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By Jason Bourgeois
Another month, another Grey Matters. Let's dive right in, shall we?
I know I only recently touched upon the state of the Superman titles, but the books change creators almost as frequently as the X-Books. Which becomes an increasingly invalid comparrison I realise, since they've had the same writers for almost two years.
Where was I? Right, Superman.
Anyways, there's a new writer on the eponymous Superman comic, and he's some guy called J. Michael Straczynski. He's almost a regular feature in this column, and long time readers know why. My love for his work goes back many years, through numerous mediums. So I won't bore anyone with details, just go digging through the archives. Or wait another few months when I'm sure he'll come up again.
After a multi-year epic in the Superbooks establishing New Krypton, a new status quo, new heroes, new villains, and a sprawling cast and gigantic storyline, most of them ended up dead, and New Krypton destroyed, putting most of the toys back in place. Some people remained, but for the most part, the status quo has once more been returned. No surprises there, and while some people will grouse that nothing came of that storyline, I'd argue the point. It would be on minor details to be sure, so I'm just going to let that lie where it is, and let everyone make their own decision. Suffice to say, we all knew we'd be mostly back where we started, I think. The ride was fun, and wrapped up in a fairly satisfactory manner.
However, even when returning to the status quo, these events still touch characters lives, and that's the very seed that JMS is taking with his run on Superman. Clark has realised he has become very removed from the people of Earth, focusing more on outer space, his own people, and other concerns too numerous to mention. It's a simple matter to just brush that all away and get back to business, but JMS is instead taking that sense of disconnect to explore who Clark is, who Superman is, and where he belongs in the world.
He's doing this by having Clark take a walking tour of the United States. He could fly, but he chooses not to do so, and if there's a desperate need for Superman, he will still go and help, then pick up where he left off. Clark feels as if he has grown apart from his adoptive home, in part because he always sees it from above, and not from the street level; no longer a part of the world, but floating above it like some sort of god. This is a very valid take on where the character is now, and when Superman realises he has fallen into this role, this rut, you have to do something about it.
In my opinion, I'm not sure this is actually the best way to tackle the problem, and explore the character. For the most part, the very basic idea of it, is fine. Put Superman back amongst the people, let him reconnect, and that's a good idea. For an annual, or a few issues at most. Instead, JMS is doing this for an entire year. 12 issues of Superman walking across the country and encountering people and stuff.
That sounds like a huge misstep, and after reading the first few issues, I still feel that way, to some extent. The first issue has Clark walking to Philidelphia and encountering the locals, and exploring just what it means to be a hero, and who he considers to be such people. Mostly not himself. While I don't like the idea of the year long trek, this one single issue was, quite frankly, one of the best comics I've read in the past year, at least. It had some genuine emotion, explored the character of Superman, and had a lot to say.
But while it was a really good story, was it a Superman story? I'm not sure.
The second issue brought Superman to Detroit, where he explores the issues of the fading automotive industry, immigration, and people's sense of belonging. The latter two are at least very clearly issues Superman is good at dealing with. He's long been a symbol of immigration, and bringing in another group of aliens that want nothing more than to live their lives in peace is a good reflection upon Superman's own situation, and something he can speak to.
Once again a very good issue, and really tugged at the old heartstrings in all the right ways. And once again, is it really a Superman story? I'd say the second issue is moreso fitting that mold than the first, but still, we're walking across the US in a very lengthy, drawn out way.
So, are some very good stories, and knowing JMS there will be many more, worth the cost of an overly long storyarc that will likely just finish putting Superman back on familiar ground, so to speak? I'm not sure, again. I get the need to explore Superman's character, give something for new readers to see, and get him to reconnect with real people, but is this too long of a road to take, literally and figuratively? I think it might be. I don't know if I really want to read this journey for the next ten months.
These issues are at least worth checking out. They are some of the best written character pieces within superhero comics at the moment. They're far from great, or fitting Superman stories, but that doesn't diminish these from being some very good comics indeed. If you've got any interest in Superman, or just want to read some solidly done character studies, then you can do much worse than reading these comics. But if you want some big fights and epicness or soap opera, this is probably not a good place to look for it. I say they're worth checking out, but I can easily see why someone wouldn't.
I know I would have given this road trip a pass if not for the strength of the creators involved.
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