All-Star Superman #9 (Spoilers)

[lonewolf23k]

Well, fresh from his return from Bizarroworld, Superman arrives on Earth and discovers he's been replaced as it's hero by Bar-El and Lilo, two other Kryptonians; the first astronauts from Krypton, who drifted lost in space for decades.

Unfortunetly, they're none too impressed with Superman, and really come off as a pair of imperialistic, domineering jerks who consider humanity little more then apes, and seek to build a New Krypton on Earth.

There's some confrontation about it, of course (during which the Moon gets broken, then fixed), but it ends when it's discovered both Lilo and Bar-El are dying from Kryptonite poisonning, contracted after flying through a radioactive cloud which converted the minerals in their body into the substance.

Fortunetly, Superman, being the noble soul he is, manages to save their lives. With their conscent, he sends both Bar-El and Lilo into the Phantom Zone until he can find a way to restore them both. And Until then, to use Superman's words:

"The Phantom Zone will have some Law and Order at last."

Simply brilliant. Once again, Grant Morrisson has shown why he's such a great comic writer. DC needs to put HIM in charge.

[MaxofSteel]

Sounds epic as hell. can't wait to pick this up. :D

[filthysize]

Haha, yet another great issue. What the hell do they have to do to suck, really? It's just so consistently fun.

[Sean Whitmore]

Even the title of the story just conjures up thoughts of goodness. "Curse of the Replacement Supermen." Glee.

I continue to be in love with Quitley's storytelling. My favorite instance is when Bar-El hands the super-heavy key to the robot in one panel, and in the next, Superman is helping it pick its dismembered arm off the ground.


SEAN

[matt_hatyber]

WOW i have this on my pull list. AND I NVER GOT IT. ITS MY FAVORITE BOOK!!! OH IM PISSED KNOW.

[Paul McEnery]

Even the title of the story just conjures up thoughts of goodness. "Curse of the Replacement Supermen." Glee.

I continue to be in love with Quitley's storytelling. My favorite instance is when Bar-El hands the super-heavy key to the robot in one panel, and in the next, Superman is helping it pick its dismembered arm off the ground.


SEAN

Yeah, that was a really good bit. The other thing I liked was the little puff of snow back on the mountain they just exploded out of.

OTOH, I thought this was a bit lightweight, and the pacing felt a bit off. Two pages of water cooler comedy, but no pages of people reacting to the replacement supermen? Hmm...

[diablo7]

more great stuff from morrison..i'd love to see him revisit doompatrol or animal man with quietly on art...this is the only book where superman seems cool

[J. Robb]

I'm not a big fan of stories where the plot is resolved by the antagonists randomly dropping dead.

[Kid Omega]

I'm not a big fan of stories where the plot is resolved by the antagonists randomly dropping dead.

Yeah... like that stupid RAIDERS OF THE LOST ARK.

[Sean Whitmore]

Yeah... like that stupid RAIDERS OF THE LOST ARK.

I would've said War of the Worlds, but that's an even better one.

In all seriousness, though, if any story can get away with the hero winning by saving the villain's life, surely a Superman story can. (Or a Captain Marvel one, for that matter)


SEAN

[J. Robb]

In all seriousness, though, if any story can get away with the hero winning by saving the villain's life, surely a Superman story can. (Or a Captain Marvel one, for that matter)
I'm all for Superman winning by saving the villain's life, but in a story where two Kryptonians come to Earth as conquerors, I'm more interested in how Superman would deal with that situation.

[Jack Zodiac]

I like how, at first, he was hoping those two would be suitable replacements for him with his death still looming over the horizon at the end of this arc, but then they went all Zod on him and busted the moon in half (awesome !@#$ing scene by the way, stitching the moon back together with Earth's biggest bridges). And even with the suddenness of their kryptonite poisoning, I still think things were resolved as well as they would've been: Bar-El and Lilo realized how altruistic Kal-El was and that Earth was his planet, not just another planet to try and conquer. If not that ending, some stereotypical slugfestt hat would've ended with Superman busting whatever remaning Kryptonite he could find to trap them in the Phantom Zones as criminals. Convenient or not, the way Grant ended it was far more interesting than any of the usual superhero crap.

