Action Comics #1041
Midnighter makes the most of his time on Warworld in Action Comics #1041, by writer Phillip Kennedy Johnson, artists Dale Eaglesham and Will Conrad, colorist Lee Loughridge, and letterer Dave Sharpe. In the backup, by writer Shawn Aldridge, artist Adriana Melo, colorist HI-FI, and letterer Dave Sharpe, Martian Manhunter confronts Vulture and his past. This main story is mostly a flashback but an action-packed one with a great ending, and the backup continues its Martian Manhunter epic.
In the main story, days after the capture of the rest of the Authority, Midnighter starts to kill bloodpriests behind the scenes, trying to get more information about Apollo and how to get him back. In doing so, he begins to free Warzoons, who spread the legend of Superman, and begin a resistance movement. Finally, he finds the engineer who designed the Star Forge that Apollo is on and prepares to attack. However, before he can do so, he is told about the attack on Superman’s barracks and is about to refuse to go when Superman shows up. OMAC is about to kill Steel in the barracks when Superman and company come in for backup. In the backup, Martian Manhunter frees the detectives from Vulture. As he makes his way deeper, he finds the old guard of Vulture, including Marcus Xavier, someone he thought was dead. Unfortunately, Vulture is ready for him.
Midnighter is one of the most popular members of the Authority, and before this issue, he only showed up once. Johnson brings him out now for a little flashback issue, so readers know what was happening with him. He was the only one who escaped from Mongul’s forces, and when readers saw him again, they didn’t know how he got there. This issue gives that to readers and gives them some of that great old Midnighter ultraviolence that fans love so much.
One of the most ironic parts about that is that Midnighter’s revolution spurs on the hope that Superman brought to Warworld through the first Phaelosian named Byla. Midnighter is a violent man who does what he needs to do. Hope isn’t his stock in trade; violence is. His little revolution brings the message of hope and Superman to the masses, something he doesn’t care about at all. It’s a cool little twist on his character that he even references several times in the issue. In the backup, Aldridge plays more with the central conceit of his Martian Manhunter- namely, that J’onn’s past catching up with him. Every one of his past lives has earned him enemies, and Vulture is just a symptom of that.
Eaglesham does a great job on the pencils in this issue. Eaglesham is an old hand. His style is different from what came before in the book, and it actually works better for a story about Midnighter. Federici’s art is better for the grandeur; Eaglesham works for this more action-packed section of the chapter, which is much more traditionally superhero than the last few issues. Conrad does a few pages as well, and they look great; before Eaglesham comes back for the last, a tremendous full-page spread of Superman. In the backup, Melo keeps her high standard of art. Every panel on every page looks great, with the last page playing a bit into body horror.
Action Comics #1041 continues to deliver. This is low-key one of the best superhero books on the market, with both creative teams really nailing their stories.