The New 52 - Six Issues On

[DBN]

8 issues in and both Superman and Action are a wash. Still no synergy between the titles and one is still taking place in the past. If they are going to be using concepts from the Superman 2000 proposal, then bloody well hire Mark Waid to write Superman. The Giffen/Jurgens team is just subbing until another long-term team can be put together anyway.

Supergirl has the best storytelling out of the bunch so far, but it is hamstrung by the decompression. The first 6 issues could have easily been done in half that.

Superboy has the most potential (being the most interesting take on the character to date), but the writer keeps losing focus on the main character.

[Adekis]

8 issues in and both Superman and Action are a wash. Still no synergy between the titles and one is still taking place in the past. If they are going to be using concepts from the Superman 2000 proposal, then bloody well hire Mark Waid to write Superman. The Giffen/Jurgens team is just subbing until another long-term team can be put together anyway.

Supergirl has the best storytelling out of the bunch so far, but it is hamstrung by the decompression. The first 6 issues could have easily been done in half that.

Superboy has the most potential (being the most interesting take on the character to date), but the writer keeps losing focus on the main character.

I don't think I could disagree with you more.

Eight issues in and Action is fantastic. The fact that Action takes place "five years ago" doesn't mean anything to me except that it's more of a continuity comic than Superman. The extended story of the last eight issues, chronicling Superman's shift in focus from a hero who fights corruption, organized crime and tries to help out the little guy (not that he stops doing any of those things) into a more cosmic hero, was pretty interesting to me, and I look forward to more.

I think Superman is pretty fun and interesting too, especially in moments like the one in the most recent issue where Superman has to tell someone not to take a picture for their Facebook page while he's in the middle of a fistfight in downtown Metropolis, or when a robot breaks into Kent's office building and he leaves to enter in another window to fight it. It's great world-building.

Supergirl is okay from what I've read, though you're right about the decompression, which in my mind ruins it.

As for Superboy though, it's probably one of only three New 52 things I'm bitter about: losing Conner was a pretty big blow, and I'm not feeling anything close to a similar attitude from the new Superboy. (The other two were Dick Grayson becoming Nightwing again and Wally West disappearing seemingly forever.)

In addition, I'm looking forward to the upcoming Superman Family Adventures the way a kid looks forward to Christmas.

Overall though, I'm a pretty big fan of the New 52 and most of what it's done, even as I continue to enjoy Superman's classic adventures.

^{(how I feel expressing support for those comics around here)}

[DBN]

I don't think I could disagree with you more.

Eight issues in and Action is fantastic. The fact that Action takes place "five years ago" doesn't mean anything to me except that it's more of a continuity comic than Superman. The extended story of the last eight issues, chronicling Superman's shift in focus from a hero who fights corruption, organized crime and tries to help out the little guy (not that he stops doing any of those things) into a more cosmic hero, was pretty interesting to me, and I look forward to more.

The problem with a "continuity comic" is that it handicaps the writer on the other book. The same thing happened during the OYL jump after Infinite Crisis. There were certain plot points that couldn't be touched on until 52 was finished or concepts introduced in the OYL books that were supposed to be explained during 52 that never were addressed. IMO, Superman should have been held back until the introductory story in Action was complete so both titles were on the same footing.

As for the rest, we'll just have to agree to disagree. I've read the books, don't like them, and wouldn't read them if I had to spend my own money on them as opposed to borrowing them from a friend. Why keep reading? The same reason I watched Smallville, in some areas, I find the writing so bad that it's good.

As for Superboy though, it's probably one of only three New 52 things I'm bitter about: losing Conner was a pretty big blow, and I'm not feeling anything close to a similar attitude from the new Superboy. (The other two were Dick Grayson becoming Nightwing again and Wally West disappearing seemingly forever.)

Aside from the Jeff Lemire run, I was never a fan of the Johns retconned Superboy. I preferred the previous incarnation under Karl Kessel and Peter David. The revamped Kon-El is pretty much the Kessel version had the Newsboy Legion never broke him out of Cadmus.

