Customer Reviews

Superman: New Krypton, Vol. 1

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

People love to complain about Superman. He's too much of a boy scout, he's too powerful, he's boring--the list of criticisms against poor Supes is a long and tired one. Thank goodness, then, for Geoff Johns, the writer of the newly released Superman: New Krypton.

The story is a five-parter, with the first two chapters actually revolving around Jimmy Olsen (minor spoiler alerts ahead) as he uncovers a sinister plot to possibly eliminate Superman and every Kryptonian on the planet. The latter three chapters focus on Superman himself as he struggles to balance the sorrow of his father's death with the joy of restoring Kandor, the once miniaturized Kryptonian city, back to its full size and glory. The restoration of Kandor means Superman is no longer a stranger on Earth, as he is now joined by 100,000 members of his own species. But this also means there are now 100,000 individuals who share his powers and abilities, but who do not necessarily share his views of peaceful coexistence with the other denizens of Earth. Volume One only hints at the dire ramifications that may spring from these events, but the possibilities are enticing indeed.

But therein also lays the problem: The book stops just when the plot begins to get interesting, making it more of an introduction to Volume 2 than a work that can stand readily on its own. The world does seem to revolve around money, it seems, but this is one story that would have been best collected into a single volume. Furthermore, the erratic quality of the artwork, which fluctuates steadily throughout the book's second half, steals away some of the immersion that should be present during the book's most climactic moments.

Nevertheless, the tale is still a good read that will not only entice readers to seek out its second volume, but perhaps other Superman books also penned by Mr. Johns. Superman is experiencing a renaissance of sorts, and many of these tales should not be missed.

New Krypton volume #1 is a homecoming of sorts for the world's most famous superhero, Superman. After the events of the epic Braniac TPB the planet Earth has suddenly found itself home to roughly 100,000 new residents with one thing in common; they all possess to a degree the same super powers as a certain Man of Steel. The residents in question? The former citizens of the bottled city of Kandor of the planet Krypton. Thanks to the events in Superman:Braniac they now find themselves free of their bottled captivity and living on the planet Earth.

Surely Superman would be overjoyed with this development you say? Yes and no. Our favorite Kryptonian realizes that not every one on Earth will be ecstastic to learn that there are now in their minds 100,000 new beings all possessing the same destructive powers as Mr Kent. Certain shadowy figures in the US government echo these sentiments and this is really where our story begins.

Without spoiling the story for anyone the major overlying plot of New Krypton Volume #1 is these new arrivals and the affect it has on the world around them. It begins with a young Jimmy Olsen playing detective and uncovering a plot against not only Superman but the newly arrived residents of Kandor. It seems that although the vast majority of the Kryptonians are peace loving like Kal-El there are still a few that favor the military approach of one General Zod. These happenings and the way they unfold make New Krypton an interesting read but all in all more of a bridge between the truly epic Braniac story and the further developments to come.

I am coming into the whole "New Krypton" story fairly cold with this trade paperback. I have heard bits and pieces of what happens, but haven't been reading it as individual issues at all. I like Superman, but haven't been reading his current stories lately so starting with this TPB was a bit of a "deep end of the pool" experience. I have read the recent "Braniac" arc, however, which is key in setting up the status quo at the beginning of this story.

The book opens with a sizable story focusing on Jimmy Olsen (and in which Superman scarcely appears) which takes up nearly half of the page count, and which I found to be pretty boring. It ties into events in a previous story and is basically about Jimmy investigating and uncovering a government plot against Superman and Kryptonians in general. However, as far as I can tell, the story's real point is to introduce a villain (that one assumes will be important later on) called "Codename: Assassin" (guess what he does). It also sets up a new status quo for the Guardian, an old character who has been a Superman supporting character since shortly after "Man of Steel". Along the way, we dismissively kill off a number of other supporting characters from that era, which irked me as an old fan. The story is all right on its own merits, I suppose, but not what I was looking for by buying a trade about "New Krypton".

After that, the remaining 90 pages or so get down to the New Krypton story itself, including the funeral of Jonathan Kent (who died in "Braniac") and the repercussions of that loss for Clark & Martha; Superman's attempts to integrate the cultures of Krypton and earth together, Supergirl being reunited with her family, and the continued implications of the government conspiracy. Superman strikes one as being a bit naive about the whole thing, especially in a scene where he dismisses the concerns of the JLA and JSA quite casually. The story has a wide scope, potentially epic, with lots of business going on. Lex Luthor is involved, Braniac is part of things, Lois Lane's family plays a key role, and even Doomsday (a greater victim of villain decay than any other I can think of) makes a token appearance. The tapestry is broad but the details are shaky. It'll be interesting to see how it all plays out - whether the whole story is worth this process.

As another reviewer has pointed out, the story is just barely getting started by the end of this volume. There are another three "New Krypton" volumes to follow, as well as numerous other related TPB's featuring Supergirl and other members of the extended cast. Some of those elements are hinted at here, including appearances by the unidentified (so far) new Nightwing and Flamebird. I bought this book at the same time as Volume 2, so it didn't feel as abruptly cut off as it might have otherwise.

