DC Comics reviews 9/25/19 – Batman/Superman #2, Detective Comics #1012
Action Comics #1015
Brian Michael Bendis has gone into an odd direction with Action Comics. By far the superior of his two Superman titles, Bendis established the very compelling Event Leviathan build up within Action Comics and the mystery of the underground mafia operating under Superman’s nose.
Now much like in the Superman title, Action Comics is being used as a proving ground of sorts for Bendis pet projects. The last few issues it’s been Rose & Thorn. Now with this issue it’s Naomi.
Naomi is an interesting case as she’s already had a mini-series to introduce her to the DCU. With this issue Bendis uses some of the goodwill he’s built in Action in hopes of further establishing Naomi.
Maybe this is the more retail savvy way to ensure newer characters have a chance to develop a following. That’s even more so the case with minority characters and to his immense credit, Bendis’ arrival to DC has resulted in an impressive amount of new minority characters to the DC ranks.
But it seems less and less like Bendis has much to say about Superman beyond his ability to serve as a launchpad for other heroes. If anything Bendis is working an elaborate bait and switch and it’s frustrating as a Superman fan to constantly see him used so poorly in his own titles.
There’s some nice character beats for Naomi as she encounters Superman, Batman and some other DC fan favorites. These scenes are very nicely written, but they’d seem to be a better fit in an issue of Naomi instead of Action Comics particularly as Event Leviathan continues playing out.
Syzmon Kudranski is starting to settle in as the regular artist and his pages are looking better. The main issue remains consistency with character faces and more natural posing so the panels look less like drawings and more catching the characters in action. Brad Anderson’s colors look terrific especially on the Naomi and Red Cloud power effects.
Yes, Red Cloud has a big role this issue as well as its looking like the stage is set for a battle of Bendis creations.
This issue has some nice moments, but few belong to Superman. Hopefully Bendis will start working past these random distractions and bring the excitement and spotlight back on Superman.
Rating: 8 out of 10