Superman (vol.2) #123 (1997)

Superman (vol.2) #123 (May, 1997)
"Superman... Reborn!"
Story - Dan Jurgens
Penciller - Ron Frenz
Inker - Joe Rubenstein
Letterer - John Costanza
Colorist - Glenn Whitmore
Separations - Digital Chameleon
Associate Editor - Mike McAvennie
Editor - Joey Cavalieri
Cover Price: $1.95

Still feeling in a glow-in-the-dark kinda mood after discussing the conclusion of Emerald Twilight... and this was the first book that came to mind (not that there are all that many with a beautiful radioactive paint-job).  I'm actually quite excited to talk about this one, as it comes from a Superman (DC altogether, really) blind-spot for me.

Looking back, I wish I had been a Superman reader during this time, as it just seems like a damn interesting time.  Alas, instead of discussing when Superman would be ditchin' his electric blues... I was across the way wondering when Wolverine would get his adamantium back!

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We open with Lois Lane fighting traffic on her way to meet with Emil Hamilton and Kitty Faulkner at S.T.A.R. Labs.  Her new husband, Superman's powers have gone all outta whack.  He's becoming incorporeal, fading in and out of physical form.  Making matters worse, he's in the middle of a fight with a blue brute called Scorn.

Superman is struggling big time with this battle... his power is surging and his vision is a psychedelic mess.  Jimmy Olsen and Bibbo are among the spectators, and Superman is doing what he can to keep them safe.  He finally manages to bring things into focus just in time for Scorn to sock him into next week... or an electrified Soder Cola billboard...

... which he appears to absorb the electricity from... 

With Superman outta the picture, Scorn turns his attention toward young Olsen and begins his approach.  Luckily (your mileage may vary) Superman is able to pull himself together long enough to fly headlong into Scorn, and sends him into the bay.

We shift scenes to Lex Luthor's bad-ass multimedia room.  He's watching dozens of Jimmy Olsens reporting on the latest Superman-flavored proceedings.  Lex's new wife, the Contessa enters and the two discuss whether or not LexCorp should step in to help the alien.  Lex rattles off an awesome line here, where he asks if he gains more from Superman's suffering... or his salvation.

Rush hour must be over, because Lois has finally arrived at S.T.A.R.  It doesn't take long for a power surge to hit... Superman is in the building!  Hamilton guides him to a containment chamber to try and keep him in one piece... time is most definitely of the essence.

The Docs and Lois try to figure out the best way to approach this.  Hamilton insists they require some Kryptonian technology, to which the handy li'l robot Kelex offers himself as sacrifice.  Moments later, the Contessa enters holding a roll of blue "advanced polymer fabric" courtesy of LexCorp.  They have been monitoring the Super-sitch, and advise the crew that they may just be their only hope.  She places the fabric on the table and leaves.

We briefly shift to Scorn climbing outta the drink onto a small fishing boat.  His very appearance causes the fisherman on board to suffer a heart attack.  Here we get a bit of an internal monologue from Scorn... he may not be as bad a fella as we thought.

Back at S.T.A.R., it is decided that they will use the LexCorp fabric to create a containment suit for Superman.  They finish up the project, and not a moment too soon... at this point there's very little left of the Man of Steel.

Superman is summoned to try on his new duds, and wouldn'tcha know it, they're a perfect fit!  The suit allows him to keep his new powers when he's "in phase", however, he becomes completely human when he's not.  That's an interesting wrinkle that was lost on me during my first read.

Superman zips through Metropolis, and we see Lex and Bride of Lex watching... they're both quite pleased.

Finally, Superman flies home to Smallville to check in on Ma and Pa... and to show off his new clothes.  They take this drastic change in appearance... perhaps a bit too well.  However, after all they'd been through raising the boy who would become Superman, I'd have to assume it's a bit difficult to really shake them.

The issue wraps up with Scorn carrying the fallen fisherman into the Emergency Room.  As he leaves, he finds a scrap of newspaper with a photo of Clark Kent on it... he rubs his chin, Zack Morris style, indicating he just might be making some connections.

