Mild Mannered Reviews – Action Comics #1008

Action Comics #1008

Scheduled to arrive in stores: February 27, 2019

Cover date: April 2019

“Leviathan Rises” – Part 2

Writer: Brian Michael Bendis
Penciller: Steve Epting
Inker: Steve Epting
Cover: Steve Epting
Variant Covers: Jeff Dekal

Reviewed by: Mario Bennese

Adam Strange arrives at the Department of Extranormal Operations where he is greeted by Bones, the new DEO director. Bones offers Strange a job when they encounter a hulking figure. A blue explosion goes off, killing everyone in the building except for Strange, Bones, and a handful of DEO agents.

Elsewhere, a disguised Amanda Waller finds herself in an unexpected rendezvous with Sam Lane. She informs Lane that she was attacked, the DEO servers are down, and that she can’t find Task Force X. The two then realize that neither of them called the meeting and that they just walked into a trap. They make an attempt to have the building evacuated before more of the mysterious blue energy arrives.

In Metropolis, Superman and Lois fly above the city. Clark fills Lois in on what happened last issue before arriving at the Daily Planet for her to make her grand return. Unfortunately, no one at the Planet seems too thrilled about her return. Lois makes her way to her new office where she finds Jimmy hiding under her desk. Still shaken up about his encounter with Leviathan, Clark and Lois comfort him while trying to get information out of him. The two offer to let Jimmy stay the night at their place.

Sam Lane and Amanda Waller emerge from the rubble of a building. Waller appears to shoot and kill Sam. At the Kent-Lane apartment, Lois and Clark finish tucking an exhausted Jimmy Olsen in. Before Lois can tell Clark she told her father Superman’s true identity, she gets messages about the DEO office. Lois and Clark are then shocked to find Amanda Waller in their apartment. Leviathan is behind the attacks, and she needs Superman’s help.

Story – 3: Wait, so Lois didn’t consult her husband before revealing his identity to her father? Bendis, what are you doing? I know the answer is to keep reading to find out, but that feels pretty out of character for her. I know her intentions were good, but that seems like something she should have absolutely run past Clark. I don’t think Bendis is out to break up DC’s oldest couple, but with Lois betraying her husband like that, it’s hard to ignore it as a possibility. I just don’t want another Spider-Man: One More Day scenario. Everything else in this issue is fine. I’m interested to see what future issues hold.

Art – 3: Epting’s work seems to work a bit better for me in this issue than it did in the last. He still seems to have trouble drawing a good Superman face. Everyone else looks fine, but Clark looks like a completely different person.

Cover Art – 2: I’ve seen more interesting covers with Jimmy as the focus a decade ago. The art is fine, but the composition is boring.

Variant Cover Art – 4: If Dekal had done away with the Angry Red Eyes of Anger and altered the pose a bit, this would be ideal poster art.

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