Superman/Batman Annual #4

It's been a few years since we've seen hide nor hair of Terry McGinnis, well since those couple of Justice League Unlimited episodes, and he has returned to team up with Superman to take down now old timer Lex Luthor. 
 

The Good

Other than the fact it's great to see the return of what started out as the WB cartoon Batman Beyond, this book is a fun, self-contained story. You could easily get by never seeing the original Batman Beyond cartoon to enjoy it. It has all the detective elements that the original cartoon had and all the action. This issue gives all a glimpse into the monsters certain characters can become in order to shape the world into their idea of perfection, utopia, or whatever you want to call it. My only worry with this is that the cartoon and its characters may not translate well into a non-kids comic, and I was wrong. Paul Levitz's writing really brings one of my favorite cartoon characters onto the page, without it feeling too kiddieish, since the original show really was intended for children. I'm not saying this book is just for kids, but he bridges the gap very well. Renato Guedes pencils and colors do the same thing: Bridging the gap between cartoon and comic book. There is that sense of the show I really enjoyed in each panel of art with a more complex/artistic twist. It was very surprising to see all these elements come together for a story that not only was incredibly good, but good enough to be one of my favorites for the week.
 

The Bad

Although a chunk of the story revolves around mystery and detective work,  at times the pacing was a bit off. It wasn't anything too noticeable, but the transition between detective storytelling to final battle scene was a teeny bit awkward.
 

The Verdict - 4.5/5

Have you missed Terry McGinnis? Then you should be reading this issue! I must say, the Superman/Batman series is one of the very few series that I can actually say has great annual issues every single year. Some are better than others, but in no way are they throw-away issues, like many other series. You're definitely going to want to pick this book up.