Action Comics Annual #10 Review

As a general rule, the Revolution almost always eschews annuals. I find them to be largely a total waste of money. You usually get some sub-par guest artist and a story that is pure filler and has nothing to do with the current story arc. However, Action Comics Annual #10 is the exception to that rule. Why? Mainly because my boy Mon-El is on the cover. And you know I’m going to eagerly read anything that is related to the Legion of Super Heroes. Let’s do this review.

Creative Team
Writers: Geoff Johns & Richard Donner
Artists: Art Adams, Joe Kubert, Pete Woods, Rags Morales, Kevin Maguire, Eric Wight and Tony Daniel

Art Rating: 7 Night Girls out of 10.
Story Rating: 9 Night Girls out of 10.
Overall Rating: 8 Night Girls out of 10.

Synopsis: Action Comics Annual #10 is comprised of five short stories and two special features.

“The Many Deaths of Superman”
This story centers on Lex Luthor searching a jungle for some green Kryptonite. During his search, Lex thinks of all the different ways you can kill Superman. First, death by solar fire in a red sun. Second, death by magic. Third, death by brutal force ala Doomsday. Fourth, death by Kryptonite. Lex thinks how once he kills off Superman then he can go about saving the world from all its ailments.

“Who is Clark Kent’s Big Brother?”
This story deals with the return of the first origin of Mon-El to the DC Universe. We begin with a young Clark Kent similar to what you get in the Smallville TV show. Clark is upset that he can’t play sports with the rest of his friends. Clark tried it once a while back and Jimmy broke his arm when he hit Clark. Clark thinks how every day is the same as he is forced to sit out while his friends play sports.

Except for this one particular Monday. Clark sees a rocket plummeting to the ground. Clark goes to investigate the crash scene and he sees Mon-El standing there totally unharmed and speaking Kryptonese. Mon-El looks and Clark and calls him “Son of Jor-El.” Mon-El can’t remember anything at all. Not his own name or even who Jor-El is or why Mon-El is on Earth.

Clark figures since Mon-El has the same powers and speaks Kryptonese that he must also be a Kryptonian. So, Clark takes Mon-El to his basement where he hides all of his Kryptonian artifacts from his own spaceship. Clark thinks how he has always felt alone, but now he doesn’t with Mon-El around.

We shift to Mon-El eating lunch with the Kents. Ma and Pa Kent aren’t convinced that Mon-El is a Kryptonian. Clark is convinced that Jor-El had two sons and sent both of them to Earth and that Mon-El may be his older brother.

Mon-El tells Ma Kent that he can’t remember his name. So, Mon-El decides to give himself one. Clark says that his family names always ended with “El.” Mon-El then looks at a calendar on the wall and asks what “MON” means. Ma Kent says that stands for Monday which is today. Mon-El then combines “Mon” and “El” to make his own name until he can remember his own.

Clark and Mon-El then spend the entire week flying around stopping various disasters and rescuing people. But, the best day for Clark was on Friday when he and Mon-El played baseball with a tree and a boulder. Clark finally got to play baseball and was thrilled.

At night, however, Mon-El would speak in a strange language and have nightmares. Mon-El tells Clark that he dreams about a voice telling him that he doesn’t belong here. Clark understands the feeling.

On Saturday, Mon-El tells Clark to expose him to Kryptonite in order to find out if he is really a Kryptonian or not. Clark pulls out the lead box containing the green Kryptonite and Mon-El suddenly collapses in pain. Mon-El also suddenly gets all his memories back. His name is Lar Gand and he is from Daxam. Mon-El is a seeker who was studying forbidden lore. His research for devices with recorded data from the dead planet of Krypton led him to a message broadcast before the end of Krypton that said “Son of Jor-El.” Mon-El traced the rocket to Smallville.

Mon-El then says that lead is poisonous to Daxamites. That once they have been exposed to lead that the poisoning is irreversible. That Mon-El is going to die. Clark asks Mon-El what he can do to help him. Mon-El instructs Clark to put him into the Phantom Zone. That time stands still in the Phantom Zone. Clark tells Mon-El that he will find a cure for him one day even if it took one thousand years. With that, Clark places Mon-El into the Phantom Zone.

