Supergirl And The Emotional Spectrum

I have talked about my unease with Supergirl upcoming donning of a Red Lantern ring in the coming months to the point that I don't think I need to reiterate my concerns.

But I thought it would be interesting to take a look back at Supergirl's interactions with the emotional spectrum in the past. I know that this is a different Supergirl in essentially a different universe. But it isn't like that last Kara had an easy life with no concerns. She had just as many bad turns in life if not more. And yet somehow, after some rehab with Sterling Gates and Jamal Igle, and despite ongoing tragedy, she never succumbed to the dark path of rage.

The most we have seen of Supergirl and the emotional spectrum was in the Blackest Night:Superman mini-series, written by James Robinson and drawn by Eddy Barrows. I reviewed these issues when they came out but that was over 4 years ago. I hope this doesn't feel like a retread. You can look at late 2009 to see those reviews.

Given the upcoming change, I thought it would be worth revisiting.

So in 2009, the Black Lanterns were threatening the entire DCU, raising the dead to become an army for Nekron.

But there was a slight problem. You see concurrently, DC was also doing a long arc in the super-books where a New Krypton was in our solar system, on the opposite side of the sun, and filled with the citizens of Kandor.

A city filled with super-powered Kryptonians would be a bit of a wild card in the Blackest Night story arc. Wouldn't thousands of Superman-equivalents impact the threat. They needed to be dealt with and Blackest Night:Superman is where that happened.

There were 2 plot lines in the series. In one, Superman and Superboy (Conner) battle the pre-Crisis Earth-2 Kal-L and Lois (both of who died in Infinite Crisis).

In the other, Zor-El rises from the dead on New Krypton and battles Alura and Kara. Remember, these aren't loving zombies. They are vicious and this Zor-El attacks his family both physically and psychologically.

Let's see how Kara deals with facing her loving father in a cruel undead form.

First a wild conglomeration of feelings.

Fear of this creature.
Hope she can return her father to normal.
Love for her father.
Compassion for what has happened to him.

Zor-El unloads with a string of insults about how Kara has disappointed him, a pathetic creature.

And then the realization by Kara that while this might be her father's remains, it isn't her father.

I loved this panel back then and I love it now. Kara an even mix of rage for this desecration and will to battle him.

I have said before that Kara can be fierce in her desire to do what is right.

And then that continued mix of will to weather the mental and physical barrage by Zor-El and rage for this indignation.

Yes there can be rage. But always tempered by a strong will, a control.

This Supergirl had a rough early history on Earth - brainwashed by Darkseid, split into Dark Supergirl, failing in the phony Kandor when she was seduced by Pru-El. Then she dismissed a life of heroism, went rave dancing, got duped and abused by Power Boy, bled crystals, and tried to kill Superman.

Yep ... DC loves piling tragedy and angst onto Supergirl. Don't you think that this Supergirl could have given into rage and joined the Red Lanterns?

And yet with strong writers and a rehabilitation of sorts, she didn't. Instead she tried to deal with her life, to better herself, to help others. And even after that rehabilitation, when it looked like life had dealt her a bad hand again (here, the death of Alura and the destruction of New Krypton, survivor's guilt), she still strove to do what was right.

See DC! The right writers can bring her there. You don't necessarily need to go darker before turning to the light.

Now maybe Tony Bedard and Charles Soule are planning this redemption. But it is still nice to see that this Supergirl didn't succumb to mindless anger.

As for DC, the took New Krypton off the board of Blackest Night. A force field was erected around the planet, trapping the Kryptonians on New Krypton, negating Nekron's ability to raise the dead and keeping the zombies out.

Personally, I still think Kara would be an Indigo Lantern before she would be a Red.

Review: Blackest Night Superman #3

Blackest Night:Superman #3 ended the mini-series and provided some interesting fodder for the upcoming finale of the main event. In some ways, it answered some questions that I think we all have been thinking about. It also supplied some info about Black Lanterns that I found pretty interesting.

In other ways it may have irked Supergirl fans. But more on that later.

Perhaps the thing that has worked the best in this mini-series was Eddy Barrows ghoulish art. As I have said before, when Barrows is on his game, his stuff is fantastic. So it bothered me that we had some fill-in pages by Allan Goldman. Not that Goldman's art is awful. It is perfectly fine. But their is a clear difference in style and it took away from the experience.



The book opens up right where last issue ended.

