Up there with the other greats of his time such as Jack Kirby and Steve Ditko, Neal Adams is a name that will never be forgotten by comic book fans and historians. Beginning work in advertising, Adams’s career drawing comics for both DC and Marvel begun in the late 1960s, before his art created huge waves in the 1970s, changing the way which comics were viewed and read. Whether it be his new and lush dramatic sense of storytelling, or his unique and realistic detailing, Adams’s art gave birth to a whole new wave of other artists. However, by the 1980s, Adams’s work in the field was minimal, since he partly returned to advertising while writing and drawing other comics for other companies, such as Ms. Mystic. Then, by the 2010s, Adams’s returned to DC to write and draw numerous stories featuring some of the characters that he was famous for drawing, such as Batman, Deadman and Superman. While the stories for Batman: Odyssey and Deadman (vol 5) were certainly… strange, the art itself looked very different. This may be because Adams was also inking and editing the stories. Superman: The Coming of The Supermen is an example of a story written by Adams (mostly), pencilled, inked and edited by him. Adams may not have drawn Superman much in terms of inside art, but he did draw numerous covers during Dennis O’Neil’s Kryptonite Nevermore story, some of which are considered to be classic Adams. Because of this, does this modern story live up to expectations of it being one of the great Superman tales?
Superman: The Coming of The Supermen 1-6 was a miniseries published monthly from April to September 2016. It was written by Neal Adams and Tony Bedard, who co-wrote just the first issue. It was pencilled and inked by Adams, with additional inks
by Josh Adams and Buzz. Lastly, I have read this story in the Superman: The Coming of the Supermen trade paperback.
THE STORY
On the average day in Metropolis, Lois Lane reports that a spaceship containing three possible surviving Kryptonians has crashed in Iowa, where the three survivors all look very similar to Superman. Lois Lane then reports that Parademons have arrived, led by Kalibak, one of Darkseid’s minions. As they fight against guards of LexCorp, the three Supermen arrive and fight the invaders from Apokolips, leaving Lois Lane to wonder where the real Superman is. Somewhere in the Middle East, Superman saves a young boy named Rafi and his dog, Isa. When Rafi insists to Superman that he cannot stay in the Middle East, a strange being named the Messenger appears, who tells Superman to return to Metropolis with Rafi and Isa. Reluctantly, Superman agrees. Later in Metropolis, while Jimmy Olsen plays with Rafi and Isa, Clark Kent wonders about the identities of the three Supermen and why Kalibak would want to attack LexCorp. While Kent leaves, Lois speaks to Lex Luthor, who is enraged that Superman is nowhere to be seen to help him fight against Darkseid’s minions. Fifteen seconds later, Superman meets Luthor, who tells him to fight the Parademons. Superman does just that, causing the Parademons to retreat using a boom tube. Afterwards, Superman meets the Messenger again, who continues to be mysterious. However, he tells Superman that he must show him something. The two then head back through time to Ancient Egypt where Superman learns that Darkseid (or his progenitor as the Messenger calls it) built the Great Sphinx…
Sometime later, while Rafi is being looked after by Nanny Goody (who do you think that is?), Superman meets with Jimmy Olsen, who keeps asking about if the three Supermen are his brothers, but Superman doesn’t know and heads out to investigate. Suddenly, Kalibak and an army from Apokolips arrive. Although the three Supermen and the real one fight against the villains, they begin to leave when Darkseid appears coming out of LexCorp, stating that the fight was just a distraction so he could retrieve “his prize”. Later, Superman speaks with the three Supermen, named Maj-Ar, Tan-Em and Vor-Em. They tell Superman that they are from New Krypton, but their powers have been somewhat limited because they were exposed to artificial red sunlight when they were trapped in the bottled city of Kandor. Then, in a state of shock, Superman asks the doctors for the blood they extracted from the three Supermen when they were tending to their wounds. Then, Superman heads deeper into the lab where he discovers that Lex Luthor has the Kryptonian blood. Superman demands to know where the blood is, and he begins destroying the lab to search for it. Superman begins to question Luthor about what Darkseid stole from his lab. Although at first Luthor lies about it, he finally tells Superman that Darkseid stole a red sun mote, shocking him. Suddenly, the wall explodes and Kalibak arrives, holding Rafi and Isa as his hostages. Kalibak then jumps through a boom tube, telling Superman to try and catch him…
In anger, Superman threatens the Supermen, telling them that they aren’t Kryptonians and that they are lying. The Messenger then appears, telling Superman that they aren’t lying. Although Superman agrees, he wonders why Kalibak kidnapped Rafi and where he could have taken him. Then, the Supermen finally explain that Darkseid and his people now live on New Krypton as they invaded the planet, explaining why they wanted to find and enlist Superman’s help. The Messenger then explains that a beachhead has been made on Earth as Darkseid stole Luthor’s sun mote. Superman then leaves for New Krypton on one of Luthor’s (continued)
