All-Star Superman

[Singles]

It's been a while since I felt as good and optimistic as I did when I read this comic book. Superman is back and everything is going to be okay.

The issue opens with a one-page, four-panel, eight-word origin story for Superman, and then cuts to one of the most beautiful two-page spreads I've ever seen. A scientific mission to the Sun is going horribly awry, and (the evil supervillain) Lex Luthor has sent a human bomb to sabotage the mission. Superman, of course, saves the day. What else would he do?

There's been a feeling of cynicism and angst in comic books for some time now. Instead of fun science fiction and action,, we've been getting Superman talking to his wife and then wondering if what he does is playing God, or some s**t like that. Well, this Superman is too busy saving people to worry about that. Even when he is faced with a horribly future, Superman faces it with the utmost dignity, and never once feels sorry for himself. He's a hero, again.

In the typical Grant Morrison fashion, this issue is stuffed full of ideas. Dialogue that is smart, while not revelling in it's cleverness. If you're a Morrison fan, you won't be disappointed. And if you're one of those people that think Morrison is "too wierd," you'll probably still like it, unless you think that any science-fiction is wierd.

To match Grant Morrison's writing is Frank Quitely's artwork, which is detailed, but never distracting and simple in its own way. The best part about Quitely is the fact that he seems to understand the story and the book every bit as much as Morrison, which is more than I can say for All-Star Batman and Robin. Most of the characterization for Clark Kent is done through the art in one single panel.

If you can't enjoy reading this comic book, there's no hope for you.

[Bruce Lee]

At times, the storytelling seemed confusing to me--othertimes, crystal clear. It's an interesting idea for a Superman story, and I think it has a distinct HEAVY METAL/European flavor to it. Quitely's art is reminding me of 2 parts Miller, 2 parts Moebius. It's interesting, but I'm not sure if I'm really digging it. Backgrounds seem spartan in places, and the coloring is rather muted for my taste. Storywise, it's too early to make a whole lot of comments about. The idea is interesting--Superman's dying because of Luthor's elaborate plan--but for some reason, it's not really having much impact for me. Maybe it's because Superman has died before, or that death in comics now means LESS than death in soap operas. That's what happens when writers go to that particular well too many times, I suppose. Death begins to lose impact.

I'm willing to give this a chance, but at this point, I'm not blown away by it.

Loston

[F!]

Pity the "All-Star" ethos didn't extend to the coloring.

[Singles]

What are you talking about? Superman never died, he's just been away for twenty years or so.

[Trilogy]

At times, the storytelling seemed confusing to me--othertimes, crystal clear. It's an interesting idea for a Superman story, and I think it has a distinct HEAVY METAL/European flavor to it. Quitely's art is reminding me of 2 parts Miller, 2 parts Moebius. It's interesting, but I'm not sure if I'm really digging it. Backgrounds seem spartan in places, and the coloring is rather muted for my taste. Storywise, it's too early to make a whole lot of comments about. The idea is interesting--Superman's dying because of Luthor's elaborate plan--but for some reason, it's not really having much impact for me. Maybe it's because Superman has died before, or that death in comics now means LESS than death in soap operas. That's what happens when writers go to that particular well too many times, I suppose. Death begins to lose impact.

I'm willing to give this a chance, but at this point, I'm not blown away by it.

Loston

Bruce pretty much summed up my thoughts on the first issue. Yeah, out of interest and being a fan of some of Morrison's prior stories, I went out and bought the first issue. Like Bruce said, the idea is interesting and a bit intriguing. There were parts of the story that I didn't like and other parts that I did. To be honest, I didn't get that feeling (you know the feeling; the "I've gotta get issue two to see what goes down next" feeling) until almost the very end. The last scene is my favorite scene. I really like how Morrison handled Clark Kent in that final scene. Other than that, this is standard Morrison to me. Nothing totally new, nothing super astounding or spectacular. Yeah, Bruce's post summed up all of my other opinions on the issue, and like I said, the final scene is what really has me interested in the next issue.

[Singles]

I thought this was worth mentioning:

I've had three non-comic friends read All-Star Superman #1, none of which cared at all about Superman, one who kind of disliked him. After they had read this, they had all really enjoyed it. One said "I never thought I would enjoy a Superman comic, let alone that much."

[Trilogy]

I thought this was worth mentioning:

I've had three non-comic friends read All-Star Superman #1, none of which cared at all about Superman, one who kind of disliked him. After they had read this, they had all really enjoyed it. One said "I never thought I would enjoy a Superman comic, let alone that much."


