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Superman (2016) #3-4
Superman: The Rebirth Deluxe Edition, Book 2
The creative team of Peter J. Tomasi, Patrick Gleason, Doug Mahnke and a host of comics' most acclaimed artists proudly presents The Rebirth Deluxe Edition Book 2 , an incredible collection of all-new adventures.
The Supermen of many worlds are disappearing. The New Super-Man of kidnapped. The Red Son defeated. Sunshine Superman of the vanished without a trace, and our own Man of Steel is next on the list!
The Justice League Incarnate--an impossible team of heroes drawn from every corner of the Multiverse--is ready to help, but can even they defeat the voracious horde that is consuming Supermen from every dimension? And how can they stop the force behind these so-called Gatherers--the mysterious being named Prophecy, who has stolen the powers of all the kidnapped heroes for very unexpected reasons?
At the same time, trouble of a different sort is brewing right in the Kent family's backyard--and the resulting crisis will force Superman into a battle against his own son, leaving both the Man and Boy of Steel forever changed!
Collects Superman #14-26 and Annual #1.
The Supermen of many worlds are disappearing. The New Super-Man of kidnapped. The Red Son defeated. Sunshine Superman of the vanished without a trace, and our own Man of Steel is next on the list!
The Justice League Incarnate--an impossible team of heroes drawn from every corner of the Multiverse--is ready to help, but can even they defeat the voracious horde that is consuming Supermen from every dimension? And how can they stop the force behind these so-called Gatherers--the mysterious being named Prophecy, who has stolen the powers of all the kidnapped heroes for very unexpected reasons?
At the same time, trouble of a different sort is brewing right in the Kent family's backyard--and the resulting crisis will force Superman into a battle against his own son, leaving both the Man and Boy of Steel forever changed!
Collects Superman #14-26 and Annual #1.
360 pages, Hardcover
First published May 29, 2018
6 people are currently reading
78 people want to read
About the author
Peter J. Tomasi
1,387 books467 followersPeter J. Tomasi is an American comic book writer, best known for his work for DC Comics, such as Batman And Robin; Superman; Super Sons; Batman: Detective Comics; Green Lantern Corps; and Superman/Wonder Woman; as well as Batman: Arkham Knight; Brightest Day; Green Lantern: Emerald Warriors; Nightwing; Black Adam, and many more.
In the course of his staff career at DC Comics, Tomasi served as a group editor and ushered in new eras for Batman, Green Lantern, and the JSA, along with a host of special projects like Kingdom Come.
He is also the author of the creator-owned titles House Of Penance with artist Ian Bertram; Light Brigade with artist Peter Snejbjerg; The Mighty with Keith Champagne and Chris Samnee; and the critically acclaimed epic graphic novel The Bridge: How The Roeblings Connected Brooklyn To New York, illustrated by Sara DuVall and published by Abrams ComicArts.
In 2018 New York Times best-selling author Tomasi received the Inkpot Award for achievement in comics.
In the course of his staff career at DC Comics, Tomasi served as a group editor and ushered in new eras for Batman, Green Lantern, and the JSA, along with a host of special projects like Kingdom Come.
He is also the author of the creator-owned titles House Of Penance with artist Ian Bertram; Light Brigade with artist Peter Snejbjerg; The Mighty with Keith Champagne and Chris Samnee; and the critically acclaimed epic graphic novel The Bridge: How The Roeblings Connected Brooklyn To New York, illustrated by Sara DuVall and published by Abrams ComicArts.
In 2018 New York Times best-selling author Tomasi received the Inkpot Award for achievement in comics.
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Displaying 1 - 21 of 21 reviews
June 16, 2020
While not as flat-out lovely as the first deluxe edition, this second installment in Tomasi and Gleason's run is still solidly entertaining as we see Clark teaming up with all the alternate Supermen throughout the multiverse in order to stop a dangerous threat against them all, and then teaming up with Batman to help stop a danger to Jonathan in a story that reveals deadly secrets about their small town home of Hamilton and sees the return of an infamous villain. This book gets a bit awkward in the middle due to the inclusion of an incomplete crossover with Action Comics that doesn't work unless you have those other issues. You can read that in its entirety in Superman Reborn. The entire crossover should've been collected here in this deluxe, or these issues should have been skipped.
