Comic Recap/Thoughts: Superman: Lois and Clark

Welcome to part 2 of my Road to Rebirth recaps. Today we will be covering Superman: Lois and Clark.

This is an eight issue limited series that is a Prelude to Rebirth and kind of a prequel/side story to the Final Days of Superman that I previously covered, read that recap here. I hope to give a little bit more of a review, although it turns out that I kind of like recapping. 

First things first, we have to talk about Convergence for a hot second. Convergence was a weekly comic book storyline that came out summer of 2015. The series had 9 core issues, and 40 two-issue tie-in miniseries. That is 89 total issues. Basically it was huge and took forever to make myself read. Convergence was a continuation from the weekly series Earth 2: World's End and The New 52: Futures End. Note: I actually did enjoy Earth 2 and was kind of glad they all got a mostly happy ending out of Convergence...so I will give it that. If you are going to read this you can probably get away with just reading the core issues.

Anyway, the gist of the Convergence story consists of Brainiac collecting cities and their inhabitants, from various timelines that have ended. He traps them in domes on a planet called Telos, outside of time and space. He then drops the domes, after a year (I think it was a year, everyone kept saying it had been a year) to see how the people will interact, aka, make them fight each other to the death. The event marked the return of many characters and timelines from before the 2011 "Flashpoint" storyline that had led to the creation of The New 52 Universe. In the 2 issue Superman specific Convergence we meet the pre-Flashpoint version of Superman and a very pregnant Lois Lane. Honestly not much happens in the 2 issues of note except Lois has herself a baby boy. At the end of Convergence it is not super clear what happens to all the people from the dead worlds, but we get our answer about Superman, Lois, and baby Jon in the series that I am now about to actually recap. 

Arrival Part I: So we get a little bit of back info in issue one. Seems the Superman from Convergence was not able to save his Earth from the first crisis, but because of Brainiac they were able to relocate to any Earth of their choosing. They find a home on our Earth, (I am going to say ours or mine when I mean the Rebirth main Earth.) Of course we already have a Superman. So Superman 2.0 decides to lay low. He almost intervenes when Darkseid attacks, but doesn't need to. He knows that he needs to keep an eye on things to try and circumvent any repeats from his Earth. I think we are meant to assume his timeline is at least 10 years ahead of ours. Time passes and we see a now child aged Jon (er..maybe he is 8) running around and Clark's beard is fully grown out. Close to the end of issue one we get to see our bearded Superman in his black outfit worried about a ship that is returning after a ten year mission. On his Earth this ship brought about Hank Henshaw turning into Cyborg Superman...so he wants to nip that in the bud. Lois has also been busy the last few years writing books. We see Superman having to save the ship from crashing and Henshaw coming out asking for help. We end with someone killing someone in a distant star system...

Arrival Part II: Flash back a little bit to a toddler Jon and a younger Lois working from home on her book. Clark is off doing Superman stuff in secret. The family is living in California and using the name White. Back in the present we are at the site of the shuttle crash. I don't know any of the military people...I am going to assume they are not important. Jon is having trouble in school because he was watching the news in class. Kids these days. Lois has to pick him up. They get run off the road on the way home and some black ops looking guys try to kidnap Lois and Jon. Lois fights them off with help from Jon who somehow over powers a man much larger than him. They run off and before the men can pursue them Clark shows up and beats everyone up. Clark finds his family in the woods and they all head home. It was a group called Intergang, turns out that Lois is writing a tell-all book about them. Back on the Island where the spaceship crashed, the military guys are looking for Henshaw. We end light years away where someone is torturing someone for information...

Arrival Part III: Several years ago a guy in all white, with white hair is burning down a town...with his mind. Superman shows up, he is in normal clothes and sprouting only a stubble of a beard. They fight, Superman wins by taking the guy really high in the air until he passes out (A classic Superman move). Now, full bearded Superman is chatting with Lois about keeping a low profile and what was up with those guys attacking them? Jon interrupts ready to go to school and is checking out their cool new car. Clark explains that Jon too needs to keeps things on the down low. Superman flies off to his secret cave in the Rocky Mountains. We see that Superman has Henshaw here. Henshaw wakes ups and is now tossing things around with his mind (Everyone had mind powers this issue). We soon find out it is actually the guy from the beginning of the issue, he is impression in the fortress and he is using Henshaw's body. Henshaw, via White Hair's powers beats Superman long enough to have Henshaw free him. Cut to California, a guy in a too small swimsuit is mad that his goons didn't take down one little "woman." In classic bad guy style he kills said goon by tossing him in the pool with a plugged in space heater. We end in space with someone once again killing someone...

