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mjd3jaggy's review against another edition
5.0
I’ve been meaning to read more comics and this came highly recommended by one of my good friends. Spider-Man has always been my favorite superhero (I pretended it was human torch for a while when I was younger, but I was lying cuz I wanted to be different), and I’ve only really read his comics, but I’ve been meaning to branch out. And since Superman hasn’t gotten a ton of great film representation I’ve been wanting to explore his character through the comics because I want to see firsthand why the character is so beloved. This is a great start.
To start, it’s a lot funnier than I expected. Obviously, since this is only a 7 issue comic, not all of the Superman characters are going to be allowed to have a ton of important “screen time.” However, there were a lot of fun interactions. The story is focused a lot on Clark’s struggle with being an alien, and how he overcomes it to embrace his true identity as a human/American. There’s some really powerful conversations with his mom, his best friend from Smallville and Lois about his identity as Superman and Clark Kent. There’s also some less serious and fun interactions with Batman, Oliver Queen and Deathstroke. And there’s some great Clark Kent’s interviews with Oliver Queen again and Lex Luthor. Overall, it’s an extremely well-written comic about the most iconic superhero and what makes him so great. I’m excited to read more about him.
To start, it’s a lot funnier than I expected. Obviously, since this is only a 7 issue comic, not all of the Superman characters are going to be allowed to have a ton of important “screen time.” However, there were a lot of fun interactions. The story is focused a lot on Clark’s struggle with being an alien, and how he overcomes it to embrace his true identity as a human/American. There’s some really powerful conversations with his mom, his best friend from Smallville and Lois about his identity as Superman and Clark Kent. There’s also some less serious and fun interactions with Batman, Oliver Queen and Deathstroke. And there’s some great Clark Kent’s interviews with Oliver Queen again and Lex Luthor. Overall, it’s an extremely well-written comic about the most iconic superhero and what makes him so great. I’m excited to read more about him.
molassesbread's review against another edition
4.75
The only reason this doesn't get 5 stars is because Max Landis is a piece of shit.
Each part of the story is charming and realistic. Landis proposes an incredibly intriguing concept throughout the comic: what if the people of Smallville knew Clark's secret? There's a whole wealth of beautiful stories in this idea that shouldn't be left in Landis' hands. There's classic moments throughout, that really well lays out Clark's philosophy and beliefs in a wonderfully straight-forward way. This would be one of the comics I would tell a new reader to pirate online. Edwards' art in issue #2 is gorgeous, illustrating my absolute favourite design for Clark Kent. I wish we got to see their take on an adult Clark.
Each part of the story is charming and realistic. Landis proposes an incredibly intriguing concept throughout the comic: what if the people of Smallville knew Clark's secret? There's a whole wealth of beautiful stories in this idea that shouldn't be left in Landis' hands. There's classic moments throughout, that really well lays out Clark's philosophy and beliefs in a wonderfully straight-forward way. This would be one of the comics I would tell a new reader to pirate online. Edwards' art in issue #2 is gorgeous, illustrating my absolute favourite design for Clark Kent. I wish we got to see their take on an adult Clark.
dustcircle's review against another edition
adventurous
fast-paced
3.5
Not a complete story arch. This is a compilation of differing tales. Nice spread.
tromatojuice's review against another edition
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
docpacey's review against another edition
4.0
For me the best Superman stories are Clark Kent stories. This series is purely that, beginning with his adolescence and continuing to his days in metropolis. Friendship, isolation, uncertainty and, of course, romance are themes explored in seven individual stories. The artwork has highs and lows the but the storytelling is great throughout.
mschlat's review against another edition
3.0
Three notes:
1) It's rare (and good) to see such an idiosyncratic voice on a Superman title. I wouldn't say that Landis gives a pure "grim and gritty" take, but we do have a Clark Kent who drinks as a teenager, swears, has limited powers growing up (and thus gets a bloody nose), and regularly doubts himself. It's a portrayal that is much more grounded than what you see in the normal comic books. (Note: there's a chapter with good art by Tommy Lee Edwards that's the pinnacle of this aesthetic.)
2) The best part (in my opinion) is Clark's relationship with his high school male friends. Landis does a great job of showing what it would be like to have a super-powered bro, and I can't recall any other story where Clark opens up to other guys like this. It makes the whole thing much more believable and appealing.
3) That said, there's a whole lot of continuity porn, started off by a chapter where Clark wins a vacation to Bermuda as a teenager, gets in a plane wreck, and crashes (in many ways) a party where he's mistaken for the ever-absent Bruce Wayne. Oh, and every other DC personage is there in their teenage years. I like the focus on Superman growing up; I highly disliked fitting in the rest of the comic universe into the book.
1) It's rare (and good) to see such an idiosyncratic voice on a Superman title. I wouldn't say that Landis gives a pure "grim and gritty" take, but we do have a Clark Kent who drinks as a teenager, swears, has limited powers growing up (and thus gets a bloody nose), and regularly doubts himself. It's a portrayal that is much more grounded than what you see in the normal comic books. (Note: there's a chapter with good art by Tommy Lee Edwards that's the pinnacle of this aesthetic.)
2) The best part (in my opinion) is Clark's relationship with his high school male friends. Landis does a great job of showing what it would be like to have a super-powered bro, and I can't recall any other story where Clark opens up to other guys like this. It makes the whole thing much more believable and appealing.
3) That said, there's a whole lot of continuity porn, started off by a chapter where Clark wins a vacation to Bermuda as a teenager, gets in a plane wreck, and crashes (in many ways) a party where he's mistaken for the ever-absent Bruce Wayne. Oh, and every other DC personage is there in their teenage years. I like the focus on Superman growing up; I highly disliked fitting in the rest of the comic universe into the book.
silenthillda's review against another edition
5.0
Max Landis, How I love thee!
What a sweet little story and a great beginning. This is how I love my superman! Can't wait to continue the story.
What a sweet little story and a great beginning. This is how I love my superman! Can't wait to continue the story.
jammasterjamie's review against another edition
3.0
I think that this story unfortunately suffered from being over-hyped which led me to believe that this very good story was going to be unbelievably great, and it just wasn't. It was very pretty and I did enjoy the writing and layout, but next time I want to revisit Big Blue's origin I'm going back to John Byrne's classic Man of Steel.
audjmo91's review against another edition
4.0
This is a really good series highlighting formative moments in Superman's origin story. The different styles of art for each chapter appropriately emphasized the mood of each story (described as Pixar, gritty, hopeful, etc. in the original pitch notes in my edition), reminding me of the way the brain organizes memories based on how they make you feel in the movie Inside Out. Perhaps the strongest element in this collection is the characterization of Lex Luthor, who is written as calculating and as menacing as I've ever seen him. His monologues, followed by his structured undressing of Clark in his first in-costume confrontation, set him up as a formidable opponent that you know is playing chess where Clark is playing tic-tac-toe. Hearing him in my head through Clancy Brown's intimidating voice didn't hurt either.
Honestly, my only critique was that I wanted more Batman, and more development of Clark's relationship with Lois Lane. A great reminder that Superman can be more than the boring boy scout he is often made out to be.
Honestly, my only critique was that I wanted more Batman, and more development of Clark's relationship with Lois Lane. A great reminder that Superman can be more than the boring boy scout he is often made out to be.