Overall, the New Krypton story is fine without being exemplary in any way. The characterization and pacing by James Robinson and Geoff Johns is a bit bumpy, sometimes engaging me strongly and sometimes striking me as silly and under-written. The art is all fine as well although there's a bit of a mixture of styles going on.

I'd prefer to give this book 2.5 stars if I could. If it weren't for long Jimmy Olsen tale at the beginning, I'd make it 3.5. If you like Superman or want to give him a try, you could give this book a shot but be prepared to be in it for the long haul.

This volume reprints Superman's Pal, Jimmy Olsen Special #1, Adventure Comics Special Featuring the Guardian #1, Superman: New Krypton Special #1, Superman #681, and Action Comics #871. These issues are all running in sequence, and start with Jimmy Olsen's solo adventure which probably takes place during the Superman - Braniac volume. Jimmy is looking into a story which leads him back to Project Cadmus, where he learns things that lead him on to meet the Vigilante and the latest incarnation of the Guardian. That leads in to the Guardian's story, revealing more about Cadmus, and he then returns to Metropolis where he will join the Science Police. We then reach the funeral of Jonathan Kent, and the recruitment of Lex Luthor by the mystery `villain' - he is a villain to us, but is actually working for the defence of his country, although that doesn't actually make him a better person - to try and break into the captured Braniac's memory, which hasn't been going too well...meanwhile Superman and Supergirl get to meet their relatives in the newly recovered city of Kandor, Zor-El and Alura get to meet the President of the USA, and the mystery villain released Doomsday to attack the gathered dignitaries. Unfortunately for Doomsday, Superman has a lot of super friends with him this time... Meanwhile some of Zod's followers try to steal the Phantom Zone projector from the Fortress, only to be stopped by Nightwing and Flamebird... It may sound rather a busy storyline, but it all hangs together quite nicely, and the art is excellent; and it does make an interesting springboard into the World of New Krypton serial.

When I heard about New Krypton, I couldn't wait to crack open the pages; the premise oozed with promise. Then I began reading Volume 1 of this series.

I waited for the story to be about New Krypton...and I waited... and waited. Unfortunately, the book never delivers on its promise. Instead, we have an uneven plot about a conspiracy to kill Superman, a short introduction to Kandor and a standoff with Doomsday. This volume as a standalone is ridiculous. Its all tell, no show. Poof! The city of Kandor is alive and well! But if you are looking for background on just what happened to the shrunken, bottled city of Kandor and its subsequent rescue don't look in this volume. You will have to read the story (I'm told) in "Superman: Brainiac." When the cover says Superman: New Krypton, and only one-fifth of the story is remotely about that, I feel I have been misled. It should not take this many issues to get a solid premise off the ground and flying, so to speak. DC needs to learn NOT to bury the lede. As has been written before, this book seems more like an introduction (that draaaags) than a work than can stand on its own. DC, please start placing the stories you promise on the covers in the actual books.

Because of the premise, I plan to purchase further volumes, hoping that this great idea actually delivers a great story.

Excellent Book, it made me see Superman in a totally different way. Great read. The art was fly. It was filled with adventure and action, this is a must for any true superman fan. I got mine on sale at [...].

Definilty building up to bigger things. One of the better Superman books since All-Star. You must pick up Superman: Braniac as it is a preceding story and an awesome book as well.

This book gives you the tools you need to start a Epic saga Written by Geoff Johns and James Robinson. I have just finished the 2nd and 3rd vollume. The story really picks up in book two. This is a great Superman story and great start to a very long run. The cover by the Legend Alex Ross are presented in the book wich is a major plus. If you are a fan of the bubble gum version of Smallville or Geoff Johns then this is a must read!

I'm not yet impress so far.

It began with a story so slow and pointless (at the moment) that I had to check the cover to see if I was indeed reading New Krypton. This Jummy Olsen story is writen by James Robinson, who's way of writing begun to bored me in JLA: Cry for Justice.

Anyway, after two chapters of terrible dialoge it begins... but it begins with the last 5 or 6 pages contained in Superman: Brainiac. I think they could do something new to let the readers remind Superman's grieve, but they took it from another book. I'm pretty sure they did it just so the book gets bulkier. It didn't work.

Anyway, the chapters about New Krypton were boring. Nothing happened. I thought the last chapter in the book was going to be exiting and end up with something exiting to continue the next volume. I was wrong.

The art is not quite good. I thought I was going to find more Jones/Frank sugar in here but I only got a lousy cover made by Gary Frank and that was it.

I storngly suggest you get the paperback and don't waste your money with the hardcover. Is the same information, the cover is the same and you'll save good money.

This book was fantastic! the first 2 chapters did not even include Supes but were great nonetheless! They brought back fond memories of the Cadmus project stories from the '90's when Superman was rebooted. Really great story arc.

The only reason I give this book one star less is because there is a repeat chapter in there coming from the previous book: Superman Braniac. Thats a total rip-off!

In any case, the Kryptonian portion of the book is also awesome. I see the subtle cracks showing between the Earthmen (including Superman and Supergirl) and the Kryptonians.

Great lead-in to the next book where the crap is definitely going to hit the fan! Buy it!