Superman Unchained - Comic Review

The Superman Story of the 2010s Decade

In June 2013, a comic book premiered around the same time as Man of Steel. That comic was called Superman Unchained. Written by Scott Snyder, a man who is considered one of the best new writers of this decade, with art by Jim Lee, considered one of the greatest artists from the 90s generation, this comic has hype written all over it. Though it is no surprise that Jim Lee would tackle Superman once again, especially since this is the New 52 incarnation, what was surprising to most comic fans is Scott Snyder. The guy is most notoriously known for his successful horror comic, American Vampire, and for writing the New 52 incarnation of Batman. In other words, this guy is dark. Very dark. What does a guy who is usually associated with darkness have to do with a character that is suppose to symbolize hope? He does the unexpected by not telling a story about hope but rather the idea of Inspiration.

As a fun note: I find it funny that both of the people working on a Superman property have the last name, Snyder. Zack for film and Scott for comics. Funny coincidence. No family relation.

The Basics

The Premise of the story is about a young Superman, but a lot more experienced. There are currently three New 52 Superman titles going on with Action Comics dealing with his younger years while Superman and Justice League deal with his older years. And somewhere in-between or around those continuities is this story and Superman/Wonder Woman, the comic dealing with his relationship with Wonder Woman. So in this story, he has grown to be more closer to the Superman people know, but he still has a lot to learn. And that big lesson comes in the form of a shocking secret: THERE WAS ANOTHER SUPERMAN ON EARTH SINCE 1938!

Who is he?

This new (but really old) Superman is called Wraith which is actually an acronym for, "William Randolph's Ace In The Hole." His origin bears many parallels with Superman but in a more deeper sense. Wraith arrived on Earth during WWII after a message was sent into space saying "Help us become better." And so, under the orders of his people, Wraith gets sent to Earth to make the world better. More specifically, he's there to make America better.

It is no coincidence that Snyder would have him land on Earth in 1938. The first issue of Action Comics was published in 1938, and that issue featured the very first appearance of Superman. Snyder also knows that around WWII, Superman was used as a propaganda tool in order to help inspire the youth as well as soldiers overseas. So in reality, the basis of Wraith is what if Superman was still an American Propaganda Tool? After all, we live in a time where Superman is concerned about the entire planet and not just one country. Wraith on the other hand is different.

To him and his people, since America was the country that sent out the message, that means it is the country worthy of being saved. Wraith is pretty much the ultimate super soldier, as he demonstrates his loyalty by pretending to be the second bomb that decimates Japan during WWII. His code is to remain hidden as the phantom that writes history. He could care less if he killed millions of people or if other countries are suffering. All that he cares about is helping America. And that is mainly attributed to General William Randolph, the officer responsible for making him an American asset.

Although that description makes him sound like a cold hearted and ruthless killing machine, his personality doesn't line up with that. In fact, he's polite, courteous, and thoughtful. Exactly the same as what people would expect from Superman. This is obviously another parallel that Snyder wanted to have between Wraith and Supes. He doesn't want to fight Superman, in fact he wants to teach him how to use his powers. Since they have the same method of creating powers, and being on the planet for 75 years, Wraith has developed his powers to a level that Superman could never dream of. He tries to make himself a father figure to Superman, as they are both aliens from different worlds with the powers of gods. But in the end, the extreme almost fascist pro-American belief that Wraith possesses is enough to separate these two from one another. Which is where most of the conflict centers on.

A God or an Inspiration?

