with writer Mark Waid at the helm, it’ll entertain me.
Heck, this is a man who remembers the value of a good subplot – is anyone here not desperate to learn what Lewis Lang is up to?
Plus, even though she’s not seen in the issue, we get some great Martha Kent wisdom.
Regular artist Skylar Patridge returns after a couple of issue away and immediately impresses with his depiction of Smallville in the rain and the exploding tree. Colourist Ivan Plascencia deserves equal plaudits for making a wet afternoon attractively dramatic, as he does the whole book, with the background effects towards the end a treat.
Patridge does a terrific job of bringing Clark’s emotions to the fore, and Superboy’s suddenly very busy day out in Metropolis is sharply shown.
Letterer Steve Wands does splendid work throughout, from the straightforward yet striking title, ‘Effect and Cause’, to the final page ‘next issue’ blurb.
The cover is by Dan Mora, because of course it is. It’s a concept I’ve never seen previously, which is saying a lot. I’m in two minds as to whether we should see a bit more phantom foot – what do you reckon, is it more fun to notice it after a second or two, or would more immediate visual impact be better?
And bonus, we get Booster in the corner box with the Boy of Steel! OK, it perhaps spoils a surprise, but it looks great.
As for that blurb, ‘The search for Superman starts here!’, it’s irrelevant – so far, anyway.
Action Comics continues to be a refreshing reimagining of Superman’s early years, a comic not to be missed.
Too Dangerous For a Girl 2 
Has DC announced a formal ongoing “search for Superman” loosely connecting various books? At the end of “KO”#5 Booster pledges to find him, so seems like this is meant to be an ongoing thing. Sort of odd it’s not really being promoted, though. Maybe was left out of solicitations so as not to spoil “KO”? – Brian
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I never saw anything, Brian, just the Reign of the Superboys bit. It’ll be interesting to see how things turn out.
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Also though now that I think about it Superman promised he’d be back after taking care of some mystery business, so why search? He went off of his own free will.
-Brian
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Indeed. And I wonder where he’s gone. If he has any sense he’ll visit Earth 87, it’s probably the sanest.
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I’m choosing to believe the Lewis Lang secret is that he was born female. The opening captions read ‘Lana Lang was one of the most outgoing, friendliest girls in all of Smallville. Her father, Prof. Lewis Lang…not so much.” I know it could be just awkward phrasing but I’m choosing to believe it means Lewis Lang is not the most outgoing, friendliest girl in Smallville. It could be like the spoof gay books starring the Hardly Boys where it turns out their parents are a lesbian couple with one masquerading as the father I guess.
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I hope you’re right, Steve!
Stu
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Excellent spot on the Lewis description, I missed that – obviously! I expect it is just a mistake, but if not, it would certainly tread new ground for the Lang family.
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“mistakes aren’t the only way to learn, you can grow by thinking things through logically, step by step”
Yes, more, much more of this. I never bought into the “screw up to move up” approach to becoming a superhero. We wouldn’t tolerate that from a bus driver, let alone the most powerful boy on the planet. My meter is still on mid for Waid’s approach to Superboy, especially with the return home to Smallville. Shouldn’t have happened in Superman for All Seasons, didn’t need to happen here, either. Still, the cover by Dan Mora is easily appealing. What kid wouldn’t see that and want to read it? I guess Superboy Year One will actually take a year. I’ve got time. Great review!
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I’d be happy for more than a year, but so long as the run continues and we get ever more colour villains – not necessarily in Smallville – I’ll be a cheery soul.
Time travel stories, that’s what I want.
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“Time travel stories, that’s what I want.”
Yes! I would be a cheery soul as well.
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I still think Prof. Lang is doing some sort of anthropological study on small-town American life, which isn’t going to make him any friends in town. It’s my best guess — keeping him from villainy, but not the best look for a community member.
I enjoyed this issue — and correctly ID’d the Weapons Master at the end — and am looking forward to more of this story, and seeing Clark interact with more experienced Leaguers — even Booster! — should be fun.
As for Martha’s advice, I wonder if it wasn’t cribbed from Anne Lamott’s very similar advice for writers, which she published in her book Bird by Bird. It was a pretty popular book on writing over here some years ago, and I wouldn’t be surprised if Waid had read it.
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Maybe, but the anthropological study idea doesn’t sound dramatic enough for a Superboy story. And my, ‘he’s writing a Smallville Peyton Place’ is too cheesey. I do hope we find out soon.
How the heck did you ID Weapons Master, is that a classic armour?
I don’t know Anne Lamott at all, I am intrigued!
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