Archive for category Superman
Superman – Issue #698
Posted by Ryan Brewer in Superman, Superman: Last Stand of New Krypton on April 4th, 2010
Superman Issue #698
This issue kicks off right where Supergirl #51 left off with a full page panel of the Brainiac ship hovering over a smoldering New Krypton while thousands of probes swarm out of the ship headed to wreak more havoc. General Zod is asking for a death count of his people. The answer is upwards of eleven thousand souls. Even as big a bastard as Zod is he is still moved by the fact that this onslaught has cost him a tenth of his population is less than an hour battle. Ursa points points out that they are standing up well to the probes, that their super strength is a huge advantage during this battle. Zod is not convinced that they are “holding up” instead this is somehow all a part of Brainiac’s plan, he fears something far worse is going to be coming. He then questions if anything is known about Kal-El. Word is that spotters saw him breach the ship (see Last Stand of New Krypton Issue #1) but other than that they know nothing.
We then are shown the inside of Brainiac’s ship. Superman being restrained by a large octopus looking prode, while Brainiac and Lex Luthor (still in that damn orange jump suit) are standing and staring while dozens of bottle cities hang from the ceiling. Luthor says, “I’m sure you’re wondering what I’m doing here.” To which Superman replies with a great line, “When I see villainy and horror anywhere… I’ve long stopped being surprised to find you or your had at the heart of it, Luthor.” Brainiac tells Superman I’m here to make Kandor mine again and he’s going to make him watch and in making him watch he’ll feel. Feel like he made Brainiac feel during their last encounter.
Now enter Mon-El. Flying through space toward the ship being guided telepathically by Tellus. In Supergirl #51 Tellus contacted Mon-El connecting him to Superman’s mind so that he could figure out how to find Superman and breach Brainiac’s forcefield. Once inside Mon-El’s mind is bombarded by many other voices that don’t belong to Tellus or Superman. Voices saying “save us” and “we’re here.” Mon-El is then attacked by silver haired beast that looks something like a cross between a wolf and an ape. He dispatches this animal pretty quickly as the voices scream “save our world!” Then he’s confronted with many many other beasts all hovering in the eaves in the ship ready to pounce. Mon-El then gives an “Oh boy” quote that would make even Scott Bakula proud.
Getting back to Superman’s predicament again he is now hooked up to Brainiac’s ship with some crazy pink neon looking wires connected to various points on his face and temples. Brainiac is now monologuing about how he is going to feel through Superman, learn his thoughts and the secrets of New Krypton. Superman’s starts to power up his heat vision and simply says “No.” Then back to Mon-El who really has his hands full now. On one hand he has now learned that a telepathic bottle city race has hijacked the connection Tellus established to Superman’s mind. They are known as Lanothian and surprise surprise Brainiac bottled them up and destroyed their sun and their planet. Then burst in a whole horde of crazy looking Brainiac henchmen with various powers and weaponry. Mon-El learns from the Lanothians that these are races that pledged allegiance to protect Brainiac and serve him in exchange for being free of their bottle prisons.
Supergirl – Issue #51
Posted by Ryan Brewer in Supergirl, Superman: Last Stand of New Krypton on March 28th, 2010
Supergirl issue #51 is the second issue in the story arch Last Stand of New Krypton. Actions begins right where Last Stand of New
Supergirl Issue #51
Krypton Issue #1 left off. 20 miles outside of the City of Kandor a small group of school children is being ushered through the New Jewel Mountains. They are escorted by their teacher Pat-Ur as the city is under attack. Although Pat-Ur is trying to keep the children calm and has a smile on his face that doesn’t stop one of the children from playing with her super hearing. With tears streaming down her face she tells Pat-Ur that she can hear people all the way back at the city screaming as they die!
Supergirl then narrates a quick recap of what’s being going on here in Kandor. New Kryton has been invaded. Brainiac has returned to undo all the things they have built over the last year. He’s there to take them back. Kara say, “Like hell he will!” Mon-El and Supergirl are battling Brainiac probes left and right. Again it’s great to see them really cutting loose since they aren’t battling living beings. Decapitations and fist through probe skulls are now commonplace occurrences. Kara warns Mon to beware of the larger probes, they have some pretty slick upgrades and have the ability to fire red sun blasts at the Kryptonians thereby rendering them vulnerable to physical attack. Mon wants to know why they haven’t taken the fight directly to the ship in orbit and Kara explains that they attempted that before and were unsuccessful due to the force field around it. Their job is keep the probes as under control as possible until they figure out a way inside the ship. At that moment Mon-El is blasted from behind with a red sun blast is left vulnerable on the ground.
