Customer Reviews

Superman: For Tomorrow, Vol. 2

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

 

 

When this story originally came out, I canceled my subscription to whichever Superman book I was getting (there were, like, four), because I thought I'd missed something. Maybe I did; DC isn't as good at keeping their graphic novels organized in chronological order as Marvel. But I figured I didn't want to be spending money on a book I wasn't enjoying. I was surprised, too, because I loved Jim Lee's "Batman: Hush" storyline, but I didn't think about he fact that "Hush" and "For Tomorrow" had different writers, so the stories were majorly different.

Anyway, I've finally read the whole "For Tomorrow" story after all these years, and after a bit of deliberation, I've decided that I like it. It's not my favorite, but it's pretty good.

However, the story is confusing, and not in the same way that "Hush" is. "Hush" is a maze of a storyline where you're trying to find out who's responsible. "For Tomorrow" is philosophical and focuses a lot on questions of ethics, faith, doubt, and the boundaries of a super hero. It's also got a couple annoying specifics (like where Superman tells Batman that he doesn't like him, even though a few story arcs from the same time period would lead you to believe otherwise; also, what's with Wonder Woman and Halycon?), but if you can look above the story itself and focus on the basic themes behind it, it's a very interesting study of the legendary super hero. It took me a while and required me to go back and reread some parts, but I think it works.

Ultimately, I think "For Tomorrow" probably would have worked better as its own mini-series rather than being put in the main Superman books. It doesn't really gel well with the other stories of the time.

Jim Lee's art is good, obviously, though I do think he tends to go overboard with Lois Lane. There's not much else to say on that.

So I recommend reading the book (both parts; preferably in order), but I warn you that it isn't as straightforward as, say, "The Death of Superman." I also personally prefer "Up, Up, and Away" as a Superman story in case you're wondering.

This is so much better than the volume 1, it's a good story and a fresh way to re-introduce an old enemy. A darker but a very good story than the ussual storys from the world of superman, yet in this story superman gives the feeling that he is a little heart less.

This might sound hypocritical after reading my review for (the much more light-hearted) Showcase Presents: Superman, but I thought For Tomorrow was awesome. I liked it better than Broken City, and I loved Broken City.

Was it too cynical? I didn't think Superman was too dark and mopey. He did something that he thought would benefit people and it wound up biting him in the ass. Hasn't there always been Superman stories like that? Isn't that how (pre-crisis) Lex lost his hair for cying out loud? I thought the story did a great job of exploring his role on Earth as a savior, an alien, a man, and a husband. Sure there's some self doubt, but the story is epic enough and fascinating enough and entertaining enough that the doubt doesn't bring the story down at all.

And I definetly didn't think that Superman acted anything like some cocky jerk from 100 Bullets.

Great action, great art, cool villains, really neat idea for a story, as well as FANTASTIC dialogue. Why is it getting such bad reviews everywhere?

"SUPERMAN: FOR TOMORROW" is a story that's one of those slightly darker, more introspective ones that some fans have seemed to be overly critical about, but that I feel is GREAT and much-needed. It gives more depth and layers to the usually optimistic and sometimes one-dimensional Clark Kent/Superman character without straying too much or too far.

I stumbled on "For Tomorrow" in a bookstore after renewing my fan-interest in Superman mythology by watching "Smallville" DVDs. This new story is not one of the fun, black and white, 100% exhilerating action ones that most fans become addicted to. I love those kind - but this story causes you to wonder about what happens to a well-known superhero when he makes a mistake or choice that is based on his personal feelings - and then how he fixes it. So all of the negative fan comments about Superman being somewhat out-of-character, brooding, dark, full of doubt, etc... are correct, but unfortunate because I think those elements make for an incredible story. And for those fans reading this and the other reviews, don't believe that Supes is a just a doomed, inactive conversationalist here - Superman still flies around at super-sonic speed, saves the day, etc, etc. The writer, Brian Azzarello, does understand Superman's basic character - he's just taking him to a new place!

The story gives you powerful conflict and battles, cliffhangers, known and new characters and a mysterious plot that entices you through the pages.

Now that I've defended the writing, on to the most obvious praise - Jim Lee's artwork, as it also seems by the other reviewers almost unanimously, IS AWESOME! He draws Superman like I've always pictured him - incredibly musclebound and yet faster than light. Jim Lee's drawings of the Man of Steel are muscular and strong, and also then are a great paradox to some of the doubts that Supes wrestles with... SO HUMAN! And SO SUPERHUMAN all in one! BRAVO!!!!