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I'd only read this one once before, and purely for the novelty of the thing... not in any way with an analytic eye.  I remember finding the entire thing kind of "out there", and pretty much wrote the whole thing off.  I'm really glad I gave it the "second chance".

This era seems to get a great deal of flack, and while I'm ultimately ignorant to much of it... if this issue is anything to go by, I'd disagree.  This wasn't a bad issue at all... quite fun, in fact.  Though, I guess I should say I can see why people may not like it.  It is a pretty big departure... and let's face it, the 90's were a very tumultuous time for the Man of Steel.  This may feel like the cherry on a stunt-sundae that was started in 1992.

I'm not really sure of the behind-the-scenes story (if there was one, anyway) for the new-look Supes... but, as a temporary (we had to know it was temporary... right?) thing, I don't have any problem with it.  We just went through a year of the New-52 Superman fighting crime in jeans and a t-shirt, with his secret identity known to the world... this electric blue dealie is hardly that big a deal in retrospect.

I notice that the Scorn character gets a lot of face-time during this era (including a cover featuring only his face, if I'm not mistaken).  I have absolutely no knowledge of the fella, but I'm looking forward to doing some "homework" to fill in my blanks.

I enjoyed how Lois had to actually work at keeping herself in check.  It would only be too easy for her to show her hand... divulge that she's Mrs. Superman, and Superman is Mr. Kent.  I really like that Jurgens had her actually think about how she was conducting herself around the Docs.  It's a little thing, but means so much.

I've got no complaints about the writing or the art... which shouldn't really come as any surprise.  I'm a big fan of Dan Jurgens, and Ron Frenz always delivers.  I do, however, have a problem with the coloring... but I suspect that's more an indictment on the technology of the era.  So many late-90's books had that odd "muddy" look when it came to the colors (though I did appreciate the psychedelic effects early on).  This issue isn't nearly as bad in that respect as other books I've seen, however, still not all that pretty.

Much to my surprise, this has been collected!  As of this writing, I cannot speak to the quality of the overall package.  I can say, however, that I enjoyed this opening chapter.

I mentioned the glow in the dark cover above... well, hold on to your hats:

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Letters Page:

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Green Lantern (vol.3) #50 (1994)

Green Lantern (vol.3) #50 (March, 1994)

"Emerald Twilight, Part Three: The Future"

Writer - Ron Marz

Pencils - Darryl Banks

Inks - Romeo Tanghal

Colors - Steve Mattsson

Letters - Albert De Guzman

Assistant Editor - Eddie Berganza

Editor - Kevin Dooley

Cover Price: $2.95

On this past week's Cosmic Treadmill segment for the Weird Science DC Comics Podcast, Reggie and I spent the better part of 45 minutes discussing Emerald Twilight... with a special emphasis on this, the senses-shattering conclusion.  

We went page by page, and even discussed some of the "what might have beens" had previous Lantern writer Gerard Jones have been kept on.  From there we talk about some of the fallout including the turning up of the H.E.A.T. on DC editorial/creative.  It was a good time, as always... so if you're interested give'r a listen!

Of course, you can check out my coverage of GL #48 and GL #49 here if you need/want to be caught up.

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Hot off the heels of issue #49, Hal stands before his arch-rival Sinestro.  The two exchange pleasantries and emerald blasts, before Sinestro trash-talks Jordan into dumping all his appropriated lantern rings (save his own)... making it a fair fight.

The pair continues to fight... trading barbs both verbal and physical.  Hal cannot, for the life of him, figure out what the Guardians were thinking when they summoned the rogue Lantern, Sinestro.  Sinestro, being a complete (awesome) jerk smirks and offers that they may have seen him as a "lesser or two evils."

Sinestro continues twisting the knife... he tells Hal that the Guardians once begged him to take Jordan under his wing... begged him to even make him even half the Lantern he is... just being a total slimeball here, and it's amazing!

The battle goes from willpower based to a down and dirty fistfight.  These two just absolutely beat the hell out of one another.  It's an amazing fight, that ends with Hal getting the upper hand.  He grabs Sinestro in a headlock, and... snaps his neck.  Not before Sinestro lets out one of the sweetest "last words" I've read in a comic.  He agrees that Hal should've snapped his neck a long time ago!

