Reviews: Random Books My Son Picks - 1
Today is the first of a feature I call "Random Books My Son Picks" where I will do reviews of random books from my collection that my son picks out. Today's book is Adventures of Superman #623 (February 2004) "Bittersweet".
Writer: Joe Casey Artist: Derec Aucoin Colourists: Tanya and Richard Horie
The book is a collection of stories that Superman tells Lois, showcasing what he does all the time. (For those that didn't follow this series or this time period in Superman's live, he and Lois are married but they are currently in a separation period due to Lois' feelings that she has to share Supermen with the world, and she doesn't like it.) Superman had asked Lois to talk and they fly to various areas of the world.
The first story is about how Superman saves Christmas, where as long time DC fans know, Santa Claus is a real person in the universe (with 67 appearances total as of the time of this writing, starting with 1940's Superman's Christmas Special.) It begins with a wounded reindeer which Superman traces to Santa, he then helps deliver the toys, only without Santa's magic to slow down time, he needs to go faster. He does get seen by a child.
The second story tells how Superman stops a guy who had created a phantom quarterback to play for the Metropolis Meteors and was controlling this being from his basement, doing it to impress his wife. At this point Superman takes Lois to Germany, to show her where the term Ubermensch (Superman) came from. His story then becomes one of where Hector Hammond (pictured below,Green Lantern villain, starting in the Silver Age, doesn't he look egotistical with the big head and all) mentally takes control of all the other heroes on Earth in order to confront and kill Superman. Superman figures out the way to disable the device being used for this purpose, thus returning everybody to their rightful state of mind.
Superman then flies Lois away (after rescuing people from a volcano, bringing up the point of Lois sharing him with the world) and he then tells his next story (which is my favourite here). Apparently, the Earth has turned into a single cell organism and is about to engage in mitosis (cell division for those not in the know; I just wanted an excuse to use a big person word.) It turns out an alien starship that had crashed near a Central American temple had a survivor, and it was sending out magnetic impulses turning the planet into organic material. This was a religious rite of the alien and Superman quickly figured out that all he had to do was imagine the Earth back to normal, it was. Lois remarks that she heard about this as sunspot activity (showing a bit of grains of truth to Clark's stories). Superman then rescues an ocean liner in distress in front of her.
After depositing himself and Lois on a deserted tropical island, they finally talk about what's on their mind. Superman admits he is confused because he feels selfish that he loves Lois and wants to be married to her and have what his foster-parents had. Lois talks about her insecurities regarding sharing him and wanting the same things as Clark. Superman then deposits Lois back at their apartment and the book ends with them seeing more of the other's point. (They aren't back together yet, however.)
STORY - Overall, an average book if you don't know some of the background, such as their separation beforehand. For those in the know, and for those (like myself) who are married also know how these feelings can come, and how overwhelming they can be. It is nice knowing that even a super-being can have self-doubt, and that he needs some support emotionally once in a while. I did enjoy the writing of the stories inside, which were shown written in a book-like style as opposed to regular comic font. Overall, this book rates a 3 to 3.5 out of 5, depending on what you take from it.
ART - I find the art style used here was big and flowy, with not too many extraneous detail or lines. That personally appeals to me, because even though I am a big fan of detailed art, comic books need to be a little less detailed in order to get the story across. I particularly like the splash page, with Superman carrying Lois relatively loosely wile being protective. The colours are fantastic, except in small bits where the "sepia" (mostly/blue/purple) tones were a little over-used. I give it the art 3.5 to 4.0, based on the overall quality of the work.
OVERALL - The book falls into one of the better individual comic issues of this period in Superman's life. The whole separation story-arc was well thought out by multiple writers over several titles, and the lack of a super-villain fight made this a great character building issue. I give this book total 3.5 out of 5 starts for enjoyment.
So this was my first foray into "Random Books that my Son Picks." I hope you enjoyed it because I will do one every couple of weeks. I will also review current books and special issues on occasion. Next time, I will begin another character essay; however, based on the suggestion I received from a friend whose favourite actress is Evangeline Lily. Therefore, my first Marvel character profile will be of Janet van Dyne, the Wasp.