May 10, 2020
I liked this better than book 1, but not quite 4* yet!
January 6, 2019
Peter Tomasi and Patrick Gleason are killing it on this run, a back-to-basics series of mini-arcs that take the principal of escalation and crank it up to 11, drawing on the rich history of the Man of Steel and developing the canon as they go.
The book actually opens with the Annual special, an encounter with Swamp Thing that restores the refugee Superman’s connection to his New Earth. It’s a great example of a self-contained story that also speaks to the wider character narrative that Clark/Superman is experience across the Superman Family titles at this time. Jorge Jiménez and Alejandro Sanchez's appropriately earthy colours highlighted by the glow of something otherworldly.
Following this, there’s a secret sequel to Grant Morrison’s The Multiversity . Well that was unexpected. It’s like this book was written for me. “Multiplicity” acts as an indirect sequel by reintroducing the Orrery and the Justice League Incarnate lead by Earth 23 Superman A raft of illustrators take us around the Multiverse. Superstar artist Ivan Reis gives us his take on Red Son Superman for the intro along with a tragically adorable Captain Carrot. Ryan Sook, Ed Benes, Clay Mann, Jorge Jiménez and their art team seem like a mixed bag for a single issue, but as the story pings across the 52 Earths it seems appropriate. Tony S. Daniel and Clay Mann get to play with some iconic imagery in the conclusion (See: the cover to 1985’s Crisis on Infinite Earths #7 ).
Tomasi and Gleason’s single “Dark Harvest” issue (or is it?) is a spooky story is moodily illustrated by Sebastian Fiumara. Jon/Superboy wanders through the forest with his friend, with Fiumara cleverly using a series of rapid panels and landscapes to distort the environment around them. King colorists Dave Stewart infuses this with a muted colour palette and hard underlighting that could have stepped out of a 1970s horror film or EC Comics. It might be a stylistic anomaly
The collection is hampered somewhat for the same reasons that the Superman: Action Comics: The Rebirth Deluxe Edition Book 2 was: it contains two issues of a crossover that is incomplete. These issues are even more fragmented than the Action Comics counterpart as there is no conclusion. Readers either have to pick up the Action Comics volume or the Superman Reborn book to get the remainder of the issues. It’s going to be a repeated complaint of mine with these Deluxe volumes: it’s hard to really be called ‘Deluxe’ when the whole story is not included.
The major final arc is “Black Dawn,” a story that ties up some of the loose threads that had been dangling from the first issue. Gleason himself and Dough Mahnke share art duties on 6 issues that make up the story. Gleason’s pencils, mixed with Mick Gray’s deep inks and John Kalisz’s optimistic colours, recall some of the brighter moments in the late, great Darwyn Cooke’s portfolio. Batman, Robin, Lois, Superman, and Superboy sitting around the dinner table sharing a moment is priceless, and also gives us one of the greatest lines of the series (“Batman doesn’t eat pie.” As the stories transitions into the darker moments with the reveal of the villain (for a hint, see the arc’s title), it’s Mahnke’s deeply etched lines and shadows that populate the page.
“Brains Vs Brawn” is a delightful coda to this volume. Splitting its time between Clark’s childhood and his newish role as father, Clark tries to teach Jon how to do things the ‘right’ way while learning how different his son is from himself. Michael Moreci wonderful father/son tale is a much needed fresh mint following the harrowing adventure they just went through. Scott Godlewski’s clean line art is also a joy, and the always reliable Hi-Fi fills the colour art with equal parts nostalgia and saccharine.
The book actually opens with the Annual special, an encounter with Swamp Thing that restores the refugee Superman’s connection to his New Earth. It’s a great example of a self-contained story that also speaks to the wider character narrative that Clark/Superman is experience across the Superman Family titles at this time. Jorge Jiménez and Alejandro Sanchez's appropriately earthy colours highlighted by the glow of something otherworldly.
Following this, there’s a secret sequel to Grant Morrison’s The Multiversity . Well that was unexpected. It’s like this book was written for me. “Multiplicity” acts as an indirect sequel by reintroducing the Orrery and the Justice League Incarnate lead by Earth 23 Superman A raft of illustrators take us around the Multiverse. Superstar artist Ivan Reis gives us his take on Red Son Superman for the intro along with a tragically adorable Captain Carrot. Ryan Sook, Ed Benes, Clay Mann, Jorge Jiménez and their art team seem like a mixed bag for a single issue, but as the story pings across the 52 Earths it seems appropriate. Tony S. Daniel and Clay Mann get to play with some iconic imagery in the conclusion (See: the cover to 1985’s Crisis on Infinite Earths #7 ).
