Superman #9 – Joshua Williamson, Writer; Bruno Redondo, Artist; Adriano Lucas, Colorist
Ray – 9.5/10
Ray: This is one of the most ambitious books on the stand right now, with Josh Williamson working in a staggering array of plotlines every issue. That can make the book feel almost dizzying sometimes—but it’s so much fun it really doesn’t matter. Williamson’s dialogue can be seen at its best right out of the gate, as an unconscious Superman is read letters from his many fans who were saved by him over the years as he recovers from Kryptonite poisoning. It’s a great callback to Dan Jurgens’ wonderful “Metropolis Mailbag” issues from the 1990s. Clark’s recovery also has the side effect of Lois putting Jimmy in charge of the Planet temporarily, which… seems likely to go badly! Superman recovers soon, but he’s far from full strength—leaving him to rely on a new version of Luthor’s famous armor with different colors. This segment is a great testament to how far Superman will go and how he’ll push himself.
Why is he putting on the armor? Because the deadly duo of Dr. Pharm and Dr. Graft are targeting Marilyn Moonlight next, and the mysterious, possibly immortal vigilante is not going to be taken easily. Moonlight is one of the most intriguing dangling threads of this series, and she also leads into what’s sure to be the most ridiculous plotline in the book as Superman finds himself in the wild west. This is all great, but my favorite part of this series at the moment continues to be the Luthor family drama. The high-intensity conversation between Lex and his mother is wildly entertaining, and Lena continues to be a fascinating wild card now that she’s part of the Supercorp team. This book does something no Superman title has done for a very long time—it’s developed an elaborate supporting cast that makes Metropolis feel fully alive, and that’s enough to make it one of my favorite current books.
To find reviews of all the DC issues, visit DC This Week.
GeekDad received this comic for review purposes.
