ADVENTURES OF SUPERMAN #607
"Alienation"
Mildly Recommended (6/10)
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DC Comics
Writer: Jay Faerber
Pencils: Brandon Badeaux
Inks: Mark Morales
Colors: Rob Ro & Alex Bleyaert
Letters: Bill Oakley
Editor: Eddie Berganza
Price: $2.25 US/$3.75 CAN |
The Superman office presents us with a fill-in story in Adventures this month, and though inconsequential, it is capably crafted. Faerber is in Heavy-Handed Super-Hero After School Special mode here, so longtime comics readers aren't going to find anything they haven't seen before. But this is an old super-hero comics standby, and the pinch-hitters dod a decent job of it.
Argent of the Titans drops by to visit Superman in Metropolis, but not to team up (though they do). No, she wants to ask him his unique perspective on something of an identity crisis she's experiencing: what's it like to be an alien? Argent's powers stem from the fact that her mother was impregnanted with alien DNA, and she's feeling uneasy with being different. Argent ends up finding her own answers, though, as she and the Man of Steel respond to emergencies in and around Metropolis.
Badeaux's name is a new one to me, but this apparent newcomer to mainstream comics art handles his assignment well. There's a sharp level of detail in his work -- especially in the well-rendered opening scene. I thought Argent came off as a little too old at times, though. The colorists really make Argent's powers come to life; the eerie blue energy she emanates reinforces the alien heritage with which she is struggling in this script.
This is one of those stories-with-a-message comics, and it's about as subtle as a Mack truck. It's easy to see where Faerber's headed. Mind you, I do appreciate the fact that this story revolves around how a character feels, not a stereotypical super-villain plot. I found it kind of odd that the title character really isn't integral to the story at all. This reads more like a fill-in issue of Titans rather than a Superman comic.
Despite its obvious nature, there's definitely an audience out there for this story, and it's an important one: new, younger readers. There's plenty of super-hero action, and Faerber offers up a thoroughly accessible script. He hints at the fun of DC's shared continuity and offers a concise introduction to two super-hero characters. This issue woul serve as a nice gateway into the DC Universe for kids who's recent exposure to super-heroes on TV and at the movies might have sparked some curiosity about comics.
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