The kid friendly Super Powers! not only is bright, fun, and funny, but it connects into the deeper DC universe stories. Last issue revealed Brainiac and his past and this issue goes even further. Can it sustain its cuteness, keep fans interested, and be compelling all at once? Is it good?
Super Powers! #2 (DC Comics)
So what’s it about? The summary reads:
Superman has been defeated by Lex Luthor—or so the evil mastermind thinks! Trapped in a Kryptonite fortress under the sea, our hero is fading fast—but he can’t be defeated when his friends have his back! And while he is recovering, a new Kryptonian arrives on the scene! Plus, something weird has come to Central City. The Flash might provide some answers…if you can keep up!
Why does this book matter?
The first issue by Franco and Art Baltazar had a good balance of cute humor and story elements for canon lovers. Given its little kid look and feel it has a surprising amount of complexity which the second issue is bound to have.
Fine, you have my attention. What’s good about it?
Oh, no!
The cover clearly shows Composite Superman which is another mythos DC character Baltazar and Franco are bringing into the fold. There’s even more to it than that and anyone who loves the rich history of Superman should get a kick out of it. Scenes on new Krypton further this fun use of DC history which all leads to a rather shocking cliffhanger. All in all, this series is a love letter to the DC universe and if you’re a fan you can’t help but smirk at it being shown in this cute sort of way.
Baltazar’s art is gorgeously simplistic and cartoony. Full page splashes are quite cool, the style is retro as all hell, and it’s surprising how good they look considering how simple the style is. The color is bright, the art fun, and it’s hard not to enjoy its pages even when jokes fall flat.
It can’t be perfect can it?
And the jokes fall flat indeed. This issue doesn’t hold as much humor that works as the first issue. Jokes are present, but whether they are funny or not depends on how loose you take your jokes. Flash for instance in one scene makes a crack about who Batman is, which seems to be a way to show his speed, but doesn’t actually make sense or work as a joke. A lot of the humor in this issue is clunky like when Wonder Woman explains Superman’s state by saying, “Let’s just say..” and simply saying what had happened. Little kids might enjoy this, but adults may need to check out on this one.
The story is rather all over the place too unfortunately. It picks up where we left off, but then has Superman check out seemingly to allow Flash and Batman to encounter a threat, only to have said threat be whisked away. Then the majority of the rest of the issue involves Zod and new Krypton in a way that makes the issue feel unbalanced.
Close one.
Is It Good?
The art sure is and is worthy of at least a check-in by fans of the DC universe. It’s appreciated the story is taking stories deep in the canon and bringing them out in this cute way, but the humor is lacking and most will find it hard to really enjoy.
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