Adventures of Superman #520 (1995)

Adventures of Superman #520 (February, 1995)
"Christmas Thieves"
Writer - Karl Kesel
Penciller - Stuart Immonen
Inker - Jose Marzan
Colorist - Glenn Whitmore
Letterer - Albert DeGuzman
Assistant Editor - Chris Duffy
Editor - Mike Carlin
Cover Price: $1.50

Merry Christmas Eve everybody!  Today we discuss what will probably be the last book with a February cover date... for at least a little while!

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We open with Superman flying right at us with incredible urgency.  Ya see, it's Christmas Eve (feel like we've been saying that an awful lot lately!) and he's trying to track down a Limited Edition "Date With Debbi" doll for Lois... which is apparently a big deal with all of the baby-boomers of the day.  As is to be expected with our main man, this won't be an easy task.  In the distance, he hears an alarm ring out... and wouldn'tcha know it, it's those geeks he took out on his first day back on the job (following the Death).

Deke Dickson, otherwise known as Loophole, is using his powers of intangibility to rob a safe... all the while very loudly discussing the Night of 100 Thieves that the underworld is engaging in this evening.  Superman, of course, hears all of this... and fries Deke's tech, causing him to become embedded in a wall.  Kinda hardcore for Superman... but we'll allow it.  It's Christmas, after all.

Superman realizes he now has quite the busy night ahead of him... 98 more thieves are all planning on robbing various Metropolis hot-spots (I should mention that Deke had his faceless lady friend with him for his caper).  Anyhoo, first stop... a jewelry store, where Superman easily takes down a trio of geeks (led by a guy calling himself Power Fork).

On the way out, we see Mountain Man and Piton... whoever they are... about to conduct some thievery.  That is, until they run afoul of... Babe?!  Ya see, Babe was a friend of Jimmy Olsen's who got turned into a vampire... or something like that.  She was very seldom used, with good reason.  Anyhoo, she scares the bejeezus out of the pair... to the point where they beg to be arrested.

The next B-Villains are a trio of intangibles calling themselves, get this, The Untouchables!  Oddly enough, they get taken down by a smoke boomerang, courtesy of Captain Boomerang!  Superman arrives moments later to (literally) toss Digger himself into a garbage can.  Not sure if Captain Boomerang truly was on the "straight and narrow" at this point, and Superman just didn't get the memo... or if he was just robbing other robbers.  Either way, it was neat to see him!  Strewth!

Next up... The Royal Flush Gang.  Wow, we really are scraping the bottom of the barrel here.  Superman does his thing and takes them out.  Maggie Sawyer and Terrible Turpin are present to help wrangle the baddies up.  Superman engages in some super-counting, and tallies the night at sixty baddies collared.  Only forty to go... and he's got a plan!

He has the Metropolis Police Department speed through the city to corral the criminals into a construction site... and then swoops in and wraps them all up in a nice little package.  Cop out?  Yeah... maybe.

By our updated count, we're sitting at 98 B-Listers caught... only two more to go... and they're a doozy of a pair.  It's our friends from Charlton, Punch and Jewelee. Superman meets up with them at a toy shoppe... and after pummeling them with... balls... Christmas (Eve) is saved!  As a "thank you", the store owner gives Superman the last Date With Debbi doll he has in stock.  Oddly enough, that's exactly what Punch and Jewelee were there to steal!

We wrap up on Christmas morning, and Lois wakes up next to her Date With Debbi doll.  Somewhat strangely, Clark's note reads "Happy Holidays".  Ya know, I'm not one of those "War on Christmas" types... I'm cool with a "Merry Christmas" or a "Happy Holidays"... whatever you're comfortable saying, I'm comfortable receiving... but, c'mon Clark... Lois is your wife.  I think you can say "Merry Christmas" to your wife without worrying about offending anybody.  Ehh, who knows... maybe it was the only card left at the store.

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This was a fun one!

