I've gotta admit, I was skeptical. Gail Simone has rarely steered me wrong, but the last time I enjoyed one of the monthly Superman books was probably 10 years ago, and the last time I enjoyed a John Byrne book was... uh, well, does re-reading Fantastic Four Visionaries count? Happily, my skepticism is uncalled for, as Action Comics #827 is not only a kickass start to a promising new run on Superman's longest-running title but a pretty good standalone read that captures a lot of little things about what makes Superman, his supporting cast and his home city, so cool. Simone brings her superhero chops, honed on more periphery books like Birds of Prey and Rose of Thorn, to bear on one of DC's big guns and instantly earns her place in the pantheon of DC's A-list talent, and John Byrne, with heavy inks by Nelson, serves up some classic looking, powerful superhero artwork that perfectly complements Simone's script.
One of the cool things about the writing style that Gail Simone has developed is that she's got serious geek cred without leaving out the newbie. Sure, readers might get a kick out of seeing former Superboy and the Ravers (wow, obscure!) teammate Aura in the opening pages, but all the new reader needs to know is that this retired superheroine is in for a world of hurt from a new villainess. DC readers might get the sense of how dangerous this new villain is when she can so easily threaten one of DC's big gun villains, but newer readers will get all the info on the power and psychological instability that the villain offers up so that everything clicks and makes perfect sense when we get to the very clever and fun twist ending.
Action Comics #827 is like the best of the Silver Age merged with a modern writing style. Costumes, big action scenes, heroes being heroic and effective instead of emasculated, all of these trappings sit alongside a story that takes us through a day in the life of Superman, from his protection of innocents abroad to a quiet moment at home to his daily grind of super-heroing in Metropolis. The story is at once routine, giving the sense that Superman handles this kind of thing all the time, and special, in that the events still make Superman seem powerful, noble and, perhaps most tellingly, intelligent as well as physically impressive. I'm not just talking about out-witting the villain with some clever mental acrobatics that sits at the heart of most Mxyzptlk stories, but about things like Simone remembering that Clark Kent is an accomplished novelist who shouldn't be sitting on some busted-down crime beat or that Superman is smart enough to use his hyper-senses when his main ones are denied him to twig to the deep dark secret about the new villain revealed in this issue.
One of the things I've always liked about Superman that distinguishes him from almost every other superhero is that he's the world's superhero. Oh, sure, he was born in Kansas and fights for "the American Way," but the best Superman stories have portrayed him as someone who is appreciated by and protective of the entire world. The opening sequence, which shows Superman bringing justice to an unjust region, shows a cultural sensitivity on his part, plays up that even when he's not around, he can still protect people (a far cry from the "all your loved ones are vulnerable" ethos of Identity Crisis) and basically just comes across as a selfless, tireless champion of everyone, an impossible goal in real life but certainly achievable in the superhero genre.
Action Comics also really lives up to its name in this issue, thanks to an impressive knockdown dragout fight sequence between two villains in the final sequence of the issue. I'm not the fan of Byrne that I used to be in general, but I won't deny that aside from the "midget Superman" cover, he does a spectacular job on this issue. The recognizable villain looks especially beaten up and mildly deranged from the start, conveying the danger that the new villain represents, and there are some really clever touches to the action sequences, including the use of manned automobiles as weapons or the manipulation of Superman's memorial statue as a weapon. This is superhero action writ large, but without the wanton loss of life that is often provided these days to make it all feel more meaningful. No, the danger is real, the deadly and sadistic nature of this new villain perfectly clear in her rictus grin or the way she casually strolls about the battlefield, but the threat is implied, an obstacle to be overcome rather than a challenge that Superman has failed before he even steps into the fight.
I also have to credit Byrne and Nelson with some terrific work on Superman as a character. Superman has a classical musculature and that famed spit curl, as well as a square jaw and (here's a doozy for modern superhero comics) a ready smile. In fact, despite the property damage or threat to life and limb in the action sequences, there's a sense of fun in the artwork that is all too rare in modern comics, with heroic determination and joy mixed in equal measure with worry or the sadistic glee of the villains. Modern Byrne fans may be a bit dismayed to see some of Byrne's style lost under Nelson's heavy inks, but I found that Nelson's inks eradicated a lot of the overworked linework that Byrne has done on a lot of his self-inked stuff, and in fact this reminded me a lot more of the Byrne work that I fell in love with when I first discovered his work in superhero comics. 9/10