Tomasi and Gleason’s single “Dark Harvest” issue (or is it?) is a spooky story is moodily illustrated by Sebastian Fiumara. Jon/Superboy wanders through the forest with his friend, with Fiumara cleverly using a series of rapid panels and landscapes to distort the environment around them. King colorists Dave Stewart infuses this with a muted colour palette and hard underlighting that could have stepped out of a 1970s horror film or EC Comics. It might be a stylistic anomaly
The collection is hampered somewhat for the same reasons that the Superman: Action Comics: The Rebirth Deluxe Edition Book 2 was: it contains two issues of a crossover that is incomplete. These issues are even more fragmented than the Action Comics counterpart as there is no conclusion. Readers either have to pick up the Action Comics volume or the Superman Reborn book to get the remainder of the issues. It’s going to be a repeated complaint of mine with these Deluxe volumes: it’s hard to really be called ‘Deluxe’ when the whole story is not included.
The major final arc is “Black Dawn,” a story that ties up some of the loose threads that had been dangling from the first issue. Gleason himself and Dough Mahnke share art duties on 6 issues that make up the story. Gleason’s pencils, mixed with Mick Gray’s deep inks and John Kalisz’s optimistic colours, recall some of the brighter moments in the late, great Darwyn Cooke’s portfolio. Batman, Robin, Lois, Superman, and Superboy sitting around the dinner table sharing a moment is priceless, and also gives us one of the greatest lines of the series (“Batman doesn’t eat pie.” As the stories transitions into the darker moments with the reveal of the villain (for a hint, see the arc’s title), it’s Mahnke’s deeply etched lines and shadows that populate the page.
“Brains Vs Brawn” is a delightful coda to this volume. Splitting its time between Clark’s childhood and his newish role as father, Clark tries to teach Jon how to do things the ‘right’ way while learning how different his son is from himself. Michael Moreci wonderful father/son tale is a much needed fresh mint following the harrowing adventure they just went through. Scott Godlewski’s clean line art is also a joy, and the always reliable Hi-Fi fills the colour art with equal parts nostalgia and saccharine.
November 8, 2021
This deluxe edition of the Superman Rebirth series was a bit of a letdown. The two major stories here, Multipicy and Black Dawn, were weak and unengaging compared to previous volumes. Plus I had a few problems with the way this series was collected. In general, while the deluxe edition contained a few great one-shots I overall didn’t have the best time reading it.
The first story in the volume, Multiplicity sees Supermen across the multiverse being hunted and "processed" by alien creatures called Gatherers. Our Superman joins Justice Incarnate, an inter-dimensional Justice League, to stop the crusade. I struggled to connect to Multiplicity because the supporting cast in this story was two-dimensional. No time was spent developing the members of Justice Incarnate so I had no attachment to them. This made the emotional moments the story attempted in its climax ring hollow. I was intrigued by Kong Kenan, the Chinese Superman, and might check out his solo series in the future, but overall this story had no impact on me.
The second major story in the deluxe edition was Black Dawn. This acts as a culmination of the undercurrent of mystery in the Superfamily’s hometown, Hamilton. The town is revealed to be host to an alien race working for the villain Manchester Black who wants to recruit Superboy to do evil. I found the plot of this story messy. While it is the culmination of questions we’ve had about the mysteries in Hamilton the rushed pacing and helter-skelter storytelling made it unsatisfying. I also found Manchester Black’s evilize Superboy plot tired. I've never found evil Superman stories interesting and many of the beats hit here felt like retreads of things I've seen before. Not even the wholesome Superfamily and Super Sons moments made this story anything more than meh.
Aside from the lacklustre stories I also take umbrage at the way this edition was collected. Between Multipicy and Black Dawn, an arc called Superman Reborn takes place. This arc takes place across both the Action Comics and Superman series but when putting this deluxe edition together only the issues in the Superman run were included. This made for an incredibly confusing read and I don’t understand why the people putting this collection together thought that was a good idea.
