Superman Unchained #9

   Finally we trudge across the finish line with the final issue of Superman Unchained.

   I'm not quite sure the reason behind this series. I suppose DC was hoping to capitalize on the Man of Steel movie.

   Or they thought teaming up their hottest writer (Scott Snyder) with their hottest artist (Jim Lee) would produce something memorable.

    It's a logical thought, but the execution is lacking. The art is fantastic, of course - Lee hasn't dropped a step.

   But the story just falls on its face. A gigantic alien invasion threatens, which forces Superman to work with Lex Luthor - but will Luthor's solution mean an end to Supeman?

   The whole invasion (and the solution to the problem) all seem to fly in out of left field, and the solution to the problem would have been worked out If Superman had spent the issue sitting in a recliner at the Fortress of Solitude.

   So, nine issues and lots of 'splosions later, we don't know anything more about Superman and his cast - except that they're all lovely to look at.

Grade: B-

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Superman Unchained #8

   In my review of the last issue of this series, I predicted that Superman Unchained would wrap up early in 2015, but this issue only took two months to show up (as opposed to four months between the previous issues), so I may be wrong.

   With one issue left, they might just squeeze it in before the end of the year.

   But this is a series that will, I presume, read much better as a collection. I say this because, thanks to the gaps between issues, I can't remember the running subplots here.

   The focus in this issue is on the long-awaited knock-down, drag-out fight between Superman and the even more powerful alien Wraith.

   It gives artist Jim Lee lots of opportunities for some great action sequences as the battle ranges from the desert to outer space and the bottom of the ocean. And it's nice to see Superman using his intelligence to win a fight, rather than just slugging it out.

   As for the rest of the story, I have to admit I don't remember much about it. Something to do with Lois and Jimmy and Lex Luthor and something called the Earthstone. And apparently the Earth is facing another alien invasion of some kind.

   But it's a bad sign when I really don't remember enough about the story to care. A strong fight sequence, though, and nice to see it didn't end up with Metropolis in ruins, like a certain big-budget movie I could name.

Grade: B+

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Superman Unchained #7

   The Superman Unchained series has been around just over a year, but the gaps between issues have made it a challenge to keep a grip on the story.

   So let's see: we have the U.S. military surrounding Superman's Fortress of Solitude, threatening to kill him if he refuses to surrender. (Boy, do I hate that bit of business.)

   We have the powerhouse known as the Wraith (who may be more powerful that Superman) invading the Batcave to kill Batman.

   Then there's Lois Lane (remember her?), who guards a mysterious stone of power.

   It all collides together in an action-packed issue that gives artist Jim Lee lots of chances to strut his stuff, with several full-page and double-page spreads.

   Just two more issues to go, so this should be wrapping up by, what, early 2015? Hope it'll have been worth the wait.

Grade: B+

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Superman Unchained #6

  Every time I start to like this series, it does something to change my mind.

   This issue of Superman Unchained, for example, starts off with a serious challenge for Earth's heroes: someone has launched every atomic missile in the world (in case you were wondering, there are 219 of them).

   Not even Superman can stop them all - so he has to team up with the Wraith - or does he?

   We also get another battle between those two powerhouses - and Superman actually has a civilized discussion with Lois Lane!

   So there are some things to like. But the story also plays fast and loose with its solutions to the problems (all terribly convenient), and it gets back to the "United States military is trying to kill Superman" story point that I really despise. ("Thanks for saving the world time and again, Superman - but we have to kill you now.")

   Even the art feels a bit rushed this time around, though Jim Lee's work is still outstanding.

   Apparently this title has become a limited series (news reports say it's supposed to wrap up in April with issue #9) - which is good, because that means there's an end in sight. So much potential, only a fraction of it realized - what a shame.

Grade: B-

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Superman Unchained #5

   So I've read all five issues of this series and continue to be surprised that it's really not working for me.

   Jim Lee's art is exceptional as always, but what's unexpected is that Scott Snyder's script isn't working for me - which I wouldn't have expected, since his work on Batman has been exceptional.

   But Superman Unchained is trying so hard to be a dark examination of the Man of Steel (rather like the film was, I suppose), that it doesn't seem to be a Superman comic at all (again, like the film).

   This issue even makes the cardinal mistake of pointing out the mortality of Superman's friends - which isn't true at all.

   Oh sure, in the real world Lois and Perry and Jimmy would age (perhaps Clark would, too) - but the reality of it is, they don't age at all. They've been around since the late '30s, after all, and they all seem just as young and vial as they were then (I'll grant that their fashions have changed).

   Add to that the menace of Ascension (whose motivations aren't clear at all), an alternate history for the Earth's technology,  and the menace of the Wraith, a coldblooded version of Superman.

   Perhaps what the series needs is some humor - a ray of hope. Right now, it's all darkness and gloom.

Grade: B

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Superman Unchained #4

   It's always a bad sign when I pick up an ongoing series and my first thought is, "What was going on here again?"

