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A review by docperschon
Adventures of Superman Vol. 1 by Dan Abnett, Jeff Parker, Andy Lanning, Rob Williams, Jeff Lemire, Matt Kindt
4.0
Two relevant points about me as a reviewer for this book:
1. I have been a Superman fan since as far back as I can remember, which was prior to the 1978 release of Superman: The Movie. But despite growing up with Christopher Reeve as "my Superman," I'm really enjoying the new approach with movies like Man of Steel. In short, I'm a Superman fan who is agnostic as to who Superman "really is." I appreciate diversity, I guess.
2. I teach English literature, and have a strong appreciation for short forms of fiction, be that short story, television episode, or comic anthology.
The Adventures of Superman collects the series of the same name: an anthology of stand-alone episodes by a variety of artists and writers. So if you have a favourite artist and/or writer who did Superman "right" this book might not be for you. That said, if you think the Donner/Reeve Superman is the one and only icon of Superman, this book will likely appeal to you. Despite the variety of creative teams working on these assorted stories, the ethos of Superman rings truer to the pre-Chris Nolan approach to Superheroes. This book collects stories of a Superman with a clear sense of truth and justice. That isn't to say that the book doesn't complicate Superman's moral vision from time to time: but the question isn't "what should Superman do?" but rather, "can even Superman be everywhere he's needed to be?" And while I like dark, god-like visions of Superman like Kingdom Come and Injustice, I think it's equally great to see writers hearkening back to the simpler, "farm boy from Kansas" approach.
The other thing I love about this book is that it provides an alternative to the epic story arc approach nearly all monthly comics default to right now. A stand-alone story is the exception now, not the rule, and that makes it exceedingly difficult for new readers to jump in. An anthology approach like Adventures of Superman is like a taster of beers - you get a taste without having to commit to the whole pint. I've read some of the negative reviews below, and several talk about how terrible the stories are. That's likely because the standard the stories being measured by is plot, when short stories are often concerned with something else. Edgar Allan Poe said that the short story delivered a "single effect." Again, the narrative default in North America is long story arc: the novel. And the novel is certainly concerned with complex plot. But a short story doesn't have time for that. A short story can encapsulate a single moment, or idea, or as Poe says, effect. I don't think Jeff Lemire was shooting for complex plot with "Fortress." He was producing the single effect (at least in this reader) of nostalgia for a time when I put on a red blanket for a cape and pretended to be Superman.
And finally, I love seeing all the different artists' approaches to rendering the costume, the face, the physique of Superman. They range along the spectrum of Scott McCloud's Understanding Comics, from the realistic to the somewhat abstract. Cartoon to portraiture, we might say. And they are well-matched to their content in nearly every case.
So if you are looking for an alternative to angst-ridden Clark Kents or storylines you can't jump into the middle of without an encyclopedia of the history of DC comics, then I highly recommend you check out The Adventures of Superman.
1. I have been a Superman fan since as far back as I can remember, which was prior to the 1978 release of Superman: The Movie. But despite growing up with Christopher Reeve as "my Superman," I'm really enjoying the new approach with movies like Man of Steel. In short, I'm a Superman fan who is agnostic as to who Superman "really is." I appreciate diversity, I guess.
2. I teach English literature, and have a strong appreciation for short forms of fiction, be that short story, television episode, or comic anthology.
The Adventures of Superman collects the series of the same name: an anthology of stand-alone episodes by a variety of artists and writers. So if you have a favourite artist and/or writer who did Superman "right" this book might not be for you. That said, if you think the Donner/Reeve Superman is the one and only icon of Superman, this book will likely appeal to you. Despite the variety of creative teams working on these assorted stories, the ethos of Superman rings truer to the pre-Chris Nolan approach to Superheroes. This book collects stories of a Superman with a clear sense of truth and justice. That isn't to say that the book doesn't complicate Superman's moral vision from time to time: but the question isn't "what should Superman do?" but rather, "can even Superman be everywhere he's needed to be?" And while I like dark, god-like visions of Superman like Kingdom Come and Injustice, I think it's equally great to see writers hearkening back to the simpler, "farm boy from Kansas" approach.
The other thing I love about this book is that it provides an alternative to the epic story arc approach nearly all monthly comics default to right now. A stand-alone story is the exception now, not the rule, and that makes it exceedingly difficult for new readers to jump in. An anthology approach like Adventures of Superman is like a taster of beers - you get a taste without having to commit to the whole pint. I've read some of the negative reviews below, and several talk about how terrible the stories are. That's likely because the standard the stories being measured by is plot, when short stories are often concerned with something else. Edgar Allan Poe said that the short story delivered a "single effect." Again, the narrative default in North America is long story arc: the novel. And the novel is certainly concerned with complex plot. But a short story doesn't have time for that. A short story can encapsulate a single moment, or idea, or as Poe says, effect. I don't think Jeff Lemire was shooting for complex plot with "Fortress." He was producing the single effect (at least in this reader) of nostalgia for a time when I put on a red blanket for a cape and pretended to be Superman.
And finally, I love seeing all the different artists' approaches to rendering the costume, the face, the physique of Superman. They range along the spectrum of Scott McCloud's Understanding Comics, from the realistic to the somewhat abstract. Cartoon to portraiture, we might say. And they are well-matched to their content in nearly every case.
So if you are looking for an alternative to angst-ridden Clark Kents or storylines you can't jump into the middle of without an encyclopedia of the history of DC comics, then I highly recommend you check out The Adventures of Superman.