Mild Mannered Reviews - Regular Superman Comics
Adventures of Superman #586
Scheduled to arrive in stores: November 15, 2000Cover date: January 2001
2000 Shield No. 52 [Should actually be: 2001 Shield No. 3]
Writer: J. M. DeMatteis
Penciller: Mike Miller
Inker: Armando Durruthy and Walden Wong
"Soul of the City"
Reviewed by: Nick Newman (Nnewman8283@yahoo.com)
Superman stands atop a building, grumbling to himself about Luthor's triumph. Frowning even deeper, he flies across the city and walks into Luthor's campaign headquarters. Mounting the stage, he puts out his hands and congratulates Luthor. The day went downhill from there.
Satanus tells the gathered people about Metropolis' soul, the true essence of the city. The three super-powers jump up from the table and attempt to stop Satanus. He summons a demon, Mudge, to his side and two of the three are quickly dealt with. Thorn manages to get a knife to Satanus' throat, but he merely flicks a finger and Rose begins to convulse. Thorn releases him. He then offers the three split personas healing, but only for a price.
Lois sits behind her sister in her breathing class. Finishing up, the two walk outside. Lucy suddenly stops in her tracks, and tells Lois that her water just broke. Lois, panicking, flags a taxi down and hurls her sister inside of it. The two siblings take off for the hospital.
Satanus offers the three humans assembled to rid them of their counterparts. Rose and Kitty refuse, but the boy Cary listens to the demon's offer. The two women vanish, as Prankster wheels Cary out of the room, with the Adversary in tow.
Clark rushes into the hospital only to be informed by Lois that her sister is at home. She has at least another day or two before she needs to be there. Suddenly, Clark spots a white owl, one that he has seen before. He bolts from the room.
On the roof, Superman finds a woman clad in white furs that identifies herself as the Night Eagle. She points to the sky, and Superman sees dozens of Adversaries moving in on the building. Evidently, Cary has succumbed to Satanus' offer. Superman begins to fight off the monsters, but there are simply too many of them. Realizing he can't win with physical force, he lets himself fall into Torquasm Rao. In this focused state, he sees the creatures as balls of energy that begin to feed on the citizens of his city. Night Eagle calls the others to his side. Elsewhere, Kitty and Rose undergo their transformations, becoming Thorn and Rampage.
Flying through the city, Superman sees a building start to turn black. It slowly forms into Satanus, flanked by Mudge. He claims ownership of the city. Superman lands on a roof only to be joined by Thorn and Rampage. Together, the three stand against Satanus.
Story - 2: I really didn't like this story. Nothing against J.M., he can write a great story. Despite what Wizard says, I recommend that all of you go out with ten bucks and buy fifteen issues (the things are so cheap) of either Justice League or Justice League Europe from the late eighties. J.M. scripted most of them, with Keith Giffen handling the writing chores, and despite the campy-ness, they are terrific. His skill with humor, however, does not extend to Superman. Seeing Clark grumble about Luthor's win is just out of character. Ignoring that, I hate the Kryptonian mind powers, and I don't particularly care for the Adversary, or the new Prankster for that matter. Nothing came out of this issue. We didn't even get to see any of Lex, and he just got elected last issue. The most important subject of the year isn't even recognized in the subsequent issue.
Art - 3: I don't like Miller's art either. Superman is too vein-y, and his head is shaped strangely. Satanus doesn't look like his normal self, and the backgrounds are nothing special. I really think we need a total creative overhaul on this book. Anybody remember McKone?
Cover Art - 3: The same deal as the art. Superman looks deformed and Lex looks like an elf. Besides that, the cover spotlights an event that took place over two pages of the whole comic. Although this issue should have been all about Lex, it wasn't, and the cover should have reflected that. Satanus doesn't even appear on the cover, and yet he is the prominent character in the book. Not an appropriate cover for the subject matter.
