SuperChat is Back… And So is Kal-El

After a while away on Warwold, Kal-El is finally returning home for a Kent family reunion! His return to Earth comes with more than a few complications, though, as we see in Action Comics #1047, written by Phillip Kennedy Johnson, drawn by Riccardo Federici, colored by Lee Loughridge and lettered by Dave Sharpe.

The story continues, as Lex Luthor plays the opening moves on his own plans in Superman: Son of Kal-El #16, written by Tom Taylor, drawn by Cian Tormey and Ruairí Coleman, colored by Romulo Fajardo Jr., and lettered by Dave Sharpe.

Lastly, the adventures of Boy Thunder continue, and his new status as a superhero sidekick is put to the test as the Key instills Gothamites with a fear of all doors, in World’s Finest #8, written by Mark Waid, drawn by Dan Mora, colored by Tamra Bonvillain, and lettered by Steve Wands.

Armaan Babu: We’re in somewhat of a Super-lull this month, Tony, which is something I appreciate given that it looks like there’s going to be a whole lotta Super-stuff happening in the months to come. For now, though, we just have the start of things, with Clark Kent returning to Earth. It’s good to see him in more familiar settings — what are your initial thoughts?

Tony Thornley: It’s nice to have a month taking a breath, that’s for sure.

Action

Armaan: Superman might be back on Earth, but Warworld still looms large. Literally, in this case — after defeating Mongul, Superman took the entire thing back to Earth with him, having it hover around Earth while he figures out what to do with Warworld’s residents. The people of Earth (who have historically been…less than welcoming to refugees) are concerned. 

This is the second time that I know of that Superman’s brought an alien world into Earth’s orbit filled with super powered individuals without asking anyone if he could do it, and I find this highly amusing. I want him to do it a third time a few years down the line. I want Elseworlds stories that reference him doing the same thing. I want to see alternate futures showing Earth surrounded by a bunch of inhabited moons and mini-planets that the House of El dragged back to our solar system because they felt it was the best thing to do, partially because it’s the more absurd side of Superman’s belief that everyone can just get along if they spend enough time with each other. Another part of me appreciates that Superman hasn’t just…abandoned Warworld after upending its millenia-old way of life. You don’t just save a world — you make sure its people can be okay afterwards.

It’s just funny that he brought it all home with him.

Tony: When we pre-gamed our discussion, this is something you and I talked about for a bit. Clark is an extremely intelligent person- though most fans won’t ever admit it, he’s nearly as smart as Bruce, if not equally so. The difference is that Clark Kent acts on his heart before his head. If he’d thought it through for a minute, he would have considered the social impact, the economic impact, the environmental impact of it.

Man, was this ever a stupid, yet totally in-character, decision from Clark. 

Armaan: The enormity of the situation doesn’t get quite the page space it deserves, however, as Johnson chooses instead to give us more of Clark and Earth getting reacquainted with each other. Saving the day as only our favorite dork of a hero can, spending time with Lois in the skies over Metropolis — talking about the two kids they’ve kind of adopted, and making up for lost time with each other. It works, for me — Warworld had begun to grow exhausting, and though Johnson is clearly far from done with Warworld and the Phaelosians, I’m glad we’re seeing it take a backseat for now.

Tony: The reunion with Lois was great. The best Superman runs always understand how important these two are to one another. Johnson wrote a fantastic goodbye between them, and now does a great reunion.

The issue came out before NYCC, so it was nice to get confirmation here that the Phaelosian kids were sticking around. The Twins were the most interesting characters we met in the Warworld Saga, and I’m glad to see them around long term. 

Armaan: We have Riccardo Federici on pencils here, with Lee Loughridge on colors. I love the way Loughridge sets a mood, giving Federici’s art the depth it deserves — but I’m only half-satisfied with Federici as artist for this issue. His art is a perfect fit for epic moments, and for the parts of the Warworld Saga evoking the whole sword & sorcery genre, but the grounded, human moments don’t quite fit. That’s half the comic.

The other half though, the part that sets up our villains? That’s magic. I didn’t think Metallo was ever going to be a villain that my heart went out to, but here we are. He’s a broken shell of a machine, one who, terrifyingly, has had his voice box temporarily removed as retaliation for an “episode.” He can barely move, barely talk, I don’t even know if he can lift his head, and he has his sister dropping in, hoping to just be able to find him something to read. Federici captures the desolateness of the moment beautifully.

Tony: Long way from the best Metallo- the sneering animated version with Malcolm McDowell’s voice. Great proof that any character could be injected with pathos when done right. It’s a heartbreaking moment, and from covers we’ve seen, he’s here longterm.

