Comic Book Review: Superboy #4

Written By: Jeff Lemire

Artist: Pier Gallo

Colorist: Jaime Grant

Cover Artist: Eddy Barrows, J.P. Mayer, & Jaime Grant

Letterer: John J. Hill

Editor: Matt Idelson

My Awe-Inspiring Opinion

You have got to be kidding me!  You know I pride myself in being able to pick up on the clues giving by writers in stories.  Whether it be film, novels, comics, or whatever, I think I’m pretty darn good at it.  But even predictability doesn’t necessarily mean the story will be bad.  Neil Gaiman proved that with his phenomenal novel “Anansi Boys.”  Superboy started off with a bang, being predictable but still very good.  #4 seems to be a step backwards in the wrong direction.  And after I got done laughing at this issue, I sat back and found myself wondering if I should continue picking this series up.

So the story picks up where we left off last month.  A new character from the future, Psionic Lad, enters into Superboy’s time and life followed by a band of techno-cops ready to take the lad back into their custody.  Superboy, always quick to act and not to think, saves the day and brings our brain-wave kid to safety.  But, as is always with comics, we must always be wary of new people.

So first, let me say what I did like about this issue.  The side story with the Hallow Men, which began back in issue #1, is beginning to build up enough momentum to keep me interested.  And how Lemire has pulled Psionic Lad into the general framework of this story is a great way to keep continuity steady and strong; points to Lemire for that.

What I don’t like is how awfully predictable this issue feels.  When Psionic Lad made his appearance last month, my first thought was, “Oh man, he’s a bad guy!”  Of course I thought a monkey wrench would be thrown into the story and I would be taken by surprise at PL’s purpose.  Sadly, the final page confirmed I was right about who the bad guy is.  I’m sure many of you are saying, “well just be patient Jimmy, maybe he’s not actually the bad guy.”  Which, if this is true, would only mean that the heroes of the future wanted some aspect of their lives changed, and which could only occur through Superboy’s death; hence sending Psionic Lad to the future to complete the task.  Very predictable and annoying if you ask me.

But let’s address the high school drama motif permeating in this issue.  I like a good romance just as much as the next guy, (Do most guys like romance?) but Lemire is making this series out as some after-school special.  Superboy is too incredibly trusting and too much of a boy-scout for my tastes.  I can only hope that next month provides more substance to counter this issue’s poor progression.

Pier Gallo might be put on my “most hated comic book artists of all time” list.  The inconsistency in his artwork sends jolts up my spine.  In some cases, Gallo puts together some incredibly impressive pieces, while the majority of the time characters feel exceptionally wooden and dull.  But this isn’t helped by Jaime Grant’s poor coloring qualities as every page seems to have a blended look to it, making everything feel like it’s has a shade of yellow and tan. 

But if you’re one of those fans who loves collecting comic books because of the amazing covers, this book is a definite keeper.  In fact, I would say it’s the only redeeming factor of this issue.

My Majestically Climactic Conclusion

Maybe I’m being a little harsh, but I hate seeing a series start off so well only to plummet so quickly.  I’m going to continue to pick this series up because the Hallow Men story line seems very interesting.  But if it doesn’t pick up after that…bye bye Superboy!

2 out of 10

Comic Book Review: Superboy #1

Literary & Artistic Credits

Writer: Jeff Lemire

Penciller: Pier Gallo

Colorist: Jaime Grant

Letterer: John J. Hill

Cover Art: Rafael Albuquerque

Editor: Matt Idelson

My Awe-Inspiring Opinion

If you’ve been following Superman since the early 80’s or early 90’s, you’d know that the Superman family has gone through some drastic changes and heavy incarnations.  Supergirl and Superboy in particular have been met with numerous variations such as clones, rebirths, and alternate realities where the paradox of time and space collide with our own reality, making it impossible to know if we’ll ever have a permanent Superboy or Supergirl.  Jeff Lemire seems to have recognized this flaw within the DCU and has given us a Superboy that will forever remain as such……Until the next crisis of course.

A lot of material is thrown at us with this first issue; Superboy is met by the Phantom Stranger, a kid let’s Conner know his secret is not very well kept, the parasite goes on a rampage of Smallville, Poison Ivy makes a guest appearance, and the small, pleasant town seems to be undergoing some violent changes.  Could you ask for a more compact first issue?  (Grant Morrison, please don’t answer that.)  But with the amount of plot the issue carries, I personally never felt overwhelmed by it.

There’s always a lingering fear for me when it comes to the teenaged superhero books; being almost 29 years old, I’ve moved past the high school drama of old where I worried if I was going to get a date for the weekend, or if my peers would think me weird for the type of person I am.  Supergirl’s current run started out that way, and I hated it.  But this first issue presents Conner’s high school lifestyle as a fleeting after thought.  Yeah he’s still going to deal with these issues, but it won’t be at the heart of this title.  However it will be fun to see if anything does come of this obvious crush Lori Luthor has on Conner.  How else could we piss off ol’ Lexy huh?

The name “Superboy” shouldn’t deter you from actually picking up this book.  He may still be a boy, but the level of maturity Conner displays in dealing with life exceeds your typical high school graduate.  He seems to be a very humble and level headed individual whose only concern is to live his life in the best way possible and not dwell on the fact that he is a test tube lab experiment, birthed from the combined DNA of Metropolis’ two greatest foes.  It will be nice not to endure another 24 issues watching Conner Kent go on a journey of “self-discovery,” trying to find his place in the world in moody and unrelenting methods.  (No offense to you Sterling Gates, Supergirl is one of my favorite titles…please don’t leave!!!)

As well rounded as the writing is, I can’t say the same for Pier Gallo’s artwork.  I pride myself in my artistic abilities and I can say without a doubt that I would have been a better pick for the penciling.  There were moments of “above-averageness,” but overall I was not impressed and almost underwhelmed.  But not all of the blame should go to Gallo as the color scheme by Jaime Grant is even less appealing with the hint of yellowish tints flowing throughout everything that is white…even the character’s eye-whites and teeth.

My Majestically Climactic Conclusion

The story might just be the best start to a title I’ve ever had the pleasure of reading.  This was simply a superhero story signifying a new chapter in the life of one of comic’s more underestimated character.  This will be a fine addition to the DC monthly line-up.  Let’s hope a new artist is found, and fast!

Rating: 6.66 out of 10

Writing: 8

Art: 3

Themes: 9