Superman has always been either a hit or miss comic for me. I have either LOVED the books, or been so disinterested in them that I have stopped reading them all together. The later has been true of the books for the past few years, with the exception of Geoff Johns and John Romita Jr.'s run. Even then, the character I was reading was the New 52 version of Superman that looked close to the Superman I knew, but still felt off somehow.
This week we get the release of Superman #1, DC Rebirth's self titled Superman series. It is from Peter Tomasi, Patrick Gleason and company. Tomasi and Gleason are responsible for one of the best New 52 series, Batman and Robin. Issue 18 of that series may have been the single best issue of the whole New 52 run, featuring Batman dealing with the loss of his son, Damian. To say I expected a quality issue would be an understatement.The issue picks up with Superman from the pre-New 52 laying the New 52 Superman to rest along side his parents (picking up directly from the Superman Rebirth issue). Superman had been waiting for New 52 Superman to come back to life following his demise at the end of his series. Clark seems to accept that even though he was able to come back to life, New 52 Superman doesn't appear to have the same luck. In tribute to his fallen doppelganger, he adopts his costume. With a simple justifiable explanation, Tomasi keeps the updated (sans red underwear) Superman costume in continuity. While I grew up with the red underwear costume, the change never bothered me, so this is a nice tribute and a way for DC to continue with this costume, even as they return to a previous version of the character.
The story continues with Clark and Lois adjusting to life on their farm, an attempt to keep their lives under the radar as they are displaced residents of an alternate universe. They do so in an attempt to keep their son Jonathan, who is developing superpowers like his father, a secret. The banter and glimpse of the Kent family life is pitch perfect. It brought a smile to my face seeing Lois and Clark adjust to their new roles as mom and dad.
(Side note: Having not read the Superman titles for a number of years, I am not quite sure when Lois and Clark had their son, how long he has been around and how they made their way to this New 52 version of the DCU. Even without this knowledge, the book is easy to pick up and understand. Sure, I still wonder about all those things, but they are not essential to the story at this point. The comic can easily be picked up by any new reader.)
As I mentioned, the young Jonathan is developing powers along the lines of his superhero father which leads to an interesting development that I was initially uncomfortable with. Lois and Clark impress upon their young son the need to keep his powers hidden. The rationale for this is not really explored/explained, however I am assuming this the standard reasoning that the government, super villains or other nefarious forces may come calling, were they to find out about the young superpowered child. After chores with his father, the young boy scampers off with is pet cat "Goldie." As they run through a field, Goldie is attacked by a hawk, eagle or some other bird of prey. The cat is picked up and carried away by the bird. Jonathan becomes scared and his heat vision activates as he screams for the bird to leave the cat alone. The blast of heat vision hits the two animals, killing them both. This is somewhat shocking, and my initial reaction was one of disappointment. I felt like having the boy kill not only the bird, but his pet cat too was a dark turn and maybe one that was not necessary. The more I thought about it, I can see where the creators are going with this. The boy has no control, I assume the blast of heat vision was unintentional, however there were still consequences. I can see this being an event that plays heavily in the young man's development into a responsible superpowered individual. In addition, the daughter of the Kent's new neighbors witnesses this event, exposing the secret the family has been trying to keep. I am willing to write this off as a tragic accident and see where the writers take it. Knowing their deftness at dealing with loss, I fully expect this to not be something that is just swept under the rug and forgotten about. Despite Jonathan's attempt to hide it from his parents. The story continues with the neighbor girl visiting the Kent's home for the first time, and clearly scaring/worring Jonathan. Jonathan had not told his parents about what happened. Lois even asks the girl if she has seen the now missing cat. After the girl leaves, Jonathan's emotional distress boils over and he lashes out at his parents verbally. Clark responds in as an even keeled disciplinarian and sends his son to his room. This scene is another wonderful example of Tomasi's grasp of the character. And Gleason's art just enhances this. Clark is the kind of father you would expect the "greatest superhero ever" to be. Stern, but also caring.
Finally, as young Jonathan stares out into the night sky, tears in his eyes as he can no longer hide the pain of the day's events, Batman and Wonder Woman show up. Superman meets them on the lawn and they proceed to question The Man of Steel about his son. After a short discussion, Superman goes to his son's room and tells him to come with him. Where they are going, and why are a cliffhanger we are left with until the next issue. One imagines it is time for this young boy of steel to meet the other heroes of the world. If this is the case, it will be interesting to see how Tomasi and Gleason deal with the events of this issue and not allow them to get lost while shifting the focus to a more expansive world.
