Action Comics 976 Discussion

[Kuwagaton]

This never really was an Oz story, though. What we do know is that Superman was split apart, we pretty much know who did it, we found out who the fake Clark was and why, and we saw Superman get merged.

So now instead of having two Supermen, we have one. We don't have a Frankenstein continuity, we have a 5th Superman. And yet, instead of being the 5th version of Superman, it's actually Superman version 3. Post crisis and New 52 effectively become version 3A and 3B. We've also had Crisis erased, so we have a clear link to the pre-crisis Superman on the table.

[Naruto1996]

I think Jon is going to be the real threat to Doc Manhattan, I imagine him to be a key player in the final battle, I do not think it's a coincidence that he stole 10 years and Jon is that old

[victorsage]

This never really was an Oz story, though.

If this has nothing to do with Oz, and his captured army of ragtag characters has nothing to do with this, then why has he been a part of these stories at all?

[Kuwagaton]

His ragtag army isn't really important. We know that for one thing, the most powerful prisoner we've seen was simply captured due to his chaotic nature, not recruitment. The point of that in the story was that it drove Mxy further down this road.

Naruto, I don't think so. I mean in that case he could have just killed Jon. Superman is the one who came back from death and all of the other obstacles thrown his way, the hero who has crossed barriers to snatch victory. Jon's victory here is just activating Superman.

[victorsage]

His ragtag army isn't really important. We know that for one thing, the most powerful prisoner we've seen was simply captured due to his chaotic nature, not recruitment. The point of that in the story was that it drove Mxy further down this road.

Then what is his purpose in this story? From "the button" to everything else has hints that Oz is going to be playing a big role here, if he doesn't why bring him about? Just to bring in Mxy? You could bring in Mxy without having to bring in Oz.

No Oz has a role to play here, he has a bigger part to play then just as the guy who had Mxy,

[Calvinr]

Enjoyable arc all in all, but just like JLvsSS it hasn't really answered much, got just as many questions now though lol. I mean maybe Oz is trying to help? Someone else posted a pic from it, but it seems that just like in infinite crisis where superman was the anchor for everything it would appear the same applies here in the rebirth story maybe?

Am pretty sure Superdad will remain the dominant entity out of the two, considering he has by far the more history, looking forward to merged supes interactions with the batman, flash, Wally and the others who know something is not right..what new knowledge can he bring to the table?

[Hope Returns]

Am sorry......... Fanboy Drive- by...............Please don't kill me.............. I miss the beatdowns/brawls/super mega untimate blood fights..............even if theirs bad writing ......................T_T

On a serious note though, I love the plot so far.

[David Walton]

This never really was an Oz story, though. What we do know is that Superman was split apart, we pretty much know who did it, we found out who the fake Clark was and why, and we saw Superman get merged.

So now instead of having two Supermen, we have one. We don't have a Frankenstein continuity, we have a 5th Superman. And yet, instead of being the 5th version of Superman, it's actually Superman version 3. Post crisis and New 52 effectively become version 3A and 3B. We've also had Crisis erased, so we have a clear link to the pre-crisis Superman on the table.

Exactly. In terms of content, "Superman Reborn" met all my expectations as to what would be revealed (and what wouldn't).

In terms of execution, it exceeded them. I thought it was exceptionally well done. A real standout amongst the countless times we've seen similar resets.

I was first introduced to Superman comics during the 90s, so I'm a fan of the 'rolling subplots' from the triangle era. It would be, quite frankly, disappointing if they'd given much more than a tease about Oz and "Him." That's part of the fun: one mystery resolved, several others raised.

Which is why I'm so happy to see that technique applied across the DCU as a whole, and executed well.

[Kuwagaton]

Then what is his purpose in this story? From "the button" to everything else has hints that Oz is going to be playing a big role here, if he doesn't why bring him about? Just to bring in Mxy? You could bring in Mxy without having to bring in Oz.