   Some of that can be attributed to the almost three-month gap between this issue of Superman Unchained and the last. But some has to go to the muddled story so far.

   As best as I can remember, Superman was investigating another super-powerful creature, one whose power rivals (or surpasses) his own.

   That led to a big, stupid fight with the military, and now Superman has teamed up with the mysterious Wraith to take on... some kind of terrorist group that's using incredibly powerful machines to attack a major city.

   We also get some glimpses of Lex Luthor, who's off somewhere plotting the death of his enemy, and Lois Lane is under attack by that same terrorist group.

   As always, the art by Jim Lee and Scott Williams is terrific, but the story still hasn't come together - though I'll grant it may make more sense when it's eventually published as a collection.

   But for now, it just doesn't work.

Grade: C+

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Superman Unchained #3

   Given the talent working on this series, I was surprised that I didn't like the last issue of Superman Unchained much at all.

   Sadly, this issue doesn't do much to rise above that effort.

   Once again, we have Superman fighting the United States military for no good reason. The Man of Steel shows up at a secret military base, asks questions which General Lane (Lois' dad) refuses to answer, he fights a powerful alien and then they all calm down and answer his questions. So why were they fighting?

   This is also one of those comics where I think I must be losing my memory. Among the side stories are one that follows Lois Lane as she attempts a crash landing in a big plane - I have no memory at all of why she's in the plane, and we get no clue here.

   There's another sub-plot that has a mindless, exo-skeleton-wearing Lex Luthor being somehow piloted by himself (you read that correctly) for reasons I can't remember. And some drones are attacking Tokyo, but I have no idea why or where they came from.

   Forgetting elements like that indicates that either I'm losing my mind (always a possibility) or the setup in the last issue wasn't memorable at all. (I'm hoping it's reason #2.)

   The art by Jim Lee is as impressive as always, and it's great to see a new character who's powerful enough to go toe-to-toe with Superman - but I think that character's name has been used more than once before in comics.

   At any rate, it's another split effort, as the art is impressive but the story seems to be spending all of its efforts in making Superman a badass.

   Personally, I always liked him when he was just the world's greatest hero.

Grade: B-

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Superman Unchained #2

My feelings are split on this second issue of Superman Unchained.

On one hand, I appreciate that the creative team has come up with a character who can go toe-to-toe with the Man of Steel (though that doesn't actually happen in this issue). I like that Superman and Batman are friends here, and that Lois and Clark actually have a civil discussion.

The art by Jim Lee is terrific, naturally. The writing by Scott Snyder is strong.

But... I hate the fact that the U.S. Military is treated as the bad guy in this issue. That trope (already worked over in the movie this summer) has been done to death.

And there's no reason for it (except to underscore that the military is developing weapons that can take out Superman).

When he arrives at a military base to find some answers to a super-popwered mystery, he is immediately threatened by General Lane (Lois' dad). Is it really a good idea to attack Superman when he's calmly asking questions? It just seems like poor strategy (especially when Lane is standing six feet away from the target of all those high-tech weapons).

I also don't like the characterization of Soldiers as being trigger-happy, or easily spooked into attacking.

There are plenty of actual villains running around the DC Universe - considering the sacrifices they make on our behalf, there's no need to lump the military into that category.

It's lazy storytelling, and in my opinion, it's frankly offensive.

Grade: C

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Superman Unchained #1

As part of the 75th Anniversary celebration for the Man of Steel (not to mention the release of the movie by that name), DC has teamed up writer Scott Snyder and artist Jim Lee - and created a new comic, Superman Unchained.

And the result is... about what you'd expect. Great art, and an intriguing story (though as you'd expect, this issue just gets the story off to a running start).

After a rather offbeat start, the story takes us to deep space, where Superman is playing "catch the satellite." Something has knocked a number of satellites and space stations out of orbit, and Superman is on the job (and if anything ever looked like a job for Superman, this is it).

In one clever bit of business, the fifth page is actually a fold-out poster providing giant-sized versions of page four and five. But there is a problem - in order for the poster to work, it's attached to a cardboard insert which covers part of several captions on page six. With all the planning that must've gone into this stunt, you'd think they'd have placed the text more carefully.

Since I haven't been reading the regular Superman title, I found things a bit confusing when the story switches to the civilian cast. Apparently Clark Kent has quit the Daily Planet and works for a different newspaper? Lois is now Nick Fury, spending all her time working at holographic monitors that control something (the layout of a newspaper, I assume). Nice to see Jimmy Olsen is still friends with Clark.

But the set-up (and that final splash page) sets up a potential opponent for our hero - and one who can go toe-to-toe with the Man of Tomorrow.

The art by Jim Lee is, of course, terrific, with dynamic layouts, great characters and stunning environments.

If a comics company want to generate interest in a character, it's always a good idea to turn him over to your top creators.

Good move, DC.

Grade: A-

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