With Sinestro out of the picture, Hal continues toward the power battery.  Before he can steal the power he feels a giant paw on his shoulder... Kilowog is back in the game... and he ain't happy.

Before he knows it, Hal is dragged into his second fistfight in as many minutes.  Kilowog tries to talk reason to Hal... even going as far as comparing what happened to his home planet, Bolovax Vik to what happened to Coast City.  Kilowog's home was destroyed during the Crisis on Infinite Earths... and considering that was an entire planet... not just a city, there really isn't much of a comparison.

He tells Hal it's not too late to turn back.  It's not too late to stop all of this... and then, it happens.  Hal barbecues Kilowog.

Hal slumps to the ground next to the smoldering skeleton of one of his closer friends... and mentors.  He sits there, realizes the gravity of the situation... perhaps for the first time... he sits there, and weeps.  He removes his ring and tosses it to the ground, knowing he no longer deserves the right to wear it.

Hal again approaches the power battery.  The Guardians make one last effort to stop him.  It goes about as well as it could be expected.  Hal, still weeping, grabs a Guardian by the collar and tells them it's too late.  And so, he enters the battery.

While Hal is "in dispose", the Guardians decide to impart all of their power into the youngest among them... Ganthet.  They stand in a circle, and focus all of their emerald energy into the one who would become the "final" Guardian of the Universe.

The power battery explodes, and Hal reappears... in some new duds.  He walks through the smoldering corpses of the Guardians and stomps on his former ring for good measure before taking off.

Ganthet emerges from the pile of bodies and repairs Hal's ring... he knows what he must do.

Ganthet heads to Earth, and finds himself behind some dumpy nightclub.  There's a young man out back "getting air".  You remember that stargazing fella a couple of issues back?  Toldja he wasn't gonna be important... he's just some artist and Nine Inch Nails fan named Kyle Rayner.  Oh yeah, and he's now the one and only Green Lantern.  So there's that...

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Well, how 'bout that?  I was pretty shocked the first time I'd read this all those years ago... and I still get kinda cringy upon rereading.  This really felt as though it would be Hal's Rubicon... there really ain't any going back after all this.  I've mentioned before... it would have been easier to kill him, and bring him back down the line... with the massacre, however... yeesh.

Regardless of whether or not the Parallax was a giant yellow space bug who was causing Hal to act this way... it's still kinda tough to separate the "man" from the behavior.  I was happy upon Hal's redemption, that Batman still kinda questioned if the League should be so trusting of the man.

Some great writing here.  Really dug the trash-talk between Hal and Sinestro.  Sin agreeing with Hal that he should've killed him long ago was pretty awesome.  Of course, he couldn't because of the Zamoran yellow-impurity-in-the-battery dealie was lingering about... but still, cool.

Hal barbecuing poor Kilowog was pretty heart-breaking.  I think that's when most readers realized that DC creative and editorial wasn't screwing around here.  It was also the moment where the stark realization of the events kinda caught up with Hal in-story.  The man sits next to his old friend's smoldering skeleton... and openly weeps.  Up until that point, I feel it would have been pretty easy to sweep things under the rug... this one action really was Hal's bridge-too-far.

This issue, at least to my knowledge didn't have a "first" solicitation like the other two parts of Emerald Twilight.  There is, however, a Gerard Jones proposed plot summary available online.  Wildly interesting reading!

If you don't feel like clickin'... here's the quick 'n dirty:  New Guardians arrive on Oa and claim the "originals" to be fraudulent imposters.  They take over the Corps, remove the yellow impurity and 24-hour time limits from the rings.  Hal and the Justice League have to fight the Sinestro-led Corps.  Hal discovers that the original Guardians were behind the death of Hal's father... in order to give Hal sufficient "trauma" to become a hero.  Turns out the "new" Guardians are the fakes... and all goes back to normal.  We can't forget, however... the Guardians had Hal's dad "offed".  Hal leaves the Corps, and renames himself the Protector.  No, not that Protector.

