Kent Miller
Mar 25, 2004, 01:39 pm
<a href="http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/previews/dc/0304/SupermanSecretIdentityCVR3.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/previews/dc/0304/SupermanSecretIdentityCVR3t.jpg" align=left alt="Batgirl #50"></a>Reviewer: Kent Miller, kentthayermiller@hotmail.com
Quick Rating: Great!
Story Title: Fortress
Metropolis was nothing compared to this! Welcome to the real world, "Superman".
Written by: Kurt Busiek
Art & Colors by: Stuart Immonen
Lettered by: Todd Klein
Editor in Chief: Joey Cavalieri
Publisher: DC Comics
"Look! Up in the sky! It's a bird!"
"It's a plane!"
"Nah! It's just that guy with a famous name…"
Oh, poor Clark Kent. No, not that one. The hero of Superman: Secret Identity is a man born under a famous moniker, that of a well-known comic book character. He grows up in--you guessed it--Kansas, and eventually meets the love of his life. You know, her name is Lois! How'd you guess?
That's not where the similarities end. If only…
Yes, this is a book under the Superman banner; and yes, it stars Clark Kent and his wife Lois. It's true that Clark Kent has superhuman abilities, but hey! This is not "Superman of the DC Universe" that we're acquainted with.
You have to admit--that is some coincidence. People have called me "Mr. Kent" before, laughing at my almost-superheroic name, but I've never fired lasers from my eyeballs…yet. However, the writing in Superman: Secret Identity #3 makes it all seem very believable. The thoughts that go through the main character's head lead one believe that this could actually happen. Credit here goes to Kurt Busiek, who uses the Elseworlds setting to the best of his ability. I guess he's learned that the most alien of worlds is that most like our own (or insert some similar pseudo-philisophical axiom, if you want to be sour about it!). The book has a sort of self-referential attitude that brings up the question of who Superman really is. Protector? Family Man? Freak of Nature? Wouldn't it be all of the above? The writing takes gentle jabs here and there, but it never mocks the Man of Steel, his fans, or his history. On the other hand, it never glorifies Superman's role as "hero", either. He may seem like a god among men, vastly more powerful than any living being on the planet, but all that stuff belongs in the realm of the four-color page. Think about this: could Superman work in real life? Even if he just flew around, nabbed the occasional baddie and rescued the random kitten, how long would it be before people would be calling for his head? I'd give it a week before the "Superman Sex-Scandal" is plastered over every front page, or other similarly damaging insinuations are thrown his way.
That is sort of a bleak outlook when you sit down and contemplate the potential of the situation. This being a slightly darker-toned Superman title, Clark Kent doesn't follow thew traditional "Boy Scout" attitude of his fictional counterpart. In my estimation, at least, Clark's turn as "Superman" more closely resembles the role of Batman: stealthy, feared, hunted, sly.
Clark gets into a sticky situation in this issue, and the way in which he handles it is not something we'd typically expect from Superman. There is some very slight nuance in some of Clark's scenes with the military men and Malloy that seem a bit unlike the Superman we know. The "Superman" way to handle Clark's particular situation would be to smile, shake Mr. President's hand (or Mr. Senator, Ambassador, Chairman, etc.), and reassure everyone that everything was going to be absolutely "A-OK!" Such is not the case with Clark in this book. There's the cases of subtle destruction, the mysterious messages and sightings, and finally the meeting cloaked in darkness. A very "Batman" way to go about it. There are some scenes in the dark parts of the book where Clark seems as if he'd almost feel more at home in Gotham City than any fictional Metropolis.
Which brings me to the art. Stuart Immonen's art is a proper fit for this title. The highly detailed, often photo-realistic style takes a step away from the old-fashioned Superman scenes that are used at certain points in the book. This isn't your grandfather's Superman--I think that Clark looks best in the dark of night, surrounded by shadows and with eyes glowing fiery red. And boy, does Immonen draw those shadows expertly! This serious style is very well done, and it does fit the story, but I'm not sure it would work in the regular Superman books. I guess that's the primary point of the art. This is not a "comic book" kind oh hero; this is "reality". Wrap your mind around that! In any case, I enjoyed Immonen's art. This story would not be complete without it.
This was the very first issue of Superman: Secret Identity that I've ever read, so I didn't really know what to expect before hand. In fact, I just started reading with no idea that this was an Elseworlds tale. I got so immediately wrapped up in Clark Kent's world that I never actually realized that he wasn't our Clark. The way the writing makes these characters so different yet true to the spirit of their in-continuity counterparts sets this book a cut above most other Elseworlds. It sets the book apart from most of today's books in general. After finishing this issue, I had to drive all the way back to the comic book store to buy the previous two issues. Typically, I think to myself, "This is good, but I'll just wait for the trade collection." Not so with this book. I absolutely had to read the other issues that very day. If you have any hesitations about the price of it, I don't blame you. I did at first, too. However, this book is a true work of art from beginning to end, so I advise you not to miss out.
ART:
http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/supfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/supfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/supfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/supfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/supnone.jpg
STORY:
http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/supfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/supfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/supfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/supfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/supfull.jpg
ISSUE OVERALL:
http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/supfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/supfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/supfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/supfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/supnone.jpg
Buy this issue online from X-World and save! (http://x-worldcomics.com/yourvirtualstore/shopexd.asp?id=10421)
Quick Rating: Great!