The second page is this 2 page near splash of Supergirl going toe to toe with Black Lantern Zor-El. As I said with last issue, I love Barrows' interpretation of Supergirl's uniform with the enormous S-shield on a near full shirt.

And as I said last time, it is great to see Kara overcoming her fears and actually fighting here. It would have been very simple for Robinson to write Kara as being emotionally devastated by Black Lantern Zor-El's lies, to crumple on the floor crying and helpless. I am positive other writers would have done that. So to see her first be 100% will and then a mix of rage and will as she fights was refreshing.



And Superman continues to battle the Psycho Pirate-controlled Conner above Smallville.

Another thing I have liked in this mini-series (in all the Blackest Night books really) have been the emotional spectrum gauge we see with the characters. How interesting to see all 7 colors of the ring spectrum shown in this panel. Superboy is being forced into avarice and rage. Superman showing the rest as he copes with both Conner and the carnage around him.

While Psycho Pirate can induce rage and avarice in Conner, he doesn't force the 'flavor' of those feelings. I think the lines we read Superboy saying are really buried deep within him. I think we are seeing his own personal demons finally bubble to the surface.

And Ma Kent is trying to fend off Black Lantern Lois in the corn fields behind the Kent farm.

In one of the more ghastly spreads, we see Krypto rip the ringed hand off the zombie and play keep away with it as it tries to reattach to Lois. It is this sort of horrific art which really adds to the feel of this book. It should be frightening on all levels ... not just psychological but visceral.

Krypto finally blasts the Lois lantern with his heat vision, dropping her into a nearby gorge. With Ma momentarily safe, Krypto is able to join the main battle over Smallville.

Now one of the questions I know I have been asking myself is 'how does Blackest Night and New Krypton work together?' In other words, what effect do 100,000 Kryptonians have on the current War of Rings. Will they join in the war? Shouldn't they? You can't ignore their presence in the universe.

So Robinson comes up with an answer on why the citizens of New Krypton will be left off the playing field of Blackest Night. The scientists on New Krypton have scanned the zombie Zor-El and have been able to put together some shielding technology that will repel the Black Lantern energy from the planet. Unfortunately, it also means that whoever is on New Krypton will be forced to stay on the planet. The shield works both ways ... keeping Black Lanterns from coming in and keeping Kryptonians from leaving. If activated, Superman will be unable to return to his new home.

Alura makes the tough but right decision. She tells the scientists to activate the shield after she helps Kara defeat Zor-El.

In some ways it is a convenient way to explain the lack of the Kryptonian military in Blackest Night as well as explain why Superman (who promised to stay in new Krypton) is back on Earth. In other ways it is a bit deus ex machina that the scientists could put this together so quickly. It read a little like Silver Age issues where the scientists in Kandor could do almost anything.

While the shields in space, the battle rages on in Smallville. Kal-L joins the enraged Conner in combat and seems seconds away from ripping the heart from Superman.

Amazingly, Conner is able to shake off the Psycho Pirate madness. Suddenly feeling hope, love, fear, and rage Superboy defends Kal-El by using his tactile telekinesis directly on Kal-L.

Again, Barrows does a chilling job here showing bits of flesh flying off the undead Superman.

Nice to see Conner show some emotional fortitude here.

And above New Krypton, Alura arrives just in time to save Supergirl from having her heart ripped out.

I actually thought there was a lot to like in this scene but only if you have been following Supergirl as a title.

For one, Alura has constantly badgered Kara and at times has seemed to dislike her daughter. So to see her rush off to defend Supergirl was nice.

But more importantly, Alura has basically said all the things the Zor-El zombie has said ... calling Kara a disappointment and failure. I wonder if Alura notes the irony there.

Alura grabs Supergirl and flies back towards New Krypton just as the shields are activated, severing Zor-El's hand off in the process. Zor-El is now trapped outside.

But more importantly, Supergirl is now trapped inside. Does that mean the Kara play no part in Blackest Night? I don't think I will be very happy if that is true. Hence my concerns about being irked above.

Now I suppose that some might say this is another case of Supergirl needing to be rescued by someone else. But I wasn't too upset about it here. For one, if Kal-El needs all the help he can get with Black Lantern Kal-L then Supergirl should not be able to defeat Black Lantern Zor-El alone. Secondly, it was nice to see the mother/daughter team-up here.

