It’s a new era for the DC Universe, and it’s never been a better time to check out the title that gave us Superman. In case you’ve been out of the loop, DC’s flagship series Action Comics switched things up during last year’s initiative, the Summer of Superman. Instead of showing off the Man of Tomorrow in the modern day, the series highlights Clark Kent’s Superboy days, officially bringing Superman’s ‘Boy of Steel’ era back into continuity. But that’s not the only change the Big Blue Boy Scout has gone through in the last several months.
Superman, along with many of the DCU’s heroes and villains, competed in the Omega Tournament to stop Darkseid from conquering everything. They were successful, but the event ended with Superman stepping away, disappearing from the DCU. No one knows what’s become of Superman in the modern-day, but thankfully, fans still have a book with Clark Kent. And whether you’re completely new to the Man of Steel or curious about what’s next for the hero, Action Comics #1096 serves as the perfect jumping-on point as DC Comics heads into its Next Level chapter.
Rating: 4 out of 5
Action Comics #1096 is a Nice, Easy Start to “Reign of the Superboys”
With Superman missing, DC has launched “Reign of the Superboys” a new branding to tie the Superman books together. While that title refers to many of the DCU’s other Superboys, Action Comics #1096 by Mark Waid, Skyler Patridge, Ivan Plascencia, and Steve Wands, keeps the focus on the original. Clark and his friends Lana and Pete visit the Expo of Tomorrow, but the fun is sullied by a series of paradoxes. People receive injuries before getting into accidents, or sounds go off out of sync with their events. Even Clark isn’t immune as the paradoxes accidentally reveal his Superboy outfit.
With so many paradoxes, Clark springs into action to help Metropolis, but he finds it so much more overwhelming than protecting Smallville. It becomes too much for Superboy to bear, causing him to abandon the city nearly. However, old advice from Ma Kent helps Clark focus and take things one at a time. Eventually, Superboy tracks down the source of the paradoxes: a strange device that calls out to Clark. Superboy activates it, revealing a portal that brings Martian Manhunter, Mary Marvel, and Booster Gold into the past, where they’re on the run from a rampaging robot.
Action Comics #1096 is the Simple Story We Need Post-DC K.O.
The best part about an event like DC K.O. is that after it ends, DC Comics generally makes its books as accessible as possible for new and lapsed readers. That said, Superman fans are in a weird spot with the Last Son of Krypton going missing after battling it out in the Omega Tournament. But unlike Superman or Superman Unlimited, which had to find more creative workarounds, Action Comics is pretty much unaffected, thanks to it being set in the past. Waid and Patridge give us the same stuff we’ve been getting in the past year, and it works.
I can appreciate Waid’s approach here. While the tail-end of this book touches on some of the larger implications of Clark’s absence, Action Comics #1096 spends the lion’s share of its pages easing fans into this chapter of Superman’s life. Even if you haven’t been reading the series, you get that this is a Clark who is more vulnerable and unsure of himself, and that’s really enduring to readers, who rarely see him struggle mentally or physically. Waid does an excellent job setting the stage for Action Comics’ next chapter without relying on exposition or recaps of the past year.
Skyler Patridge does a fantastic job, as always, excelling during the montage when Clark is doing his best to solve every single problem in Metropolis. And Patridge’s work really shines thanks to Ivan Plascencia’s colors. From the dreariness of the opening scene’s thunderstorm to the light and bright optimism of the Expo of Tomorrow, this book has a lot of eye candy. The art and colors really shine in the last couple of pages during the future League’s cameo, really making me wish that the book featured them just a little bit longer.
If people haven’t been into Action Comics as a vehicle to explore Clark’s Superboy era in a modern context, I don’t think this will change anyone’s minds. However, for new fans looking for a jumping-on point now that Next Level is in full swing, this is definitely up their alley. It’s got action, heart, and serves as a nice, light-hearted Superman story that doesn’t worry too much about the big picture. If you’re curious about what’s been going on with Action Comics or you’ve been waiting for a good time to get on board, consider Action Comics #1096 a must-read.
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