Story Title: Fortress
Metropolis was nothing compared to this! Welcome to the real world, "Superman".
Written by: Kurt Busiek
Art & Colors by: Stuart Immonen
Lettered by: Todd Klein
Editor in Chief: Joey Cavalieri
Publisher: DC Comics
"Look! Up in the sky! It's a bird!"
"It's a plane!"
"Nah! It's just that guy with a famous name…"
Oh, poor Clark Kent. No, not that one. The hero of Superman: Secret Identity is a man born under a famous moniker, that of a well-known comic book character. He grows up in--you guessed it--Kansas, and eventually meets the love of his life. You know, her name is Lois! How'd you guess?
That's not where the similarities end. If only…
Yes, this is a book under the Superman banner; and yes, it stars Clark Kent and his wife Lois. It's true that Clark Kent has superhuman abilities, but hey! This is not "Superman of the DC Universe" that we're acquainted with.
You have to admit--that is some coincidence. People have called me "Mr. Kent" before, laughing at my almost-superheroic name, but I've never fired lasers from my eyeballs…yet. However, the writing in Superman: Secret Identity #3 makes it all seem very believable. The thoughts that go through the main character's head lead one believe that this could actually happen. Credit here goes to Kurt Busiek, who uses the Elseworlds setting to the best of his ability. I guess he's learned that the most alien of worlds is that most like our own (or insert some similar pseudo-philisophical axiom, if you want to be sour about it!). The book has a sort of self-referential attitude that brings up the question of who Superman really is. Protector? Family Man? Freak of Nature? Wouldn't it be all of the above? The writing takes gentle jabs here and there, but it never mocks the Man of Steel, his fans, or his history. On the other hand, it never glorifies Superman's role as "hero", either. He may seem like a god among men, vastly more powerful than any living being on the planet, but all that stuff belongs in the realm of the four-color page. Think about this: could Superman work in real life? Even if he just flew around, nabbed the occasional baddie and rescued the random kitten, how long would it be before people would be calling for his head? I'd give it a week before the "Superman Sex-Scandal" is plastered over every front page, or other similarly damaging insinuations are thrown his way.
That is sort of a bleak outlook when you sit down and contemplate the potential of the situation. This being a slightly darker-toned Superman title, Clark Kent doesn't follow thew traditional "Boy Scout" attitude of his fictional counterpart. In my estimation, at least, Clark's turn as "Superman" more closely resembles the role of Batman: stealthy, feared, hunted, sly.
Clark gets into a sticky situation in this issue, and the way in which he handles it is not something we'd typically expect from Superman. There is some very slight nuance in some of Clark's scenes with the military men and Malloy that seem a bit unlike the Superman we know. The "Superman" way to handle Clark's particular situation would be to smile, shake Mr. President's hand (or Mr. Senator, Ambassador, Chairman, etc.), and reassure everyone that everything was going to be absolutely "A-OK!" Such is not the case with Clark in this book. There's the cases of subtle destruction, the mysterious messages and sightings, and finally the meeting cloaked in darkness. A very "Batman" way to go about it. There are some scenes in the dark parts of the book where Clark seems as if he'd almost feel more at home in Gotham City than any fictional Metropolis.
Which brings me to the art. Stuart Immonen's art is a proper fit for this title. The highly detailed, often photo-realistic style takes a step away from the old-fashioned Superman scenes that are used at certain points in the book. This isn't your grandfather's Superman--I think that Clark looks best in the dark of night, surrounded by shadows and with eyes glowing fiery red. And boy, does Immonen draw those shadows expertly! This serious style is very well done, and it does fit the story, but I'm not sure it would work in the regular Superman books. I guess that's the primary point of the art. This is not a "comic book" kind oh hero; this is "reality". Wrap your mind around that! In any case, I enjoyed Immonen's art. This story would not be complete without it.
This was the very first issue of Superman: Secret Identity that I've ever read, so I didn't really know what to expect before hand. In fact, I just started reading with no idea that this was an Elseworlds tale. I got so immediately wrapped up in Clark Kent's world that I never actually realized that he wasn't our Clark. The way the writing makes these characters so different yet true to the spirit of their in-continuity counterparts sets this book a cut above most other Elseworlds. It sets the book apart from most of today's books in general. After finishing this issue, I had to drive all the way back to the comic book store to buy the previous two issues. Typically, I think to myself, "This is good, but I'll just wait for the trade collection." Not so with this book. I absolutely had to read the other issues that very day. If you have any hesitations about the price of it, I don't blame you. I did at first, too. However, this book is a true work of art from beginning to end, so I advise you not to miss out.
ART:
http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/supfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/supfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/supfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/supfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/supnone.jpg
STORY:
http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/supfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/supfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/supfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/supfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/supfull.jpg
ISSUE OVERALL:
http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/supfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/supfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/supfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/supfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/supnone.jpg
Buy this issue online from X-World and save! (http://x-worldcomics.com/yourvirtualstore/shopexd.asp?id=10421)