By the way, it'd been a couple months since I read the last issue (I've been busy, so I haven't gotten to reread it lately, but I try to read the last few issues every few weeks or so), so opening the book with Superman rocketing from completely !@#$ing nowhere and crashing in the middle of a fair was hilarious. Then he peeled himself off what was left of the Bizarro-rocket and I remembered. Great stuff. That scene, stitching the moon back up with bridges, and Superman vomiting lava are gonna be the three greatest Superman moments of the past year for me.

And the metacommentary from Bar-El and Loli about Superman's obsession with the death and destruction of his race and home was a clever touch that complimented their attempt to recreate Krypton on Earth with their own architecture, fashion, and remodelling his Fortress. And the key scene! Great stuff. Would've been even better if they'd kept the ridiculous ass giant !@#$in' key and the huge keyhole in the Fortress.

So yeah, as usualy, stunning art from Quitely and amazing writing from Morrison. By far the single greatest superhero comic on the shelves, still.

[The Batman]

The kryptonite poisoning wasn't that out of the blue. It was hinted at almost right away with that "your eyes are a dazzling shade of green" comment.

[Jack Zodiac]

Ah, good point. Should've figured that would've been there for more than just standard dialogue. It also occurs to me now that we never heard what it was that Lois had to tell Superman that was so important.

[lovefist911]

Great issue, great series. I hope it never ends.

[The Beast Of Yucca Flats]

The kryptonite poisoning wasn't that out of the blue. It was hinted at almost right away with that "your eyes are a dazzling shade of green" comment.

Damn, I never even thought of that. (facepalm)

[OneWinged]

this is the only ASS #9 review i've found besides IGN
http://independentcomicssite.net/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=249&Itemid=1

[Jared H.]

Lucky for me, my LCS still had some copies in stock today.

Excellent read. Full of neat little moments, and a great ending.

Only 3 issues left? Say it ain't so.

[KRAKABOOM!]

It also occurs to me now that we never heard what it was that Lois had to tell Superman that was so important.

in issue eight, quintum tells lois about luthor's plan to kill superman. and he also has found something "hiding in the sun."

that might be it.

[Michael P]

I liked the issue, but the ending felt a bit rushed.

Can anyone figure out what Superman's "Labor" was for this issue? I'm trying to track them, but I can't figure out anything he did this ish that matches the feats of the earlier ones:

1. Saving the space station from the heart of the sun.
2. Developing a serum to give Lois superpowers.
3. Answering the Sphinx's riddle.
4. Pulling Jimmy and the Black Kryptonite from the Underverse portal.
5. Defeating the Parasite and quelling the prison riot without revealing his identity to Lex.
6. Battling and defeating the Chronovore alongside the Superman Squad.
7. Rearranging the oceans of Bizarro World to form a giant mirror.
8. Escaping from the Underverse.
9. ?

[MaxofSteel]

9. ?

Saving the lives of two other Kryptonian survivors?

Helping to establish some form of order in the Phantom Zone?

Those are the only things I can think of right now.

[Sean Whitmore]

Helping to establish some form of order in the Phantom Zone?

That's what I figured. Bringing order to chaos, or some such way of saying it.


SEAN

[Kid Omega]

I liked the issue, but the ending felt a bit rushed.

Can anyone figure out what Superman's "Labor" was for this issue? I'm trying to track them, but I can't figure out anything he did this ish that matches the feats of the earlier ones:

1. Saving the space station from the heart of the sun.
2. Developing a serum to give Lois superpowers.
3. Answering the Sphinx's riddle.
4. Pulling Jimmy and the Black Kryptonite from the Underverse portal.
5. Defeating the Parasite and quelling the prison riot without revealing his identity to Lex.
6. Battling and defeating the Chronovore alongside the Superman Squad.
7. Rearranging the oceans of Bizarro World to form a giant mirror.
8. Escaping from the Underverse.
9. ?