This story falls into one of my more pronounced Superman "blind-spots"... that whole post-Death pre-Electric Blue era is kind of jumbled together for me... so figure, if it's a story where Superman has a mullet... I probably only read it once... if at all!

I've been wracking my brain trying to recall what the Date With Debbi doll might be an analogue to.  Throughout my life there have been plenty of "rushes" on toys... Cabbage Patch Kids, Furbies, Tickle Me Elmos, Nintendo Wiis... I don't recall what might've been the hot toy back at Christmas 1994.  A scan of the internet brings back POGS and Power Rangers... but I don't recall either of those being terribly hard to come by!  Regardless, this was a neat "hook" for our holiday tale.

Speaking of neat... seeing (and introducing) a bunch of B-tier baddies, was a lot of fun.  It's not often we get a Punch and Jewelee mention, let alone an appearance!  The Captain Boomerang cameo was also really cool.  Wish I could remember if he was actually acting heroic here... or just gittin' while the gittin' was good.

Wrapping up about forty thieves at once was a bit odd, and kind of a cop out.  I mean... why not just start the issue with forty thieves?  We didn't need a hundred!  It reminded me of a "novel" a friend and I wrote back in like the fifth grade.  It was a fantasy story, taking place in medieval times... and basically ripped off every fantasy/role-playing video game we'd ever played.

Throughout the story we introduced so many silly things... like the heroes would have to locate four orbs (Final Fantasy), eight gems (Zelda II: The Adventure of Link) and a slew of stone tablets that, when put together, would form a map.  A map to what?  Who knows!  We eventually got to the point where we had more maguffin than story... and since the whole thing was hand-written in a notebook, we couldn't just edit these bits out.  So, we just had our heroes find everything at once!  Just like Superman did with the thieves at the construction site!

Overall... I really dug this.  I recall really disliking Immonen's art back in the day... the looseness was really off-putting to me.  I suppose I've softened in my old age, because this time around, I dug it!  Never a fan of a long-haired Superman... so that's still a bit cringy, but otherwise... everything looked great!  This one's a mainstay in the quarter-bins... so it shouldn't be too hard to procure.  It's also conveniently available via DC Digital.

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On the Eleventh Day of Christmas on Infinite Earths, I give to you Adventures of Superman #520, Batman: The Brave and the Bold #12, JSA Classified #33, The Spirit #13, Justice League Unlimited #28, Shade the Changing Man (vol.2) #19, Action Comics #762!  Young Justice #40, Superman: The Man of Steel #109, Green Lantern: Larfleeze Christmas Special, and a Red Hood and the Outlaws Annual #2 Review.

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The Final Night #4 (1996)

The Final Night #4 (November, 1996)
"The Final Knight"
Writer - Karl Kesel
Penciller - Stuart Immonen
Inker - Jose Marzan, Jr.
Colorist - Trish Mulvihill
Letterer - Gaspar
Assistant Editor - Ali Morales
Editor - Dan Thorsland
Cover Price: $1.95

Alrighty, let's put this one to bed!

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We open around the middle of Parallax: Emerald Night #1, with Kyle Rayner returning from his visit with Hal.  Since he couldn't get a solid answer one way or another, he feels like a failure, who just wasted a whole lot of time.  He arrives in the snow-covered Metropolis to find Wonder Woman helping some civilians unload a supply helicopter.  Kyle takes this as a good sign... since there's no rush to evacuate, and a contingency plan (of sorts) in the works, he figures that even if they don't beat the Sun-Eater they can ride this out.  Not so fast, kemo sabe... Wonder Woman pulls him aside, and gives him the straight dope.

Inside S.T.A.R. Labs, Lex Luthor and Brainiac 5 are pitching their latest survival plan.  In light of the fact that the Sun is not actually going to fizzle out, and instead will "heal" itself... and in so doing, go hyper-nova and atomize the entire galaxy, they figure the best offense is a good defense.  And so, Wally West was tasked with assembling a half-million force-field devices... which, I didn't know was his specialty... but I guess he can read plans as good as anybody.  Luthor hopes to deploy these units around the Sun... use the power of the nova to energize them... trap 97% of the energy within the area around the Sun... kill the Sun-Eater... then everything will be hunky dory.  Ya got all that?  Here, I'll just have Lex explain it.

