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Action Comics #1055

Scheduled to arrive in stores: May 23, 2023
Cover date: July 2023

Cover: Sebastian Fiumara
Variant Covers: Rafa Sandoval, David Talaski, Al Barrionuevo and Bernard Chang

Reviewed by: James Lantz
Click to enlarge

"Tech Alive"

Writer: Phillip Kennedy Johnson
Artist: Rafa Sandoval

The Super-Twins, Kara Zor-El, Jon, Conner Kent, John Henry Irons, and the Eradicator fight alongside Superman and Metallo to stop the Cyborg Superman and find Metallo's sister Tracey Corben. The uneasy alliance with the Kryptonite powered man-machine John Corben leads our heroes to learn of his youth. Had John not fired a gun at his abusive father, Tracey would have been killed. Now, John Corben will have to save her yet again, this time from the Cyborg Superman. Yet, Tracey may not want to be rescued, for she has become a Kryptonite fuelled cybernetic organism like her brother Metallo.

5Story - 5: Philip Kennedy Johnson and Joshua Williamson are among the few modern comic book writers I've been enjoying lately. They seem to have a love for the medium, and they tell good stories that evolve the characters without sacrificing said characters or violating continuity. Johnson's run on this title has been impressive. This chapter is just one example of how he adds new spins to classic heroes and villains, thereby adding more depth to them. Metallo has especially gone from a mere cyborg to someone with motives for everything he does. The ending with Metallo's sister becoming like her brother was an amazing twist that made this chapter one of the best in the series.

4Art - 4: I do like the art. I really do. There are just some minor moments that look over-inked or too rough. The style would perhaps work better in Batman or Daredevil. However, it's still good. It just doesn't quite merit a five to me.

"Home Again" - Part 5

Writer: Dan Jurgens
Artist: Lee Weeks

Glyanna turns out to be a dictator who overthrew her parents. She's allowing people to go hungry on her home planet, and she wants Superman to be her one-man police force to stop the rebellion. She is holding Jon Kent prisoner to insure Superman's aid. Yet, he's fighting Doombreaker. Lois has found a stasis weapon in the wreckage of Glyanna's ship. She fires it to hold the human/Doomsday hybrid in suspended animation. This allows Clark to search for his son and hopefully put an end to Glyanna's reign of terror.

5Story - 5: The story does take the predictable route of making Glyanna the tyrant. That doesn't change the fact that Lois and Clark is my favorite feature in this title. The main story is amazing, as I stated before, but the Bronze Age nerd in me will always have a soft spot for Dan Jurgens' Superman stories.

5Art - 5: It's great to have the legendary Lee Weeks back on this feature. Last month's art was amazing, but this month also gave us stupendous visuals. That's what happens when creators of Jurgens' and Weeks' caliber work on a comic like this.

"Steel: Engineer of Tomorrow" - Part 2

Writer: Dorado Quick
Artist: Yasmin Flores Montanez

Nat Irons and Conner Kent are testing Steelworks' new forcefields and security protocols for Metropolis while John Henry Irons is attempting to convince Terrific Tech to use Steelworks for their projects. The technology John created can protect and power the city. He's managed to convince the board that Steelworks is needed. Yet, there seems to be someone who wants to sabotage John's efforts. Plus, Mister Terrific believes Steel has made some mistakes along the way.

4Story - 4: I'm only knocking a point off the score because much of the dialogue slows down the chapter quite a bit. The story itself is rather good. It just didn't have the pacing of part one. The appearance off Mister Terrific on the last page was a brilliant way to end this. I can't wait to see what happens in the next issue.

5Art - 5: The art is pretty solid in this chapter. It is perfect for Steel or any of the Superfamily of titles. Yasmin Flores Montanez should do more art in this part of the DC Universe.

5Cover Art - 5: The blurb is unnecessary because the image itself states what the words on the cover are telling the buyer or reader. The obvious is stated too much, but the cover is still one of the most incredible ones I've seen.

5Variant Cover Art - 5: While I'm still getting tired of all these variant covers, as I've stated pretty much endlessly on this site, the art on the images for this issue is pretty darn good.

Mild Mannered Reviews

2023

Note: Except for digital first releases, the month dates are from the issue covers, not the actual date when the comic went on sale.

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