As a new era begins for Superman our very own Tony and James give us their thoughts on this new comic from Brian Michael Bendis Ivan Reis, Jay Fabok, Joe Prado and Alex Sinclair.
Written By: Brian Michael Bendis
Artist: Ivan Reis, Jay Fabok
Inking By: Joe Prado
Colorist: Alex Sinclair
Lettering By: Cory Petit
Published By: DC Comics
Spoliers!
I’ll get this right out of the way. If you’re worried about Brian Michael Bendis taking over Superman, stop. You shouldn’t be. After this first issue, the next era of the Man of Steel is in good hands.
We open the issue first meeting Rogol Zhar in the past, who has determined that Krypton’s ambitions are clearly imperialistic in nature, and is unable to convince the council he’s pleading in front of that he’s right. Meanwhile, in the present day, we see Superman stop a pair of Gotham criminals who think moving to Metropolis is a good idea, and putting out a fire. The action then shifts to the Daily Planet, where it’s clear Lois Lane is… absent for some reason. And in a two page epilogue, we see the beginning of that mystery as Jon, Clark and Lois are enveloped in a white light at home…
Really, anyone worried about the future of Superman shouldn’t be. Bendis writes Clark wonderfully. He’s a caring and compassionate figure of hope. It’s building on the return to form that Dan Jurgens, Peter Tomasi and Pat Gleason have written the last two years, but it feels fresh, divorced slightly from the continuity shenanigans the Rebirth Superman teams had to go through to return Superman to form. The supporting cast also sparkles, which is something we are WELL AWARE Bendis is capable of.
Ivan Reis was the perfect choice for this first issue as well. There’s a reason why DC’s house style is so influenced by Reis. It’s clean, dramatic, and Superman looks well and truly heroic. He also sells the personal drama extremely well as well. Clark’s sadness when talking about Lois, but in costume and out, is palpable and so real.
I’m truly excited for this new era of Superman.
Overall: 8.5 out of 10
review by Tony Thornley
Superman has long been one of my favorite characters and I have really enjoyed the work of Brian Michael Bendis particularly in the form of Ultimate Spider-man, so what does Bendis bring to the table in Man of Steel #1? Not much… yet.
Issue #1 is part one of an undisclosed number of parts. It’s main purpose is to introduce the new ‘villain’ Rogal Zaar as well as Bendis’s take on Superman which it does well. Zaar is an alien general who has brought peace to the galaxy by force and is possibly tied to Krypton’s destruction. The reasons why he believed it necessary are the reason Rogal may not be a cut and dried antagonist. Bendis’s Superman is a joy to read. He’s charming, but intimidating ( to bad guys). He’s very alien, but deeply human. Bendis really understands how to balance him. Ivan Reis the penciller ( save for a couple pages by Jay Fabok (who is also great)) is terrific and is given multiple splash pages and two page spreads to give the story a feeling of grandeur and deep emotion, but those moments thin the overall story. The inks (Joe Prado), colors (Alex Sinclair), and letters (Cory Petit) were excellent as well.
Man of Steel one is a great story that will be better once collected as a larger volume.
Overall: 9/10
James L. Sarandis is a husband of one, father of two, and writer in three fields (comics, books, and film). Want to see my current labor of love? Check out EYE HAND VOICE at www.eyehandvoice.the-comic.org.