Now, with the limited time they have... this plan cannot be enacted remotely... or made automated.  Luthor blames much of this of their "probe" being aborted... which was Kyle.  Dusk's ship will be sent to orbit the Sun and monitor the situation to deal with any unexpected issues that may arise.  Luthor is pretty sure the ship will not survive the blast.  So, we're talking suicide mission here... unless, they send someone who already survived an encounter.  Luthor looks to Kyle... and as he's about to accept the responsibility... he vanishes!

A confused Luthor doesn't quite know what to make of Green Lantern's beam-out.  Batman suggests they just send Luthor instead.  Lex goes all "homina, homina" until Superman says he'll do it.  He says he would be the one to do it, even if Kyle (or anyone else) were up for the task.  He's lost one home planet... he's not about to lose another.  Besides, the Sun going nova should jump-start his superpowers... hopefully.

The Legionnaires present watch in awe as Superman leaves the room.  They've, of course, heard the legends of Superman being the measuring stick for superheroes, but now they get to see it live.  Superman excuses himself... to pen a letter.  Before we know it, Dusk's ship takes off.

Saturn Girl scans the ship and realizes, that ain't Superman!  I reckon, Superman bursting in the room a second and a half later would've given her the same conclusion.  It's revealed that the man on board is... young Ferro!  Oh, Ferro... Perhaps he read those old Jim Shooter comics, and wanted to go out like his namesake?

The heroes begin to panic... trying to figure out ways to abort the mission.  The chickens-with-their-heads-cut-off are interrupted by the arrival... of Parallax!

He says he's there to help... and the heroes are happy to have him... well, not Batman.  Batman believes Hal hasn't changed... and Hal tells him... well, that he's right.  Superman gives him the skinny... and Hal thinks it a bit quaint.  He suggests he can do more... he can fix everything.

Batman again jumps in to argue... but it seems like Hal's past all that at this point.  He gives the heroes his Oath that he will fix everything.  Superman goes to shake his hand... welcome him back to the fold.  Parallax doesn't extend his hand in return, and informs Superman that's he's not coming back.

We join Ferro on his approach to the Sun just as it's about to go nova.  It's a pretty awesome scene... his cute little Ferro mask begins to melt... and he apologizes for not being able to return Spark's Legion Flight Ring.  Heyyy, did somebody say "ring"?  A giant Parallax arrives on the scene for the rescue.

He sends Ferro back to Earth before facing the threat before him.  He knows his best bet for deal with this is to draw all of the Sun-Eater's darkness within himself... and so, with (a paraphrased) Green Lantern Oath, he... does just that!

We pick up with Ferro again on Earth, and it's... Sunny?

Well, I'll be damned... Hal did it.  Kyle Rayner is overjoyed... not only is the Earth saved, but Hal Jordan might just be one of the good guys again!  Well, not so fast kemo sabe... Saturn Girl chimes in to inform the group that she had tapped into Parallax's mind for the duration... and he didn't survive the confrontation.

We wrap up the issue, and story atop the Daily Planet building.  Superman and Batman are having one of their semi-contentious post-Crisis pow-wows... this time discussing their old friend, Hal Jordan.  Batman holds firm that he is still a villain... and will not allow his legacy to be rewritten by one final altruistic act.  Superman, as you may imagine, feels differently.  He says he will always believe that Hal died... a hero.

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Well, that was a doozy of an ending!  We got some stuff to break down... let's start light.  

Lex Luthor's depiction here was fitting... but it still kinda bugged me.  I'd gotten used to him being a complete gung-ho bad-ass... to have him freak out at the possibility of going on the suicide mission felt a bit off.  Being just a brilliant fella, you'd figure that he'd know Superman would step up and put himself on the line.  He could've at least played along... then begrudgingly "step aside" for Superman's act of heroism.  Either way though, I was happy to see Lex have a role in all of this... here he was a man who could command the attention of a room full of gods.  Not too shabby!

