Superwoman Special #1 – Joshua Williamson, Writer; Edwin Galmon, Nikola Cizmesija, Artists; Rex Lokus, Colorist
Ray – 9.5/10
Ray: Josh Williamson’s Superman has done a better job with fleshing out Superman’s supporting cast than any writer in a long time, making Metropolis feel more alive than it has since the Triangle Era. And now, he’s taken a big swing by having Lois Lane join the ranks of the city’s supers – having seemingly gained superpowers in the aftermath of Absolute Powers. When we catch up with her, she’s battling writer’s block now that she’s become the story, and goes out for a crime-fighting girl’s night with Kara and Lana (who I keep forgetting is still Superwoman too). From there, we flash back to the whole sequence of events of how she discovered her powers, how she found out that they may be only temporary – and, even worse, could shut off if she reaches her limit – and how, perfectly in character for her, she decided that didn’t matter and saved a life anyway.
From there, we see how Lois reveals her new gifts to her friends, to her son, and of course to her husband in a wonderful scene that calls back to some of the most iconic scares she’s given Superman over the years. That’s the thing about Lois Lane – unlike so many other superhero girlfriends, she’s such a fantastic character on her own that she can easily slip into an adventure that centers her and it feels like this is just something that was meant to happen. But of course, it wasn’t. The question hanging over this issue is why it happened – Lois isn’t Kryptonian, so she doesn’t have the alien biology needed for these powers. So they came from somewhere – and that person might want them back. The final page of this issue is a perfect jump-scare that sets up what could be the next big Superman event, and if Lois is at the center of it, that feels like something whose time has very much come.
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GeekDad received this comic for review purposes.