spacecrafts. Inside the craft, he tells Lois to come out of her hiding place, which she does, before Superman launches her out, sending her back to Earth. However, Superman reverses his decision when she tells him that she can look after Rafi when they find him. After defeating the Parademons guarding the planet, the arrive on New Krypton, where Superman is treated like a god. Superman then helps his fellow Kryptonians fight against the Parademons. Together, they head to Darkseid’s main base through a boom tube. However, on the other side, Superman is attacked by Desaad. Meanwhile, Darkseid and Luthor speak about the sun mote and its power. Luthor then prepares to attack Darkseid with his two powerful mechanical gloves, but Darkseid multiplies through gravity, causing Luthor to collapse. Meanwhile, Superman fights against Kalibak, demanding to know from him where Rafi is being held. Then, Orion appears, telling Superman that he is wasting his time and that he can help him…
When Orion tells Superman that he can help him retrieve Rafi, Superman agrees. Once Orion headbutts Kalibak into unconsciousness, he tells Superman about the launch of the red sun mote, which occurs there and then. Superman then finds out that Luthor sold the weapon to Darkseid (which he already knew) and that it is heading towards Earth’s Sun. Superman then flies up into the sky heroically and manages to destroy the red sun mote’s casing. However, it still hits the sun and causes an explosion, rendering Superman unconscious. Meanwhile, Rafi and Isa discover that Nanny Goody is in fact Granny Goodness, who threatens Rafi by telling him that he will eat his dog for dinner. At the same time, Orion retrieves Superman, who is aware of the red sun mote’s effect on Kryptonians such as himself. Luthor makes Darkseid aware that Superman may have been behind the rocket launch going off course, resulting in Kryptonians losing some of their power, but not all. The two begin to argue and make a deal together: if Luthor can take away Superman’s power, Darkseid can invade and conquer Earth. Luthor then attacks Darkseid using a strange green power from his brain (why?). Meanwhile, Superman’s powers are somewhat restored by lasers and he heads out with Orion to search for Rafi. At the same time, Lois Lane manages to find Rafi after hiding and searching the back streets of Apokolips. However, she finds him tied up and captured by Granny Goodness…
As Superman arrives through a boom tube, he tears through Parademons, screaming Rafi’s name before finding him in the captivity of Granny Goodness, who threatens to electrocute him if Superman attempts to save him. However, Granny Goodness is electrocuted until unconscious by Lois Lane, leaving Superman to save Rafi. Suddenly, Kalibak arrives (yet again), but he is defeated by Mister Miracle and Big Barda. After leaving the base, Mister Miracle explains that the planet is divided between New Krypton and Apokolips, leaving possible room for New Genesis, but Darkseid wouldn’t agree to it. Although there are force shields between all sectors, they can easily be breached by a boom tube, worrying both Mister Miracle and Big Barda. Suddenly, Metron arrives on his Mobius Chair, who prevents the heroes from continuing, before showing them a train of people escaping from Apokolips, which Metron destroys. Superman then questions why and how Metron has become a monster, but Metron instead presents Superman with the three Supermen. Superman then leaves the group, telling Lois, Mister Miracle and Big Barda to look after Rafi and Isa. Using a boom tube, Superman meets Darkseid and Lex Luthor, who is laughing at Darkseid for no apparent reason. Then, in rage, Darkseid burns Luthor to death, shocking Superman…
Out of nowhere, Luthor appears again and Darkseid attacks him, with Luthor continuing to anger him while Superman just watches. The two continue to bicker and after Luthor and Superman start to question Darkseid’s choice of words (seriously), Darkseid brings out a glowing red cube, which seemingly absorbs information. However, Superman crushes the cube and escapes, with Darkseid chasing in pure anger. Outside, Darkseid stops dead in his tracks when he notices Superman with the Messenger, who tells Darkseid that Superman will be leaving the planet. In fear, Darkseid agrees and leaves, leaving Superman incredibly confused (you, me and everybody else). Together, Superman and the Messenger head to Rafi and everybody else through a boom tube, where Orion appears and punches the Man of Steel in the face, since Darkseid can advance with his next plan, which is invading the Earth. Then, Highfather appears and reveals that Rafi is actually his grandson. Superman then explains that the red sun mote will soon vanish, but Darkseid will attack soon, which he does just then. Together, the heroes fight against Darkseid and the Parademons, with Rafi’s dog, Isa, transforming into a strange and monstrous beast. After Darkseid and his troops are overwhelmed and thrown back to Apokolips through a boom tube, Superman says goodbye to Rafi, the three Supermen and the Messenger, leaving Lois Lane and Lex Luthor with Superman, who seems to be utterly confused.