You know, I didn't think this would be one of those titles that you could introduce to a general audience of non-comic fans and have it be well recepted. I guess you just never know until you try.

[shoryukenmaster]

I've got to side with barbarino on this one. This book was just fun for me. I'm not a superman fan, not matter how much I try to be, but this book might be the series that turns it around for me. To me, this is how comics should be. Fun. I think there is a time and a place to be serious, but damn if I don't get tired of superheros always looking inward and soul-searching to see if they are doing the "right thing". Or having someone die just to bring them back in the next issue. I don't want to see all of these reluctant superheros. I want to see superheros who want to be superheros. Not saying that they don't face issues like someone dying (and staying dead), but that they actually enjoy what they do. That's why I liked this book, I felt like superman was a man on a mission doing the "right thing" and not feeling sorry for himself because he's superman and damnit, he's got issues too.

[Knigge]

This is the first time I'll be buying a Superman comic on a regular basis. It was that good to me, exceeding all my expectations.

[Ichbin Der Ausgang]

At times, the storytelling seemed confusing to me--othertimes, crystal clear. It's an interesting idea for a Superman story, and I think it has a distinct HEAVY METAL/European flavor to it. Quitely's art is reminding me of 2 parts Miller, 2 parts Moebius. It's interesting, but I'm not sure if I'm really digging it. Backgrounds seem spartan in places, and the coloring is rather muted for my taste. Storywise, it's too early to make a whole lot of comments about. The idea is interesting--Superman's dying because of Luthor's elaborate plan--but for some reason, it's not really having much impact for me. Maybe it's because Superman has died before, or that death in comics now means LESS than death in soap operas. That's what happens when writers go to that particular well too many times, I suppose. Death begins to lose impact.

I'm willing to give this a chance, but at this point, I'm not blown away by it.

Loston

Ditto. I read one review on SBC that made it seem like the best thing since sliced bread. Like it was the most amazing piece of storytelling since the Bible.
I was looking very forward to this series, and still am. The first issue wasnt That great but Im hoping the next 11 will be.

[tekende]

I loved it. LOVE the colors, LOVE the artwork, LOVE Morrison and Quitely's Kent, and most of all, LOVE LOVE LOVE Lex Luthor in this. Which isn't to say it doesn't have its flaws--it does. But they are, I think, pretty minor.

One thing that bugs me, though--Luthor is controlling the big blobby bomb thing from Earth, making him speak, etc. Luthor clearly states that there is a nine-minute delay in transmission and YET he is able to respond through the blobby thing in real-time to something that Quantum said on the ship. That can't work. But whatever. It's a small mistake.

[NickRocks]

is all star batman 2 even out yet?

[Saturn Lad]

One thing that bugs me, though--Luthor is controlling the big blobby bomb thing from Earth, making him speak, etc. Luthor clearly states that there is a nine-minute delay in transmission and YET he is able to respond through the blobby thing in real-time to something that Quantum said on the ship. That can't work. But whatever. It's a small mistake.
I don't think Luthor was controlling everything it said, he was providing voice commands that the clone repeated. They were all genetically engineered clones outside of Quintum, so it had it's own intelligence. It also had a conversation with Superman, calling him a fascist, after Luthor had stopped sending it commands.

Anyway, I thought it was well done overall. The characterization of Clark through the art was great. I saw the same European flavor that Loston mentioned, and agree that the backgrounds were pretty spartan. The "200 quintillion tons" seemed to be a ridiculously unmeasurable number in line with Morrison's oft-hilarious pseudo-science. A quintillion is 10^18, but seeing as Morrison is a Brit, he could very well be referring to 10^30 tons. Oh well, he probably just wanted to throw that in since the scientist's name is Quintum.

[Popninja]

is all star batman 2 even out yet?

2 has been out since Sept.; 3 is ultra late.

[NickRocks]

2 has been out since Sept.; 3 is ultra late.
was 2 any good I never picked it up

[tekende]

was 2 any good I never picked it up

No.

But that's just my opinion. Did you like #1? If so, you'll probably like #2 also. I detested them both and am no longer buying the title. I also sold my copies of the first two issues on ebay and made myself a little profit. :cool:

[TheFightingFoetus]

I liked ASB&R 2...

All Star Superman though, is pretty fantastic. There are a few hiccups in the art, but I can look past those easily. They really picked a good team of people to work on this book.

[Stark Raving]

I enjoyed it.
Loston was right about the storytelling being confusing at times. There were a few instances where it didn't seem to flow from one page to another very well, which was sort of jarring.
But I'll definitely keep buying it.