Ferro's attempted sacrifice... ay yai yai.  Listen pal, you seem like a good kid... got a cute little mask and everything... but, boy are you annoying.  The heroes have a plan, but he takes it upon himself to insert his own inexperienced be-hind.  Sure, his intentions were good... but, he could've (and apparently would've) FUBARed the entire plan... and cost the lives of everybody on Earth.  I get it, you're the new guy... ya feel like you have to prove yourself... but this ain't the way to do it.  Hopefully he got an off-panel punch to the shoulder and noogie after this.

Well, with that out of the way... let's talk Hal.

Hal Jordan comes through in the end... saving (at the very least) the entire Solar System.  Let's chat up Batman's reaction.  Batman, cynic that he is, thinks Hal has an ulterior motive... and he might be right, just not in the way he believes.  Hal might be offering up his services more as an act of contrition or redemption than anything... with saving the galaxy being little more than a juicy dollop of gravy.  I'd like to think that while Batman is reading him the riot act, Hal's thinking back to the conversation he had with Guy during the one-shot.  Heroes do what they gotta... even when they're despised by those around them.

Superman is more open to the possibility that Hal's "come back"... which, totally makes sense.  Being a more optimistic character, Superman always wants to see the best in everyone.  I appreciate that Hal doesn't quite receive the invitation the way it's intended.  He makes it clear that he's not "back" in any way, shape, or form.  He's there to help.  During the one-shot he turned down a Green Lantern ring... here, he's it's as though he's turning down a JLA membership card.

Hal's ultimate sacrifice... fitting... I suppose.  Though, I wish the Green Lantern Oath he spoke had "blackest night" instead of "darkest night", it really worked for me.  At the end of the day... Hal Jordan is still the greatest Green Lantern there ever was.  It makes sense for him to face the great hereafter reciting the oath he held to for so many years.  A real gut-punch to longtime fans too, I'd imagine.  Full circle.

Now, there's that question posed by the World's Finest at the end of the story... did Hal die a hero... or villain?

Personally, and if you've been reading this blog for any length of time you already know this, I'm not completely convinced he ever went full-villain.  Sure, he's done some bad stuff... can't deny that.  During Emerald Twilight he acted savagely... barbecuing Kilowog, snapping Sinestro's neck, leaving dozens of Green Lanterns in the vacuum of space without their rings, killing the Guardians (well, I can't say I minded that part all that much)... what I'm trying to say is... yeah, he messed up, big time.  He acted villainous... but, this being comic books, he wasn't beyond redemption.  If the Guardians would have allowed him to recreate Coast City (and he was able to actually do it)... one would imagine, he could've just as easily brought Kilowog and the gang back.  Still scummy... sure, but in trying to play the cards that are dealt... one way to go about it.

During Zero Hour: A Crisis in Time, I struggled with the idea that Hal was the villain at all.  He offered the heroes their perfect universe(s).  The heroes turned him down, accused him of playing God... then (along with the Spectre) restarted the universe themselves... making themselves no better than him!  Only he had plans to give everyone what they wanted.  I dunno... I'll post links to past relevant Hal discussions (including the funeral) below.  I guess my point is... I side more with Superman than Batman in this argument.

Now, The Final Night... as a story... really dug it!  A great, understated crossover event.  Positively quiet compared to what we see nowadays.  A simple one-month diversion from the everyday comic book adventures... I'd believe that events of this size would be more than welcome in this day and age.  Well worth checking out (even though I just spoiled the entire thing)... and is collected in (an out-of-print) trade, and the entire magilla is available digitally.

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Yeah... "We" did it.