Let's take a look at the some of the constants between the two.  At the end of both versions, A) The yellow impurity and 24-hour time limit are eliminated from the rings, and B) Hal Jordan is no longer a Green Lantern.  Now, it's not much of a secret that during his time Hal has "quit" the Lanterns so often that it's almost a running gag.  Had the original story gone forward, I believe it would have felt more like "Hal being Hal" than anything profound or special.

As for the Guardians of the Universe being "behind the scenes" as it pertains to the death of Martin Jordan... hmm, I'm getting flashbacks to the end of the Grant Morrison run on Doom Patrol, where it was revealed that Niles Caulder kind of "masterminded" the circumstances behind Larry, Cliff, and Rita ultimately becoming Doomies.  That story hit in 1992, if I'm not mistaken... and I really can't speak to how much of a crossover audience the two books shared, but still interesting.

This being the mid-1990's, DC felt they had to commemorate the landmark 50th issue with an enhanced cover.  Rather than just shovel out another book covered in tin-foil, however, they gave us a much more interesting glow-in-the-dark deal... which much to my surprise, still glows in the dark!  Below you can see it illuminated... I closed myself in my laundry room with the lights out like a goon to snap the pic.

Of course I recommend anybody check this one out.  Love it or hate it, Emerald Twilight is one of those stories all fans of superhero comics should know about.  Again, Reggie and I spent about 45 minutes discussing it (and a lot of the stuff surrounding it, including fan theories and the emergence of H.E.A.T.) on this past week's Weird Science DC Comics Podcast.

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Letters Page (with a great post-script by Eddie Berganza):

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Superman (vol.2) #22 (1988)

Superman (vol.2) #22 (October, 1988)

"The Supergirl Saga, Part III: The Price"

Story & Art - John Byrne

Lettering - John Costanza

Coloring - Petra Scotese

Assistant Editor - Renee Witterstaetter

Editor - Mike Carlin

Cover Price: $0.75

Well, here we are... Part III and the end of the Supergirl Saga (Part I Part II).  This is quite the pivotal issue in Superman history, as it features... well, something that many fans (even to this day) find unbelievable.  Don't wanna spoil it in the preamble... but I will say, if you haven't read this issue yet... and have any passing interest in Superman, and the way he deals with threats of this magnitude... you really ought to check it out before reading on (available via DC Digital, here).  This one is a big deal, and you don't need some fool blogger spoiling it for you.

If you're still here (or back)... cool.  Let's get right into it.

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We open with Superman surveying the absolute decimation of the pocket Earth.  Barring a handful of folks, there are zero signs of life in this entire universe.  Superman reconnoiters with Supergirl, and they spy Phantom Zone Criminal, Quex-Ul's ship flying overhead.

The Supers look to engage in battle with Quex-Ul.  Of special note, they are wearing breathing apparatuses in order to survive without any atmosphere.  This was added to the character post-Crisis as a way to power-down the Man of Steel somewhat from his Silver-Age capacity.  Quex underestimates Superman, thinking him just a fool Earthling cosplaying as Superboy.  He's gets walloped for his poor judgment!  

This surprises not only Quex, but Zod and Zaora as well.  To get over the shock, General Zod decides to... incinerate Bruce Wayne.  The would-be Batman perishes in a fiery poof.

Supergirl falls back and checks in with Lex Luthor.  We learn that after getting knocked loopy, Quex-Ul decided to check in on Smallville Station... and, ya know... destroy it, killing everybody inside to boot.  Lana is so enraged she flies headlong toward the Criminals and... gets toasted!  

She slumps to the decimated Earth, a mass of flaming humanoid glop.  Superman checks in with Luthor as we see both Ollie and Hal get unceremoniously killed.  Lex mouths his final plan to Superman, hoping he can use his x-ray vision to read his lips (so the criminals don't overhear).  Luthor is going to offer a distraction so that Superman can act.

Unfortunately, that tricky Quex-Ul gets in Clark's way.  The two engage in battle once more, until Superman burrows into the ground in an attempt to flee.  He shows a bit of embarrassment for taking the "coward's way out", but time is truly of the essence right now!  He continues to burrow until he emerges in Superboy's underground laboratory.  Quex-Ul shows his unflinching tenacity by jumping Supes shortly after arrival.