Armaan: On the other hand, we have Lex Luthor, who is taking a closer look at Warworld and already has a plan in motion to make the most of the Superman and Warworld situation. Lex projects his mind into one of his suits of armor to explore Warworld and get himself an Orphan Box, and this whole segment looks as cool as hell. 

Lex here has turned his villainy dial all the way up to eleven. He sneers, he spits out cold but venomous insults at the very idea of people who look up to Superman, he smugly takes Metallo into his employ when Metallo is all but screaming at Lex to go away. I prefer my Lex a little more ambiguous in his evilness, but I can’t say that this isn’t doing a very effective job in making me hate the bad guy while being terrified of what he has planned.

Tony: Solicits have shown that Action #1050 is a conflict between Clark and Lex. The idea that it’s a conflict over Warworld technology, or that Lex is using it is scary. This might have been the best sequence of the issue and I’m excited to see what happens from.

The back-up stood a few steps backwards, showing Conner, Kara and Steel trying to figure out what had happened since they’d last heard from Kal and the Authority, when Warworld bursts into the atmosphere. It’s a slight moment, but I think it’s an indication of the direction the series is heading after #1050.

Overall, solid issue, but mostly set-up with a few decent character moments.

Son of Kal-El

Armaan: Though the cover claims this is Part 2 of the ‘Kal-El Returns’ crossover, this one is technically set before the events of Action Comics. We get a day in the life of Jon Kent before the reunion with his father. It’s a simple issue, and it’s by far one of my favorites. I haven’t enjoyed this book so much since #1!

What I’ve always enjoyed most about Taylor’s writing are the more human moments. The mundane moments of superheroes’ lives that often get overlooked in the drama. Stuff like what we open with here — how the moment when Jon’s super-hearing activated would have been super scary for a kid that young, and how Clark was there to talk him through that moment. 

It’s a simple, touching scene. That and the next one where he heats up Lois’ coffee the way his dad used to are both worth the price of admission alone!

Tony: I’ve said it before. This is probably the best issue of the series at least since the Annual, if not overall. Jon has grown into his role as Superman. He’s embracing the symbol of the House of El. He’s inspiring others.

It’s a fantastic introduction, with narration throughout that humanizes Jon. It’s the sort of issue I think we needed sooner.

Armaan: Of course, it’s not all slice-of-super-life stuff, because we have rumblings of plans from our villains in this issue as well. With Bendix out of the way, we can finally focus on a villain Taylor actually does write pretty well — Lex Luthor. Jon drops in to check on Lex, and I’m tickled by the idea that Lex is more annoyed by Jon than he is by Clark. The Kents are all, in their own way, thorns in Luthor’s side, which is a wonderful family activity to have.

Tony: Jon having fewer boundaries than Clark was a funny touch too. I like how different Taylor has shown them to be. I think it’s an important point, and one he hasn’t done enough through the series. There’s a good confrontation, some foreshadowing of the enemy that’s going to face Jon the rest of the arc, and he breaks away.

Then we get drawn into a prison riot. Taylor links the story to Action with a glimpse at Metallo, but he’s not the source of the riot. Nope. It’s a psychic, which usually means Grodd… which would be a close guess. It’s the Ultra-Humanite! He’s one of my favorite little-used Superman rogues. But the fight here isn’t the important thing. It’s the sound effect that Sharpe weaves in, very small and very subtle at first.

It’s a heartbeat. And it led to the best sequence I’ve read in a comic in a very long time- Clark and Jon’s reunion. What did you think?

Armaan: It had what I feel make for the best Superman moments — it was earnest, it was simple, it had heart. The second Jon hears that heartbeat, he zooms into the sky and into his father’s arms. It’s a moment that really landed for me. 

Also gotta say, there’s some magnificent capework going here.

I kind of like the idea that where the Bat-Family has the shadows of Gotham, the House of El has that special golden place above the clouds, bathed in sunlight. 

Tony: Especially father and son. I loved this scene. It was executed perfectly. We’re both on the record for disliking aged up Jon Kent, but I don’t think this reunion could have possibly had the emotional impact with tween Jon.

Taylor wins big points with me for this one.

World’s Finest

Armaan: I set a pretty low bar for the writing on World’s Finest — it felt like there was really nothing to the plot but an excuse to show off the excellent, excellent Mora/Bonvillain art team at their, well, finest. The Boy Thunder arc, however, actually has something approaching a plot, and it’s one I find myself quite enjoying. 

The art remains as stellar as always. I want to appreciate the fact that the Teen Titans are actually drawn to look their age, which isn’t always the case. Despite Mora’s modern stylings, the whole thing brought me back to being a kid and delighting in reading about the adventures of kids my age, or close to my age.

