Graphic Novel Review: Superman vol. 1: Son of Superman by Peter J. Tomasi and Patrick Gleason

About:
Superman vol. 1: Son of Superman by Peter J. Tomasi and Patrick Gleason (illustrated by Patrick Gleason and Doug Mahnke) is a graphic novel which introduces the world to the “new” Superman…. Kind of. This graphic novel collects issues #1-6 and the Superman: Rebirth one shot.

• 176 pages
• Publisher: DC Comics
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1401267769

My rating for Superman in Superman vol. 1: Son of Superman – 4
Buy Superman in Superman vol. 1: Son of Superman from Amazon.com*
More Books by Peter J. Tomasi
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Thoughts:
I have enjoyed everything Superman since I was 9 years old, but I didn’t enjoy many of the Superman iterations DC Comics has put the Man of Steel through (electric Superman, I’m looking at you). This is one of the reasons I’m always skeptical when DC introduces a new version of my favorite hero.

The Superman in Superman vol. 1: Son of Superman by  Peter J. Tomasi and Patrick Gleason (illustrated by Patrick Gleason and Doug Mahnke) is not a “new” one, but an old one. This is the Superman from the 70s, 80s, and 90s making a return after the “strong silent type” Superman of The New 52 died in battle.

The issues is new Superman encounters is that his predecessor left several things unsettled before going off and dying. Namely he wasn’t married, didn’t have kids and was dating Wonder Woman. No one on this Earth knows who this Superman is, and they don’t know what to think of this Superman, a beacon of hope, who finds himself being a stranger on a strange planet once more.

The real strength of this book, however, is Superman’s new role to a mischievous son. Superman has always had the father figure role in the DC Universe. He might be the Big Blue Boy scout, but he does keep the Justice League in line when needed.

As a general rule, I’m not a big fan of kids in my heroic stories. I dislike the movies and books where kids save the day, knowing full well no kid can do so and The Goonies would end in 5 minutes if everyday kids were in it. Superman’s son, as written, is an extremely likable character through (as is Damian Wayne, the new Robin, a great addition to the DC Universe).

All in all, this is a great book. The art is charismatic and dynamic, the characters are new yet familiar at the same time – it’s simply fun.

Synopsis:
Superman died defending Earth, but watching closely was Superman from another timeline. This Superman / Clark Kent has married Lois Lane and a father to young Jon Kent (Superboy).

As if this was not complicated enough, the Eradicator, a Kryptonian machine, appears trying to protect the Kryptonian genome at the expense of everything else including those the Last Son of Krypton holds dear.

Buy Superman in Superman vol. 1: Son of Superman from Amazon.com*
More Books by Peter J. Tomasi
More Books by Patrick Gleason

Zohar — Man of la Book
Dis­claimer: I got borrowed this book from a friend.
*Ama­zon links point to an affil­i­ate account