Scan barcode
unladylike's review against another edition
3.0
I picked this up so I could read all the new Bendis-written Superman tales, but his one issue in this deluxe collection is actually the weakest part of the whole thing! It's mostly a disconnected anthology of classic Superman tribute one-shots by various well-known writers. I liked some of the nods to Tom King's exceptional and unique Mister Miracle series, but his actual writing of Superman was not my favorite.
The most interesting thing in this collection for me was the reprinting of Action Comics #1! Like most people exposed to this culture, I've seen the famous cover of Superman's first appearance countless times, but I had never actually read that introductory iteration! And wow, it hit me like a real, unexpected super-punch! Within the first few pages, Superman is confronting implied rape and domestic violence, and stopping the execution of a wrongly-indicted woman named Evelyn Curry (stowing that first real background character name away in my brain in case it pops up as an easter egg elsewhere). He's also kind of a jerk, aggressively bullying people who haven't done anything wrong and catching them off-guard with no effective explanation, and then cowering and defaulting to sexist and rape culture-based power dynamics when interacting with Lois Lane and a mobster-type douchebag named Butch (who definitely appeared in one of the earlier, more recent comics in this collection, and who I didn't know anything about until having read AC#1).
I was super impressed by how much information and story Simon and Shuster were able to pack into that first issue! Certain elements from that 1938 debut have been obviously ret-conned, so it was interesting to see what the first intentions were and imagine how Superman might have otherwise developed if he remained in that reality and trajectory.
The most interesting thing in this collection for me was the reprinting of Action Comics #1! Like most people exposed to this culture, I've seen the famous cover of Superman's first appearance countless times, but I had never actually read that introductory iteration! And wow, it hit me like a real, unexpected super-punch! Within the first few pages, Superman is confronting implied rape and domestic violence, and stopping the execution of a wrongly-indicted woman named Evelyn Curry (stowing that first real background character name away in my brain in case it pops up as an easter egg elsewhere). He's also kind of a jerk, aggressively bullying people who haven't done anything wrong and catching them off-guard with no effective explanation, and then cowering and defaulting to sexist and rape culture-based power dynamics when interacting with Lois Lane and a mobster-type douchebag named Butch (who definitely appeared in one of the earlier, more recent comics in this collection, and who I didn't know anything about until having read AC#1).
I was super impressed by how much information and story Simon and Shuster were able to pack into that first issue! Certain elements from that 1938 debut have been obviously ret-conned, so it was interesting to see what the first intentions were and imagine how Superman might have otherwise developed if he remained in that reality and trajectory.
georgezakka's review against another edition
4.0
it's a bird! it's a plane! it's an 80 year old man in red underwear flying!
its the 1000th issue of action comics and dc is celebrating by making a huge issue with tens of creators making a bunch of short stories.
some of my favourite stories in this were from the city that has everything by Dan Jurgens, of tomorrow by tom king and clay Mann, faster than a speeding bullet by Brad Meltzer and the truth by Brian Michael Bendis. the other ones were good but these were the ones that stood out to me.
overall great book.
its the 1000th issue of action comics and dc is celebrating by making a huge issue with tens of creators making a bunch of short stories.
some of my favourite stories in this were from the city that has everything by Dan Jurgens, of tomorrow by tom king and clay Mann, faster than a speeding bullet by Brad Meltzer and the truth by Brian Michael Bendis. the other ones were good but these were the ones that stood out to me.
overall great book.
trike's review against another edition
3.0
This is not a graphic novel in the sense that it tells a single cohesive story. Rather it is an anthology of short stories celebrating Superman’s 80th anniversary (1938 to 2018). As with most books of this nature by a multitude of creators, the quality varies, but there isn’t a single bad one in the bunch. As a retrospective it works fine.
The one chapter which was annoying is the new Bendis version, which is basically a teaser for a completely different book, so thematically it doesn’t fit in with this collection. It doesn’t make sense as a marketing tool because people who are interested in a Superman story collection that alternTes between nostalgia and character moments aren’t going to buy Man of Steel, and those who are already going to buy Man of Steel don’t need to be sold on it.
That said, overall it’s a nice collection, with some fluff extras. Primarily for Superman aficionados.
The one chapter which was annoying is the new Bendis version, which is basically a teaser for a completely different book, so thematically it doesn’t fit in with this collection. It doesn’t make sense as a marketing tool because people who are interested in a Superman story collection that alternTes between nostalgia and character moments aren’t going to buy Man of Steel, and those who are already going to buy Man of Steel don’t need to be sold on it.