No Oz has a role to play here, he has a bigger part to play then just as the guy who had Mxy,

Not here. This is the problem with the solicit culture, which was actually created by DC. After providing the catalyst, Oz sits outside the story as an observer. The story is about Mxy vs Superman and stuff like "the button" don't factor in. "The button" isn't even mentioned, iirc. Reading these four issues don't leave that particular expectation unsatisfied, but if you read these previews making general statements about the larger Rebirth mystery, you are likely to come away expecting an incredible wealth of answers for a run of comics that is decidedly light on infodump.

As for bringing in Mxy without Oz... no. Had it not been for Oz, Mxy would have pestered Superman like usual and gone home some time ago. Working him up and failing to stop him from cutting loose is what set the whole plot into motion.

[David Walton]

Am sorry......... Fanboy Drive- by...............Please don't kill me.............. I miss the beatdowns/brawls/super mega untimate blood fights..............even if theirs bad writing ......................T_T

On a serious note though, I love the plot so far.

LOL

One reason I'm really loving Rebirth is that I feel like they've found a nice balance between 'action' and 'adventure.' We get Superman slugging it out with Doomsday or trapped on a hostile alien world fighting for Lex Luthor's life without his powers, and we also get a day at the Hamilton County fair, a Super-sons team-up, and a supernatural mystery deep in the woods.

This is, in my humble opinion, shaping up to be the best of times for Superman fans.

[David Walton]

I also feel the need to point out that comics are a visual medium, and much of their merit is derived from the way the story is depicted. It's not a Wikipedia entry.

So for me, personally, even what you might call the 'story-lite' parts of "Superman Reborn" knocked it out of the park because of the things that were said through the artwork. The Daily Planet in Mxy's whole 'neverwhere' setup was freaking GORGEOUS, and the way it's falling apart around New52 Supes and Lois while Jon tries to convince them they're really his parents is a sight to behold.

But only if you take the time to truly look!

[RedWhiteAndBlueSupes]

Assuming we can talk spoilers here...this was all totally meaningless as a story unto itself, right? The merger had nothing to do with Mxy or Mr. Oz, but we don't know what actually caused it or the mechanics of them being split in the first place, nor do we have any real sense yet of what it actually did, the New 52 guys showing up again meant nothing, and the emotional crux of Lois and Clark rediscovering their love is all but empty when they've already been back together for almost a year. It was nothing but an unexplained, contextless series of random events resulting in something we can't even begin to articulate yet. This didn't just lack answers, it actively resisted them on all fronts, and rather than heightening the mystery it just left the whole thing a pointless mess without emotional catharsis or as-yet comprehensible consequence. I literally cannot say what happened beyond "Mxy peaced out, and then Superman and Lois believed real hard because of Jon so SWIRLY ENERGY, and then something happened to continuity that gave Superman a better costume, and then they all went home". If it was going to amount to so little, why didn't they just merge at the end of Final Days rather than dragging this out for what turned out to be no reason at all?

^^^^^^this X10
Seriously "One Moment in Time" was better than this

[manofsteel1979]

Nuperman and Superdad are dead....LONG LIVE SUPERMAN!

So, at last here we are. After nearly a year of speculation and debate we are back to ONE Superman and ONE continuity for Superman that, all indications are, includes all the big stuff from the last 31 years of stories, if not further back. So most of Post Crisis, most New52 where it doesn't completely contradict the Superman/Lois status quo,and perhaps even some new wrinkles thrown in. Also judging from Mr OZ's dialogue, the merging of the two Supermen has fixed the timeline across the spectrum of the DCU. If that is the case and wasn't just lip service for just the Superman readers and this side of things, this issue, and likely ACTION 1000 in a year ish time, are going to be likely THE pivotal moment in the ongoing saga of the DCU with Superman and Lois where they should be...at the center of all things. The Patriarch and the matriarch of the DCU officially once again as it SHOULD be.

