Review by Karl Verhoven
War of the Supermen ends the New Krypton saga James Robinson and Sterling Gates ran through Superman and Supergirl’s titles from 2008, and picks up the final plot threads not resolved in Last Stand of New Krypton. Although it runs over five chapters, it’s cleverly plotted to occur over a hundred minutes. There’s also a ten page synopsis provided as a news story written by Lois Lane, so if you just want to skip straight to the end of a story told over three years, the necessary information is supplied.
The idea of war between the Kryptonians and Earth has been running through the entire series. Kryptonian General Zod has seemed reasonable in some respects, but ultimately knows there can be no peace with a planet hosting zealots generating methods of destroying Kryptonians cultivated for aggressive rather than defensive purposes. Superman sees things differently, believing “they’ve made the biggest mistake of all. They’ve put their trust in the wrong man. Zod”.
A defining factor of the remaining New Krypton graphic novels was the excellent art, but Eddy Barrows on the opening chapter isn’t up to those standards. He tells stories via big pages with big punches thrown by people with square heads who speak through gritted teeth, and isn’t imaginative enough to vary the viewpoints, nor to realise exaggerating everything isn’t appropriate. Thankfully, the remaining art restores the standards previously maintained, with pages from Jamal Igle and Cafu supplying the sample art.
While subplots and intrigue have been a consistent feature before now, this is the all-action payoff, and stretching it over five chapters without much contrasting the action actually reverses the desired outcome and reduces the thrills. It needs something more than Lois Lane confronting her father and Lex Luthor’s surprises to make War of the Supermen really shine. The reckoning with the Kryptonians on Earth is well handled, but there also needs to be a reckoning with General Lane, and that’s unconvincing melodrama. A few other characters used in the series just drift away without any great explanation, some seen in passing in a single panel, and others forgotten altogether. Considering the time spent setting them up, it’s neglect.
Robinson signs off his Superman run with Bernard Chang as artist. It’s half a dull battle with the Parasite, and half mulling over the recent past, which is sweet in moments, but also probably doesn’t hang together as well as Robinson might have liked. He’d have been better dropping the Parasite and expanding on Superman and Lois’ love and their consideration of what might have happened.
War of the Superman about serves its purpose of supplying closure, but doesn’t come anywhere near matching the work leading to it. However, just because the finale disappoints shouldn’t diminish the many fine moments leading up to it.