Arrival Part IV: Flash back, we see Lois and Clark walking down a Metropolis street talking about how different some stuff is from their Earth. They buy baby Jon a Superman shirt and almost run into Jimmy Olsen. Back at their hotel we learn it is their anniversary. Important to note, Superman had spent some of his time in Metropolis investigating Lex Luthor (As seen in The Final Days of Superman). Lois gives Clark his black Superman outfit. Guess she just walked into S.T.A.R labs and took it? Perks of being Lois Lane on any Earth. Back in the present Lois and Jon are popping into her publishing company to check in on her friend. The only person who knows who she is and that she was writing a book about to expose Intergang (the bad guys that keep trying to do her harm, that I think she knows a lot about because her time line.) She finds a note knifed into the desk that says, "WE HAVE HER," very dramatic. Her and Jon leave in a rush Lois doing the usual incognito thing of putting on a baseball cap and sunglasses, while having Jon pull his hood up. They bump into a guy outside she recognizes as Bruno Mannheim, aka, the leader of Intergang. Lois is totally packing heat, but doesn't need to use it. Back at the mountain fortress Superman recovered from Henshaw/Guy in white's first attack. Superman is now fighting White Hair (I am sure he has or said his name, but meh...) directly and is trying to read Superman's mind, but then just drops a lot of mountain on him. We end somewhere close to Jupiter where someone is looking for the Oblivion Stone and it is on Earth.

Arrival Part V: Several years ago, Batman is fighting some ninjas. One shoots an arrow at his head and Superman secretly destroys it. He is recounting to Lois how he almost told Batman who he was. That he misses having others to count on. Lois says he needs friends and he apologizes for them having to live in secret. Back to the present under a mountain, Superman is trying to recover, again. Guy in white is watching from a distance, still controlling Henshaw. They assume Superman is dead and wander back into his fortress. Henshaw is starting to remember who he is. A phone rings, Lois is trying to call Clark. Guy in white answers and of course threatens to pay her a visit. Superman shows up really pissed.  Fighting take two happens. Oh, guess the guy's name is Blanque. Meh. Superman is pondering killing this guy. Lois is still on the phone. Henshaw has wandered off to a spaceship. He helps Superman by shooting Blanque with a laser, giving Superman a chance to lock the guy back up. We meet two others, Dratania and Klon...I assume they might matter later. In New Mexico a guy is getting out of jail. A camera crew offers him a job for a reality tv show. Superman and Henshaw are back on the Island where Henshaw's spaceship crashed. Superman leaves him to be discovered by military guy, thinking Henshaw is all good. As Superman flies away Henshaw pulls a stone from his pocket and his eyes glow red. In space, a scary ship arrives at Earth. Superman gets home and Lois is freaking out. (Was she on the phone the whole time?) She shows him the letter from earlier. He promises they will get her publisher, named Cora, back. They also chat about Jon, who I think is super listening in the next room. They debate telling him that Clark is Superman.