The biggest recurring theme in this story is a question that many people have wondered: Is Superman a God who lives off of admiration or is he simply a person who wishes to inspire? The former is the theme that is put front and center for most of this story. And while Wraith is the obvious preacher of this belief, the one who crafted the sermon is Lois Lane's father, General Sam Lane. He's pretty much the General "Thunderbolt" Ross of the DC Universe, but instead of trying to bring down a Hulk he's trying to bring down a more unstoppable being. He is raised on a pretty straight forward belief about Superman that is best described through this excerpt from the story:

To many DC Comics fans, this is the most hated approach of telling a Superman story. I find it interesting that most fans of DC Comics hate seeing writers look at Superman in a different light. Especially when it deals with whether or not him being a hero is really to the benefit of mankind or to himself. Because for DC Comics fans, Superman is suppose to be the epitome of what a superhero should be. He's good because he's good, no flaws, and no need to question whether his actions have any weight to them. Which, as a DC Comics fan, I think is complete bull shit. It is a wonder why DC Comics is afraid of doing anything innovative with their characters because the fan base is so old school that it makes me want to snap some necks (haha get it? Bad joke.)

Yet while I stated that the theme is mostly about the former, Superman's actions and his true ideals are more about the latter of what people have wondered: He's an inspiration. This is how he sees himself and that's how he holds himself. He keeps doing what he's doing not because he wants the public to adore him, but he because he believes he can inspire people to do better. Which is the complete opposite of Wraith's ideology. In a way, Wraith is manipulating the world to make America better, which can be viewed as how people would expect Superman to act. Luckily for us, he's not like that. And Snyder excels at illustrating these contrasting points in a very interesting story.

Everything is connected

While the premise of the story is Superman meeting a more powerful and patriotic version of himself, the main thrust is actually the threat of a terrorist group called Ascension. And while that is going on, Lois Lane is brought back into stubborn, yet caring, reporter prominence as she goes after a lead from a mysterious man claiming ties with Ascension. And while ALL OF THAT is going on, Lex Luthor is taking advantage of the situation and hatching his own elaborate plan that involves Superman's pal, Jimmy Olsen. Snyder has managed to keep all these parts moving in a very fluid way with each separate component locking into place to tell a pretty grand story.

On the surface, Ascension appears to be Superman's equivalent to The Court of Owls who reside in Gotham. Both villainous organizations were created by Snyder and both deal with the an unknown part of history that is tied directly to the hero. Ascension for Superman and The Court of Owls for Batman. But because The Court of Owls had a longer story arc in the Batman main series, in this mini-series, Ascension was not given that much room to develop and ultimately become a cliche from a Michael Bay Transformers conspiracy plot. Except... you know... Better. But it still doesn't hide the fact they weren't that interesting. Which is fine because the obvious primary opponent of the story is suppose to be Wraith, so they mainly serve as something to allow Superman and Wraith to display their ideologies. But where Snyder may have not much success in creating new characters, despite Wraith being fairly fresh, he does excel even more with the establish characters. Lois Lane, Jimmy Olsen, and Lex Luthor are just exactly how casual fans know them to be, and that is a good thing.

A criticism of the New 52 Superman line is the change of Lois Lane and Superman not being romantically linked at all. Everyone knows that the two of them are in love, but in the New 52 they're not remotely interested in each other. But in this story, we see something that has not really been explored that much in the New 52: The moment they realize they might feel something for each other. Not love, but feel. After all, if one is keeping track of the timeline in continuity, Superman is currently in a relationship with Wonder Woman, who does show up in the story. But Snyder makes a smart decision in not showing Superman and Wonder Woman together or acknowledging they're suppose to be a couple at this time. This helps new readers who are expecting a Superman story that has Lois potentially discovering that she feels something for Superman. It is a nice way of having these two being there for each other, but also for New 52 readers to feel some relief that finally the core relationship between the two characters is definitely going to happen soon.

Lex Luthor is also what people would expect from a casual fan of Superman. In this one he dresses like the business man mainstream Superman fans know, but his execution is definitely more in line with his classical mad scientist personality from the old comics. Snyder obviously loves the classics because this story is filled with them, so it really should be no surprise that his Luthor is a classic take on the character. He talks in long speeches, the way a classic comic book villain would, except when he does give his speech it is after he has done something or when he is in prison. But because we are dealing with the modern age, Snyder does let Luthor keep the business suit. However there is no denying that this Lex Luthor is a throwback to the original mad scientist. Yet Snyder refines him with a very philosophical edge. One can almost say that he is the exact same Lex Luthor from the legendary All-Star Superman storyline, which is by no means a bad thing. At first he may seem out of place, especially since his sub plot mainly involves Jimmy Olsen, but when it does come together at the end, he fits in quite nicely.