Clark is heartbroken at the loss of his “big brother.” Clark sits in his basement and stares at the Phantom Zone projector and whishes that it was Monday again.

“Mystery Under the Blue Sun”
This story begins with a Thanagarian police cruiser investigating the destruction of several of their police cruisers. They have no idea who or what has been attacking their police cruisers lately.

Suddenly, they see the square world called Htrae, otherwise known as Bizarro World. Three Bizarro Supermen then attack and destroy the police cruiser. They then fly back to Htrae.

“The Criminals of Krypton”
We begin with Counsel of Krypton sentencing General Zod, Non and Ursa to a life sentence to the Phantom Zone. The Council wanted to give them the death penalty, but Jor-El convinced them to send them into the Phantom Zone for life.

Suddenly, Non breaks free of the containment field and starts killing members of the Council. We then cut back to Jor-El in his lab with Non. Non was Jor-El’s teacher and a brilliant man. Non tells Jor-El that he has exceeded all of the other Scientists including Non. Jor-El’s research has discovered that Krypton is going to explode within the next ninety days. Lara-El then runs in holding baby Kal-El in her arms. The Kryptonian Defense then bust in after Lara. The Kryptonian Military Defense is led by General Zod. Zod instructs Ursa to arrest Non and Jor-El under the charge of heresy.

The Council decides to deliver a final warning to Non and Jor-El and then release them. Jor-El went about this work in secret in hopes to gather enough evidence to convince the Council that Krypton is about to explode.

General Zod and Ursa end up defecting from the Council and join up with Non. They believe that Jor-El is correct and that the Council must be shown the error in their ways.

We then cut to Non getting kidnapped by the Council and having his brain lobotomized. When Zod and Ursa find Non several days later, Non is no longer a scientific genius. He is just an unintelligent brute of a savage.

Zod and Ursa approach Jor-El with what the Council did to Non. Zod asks Jor-El to help him overthrow the Council and take control of Krypton. That they can rule Krypton together. Jor-El responds that violence isn’t the answer and power is not his goal.

We cut to present time with Zod, Non and Ursa being brought back under control and being placed back in the containment field. Zod tells Jor-El that one day he will make Jor-El and his son Kal is slaves. Jor-El responds that that will never happen. Jor-El then zaps the three criminals into the Phantom Zone.

“The Deathliest Forms of Kryptonite”
We see Lex talking about the various forms of Kryptonite and how each one has a different effect on Superman. Green Kryptonite will drain Superman of his powers and prolonged exposure to it will kill Superman. Red Kryptonite causes random and occasionally bizarre changes in Superman that last for less than forty-eight hours. Blue Kryptonite has the same effect on Bizarro that Green Kryptonite has on Superman. It was Blue Kryptonite that allowed Lex to capture and mold Bizarro into the weapon Lex needs. Gold Kryptonite will permanently destroy Superman’s ability to collect yellow sunlight and render him powerless.

Lex says he can’t choose just one color Kryptonite so he is going to choose them all. We see Lex adding all four colors of Kryptonite inside of Metallo. Lex tells Metallo that he has been upgraded. Lex then says “Thus begins my Revenge Squad.”

“Secrets of the Fortress of Solitude”
We see a cool cross section of the Fortress. You see the Sunstone Simulator ala the Superman movies and the Smallville TV show. You see the bottle City of Kandor. The Phantom Zone projector and portal. The Key to the original Fortress of Solitude. An interplanetary habitat full of nears extinct extraterrestrial animals. The atomic cauldron tended to by Superman Robots. A super-science lab where Superman attempts to find a cure for Mon-El. And a trophy room and museum with statues of Superman’s family, friends and enemies form the past, present and future. (Check that section out closely. We’ll touch on this later.)

“Superman’s Top 10 Most Wanted”
10. Toyman
9. Metallo
8. Mr. Mxyzptlk
7. Parasite
6. Bizarro
5. Non
4. Ursa
3. General Zod
2. Brainiac
1. Lex Luthor

Comments
The Good: Action Comics Annual #10 was a great read! This is probably the first annual that I have really enjoyed. Johns and Donner took this opportunity to tease the reader with several big changes in this new version of the DC Universe since Infinite Crisis ended. Plus, it is pretty clear that the Multiverse is returning in some sort of fashion as several teasers in this issue.