Lee also renders spot-on depictions of Wonder Woman (my favorite version yet), Batman (of course - lots of practice from HUSH), Lois Lane, the Flash and Aquaman to name a few. Nice to see fresh drawings of familiar characters! As well as FANTASTIC inking and color!!! The visuals are hands-down the strongest part of "Superman: For Tomorrow Vol 1 & 2" (as they should be - this is a comic = visual medium).

Why four stars, not five, then? Some of the way the story unfolds is a bit confusing, and sometimes the dialogue trailing off, being incomplete or interrupted is a bit tiring. My only two real disappointments in the entire product are found at the story's conclusion. First is the direction taken with the priest. After him being a somewhat supportive and sympathetic character from the very first page, I wanted a more positive conclusion for him! (Although perhaps he could have a more redemptive role in future stories!) Second is the location of the new Fortress of Solitude... the purist side of me insists that it stays forever in the Arctic. But those are my ONLY real two quibbles.

All in all, GET THESE 2 GRAPHIC NOVELS and understand the character study explored here. Enjoy the battles and exhileration and mystery and eye-popping artwork. Brian and Jim, I hope more fans come to see what you guys did here - it's really good! WOW!

Collecting the second half of 100 Bullets writer Brian Azzarello and artist extraordinaire Jim Lee's run on Superman, For Tomorrow Vol. 2 continues as the Man of Steel finds out what caused the Vanishing: a phenomenon which caused millions of people across the globe to disappear, even Supes' beloved wife Lois Lane. When he discovers that he himself is indirectly responsible for it, Superman goes toe to toe with Wonder Woman to set things right, culminating in a reunion with Lois, and the discovery of the surprise villain pulling the strings. Just as in the issues contained in the first volume, Azzarello's storytelling isn't what you would expect from the gifted writer, and the pencils of Jim Lee with inks by his longtime partner Scott Williams are what make For Tomorrow worth a look, which is the sole reason that these issues were top sellers when this arc originally ran. Lee's mouth watering rendering of Lois Lane is by far the sexiest the character has ever looked, solidifying that Lee hasn't lost a step. All in all, fans of Lee's art will want to give this a look, but if you missed out on the single issues, you're better off waiting until a cheaper priced paper back edition of the For Tomorrow volumes is released than laying down cash for both overly expensive hardcovers.

The writing, with regard to both the actual story and the writing style, is awful. The story seems interesting at first glance, but it gets boring and confusing quickly. The style is very disjointed and poorly edited. Some examples of both are:

* The long conversations with Father Leone. And his entire sub plot. As in all of it. Snore.

* Whiny Superman. Whine Whine Whine. I'm done seeing his "sensitive" side. Let him be SuperMAN again. Let him grow some balls and get stuff done. And another thing--Superman is not some closed in, idiot liberal. He knows that the problem with humanity is not guns . . . so why would he think everyone would hug once he took them all away?

* The tiring comparisons of Superman to Jesus. Over and over and over and over. Yes, I get it, you can draw parallels between them. Can we drop it now? I don't want Superman to be Jesus. I want Jesus to be Jesus and Superman to be Superman.

* Question: how many times can you destroy the Fortress of Solitude? It's like every other story I read, someone's destroying it. This is as tired as a Superman plot device as more lost Kryptonians showing up every other week. Come up with something new, please.

* Batman being there. That's a personal peeve though--Batman, as I see it, has no place in the JLA, or in a world where Superman exists. I won't ding points for that, but I wanted to complain about it all the same.

* So the JLA gets peeved with Supes because he imposed himself on an internal national struggle somewhere, so now they all want to kill him? What did I miss? Why is he all up in Aquaman's face? And why does Aquaman go all jerk back to him? Why does Wonder Woman want to help that witch stab Superman?

* What the heck is with the alternate world that Superman created? THIS is a major problem with a lot of Superman stories--they assume that since it's a story about an alien in our world who can fly and melt steel with his eyes, then it's equally plausible that he can "create" a world to where it is possible that millions of people can be sent by weaponizing an orb he somehow built. There's no precedent for that, and to assume it is weak storytelling. And no, creating a living utopia is not the same as creating the Phantom Zone.

* The dialogue is horrible. The characters are constantly interrupting each other, and often the conversations take odd turns or abrupt changes at the turn of a page, and I lose track of what they're talking about. This happens with scenes and action, too. Many times I had to double and triple check that I didn't skip a page because things altered so quickly that I had no idea what was going on. One time I DID skip 2-3 pages accidentally and didn't catch the error for a few frames because I'd become so used to the story not making coherent sense.

* I don't want to search through it to find them all, but there were many times some kind of plot element was mentioned (one had to do with the witch or Wonder Woman giving Superman some clay?), and then they either never come up again or their explanation or usage make no sense.