Throughout the Blackest Night books we have been shown how emotion can both attract and repel the zombies. Those people with 'clear heads' or even spectrums (like Dove in Blackest Night:Titans) or multiple emotions (like Superman in this series) have been able to do the most damage against the Black Lanterns.

In an ingenious move, Superboy grabs the Medusa Mask from the Psycho Pirate and forces Kal-L and the Psycho Pirate to 'feel'. Not feel one emotion, but feel them all.

The resulting emotional backlash seems to inactivate the Black Lantern rings forcing the zombies to fall lifeless.

I think I have said before here (and at least discussed with my friends) that a White Lantern wielding all the rings is going to happen and that pure emotion will be the ultimate weapon against the Black Lantern Corps.

So overall I felt that this was a very good mini-series. It really brought the Blackest Night war down to a person level for the super-family. I thought the characterization throughout was spot-on and especially liked how Kara was able to face her own fears of inadequacy as she fought her father's abomination.

While I thought the use of the Medusa Mask as a weapon against the zombies was inspired, I thought the New Krypton shielding seemed a little too easy of an answer. I remain hopeful that Supergirl isn't kept on the bench of the biggest DCU crossover in several years because James Robinson stuck her there.

And the art work was tremendous in those pages Barrows did. I believe he is scheduled to be the artist on Blackest Night:Wonder Woman. Hopefully he can keep up on his deadlines there.

Overall grade (issue): B+/B
Overall grade: (miniseries): B+

Review: Blackest Night Superman #2

As someone who really had been suffering from 'event fatigue', I have to say Blackest Night has been like a powerful stimulant. Okay ... maybe I haven't had 'event fatigue' ... maybe I had 'lousy events' fatigue. I mean I don't think I can say that I enjoyed Identity Crisis, Infinite Crisis, House of M, or Secret Invasion. And while there were snippets of Final Crisis that I thought were brilliant, the overall event sort of fizzled.

And yet, here we are with Blackest Night which so far has been a great ride. Sure the main book reads a bit like a Green Lantern Auxiliary title but it should. The War of Light is a Green Lantern issue.

What does impress me is the quality of the tie-in mini-series. These aren't crossovers in name only, marketed as such because a Green Lantern is seen in one panel. These books really immerse the characters into the Blackest Night main story in a way that shows how the dead rising would effect the heroes.

That brings us to Blackest Night:Superman #2. I was very impressed with the first issue of this series. I continue to be impressed with it after this chapter although I have one small question nagging in my brain. But overall, James Robinson and Eddy Barrows have really brought their A game to this book.

To start off, I thought the cover showing an undead Zor-El standing over his beaten daughter was chilling. Yes, I know it shows a defeated Supergirl. But this book has been about dread and this cover elicits that feeling.


Whereas the first issue had a slow buildup of the reveal of the Black Lantern Kal-L, contrasting his vile acts with the inherent small town goodness of Smallville, this issue jumps right into the action. Superman and Superboy are trying to beat back the monstrosity of Kal-L who is vowing to raise Pa and kill Ma.

Throughout the book, Kal-L berates Superman, telling him what a failure he is for letting Pa die, how alien he is despite his time in Smallville, etc. It is as if the Black Lanterns need to bring out a certain emotional state in their victims before they can harvest. We saw last issue that when Superman had feelings across the emotional spectrum, rather than falling into one color, that he was his most effective in combat. And in Blackest Night we heard how when Mera stayed focused and calm she lost the Black Lanterns following her.

So if being on an even emotional keel keeps you safe then the sudden appearance of the Black Lantern Psycho Pirate in Smallville should spell disaster. He begins roaming the town and forcing his emotions onto the populace. He basically begins placing people into one of the seven colors of the ring spectrum, although rage, avarice, fear, and lust are his obvious favorites. The town begins to tear itself apart.

But this is the one part of the book that I questioned in my head. There is no problem with the way it is written or drawn. But why would the Psycho Pirate be there? He has no history with Superman per se. Was he sent there by Nekron?

This is a three issue mini-series with a Black Lantern Kal-L and a Black Lantern Zor-El. Aren't they big enough villains to fill up three small issues? I just felt that adding this other villain would take away from the Superman and Supergirl plots from the books.

Sorry for this small scan but I liked this little sequence.

Kal-L tells Black Lantern Silver Age Lois (perhaps the creepiest Black Lantern in my book) to kill Ma. Conner flies to the rescue, heat visioning off Lois' right arm temporarily saving Ma.

