PKJ Action Comics Discussion and Spoilers

[Zagre]

Goddamn that art is making me hyped!

Also love how Loughridge has been making his (warworld) colours more vibrant as the story progresses.

[HsssH]

I'm liking the idea of Warworld being connected to the "Third World". Maybe Aethyr is also from the old world?

As for the character returning, would anyone really lose their minds about Black Racer or Lightray coming back? Has Power Girl returned? I know she is appearing in that mini with Red Tornado, but supposedly it is out of continuity.

[Ra-El]

Space Cabbie?

Brainiac? Maybe he will show up at the end and shrink Warlworld?

I would really like to see the classic Maxima make a cameo, PKJ could do with Almerac what he did with Warworld.

[Vordan]

Also love how Loughridge has been making his (warworld) colours more vibrant as the story progresses.

I have no idea if it’s deliberate or not, but yeah seeing the coloring get more and more vibrant as Superman begins his revolution against Mongul is a fantastic little touch.



It’s a great artistic signifier that Supes is regaining momentum in his push to unseat Mongul and that there’s hope again for victory.

Space Cabbie?

Brainiac? Maybe he will show up at the end and shrink Warlworld?

God yes he’s one of the Rogues I would absolutely kill to see PKJ write and Federeci draw. He was in that main spread ad for Infinite Frontier but aside from his part in Superman & the Authority he hasn’t played much role in either of the two ongoings. I don’t know if he’d show up just yet, after Warworld we’re going back to Earth and I can’t see Brainiac being anything but the focus of his own arc.

I would really like to see the classic Maxima make a cameo, PKJ could do with Almerac what he did with Warworld.

Hell yeah, her and Almerac need to get fleshed out. She feels like a possible choice although I don’t know how much of a “fan favorite” she is outside of here.

[The Frog Bros]

Also love how Loughridge has been making his (warworld) colours more vibrant as the story progresses.

Yeah, the red in the cape and logo really make these panels pop.

What I've loved about the color palette of this entire arc are the different hues used for different parts of Warworld. The color difference between the gladiator pits and the more muted colors of the underworld areas in particular have a noticeable impact on the narrative overall.

Space Cabbie?

Brainiac? Maybe he will show up at the end and shrink Warlworld?

I would really like to see the classic Maxima make a cameo, PKJ could do with Almerac what he did with Warworld.

I've been thinking about Maxima lately, especially after having recently read Exile and the issue of AC (#651) where Maxima has been watching Supes do his thing in gladiatorial combat on Warworld, thereby catching her attention.

[Ascended]

Almerac and Maxima are one of the least defined corners of the Super-verse and I've been waiting for somebody to realize that and capitalize on it. PKJ seems like an ideal writer for such a thing, but after everything with Warworld would he have any interest in developing the Almeraci Empire and it's queen ruler?

[Vordan]

Almerac and Maxima are one of the least defined corners of the Super-verse and I've been waiting for somebody to realize that and capitalize on it. PKJ seems like an ideal writer for such a thing, but after everything with Warworld would he have any interest in developing the Almeraci Empire and it's queen ruler?

It seems like Action will rotate between Earth and Space. We’re going back to Earth for a bit, so she wouldn’t show up there, but he’s already set up a team up between Supes and the GLs in the future:




She could show up here potentially or show up later as part of her own arc. Her character archetype is 100% in his ballpark though lol, I wish I had asked what he thought about her because I do think she and Almerac would be of interest to him.

[exile001]

Just read the latest issue. I love this book SO MUCH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I just recently got the Warworld Rising tpb and it's really good, too. I'd skipped most everything up to Superman & The Authority/Superman on Warworld stuff as the first several issues of both books were Clark/Jon stuff and I'm just not interested.

Also really like Jon's book under Taylor. It's the Superman and Son thing I have no interest in, separately I obviously love Clark and Jon is finally getting a character. His relationship with Nightwing is gold (mostly because Dick is one of DC's greatest characters).

[Ascended]

She could show up here potentially or show up later as part of her own arc. Her character archetype is 100% in his ballpark though lol, I wish I had asked what he thought about her because I do think she and Almerac would be of interest to him.

Maxima became a character I very much wanted PKJ to write as soon as his Last God came out. After seeing what he's done with Warworld and Clark, I'm even more eager to see what he could do.

Vordan, where did you hear that we'd be jumping between earth and space? Not that I doubt you, but other than the next arc returning to Metropolis, I hadn't heard anything about PKJ's plans. If he does intend to do more space stuff then Maxima seems almost likely.

I've always said that Almerac, Warworld, and the 5th dimension (the Zone too, to a lesser extent) were long standing, classic elements of the mythos that are barely defined and it amazed me that this could be the case after so many decades of material. Maybe the universe sent PKJ to us so he could remedy that.

[Vordan]

Maxima became a character I very much wanted PKJ to write as soon as his Last God came out. After seeing what he's done with Warworld and Clark, I'm even more eager to see what he could do.

Same, that’s why I said she feels like a character he would take an interest in. Maxima is essentially a Conan character In Space, so I wouldn’t be surprised if he thought she had potential. The Queen character from The Last God reminds me of Maxima, if she were attracted to an utterly rotten version of Kal. They both are in love with champions known for their strength, champions seen as great heroes and saviors, and both champions also don’t return that love because they are into someone else. But Kal is a good person at heart and that king character… is definitely not given how he treats his children, wife, and subjects.

