Superman #12

[Superlad93]

Just looking back at Bendis' Man of Steel because I find that book continues to prove that it acts as a forecast to what Bendis is currently doing. There's fairly obvious stuff like Jon's growth spurt and comment about the "Legion of kids that can take care of themselves" foreshadowing the age up, him having to go it alone and take care of himself on Earth-3, and the reintroduction of the Legion.

But if my theory on Zaar being a half kyrtonian comes to pass then Man of Steel seems to have pointed to it pretty hard. Like, now I'm just now realizing that Rogol Zaar and Jon Kent operate on a sort of parallel structure throughout most of the story, and at the end their inter-cutting stories make up all of issue issue 6, and Superman perfectly in the middle of it all. Zaar is what happens when a scared and confused half kryptonian (or any child really) isn't raised with love and understanding. I think that may be partly why Bendis has been so upfront about Jon not coming back bad. It's because the cracked mirror version of him is his uncle.

I noticed that both Jon and Zaar make propositions to their "guardians" (Lois and Clark for Jon, and The Circle for Zaar) and both have ulterior motives when they make there requests. Jon says he wants to leave for space because the Titans didn't accept him and he's scared there may be something wrong with him, but in reality his fear goes far deeper in regrades to his place in the universe, and he's worried about the legacy he'll have to take on. Zaar says that Krypton will wreck the galaxy as it seeks more power, but in reality it's far more personal and (likely) about being abandoned as an El. Even the wording that the "guardians" of both use is mirrored. They talked about how they want to know Zaar was "heard" and how he's not being "ignored." Lois makes sure Jon should never feel bad about expressing himself. And funny enough, both sets of guardians acknowledge (for wildly different reasons obviously) that they wouldn't be able to stop their kids from doing the thing they want to do. Later on in Superman Jon even parallels Zaar preferring to live in solitude in a harsh environment.

I also found it very telling that even though Zaar used Zor-El's device, she'll be the one that sends him to the Zone, and ultimately it's Kara's story to find out about him and the ax, Zaar is written to literally bat Kara way as an annoyance that he'd deal with later almost as a formality, but Clark has his undivided attention and hate. And Zaar specifically says "your bloodline must end once and for all. Just like I once promised Jor-El" Then later he asks if Clark has father and children with anyone on Earth. Half kryptonian children as described by Jor-El are all but impossible.

Clark dealing with the sins of his father, ultimately being his brother's keeper, and trying to make sure the mistakes of the past are not repeated with his son. If this is the case, the this makes Jon critical to the plot down to a conceptual level, but it keeps Clark as clearly our main protagonist who has to right the wrongs.

This would also "half kryptonian" scar on Jon's face is in fact there to mirror his uncle Zaar.

[Superlad93]

Forgive me for the double post.

I also noticed that--and this could just be a super dumb coincidence--but in the Superman book the only two characters shown to consume food of any kind are Zaar and Jon. Obviously that's not to say no one else eats just because they're not shown, but for whatever reason Bendis has made it a point to show these two characters eating several times. While Zaar, like Jon, is stated to be powered by a yellow sun, they both seem to hold onto some portion of their powers longer than normal (if not indefinitely) so long as they are fed.

In addition to that, in issue 6 Clark is wondering about the secrets of Rogol Zaar, and one of the things is wonders is "now I may never find out how Rogol Zaar, this completely unique creature, seems to always be able to conjure the power and energy to fight back." Then in Man of Steel Jor-El specifically calls Jon "unique," in Superman issue 8 Lois calls him "one-of-a-kind," and then earlier in that issue Jon essentially calls himself unique by saying he "shouldn't even be a thing." As stated by issue 8, the only reason Kelex is able to identify Jon as a Earth-kryptonian hybrid is because he has previous scans. So, it could stand to reason that if no one actively scanned Zaar beforehand with the knowledge of his biology like Jon, they wouldn't know what sort of creature he was aka they wouldn't know he was a kryptonian.

And the odd comment about Zaar seeming to have the power to "conjure" up more energy and power as he demands it may be Bendis picking up the long theorized plot thread from Rebirth that Jon has the power to increase his powers based on his emotional level. If the same thinking were applied to Zaar, and we add in his deep, deep hate for all Kryptonians and the house of El, then it's no wonder where he's getting the power from.

[Vordan]

I liked today’s issue. Kara and Jon teaming up makes me happy. Zod’s plans make sense and I liked the whole “super speed” trick Be dis is having the Superfamily do. I guess we’ll see what the revelations are next issue.

[Robanker]

This was an interesting issue! Some thoughts:

Krypto is such a good boy.

