gc8's Superman: Birthright #5 - Menace to Metropolis review

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    You probably know several people who can draw better...

    COMIC VINE'S TOP 100 SUPERMAN STORIES reviewed!

    #9: 'Birthright'

    This series is pretty much a huge disappointment by now. I had some hope after last issue - but that was all action - once we're back to storytelling, both writing and art have some issues.

    The problem with the writing comes down to plot and continuity. Basically 'Birthright' undoes almost every good thing John Byrne did to fix the bloated and corny stuff in Superman comics and resets things to Silver Age norms. In other words, Clark Kent and Lex Luthor knew each other growing up and were best buddies. Lex was a boy genius, etc. etc.

    O.K., maybe I could swallow that pill if the art made it easier to go down. It doesn't. At one point Lex Luthor's head looks like a giant bean. In another panel, Lois and Jimmy look up in the sky and their faces are devoid of all features except dots for eyes. In another panel, Lois waves and her hand is devoid of fingers. In another panel, Superman has no 'S' on his chest, just a big red panel. Artist Leinil Yu seems to have problems with facial features like lips and chins as well, but I'll spare you the details.

    As if just bringing back the bad-ole-days with bad art wasn't enough, Mark Waid has to add all new superpowers to superman. In this issue he can see radio signals and follow them.

    There are 12 issues in this series, just like The Kents. I can only hope there is an artist roster change part way through this series as there was with that one. Doing so may not make it great, but at least it would be less bad.

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