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Mild Mannered Reviews - Superman: Son of Kal-El Comics

Superman: Son of Kal-El #7

Scheduled to arrive in stores: January 18, 2022
Cover date: February 2022

"The Rising" - Part 1

Writer: Tom Taylor
Artist: Cian Tormey
Cover: John Timms
Variant Covers: Inhyuk Lee

Reviewed by: Adam Dechanel

Click to enlarge

The ocean is developing dead zones and near Metropolis an over polluted part of the ocean forces a hibernating creature to awaken. Frightened and alone it begins to desperately seek help. Elsewhere Bendix and Luthor decide The Rising should begin with a very public display of dealing with this poor creature.

Jay gives Jon a reverse secret, secret identity. A way he can be anonymous when he's not Superman. As they get used to this idea Jon detects the creature and instead of fighting it, takes a 'think first' approach. He is surprised to find the new Aquaman also trying to reach out, and working together they are almost able to solve the problem... almost.

The mysterious Gamorra Corps arrives and completely mishandles the situation in full view of the world and social media. They are obviously part of The Rising but Jay and The Truth cannot figure out how everything links together. Bendix steps up his plan and sets a plan in motion that nobody was prepared for and one that will devastate the world...

To Be Continued...

Story - 5: Jay's idea of a secret vigilante identity harkens back to Clark's Gangbuster days and it will be really interesting to see how this will play out. I'd have preferred Jon to have a civilian identity, but only because it is a story trope I've always known. I really like the fact that Jon thinks first rather than jumping in all guns blazing. I wonder if he'll adopt another identity as a member of The Truth.

I have to say that a first meeting between Jackson and Jon, post Jon's sexual awakening, seems to be a missed opportunity here in some groundbreaking (in a Superfamily book) conversation.

I have been really enjoying the book so far but this issue threw me. I was not sold on the Gamorra Corps, though I'm sure this will flesh out further. The plot seemed to be gearing up for something much larger and this was a tad disappointing, however, as this is part I of a larger story let's see how things go. It definitely seems like Jon will be facing some big consequences.

Art - 5: The art this issue was absolutely fantastic, perhaps the inking in places could have been a tad more detailed but otherwise I was loving every page. The look of terror in Spark's face spoke volumes. The art really elevated some of the scenes especially with the poor sea creature.

Cover Art - 3: Although I like the cover and everything it stands for I kind of wish this story actually happened. As a piece of art, it's emotive, it's punchy and provocative but I can't score it higher because it is misleading. I know some will find my rating questionable but it is thematically so close to the actual story it feels like a fake out.

Variant Cover Art - 4: I like the cover, the theme and the art style. I'm always puzzled as to how Jon's age and physicality fluctuates so. As an example Jon is SuperMAN and Jackson is AquaLAD but Jon looks like a boy here. I don't think it's Lee's fault.

Mild Mannered Reviews

2022

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Mild Mannered Reviews - Superman: Son of Kal-El Comics

Superman: Son of Kal-El #7

Mild Mannered Reviews

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