During this fight we see that the Black Lanterns have regenerative powers as Lois simply reattaches her arm to her shoulder stump.

While Connor goes to save Lois, Kal-El and Kal-L brawl through the streets of Smallville. It is a Hell on Earth, the idyllic little town is shown on fire, buildings falling.

One of the things that we once again see is Superman's emotional center. With Black Lantern Superman destroying Smallville, we see Superman's response of fear, will, rage, and hope. I can't help but notice that the bottom corner is a tad orange. Avarice? Maybe Superman feels Smallville is 'his' town and no one should do anything to it except him?

While the two Superman are bringing physical destruction to Smallville, the Psycho Pirate continues bringing emotional chaos. Superboy flies over the town witnessing acts of violence and depravity until he succumbs to the Pirate's powers as well.

As if Superman didn't have his hands full with Kal-L, a suddenly jealous and enraged Conner attacks him as well. Again we see how Superman reacts. Fear of Conner's condition. Love of his friend. Compassion that Conner might feel avarice and rage against Superman deep down. Hope to help Conner. Will to survive. I think this multi-colored look at Superman's demeanor only shows how he is the greatest hero. Most other people we have seen in the Blackest Night books seems to radiate only one or two emotions.

I do hope that the Psycho Pirate was not brought in simply as a tool to somehow set up a Superman Superboy fight. I am sick of heroes fighting each other.

After all that time in Smallville we finally make it to New Krypton to see what is happening there.

I have to say that the Supergirl scene in this book is fabulous, really one of the strongest representations of Kara I have seen in a while.

First off, I have to comment on Eddy Barrows art. When he is on, his stuff is jaw-droppingly spectacular and his art here is great. In particular, he really draws a wonderful Supergirl in this book. For one thing, I love the longer shirt with the huge S-shield. I really feel that the S should be massive and absolutely dominate the shirt which is tough when it is a half shirt. But more importantly, this looks more like a costume and not a cheerleading outfit. The small rim of belly keeps the Turner feel present but does not make her abdominal musculature overwhelm the total presentation. If we are going with a Turner style costume, I wish it looked like this all the time.

As for the story, just as Kal-L is doing, Zor-El is really being emotionally cruel to Kara. He tells her that she needs changing ... as if he is not happy with the person she has become. This, of course, rings completely false. Remember some of his last words were how proud he was of her.

Her response to the zombie Zor-El is actually right on target as is her emotional registry. She hopes to somehow cure him, bringing him back to his old self. She feels love for Dad, hopeful that he can be restored, compassion that he has been reduced to this form, but fearful of him. Given that Alura is seen unconscious on the floor shows that Zor-El has lashed out at his family here. She should be afraid.

Zor-El continues his verbal assault on Supergirl. His speech is completely hateful. He calls her a complete disappointment, weak, stupid, pathetic. It is everything that Supergirl would be fearful of. It touches on all her insecurities. Yes she is crying again but it makes sense here.

Now I feared that this verbal beatdown would result in another scene with Kara crying to the point of being unable to act. I braced myself for the worst.

Instead I get this picture of righteous fury as Supergirl, angry tears streaming, immediately recognizes that regardless of this Black Lantern's form, he is not Zor-El. He is not her dad.

I cannot tell you how thrilled I was to see this. Remember this is written by James Robinson who made Kara cry at an off-putting comment by Hal Jordan in Justice League: Cry For Justice. The same James Robinson who made her say some clunking lines like 'I'm not bad. I'm good.'

To see this strong, confident, caring, well-spoken Supergirl was a great treat.

As was this shot of her smashing Zor-El's face with a left hook.

Look at the determination on her face.

Simply spectacular! Readers who are new to Supergirl might be tempted to buy her book when they see this sort of characterization.

Unfortunately we see Zor-El begin to regenerate. This isn't going to be an easy fight.

Meanwhile, back in Smallville, Ma Kent decides to get a bit medieval as she plans her own attack against Black Lantern Lois.

It's hard to believe that these stories are all going to wrap up next month. My guess is that the plots will remain somewhat open-ended with the ultimate finales occurring in the Blackest Night main series.

But I think that James Robinson and Eddy Barrows have really put together a fantastic book here. These Blackest Night tie-ins should be a terrifying ride; they should be eerie. They should show the emotional effect that the dead rising would have on these characters. We really see what it would mean for Superman to face Kal-L, for Supergirl to face Zor-El. We really see what it would mean for madness to engulf a small town like Smallville. And it is frightening.