Other recent reviews:
- [48] Adventures of Superman #585 (2000)
- [49] Superman: The Man of Steel #107 (2000)
- [50] Action Comics #772 (2000)
- [1] Superman #164
- [2] Lex 2000
Mild Mannered Reviews
2001
Note: Month dates are from the issue covers, not the actual date when the comic was on sale.January 2001
- [1] Superman #164
- [2] Lex 2000
- [3] Adventures of Superman #586
- [4] Superman: The Man of Steel #108
- [5] Action Comics #773
- JLA #49
- JLA/Witchblade
- JLA: A League of One
- JLA: Act of God #1
- [6] Superman #165
- [7] Adventures of Superman #587
- [8] Superman: The Man of Steel #109
- [9] Action Comics #774
- JLA #50
- JLA: Seven Caskets
- JLA versus Predator
- Justice Leagues: JL? #1
- JLA: Act of God #2
- [10] Superman #166
- [11] Adventures of Superman #588
- [12] Superman: The Man of Steel #110
- [13] Action Comics #775
- President Luthor: Secret Files and Origins #1
- JLA: Act of God #3
- Justice Leagues: Justice League of Aliens #1
- Justice Leagues: JLA #1
- [14] Superman #167
- [15] Adventures of Superman #589
- [16] Superman: The Man of Steel #111
- [17] Action Comics #776
- JLA #51
- Legends of the DC Universe #39
- Superboy's Legion #1
- [18] Superman #168
- [19] Adventures of Superman #590
- [20] Superman: The Man of Steel #112
- [21] Action Comics #777
- Superman Adventures #55
- JLA #52
- Superboy's Legion #2
- JLA: Black Baptism #1
- Batman: Gotham Adventures #36
- [22] Superman #169
- [23] Adventures of Superman #591
- [24] Superman: The Man of Steel #113
- [25] Action Comics #778
- Superman Adventures #56
- JLA #53
- [26] Superman #170
- [27] Adventures of Superman #592
- [28] Superman: The Man of Steel #114
- [29] Action Comics #779
- Superman Adventures #57
- JLA #54
- JLA: Incarnations #1
- Super Friends! Trade Paperback
- Superman: Where Is Thy Sting?
- [30] Superman #171
- Green Lantern: Our Worlds At War #1
- [31] Adventures of Superman #593
- [32] Superman: The Man of Steel #115
- [33] Action Comics #780
- Superman: Our Worlds At War: Secret Files and Origins #1
- Superman Adventures #58
- JLA #55
- JLA: Incarnations #2
- [34] Superman #172
- [35] Adventures of Superman #594
- [36] Superman: The Man of Steel #116
- [37] Action Comics #781
- JLA: Our Worlds At War #1
- JSA: Our Worlds At War #1
- Superman Adventures #59
- JLA #56
- JLA: Incarnations #3
- [38] Superman #173
- [39] Adventures of Superman #595
- [40] Superman: The Man of Steel #117
- [41] Action Comics #782
- World's Finest: Our Worlds At War #1
- Superman Adventures #60
- JLA #57
- Superman & Batman: Generations II #1
- JLA: Incarnations #4
- [42] Superman #174
- [43] Adventures of Superman #596
- [44] Superman: The Man of Steel #118
- [45] Action Comics #783
- Superman Adventures #61
- JLA #58
- Superman & Batman: Generations II #2
- JLA: Incarnations #5
- Joker: Last Laugh #1
- Joker: Last Laugh (Secret Files & Origins) #1
- Joker: Last Laugh #2
- [46] Superman #175
- Joker: Last Laugh #3
- [47] Adventures of Superman #597
- Joker: Last Laugh #4
- [48] Superman: The Man of Steel #119
- Joker: Last Laugh #5
- [49] Action Comics #784
- Superman Adventures #62
- JLA #59
- JLA: Gatekeeper #1
- Superman & Batman: Generations II #3
- JLA: Incarnations #6
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Check out the Comic Index Lists for the complete list of Superman-related comics published in 2001.