Adventures of Superman: Jon Kent #1
Scheduled to arrive in stores: March 7, 2023
Cover date: May 2023
“Countdown to Injustice: Chapter 1 – Into The Multiverse”
Writer: Tom Taylor
Artist: Clayton Henry
Cover: Clayton Henry and Marcelo Maiolo
Variant Covers: Zu Orzu, Rafa Sarmento, Yasmin Flores Montanez, A.L Kaplan, Clayton Henry and Marcelo Maiolo, Megan Huang, Jordie Tarragona and Luis Guerrero, Dan Mora, and Lee Weeks
Reviewed by: Craig Boehmer
In a parallel universe Superman hears a voice. The world is burning and there is evidence of a great battle which has scarred the region. Superman is then confronted by Ultraman who asks him if he has any last words, Superman whispers Lois, to which Ultraman responds it’s always the same. He then burns Superman to death.
Bounce back to our world, Jon is enjoying his new found anonymity while walking with his boyfriend, Jay. Jay is bundled up to hide himself, while they walk a new threat prompts Jon to fly away. Oracle tells him that satellites are plummeting to the earth and he takes off to protect Europe, Africa, and Asia. The sheer amount of debris is overwhelming him when someone else begins to help. This stranger is revealed to be Val-Zod from Earth-2. He tells Jon that he needs his help to defeat a threat to Kal.
The two reconvene to a private location with Lois and Red Tornado. Lois freaks out when she hears the threat is Ultraman, but Red Tornado calms her by revealing she is the Lois from Earth-2 and how imperative it is for Clark to survive. The big push is for Jon to help Val, without letting Clark know.
Story – 3: I am staunchly in the de-age Jon camp, but I am trying to suspend my bias for this comic, and treat it fairly. Tom Taylor is very hit or miss with me, and the misses seem to be growing. My biggest issue with the “Son of Kal-El” series was that it just seemed boring. This series has a much more intriguing basis, I am very interested in him getting the chance to confront Earth-3’s villains. As much as I hate the age up, having Ultraman trap Jon was an intriguing creative choice. I also love the visual design for Val-Zod, and always look forward to his appearances.
The interesting premise aside, much of this comic suffers from art which hinders the effectiveness of the story. The story didn’t grab me as a first issue needs to. The comic didn’t have any glaring issues either, it was perfectly serviceable.
Art – 2: The art was too simplistic for me. I want to see more details in the art to convince me that this world actually exists. I also did not enjoy the colors, there is too much emphasis on this warm color palette which does not help the simplistic art.Cover Art – 3: I hate two things on this cover. The hair, and the ears. Why do we have to make Jon look like Dumbo? I am excited by the Electric Superman look, something to better differentiate him from Clark needs to be done. But no fancy suit will make up for a boring personality.
Variant Cover – 4: This was a cool variant of Superman.Variant Cover – 2: Not a fan of these design covers. Seems lazy and cheap.
Variant Cover – 1: I do not like this Shazam cover. His lats have more details than the faces of his compatriots.Variant Cover – 1: Ugh.Variant Cover – 2: This one is kind of cool, showing the electricity exploding from him.Variant Cover – 2: Another interesting combination of Superman and lightning.Variant Cover – 3: Kind of cool view of Jon in space.Variant Cover – 4: Love the emphasis on Val.Variant Cover – 1: I do not like this style.
There were so many variants that I did not like.
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