[Crimson Spider]

What are you talking about? Superman never died, he's just been away for twenty years or so.

Hah, ain't that the truth.

I've had a bit of an ordering problem with the online store I frequent, so I didn't get the last three months' worth of comics until last Wednesday.

I completely agree with your review. I already had high expectations and the book surpassed them. To me, this was the perfect Superman story.

[DrVictorVonDoom]

Can I just say that I've re-read this comic more than any other in recent memory? The colors could be better, Quitely could use an inker, but those are tiny qualms - this is a great book. A teaser more than anything, I think, but enough to make it clear that this is going to deliver on Morrison's typically-hyperbolically-awesome statements about the comic.

[NickRocks]

i FINALLY picked this up (wow im really late at this) and heres my take:

the cover was gorgeous.
colors were BRILLIANT! i love the colors. i think in some parts its alittle too "cleans" as in not enough colors, but eh, still great. im not a fan of quietlys work in general, but some panels he made superman look really cool, like when hes pushing against that machine with his arm behind his back. other parts i think quietly made him look too old.

page 3 is probably my least favorite page. ive read it many times since picking it up, and the line "death courtesy of lex luthor!" is cheesy to me. also, who was the girl on page 4? hmm.

lex was pretty cool, wanna see more of him to get a better opinion.

lois looks HOT!

the explosion on the sun was great.

the guy telling superman about his problem reminded me of willy wonka (tee hee)

some panels, supermans neck looks really, ridiculously fat.

the story, at least to me, is not as exciting as ASB&R, but ill definately pick this up. i think clark revealing himself so early on in the series is kind of a let down, though.

i really enjoyed this.

[Singles]

page 3 is probably my least favorite page. ive read it many times since picking it up, and the line "death courtesy of lex luthor!" is cheesy to me. also, who was the girl on page 4? hmm.

I thought the line made perfect sense when you realize that it was Lex Luthor speaking through the human bomb. He struck me as just the kind of egoist who would actually say something like that in earnest.

[Crimson Spider]

also, who was the girl on page 4? hmm.

You mean the one on page 5? That's Agatha, Leo Quintum's "partner." She was properly introduced on page 16, panel 3.

[NickRocks]

oh it seemed weird to me, maybe its because she wasnt big enough in the earlier panel. thanks for pointing that out.

[Singles]

It's ridiculous how many things you don't pick up on your first way through. Most people didn't even notice Clark saving that guy from catching a muffler on his head from the floating "monorail" on their first read. That was probably my favorite scene of the book, actually.

[NickRocks]

yeah, also i didnt know that superman was next to the truck when the boy was running in front of it and chasing his dog. that panel to me had the most speed the entire way through.

[DrVictorVonDoom]

I thought the line made perfect sense when you realize that it was Lex Luthor speaking through the human bomb. He struck me as just the kind of egoist who would actually say something like that in earnest.
Yeah, I thought that line was great too.

[Crimson Spider]

I just remembered one of my favorite Superman stories -- Hitman #34. It was written by Garth Ennis and drawn by John McCrea.

You don't need to be knowledgeable of the title itself to enjoy this story. Plus, it'll most likely be dirt cheap.

I highly recommend it.

[Singles]

Second issue out. Possibly more awesome?

[Stark Raving]

Yes. The first two issues have been outstanding. I can't wait to see where Morrison is going with this.

[Carter]

This is a great book. It's amazing how close it is to the old Superman stories from the 50s. I can't wait til a giant purple gorilla with Kryptonite laser beam eyes shows up.

[DrVictorVonDoom]

I just remembered one of my favorite Superman stories -- Hitman #34. It was written by Garth Ennis and drawn by John McCrea.

You don't need to be knowledgeable of the title itself to enjoy this story. Plus, it'll most likely be dirt cheap.

I highly recommend it.
I checked this out because of your recommendation, and it was indeed a very good Superman story.

Yes. The first two issues have been outstanding. I can't wait to see where Morrison is going with this.
Completely agreed.

[Singles]

Things I loved:

-The cover. Silver Age goodness.
-Lois not believing Superman. All those years of him playing tricks to protect his identity and when he reveals it, she doesn't believe him. Totally the opposite of what I thought would happen, but it completely makes sense.
-The new key and the reference to the old giant one.
-The robot designs.
-Superman having the Titanic in the Fortress.
-References to DC One Million and JLA Classified/Seven Soldiers.
-Lois writing her thoughts out, and the black and white panels.
-Superman talking to the Mirror of Truth. He stands before it, with his shoulders slumped and Kent glasses on, while his reflection stands tall and proud.
-Superman shrugging off the Kryptonite blast.
-Forging suns to feed to the baby sun-eater.
-Superman's birthday present.
-Lois.