Kara rushes to his aid and takes out the probe before it can cause any real harm to Mon-El. But before he fully recovers he’s blasted with a psychic message from Tellus. In Last Stand of New Krypton – Issue #1 Zod turned on Connor and the Legion and took them into custody. Tellus relays this information and details about Superman’s fate telepathically to Mon-El seeking help. Mon-El decides to race to the Brainiac ship in orbit while Kara will go and help Connor and the Legion. After a brief dialogue explaining why Mon would sacrifice himself anytime for Superman, Mon-El attempts to leave but not before Kara grabs him and lays a kiss on him. A stammering Mon-El doesn’t know what to make of it. But a smiling Kara tells him it’s simply for luck and to go save her cousin so they can both come back and kick some Braini-ass.
We then cut to the Legion and Superboy, surrounded by a group of unconscious Kandorian guards. The shaken up group has little time to rest as Kara’s mother bursts in to finish off the job the guards were unable to accomplish. Supergirl is getting frustrated by the disjointed manner the Kandorians are fighting this battle. They are not working as a cohesive unit, instead they are fighting only side by side with members of their own guild. As Kara struggles to pull the Kandorians together she hears her mother struggling in battle and rushes to her aid. Just in time to rush in on her mother being suspended by her neck with her cousin Connor’s hand wrapped around her throat. In a “this isn’t what it looks like” moment Kara lands a mean right hook on Connor’s jaw and knocks him halfway across the city. Kara attempts to explain that Connor and the Legion aren’t terrorists and they are here to help. But before she really can succeed they are swarmed by an even stronger group on probes blasting red sun. Kara and her mother are backed into a corner trying to take comfort in the fact that they will at least die together fighting. But a little tactile telekinesis from Connor saves the day. Thanks to the timely save Kara convinces her mother to extend a pardon to Connor and the Legion at the chagrin of General Zod.
Superman: Last Stand of New Krypton Issue #1 of 3
Posted by Ryan Brewer in Superman: Last Stand of New Krypton on March 14th, 2010
Superman: Last Stand of New Krypton Issue 1
This Brainiac guy just doesn’t quit! The 12 issue Superman: World of New Krypton has just ended with the appearance of the Brainiac skull based ship hovering over New Krypton and Rao help us all! This issue picks up immediately where SWNK left off. We begin of course with a quick historical narration from General Zod.
Explaining how Kandor was taken from Old Krypton and placed into the bottle on Brainiacs ship. That defeat planted a seed in the people of Kandor, one of defeat and fear. But the yellow sun that New Krypton orbits has changed things. This time the people of Kandor are ready and able to fight back.
The first few pages are panels of utter mayhem. A lot of heat vision flying around, robots being ripped in half and general carnage is the gist of it. Zod is in his command center with Ursa whipping up some scheme to take down Brainiac once and for all. What I really like about fighting Brainiac robots is that Kal-El doesn’t have to pull his punches. He has no compunction about ripping robots in half with his hands or putting a fist through a metallic skull (quite a difference from his standard method of operation.)
Zod tries his standard approach of firing first and planning later. To the detriment of many of his soliders and to no effect on the Brainiac ship. Kal-El can’t take it any longer and quits his post within the military guild. This is where we get to hear my favorite Superman quote (which I haven’t heard in well over a year of issues.) “This is a job for Superman” he states as he takes to the sky and rips off his Red Shard uniform to reveal the classic red and blue!
Supergirl finds her mother and they battle their way past the new Brainiac bots which are now firing red suns burst and are able to actually put some hurt on the Kryptonians. With an assist from Mon-El, Conner and The Legion of Superheros it looks like they might be able to turn the tide if Zod was willing to accept their help that is! He can’t handle it and decides to arrest the Legion instead of accepting their help.
Superman breaks into the Brainiac ship in orbit and is seeking out the main man when he is hit with a blast of kryptonite. But the blast didn’t come from Brainiac. It came from his apparent new partner in crime. The evil team up Superman probably never saw coming… Brainiac and Lex Luthor are partners in crime!
In total this is a great setup to what looks like will be a very fun arch in the Superman series. It was a great way to see Superman get back into the swing of things and pickup the mantle of Superman. Brainiac stories are always fun, and who doesn’t love a Luthor arch? So how could the two together go bad? One thing I was wondering about though in the last full page image. Why is Lex STILL wearing the orange prison jump suit? He’s a pretty egotistical guy and even though he’s running around on Brainiac’s ship I gotta believe he’d wanna stop off and make a quick wardrobe change.
Where is this going? Is Brainiac calling the shots? Is Luthor? Or is General Lane pulling the strings on this? Is someone we don’t know about yet doing? Where do you think this story is going?
- Issue: 1 (of 3)
- Story Arch: Invaded
- Writer: James Robinson & Sterling Gates
- Pencils: Pete Woods
- Color: Blond
- Letters: Steve Wands