The pair gets back down to it, fighting all around the lab... until Superman finds his "ace in the hole" in the form of Gold Kryptonite!  Gold K is a pre-Crisis dealie that has the ability to permanently rob a Kryptonian of their powers... at least (and luckily) those Kryptonians who are from this pocket universe!

Love the "Gold K" canister!

Quex-Ul is down and out.  Superman crafts a giant cubic prison around the criminal brute and heads off to complete the hat-trick.  It doesn't take him long to find Zod and Zaora, and rob them of their powers as well.

With the Kryptonian threat neutralized, Superman goes off in search of Lex Luthor.  When he finds him, he's about ready to draw his final breath.  Before he passes on, he confides in Superman that the "real" (pocket) Lana Lang was long dead, and "Supergirl" was, in actuality created from Lana's molecular Matrix.  Lex used Lana in order to help ensure Superman's cooperation.

Superman heads back to the cube holding the criminals.  These bastards are still as cocky as ever... mocking Superman for his inability to truly "take them out".  He cannot send them back to the Phantom Zone... and they promise when they get their powers back (because they're sure they can), they would find his Earth, and do to it, what they did to this one.

Resigned to the fact of what he must do, Superman removes a canister from the wall of the cube.  Without hesitation, he lifts the lid... revealing green Kryptonite!

The Phantom Zoners never saw this coming.  Their first instinct is to turn on one another.  Zod claims to be a pawn of Quex-Ul... to which Quex begins choking the life out of him.  Zaora attempts to appeal to Superman's more... baser needs.  None of it matters, as only a few moments later the three criminals slump to the ground... dead.  Superman... killed them.

As he emerges from the cube, he spies something on the periphery.  We find out, after Clark returns to the "real" Earth that this was the gummy form of Matrix.  He delivers her to the Kent farm... to his parents.  He gives them the quick 'n dirty of what he'd just lived through, and asks that they take care of her for a little while.

The Supergirl Saga wraps up with Superman taking to the skies... heavy with the gravity and severity of what he'd just done.  He thinks to himself that going forward, things will never be the same again.

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Now, I gotta say... even though I knew it was coming, it still got me a bit.  This is the issue I think of when I hear people say "Superman doesn't kill"... no, he doesn't... unless there's absolutely no other option.  The Phantom Zone Criminals told him as much... they were going to "get better" and recover their powers... and when they did, watch out... they're coming to the "real" DCU!

Without the ability to return the crew to the Phantom Zone, he really didn't have any other choice.  It wasn't a decision he made lightly... and it was one that would carry the burden of guilt for a long time to come.  Superman was looking out for the needs of the many, rather than the dark designs of a few.

This issue really packs a punch, as, while it's kind of "under the radar" in the grander scheme, but... Bruce Wayne dies here... so do Hal Jordan, Oliver Queen, and Lex Luthor!  Sure, they're not "our" versions... but still, kind of sobering to see.

The reveal that Lana was among the first Pocketers to perish was interesting (and validating)... it's been a long while since I first read this... and while I knew this Supergirl was the "Matrix" iteration, I was wondering if I'd somehow missed a truer connection between Lana and Matrix.  Now, I know.

Let's discuss the cover for a moment.  It's strange that for the longest time I never noticed the "S" on the executioner's shirt.  Whenever I look back on this era without context, I sometimes mistake the executioner for some sort of villain Superman has to fight off.  That is to say, for whatever reason, I don't usually associate this cover with this storyline.  I actually had to stop and realize that this is symbolic of the story inside.  Talk about "duh"... Superman is the executioner.

I've long held that if you were to build a comic book creator from component parts and from the ground up, what you would come up with is John Byrne.  He is the prototypical comic book creator to me.  He has such a mastery over giving subtle facial quirks to his characters.  From the moment Superman "pulls the trigger", there is a subtle "heaviness" over his brow.  It's not overdone, it's really just a very well-placed line or two... but it speaks volumes for the gravity of what had just occurred.  Absolutely beautiful work here.

This entire "saga" is well worth your time... as a matter of fact, I would heartily recommend the John Byrne post-Crisis Superman as a whole.  Thankfully, DC has collected nine (count'em, nine!) volumes of it... the Man of Steel Collection truly is "must-reading".

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