Accepting defeat/abuse and turning the other cheek... showing compassion to his antagonists.

[Paul McEnery]

in issue eight, quintum tells lois about luthor's plan to kill superman. and he also has found something "hiding in the sun."

that might be it.

Solaris.
...

[The Beast Of Yucca Flats]

Only 3 issues left? Say it ain't so.

"Grant and Frank's arc ends at issue 12, then Grant has additional standalone stories with different artists."

Found here:

http://www.comicbookresources.com/news/newsitem.cgi?id=11778

[Michael P]

Accepting defeat/abuse and turning the other cheek... showing compassion to his antagonists.

That kinda works, although he does that all the time, really.

I'm sure it'll all look nice and pretty when issue 12's done with, anyhow.

[stealthwise]

Is there anything more glorious in comics right now (that's right Alex, Joe, whoever else wants to add a qualifier to that, I said COMICS not just superhero comics) than All-Star Superman?

[PatrickG]

Is there anything more glorious in comics right now (that's right Alex, Joe, whoever else wants to add a qualifier to that, I said COMICS not just superhero comics) than All-Star Superman?

Stealth, as I recall, you aren't a guy to throw those kind of statements out lightly. You're generally very critical about publishers choking out any kind of diversity in the industry with a dearth of super-hero books.

It's really quite a high compliment for you to say that about All-Star Superman.

And I agree.

The beauty of this book is that it has layers of nuance and referntiality for the fanboys but it NEVER chokes off its sense of imagination.

Many comics are a product of their time or a product of specific storylines or cultural movements.

This is a comic book you could not only justify putting on your sheld to read years later; this is a comic book you could take back in time to 1938 and it would still be recognized as a great comic book.

Many comics rely on the history or weight of other stories or movements in the industry. This book draws from them but stands alone.

[Shellhead]

Overall, this was a great issue, except the water cooler scene seemed very extreme. I couldn't believe that co-worker was waving a lighter near Clark's ass, and I was very surprised that Clark would use his heat vision to set a co-worker's hairpiece on fire. The first incident seemed unbelievably crude, and the second incident was unusually petty for Superman.

[stealthwise]

Overall, this was a great issue, except the water cooler scene seemed very extreme. I couldn't believe that co-worker was waving a lighter near Clark's ass, and I was very surprised that Clark would use his heat vision to set a co-worker's hairpiece on fire. The first incident seemed unbelievably crude, and the second incident was unusually petty for Superman.

Well, this incarnation of Lombari certainly seems capable, and since Clark was under a lot of stress since he just returned to Earth and found his home being rebuilt in the image of maniacal demi-gods, I'm sure we can excuse him. ;) I was thinking that scene fit well with the tone of Superman II.

[The Batman]

That and from Superman's perspective he ain't gonna be around much longer. Figure he might've wanted to give the guy a much needed and healthy place putting.

[Gladiaria_Alata]

Hmmm. Looks like my choice to check this out was a good one.

I'll get any back issues when I'm in town and have money to spend.

[ultramandingo]

........loved jimmys new" overpants" look - but whatabout the moon - or the lack of just about every major bridge on earth ?

[KRAKABOOM!]

Overall, this was a great issue, except the water cooler scene seemed very extreme. I couldn't believe that co-worker was waving a lighter near Clark's ass, and I was very surprised that Clark would use his heat vision to set a co-worker's hairpiece on fire. The first incident seemed unbelievably crude, and the second incident was unusually petty for Superman.

i didnt see clark's reaction as being "petty". i saw it as teaching a bully a lesson; "dont play with fire or else...".

lombard got his just desserts served up piping hot, as it were.

[Matt Algren]

Yeah... like that stupid RAIDERS OF THE LOST ARK.
ahem
........loved jimmys new" overpants" look - but whatabout the moon - or the lack of just about every major bridge on earth ?Superman'll figure it out.