However, despite some pitfalls, there were some fantastic moments in this collection. This volume contains two of my favourite one-shots in the series as a whole. Firstly, Superman Annual #1. This story sees Swamp Thing hunt down the man of steel to discover why his connection to the sun drying out the planet. Jorge Jimenez’s pencilling with Alejandro Sanchez’s colours made this one of the most beautiful comics I’ve ever read. While this story was ultimately just a fight between Superman and Swamp Thing Tomasi and Gleeson weaved in introspection, character development and lore that made the story as a whole a fantastic read. I also loved the Clark and Jon-centric story Brain vs. Brawn. It was a touching story about a father and son trying to understand each other. Seeing flashbacks to Clark’s childhood and him learning to be a good father and mentor to Jon was a great end to an ultimately disappointing collection.
The first story in the volume, Multiplicity sees Supermen across the multiverse being hunted and "processed" by alien creatures called Gatherers. Our Superman joins Justice Incarnate, an inter-dimensional Justice League, to stop the crusade. I struggled to connect to Multiplicity because the supporting cast in this story was two-dimensional. No time was spent developing the members of Justice Incarnate so I had no attachment to them. This made the emotional moments the story attempted in its climax ring hollow. I was intrigued by Kong Kenan, the Chinese Superman, and might check out his solo series in the future, but overall this story had no impact on me.
The second major story in the deluxe edition was Black Dawn. This acts as a culmination of the undercurrent of mystery in the Superfamily’s hometown, Hamilton. The town is revealed to be host to an alien race working for the villain Manchester Black who wants to recruit Superboy to do evil. I found the plot of this story messy. While it is the culmination of questions we’ve had about the mysteries in Hamilton the rushed pacing and helter-skelter storytelling made it unsatisfying. I also found Manchester Black’s evilize Superboy plot tired. I've never found evil Superman stories interesting and many of the beats hit here felt like retreads of things I've seen before. Not even the wholesome Superfamily and Super Sons moments made this story anything more than meh.
Aside from the lacklustre stories I also take umbrage at the way this edition was collected. Between Multipicy and Black Dawn, an arc called Superman Reborn takes place. This arc takes place across both the Action Comics and Superman series but when putting this deluxe edition together only the issues in the Superman run were included. This made for an incredibly confusing read and I don’t understand why the people putting this collection together thought that was a good idea.
However, despite some pitfalls, there were some fantastic moments in this collection. This volume contains two of my favourite one-shots in the series as a whole. Firstly, Superman Annual #1. This story sees Swamp Thing hunt down the man of steel to discover why his connection to the sun drying out the planet. Jorge Jimenez’s pencilling with Alejandro Sanchez’s colours made this one of the most beautiful comics I’ve ever read. While this story was ultimately just a fight between Superman and Swamp Thing Tomasi and Gleeson weaved in introspection, character development and lore that made the story as a whole a fantastic read. I also loved the Clark and Jon-centric story Brain vs. Brawn. It was a touching story about a father and son trying to understand each other. Seeing flashbacks to Clark’s childhood and him learning to be a good father and mentor to Jon was a great end to an ultimately disappointing collection.
June 22, 2018
2 whole weeks to slog through this super-tome, and now I can barely remember a thing about it.
Issue #1000 has got to be better than this, right?
Issue #1000 has got to be better than this, right?
May 12, 2024
I really want to give this four stars because the first half the book is really fun! There are some great stories, and the different artist teams are just fantastic. However, the second half, or more accurately, the "Black Dawn" arc, is not great. The art style and quality fluctuate, the story is all over the place, and there is not enough space to really help all the characters bunched together get enough time on their own. Case in point: Manchester Black was introduced as the big villain as through that were something important, but the arc ends without telling you anything about the character, who he is, or too much about he can do. It is a bit messy. That being said, these books were double-shipping at the time, and it wasn't so bumpy that I wouldn't be interested in the next volume. I'd gladly read more if I get the chance.