MY THOUGHTS
Negative: characters, dialogue, non-sensical (especially towards end), very confusing
Neal Adams’s high and mighty name will undoubtedly go down in history for changing the comic book medium with his revolutionary art style of the bronze age. However, his writing, on the other hand, will certainly not. Before I get into the steaming pile of what I consider to be woeful writing and dodgy dialogue, lets focus on the minuscule, yet bearable features of the story. The main aspect which springs to mind is humour. Particularly in earlier parts of the story, Adams’s clunky scripting and off-beat dialogue can be humorous. I giggled at particular points where the story took a rather strange turn and while I found the intentional comedy fun, I do wonder how much of the comedy was intentional or simply down to Adams’s way with words. Other than that, I do also have to applaud this story for feeling much more like a Superman story than many of the ones we witness DC regurgitate out in their current titles. This story never feels dull. Sure, it can be annoying to read, particularly towards the end, but it is never boring. There is a real sense of action and fun in the story, mainly in the beginning before we and even Superman himself begins to wonder what the hell is going on...
Now, you may have noticed that I have already dissed the latter half of this story several times. Why? You’ll find out in a bit. I only really wrote that last sentence as both a tease and a reminder to myself to actually discuss it before this review ends. Anyway, there are just so many things wrong with this plot and the way it has been written, to the point where it is often very hard to actually understand what the hell is going on. For starters, the very first issue of the story features Superman in the Middle East for no apparent reason, where he meets Rafi and Isa. In the end of the story, you realise that if Rafi wasn’t the grandson of Highfather, then his whole character is simply an inconvenience since all he seems to do is get captured either by Kalibak or Granny Goodness. Also, how the hell did Isa transform from a regular dog into some beasty looking wolf? There isn’t even an explanation for it, but that’s not anything (continued)
new. Since Adams has started writing comics, there are tons of ideas thrown in there which are never really explained or justified. This story is full of that, whether it be Rafi’s dog, or Lex Luthor somehow coming back from the dead, or Darkseid somehow being an integral part of Ancient Egypt. It is just thrown at us and we are annoyed that we have to accept it. Its just careless writing. Speaking of which, the actual story for this mess isn’t impressive also. For the record, I was never a fan of Darkseid, the New Gods or almost anything from Jack Kirby’s Fourth World. The only exception is Mister Miracle and the characters associated with him and its great that they turn up in this story, for about a total of 5 pages. Anyway, its your standard Superman fighting Darkseid, who has teamed up with Lex Luthor for the time being to destroy Superman and Earth. Simple plot, right? Yeah, until Adams’s comes along and throws so much sh*t out of left field that the story comes way too overwhelming. Adams’s art also contributes to that, since there are loads of splash or double-splash pages full of explosions and action. The story gets really confusing towards the end, where Darkseid kills Luthor, who is for some reason having a laughing fit. Then, as the concluding issue begins, Luthor somehow returns and about ten pages are spent with Superman and Luthor trying figure out what Darkseid said about something to do with Apokolips. Truly, the writing from legends. Also, in the last part, Darkseid and his forces return for some reason and quickly, ending with Darkseid walking away into the distance. Why would any of that happen? That last fight at the end of the story just seems pointless, since everything was beginning to wrap up, but then, Adams decides to draw a load of splash pages. Now, two of the worst aspects of this whole story to is something which Adams has never been a master at, even in the 1960s. That is writing good characters with natural dialogue. If you are searching for that, don’t bother reading this story. Superman’s character just comes across as a somewhat bi-polar whining ar*ehole. Seriously, he loses it with the thee Supermen at one point for no reason and when he is searching for Rafi, he just screams his name constantly. This just isn’t Superman. He doesn’t really come across as a brave and rather soft hero and what Adams’s has done not just with Superman, but with all the other characters he has written here that he didn’t create, is that he has distorted their unique identities and characters, changing them to make them work in his story. He isn’t adapting their character or learning their details. He is simply changing them. Lex Luthor is a prime example. Since when did he have these strange mind powers? He is still displayed to be scientifically intelligent, but there are too many times when he comes across as goofy or just silly, and not in a classic silver age way. He doesn’t come across as a threat and although Darkseid certainly does, his character has some slight changes as