Tony: This series is quickly proving that it has a place in the DC Universe that isn’t just “a little Waid nostalgia, and a lot of Mora/Bonvillain DCU.” The current timeline of the DCU is all sorts of screwy, so there are gaps to be filled. This series is doing a great job filling them. It’s kind of like cement filling in cracks in the foundation.

It almost makes me think that I wouldn’t hate a Brave & the Bold companion series from Waid starring Hal and Barry.

Armaan: There’s more going on to this story than just goofs around a new hero, though. As is evidenced by the appearance of the Devil Nezha over in Batman Vs. Robin, Waid is taking the opportunity to shoehorn stories into DC’s canon past — but the Boy Thunder is mentioned nowhere in DC’s present. So what does this mean? Are there time travel shenanigans? Memory erasure? Or worse…did something happen with Boy Thunder that’s terrible enough that no one ever talked about him again?

Things seem to be leaning towards the latter. There are hints in David’s backstory that suggest that his origin doesn’t completely mirror Superman’s — that David might somehow be responsible for the death of his own planet. 

Tony: Yeah, David’s PTSD is rapidly becoming apparent that it’s not just something akin to Kara’s. I’m not 100% sure where it’s going but like you said, there’s more to David Sikla than we suspect. I’ll be curious to see where that ends up.

Armaan: In an attack on Gotham that makes its citizens deathly afraid of all doors and windows (I’m enjoying how much the book continues to draw plots straight out of Silver Age ridiculousness), it’s up to Superman and the Boy Thunder to keep people safe. It’s David’s first real test of heroism…and for a moment, he fails it, utterly. 

I feel for the kid. Wanting to run away in a moment of extreme pressure, the shame that must come with that compounding the fear that’s already there. It’s why it means so much more to see him overcome that and save the day, rather than do perfectly his first try, as so many young heroes do on their first day. 

Tony: Oh absolutely. I was glad to see him overcome his fear and prove himself as a hero. Mora really paced that scene well. He made the simple act of David using his powers to weld so dynamic, and he introduced some genuine tension. I liked it.

Also, great to see Ted Kord being used for his genius level intellect here, specifically as a chemist. Too many comics super-scientists are the Reed Richards type- I’M GOOD AT ALL SCIENCE. But showing Ted as a biochemist, and saving the day that way? Well done.

Armaan: Supergirl also gets some great moments this issue. While Clark may have come from a dying world, it was years before he even knew about his origins. Supergirl, however, was old enough to remember the people of Krypton, and the planet that died, and is in a much better place to recognize David’s survivor’s guilt, and talk to him about it. 

It’s a lovely moment between the two — one that also underlines the fact that there’s a lot more to David’s origin than we know. It’s proper Waid-storytelling again, instead of the all-out madness we’ve had come before. While I’ve enjoyed that, I’m enjoying this a lot more.

Tony: I think Supergirl is shaping up to be the series’ breakout star, which seems weird to say. I’m enjoying the build up to her as a counterpoint to Dick Grayson, with the two of them playing rivals and flirting. I mean, I’ll always be a DickBabs guy, but it’s not realistic to think that Dick Grayson only had two girlfriends. There’s something about Kara being a past paramour that makes sense. I hope that relationship can carry over to other books.

And last of all, we got a big villain reveal. We made it nearly 7 full issues before the Joker reared his head. Joker is one of the few DC characters that Waid’s barely touched, so I don’t know what to expect. However, he looks amazing under Mora’s pencil. I usually groan and roll my eyes at him, but this could be a welcome inclusion.

Daily Planet Headlines

• Supergirl’s petulant rage at the throwaway “You can always put him in an orphanage” is a thing of beauty, given how her original appearances had Superman inexplicably keep her in an orphanage to protect his secret identity. 
• Jon superspeeds back to reheat his Mom’s coffee. Just how many cups has Lois let go cold over the years, do you think?
• Metallo should have taken his sister up on the chance to play cards, he will never have a better poker face than he does now. 
• Kara’s pants look in Action is growing on me, but it needs something more than the belt in the mid-section to break up the blue. Maybe a red panel along her upper thighs? Though I guess that might be moot with the announcement and design we got at NYCC.
• The more House of El focused shift in the line is a welcome one. The Superman family is nearly as big and definitely as interesting as the Bat-family.
• More Conner though please. Thank you.

Armaan Babu

Armaan is obsessed with the way stories are told. From video games to theater, TTRPGs to comics, he has written for, and about, them all. He will not stop, actually; believe us, we've tried.

Tony Thornley

Tony Thornley is a geek dad, blogger, Spider-Man and Superman aficionado, X-Men guru, autism daddy, amateur novelist, and all around awesome guy. He’s also very humble.