Things I loved slightly less:

-There wasn't a huge amount of plot progression, especially when compared to last issue, which moved at a breakneck speed.
-Superman's body type seemed to change a bit from last issue. That could easily be from coming down from the sun-bath.
-I'm really reaching with these, because the issue couldn't have been better to me.

[ANTI_herox]

Things I loved:

-The cover. Silver Age goodness.
-Lois not believing Superman. All those years of him playing tricks to protect his identity and when he reveals it, she doesn't believe him. Totally the opposite of what I thought would happen, but it completely makes sense.
-The new key and the reference to the old giant one.
-The robot designs.
-Superman having the Titanic in the Fortress.
-References to DC One Million and JLA Classified/Seven Soldiers.
-Lois writing her thoughts out, and the black and white panels.
-Superman talking to the Mirror of Truth. He stands before it, with his shoulders slumped and Kent glasses on, while his reflection stands tall and proud.
-Superman shrugging off the Kryptonite blast.
-Forging suns to feed to the baby sun-eater.
-Superman's birthday present.
-Lois.
have been better to me.

Um... ditto.

[bbbearcounty]

I'm not the biggest Superman fan, however I do enjoy the films (I & II only)
and you know the Superman/Batman series by Loeb isn't bad either.
Now, I was kinda skeptical about reading All-Star Superman, but finally
caved in after reading reviews, and I must say that so far I'm glad I picked it up.
The series has that tad bit of weirdness factor (ala Morrison) but it's just really enjoyable.
So far, so right now make mine All-Star.

[NickRocks]

Things I loved:

-The cover. Silver Age goodness.
-Lois not believing Superman. All those years of him playing tricks to protect his identity and when he reveals it, she doesn't believe him. Totally the opposite of what I thought would happen, but it completely makes sense.
-The new key and the reference to the old giant one.
-The robot designs.
-Superman having the Titanic in the Fortress.
-References to DC One Million and JLA Classified/Seven Soldiers.
-Lois writing her thoughts out, and the black and white panels.
-Superman talking to the Mirror of Truth. He stands before it, with his shoulders slumped and Kent glasses on, while his reflection stands tall and proud.
-Superman shrugging off the Kryptonite blast.
-Forging suns to feed to the baby sun-eater.
-Superman's birthday present.
-Lois.

Things I loved slightly less:

-There wasn't a huge amount of plot progression, especially when compared to last issue, which moved at a breakneck speed.
-Superman's body type seemed to change a bit from last issue. That could easily be from coming down from the sun-bath.
-I'm really reaching with these, because the issue couldn't have been better to me.

i totally agree. i also didnt like the colors as much in this one, it was very monotone and dark, which makes sense, but i still wished there had been more to the backgrounds.

i think that the costume he has for lois looks retarded.

i hate the way quietly draws water, the showering scene looked weird.

cant wait for #3!

[Crimson Spider]

I checked this out because of your recommendation, and it was indeed a very good Superman story.

Cool. I'm glad you liked it.

[npitarra]

As a comic reader..and Quitely fan..I loved the issue. But as an outsider who is being reintroduced to superman(what the allstar line is supposed to be about)...I got a story about superman making a dress. Its all about prospective here.

[Knigge]

But as an outsider who is being reintroduced to superman(what the allstar line is supposed to be about)...I got a story about superman making a dress.
And that's not intriguing? Sounds rad to me.

[kross29]

issue three came out about 3 weeks ago and it's awesome. these are the best superman stories ever written. no whiny reflective clark. just confident and all-around awesome. kudos to morrison again.

[Crestmere]

Beautiful series.

Amazingly well written. THIS is how to bring all the wonderful ideas of the silver age in to a modern perspective (to rip off a friend of mine).

If the Silver Age ideas were handled like this, we wouldn't have had to deal with all the crap in the 80s and 90s when people tried to get rid of all of it.

The art is superb. Not sure it matches up to We3 but what does?

And I get the feeling, there will be an awesome Silver Age style twist ending.

[Crimson Spider]

I'm still immensely enjoying this book. Reading as many comics as I do, I only vividly remember the last two issues, both of which I loved. I was quite surprised that the Bizarro story turned out to be a two-parter. The cliffhanger ending was great, although the name "Zibarro" made me chuckle.

I am wondering what that glowing red cube to Zibarro's right was? Or was it behind him? I'm not sure how big it's supposed to be. Was this something that was alluded to in the book and I somehow missed it?

