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‘Action Comics’ #32: Superman is no longer super

‘Action Comics’ #32: Superman is no longer super

action-comics-32-cover

Action Comics #32
Written by Greg Pak
Art by Aaron Kuder, Colours by Will Quintania
Published by DC Comics

Superman is now public enemy no.1. Having been infected with the Doomsday virus in his last battle, the Man of Steel flees the authorities and heads into space. There, he hopes he can get a grip on himself before whoever or whatever is responsible for the strange coma sweeping Smallville makes an appearance.

Superman is a character with a long history behind him. As such, it is difficult to find any storyline that is genuinely original, but even this doesn’t excuse the predictability on display here. The idea of a plan hinging on turning the world against the one person capable of saving it is so clichéd and over-used, it’s amazing to see it still used. Likewise, the concept of Superman struggling to remain decent and just in the face of adversity is a common one and, if told well, can be a poignant one. But here it’s lacklustre, and the blink-and-you-miss-it cameo by Supergirl doesn’t help much.

Greg Pak is a talented writer and Aaron Kuder’s art is nice if nothing special, but someone needs to work some magic here — and soon.

– Christopher Smith

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