Action Comics #1



Cover Art by Rags Morales

 

Nothing marks the beginning of an era like an "Action Comics #1".  Grant Morrison and Rags Morales present the first chapter of a new origin for the Man of Steel.  Set five years in the past -about six months prior to Justice League #1- Superman makes his debut in a world that has never heard the term "super hero" and aliens are basically non existent; he is the first in both cases.

The book has a "retro" feel to it, despite its obvious placement in relative recent times.  We meet Clark, Lois, Jimmy, Luthor, and General Lane, the main cast; Superman's powers are at an early stage and have not reached the maturity we are familiar with, so this arc may follow him as he learns to use them and discover new ones.  Here he is young... very young; he actually looks like a Superboy, so I am not sure how this plays out with the Justice League book which is supposed to

Variant Cover by Jim Lee

take place just about six months later and where seems fully grown; it could be just an artist's rendition.  On a side note I wonder how this affects the origin for the Legion of Super Heroes as it doesn't look like Superman met them in his youth.

I am not an avid fan of Superman -or of Grant Morrison for that matter- but this is a landmark issue and I think it is imporatant to have it, if only for what it represents.  "Superman versus the city of tomorrow" is a collector's item in itself, and if one day it means half as much as that other "Action Comics #1", then it would have been worth getting it.  Fans of Rags Morales are in for a treat thanks to his intricate and detailed art and Brad Aderson's colors are amazing... that red and blue just stand out on every planel.