well. His dialogue is a great example, as he calls Luthor a “pompous ass”. I don’t know about you, but is that something you could imagine Darkseid saying? There is also Lois Lane, who feels rather pointless in the story, since she doesn’t really add much of anything. Sure, she saved Rafi from Granny Goodness with Superman, but why couldn’t Mister Miracle have done that, or Orion? It makes sense for them to do that, but not news reporter Lois Lane. Now, the new and unique characters for this turd and unsurprisingly, they are pretty bad too. Like I said before, Rafi just gets in the way and by the end, you realise how much of an inconvenience he is. Then there are the three Supermen, who were clearly meant to be the main focus of the story, since they feature in the title and first cover. However, by the third issue, their relevance is minimal, since when Superman learns about New Krypton (a place I didn’t even know existed) and how it is been sectorised by Darkseid (a part of the story which had me confused, since why would two races that hate each other share a planet?). The three Supermen may appear to be three people, but their dialogue says otherwise. They don’t all have their own unique personalities, meaning that any one of them could be speaking. Sure, they have different names, but in terms of difference, that is it. Lastly, we have the Messenger, a character with lots of potential to be mysterious, like the Spectre. However, his dialogue is also terrible, especially when he says “Daddy’s gotta go to war”. Is this supposed to be played for laughs? This is some mysterious and godly being which is feared by the evil likes of Darkseid. Why the f*ck would he say that. In fact, every character in this mess of a miniseries is simply terrible and what makes it worse is the story, which is simply a convoluted mess of large unnecessary fight scenes and confusing scenes of discussion, which tell you a piece of information which you think could be relevant, it usually isn’t. Neal Adams’s visual storytelling was excellent back in the day, but his writing, whether it be the plot, the dialogue or the characters, are all equally sh*t. I knew the moment I picked up this story that it would be below average, but this bad. I couldn’t imagine it. If you like this story, then I can’t see how. The humour may be funny at times, but even that drags out and after the half-way mark, the story just gets more confusing and terrible.
What on Earth happened to Neal Adams? Back in the day, his own inks may not have been perfect, but his art was still excellent, and it could add so much to a scene, whether it be in terms of drama or action. He could make a scene between to two regular people look exciting and a fight between two characters look incredibly memorable. That was in the 1960s and 1970s, but since the 2010s, this isn’t Neal Adams. This is a parody of Neal Adams. Aspects of the once-great storytelling might still be in there and scenes can look dramatic. However, all the problems lie in Adams’s sloppy and messy inks and finished art. Everything looks incredibly scratchy, rushed and well-over the top, with way too much detail in nearly every panel. Every character facially looks like a 50-year-old retired boxer. There are too many unnecessary lines all over the place. Line-weights change way too often, with one line looking incredibly thin, before pointlessly transforming into one thick curve. That leads me to the anatomy, which was once perfect. Now, everything is way too exaggerated and it really doesn’t help that the inks look really half-ar*ed and sloppy. Just look at everything in the art and you’ll realise that it is just a complete mess of scratchy lines and over-the-top detailing. Your f*cking delusional if you think otherwise.
VERDICT
Overall, Superman: The Coming of the Supermen is just terrible. Sure, I think the humour can sometimes work in its favour, particularly early on and I never think the story is boring or dull. However, can the story be unreadable at times? Yes, certainly. The story which Adams supplies is pretty standard, but he makes it so confusing with his unnatural dialogue, woeful characters (whether they be old or new) and some really dreadful art. In fact, that is the most surprising aspect of this whole thing. Back in the day, Adams was rarely praised for his writing, but his art was undoubtedly masterful, unique and full of detail. These days, the art is simply a shoddy parody of something that was once great, leaving me rather saddened to see how so many great artists lose their magic with age…
Story: 2.5/10
Art: 3/10
Next Week: Swamp Thing: Dark Genesis (House of Secrets 92, Swamp Thing (vol 1) 1-6). Written by Len Wein with art by Bernie Wrightson. Expected by 05/07/2020.
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