August 18, 2018
Overall another strong volume from writer Peter. J. Tomasi. The real hook of this series is the interactions between Clark, Lois and Jon. When the family dynamic is at the heart of the narrative the stories are strong and engaging. Like many of the DC Rebirth Deluxe collections this volume suffers due to incomplete an cross over, in this case with Action Comics. It is jarring to read an issue only to find out the story does not conclude within the same hardcover. Despite this imperfection, I look forward to seeing how Tomasi concludes his run. With Brian Michael Bendis now writing both Superman and Action Comics I hope the Kent family continues to have a presence. It would be a shame to waste the potential of having Superman as both a dad and superhero.
May 30, 2024
Supermen from across the multiverse are disappearing, time for a big multiversal Superman crossover. The story Multiplicity that starts this book off is a lot of fun. We get the chance to catch up with a bunch of our favorite elseworlds Supermen and see them all team up to fight a huge bad guy. It highlights the universal characteristics of Superman that we all love. Next we get half of the Reborn story that dealt with the continuity of pre and post Flashpoint Superman. Then we get Black Dawn which is everything Peter Tomasi and Patrick Gleason have been building to. Strange things have been happening in Hamilton since the beginning. Now we finally learn why. Aliens live there. Aliens under the command of Manchester Black. Black has been poisoning and preparing Jon so he can use him to be his own Superman for his extreme purposes. This show how good of storytellers Tomasi and Gleason really are. They’re able to pull everything in and give a satisfying payoff after 25 issues. It highlights how pure of a character Superman is and how strong his morals are. Patrick Gleason cements himself as the definitive Superman artist of this time in this volume delivering his most beautiful work yet. We also get a host of other all-star artists that make the man of steel look top-notch. Superman Rebirth continues to be an amazing title.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 7, 2019
Great art throughout. The plots are a bit too loose (the villain in the multiverse arc was too vague, the plan to defeat him only made sense if you willed it to; the new Elite in the Manchester Black story lacked personalities and motivations), but Tomasi and Gleason's handle on the Kent family dynamics give the book heart to lift it past those flaws. As with the second Action Comics Rebirth deluxe, DC goofed by only giving readers half the Reborn arc in this book.
September 22, 2018
This volume starts off slow and inconsistent however it finds its footing by the midway mark. Incomplete and unmemorable stories fill the first half of the volume and only the return of an old villain and some major revelations about the status of Superman's living situation leave this volume ending on a high mark. Looking forward to the next volume if the momentum can keep up.
June 20, 2025
The annual was awesome! I absolutely love seeing Jimenez draw Superman in a comic book. There were some really cool villains in this volume. The thing about Superman is that there’s always something big happening, so there’s never any time to catch a break. It’s always a treat to have the Waynes as guests. I’ll definitely be checking out the Supersons series.
December 22, 2020
In this volume, Superman enters the multiverse and uncovers the secrets of his home Hamilton. Clark’s and Jon’s relationship is fleshed out more, which has been the highlight of Tomasi's this run so far.
April 22, 2021
Probably a technical step down, but man, I can't get enough of the Clark/Lois/Jon/Krypto family dynamic. It also somewhat wraps up a bigger plot thread I didn't truly know I wanted to be wrapped up. I want more of this title!
March 25, 2018
J'ai adoré l'arc Super Sons, le dernier du tome par contre moins
August 16, 2018
Apart from the last story - which I found pretty boring, this wasn't a bad book.
Art was generally great, though some of Doug Mahkne's work looked unfinished for some reason.
Art was generally great, though some of Doug Mahkne's work looked unfinished for some reason.
February 13, 2020
The first half of the book was just okay, I guess. But I really liked the Black Dawn arc! Good twists, a powerful villain, and nice family interaction.
July 29, 2023
While more multiversial than Book 1, Book 2 continues the series exploration of what it means for diasporic subjects to find and defend one’s home.
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December 27, 20233.5 the multiplicity arc was kinda lame but the stuff with Manchester Black was pretty good and fun
July 31, 2025
Peter Tomasi and Patrck Gleason continue to deliver really fun, heartwarming and exciting Superman stories. The first big arc, "Multiplicity", is a fun read, but not one of the best in their run so far. On the other hand, Black Dawn is a very gripping arc, one of my favorites so far. Higly recommended for Superman fans.
November 9, 2018
High four. Liked it a lot.
October 2, 2019
It's bonkers, fun and full of warmth and high-flying adventure, like one should expect stories to be about a family man who can fly.
Displaying 1 - 21 of 21 reviews