And Then I Read: SUPERMAN 39

Image © DC Comics.

There’s a reason writer Geoff Johns has moved from comics scriptwriter for DC to additionally holding the management position of Chief Creative Officer since 2010: he knows what makes their super-heroic characters work. Thankfully, he’s still writing about some of them, and this comic is a prime example.

Last issue Clark Kent revealed to Jimmy Olsen that he’s Superman, and at the beginning of this issue, Jimmy is wowed and impressed, but skeptical. Clark can’t show him any Superman tricks, because his power has just been depleted, so he’s an ordinary person for the day. But as that day progresses, Jimmy sees Clark continually reacting to the strangeness of being unpowered, as well as acting the part of a heroic figure, including managing a stand-off with a lone gunman in Metropolis that could easily get him killed. John Romita Jr. and Klaus Janson deliver fine art, but it’s the writing of Geoff Johns that makes this story shine, and stand well above the usual super-hero tale.

Highly recommended.