An Interesting Take On Superman
The Story:
A new original origin story about Superman written by Geoff Johns and penciled by Gary Frank.
My Thoughts:
One of the most popular origin stories ever created, even among non-comic readers is that of Superman's. Geoff Johns scripts an original, imaginative origin story about arguably the most iconic comic book character in history. No easy feat for any comic writer. But Geoff Johns rises to the occasion delivering a bold, intriguing and and ambitious story rich in depth and quality.
There's plenty of emotion in Johns writing which is captured beautifully in the artwork. However, one thing I didn't like was how Clark got mad when his parents told him about his real parents and showed him the spaceship. I never pictured him getting upset about this. Growing up with his abilities, I always pictured him suspecting he was different and eager to find out about his past. What I did like was shortly after that in the corn field, Clark was on the ground crying to his father that he just wants to be their son. You could feel the emotion pouring off the page as you're reading it.
Fast-forwarding, Geoff Johns does an excellent job capturing Clark Kent, the mild-mannered reporter. All the clumsiness is poetically written and brought to life in the panels. Not only was Clark Kent's characterization extremely well done, but so was Lois Lane, Perry White and Jimmy Olsen's.
One thing I didn't like in this version was that Clark Kent was never friends with Lex Luthor. Yes they met once but that was it. I prefer the version where they were friends first and enemies later like in the show Smallville. Another thing I didn't like was that there was no explanation for how Lex Luthor lost his hair. At the beginning we see him still with hair which I found odd. I thought at that age he would have already lost his hair.
I do like how Superman was introduced to the city of Metropolis. His two fights with Metallo were pretty cool. I like Metallo's suit he had in the second fight. Not only seeing Superman in action, but how he interacted with other people like the government, Lois Lane, Jimmy Olsen and Lex Luthor was executed nicely. I think Geoff Johns did a great job capturing both personalities of the character.
The deluxe edition contains an introduction written by David S. Goyer who is currently writing a script for the new Superman movie that's in production.
The art is by Gary Frank who does a phenomenal job. Inker Jon Sibal and colorist Brad Anderson play a large part in that. I really liked all the characters facial expressions. All different emotions were captured so perfectly, you could understand the story without having to have it printed on the pages.
All Superman fans can appreciate this more modern approach, re-imagining his origins. The comic pays homage to the original Superman origins while mixing in a fresh new perspective for readers of this generation to enjoy as well as long time fans.
Rating: 4.5/5
