Superwoman has impressed with two strong issues thus far and has now introduced a team of villains to the arc. Can issue three continue the trend and is it good?
Superwoman #3 (DC Comics)
What It’s About?
The story picks up where issue two left off with Metropolis undergoing a blackout and all LexCorp affiliated organizations and tech rendered useless. Still traumatized from the death of Lois and the state Metropolis has been thrown into, we get to see Lana truly use her new powers’ full potential on the first thing that gets in her way. Unfortunately, while he may not even be deserving of it, that someone is Atomic Skull. This issue bounces back and forth between the current band of heroes, Superwoman, Steel and Steel’s niece (does she have a hero name?), as they try to get Metropolis functioning again and Lex and Lena verbally duking it out as we get filled in on how she’s be elevated to a prime villain role.
That “Wow”
I’m definitely enjoying the cast of characters Jimenez has be throwing out there each week and those that were introduced last month get more prime time in this issue. While the storyline itself wasn’t up to the previous standards set by the first two issues, one character in particular is getting a major revamp: Lena. Lena Luthor is an excellent first villain for Superwoman and Jimenez has elevated her character so she’s now a worthy opponent for someone imbued with superpowers such as Lana. These are two women at opposite ends of the morality spectrum which should make for an exciting clash in upcoming issues.
I’d also like to add that Lupacchino has assumed the penciling duties for the book and it really looks great. Jimenez was doing a good job at multitasking, but there were some questionable panels in both of the first two books. This issue is noticeably better and Lupacchino gives us a few splashes that are really quite great.
It Can’t Be Perfect Can It?
As much as I hate to say it, this issue really didn’t do it for me. The shared storyline between the Luthor’s discussion and Superwoman heroics makes the issue as a whole feel disjointed with abrupt shifts. Rather than complementing each other, the storylines compete for panel space which creates a rather messy issue. Superwoman’s storyline has the appeal of an unexpected change of heart, but overall her and her teammates don’t really accomplish anything noteworthy. Not only is the majority of the issue slow, but there’s an emphasis on a small lie Lana makes to Steel and it’s blown way out of proportion as Lana thinks she’s the worst person in the world for doing so. I’m sure it will play a part later on, but it just came off as weird.
As for the Luthors, what could have taken a handful of pages was stretched into half an issue of Lena complaining about Luthor in the most obnoxious way. Just based on the dialogue alone, one would guess these two sound more like a couple than siblings. What could have come off as a sincere moment between brother and sister came off as melodramatic and full of stilted language. In fact, there were multiple lines throughout the issue where the dialogue felt forced or awkward, whether it was Steel’s niece explaining how she knows a random character or Lena continuously mentioning her broken heart.
Is It Good?
This is still a good series that has a ton of potential. This issue, in my opinion, is just a small blemish on an otherwise solid start for Jimenez and Lupacchino. It all came down to some irksome character conversations that ruined the buildup of Lena’s villainous status. I’ll still be looking for fireworks next month.
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