Superman Vol 1: The Unity Saga: Phantom Earth by Brian Michael
Bendis is a spinoff from the miniseries Man of Steel. The main things one
needs to know from Man of Steel are spoilers, but you need to know them before
reading this book. One such deal is the fact that Lois and Superboy, aka
Jonathan Kent, left with Jor-El, Superman’s father (who is now alive as he was
brought back by a cosmic god to test Superman so that they would remain safe. Another
is the fact that the miniseries introduced a new villain called Rogal Zar who was
an alien that claimed he killed Krypton and everyone on it. Rogal Zar destroyed
the Fortress of Solitude, destroyed Kandour killing everyone in it, and wanted
to kill everyone on Earth. Ultimately Superman and Supergirl were able to
defeat him by throwing him into the Phantom Zone. Supergirl then left to
investigate Rogal Zar’s claims and what really happened to Krypton. Superman
sent Krypto along with her to protect her on her space trip. This leaves
Superman alone on Earth and since the communication device he had to talk to
Lois and the others was destroyed, he has no way to know if his family is safe
or where they are. He is alone.
Superman Vol 1: The Unity Saga: Phantom Earth helps establish the
new status quo for Superman in that he misses his family and has to create a
new headquarters to replace the Fortress of Solitude. He has to do that while
dealing with problems that only he can handle. One such problem is that the
Earth was thrown into the Phantom Zone and the people of Earth are being
poisoned by the atmosphere of the Phantom Zone. The bigger problem is that
Rogal Zar has taken control of the Phantom Zone which housed the worst criminal
Krpyton ever faced. Now, Rogal Zar is marshalling them under his leadership and
in intends to use them to kill everyone on Earth. Luckily Superman has help in
the form of various members of The Justice League such as The Flash, Martian
Manhunter, The Atom, and more.
Overall the action is impressive and
the story is pretty good. There are scenes that struck me as funny though I am
not sure they are actually intended to be funny. For example, the scene where
Batman reports he is too busy throwing up from the poison air came across as
funny to me.
At times the dialogue seems a little
off. For example, in a scene where Superman confesses to his son that he has a
love/ hate relationship with Batman, Superboy says that it is just like his
relationship with Lois. There are two ways to take the scene depending on how
you wish to read the dialogue. Clearly, one way would be to see it as that Superman
likes Batman in a romantic way and Superboy is asking his Dad if he is gay. I don’t
think the writer intended that, but the way the dialogue is written, one could
easily come up with that belief.
Bendis has a good understanding of
Superman, however I still don’t think Rogal Zar is that great of a new villain
for Superman’s Rogues Gallery. The author tries to hype him up. This is
especially true in regards to how strong and smart he is and yet the grand
attack plan is to lead a cavalry of flying charging monsters at the Earth while
Superman stands in front of the charge. Rogal Zar is supposed to be considered
stronger than almost any foe Superman has faced, but considering what Superman
has faced in the past, it is hard to understand why he would be scared of Rogal
Zar. It is also hard to understand why Superman tries to be merciful to him
throughout it all despite the fact that Rogal Zar has threatened to kill his
son and wife. In the previous stories where Superman’s family has been
threatened, Superman has not responded this gently. The fact that Superman
bends over backward to be merciful somewhat diminishes the idea that Rogal Zar
is a match for him.
Despite these flaws, Superman
Vol 1: The Unity Saga: Phantom Earth by Brian Michael Bendis is
enjoyable and a good place to start reading Superman. One should probably read Man
of Steel first, but one could start here easily enough.
Superman Vol 1: The Unity Saga: Phantom Earth
Brian Michael Bendis
DC Comics
March 2019
ISBN# 978-1-4012-8819-8
Hardback (also available in
paperback and digital formats)
168 Pages
$24.99
Material supplied
by the good folks of the Dallas Public Library System. My copy came from the Dallas
West Branch.
Scott A. Tipple
©2019
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