Ottawa Comic News - My sources have confirmed that the Geek Garage Sale will have at least 2 comic book dealers there, Guelph Campbell (known as the Comic Detective), a mainstay of the local market for the last 25 years, and Kah-Boom Comics, run by Dave Martin. They also make many appearances around the area (I last saw both at Ottawa Comiccon, Holiday Edition). Also, on April 8, the latest monthly Capital Trade Show will be at the Jim Durrell Arena on Walkley Road. There are usually four to five dealers there.
Have fun, and keep reading!
The book is a collection of stories that Superman tells Lois, showcasing what he does all the time. (For those that didn't follow this series or this time period in Superman's live, he and Lois are married but they are currently in a separation period due to Lois' feelings that she has to share Supermen with the world, and she doesn't like it.) Superman had asked Lois to talk and they fly to various areas of the world.
The first story is about how Superman saves Christmas, where as long time DC fans know, Santa Claus is a real person in the universe (with 67 appearances total as of the time of this writing, starting with 1940's Superman's Christmas Special.) It begins with a wounded reindeer which Superman traces to Santa, he then helps deliver the toys, only without Santa's magic to slow down time, he needs to go faster. He does get seen by a child.
The second story tells how Superman stops a guy who had created a phantom quarterback to play for the Metropolis Meteors and was controlling this being from his basement, doing it to impress his wife. At this point Superman takes Lois to Germany, to show her where the term Ubermensch (Superman) came from. His story then becomes one of where Hector Hammond (pictured below,Green Lantern villain, starting in the Silver Age, doesn't he look egotistical with the big head and all) mentally takes control of all the other heroes on Earth in order to confront and kill Superman. Superman figures out the way to disable the device being used for this purpose, thus returning everybody to their rightful state of mind.
After depositing himself and Lois on a deserted tropical island, they finally talk about what's on their mind. Superman admits he is confused because he feels selfish that he loves Lois and wants to be married to her and have what his foster-parents had. Lois talks about her insecurities regarding sharing him and wanting the same things as Clark. Superman then deposits Lois back at their apartment and the book ends with them seeing more of the other's point. (They aren't back together yet, however.)
STORY - Overall, an average book if you don't know some of the background, such as their separation beforehand. For those in the know, and for those (like myself) who are married also know how these feelings can come, and how overwhelming they can be. It is nice knowing that even a super-being can have self-doubt, and that he needs some support emotionally once in a while. I did enjoy the writing of the stories inside, which were shown written in a book-like style as opposed to regular comic font. Overall, this book rates a 3 to 3.5 out of 5, depending on what you take from it.
ART - I find the art style used here was big and flowy, with not too many extraneous detail or lines. That personally appeals to me, because even though I am a big fan of detailed art, comic books need to be a little less detailed in order to get the story across. I particularly like the splash page, with Superman carrying Lois relatively loosely wile being protective. The colours are fantastic, except in small bits where the "sepia" (mostly/blue/purple) tones were a little over-used. I give it the art 3.5 to 4.0, based on the overall quality of the work.
OVERALL - The book falls into one of the better individual comic issues of this period in Superman's life. The whole separation story-arc was well thought out by multiple writers over several titles, and the lack of a super-villain fight made this a great character building issue. I give this book total 3.5 out of 5 starts for enjoyment.
So this was my first foray into "Random Books that my Son Picks." I hope you enjoyed it because I will do one every couple of weeks. I will also review current books and special issues on occasion. Next time, I will begin another character essay; however, based on the suggestion I received from a friend whose favourite actress is Evangeline Lily. Therefore, my first Marvel character profile will be of Janet van Dyne, the Wasp.
Ottawa Comic News - My sources have confirmed that the Geek Garage Sale will have at least 2 comic book dealers there, Guelph Campbell (known as the Comic Detective), a mainstay of the local market for the last 25 years, and Kah-Boom Comics, run by Dave Martin. They also make many appearances around the area (I last saw both at Ottawa Comiccon, Holiday Edition). Also, on April 8, the latest monthly Capital Trade Show will be at the Jim Durrell Arena on Walkley Road. There are usually four to five dealers there.
Have fun, and keep reading!
Comments
Post a Comment