DC Comics reviews 3/7/23 – Adventures of Superman Jon Kent #1, Batman #133

Adventures of Superman Jon Kent #1

Among the litany of literary sins Brian Michael Bendis committed during his run on Superman was casually aging up Jonathan Kent while being tortured by Ultraman. It was a questionable choice made even worse by the fact Bendis never truly explored the psychological toll that took on Jon. Instead, he whisked the teen Jon off to hang with the Legion of Super Heroes.

As he did with many things for Jon, writer Tom Taylor fully sets out to explore Jon’s trauma with this new limited series.

Ultraman is hunting and killing Kal-Els throughout the Multiverse. Earth-2’s Val Zod and Red Tornado have already tried and failed to stop him, but come to Earth-0 in hopes that Jon can prove the key to defeating his tormentor.

This first issue gets off to a good start as Taylor continues the development of the character he fleshed out in Superman Son of Kal-El. Taylor’s take on Jon rings authentic like Jon is a teenager in the modern world who does things differently than the generation before him.

And it’s fun seeing Taylor revisit Earth-2 characters as that title was one of the more unpredictable and entertaining of the New 52 era.

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Clayton Henry provides the art for the series, which should hopefully elevate his profile further. Henry has a tremendous classic style with clean line work and crisp layouts. There’s no reason he shouldn’t be the artist on a prominent ongoing title and this is a good start.

Rounding out this high-end visual team is colorist Jordie Bellaire, who gives the series a brighter, more hopeful color palette even with the specter of a raging Ultraman on the loose.

Taylor always does a fantastic job of making the DC Universe feel like a connected entity. Hero cameos always make sense and feel more vital to the story than an awkward forced interaction.

While the cover shows him utilizing his new powers, the issue only teases Electric Jon Superman, but Taylor foreshadows that this could be how Jon can beat Ultraman.

This was a great start to Jon’s new adventures and should appeal to fans of the younger Superman, the Earth-2 characters or those seeking a compelling Multiverse story.

Rating: 9 out of 10