Action Comics #1023
Scheduled to arrive in stores: July 21, 2020
Cover date: September 2020
“The House of Kent” – Part Two
Writer: Brian Michael Bendis
Penciller: John Romita Jr.
Inker: Klaus Janson
Cover: John Romita Jr.
Variant Cover: Lucio Parillo
Reviewed by: James Lantz
It was a difficult fight, but Superman and the Superboys have thwarted Red Cloud’s attempt to kill Jimmy Olsen in front of Lois Lane. Now, she is trying to figure a way to break the Man of Steel with help from the Invisible Mafia’s leader and owner of the Daily Planet, Marisol Leone. If they succeed in doing so they could retain total control of Metropolis’ underworld.
The rules to the game have changed. Superman is now waging war on Ms. Leone’s forces. Gang members involved in a drug deal were taken into custody after the Black Label Club was shrunken like Kandor. Meanwhile, Jimmy Olsen knows Robinson Goode is the Red Cloud. However, he doesn’t get a chance to prove this to editor Perry White. The FBI has taken everything out of the offices in their search for evidence that can incarcerate Marisol Leone.
Story – 5: After being disappointed in the recent issue of Justice League, I’m happy to read this. I sincerely needed a good Superman story, and this is it in spite of its use of parenthetical expressions. Sorry, but seeing those in comics irks me. I’m not sure why. Anyhow, I can’t stress enough how much I’m enjoying what Bendis has been doing for Superman. I didn’t think a lot of elements would work, but they do. They make for a fun comic reading experience. I’m going to miss Bendis’ work when he leaves the Man of Steel.
Art – 4: As much as I want to, I can’t give Romita’s Superman related work a perfect score. Certain characters look off and some panels look rushed. Romita did a better job with Marvel characters back when he was drawing them.
Cover Art – 4: Was Superman’s S shield added in via Photoshop at the last minute? Like previous Romita covers for this series, it suffers from the same troubles as the interior art.
Variant Cover Art – 5: Why isn’t Lucio Parillo doing interior art for this book? His style is perfect for any title featuring Superman.
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