Overall Impressions

If you didn't read all that and just wanted to know what I thought about this 9 issue series, then the answer is simple: It's good. This is a good comic for the average comic book reader and casual Superman fan. Old school Superman fans who have been angry with the New 52 should give this book a chance as it is a standalone story that offers nice throwbacks to the old school Superman comics with a very modern story. Wraith is a great new anti-villain who I can picture coming back as an anti-hero character, and a welcoming addition into Superman's rogues gallery. It isn't the greatest Superman story of all time, but compared to everything the New 52 has been doing with Superman, it is the best Superman story of the New 52 era. I highly recommend this book. Even though the ending is the only predictable part of the story, it is a throwback to classic comics with a modern twist. And in those classics, you know the hero is going to win. Which is fine for a story involving Superman.

Superman Unchained is now available in DELUXE HARDCOVER EDITION, which is the only way this comic should be read. Check out the cover down here.

Catalyst Comix - Comic Review

The Deconstruction of Deconstruction = Reconstruction

As a comic book reader looking for properties that think outside of the box or just flat out weird, this comic immediately caught my attention. When it was announced that Dark Horse Comics (mostly known for the publishing house of Hellboy) was going to revisit their superhero pantheon through the writing of one, Joe Casey, I was immediately intrigued. Casey's mission for the reinvention of these forgotten heroes who couldn't compete with the big two (DC and Marvel) was pretty straight forward: Don't compete, but be different. Casey even states it himself that while he has worked for the big two, he feels the companies place limits on just how far their characters can be taken.

Casey knows that deconstructing superheroes has gone mainstream and that going back to classic super heroics has also resurfaced in recent writing. However, he does feel that superheroes are locked in a constant state of predictability. Or if it isn't predictability, it is a forgotten idea that resurfaces as new only to be later discovered by some fans as a repurposing. Thus bringing the cycle back to predictability. Now, Casey does not believe that he can escape the cycle. However he believes that superheroes shouldn't be stuck in the same never ending battle of good versus evil. He believes in doing things differently, and exploring it through different eyes. The eyes of three artists specifically. And those three artists possess art styles that will never be used for the Big Two. But because Dark Horse was taking a risk with forgotten heroes, no one would decry this change. After all, Catalyst is about change.

The Structure of Things

Casey applies a rotating anthology structure for this 9-issue limited series. Each issue contains three stories: one main story and two supporting stories. Every three issues, the main story rotates to a supporting story with whatever supporting story was next in line steps forward as the new main one. These three stories are all written by Casey, but drawn by three different artists. The same method of rotating artists applies to the cover art as well. 

The First Story in Cycle - The Ballad of Frank Wells

In the first story, Casey delves into the idea of the Superman with Dark Horse's own rendition of the character called Titan. However in this story, he's only referred to as Frank "Titan" Wells. The story opens with a bang, by having the apocalyptic blockbuster final battle front and center as our introduction to this Superman character. The main theme of this story deals with what does a Superman in the real world really have to deal with and just how many problems can he solve that are not super villain related. Sure, an exploration of that has been seen before in various Superman comics, but with Frank Wells as the lead, Casey is able to take it a bit further by showing the real world politics of being a Superman. That doesn't mean it isn't superhero-y. It still read very much like a classic superhero comic but in modern syntax.  Artist Dan McDaid was responsible for the art in this comic. Although his art style is not used for modern superhero comics, it is the art style out of the three artists that is more closely related to the standard superhero art style. And it makes sense given this story is the most superhero of the two.

