SUPERMAN: AMERICAN ALIEN #1 Looks Epic!
Let me preface this post by saying I want to like DC more than I actually do. I love the characters and the universe, but somehow every time I try to get into a new series I feel uncomfortably lost as if I showed up to a party I wasn’t invited to. All I want is a beer guys and for someone to tell me what the hell is going on!
That said, I will admit DC is at its finest in the mini-series department in more self-contained arcs that don’t conform to the main hubbub and shenanigans that are the ongoing series’. So when I heard that there would be a new 7-issue mini-series about the rise of Clark Kent written by popular screenwriter Max Landis I became overjoyed. It’s not everyday I get excited about a DC book.
I’ll let DC explain what this mini-series is all about via their synopsis:
Hollywood screenwriter and Eisner Award nominee Max Landis (Chronicle, American Ultra, ADVENTURES OF SUPERMAN) joins forces with top comics artists including Jock, Francis Manapul and Jae Lee to bring you SUPERMAN: AMERICAN ALIEN, a 7-issue miniseries chronicling the life of Clark Kent and his development into the archetypal hero he will eventually become. But these are not the stories of the iconic ‘Superman’ as you know him, but of the soft-spoken, charming, often-funny Kansas farm-boy behind the Man of Steel. With the tone of each issue ranging from heartwarming and simple, to frighteningly gritty and violent, to sexy, sun-kissed and funny, SUPERMAN: AMERICAN ALIEN is unlike anything you’ve seen before. In this first issue, superstar artist Nick Dragotta (East of West, Fantastic Four) illustrates the story of Jonathan and Martha Kent as they struggle to deal with their 12-year-old son’s latest quirk-he’s been floating up into the air, sometimes hundreds of feet!
Oh, yeah! This is just what I’m looking for. Sure it may be inching close to familiar origin-story fun, but I think this approach is a lot more creative and interesting. Superman has an ever so complicated life and it looks like we will be getting to see some of the “in between the cracks” moments of his life when he’s not saving Metropolis, teaming up with other heroes, or…I dunno…dying and stuff. Like ALL-STAR SUPERMAN before this, I think we are in store for a very fun and creative look into the life of Americas most famous superhero. The moment I was sold on this book was when writer Max Landis simply said:
“It’s stories Clark might tell you if you were having a beer together.”
Perfect! Count me in. That’s a million dollar pitch. So simple yet so complicated! And did I mention the Nick Dragotta’s art in this #1 issue looks absolutely brilliant! That man is amazing! If you don’t believer me buy EAST OF WEST Volume 1 from Image and curse me as you throw money at every other volume available within minutes of finishing!
SUPERMAN: AMERICAN ALIEN #1 crash lands on comic book shelves THIS week so get to the shop already!
Words by Jason Furie
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