DC Comics reviews for the week of 9/20/17

Superman #31

Patrick Gleason and Peter J. Tomasi have left Superman in good hands during their break. First, he tangled with Sinestro and Parallax and this time, Big Blue has to deal with Deathstroke.

But it’s Lois Lane who’s after Slade Wilson. After he mows down an interview subject, Lois sets out on a long investigation expedition to land an interview with the deadliest man in the world. That’s a smart concept and guest writer James Bonny does a great job reminding readers Lois is fully capable of driving an interesting story on her own.

The timing is off here as this story is set before Deathstroke’s Defiance makeover. It definitely has an evergreen feel though Superman editors may as well have done some sort of prologue to reflect Deathstroke’s new status quo. Superman is largely relegated to cameo appearances this issue, but it works in the context of the story. Bonny has Deathstroke’s voice down nicely and this pairing of Slade and Lois proves surprisingly interesting.

Tyler Kirkham returns to working on Superman after a semi-regular stint on Action Comics. Kirkham’s pencil heavy style sets a solid moody environment that plays out better in Lois’ investigation sequences than the Superman scenes. Kirkham still has a weakness for character faces as he tends to draw Lois like she just graduated from college. Arif Prianto’s colors are a little drab and muted.

Bonny pulls a fast one in the end with Superman learning maybe a little too late the identity of Slade’s next hit. Can he get there before Deathstroke can pull the trigger? This is another fill-in two-parter, but they’ve been a lot more fun than expected. Hopefully the quality continues for next issue.

Rating: 8 out of 10