Superman #17
Superman makes a big decision in Superman #17, by writer Brian Michael Bendis, artist Kevin Maguire, colorist Paul Mounts, and letterer Dave Sharpe. This issue is a patented Bendis set up comic, lots of dialogue and minimal action, but it drops the ball in several places.
Superman negotiates an interstellar trade dispute, then goes home to Lois and finds out about the offer Lex Luthor made her and the thing he wants her to do- publish something in the Daily Planet. She won’t reveal what it is to Superman, and they talk about what has been happening lately in their lives, and Superman starts to question his role in things. Later, he raids a secret S.T.A.R. Labs facility and writes a story about the multiversal experiments they are doing. He meets up with Supergirl at the Fortress of Solitude, and they fly off to visit Zod at New Krypton. While there, Superman asks her for her advice on a decision he’s making.
As alluded to in the first paragraph, this is a classic Bendis set up chapter, and that’s a good and bad thing. Since he took over the book, Bendis has put Superman through the wringer, and this issue sort of slows things down a bit and explores how those events have affected Superman. That’s the best part of the issue. It’s at its best in the section with Superman and Lois talking about what’s been going on in their lives lately. The two of them work together so well, and it’s through this conversation that Superman begins to come to a decision on his life (one that has been telegraphed by future solicits for this book but won’t be discussed here). Bendis captures how well their relationship works, and the dialogue between them is excellent. Lois cuts to the core of what’s bothering Superman in a way that not even he can. Actions like this make it easy to see that while Superman is a hero to the universe, his hero is none other than his wife.
The bad part about this issue, though, is that nothing really happens. Sure, Bendis keeps having Superman talk about making a decision about wanting things to change, but he’s playing things so close to the vest in this one that it feels like none of it matters. Take the whole thing with S.T.A.R. Labs. Bendis has been positioning them as a new antagonist for Superman throughout his run, a dramatic change from their old relationship. He throws Superman raiding them into this issue, but it really doesn’t matter, because readers have seen this sort of thing in Action Comics not very long ago. It’s set up, sure, but it feels out of place in the middle of an issue that doesn’t seem like it has anything to do with this sort of scene. Taking Superman and Supergirl to New Krypton is another thing that makes very little sense because the dramatic gist of the scene has nothing to do with New Krypton, but with Superman and Supergirl’s discussion. There’s no need to go to New Krypton to have this scene. The only reason would be if it plays into what’s coming up, but with what the upcoming solicitations have revealed, why would Kryptonians care (again, not getting into that here, but it’s valid to bring up in this context without spoiling it)? It feels like Bendis just went to New Krypton to remind readers it was a thing.
Kevin Maguire’s art is pretty perfect for this issue. Maguire is a master of facial expressions, and Bendis gives him a lot to work within this comic. His artwork shines the most in the section with Superman and Lois, and the best page of that exchange is an eight-panel page, focusing on Superman’s face as he and Lois and talk, and she tells him why she thinks he feels the way he does. Maguire captures the emotions of the moment for Superman so well. Also, while the New Krypton sequence felt a bit useless, it was worth it to have Maguire draw Zod’s reaction to Supergirl being all self-righteous with him.
Superman #17 is okay. Bendis highlights the relationship between Lois and Clark and how well they gel as a couple, and it’s the strongest part of the issue. The other parts in the book feel inconsequential and don’t seem to fit in with the story he’s trying to tell. The art by Kevin Maguire, though, makes even those useless seeming scenes look great and lends itself to the best part of the book perfectly. It feels like things are about to change in this book, and this issue is supposed to be the prologue to that, but instead of focusing on what’s important for that it jumps around a little too much.