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The Final Night #3 (1996)

The Final Night #3 (November, 1996)
"Keeping Hope Alive"
Writer - Karl Kesel
Penciller - Stuart Immonen
Inker - Jose Marzan, Jr.
Colorist - Patricia Mulvihill
Letterer - Gaspar
Assistant Editor - Ali Morales
Editor - Dan Thorsland
Cover Price: $1.95

Now... look at that cover.  I thought it was Superman, Wonder Woman, Captain Marvel, and Green Lantern flying away from an exploding planet or something.

Upon closer inspection... those black bits are actually... body bags (!) being carried off by emergency responders.  Ay yai yai... that got pretty dark.

Anyhoo, today we discussing the penultimate part of The Final Ni-- whattayamean, this isn't the second-to-last chapter?  Hmm...

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We open with Guy Gardner and the new Ferro carrying an injured Wildcat into Warrior's Bar, which has been modified into an ad-hoc shelter, command center, and hospital.  It looks like we might've missed some stuff in the tie-ins... but that's okay, we'll make it work.  Before the doctor can take a look at Wildcat, the power generators blink out.

Luckily, Legionnaire Spark is there... and she is able to jump-start Warrior's power generator.  While she pumps the power, she turns to Ferro and gives him an attaboy for helping rescue Dusk from the rioters.  She tosses him her Legion Flight Ring just in case he might be able to use it.  I was doing a bit of reading yesterday, and found out that Ferro Lad's death (back in the late 60's) was tied in with the Sun-Eater story running through Legion of Super-Heroes stories in Adventure Comics!  So, his appearance here has some nods to Legion history... which is really cool to me!

Anyhoo, their chat is interrupted by a special report from... Etrigan, live from Hell?  He claims (in almost perfect rhyme... c'mon "harm" and "warm"? I expect more from ya Etrigan!) that he and his brethren can save the Earth... for a price.  The Daily Planet responds in the way only they can... and we get another throwback to DC history, which tickles me.  At the same time, Lex Luthor is having a press conference about putting together biospheres capable of housing humanity, wildlife, and plant life... and is coming across like a real bad-ass.  Totally brash and confident... and you can tell that he loves that he's got this room full of folks in the palm of his hand.

When a question is posed regarding the temperature level of the Earth's core, we shift to a meeting between Gaea and... the Spectre.  We learn that the Spectre is keeping the Earth warm... until he can be sure of what God's will is.  He's not going to allow the Earth to perish unless he's sure that's what the big guy wants.

We shift, briefly, to Opal City... where Ted Knight is observing the Sun-Eater in his telescope.  He stops for a moment to make an important call to S.T.A.R. Labs... it might be that his eyes are failing him, but he's almost sure the diameter of the Sun... is shrinking!

S.T.A.R. Labs corroborates Ted's tired eyes... and proceeds to tell the heroes (and Luthor) what's about to go down.  Ya see, the Sun ain't gonna go down without a fight... and what it's trying to do is heal itself.  This means it will eventually (though, within 24 hours) go hyper-nova... and turn the solar system to shiny flecks of dust.  Luthor, ever the bad-ass smirks and comments that "at least they don't have to worry about freezing to death".  Superman asks what "we" can do... and in light of Superman's lack of solar exposure, Luthor actually puts his hand on his shoulder and asks... "'We,' Kemo Sabe?"  Wow!

Meanwhile, Dusk is in her ship preparing to get outta dodge... likely to the next solar system that will be imperiled by the Sun-Eater.  Meet the new Pariah, same as the old Pariah.  She seems oddly contented that the Earthlings are about to go out in a blaze of gory glory... because of the riot, ya see.  Before she can jam, she is joined by the Phantom Stranger... who gives her the ol' It's a Wonderful Life treatment so she can see the brighter side of humanity... hope, love, resilience... all that stuff.

We pop over to that unnamed Spanish-speaking land that the Ray burnt himself out trying to keep heated and lit.  He's passed out in bed, and the town is soon visited by Zatanna and Fire.  Fire turns on the green flame, and plants one on Ray Sleeping Beauty style.  He wakes up, but can't do much to keep the town warm.  Zatanna then calls in Firestorm, who was trying to save the planet, but... c'mon Ronnie... there are a few dozen chilly folks in this little town who could really use your help.  And so, he turns on the heat... which might keep this town warm for another couple hours.  I get what they're trying to do here... but, really... this is quite an irresponsible use of all of their time and energy.  Firestorm's a powerful dude, who could really be of assistance on the "front lines".

tahw a etsaw fo s'mrotserif srewop !