[Klar Ken T5477]

I live in New York- I have never seen the FF flitting about except in a movie theatre.

[Adekis]

The problem with a "continuity comic" is that it handicaps the writer on the other book. The same thing happened during the OYL jump after Infinite Crisis. There were certain plot points that couldn't be touched on until 52 was finished or concepts introduced in the OYL books that were supposed to be explained during 52 that never were addressed. IMO, Superman should have been held back until the introductory story in Action was complete so both titles were on the same footing.

I realize that Action's lack of full disclosure is hurting Superman, but I don't want Action to stop, I just want Superman to be accessible and easy to understand, and Action to carry the longer-running storyarcs.

Much to my enjoyment, that seems to be exactly what's happening. I get Superman, and I understand it without foreknowledge, and Action needs a bit more of background reading. I think they're both fantastic, obviously. Win-Win from my perspective.

Aside from the Jeff Lemire run, I was never a fan of the Johns retconned Superboy. I preferred the previous incarnation under Karl Kessel and Peter David. The revamped Kon-El is pretty much the Kessel version had the Newsboy Legion never broke him out of Cadmus.

Yeah, pretty much. I just don't find that to be a very cool concept. I liked the Smallville-dwelling Wonder Girl dating Conner more than I liked the hotshot Superboy from the 90s. Sure he was fun, but I never felt any connection to him, where Conner just seemed likable in a way he didn't back when he was wearing the jacket.
And the new Superboy is just a strange bizzare departure from what I know and love.

[DBN]

It's now being reported that Scott Lobdell is taking over for Giffen/Jurgens on Superman. I'm sorry, but this is getting ridiculous. Three creative changes in a span of a year and the character still isn't established and has no solid direction in his main book. At this point, I'm calling the relaunch a colossal failure.

The Batman books have a solid direction as does Wonder Woman. Hell, Supergirl has a solid direction and a stable creative team for once. Even the Superboy book that is currently losing focus due to a crossover has a direction in the sense that the same writer is handling the crossover.

Superman? Nope. The Scot is still writing stories set in the past and doing multiverse issues. So, the Superman character in the present day is still not a defined character. You'd think they learned when they pulled the hot potato creative changes during the Supergirl relaunch and the character didn't get a solid direction until issue 30 and had to be developed outside her own book, but no, here we go again.

[Great Rao]

I dropped the book like a hot potato when Dan Jurgens came on board.  A horror show that we've already been through, thank you very much.

As far as the no clear direction thing: to me this is more evidence that the reboot (yes, it is a reboot) was decreed from WB.

[Adekis]

I wouldn't be surprised if it was a decree from WB, but even if it wasn't, it's obvious they're just trying to make money. I don't begrudge them that at all, considering that's what companies are supposed to do.

I like what Giffens and Jurgen have been doing so far. The writing isn't spectacular by anyone's standards, particularly not when combined with a Mister Majestic enemy they just had floating around, so yeah, I think the book could probably use some more inspired writing, but here's the thing: I like it anyway.

I like the status quo it established of Lois running the news instead of being a paper reporter while Jimmy acts as camera man, I like Jim's relationship with Clark and the way the scenes at The Planet are written, I like Superman's dialogue and internal monologue in a fight and the pragmatic way he reacts to everything around him, and I absolutely love the art. The outside covers are consistently crap, but the interior art is consistently great, especially since Jurgens and Giffen started. I hope that level of art-goodness stays.

The last few years of Superman comics haven't been enjoyable to me. New Krypton, Grounded, etc. all bored me to death, the last time I liked a Superman comic before the New 52 was when Busiek was writing it. I wish Superman had a writer of that caliber again now, sure, but just because it's not as good as that awesome run doesn't keep me from enjoying it, because at least it's more enjoyable than what I had to put up with before.

And I really do think a lot of the stuff is fun.