* Lastly, the art. Okay, Jim Lee is flat-out incredible. I've not followed comic books seriously for nearly 20 years now, but I knew BACK THEN that you couldn't top Lee. It's like he IS comic book art and everyone else is a cover band. But I noticed something that I didn't like in this series . . . all the women looked the same. Lois. Wonder Woman. That witch lady. Look at them again. Lois's eyes are slightly different; other than that they all look identical. You know what? I'm thinking back to "Batman: Hush," now . . . and Selena Kyle looked the same as these three. Sigh. Not cool.

Superman: For Tommorow Vol. 2 is a complicated look into what makes us all human. Jim Lee's amazing visuals make the sometimes too complicated story more intraling than some would beleive. Kal-El finally makes the discovery of where the missing people went too and what has become of Lois. Superman deals with enemys from his fathers past and his own personal demons as he determines if he is truely the hero he believes himself to be.
The comic is great all around and deals with the evolution of Superman better than any other comic. It's a must have for anyone who loves the Man of Steel

Manu of the negatie reviews I see for this series have one big complaint; they did Superman all wrong. The character and manner of Superman is definitly different, but I liked the change.

Superman has been around for nearly seventy years, and when characters have been around so long, changes have to be made to make the story fresh. In this series, Clark, or Kal-El, dose a lot os soul searching about his heritage. He thinks much about his father and Krypton, and even insists that people call him Kal-El rather than Clark. This is a darker, more conflicted Superman, who is trying to come to terms with a crisis that e inadvertantly is responsible for. The image of good old and naive farm boy from Kansas is nowhere to be seen. I liked the cahnge, though. Why can't Superman change? Is he not allowed to get depreesed or angry? All well written characters must occasionally stray from thier stereotype.

The only reason I gave it a 4 instead of a five is because the dialogue got confusing sometimes. I had to read over more than once to get the meaning, but just because it is a comic doesn't mean you don't have to think and interpret.

Bottom line: if you want to read a series, keeping an open mind, with a different take on Superman, you will most likely enjoy this. If you want the same old Superman thats been around for years, do not buy this.

I had hoped that this volume would pick things up a bit from the overly preachy first volume, but man, it just gets worse! After discovering what caused the "Vanishing" of a million people a year before, Superman travels into another dimension to "save" them. Of course, waiting in the wings is everyone's favorite third-personist, General Zod, in a move that the writer probably thought would illicit cheers, and instead falls flatter than Ashley Simpson's non-memorexed voice. And it's not that I don't like Zod - I LOVE Zod! - but part of Zod's charm is in his "Kneel before Zod!" bluster that is nowhere to be found in this incarnation.

I've read 100 BULLETS, and I think it rocks, but what is writer Brian Azzarello's strong suit in that book is his kryptonite here. The flawed characterization and questions of faith and identity might have worked for characters like Hal Jordan or Connor Kent, but this is SUPERMAN, for cryin' out loud! What other character (other than Batman) is AS constant in his core beliefs than Clark Kent? And that's another thing that seems to be a trend with certain writers - when did the JLA start referring to Superman as KAL? Superman was raised as Clark Kent, and even the moniker Superman was given to him, not one he chose for himself. Ultimately, that's the biggest problem here - it's like Azzarello doesn't quite know Superman himself, and allows HIS questions about the character to overtake the entire story.

Even the moments that should have provided the ever-stunning Jim Lee with some lavish art - the fight between Superman and Wonder Woman, the conversation with Batman on the rooftops of Gotham, the final battle with Zod - have an anti-climactic feel to them. Throw in the introduction of a human-hybrid killer that smells of S.E.T.H. from the AUTHORITY, some secondary characters that are cliche ( the priest with cancer, the hard-as-nails merc), a rushed ending (wouldn't it have been somewhat interesting to see what the returned people felt after spending a year in an artificial Heaven and then being plopped back on Earth? Talk about a buzzkill!), and the icing on the cake - the destruction of the Fortress of Solitude, which in and of itself wouldn't be so bad had it not been rebuilt in the Amazon, which is like rebuilding the Batcave in the Grand Canyon - and you have one of the more disappointing Superman stories of the new millenium. Do yourself a favor and buy either SUPERMAN: BIRTHRIGHT by Mark Waid and Leinil Yu, or the SMALLVILLE t.v. show-inspiring SUPERMAN FOR ALL SEASONS by Jeph Loeb and the incomparable Tim Sale.

For Tomorrow, Vol. 1 was fairly decent. . .I was looking forward to Vol. 2 very much. But then, when I finally picked it up and started reading it, I didn't get more than halfway through--essentially, right around the point where the reason for the disappearances is revealed. I idly flipped through the rest of the book, and it didn't get any better. A disappointingly BAD Superman story.