Absolute Superman #22 – Jason Aaron, Writer; Juan Ferreyra, Artist
Ray – 10/10
Ray: Since this series began, there’s been one spectre haunting every issue – Brainiac. While past villains like Ra’s Al Ghul and King Shazam posed a physical or strategic threat to Superman, Brainiac has been something else – a nightmare straight out of the darkest sci-fi horror. A twisted clone of the original Brainiac who threw off his master ages ago and is now a vivisection-obsessed killer, he’s been the hidden hand behind Lazarus Corp’s atrocities – and now he’s on his own, free to pursue his agenda. Superman, barely recovered from the beating he took in the last arc, is on the trail, and he traces him to a factory in Argentina. But what he finds there isn’t Brainiac – it’s a massive, hulking monster pumped with Kryptonite blood and out for Superman’s. It calls itself Metallo and Superman barely survives its initial attack – but it’s what’s under the helmet that really shocks the reader.
The reveal that Metallo here is Christopher Smith, the former Peacemaker leader, makes sense – after all, the Kryptonite-powered villain is usually a military man who is transformed by corrupt authorities. But what sets this story apart is the flashbacks, as we see how Smith was a young man set up to fail by a corrupt, evil father who abandoned him to be a hate criminal when Chris was only a boy. From there, Lazarus Corp stepped in, manipulating him into being a living weapon as soon as he signed on the dotted line. And now, Brainiac has taken their place and used him once again. That’s what informs Superman’s decision to refuse to give up on a former enemy, in an absolutely brilliant segment towards the end of the issue as Superman takes one hit after another while trying to get through to the man inside. Darker universe, but this character is still unmistakably Superman in the only way that really matters.
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GeekDad received this comic for review purposes
