Friday, September 01, 2006

T.G.I.F.: September 1, 2006



A powerless Superman leaps to a near-certain death, falling for 20 seconds with the faith that his cobbled-together compatriots will do what's needed to save both him and the world. His only powers are faith, heroism, and leadership.

This week's Action Comics is one of those Perfect Superman Moments, in it's simple assertion that what makes Superman special is not his powers but his humanity and his heroism. It's a wonderful sequence that gave me the smile and chills that I look for every Wednesday.

As much as Grant Morrison's wonder-filled All-Star Superman captures one kind of Perfect Superman Story, Kurt Busiek's recent work on the Man Of Steel is just as stunning.

4 comments:

Sean Maher said...

I thought Action Comics was Johns/Kubert?

Is Busiek working on BOTH of the main Supes books?

Mark Fossen said...

Busiek is doing a fill-in arc on Action until Johns/Donner/Kubert kicks in.

Anonymous said...

I agree. Busiek looks to be at the beginning of a bonafide "classic Superman run". I've been a life-long fan of the character, and I haven't been this excited about reading Superman comics in many, many years. Probably the best post-Crisis reinvigoration of the lot.

Steven said...

I LOVED this issue, particularly those panels. I'm just not sure which panel I loved more:

the full page splash of Superman blissfully risking his life, a tiny smile on his face because he knows his team will pull through and he's actually enjoying himself...

or the fourth wall shattering close up Superman telling the audience that he has faith is us, all of us. Goddamn, that man is inspirational.