Enter the Multitude / Death of Krypton
By: Andrew Hines
There's not much DC hasn't done in it's nearly 75-year history, except maybe for what you'll see in this issue. With two parts of equal importance in this issue, with the first being these Weeping Angel-like beings, collectively called the Multitude. The second is a cameo by a renowned astronomer and astrophysicist. We may not all be fans of the Last Son of Krypton, but there's been no denying that the new direction has been...interesting. Not inherently good or bad, but definitely different. This is one of the few New 52 titles I've been interested in from square one.
Grant Morrison may not have been at his best in the last year but this is a nice turn around on that. The dialogue is good and the pacing is better than it has been for several issues. The same can be said of Superman as a character. Morrison has been going out of his way to explain exactly what's going on with the abrupt power shift that occurred between issues 7, 8 and 10. Now that he seems to finally be beyond that, he actually written a good story that stands on its own.
The pencils by Rags Morales are pretty damned good. I'm not always a fan, but these pages have made me one. Then there's Mark Probst's inks, which are pretty good. This page at right (sorry for the Maxim label at the top) should be a great example of that and Brad Anderson's colors. Really, this is the best example of the artwork in this issue. It all comes together quite well. Those colors are astounding, to say the least. Given that the main story takes place on Mars, I'm pretty sure that the reds in the background are fitting.
Sholly Fisch is the writer for the backup story in this issue. The story is actually really cool and gives us a look at the hero's perspective on his home(s). The dialogue and exposition are good, as is the sciencey stuff in here. It's an awesome backup story and maybe should have been it's own issue.
The pencils from Chris Sprouse and inks from Karl Story are good. It seems like a mix of the old Superman cartoons from the 90s and an astronomy-themed episode of Bill Nye. The colors from Jordie Bellaire are pretty good too. They are part of what helps give it the cartoon feel, that I love.
The issue is actually great, both parts of it. I give it an "A". There's something awesome in both parts of the issue. There's great art and good writing. What else do you need?