And that is fine by me. I loved the Multiverse and thought Crisis on Infinite Earth was a massive mistake that cause far more continuity problems than it ever solved. Plus, it ruined one of DC’s greatest strengths that it had over Marvel: A long and storied history.

Johns and Donner do an incredible job serving up five entertaining and intriguing short stories. “The Many Deaths of Superman” and “The Deadliest Forms of Kryptonite” go hand in hand. I love how Johns and Donner handle Lex’s character. Their version of Lex is so blinded by hatred. Their Lex Luthor is a truly ruthless and maniacal villain who is down right frightening.

I dig that they have Lex boast that he could solve the world’s problems with his incredible intellect, but he has to get rid of Superman first. That Superman gives a false sense of security to humanity and causes humanity to rest on its laurels as long as Superman is around to save the day. So, Lex rationalizes that first he must eliminate Superman before he can solve the world’s problems.

What a convenient excuse. Trying to eliminate Superman is a convenient excuse for Lex to rationalize not using his skills and money to solve the world’s problems. That the truth is that Lex doesn’t want to solve the world’s problems nor could he even if he wanted to. Deep down inside Lex knows this so he uses his crusade to kill Superman as an excuse for not trying to solve the world’s problems.

I like how Johns and Donner lay out the various ways that Superman can be killed. It updates Superman’s various weaknesses to new readers. This feeds right into “The Deadliest Forms of Kryptonite” story which continues Lex’s obsession with killing Superman. This story is cool because be see four different types of Kryptonite which have been missing in the DCU for quite some time.

After Crisis on Infinite Earths, Superman was re-booted and DC severely limited the use of Kryptonite. It was turned into a very rare item and the only color you ever saw was green. Well, it looks like Johns and Donner are reaching back into the pre-Crisis DCU and treating us with several different version of Kryptonite. I love it. The more the better. I always like the different versions of Kryptonite and their unique effects on Superman.

I liked the short Bizarro story because it re-introduced to the DC Universe the planet Htrae, otherwise known as Planet Bizarro. Yup, my friend Crisis on Infinite Earths wiped Htrae out of existence. Good ol’ Planet Bizarro got retconned away and was treated as if it never existed.

Thankfully, Johns and Donner deliver another blow to the Post Crisis DC Universe by revealing the return of the planet Htrae. I’m psyched. I love all of this silver age goodness that is being re-established in this new DC Universe. I’m very curious to see what Johns and Donner have in store for Planet Bizarro.

“The Criminals of Krypton” kicked ass. I love General Zod, Non and Ursa. They are excellent villains. And who made them excellent? Richard Donner did in Superman II. They were always goofy villains in the comic book, by Donner had a vision for these three characters and turned them into some of the greatest.

Also, the return of these three characters again establishes a sharp departure from the post-Crisis DC Universe. After Crisis on Infinite Earths, Superman was to be the only survivor of Krypton, so these three villains were retconned away as if they never existed. Well, guess what? They’re back and better than ever!

Again, anything that erodes or reverses the DC Universe created by the Crisis on Infinite Earths is most definitely a good thing. It is nice to see Johns and Donner re-establish this back-story to Superman’s history that was recklessly erased by the Crisis on Infinite Earths.

And that isn’t the only part of Superman’s history that got re-established in this issue. My personal favorite of these five short stories was “Who is Clark Kent’s Big Brother?” It absolutely rocked!! In one fell swoop, Johns and Donner return one of my all-time favorite Legionnaires his original history that the Crisis on Infinite Earths stole from him. I am extremely happy.

Johns and Donner do an excellent job of merging the Mon-El’s origin from Superboy #89 back in 1961 with the origin of Clark Kent that we get over in the Smallville TV show. Clark is very similar to his Smallville TV show counter-part. He just wants to be a normal kid so he can play sports with his friends. Clark feels completely alone. I really like how Johns and Donner handle Clark’s character in this story.

