Superman: Action Comics #1050 – Phillip Kennedy Johnson, Tom Taylor, Joshua Williamson, Writers; Mike Perkins, Clayton Henry, Nick Dragotta, Artists; Frank Martin, Colorist
Ray – 9/10
Ray: This oversized jam issue leading into the three upcoming Superman titles resets the playing field after Dark Crisis for the man of steel—in more ways than one. The secret identity reveal has been a thorny topic in comics for years, and usually results in some kind of reset. Sometimes it’s clumsy—the infamous Spider-Man: One More Day comes to mind. Sometimes, like Mark Waid’s Daredevil, it’s pretty effective. And for the second time in ten years, it has to be done for Superman. The first time took two different Supermen to pull it off, but this time it’s just one man—Lex Luthor. Forcing Manchester Black into a fatal psychic wave, Luthor unleashes an effect that wipes Superman’s secret identity from the entire world’s memories—and also puts in a fail-safe that could kill anyone who finds out, putting Perry White in the hospital. The only ones saved are those under Batman’s psychic shield at the Kent house—Clark, Lois, Jon, the Kents, and Jay. So we’re back to square one, and Superman knows who’s responsible.
It’s been a long time since someone actually made Lex Luthor the main villain of a Superman run, but that seems to be Josh Williamson’s plan for his adjectiveless title launching soon. This issue mostly serves as a compelling tease for all three runs. We see just how far this version of Luthor will push Superman—seeking to twist him into his own ideal version of the Man of Steel. We see how this new status quo could actually be a blessing for Jon—who has been living a public life as far back as he can remember, and now gets to be anonymous for the first time. And we see how Luthor’s next move might just be even more dangerous. There are some unanswered questions about the memory wipe, particularly pertaining to other superheroes, but we’ll figure them out in good time. What is clear is that the writing team of Johson, Taylor, and Williamson have the entire Superman family in very good hands.
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GeekDad received this comic for review purposes.