[Crestmere]

I'm still immensely enjoying this book. Reading as many comics as I do, I only vividly remember the last two issues, both of which I loved. I was quite surprised that the Bizarro story turned out to be a two-parter. The cliffhanger ending was great, although the name "Zibarro" made me chuckle.

I am wondering what that glowing red cube to Zibarro's right was? Or was it behind him? I'm not sure how big it's supposed to be. Was this something that was alluded to in the book and I somehow missed it?

Zibarro the bizarro bizarro was an incredibly awesome idea.

The Silver Age was such a mine for great ideas.

[Hankinstien]

I feel like I'm the only person on planet earth that really does not enjoy this book at all.

Don't get me wrong, the art is greatness, and the writing is too, I just don't like the concept. The whole "mining the Silver Age" thing is just... ehh... I just can't get into it.

I summed up my opinion the other day after reading an issue when I told my roomate "I'm really glad that SOMEONE is doing this, but I REALLY don't like it."

I guess I think the idea is worth having around, and it's being done well, I just don't enjoy it, it's too silly for me. But I'm glad someone is doing it. It's the same thing I think about the band Cake.

Anyway, that's my 2 cents. I took this off my list a while ago, and got the evil eye from everyone at the comic shop. Weird.

[davechisholm]

issue 9 slayed.
love this book.

[bindlestitch]

I gotta say I love Quitely and that is the only reason I buy this book. I just can't get into what Morrison is doing. Ish 9 seemed rushed to me, like he had a longer story to tell but wanted it done in one issue's span. I will keep getting it though, I can't do without Quitely's work.

[davechisholm]

I gotta say I love Quitely and that is the only reason I buy this book. I just can't get into what Morrison is doing. Ish 9 seemed rushed to me, like he had a longer story to tell but wanted it done in one issue's span. I will keep getting it though, I can't do without Quitely's work.

i gotta say, i went through and read all of the issues in one sitting, and this series is, in my opinion, the best comic being made right now. i can't wait for the last 3 issues of this run, to see how it ends...and hopefully an absolute edition of it...

[ntholdenuk]

I gotta lay inon this one.
I aint a big fan of Quitely, well thats a lie i like his style but i've liked it for years on the Broons(For those of you who don't know, The Broons is a cartoon strip that runs in the Sunday Post, A Scottish Paper, about a family. It has been running for about 3000 years and always has a wee funny(but not so funny) joke at the end.and to my knowledge Frank has never actually drawn this.) Franks style is very similar and thus, to me does not suit, superhero stuff. However I am quite enjoying the story in AS Superman.

[sdowner]

Issue 12 is out this week. I haven't laid my hands on a copy... yet.
I've heard it's great. Anybody want to review it? (No spoilers though, please)

[50%grey]

I did a very small review in the general discussions thread.

I think this series is perfect. I wouldn't change a thing.Franks art on this was awesome as well.

[lost-spartan]

II think this series is perfect. I wouldn't change a thing.Franks art on this was awesome as well.

Agreed, the whole series was just crazy delicious. It took me a while to come around though, I wasn't really sold on the first couple issues at the time, but the first trade hooked me for good.

[Superman1021]

Ok for those that dont understand Superman he did not die. His heart beat slowed down to almost nothing.

[Babb]

Just bought the two trades, The most fun I had reading a comic in a long, long time. If you haven't read it, its well worth it.

[samr]

I did a review of All Star Supes a while ago with some friends on our currently-stalled podcast. If you're a fan of listening to people blather on, check it out. The review starts around the half-hour mark.

The Mild Mannered Podcast--We're Superman's Pals (http://mildmanneredcast.wordpress.com/2009/05/30/the-mild-mannered-archive-4-were-supermans-pals/)

[Bevan]

Grant Morrison is possibly my favourite comic book writer and definitely my favourite superhero writer. His runs on Batman and New X-Men were amazing, though I'm generally disappointed with his JLA stuff, with the exception of JLA: Earth 2, which I love.

I'd put All-Star Superman as being the greatest superhero story ever written. The only others that come close are Dark Knight Returns (which sometimes gets self-indulgent) and Watchmen (which suffers from various problematic plot-holes). Oh, and Zot!, of course. I love Zot!

Grant Morrison is the person who really gets superheroes. He gets what they represent and he gets why they're fun. He takes them seriously enough to explore powerful stories with them, but not so seriously that he forgets what peculiar concepts they are (ironically enough, when writers try to make the heroes too "realistic" and "grim & gritty," they end up becoming totally ridiculous).