Superman #27

By Scott Lobdell, Ed Benes & Pete Pantazis

The Scott Lobdell run on Superman has been met with mixed reviews. There are definitely people who really like his run and some who despise it. However you feel about it, Lobdell has been building toward something big and the Parasite is the latest villain to sweep into Metropolis and cause a ruckus.

The Parasite wants to siphon the life force from Lois Lane. Superman has to save her without getting sucked dry himself. Meanwhile, Cat gets an offer from Morgan Edge that could be hard to resist, and an old foe returns and it’s probably not to just say hello.

This is a tale of two halves. The first half of this issue feels a bit slow, but it picks up near the end of the story. Lobdell did some good things with Supes this issue, and he gave him a little bit of attitude as well. Telling Jonathan Carroll that he doesn’t have to explain himself is a pretty great moment. It’s nice that Kal is showing some edge. Lobell handles Parasite well too, except in one panel where he says the word “dude.” It just seems a bit odd for him to say that. We also get a good internal monologue from Clark that takes us through his every thought. Overall a pretty good issue.

Ed Benes is one of the best in the business, and his Superman is almost on par with Jim Lee’s. His work in this issue is great as well, expressing so many emotions from so many characters, he makes it look easy. Parasite looks downright scary and dangerous; he is by all means a threat for Superman. Benes is an artist that can fill in for Kenneth Rockafort successfully. There were a few off panels here or there, but overall Benes knocks it out of the park. Excellent work.

Parasite is one of Superman’s better and more threatening villains and Lobdell used him pretty well. The cameo at the end of the issue could lead into the next story line, which is pretty exciting. This was a decent issue, here’s hoping the next arc can be as good or better.