Superman #1

Title: Superman
Issue: 1
Date: November 2011
Publisher: DC Comics
Writer: George Perez
Artist: George Perez, Jesus Merino
Colorist: Brian Buccellato
Letterer: Carlos M. Mangual
Editor: Will Moss, Matt Idelson
Cover: George Perez, Brian Buccellato

The cover is this issue has a very 80's feel to it, which is appropriate with the involvement of George Perez (who wrote this issue and was credited with the breakdows for artist Jesus Merino). And we continue the nostalgia with the return of Galaxy Broadcast Systems and Morgan Edge (with a completely new look, and only a tiny bit more subtlety).

The focus here is the purchase of the Daily Planet by Galaxy and the resulting restructuring that occurs. Lois Lane is heading up new production while Clark Kent turned down a promotion, wanting nothing to do with the new ownership.

There are a lot of characters being introduced and reintroduced here and there's a lot going on. Terrorists are driving a truck loaded with explosives and chemicals while a strange creature of living fire arises out of the newly-constructed Metropolis Astrodome.

On top of the ongoing stories, we get a thread of caption narration relating the situation in the form of a Daily Planet news story. There's also an ongoing theme about the decline of printed news in the age of digital media. Oh, and a one-page Stormwatch crossover that comes totally out of left field.

Did I mention the alien fire monster?

I caught a bit of a bad vibe from the internet about this book, but you know what? Perez manages to pull these threads together reasonably well and comes up with a good fun story with some twists and turns and a lot of development of minor characters.

Is it perfect? Not by a long shot. There's the seemingly unnecessary Stormwatch cutaway, and some preachy writing about the whole print vs. digital issue (Perry White actually says at one point "I want the kind of detail and analysis on this only print can offer!"). The Daily Planet narrative in the captions is wordy and doesn't do all that much for the story. And there's an annoyingly awkward scene at the end where it's revealed that Lois has a boyfriend who's not named Clark Kent in the most blatantly obvious way possible.

But in spite of those issues, this is a fun story that has a bit of a nostalgic feel to it even as it sets up the new versions of the supporting cast. The alien fire monster is not the type of villain I'd like to see in every issue, but it works as a one-shot deal here.

Rating: 6.5/10