Superman by Joshua Williamson vol. 1: Supercorp

Well, the day has finally come:  I’m giving Joshua Williamson a second chance.  I’ve not really been impressed with his creator-owned work, nor what I’ve read of what he’s been doing at DC.  The latter has come off as generally formulaic and more willing to play superhero tropes straight than in finding ways to subvert them.  So I was surprised when reading “Superman:  Kal-El Returns” to see that he handled the part of “Action Comics” #1050 that Lex Luthor making an almost unthinkable admission.  That the world needs Superman.

This is… quite a change from the character’s usual mindset and not one I was ever expecting to see.  Better still is that this isn’t Luthor turning over a new leaf.  No, Williamson’s spin on the character’s new mindset is still in line with how he’s been written for years.  Even if the world needs a Superman, he’s going to be one delivered on Luthor’s terms.

Which is how this volume gets its subtitle.  Imprisoned after wiping the memory of Superman’s identity from the world (and leaving a subconscious heart attack trigger for anyone who figures it out), Luthor has turned Lexcorp over to the Man of Steel.  All of its technology and manpower will now go towards furthering Superman’s efforts to make the world a better and safer place.  Not a moment too soon either as the Parasite has just shown back up in Metropolis and he’s just beside himself with how hungry he is this time.

Parasite isn’t the only super-foe to get an upgrade in this volume, as we’re introduced to a powered-up Silver Banshee as well.  This is courtesy of some new villains in Metropolis who have old ties and scores to settle with Luthor.  Which is good because it shows Williamson isn’t going to give us a series where the friction comes from seeing Superman try to work with his oldest antagonist.  There’s actually an ongoing story being set up here – several, in fact – that speaks well for the writer’s long-term plans.

Getting back to the new Superman/Luthor partnership, theirs is not a buddy-buddy one at all.  In deciding that he’s now going to be working with his former antagonist, Luthor is determined to have him start living up to his “potential” as he sees it.  That means being more ruthless in dealing with current threats and constantly on the lookout for new ones.  The man’s trademark arrogance hasn’t been diminished at all with this new setup, and that makes it interesting to observe here.

Superman’s supporting cast also finds themselves in new positions as well.  Lois Lane is now running the Daily Planet, and it’s about time.  While she’s shown to be every bit the hardass Perry White was, she’s also not neglecting her journalistic passions here as well.  Jimmy Olsen is also back and finds himself in a very Jimmy Olsen-esque relationship, which is also kind of sweet to see.  We also get to see the staff of the Daily Planet take on different tasks for a day in an entertaining “Annual” that has stronger ties to the regular series than you’d think.

So yeah, there’s a lot of good stuff going on here that shows Williamson successfully finding new spins on familiar relationships here and making some interesting additions as well.  Are there any problems with this?  Well, his efforts here are still just recontextualizing what’s already been here, so you’re not getting a “Superman” story flush with the shock of the new.  I also wouldn’t say that the solutions to the super-threats presented here were all that clever – just examples of showing how Superman and Lexcorp are going to be working together going forward from here.  Maybe I could talk about the dialogue, but it’s perfectly fine and would likely come off as nitpicking from my end (more than this already is).

This volume also features stylishly smooth art from Jamal Campbell on the five issues of the main series collected here.  The man has been doing stellar work at DC for years now, and this is just one more example of how good a superhero artist he is.  He won’t be sticking around for the long term, which is a shame.  Neither will the artists featured in the “Annual” here, but they all do solid work in the spaces they’re given which should earn them a return trip here if they want it.

If this first volume of “Supercorp” is what I can expect to see from Williamson on this title going forward, then expect to see reviews of subsequent volumes as I start catching up on it.  The writer’s output may have been formulaic in the past, but this is a clear step up and recommended for all Super-fans.  Heck, I may have to start reading his “G.I. Joe” comics to see if they’re as smartly written as this was.