Writer: Joshua Williamson
Artist: Rafael Sandoval
2024
Grade: D
I have a quasi-antagonistic relationship with comic book event storytelling. I often cite Marvel’s Civil War as one of the catalysts to quitting the medium, and my impression is that more often than not they are plot at the expense of character and, since the concept of death has long been an unfortunate farce in the world of comic books, devoid of stakes. It’s not that I don’t believe it can be done well, Identity Crisis is a masterclass, but it seems that all of the medium’s vices seem to be exacerbated by event arcs, and this is no exception. I knew this going in which is why I thought a small-scale event like this one(restricted to Action Comics and Superman for the most part with minor tie-ins in Power Girl and Green Lantern) would be a safe place in which to dip my toes. This, in conjunction with my generally favorable reaction to Williamson’s work on Duke and Cobra Commander, compounded the frustration I had throughout this series.
The worst, and most pervasive, issue in this story is the expository dialogue. It seems like no character escapes its reach as, in turn, everyone has to deliver some unfortunate explanatory line that is aimed at the audience and no one else. Furthermore, no one is ever scared or anxious and, even after being abducted by a seemingly all-powerful omnipotent alien machine monster, the heroes are more likely to hurl petulant insults from inside their cages about how much “butt” they would kick if he would let them out than to fear for their lives. I understand that these are super people who are immune to bullets and gravity, but bravado and bravery aren’t the same thing, and it does so much damage to any tension the story manages to muster.
The second weakness of the series is contrivance. There are so many sloppy narrative work-arounds and haphazard happenings that they would be laughable if they weren’t so depressing. These range from simple things such as Brainiac completely neglecting to search his prisoners allowing Kara to quickly escape using technology she just happened to have in her possession at the time of her capture, to even more outlandish things such as the Czarnian gang, having spent much of the previous years trapped in a bottle city inside Brainiac’s ship, being able to just appear wherever Superman and Lobo are in the cosmos by following their smell. Unfortunately, even the presence of the Czarnians amounts to little more than an excuse to be more free-handed with the “Lobo-speak” and a few superfluous fight scenes. In the end they are even unceremoniously slaughtered on a single page at the hands of the newly animated Borg Queen…or Brainiac Queen(whichever you prefer).
Ultimately, the purpose of this story was to set the stage for the upcoming Absolute Power DC comics event and put Brainiac Queen in her proper place for that narrative to begin. Other than that, the only outcomes of this entire journey seem to be the death of Brainiac, which as previously stated rings as tremendously hollow, and Lex Luthor’s apparent amnesia. Enough punching to shame a bar fight in a 1940s western and not a single strike of consequence. Which now, unfortunately brings us to this…
This, story for the lack of a better word, takes place outside the overarching narrative but seeks to peek in on the inhabitants of Metropolis in the wake of Brainiac’s attack and abduction of the Super-family(just typing that makes my back teeth hurt, but the catastrophic dilution of Superman is not a topic of discussion here). It focuses on Perry White’s campaign for mayor against a young populist who is running on the proposition that the metahumans and the literal aliens living in Metropolis are the cause of all its ills. Unfortunately that’s all the subtlety Mr. Williamson seems to be able to muster in injecting his politics into the world of superheroes. I do not begrudge him his opinions on the issue, but to call his argument straw would be to fortify it past the bounds of honesty. In fact, I would say that his depiction of the real world scenario he wishes to rail against shows a profound ignorance of that scenario and a criminally unjust understanding of his opposition.
Now failing to thoughtfully explore the American immigration debate is nothing new, the second season of Picard did much the same and it lingered much longer than the length of a comic book, but to portray all those who disagree with you on this issue as xenophobic racists who would attack a young alien girl in a public place while simultaneously calling them demagogues is not only the height of hypocrisy, it is lazy. I rolled my eyes when Williamson implied that the volunteers for the Cobra army at the end of the Cobra Commander miniseries were all white country-folk as it was a single panel and just as likely to be the invention of the artist as the writer(not to mention that series has the advantage of being much better than this). I am all for a full throated discussion on any topic so long as it is done intelligently and with a genuine interest in understanding the opposition. But even more than this, if current politics are to be injected into a story(and I question whether or not it ever should be) it should only be in service to the narrative. Now it may have some broader implications with other stories to come, but it certainly is nothing but a soap box detour here.
Not wanting to leave on too sour a note something must be said for Sandoval’s art and it is formidable throughout. While I’m not quite as taken with it as I am with Xermanico’s work on Green Lantern or Dan Mora’s on Shazam! I will say it’s one of the more impressive catalogs since I’ve been back to the medium. His combined covers(top) for the opening issues are a great tone setter and example for what can be found inside. His work almost makes up for the other weaknesses of the story. If one simply skips the House of Brainiac Special(which I recommend fully) the series is less insulting than it is harmless. Williamson is a quality writer from what I’ve seen and has simply rendered a dud which I’m sure is no danger to his future success. I’m still very much looking forward to his ongoing G.I. Joe title in the energon universe. I would not recommend this to anyone other than Superman completionists and comic art lovers.
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