Adventures of Superman: Book of El #9 – Phillip Kennedy Johnson, Writer; Scott Godlewski, Artist; Alex Guimaraes, Colorist
Ray – 9.5/10
Ray: Phillip Kennedy Johnson has weaved an amazing final act for his time at DC, taking Superman far into the future in pursuit of the kidnapped Super-twins. This has put him up against not just his long-time enemy Kryl-Ux, who is determined to harness the power of a God in order to resurrect his own family, but against his own descendants from the far future – both good and evil. The latter category contains Phyrros the Red, the mysterious son of Superman and Circe, who never knew his father and grew up without any of his kind influence. The Kryptonian mage intends to harvest Osul-Ra’s inner heart of Olgrun and turn himself into a God – even if it kills the boy in the process. We see some fantastic segments that drive home just how much of Superman’s influence already lies in his adopted son – and what’s missing in his biological son, who seems to be desperately searching for something to make him whole.
Of course, Pyrrhos isn’t the only descendant of Superman in this issue. There’s also a Tamaranean-Kryptonian princess whose planet has fallen thanks to the machinations of her treacherous husband, who is turning the planet over to the Warzoon for a hefty payday. Superman and his allies arrive just in time, along with a surprising new ally – a Brainiac drone reforged into a helpful automaton. They’re able to turn the tide, but at the end of the issue there’s a huge twist that sets the stakes even higher and likely sets us up for a darker tone for the rest of the series. The action in this series is top-notch, but that’s not the only thing that makes this series work. It has an amazing take on the Super-family and what makes Superman’s influence so strong, and also has a wide-reaching scope that doesn’t even end when the story does. The perfect legacy for one of the best DC writers of the last decade.
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GeekDad received this comic for review purposes
