SUPERMAN 8 preview

[destro]

It's pretty sad when Giffen and Jurgens are no longer considered big talent, considering their output of work and years in the industry.

Well there are big talents and then there are "hot" talents. Sometimes they overlap for awhile. But the younger upcoming guys tend to be labeled as the hot talents for whatever reason, except for a few like Jim Lee who seem to retain their audience no matter what they do.

[Auguste Dupin]

It's a bit of a messy one - it ties in with the idea of Superman being a 'solid' aspect of space-time, becoming more so over the duration of his career. The disruption of 'magic' means Captain Marv...Shazam (sorry) isn't in a position to help but the concept of Superman and his links to Mxy (and Mxy's comic book collection) puts Superman in a better position, despite his vulnerability to aspects of magic...

It's a bit similar to the idea that Superman is actually resistant to some forms of magic based on concepts and ideas, because he is the very concept of good, right?
That said, you have some interesting ideas here, adkal. No quite sure it's the best place to post them, but hey, I'm not the post police.
Then again, a "what would you do if you were in charge of Action or Superman" thread would be interesting.

[adkal]

It's a bit similar to the idea that Superman is actually resistant to some forms of magic based on concepts and ideas, because he is the very concept of good, right?

Along those lines, yes :)

That said, you have some interesting ideas here, adkal.

Thanks :)

No quite sure it's the best place to post them, but hey, I'm not the post police.
Then again, a "what would you do if you were in charge of Action or Superman" thread would be interesting.

If people want them removed, go for it. I have plenty of ideas (I haven't been quite as active in recording and developing them as Mark Millar, though).

As far as I'm concerned, I've been partnered up with Tom Grummett and/or Kerry Gammill and things are awesome :D

[Desaad]

Well there are big talents and then there are "hot" talents. Sometimes they overlap for awhile. But the younger upcoming guys tend to be labeled as the hot talents for whatever reason, except for a few like Jim Lee who seem to retain their audience no matter what they do.

The appeal of young talent, why they are labeled 'hot', has a lot to do with the freshness of their perspective and their voice.

Most writers have a style, or an interest, a proclivity, perhaps even a formula which they follow and refine over the course of years. We, as readers, tend to be wowed by what we perceive to be new ideas, or new perspectives; something that changes OUR perspective, which introduces us to something new.

The problem with comics, I suppose, is that there is such a large volume of output from any given writer that there is necessarily either an exhaustion of inspiration, or a point in which we've 'seen' the writers tricks, or both.

To give an example; I really don't care for Geoff Johns' work, presently. I find it pretty low brow, I find it largely predictable, I find it myopic. But perhaps worst of all, I pretty well know what he is going to do; I understand exactly how he's going to structure his dialog, on which words he chooses to put the empahsis, the reason he tends to phrase things the way he does (maximum clarity and impact, but at the expense of reality, complexity and wit), I understand the way he structure character revivals. It's formulaic.

But it wasn't always this way. When he first came onto the scene - or rather, when I first came on the scene - his JSA was much buzzed about, his Flash had some popular momentum. I went on to enjoy his Teen Titans, to a degree, and even Green Lantern Rebirth. Why?

He's an example of a creator that has succumbed to both forms of 'rot'; the sheer volume of the work he put out - regularly 4 titles a month - has led to a familiarity which has, as they say, bred contempt. But I also think he's lost the energy, the vitality, he had at the beginning of previous projects. I think he probably feels he's found something that works - it worked with JSA, it worked with Hawkman, it worked with Hal, it worked with Flash, it's working with Aquaman. And now he's not really trying to do anything else. I suspect he doesn't read a lot of literature, so there isn't much going in, and so there isn't much going out.

I think most creators sort of go that way; it's already happened for me and Rick Remender, after just a very short, fun run on X Force. It's happened, at some point, with every writer save the highest of the high, and with the exception of Morrison and Milligan, those guys have tended to limit their output (and really, while Milligan can't be nailed down, I do find his work can be hit or miss at times). Moore and Gaiman, by contrast, have put out a relative little going year by year.