The big House of El reunion hug was an earned moment considering how split up they've been for a while now. The juxtaposition of both El patriarchs at the bottom of the page is obscenely powerful.

Jor-El has "children," huh? The theory that Zaar is Clark's brother, or half brother, is certainly a way to make his vendetta that much more personal. I don't really love the idea of corrupting Jor-El, but I'll wait for the story to unfold.

I do appreciate Clark at least acknowledging that Lois is going to be furious for making such a big decision for their son, but given that he IS an adult and how overprotective Clark was at the onset of Rebirth, it's interesting to see where he's come since then. Between his apprehension in Man of Steel and here, Clark really does seem to be learning that he needs to take a step back and let his son flourish in his own right now that he's a young man.

Are they in some planet's atmosphere? I forget. I'll imagine they are so that they can communicate without assistance. Once again, Bendis uses Clark's super speed to a fun effect! Clark giving Zod a good haymaker just for good measure was an equally fun move. He's not perfect, I imagine that one was more for him than necessary, because he's clearly shaken by what Zod said, but that doesn't change who Zod is and that Clark probably always wants to deck him one.

Reaaaallly hate "what would Batman do." You're the son of one of the universes's greatest super scientists, a scientist yourself, a world-class journalist married to it's best journalist, and lest we forget, SUPERMAN! Between here and in Action #1000, I really wish writers would stop having everyone in the DCU think of Batman whenever they need to make a brave or intelligent decision, or at the VERY least Superman. He shouldn't need to consult a his Rolodex to solve his own problems that are well within his own skill set.

While I wish Kara, Krypto and Jon's mission was explained a bit better, I am excited to see where they go with this.

Reis continues to kill every page. I don't know what he does to meet those deadlines, but I'm glad he can.
In all, it's a good time to be a Superman fan. I'm definitely looking forward to the next issue.

[Kuwagaton]

Jon's suit at the very least has atmosphere abilities that project... probably to some convenient distance. And Batman has always been his detective consultation so there's no shame in that.

There should be shame in the rest of this issue though. I don't actually care about the mystery and that sort of makes this worse, but no reader should be buying because of a ransomed plot, buying for 18 issues up to this. This was the most blatant stall and I really hope the second trade doesn't end here.

[catman]

Superman killed Rogol Zaar and his followers with Heat Vision?
Doesn't it contradict his no killing code?

[boltmonster]

Everyone keep in mind that this is the New 52. An unstable universe with constant changes.

[beetee]

Superman killed Rogol Zaar and his followers with Heat Vision?
Doesn't it contradict his no killing code?

It was the combined heat blast of Superman, Supergirl and Jon. I've always suspected that the Supes could modulate their eye beams. Rogol Zar was definitely not harmed, only stunned. I figure the others were stunned as well (maybe a little singed).

[Man_of_Tomorrow]

Although I like Bendis' run so far. I am ready for this storyline to close. we get too little plot per issue. I wonder if Bendis was stalling for doomsday Clock to come out. So he can properly introduce the Legion. And that meant expanding the unity saga past its original issue number.

His voice and use of Superman though. They are always so on point. It's amazing how well he writes Superman.

[Kuwagaton]

Yeah, those are two things in contrast: the way he treats character vs plot. The plot thing... I probably sounded harsh before. The pace is ridiculous, but it's fixed by a binge read and then it's actually a really good time with incredible art. I can't believe Reis is so much better than he was on Action, and unlike the unfortunate Paquette his spreads are split about perfectly across the two print pages. The fact that Superman 12 and Supergirl 31 are essentially the same comic takes me back to the Triangle days where the writers were tight with each other so you got a much bigger story than a regular month could fit.

[Jon Clark]

Yeah, those are two things in contrast: the way he treats character vs plot. The plot thing... I probably sounded harsh before. The pace is ridiculous, but it's fixed by a binge read and then it's actually a really good time with incredible art. I can't believe Reis is so much better than he was on Action, and unlike the unfortunate Paquette his spreads are split about perfectly across the two print pages. The fact that Superman 12 and Supergirl 31 are essentially the same comic takes me back to the Triangle days where the writers were tight with each other so you got a much bigger story than a regular month could fit.

See, the "matching" scenes in Superman and Supergirl actually pulled me out of the story as the details were so off. Who spoke changed. What was said changed. I was actually wishing for a more coordinated take between the two books so that they really felt more like two views of the same incident. This felt more like seeing the Pre-Flashpoint and Post-Flashpoint adaptations.

[Kuwagaton]

It seemed like of all the changes were directed at readers who didn't get both. You could synch the stories up more and do a note to check the other title for reference, but I also think it's nice to let the issues stand alone.