And Eddy Barrows art really captures that horror. He really contrasts the brightly colored heroes with the black and decaying Lanterns. This is probably the best art I have seen him produce.

I hope everyone is getting this book.

Overall grade: A+

Sales Review: August 2009

Despite the uneven economy, comic sales remained strong this last August with Blackest Night and Dark Avengers issues dominating the top spots ( http://www.icv2.com/articles/news/15822.html ). Blackest Night, Green Lantern, and Green Lantern Corps ranked #1, #4, and #12 respectively. As a true marker of the power of the crossover, Blackest Night:Superman sold almost twice as many issues as the nearest Superman comic (Superman: World of New Krypton). The Superman titles as a whole seem to have nestled into selling 30-40K sold each month.

I thought that the Codename:Patriot crossover might bring a bigger increase in sales to the super-titles as it seemed like a natural jumping on point for new readers. It seems as though there was only the most modest of boosts in all the titles.

As always, ICv2 does a great job of breaking down sales. Here is the list of the top 300 ( http://www.icv2.com/articles/news/15820.html).



I have talked in the past about the stable sales on Supergirl and Supergirl #44 continued that trend selling 33,819. In fact, sales were up a modest 3% from Supergirl #43 which sold 32,849. I know I dream of days when Supergirl will sell 50,000 issues a month but I am thrilled with the way this book is performing.

While the Codename:Patriot crossover might explain some of this bump in sales, as a Supergirl fan you have to like it whenever sales go up. With the crossover streak continuing through Hunt For Reactron, I hope sales will continue to rise. This is all great news.

And let's not forget that we are heading towards Supergirl #50 which I hear will be a double-sized issue.


And what about my personal cause celebre R.E.B.E.L.S. ?

Unfortunately, sales continue to drop.

It will be very interesting to see sales on the title in November. In that month, R.E.B.E.L.S. is a crossover issue with Blackest Night. Also, stores get promotional Indigo rings based on how many R.E.B.E.L.S. issues they order. I expect to see sales quadruple that month. Moreover, my local comic book store won't give out the promotional rings unless you buy the comic it is associated with. If all stores do that then people will need to buy R.E.B.E.L.S. to get their toy surprise. I can only hope people read the issue and latch onto the book.

I know I keep ringing the R.E.B.E.L.S. bell on this Supergirl blog. Thanks for bearing with me.

Review: Blackest Night: Superman #1

As an admitted old-timer, I actually appreciated the ending of Crisis on Infinite Earths where Kal-L was the ultimate hero and he and Lois achieved paradise.

So I was less than thrilled to see Kal-L reduced to an Alex Luthor dupe in Infinite Crisis. And I was even more unhappy when he died at the hands of Superboy Prime.

You can imagine my trepidation when I first learned that Kal-L was coming back as a Black Lantern. That sort of completes the descent, doesn't it? Kal-L has gone from universe saving hero to dupe to outright villain.

With these feeling in my mind, I purchased Blackest Night:Superman.

While it does further besmirch Kal-L's character, I have to say the book worked for me. I found it creepy and engrossing. The setting, the dialogue, the art, the coloring ... it all worked.

Moreover, it might be called Blackest Night:Superman but it really seems to be Blackest Night:Superman Family. Superboy and Supergirl are big players here too.



The opening pages remind of how idyllic a place Smallville is. It's a place where everyone knows each other by their first names; a place where people stroll down the sidewalk and stop to chat at the general store.

It's a place where you have can have a 'usual' at the local diner.

That sort of paradise on Earth is suddenly shattered by the blood-thirsty risen Kal-L who promptly goes on a killing spree.

We don't initially see Kal-L, getting only glimpses of his shadow as he enters a scene. And the murders are all thankfully done off screen, marked by the cold appearance of rising power levels in Kal-L's ring. It read like a body count, detached from the violence but effective in showing the reader what is going on. That works better in building up the dread of these scenes. I can imagine what that diner looks like ... it is almost better left unseen.

Kal-L's trail of bodies eventually leads to the Kent Farm where Superman and Superboy are relaxing with Ma over dinner. This scene takes place on the day of heroic mourning we have seen in Blackest Night #1 thus explaining why Superman is back.

The meal is interrupted by Kal-L who has disinterred Pa Kent and now wants some Kryptonian blood on his hands.