Arrival Part VI: Less than a year ago. Lois is showing Clark that the Lois of this Earth revealed that Clark Kent is Superman. He makes a joke about the beard having to be permanent. In the present, Superman is floating over San Fransisco listening really hard to find Cora, Lois's publisher, who was kidnapped by Intergang. He seems to find her. In school Jon is looking up the article about Superman from the year before and seems grumpy. Meanwhile, Superman rescues Cora. She tells Superman that she revealed who Lois was. I will note here that Lois goes by Author X in all the books she has written on this Earth. Meanwhile in Florida, that prison guy is given a huge robot suit and told he gets to destroy a bridge and that it is all on the up and up. It is for a TV show called Bad Ass Nations. Of course, turns out they didn't block the bridge or you know...okay this with anyone. Superman is rushing home. Lois and Jon are getting napped by some guys with guns. A tanker trunk on the bridge blows, catching Superman's attention. On the Island military guy is questioning Hank Henshaw. Lois and Jon are being tied up in a small shed by an Intergang goon demanding how she got all her info on the gang. Superman is still busy trying to save the bridge people. The goon starts the shed on fire and leaves. Lot of tense moments as we jump between cars falling into the water and the shed filling with smoke. Jon is crying and admits to overhearing his parents the other night. Superman starts fighting the criminal guy and in the same moment Jon busts open his ropes demanding to know who he is. Back on the Island military guy is all up in Hank's face, but is interrupted by some loud crashing. The someone who has been crossing space shows her face and names herself Hyathis. She really wants the Oblivion Stone. Superman is still fighting criminal guy and Lois and Jon breakout of the shed, seems Jon is pretty impervious to fire.

Arrival Part VII: Several years ago, we see little Jon playing with Superman and Flash action figures, while Lois brings in some groceries. Clark is waiting with a banner and some champaign to celebrate the first book published by Author X. In the present Lois and Jon make a break for it after getting out of the burning shed. Superman is still fighting bridge wreaking robot guy. He finally beats him and is really pissed. He melts the reality TV people's camera and van. On the Island our angry space lady is not taking kindly to sexism, bullets don't work on her, and she can control plants. She takes the stone from Henshaw, but turns out it is only part of it. The goons have cornered Lois and Jon and are about to shoot them up when Superman shows up stopping them and then flying off while carrying Lois and Jon. When they get home, Jon is pretty mad about being lied to and doesn't understand how there is two Supermans. Clark tries to explain that they came to this earth from another universe. Jon explains about being strong and fire proof. Superman gets a vision of lots of violence. His family safe, he flies off and Jon has to admit it is pretty cool. On the Island space lady is demanding to know where the other half of the Oblivion Stone is. We see it sitting in Superman's Mountain Fortress. (Parts of this feel like a continuity issue, but I guess it doesn't really matter when Jon found out about his dad or his own powers.)

Arrival Part VIII: Jon is at home coming to terms with his dad being Superman. He tries to fly, but lands on his face. Superman races to the Island to see Space lady torturing Henshaw. Superman and Space lady fight. She asks about the Oblivion Stone and he blanks until he remembers a necklace he came across a while back. She cuts him with her sword. He gets pretty mad and eye blasts her. They fight some more, but eventually she poofs away promising to be back. Military guy demands to know who Superman is. (Black suit must have thrown him off.) Military guy, Chambers, I guess is his name, is mad but Henshaw plays dumb. Superman flies home. He worries their cover is eroding. Lois is happy her book exposing Intergang is of to the presses. Jon is like WTF parents! You guys are really not normal. He is not wrong. Clark brings out a chest and pulls out his old cape. He gives it to Jon and explains they were just trying to keep him safe. He handles it pretty well. Clark tells him that you can't force flying, you have to just let it happen. Jon closes his eyes and relaxes. We end with him floating a foot or so off the ground. The end? For now...

       

Okay, that was a lot too. To be fair they had to cover a lot of ground pretty quickly to establish this as the Superman moving forward. My favorite part of this volume are the interactions between Lois, Clark, and Jon. I totally get why people love this family. I am not saying I have converted from the Batman family to the Super family, but they are certainly growing on me. Jon is not a brat like you see in a lot of these stories. He handles things pretty well and it is clear that this family really loves each other.

I think it is surprising how often Superman gets knocked down. He definitely loses or stalemates way more than I thought he would. I suppose I haven't read that many Superman comics so maybe he gets knocked on his butt a lot. I also think maybe this should have been read before The Final Days of Superman, but honestly not sure it matters. I am looking forward to reading more of what this family gets up to.

Best line of this Volume goes to Jon. Preach Kid.

Next week we start the Rebirth journey with DC Universe: Rebirth #1

Last Week was the Final Days of Superman.

Note: All images belong to DC™