“House of Brainiac” has been an exciting adventure that sends Superman to space to stop Brainiac from hurting or even killing his family. Alongside Superman is Lobo, a character who’s often his enemy. Given the cliffhanger of the last chapter of the story in Action Comics #1065, he’s an enemy allied with Brainiac! The story continues “House of Brainiac” part 4 in Superman #14.
Superman #14 opens just after where we left off, as Lobo and Superman punch each other silly. Nearly equally matched, the two are fighting on Hardcore Station as Czarnias watches on with glee. Lobo has agreed to fight Superman to be the leader of the new Czarnian gang, but he also loves beating up Superman, so it’s a win-win. Never the thinker, this is all likely a double cross on top of a double cross, but does artist Rafa Sandoval draw a great fight scene.
The art is spectacular, stretching the double-page layouts with big sound effects and explosions. The two end up fighting outside the station in space, and Sandoval makes it quite clear these two are equally matched. The art throughout the issue is great, with Miguel Mendonca filling in on a few pages but staying consistent with Sandoval’s style.
Something that may not be immediately obvious is how Williamson has made this easy to follow, whether you know every character or not. I am not super familiar with every character here, but he does a good job reminding us who they are and why they matter.
DC Comics
One slight knock on this opening fight scene is you’ll probably see where it’s going. It was obvious where this was going from the moment of the last chapter cliffhanger to the events a quarter-way into this issue.
If you’re looking for a progressing story, there’s plenty here. Writer Joshua Williamson continues to tease intentions, but we get to see a third party enter the fray, Brainiac unleashes his major weapon, and the war between Brainiac, Superman characters, and the Czarnias is crashing into a chaotic place.
For longtime Superman fans, you’ll enjoy the various characters that pop in and do heroic stuff. There’s also a possible major revelation that is teased involving Superman’s powers. That’s enticing to see, seeing as big shifts in what we know about legacy characters like Superman are few and far between.
Superman #14 is essential reading if you’re following “House of Brainiac” with pulse-pounding action, good plot progression, and a nice mix of characters popping into the story. So far, this story has been so good, I’m surprised it wasn’t their summer event.
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