Superman #24

By Mike Johnson, Eddy Barrows, & Eber Ferreira

Superman is a tough character to write. No matter what you do, there is always going to be groups of fans complaining about something. He was too much of a boy scout, or he is too dark, or he wasn’t boy scout enough. There is never a way to please the rabid fan boys I guess.

Psi War concludes this month, and it is a bit anti-climactic. Superman is down for the count and needs a super powered Lois Lane to bring him back. They team up with the H.I.V.E. queen and Hector Hammond to attempt to take down the Psycho Pirate. Fists are thrown, minds are blown, and Lois Lane saves Metropolis.

Scott Lobdell didn’t write this issue, but Mike Johnson did. This issue is somewhat predictable. Superman teams up with enemies to take down a greater threat; this has been played out so much it brings down the story. Perhaps Johnson could have come up with a better way to play this out than a beaten to death concept. On top of that, nothing really happens that will affect what happens next in the book, as all the villains escape. The only lasting effect, and this may not stick either, involves Lois finding something out about Superman, but she may not remember since she is back in a coma. Johnson’s dialogue is decent, Lois is a funny narrator, but ultimately it feels like an episodic television show where things go back to exactly the way they were before the arc.

The art is done by Eddy Barrows, who is always good. Several panels stick out and will stay with the reader, including the reveal of the H.I.V.E. queen’s true look. Barrows takes a gamble and uses several silhouetted images and they do pay off as they look good in the book. The fight scenes are well drawn, and the panels featuring the confusion of the Metropolis people was nicely done as well. His artwork has helped this issue out, and the series as a whole.

This was kind of a dull conclusion to a decent storyline. You would think that Clark would come up with a way to protect himself from an attack on his mind, but it hasn’t happened yet. Hopefully the next arc will be a bit more creative.