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diana_raquel's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
0.5
"He could never turn back. Not now that he knew the truth."
[Disclaimer: I brought Superman: Dawnbreaker and Wonder Woman: Warbringer as a pack. There was a promotion of buy one, get one free, and I thought that it was a good deal. I was not aware of the sexual misconduct accusations made against Matt de la Peña, and I only found out shortly after I finished this book. But because I believe that, until a certain point, we should separate the art from the artist, I'm gonna review this book based on my opinion of the book and not of the author].
Like I said in my review of Wonder Woman: Warbringer, I'm a huge fan of the DC universe. However, Superman was never my favorite superhero. He's too perfect for my liking. He's essentially a Gary Stu. But, if you know what you're doing, I believe that you can make a Gary Stu likable. Well, this book failed to do that.
I hated this book. Nothing works. It took me a long time to read it because I was bored out of my mind. I had to constantly stop the reading, go do something else, and then come back and continue. I didn't have a problem with the pacing but I hated the writing style: it's too simple and the dialogues seem too forced and fake at times. It doesn't flow and, because of that, the reading became too boring.
Also, because the dialogues seem so forced and fake, I didn't like the characters. And don't get me started on Clark. He's so perfect, he's practically a god. Everything goes great for him. I need some internal conflict, some vulnerability. And because this is a coming-of-age/origin story, I think that Clark discovering his powers and origins could be a very good plot point that would show some vulnerability. But for that to work you need to put that in the first part of the book, not in the last 100 pages. Clark discovers his origins, has a fit about it, goes ice skating with another character, and then comes back home and everything is fine. And all of this happens in one chapter...put a little more effort into it! That's all I'm asking.
Another thing that I didn't like was the story/plot. The mystery is very predictable and you know who are the villains right away. There is also a subplot about racism and emigration policies, in an attempt of making a political stand. Look, I don't mind authors making political commentaries in their books, but, at least, know how to incorporate them. In contrast, I think Wonder Woman: Warbringer made this perfectly. That book made comments about feminism, sexism, racism, and war policies, but the commentary was so subtle that it felt natural, it worked within the tone and theme of the story. Here, the political commentary is used when it's convenient to the plot and doesn't go anywhere. The critic is there, but it's only mentioned when the plot needs it.
I recognize that this book has the potential to be something better, but instead, we get the story of a Gary Stu, with very predictable villains, boring characters, and some political commentaries that pretend to give some sense of "wokeness" to the story. It just feels very forced and fake. I really didn't like it.
[Disclaimer: I brought Superman: Dawnbreaker and Wonder Woman: Warbringer as a pack. There was a promotion of buy one, get one free, and I thought that it was a good deal. I was not aware of the sexual misconduct accusations made against Matt de la Peña, and I only found out shortly after I finished this book. But because I believe that, until a certain point, we should separate the art from the artist, I'm gonna review this book based on my opinion of the book and not of the author].
Like I said in my review of Wonder Woman: Warbringer, I'm a huge fan of the DC universe. However, Superman was never my favorite superhero. He's too perfect for my liking. He's essentially a Gary Stu. But, if you know what you're doing, I believe that you can make a Gary Stu likable. Well, this book failed to do that.
I hated this book. Nothing works. It took me a long time to read it because I was bored out of my mind. I had to constantly stop the reading, go do something else, and then come back and continue. I didn't have a problem with the pacing but I hated the writing style: it's too simple and the dialogues seem too forced and fake at times. It doesn't flow and, because of that, the reading became too boring.
Also, because the dialogues seem so forced and fake, I didn't like the characters. And don't get me started on Clark. He's so perfect, he's practically a god. Everything goes great for him. I need some internal conflict, some vulnerability. And because this is a coming-of-age/origin story, I think that Clark discovering his powers and origins could be a very good plot point that would show some vulnerability. But for that to work you need to put that in the first part of the book, not in the last 100 pages. Clark discovers his origins, has a fit about it, goes ice skating with another character, and then comes back home and everything is fine. And all of this happens in one chapter...put a little more effort into it! That's all I'm asking.
Another thing that I didn't like was the story/plot. The mystery is very predictable and you know who are the villains right away. There is also a subplot about racism and emigration policies, in an attempt of making a political stand. Look, I don't mind authors making political commentaries in their books, but, at least, know how to incorporate them. In contrast, I think Wonder Woman: Warbringer made this perfectly. That book made comments about feminism, sexism, racism, and war policies, but the commentary was so subtle that it felt natural, it worked within the tone and theme of the story. Here, the political commentary is used when it's convenient to the plot and doesn't go anywhere. The critic is there, but it's only mentioned when the plot needs it.
I recognize that this book has the potential to be something better, but instead, we get the story of a Gary Stu, with very predictable villains, boring characters, and some political commentaries that pretend to give some sense of "wokeness" to the story. It just feels very forced and fake. I really didn't like it.
Content Warnings
Minor: Xenophobia, Kidnapping, and Racism
muh_hahaha's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
3.5
I think it was a good book overall. It was more plot driven and the characters were alright, nothing special about them personality wise but nothing was wrong with them. Dawn breaker does talk about racism it's kinda of interwin with the story and it worked well in my opinion. Overall I liked the story.
Content Warnings
Minor: Xenophobia, Kidnapping, Racism, and Racial slurs
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