Another great issue. Loved Superman's (as Clark Kent) excuse for being gone for two months. Thank goodness for gift baskets and Shakespeare.

I loved how the panels moved with the punches on the page where Bar-El* was punching and crotch kicking Superman. They didn't just move, they moved in the same direction and at the same angle and with the same force as the blows. Ridiculous amounts of awesome on that page.

Loved the look on Superman's face when he realized they broke the moon. Quitely captured his disbelief very well.

The comic timing in the water cooler scene reminded me of a Road Runner cartoon, with Steve Lombard in the role of Wile E. Coyote. I could almost hear the standard falling rocks music when . . . well, you know.

First thing I thought of when I got done with it was how awesome it would be if this issue had been Superman Returns. Add a bit more with Lois and the group, and you've got a great movie on your hands.

Was the cover an homage to something? The look on Superman's face was Norman Rockwell-esque, but I can't quite place it.




* From Chris's Invincible Super-Blog (http://www.the-isb.com/?p=200):
Oh, and incidentally, in case you missed it in the comments of last night’s post and aren’t familiar with the Glaswegian Penal System, ISB reader Nick Davidson had this to say:

“Only Grant Morrison would write about a Kryptonian prison guard called Bar-El. Bar-L is the colloquial name for Barlinnie, a a high-security prison outside Glasgow. Nice one, Grant.”

Nice one indeed.

[Billage]

Great issue,it's sad that we only have 3 more issues left.

[botch]

Grant Morrison is virtually in charge of DC right now.

[Deep_Sleeper]

Every time an issue of All Star Superman comics comes out, I feel blessed to be a comic fan.

It's just a brilliant book.

[Jack Zodiac]

Great issue,it's sad that we only have 3 more issues left.

Grant's sticking around, but Quitely's moving on. Which is a shame, because Frank's art works so well with Morrison's writing.

Grant Morrison is virtually in charge of DC right now.

Pfffffffffft, I fuckin' wish! Maybe one day, when he's tired of writing awesome comics, he'll take D Didi's chair and become the next Julius Schwartz.

[Billage]

Grant's sticking around, but Quitely's moving on. Which is a shame, because Frank's art works so well with Morrison's writing.



Pfffffffffft, I fuckin' wish! Maybe one day, when he's tired of writing awesome comics, he'll take D Didi's chair and become the next Julius Schwartz.

What the heck?All Star Superman is continuing past 12 issues?Where did you here this?This is news to me.

[Jack Zodiac]

From earlier in the thread: http://www.comicbookresources.com/news/newsitem.cgi?id=11778

"Will "All-Star Superman's" storyline spread to other books? "Grant and Frank's arc ends at issue 12, then Grant has additional standalone stories with different artists.""

[ultramandingo]

Pfffffffffft, I fuckin' wish! Maybe one day, when he's tired of writing awesome comics, he'll take D Didi's chair and become the next Julius Schwartz.

.......... Julius Schwartz on acid and red bull - the rubber trousers age of comics

[Ramiel]

What the heck?All Star Superman is continuing past 12 issues?Where did you here this?This is news to me.

It's always been issued as an ongoing, not a limited series.

[Jack Zodiac]

.......... Julius Schwartz on acid and red bull - the rubber trousers age of comics

I'd take Julie Schwartz on horse tranqs and Jack Daniels at this point. Just get a new big brain in the top office. If they could fit Morrison's in there, then fantastic!

[lonewolf23k]

ahem
Superman'll figure it out.

Or P.R.O.J.E.C.T. will have it's superstrong Bizarro Worker Drones get to work, possibly applying some sort of superadhesive agent to do some repair work...

Grant Morrison is virtually in charge of DC right now.

Pfft... I wish. At least he could do something halfway decent with the whole Countdown thing, and could make Superman Prime into something I'd be interested in...

[Rattlehead]

I just hope the next EiC isn't obssessed with death. Didio's reign has been bloody, and he revels in it to boot.