This is a historical moment in history, a historical moment in comic book history, a historical moment in pop culture, an even larger historical moment for Superman!!!
80 years of the Man of Steel leaping from the pages and into our imaginations! Yes, Folks, this is the issue that proves the long-lasting appeal, and legacy, of Jerry Siegel, Joe Shuster, DC Comics and above all, Superman. Since the beginning of DC Rebirth, Dan Jurgens returned to his roots in picking up the title and drawing the Man of Steel, and now this landmark issue will be a passing of the torch from one creative team, to another.
This issue contains a number of creative teams commemorating the event.
From The City That Has Everything written and illustrated by Dan Jurgens, inked by Norm Rapmund, colors by Hi-Fi and Letters by Rob Leigh. The Jurgens story center’s on Superman dealing with Khund Warriors trying to attack Earth, while his family awaits him while he tries to avoid attending any ego worshipping as Metropolis celebrates Superman day in Metropolis. But, is there something more bubbling underneath all the laughs and smiles of the celebrations?
Patrick Gleason’s story, Never-Ending Battle is a time traveling tale featuring Vandal Savage trapping Supes in Hypertime. Superman encounters various elements of his pop culture history and struggles to break free from Hypertime. Can he make it in time to celebrate his birthday with his family? Or remain stuck to the past forever?
This part of the comic is beautifully written and drawn by Gleason pulling out every iteration of Superman’s history from his first appearance, Super Friends, the Bruce Timm/Paul Dini Animated series, the 80s , the 90s to present. It’s a great little tale for Superman and one of the best send-offs for Patrick Gleason who also, has an amazing Superman run since DC rebirth. Since he and Dan Jurgens are both passing the torch to Brian Bendis who is writing both Action and Superman, it’s a fitting send-off for Gleason (aside from Superman issue 45 which is his final issue as well). The Colors by Alejandro Sanchez mesh amazingly with Gleason’s art and Tom Napolitano’s lettering.
The first half of the issue also contains stories such as “An Enemy Within” from Marv Wolfman & Curt Swan, “The Game” By Paul Levitz and Neal Adams, “The Car” by Geoff Johns, Richard Donner and Oliver Coipel, “The Fifth Season” by Scott Snyder and Rafael Albuquerque. The latter half of the issue contains tales such as “Of Tomorrow” by Tom King and Clay Mann (a powerful story), “Five Minutes” by Louise Simonson and Jerry Ordway, “Action Land” by Paul Dini and Jose Luis Garcia-Lopez, “Faster Than A Speeding Bullet” by Brad Meltzer and John Cassidy.
The last tale of the issue is “The Truth” which eases in the transition from Dan Jurgens and passes down the Action Comics reigns to Brian Bendis with art by Jim Lee. Overall every story does its job showcasing different times and eras of Superman and the creative teams that contributed to the Action Comics title over the decades. The last tale by Bendis introduces a new enemy that will be revealed in the Man of Steel mini-series that Bendis is helming.
This is a fantastic issue that encapsulates the very best of Superman, focusing on what makes Superman who he is beyond all his power sets. For anyone who is a Superman fan, for anyone who is a comics collector, for anyone who is a fan of comic books, this is a solid issue and a worthwhile issue to read. If you want to understand Superman essentially, aside from reading Gleason & Tomasi’s run on Superman, this landmark issue is it. It’s an honor to have been reading and reviewing Action Comics when DC Rebirth returned Action to its original numbering. It’s also an honor to see Superman persevering through time and forevermore. Pick it up, add it to your pull list. It’s totally worth it.
Newsdesk