So I'm happy at the RESULT of this story and what it's intentions seem to be. Execution is what is key though, and it could easily be sloppily handled and in a few years we are talking of another reboot,but right now I am cautiously optimistic for the future and health of Superman and DCU continuity.

That all being said, as a story in of it's own, SUPERMAN REBORN , and particularly this issue, feels like less an actual story but more of a teaser trailer for an even larger story yet to come, which was to be expected I guess given we have the looming WATCHMEN vs. DCU story and of course ACTION 1000. However I think we were owed MORE in terms of answers than we got, particularly WHEN Superman was split and HOW. Yes, the important thing is that the time refugee stuff was fixed and we have one Superman and Lois again,but as someone above said, We could have saved a whole lot of handwringing and speculation if we just had the merger from the start of this, like, during the last issue of LAST DAYS or even in the REBIRTH special and had this story resolve the whole TRUTH/ Clark outed /doppleclark mystery, which is honestly the only thing of note fully resolved by this story.

I personally could have done without the many months of "SUPERDAD and Ma Lois stole Nuperman's life!!!! " implications and accusations. If they had done the merger at the start, very little of the last year of stories would have had to change, as ACTION still could have been about the mystery of a second Clark Kent running around, and SUPERMAN still could have told literally all of it's content with no change aside from some dialogue here and there. I assumed, as many of us did that the merger or resolution to the two Supermen conundrum was held off for the purposes of a huge staggering reveal that would accompany it...but no. That's all held off until next year at least, so the merger could have come much earlier, with Doppleclark and perhaps Jon's place in the timeline being the core mysteries of this last period,which for the readership would have been helpful and quieted some misgivings even I had of the "CUT and Paste" implications of how we got here, and would not have affected at all what we've read the last year.It just would have maybe not have pissed off as many people as it did at first and would have allowed those that didn't wish to stick around for the Superman and Family status quo a chance to make a clean break without getting their hopes up that the status quo of the previous 5 years was coming back. In other words, once again pitting the fans against one another with a questionable status quo choice seemingly for the sake of creating needless controversy.

So yeah, poor move DC. Even when you do good with Supes you do SOMETHING that makes little sense. Par for the course I guess concidering the track record since 2003.



Otherwise...this chapter wasn't badly told and did what in retrospect it set out to do, and Doug Mahnake's art was it's usual stellar stuff. Love his rendition of the "new/old" suit. Also, finally, MXY is shown to be a real threat again WITHOUT betraying his more playful, lighthearted roots. On that, well done.



Now, onto SUPERMAN 20 and ACTION 977 and hopefully more answers about the New timeline.

[manofsteel1979]

^^^^^^this X10
Seriously "One Moment in Time" was better than this

I wouldn't go THAT far, but yeah, there was really no reason to drag on the whole two Supermen mystery other than to manufacture an "event" that promised lots of answers and only really confirmed what most of us already figured out. As I said, they could have saved a lot of trouble if they just had merged these guys from the start of REBIRTH and let the mysteries of DoppleClark and the nature of Jon's existence and the Paradox it entailed be the driving force of the the overall narrative from then to now. It literally would have changed NOTHING content wise while totally eliminating all the crapstorm that having one Superman literally replacing another caused.
My only conclusion is that DC wanted to have some sort of controversy thrown in to stir up the fans. It's just par for the course. After all, this is what DC does best. Divide the fan base for the sake of it. Remember the Team Diana vs. Team Lois crap? They just decided to replace it with TEAM NEW 52 SUPERMAN vs. PRE-FLASHPOINT SUPERMAN by having one literally killed off and replaced by the other and then having one Lois pretending to be the other Lois....for what reason, actually?

There's always going to be disagreements among readers and fans,but does DC always have to ENCOURAGE these things? Seriously?

[adrikito]

I see my hero one last time.. Ok, better than made him appear in the preview and the rest for superdad..

Only one question... Who is the man above Ulisses and under Mongul? Some expert will know that.. I doubt that he is Xa-du... But I want to know that.