ACTION COMICS #789
"Man & Beast"
Neutral (4/10)
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DC Comics
Writer: Joe Kelly
Pencils: Duncan Rouleau
Inks: Marlo Alquiza
Colors: Moose Baumann
Letters: Comicraft
Editor: Eddie Berganza
Price: $2.25 US/$3.75 CAN |
This issue marks Joe Kelly's exploration of the new extended Superman family, and some of the members are black sheep. Though there's a darker edge to many of these new characters, my interest in them is minimal. It's not boosted by the lack of exposition either. If one hasn't been following the Superman books very closely for the past year, one is liable to come away from this story scratching one's head.
While Lois was away globetrotting with her mother, it seems Clark kept busy by training Krypto so he could come and live with them in Metropolis. As Clark plays with his pet in the park, Kancer -- the sentient Kryptonian tumor that once afflicted the Man of Steel -- shows up to take his rightful place at his "father's" side. Meanwhile, General Zod and his underlings try to pinpoint the location of the otherdimensional "Gorge" that's plagued their plans in Pokolistan.
Rouleau's exaggerated style is well suited to rendering the many inhuman figures that play a role in this plot, including Kancer, Zod and Ignition. Furthermore, his angular approach was an excellent choice, given the action-oriented nature of this issue. Unfortunately, the more human figures -- mainly Lois and Clark -- boast a sketchy appearance, almost as if they were glossed over for the weirder characters.
The biggest problem with this issue is its inaccessibility. I've been checking in on the Super-titles on and off for a while now, and even I'm at a loss as to how these circumstances came to pass. Who or what is Ignition, other than a remnant from the "Reign of Emperor Joker" storyline? How did Zod come to recruit Kancer and Ignition? What's the Gorge all about? There are way too many unanswered questions like those that arise as one reads this issue.
Oh my God, but I hate Krypto. At least, I hate him in this context. A Superdog just doesn't fit into the more modern take on the Man of Steel. Sure, I have a soft spot for the little fella based on Silver Age comics and even cutesy stories later on in the 1970s and '80s, but comics storytelling -- and I'd like to think storytelling in general -- has become a refined entity that doesn't really have room for Krypto. My interest and ability to accept such a character is nil. Mind you, given my distaste for the character, I have to admit that Kancer's resentment of the Superdog did make for a decent story idea. Kancer's feelings of being overshadowed by a "sibling" helped to make the bizarre and thoroughly alien figure easier to understand.
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