The Second Story in Cycle - Amazing Grace

In the second story, Casey examines the Wonder Woman archetype with Dark Horse's resident power woman called Grace. While she does have Wonder Woman level powers, she appears to be more science fiction oriented yet possesses control over star crystals that can teleport her through unspecified yet limited distances. Like Wonder Woman, Grace has her own form of paradise. That paradise being Golden City, a place that she apparently had a hand in building. While the story isn't an extreme character examination of the role of a Wonder Woman type character, it is an examination on what the character means to people. Grace is pretty much looked upon as the ultimate role model who surpasses all the other superheroes in this universe. It really delves into the relationship between Grace and Golden City with an unusual crisis (a suave alien who makes women uncontrollably horny except for Grace) and how not only herself but how the city deals with the crisis. It shows the power of a positive female role model, who I should add although dressed in skin tight clothes is not showing off any skin, and how that can influence an entire city to be better. It is probably the most complex of the three stories as the crisis starts out simple which then evolves into something else completely. Paul Mayberry is the mastermind behind the art for this story, and it can almost be considered the middle ground between McDaid's style and Ulises Farinas'. It is definitely a nice balance transitioning between the two, and he does a really good job at drawing a diverse range of women. By diverse, I'm not just talking about race, I mean age and size.

The Third Story in Cycle - Agents of Change

In the third story, Casey takes a semi-intersting look at the superhero team dynamic. The cast of characters for this story consist of Elvis Warmaker, Wolfhunter, Ruby, and the Rebel Twins. While the first two stories are direct examinations of iconic heroes, this story doesn't seem to be directly reflecting any specific team. This story is a little bit harder to get into because of that. It shows us the more original superhero characters of the Dark Horse pantheon, but given how the previous two stories have been examinations of heroic archetypes we recognize, this one doesn't really hit home that much. It appears to be more of a commentary on mainstream media and itself rather than the idea of the superhero team. The closest thing I can think of as a good comparison is that its a "getting the band back together" story. A shady business man hunts down all these former superhero comrades and offers them a deal to rejoin to change the world... for real this time. That pretty much sounds like how a band reunion sounds like. Hell, the characters all sound like the names of rockstars with Elvis Warmaker being the most obvious. And yes, he does have a pompadour. But I believe Casey saw that the team looks like members from a band and just ran with it. Was it a smart choice? Yes. Does it work out perfectly? At first no, but when you think about it, it is a brilliant idea. So really it is more like a band reunion movie starring superheroes dealing with a threat that doesn't really seem like a threat. It is the weakest of the three in terms of story, but it is the strongest in terms of actual commentary. For this story, it is no wonder the art is handled by Ulises Farinas. His style is definitely not superhero, and it reflects in this story that doesn't really feel like a true superhero story. But that is exactly why it fits.

Overall Impressions

Casey has pretty much accomplished his goal of creating a weird superhero comic book with three very non superhero art styles. Does it accomplish saying what it needs to say? I'd say it is more successful with Grace's story in that it sells the point it is trying to make through greatly executed storytelling. Frank's story comes off a bit heavy handed as a commentary about Superman, but is still entertaining. And the Agents of Change story is brilliant, but it will take the reader a few moments to think about in order to fully engage how brilliant it is. Otherwise, it would be written off as the least interesting, when it is in fact a hidden gem. I will say that while the superhero story telling is definitely there, it will not play out exactly the way one would want it to. There is a sense that it is being different for the sake of being different. While to some that is considered a bad thing, for this I wouldn't necessarily think so.

It offers a really interesting story and look at familiar characters by using forgotten characters to get Casey's views on superheroes out there. And it really is out there. Casey even acknowledges that although he wishes this comic would be the domino that causes the ripple to change the way we all look at superhero storytelling, he also knows well that it won't be the one that topples. No, he thinks of it as the domino that is waiting to be knocked over. And in order for it to be knocked over is not just for the strange storytelling in this story to carry over to the rest of Dark Horse, but to the big two as well. I hope it does, because as much as I like reading Fantastic Four and Superman Unchained, even I think superhero storytelling and visuals need to change.

SCORE: 7.5/10 - An overall average for this 9-Issue Limited Series
A thoughtful examination of superheroes that isn't a complete deconstruction.

This series is now collected into a single trade paperback. Here is the cover: