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Mild Mannered Reviews - Superman/Wonder Woman Comics

Superman/Wonder Woman #12

Scheduled to arrive in stores: October 8, 2014

Cover date: December 2014

"Metamorphosis"

Writer: Charles Soule
Penciller: Jack Herbert, Walden Wong and Cliff Richards
Inker: Jack Herbert, Walden Wong and Cliff Richards

Reviewed by: Michael Bailey

Click to enlarge

Superman and Wonder Woman are reunited and want nothing more than to spend some alone time together. A plant that Superman gave Wonder Woman turning into an oil guzzling tentacle monster puts the kibosh on those plans. The Kryptonian plant consumes oil and eventually threatens the world's oil supply while Superman and Wonder Woman argue about whose fault it was that the plant was allow to grow to a monstrous size in the first place. Wonder Woman realizes that their bickering is the result of Strife, so while Diana takes care of that problem Superman enlists the aid of Swamp Thing. Swamp Thing eventually calms the creature down and Wonder Woman and Superman are able to finally spend some time together as they watch the sun set in the west.

Story - 5: I am sitting here typing on my keyboard with a giant smile on my face.

If I wasn't totally sold on the Superman/Wonder Woman relationship before I am now.

I almost can't put into words how much I enjoyed this issue. From the opening pages where Superman and Wonder Woman are reunited and are just so happy to see each other to the spat they have in the middle of the issue to that ending where they felt like a real couple. I really don't have anything bad to say about this comic. It's odd. Usually I can find something that bugs me but the one thing that I had a problem with (Superman and Wonder Woman arguing in the middle of the book) turned out to be a plot point.

Seriously. This was awesome.

It was also a nice, down time after a big event kind of story. There aren't enough of these in modern comics but then again there isn't a whole lot of down time between major storylines and events in modern comics so there's that. I realize the previous sentence makes me sound like an old man telling kids to get off my proverbial lawn and maybe that's true but I think I roll with enough contemporary punches that every once and awhile I can start talking about how great things were twenty years ago. Then again I could make the argument that I like these types of issues because they focus more on building the characters and getting into how characters act and feel is fifty percent of my reading and viewing enjoyment.

Then again I could just be getting old.

Anyway...

Another thing I liked about this issue is that it felt like there was a larger DCU out there. While it was nice for the tentacle monster to be the antagonist I liked that the ultimate bad guy was a member of Wonder Woman's cast. Then you had Swamp Thing show up and there was an honest to goodness "see this issue" box, which makes me want to go and check that story out. This is another thing I like about comics; having the characters be part of a bigger universe while still being themselves in their own title.

I was also impressed with how Soule danced around the environmental angle of the story without falling into the trap of being preachy. Swamp Thing is the perfect character to say, "You know, the world would be better without this thing that ultimately pollutes it," while Wonder Woman is the stand in for those that agree but think there is a better, less destructive way to go about that. I didn't feel like Soule was telling me how bad fossil fuels are. I felt like he was telling the story of a creature that consumes oil threatening the world and how Superman and Wonder Woman with Swamp Thing's help have to stop it. Actually Soule was telling the story of a man and a woman that are in the early stages of a relationship seeing each other after the man was away for a while, but I think that just proves that this story works on several levels.

This title has been solid from the first issue and this installment was no exception. I am a little bummed that Charles Soule is leaving the title but I appreciate having him around for as long as we did. As I wrote at the beginning of this review this book made me smile. It made me feel good about Superman and Wonder Woman as a couple and it was really entertaining.

And that's all I really needed.

Art - 5: I am still digging the bearded Superman and the art team really nailed it in this issue, which should come as no surprise because they nailed this entire issue. Part of the reason I felt such a connection to Superman and Wonder Woman is how they were drawn. They looked like a couple in love. Sure it was fun to see the tentacle monster and Swamp Thing and all that but the heart and soul (no pun intended there) of this issue was how Clark and Diana related to each other and on that level the art team succeeded.

Cover Art - 5: This is an impressive cover. On the face of it the image is simply Superman and Wonder Woman going into battle but seeing Strife at the bottom makes it something more. The covers on this series have always been top notch and this one was no exception.

Variant Cover Art - 5: Well that's...creepy. Like really creepy. I mean I like it but wow. That certainly fits the theme of the variants from this month.

Mild Mannered Reviews

2014

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Mild Mannered Reviews - Superman/Wonder Woman Comics

Superman/Wonder Woman #12

Mild Mannered Reviews

2014

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