Anyway, just my opinion. Because I'd love some young, hungry new blood on a title, someone who is itching to prove themselves. A Fialkov, or something.

[paulski]

Don't they have Morrison on Action Comics? He's the biggest guy you can find (fame and salary). Though if you want the next best thing, i'm pretty sure Warren Ellis doesn't have much to do right now.

No, I was referring to 'Superman' specifically, not the Superman books in general. Action's a whole 'nother kettle of fish.

[JoeP]

Picked up #8 this morning. Good stuff. Art was killer, the suit especially looked great. Though there was one panel where the cape going over Supes' should looked out of wack. Almost movie Thor-like. Don't know what was up with that.

SPOILERS BELOW (Are there spoiler tags? Couldn't see them..)
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-Glad to see that the sequence from the preview wasn't mind control, but a glimpse of a possible future according to Hellspont. Nice touch towards the end with seeing the S-shield in a circle with a line thru it to tip you off that what Hellspont showed Clark is already in the making. I guess we'll see.

-The battle in the Himalayas was pretty badass. I was a bit lost as to what Supes did to finally take out Hellspont that caused the mountain to explode. I wouldn't think a straight up impact would create such an explosion with combustion, and such. But what do I know.

-Lucy looks like she's gonna be a handful for Clark. I can't wait to see them interact... Same with more interaction between Clark and Jimmy. I want to see them in full on geek out mode as its been said that they have that type of relationship. I hope Jimmy's not back in his apartment any time soon, as it'll be interesting to see how Clark deals with keeping his identity with someone around so much.

Anyways, pretty solid overall.

[superjman1986]

A REALLY GOOD issue. SUPERMAN is definitely back after the weak first arc. So much to like about this issue. There were some great character moments that are set up for Superman that were much needed. Lucy is introduced and a very interesting character. Art continues to be great. I only have one real complaint. Helspont didn't really last long enough as a villain for me to care to much about him. I like his interaction with Superman but he feels like he came out of nowhere. But at least this (and last issue) was a complete 180 for this series that it much needed. SUPERMAN is back!! :)

[JoeP]

A REALLY GOOD issue. SUPERMAN is definitely back after the weak first arc. So much to like about this issue. There were some great character moments that are set up for Superman that were much needed. Lucy is introduced and a very interesting character. Art continues to be great. I only have one real complaint. Helspont didn't really last long enough as a villain for me to care to much about him. I like his interaction with Superman but he feels like he came out of nowhere. But at least this (and last issue) was a complete 180 for this series that it much needed. SUPERMAN is back!! :)

It's my understanding that editorial told Giffen and Jurgens that they had to use Hellspont as a setup to his use elsewhere, so his intro and exit may seem a bit awkward. From interviews Giffen and Jurgens are wanting to focus on brand new villains, so there's that to look forward to.

[superjman1986]

It's my understanding that editorial told Giffen and Jurgens that they had to use Hellspont as a setup to his use elsewhere, so his intro and exit may seem a bit awkward. From interviews Giffen and Jurgens are wanting to focus on brand new villains, so there's that to look forward to.

Ah that is pretty awkward........

[JoeP]

Ah that is pretty awkward........

Yeah, but I don't care. The art was fantastic, and there was good setup for future issues. All good, IMO.

[RoughNTumble]

I liked the stuff with the supporting cast, but helspont jabbering on was just boring. I'll give it one more issue.

[JoeP]

I liked the stuff with the supporting cast, but helspont jabbering on was just boring. I'll give it one more issue.

I think Hellspoint's gone after this issue.

[The Ray II]

Great issue! Superman delivers a butt kicking via fight and monologue on hope.

[Last Son]

He's gone after this issue, isn't he? Tbh the next villain (Masochist) sounds like a C lister in the making. The kind of villain that will have people saying "she can't carry a movie on her own, but she could work for Lex".

[The Ray II]

Superman could desperately use an extended Rouge's gallery. I hope Masochist fits the bill.