Vordan, where did you hear that we'd be jumping between earth and space? Not that I doubt you, but other than the next arc returning to Metropolis, I hadn't heard anything about PKJ's plans. If he does intend to do more space stuff then Maxima seems almost likely.

It’s not something PKJ has confirmed, aside from his early pitch for his run being that he wanted to write Superman as a cosmic epic which mandates being out in space, all we know about his future plans so far are that we’ll be going back to Metropolis for a spell, and that Metallo will likely be that arc’s villain given what he said in the AMA and how he responded to someone wishing for more focus on Metallo on Twitter. But the pics I showed are clear story teases and that is clearly setting up more space adventures. Besides you also have to take Jon into account. Jon isn’t giving up the Superman mantle and his book isn’t supposed to end, but it’s unlikely that there’s going to be two Supermen patrolling Metropolis at the same time for long. They want to give Jon his space so that means Clark has to go.

PKJ wants to do world building for Metropolis and he is aware that there are people who want Lois and the rest to show up occasionally, so my theory is that we will keep rotating arcs between the stars and Earth. That lets him bring those characters in enough so we don’t get for too long without them showing up, while still allowing for the run’s main focus to be Superman and the Authority kicking ass in outer space.

I've always said that Almerac, Warworld, and the 5th dimension (the Zone too, to a lesser extent) were long standing, classic elements of the mythos that are barely defined and it amazed me that this could be the case after so many decades of material. Maybe the universe sent PKJ to us so he could remedy that.

Yeah I’d love to see Almerac culture get the same fleshing out that Warworld is getting. The 5th Dimension could be a lot of fun too, Mxy is another Rogue with strong fantasy elements to him that I think PKJ could have a lot of fun with. When Mxy is played as a serious threat he’s basically an evil sorcerer or even an evil god, and PKJ has written the latter in The Last God well.

The Phantom Zone feels like it has to be the next area of focus after Warworld. Steve Gerber already did some worldbuilding for the Zone in his The Phantom Zone mini which I highly recommend checking out if you haven’t already. Gerber set it up so that the Zone is a product of a Lovecraftian god, Aethyr, who “dreams” it into being, and Gerber gave the Zone “layers”. The outermost layer is the one we know, the realm of nothingness with intangible prisoners and floating desolate islands, but the deeper layers hold much more. Won’t go too much into specifics for those who haven’t read but the deeper layers hold threats that can hurt or kill even someone as powerful as Pre-Crisis Superman and are not desolate at all but hold creatures and bizarre characters.

Given PKJ references Aethyr in that Annual where the House of El members get trapped in the Zone, even recanonizes that Aethyr shapes the PZ via will, I expect it will be an area of focus for upcoming stories and I’m excited. The Zone has always struck me as having more potential than how it’s traditionally been used. I’d prefer to see it more like a Daedric realm from the Elder Scrolls games, and that seems to be the direction we might be going in again.

[guanlishabi]

I think the fan favorite character that will make a return may very well be Maxima.
Since PKJ is paying homage to the Superman Exile story from the 90s, I think.
Also the Hooded Man that killed Mongul’s sons, I think it may be Midnighter from the future.
In Future State Midnighter book, a future version of Midnighter goes to Warworld at the end, and we haven’t seen that Midnighter since.
So could it be a plot thread from Future State?

[guanlishabi]

Also, I’d be interested to see how PKJ makes Brainiac different from Mongul,
Since technically both of them are World Collectors now.
I think PKJ definitely will have more world building for all these characters.

[HsssH]

I think the fan favorite character that will make a return may very well be Maxima.
Since PKJ is paying homage to the Superman Exile story from the 90s, I think.
Also the Hooded Man that killed Mongul’s sons, I think it may be Midnighter from the future.
In Future State Midnighter book, a future version of Midnighter goes to Warworld at the end, and we haven’t seen that Midnighter since.
So could it be a plot thread from Future State?

It wasn't same Midnighter that we later got in Action backups and Midnighter Annual?

[Ascended]

Same, that’s why I said she feels like a character he would take an interest in. Maxima is essentially a Conan character In Space, so I wouldn’t be surprised if he thought she had potential. The Queen character from The Last God reminds me of Maxima, if she were attracted to an utterly rotten version of Kal. They both are in love with champions known for their strength, champions seen as great heroes and saviors, and both champions also don’t return that love because they are into someone else. But Kal is a good person at heart and that king character… is definitely not given how he treats his children, wife, and subjects.

I thought the same thing. Reading that queen character was like reading a beta test for Maxima, and I loved it. And it looks like I'm not the only one who forgot all their names either?

It’s not something PKJ has confirmed, aside from his early pitch for his run being that he wanted to write Superman as a cosmic epic

>rest clipped to save space<

Solid reasoning. I wouldn't be surprised if you're right. I hope you are, I'd love to see this guy tackle Almerac and the Zone. And if he can do something with Metallo that finally elevates that guy? We might have to start considering PKJ for "top creator" status. Hopefully all the chaos up the chain with Discovery doesn't screw with what PKJ is doing, this guy's run could become definitive if DC stays out of his way and lets him do his thing. I know the sales aren't any better than usual but with Clark, a lot of the time the best runs aren't recognized until after the fact. Triangle era didn't set the charts on fire either, but is still influencing the line twenty+ years later.

[Yoda]

PKJ making me actually find Maxima interesting would be a true accomplishment. I simply do not see anything at all interesting about that character in any of the incarnations I've encountered over the years.