That said, overall it’s a nice collection, with some fluff extras. Primarily for Superman aficionados.
jobridge's review against another edition
5.0
Such a sweet celebration of everything good about Superman.
sans's review
3.0
Took me over a month, but I finally pulled this out of the towering to-read stack and got through it during my lunch break. On the whole, I liked it. Some stories (King's) were amazing, some (Wolfman's) were the opposite of amazing and most were cheerily in the middle. Broadly, this is a good intro to the Superman mythology. You get some new stuff, some retro, you get to dip into different eras of Clark's journey so far, you get enough information to know what's happening, and teased enough about major past stories to maybe go find them and dig in.
As for the final story...I don't know. Maybe I'm sick of the Bendis hype, maybe I'm still bitter that Super Sons was cancelled (thank the DC gods - New Gods? - that new maxiseries was announced), maybe I'm just the cranky old "get off my lawn" person when it comes to big changes. I'm just not thrilled with the prelude to Man of Steel. I'll still read it. Of course I will. I have very little impulse control when it comes to comics and books. I'm just heavily side-eyeing everything Bendis right now.
As for the final story...I don't know. Maybe I'm sick of the Bendis hype, maybe I'm still bitter that Super Sons was cancelled (thank the DC gods - New Gods? - that new maxiseries was announced), maybe I'm just the cranky old "get off my lawn" person when it comes to big changes. I'm just not thrilled with the prelude to Man of Steel. I'll still read it. Of course I will. I have very little impulse control when it comes to comics and books. I'm just heavily side-eyeing everything Bendis right now.
charitytinnin's review
4.0
Overall, this is a solid tribute/celebration issue. I personally thought Jurgens' story was the best. I love his Clark AND his Lois, and I'm already missing him on Action.
The issue loses points because of Dini's story (for the needless pin-up objectification) and Bendis' teaser. I hope Bendis proves me wrong, but the idea of another bulky alien showing up to kill Kryptonians in the middle of Metropolis who also complicates Kal's origin made me roll my eyes. And why did we need to spend so much time discussing the return of the shorts/undies but not EXPLAINING their return? And why are they back?! Sigh.
The issue loses points because of Dini's story (for the needless pin-up objectification) and Bendis' teaser. I hope Bendis proves me wrong, but the idea of another bulky alien showing up to kill Kryptonians in the middle of Metropolis who also complicates Kal's origin made me roll my eyes. And why did we need to spend so much time discussing the return of the shorts/undies but not EXPLAINING their return? And why are they back?! Sigh.
anthroxagorus's review
5.0
Some of these got me in the feels, the first being my favorite. Also a beautiful pinup by Jorge Jimenez and some stories from Scott Synder and Tom King, ending with a teaser for what’s to come.
A great tribute. Hoping for a 1000 issues more!!
A great tribute. Hoping for a 1000 issues more!!
birdmanseven's review against another edition
3.0
This wasn't as successful as some of the other recent nostalgia-drive, milestone collections. I did enjoy the variety of classic and modern art styles though.
We got in to this a bit on Comic Book Coffee Break: https://soundcloud.com/allthebooks/from-the-stacks-cancelled-comic-cavalcade
We got in to this a bit on Comic Book Coffee Break: https://soundcloud.com/allthebooks/from-the-stacks-cancelled-comic-cavalcade
pleaseinsertpun's review
4.0
This was a good collections of Superman stories, with the varying levels of quality you expect from these things. The stories of Superman honoring Ma & Pa Kent on a dying Earth and the story of the man whose car is smashed on the cover of Action Comics #1 were particular standout stories about what makes Superman great. Nothing else quite hits those peaks, but none of the standalone stories are anything worse than fun reads, and it was great seeing all the various historical art styles get used.
That said, nothing about the preview for Bendis's run piqued my interest at all. I'm not here for another freaking story.
That said, nothing about the preview for Bendis's run piqued my interest at all. I'm not here for another freaking story
Spoiler
about the destruction of Kryptonclockworkp's review
3.0
2.75
Las historias varían la puntuación siendo la de Tomasi y la del parque de atracciones mis favoritas, el resto no demasiado memorables y la del juego de ajedrez malísima.
Las historias varían la puntuación siendo la de Tomasi y la del parque de atracciones mis favoritas, el resto no demasiado memorables y la del juego de ajedrez malísima.