Originally Posted by
Adekis
Dozens seems like too many to me, but I do like the idea of a jokey-arc where Lois has to defeat Clark's League of Seven Exes in order to date him, Scott Pilgrim Style.
Yeah, I said Brainiac Five. Have you seen the Legion cartoon? So much chemistry between them. Anyway!
Here's a controversial opinion... I think Exile is kind of stupid. The whole arc is peppered with things I think are stupid, salvaged mostly by good-to-great artwork. Superman developing a schizophrenic break and isolating himself in deep space, is stupid. Though I think it's worth noting that Superman got hit by a mind-blast from Brainiac that I'm pretty sure is what actually caused his repressed sense of guilt to actually manifest in Gangbuster, but half the time I like what he does as Gangbuster more than what he does as Superman in the lead-up to Exile, and either way I digress. Superman's "triumphant" declaration that he doesn't kill also falls very flat to me - especially since I know that he'll kill Henshaw, Doomsday, another Zod, etc., in the future. The revelation that nobody ever left Krypton before Kal because until him, nobody could leave without dying instantly, is stupid. The decision to change WarWorld from the most powerful weapon in the galaxy into a series of gladiatorial games, is stupid, and also Mongul is less threatening and impressive post-Crisis, especially physically. And just, Superman in general seems kind of stiff and flat, especially morally. This is actually a complaint I have about a lot of the post-Crisis era though, up until Louise Simonson joins the crew. It's not unique to this story.
There's things I really like about Exile. I like the individual planets that Superman lands on and the concept of Superman traveling in space - but I don't think the reasoning for his being there is good, the image of the air pipeline isn't great, and from an in-universe perspective, I don't know why he didn't use that spaceship he picked up in L.E.G.I.O.N. '90 Annual # 1. I like the flashbacks to Krypton - visually at least. I think the Cleric is kind of neat. Mongul being there is good, even though I think he's kind of misused. The art is overall phenomenal. The "Hostile Takeover" backup about Luthor and LexCorp is awesome, and similarly, Exile's brief windows into worldbuilding Metropolis despite Superman's absence are all pretty well done. I just don't think it really salvages the arc overall. I don't really understand why it's so popular.