This is just creepy. An undead Superman standing in a graveyard with Pa's coffin in the background. It is that contrast that works in Blackest Night. To see the heroic Superman so distorted just makes me feel uneasy. It is the same feeling I got in Blackest Night #1 when the Elongated Man is spouting his goofy lines as he bashes Hawkman with a mace. That disconnect throws the reader off and makes the scene effective.

Kal-L decides to eliminate Conner first leading to a brawl in the skies above Smallville.

One thing I find interesting about the Black Lanterns is how they can register the emotional spectrum in their foes.

While being attacked, Conner is feeling a mix of fear (most likely of dying again) and will (most likely to escape and survive).

In what I think is the most powerful panel in the issue, Superman feels a whole range of emotions when he sees Conner being attacked - fear he will lose the battle and Conner, hope he will win, the will to press on, the love for his friend, and the rage of the affront of this attack. All those feelings are swirling him in as he charges into battle. It is probably what he feels before a lot of battles.

Well, if Kal-L is being dragged through the mud as a Black Lantern, I guess I shouldn't be surprised to see the Black Lantern Lois from Earth -2. What ... no pillbox hat?

The undead Lois decides to pay a visit on Ma.

Are no characters sacred?

I can only hope that when Blackest Night ends, some of these characters get the peace and respect they deserve.

It is unclear if it is the torrent of emotions that Superman was feeling or just his plain old powers that lets him get the upper hand, but he is able to briefly subdue Kal-L and rescue Conner. I like how the decaying flesh just flies off the jaw here.

Unfortunately, the Conner rescue delays Superman for a moment and allows Kal-L to escape.

Don't think that Blackest Night is going to leave Kara unscathed.

All along I have wondered if we would see a Black Lantern Zor-El. Now we know.

Poor Zor-El. He was re-introduced, killed, and reanimated as a villain in under a year! We don't see much more besides his rising although the look of fear on Kara and Alura's faces speaks volumes.

I would love to hear when the decision was made creatively to re-animate Zor-El. Was it an easy decision? Did the super-teams vote on it? When he was killed last year was it already decided he would rise?

Zor-El has been portrayed as a stand-up sort of nice guy and loving father. I hate to see him arise as villain too. But again, it is that deranged mix-up between words from a loving father coming from the murderous undead that adds to the eerie feeling of the book.

Back on Earth, Conner and Clark track Ma's heartbeat into town.

I love the contrast in their responses when they find her in the clutches of Kal-L and Lois. Clark has the will to hold back and assess the situation. Conner is enraged and want to fly right in to battle.

There is Kal-L and Lois with Pa's casket and Ma. This could get ugly.

Of course, I don't know why they wouldn't immediately splatter Ma unless there is more to these Lanterns than a body count. But it seems silly that Lois has Ma in a choke hold rather than holding Ma's still warm heart in her hands.

This is the only Blackest Night character crossover mini-series I am planning to get. I am not getting Blackest Night:Batman, Blackest Night:Titans, or Blackest Night:Wonder Woman. But if those miniseries shake up those characters as much as this issue shook up the Superman family tree ... well fans of those characters should throw the mini-series onto their pull list.

This was a thrill ride of an issue ... a sort of kick to the gut for everyone in the Superman Family. Kal-L, Lois, and Zor raised and evil! Ma threatened? Pa's body in peril?

But it is the balance of straight forward superhero action with the emotional weight of loved ones returning as murderous undead that really gives Blackest Night its punch.

We have seen how profoundly Zor's death effected Supergirl and Alura in the Supergirl book. Zor-El's rising should have as significant effect on the two of them and for some time into the future. What will they be feeling when they need to fight him?

And we saw what effect Pa's death had on Clark. We know how much Superman revered Kal-L as the original hero. How much will this battle weigh on Superman?

Add into this the setting of all this carnage is tranquil Smallville and you have a recipe for a great story.

I have praised Eddy Burrows' art in the past. When he is on, his stuff is very slick. I thought this issue showcased his style nicely. This wasn't as strong as Action Comics #876, the Ursa knife fight issue, but it was still fantastic.

And I feel I need to praise colorist Rod Reis for his use of shadows and grays as well as the negative images of the emotional spectrum. The color really added to the tone of the issue.

It all worked enough to push my concerns about the sullying of Kal-L into the back of my mind a little bit. And that says something.

Overall grade: A