Back to It's a Wonderful Dusk, where we watch Dusk and the Phantom Stranger... watch Sentinel (Alan Scott) reunite with his children, Jade and Obsidian... we also see the other heroes trying to keep the world shuffling along.  Dusk can see that even in the face of The Final Night, the heroes (and Earthlings) remain resilient... and hopeful for the future... that there will be a future!

After all of this, the Stranger drops Dusk in an alley... right by a torch-wielding gaggle of folks.  They see her, and rush over.  She braces for a beating... but that's not what they're there for.  The recognize her as Dusk, and ask if they can help her get to Warrior's. Aww.

Superman heads back to Smallville to check with his folks.  Pa is more annoyed that the crops are going to be ruined than anything else.  This really speaks a lot about him.  Either he's so sure his son will fix this mess that he's not worried about... ya know, the end of the world... or, he's trying to put up a brave front.  I'm leaning more toward the former.  I mean, by this point Superman's beaten everything... even death!  What's a little Sun-Eater to a guy like that?  Superman breaks the news that this might actually be... it.

We wrap up this chapter back at Warrior's... where Guy is trying to get drunk.  Unfortunately for him, his Vuldarian whoziwhatsits won't let him even get a bit of a buzz.  He walks past his trophy cases... and toasts to his old Green Lantern costume.  He's suddenly bathed in a green glow... and we are out!

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Another really good issue!  We're still handling the "ground level" consequences of the Sun going out... which, I'm pleased about.  I'd much prefer this to spending four issues in nebulous outer space.

If we're looking for a theme... I'm going with "hope".  Let's break that down... starting with that little Spanish town.  Boy oh boy, like I said during the synopsis... I get what they're doing here.  We're getting quiet little scenes to help keep certain heroes busy, and show that this crisis is not just affecting Metropolis or Gotham City.  With that said... I still don't like it.  It just seems so irresponsible... and ignorant and dismissive of the skatey-eight thousand other tiny towns dotting the globe.  I mentioned yesterday that it was silly for The Ray to comment that the people in this town "didn't do anything wrong"... which, again... I get it... but it is dismissive of every other tiny town (and big city, for that matter).

I think heat and light powered characters need to be working with S.T.A.R. Labs during this crisis.  I mean, in the first issue, they combined their powers to create a decoy Sun for cryin' out loud!  Why couldn't they do something like that again?  That might just buy the Earth a few more hours.  Nah, instead they'll put on a little light show for a few dozen people.

Okay... with that out of the way, more hope!  Let's talk the Kents.  To Pa, this is just another day in the DC Universe.  Can't hold that against him... I mean, there's always something threatening the Earth... so, why would this be any worse?  I appreciate that he has so much faith in his son (and his amazing friends) that he's more annoyed that his crops are dying... than even processing that the world might be ending.

Dusk's magical mystery tour was... ehh.  It's another one of those things where... we get what they're doing... but, at this point, what does it matter?  Is Dusk going to "solve" the Sun-Eater?  Not likely.  If she wants to jam... let her go.  Does it matter to the Phantom Stranger that she thinks humanity is comprised of a bunch of jerks?  It shouldn't!  She wants off-planet?  Can we get a Daily Planet headline for her?

I gotta say, in reading this series I'm getting a whole new appreciation for Lex Luthor.  He's coming across as stone-cold, charismatic, and just flat-out awesome here.  He's got contingencies for just about every situation... and can speak with such a presence that he inspires (cautious) hope.  Like I said yesterday, it looks like his road to the White House has already started!

Overall, still really digging this story... though I gotta say, tomorrow we will... not be discussing The Final Night #4.  Swerve!

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