The rest of this story is practically identical to the original origin of Mon-El from back in 1961 right down to how he gets the name Mon-El. I am thrilled that Johns and Donner have re-established this part of Superman’s history. The Crisis on Infinite Earths eventually led to Mon-El having to have his character radically retconned since the Crisis on Infinite Earths retconned away Superman’s history as Superboy.

So, Mon-El’s meeting with Superboy still took place, but it was in a pocket universe created by the Time Trapper. It was a confusing mess. Finally, in 1989 (or sometime around there), Tom and Mary Bierbaum and Keith Giffen came up the crappy Valor character who replaced Mon-El. Valor assumed the inspirational role for the Legion that Superboy had originally filled. I hated Valor. And I also hated the later version of Mon-El after the re-boot of M’Onel who hid the fact that he was the legendary Valor.

Now, Johns and Donner have returned things to exactly where they should have been left in the first place. This is the perfect example of how Crisis on Infinite Earths in trying to “clean up” continuity actually made things a much bigger mess than they were before. It is great to have the real Mon-El back and it is equally wonderful to see Superman’s glorious and deep history slowly being returned to him. Part of what made Superman such an interesting character was his entertaining history.

Now, let’s talk about the two special features. The “Secrets of the Fortress of Solitude” made me jump for joy. First, let me say that it was cool looking and well done. I dig the fact that Johns and Donner are using the Fortress of Solitude from the Superman movies and from the Smallville TV show. But, I like that they added in some of the silver age elements of the old Fortress of Solitude like the Interplanetary Habitat, the Atomic Cauldron, the Super-Science Lab, the Bottle City of Kandor and the Trophy Room and Museum.

The Bottle City of Kandor was radically changed by the Crisis on Infinite Earths into something extremely lame. However, it is obvious that the Silver Age Bottle City of Kandor has returned as we have seen in 52 and in Supergirl and the Legion of Super Heroes.

I also liked that Superman’s Super-Science Lab where he searches for a cure for Mon-El is back in the Fortress. However, what really made me insanely psyched was what I saw in the Trophy Room and Museum where the statues of Superman’s friends from the future are located. Yup, that’s right; the Legion of Super Heroes is back in full effect in Superman’s history. Johns and Donner have re-connected The Legion of Super Heroes with Superman’s past. That is awesome.

The Crisis on Infinite Earths completely retconned Superboy out of existence and made it so that Superman had never met the Legion of Super Heroes before and had no connection with them at all. Again, it made Superman’s history more boring and uninteresting, but more importantly, it absolutely dealt a crippling blow to the Legion of Super Heroes and their continuity and history.

This move that DC made in the Crisis of Infinite Earths was the first nail in the coffin of the original Legion and, with the help of Tom and Mary Bierbaum and Keith Giffen turning the Legion into bad fan fiction, led to the Legion of Super Heroes getting a total and complete re-boot. (Oooh, cheap shot. Sorry about that one.)

But, what is even better are the Legionnaires costumes that the statues are wearing. Go on. Take a good look at them. Yup. That is the Paul Levitz era Legion, baby. You know, around the time of the Great Darkness Saga, which was probably the high point for the Legion of Super Heroes. I’m basing this off of costumes that Cosmic Boy, Colossal Boy, Chameleon Boy and Shadow Lass are all wearing.

Could this possibly be a teaser that the Levitz era Legion may still exist in some form or another? Maybe one of several multiple Earths? An alternate timeline? Who knows, but my curiosity is most definitely piqued.

You know, with the return of the real Star Boy from the Levitz Legion over in the Justice Society of America and the re-establishment of Mon-El’s origin and history with Superman as well as these statues from the Levitz Legion, Geoff Johns has done more to invigorate and rejuvenate my interest in the Legion of Super Heroes than Mark Waid has during the course of his entire run on the Legion of Super Heroes.

The Bad: No complaints at all.

Overall: Action Comics Annual #10 was a great read. It is clear that Johns and Donner have plenty of very interesting plotlines in store for Superman in the near future. Johns and Donner have done an excellent job getting me excited for the upcoming issues of Action Comics.

It was a real pleasure to actually enjoy an annual for a change. Johns and Donner certainly did their best to reverse many of the changes that the Crisis on Infinite Earths established. And that is what made this issue so great.

From the cover to all the different short stories, this issue had a wonderful Silver Age feel to it.