Superman #700

This comic really made me laugh. It is split into a couple sections, clearly defining that my time of obsession with Superman is over.

The first is an epilogue to the "modern" era of Superman, written by James Robinson. I didn't really care for it, since Prankster was presented as a criminal mastermind using Parasite for muscle. I prefer Kurt Busiek's take, where Prankster is certainly dangerous, but there is a sense of whimsy or fun in his crimes. How is using Parasite as muscle fun? I'm ok with Superman and Lois having a moment together, but Lois came across as a bit needy here. I like her being a little tougher. Of course, I didn't read the New Krypton finale yet, so maybe she's been through something really bad and she needs a moment to get back on her feet. -- Fair

The next story is from MY era of Superman, by Dan Jurgens. Most of the story follows a young and fun Dick Grayson/Robin as he disobeys Batman and tries to take out some arms dealers on his own. He ends up needing Superman's assistance, but what I love is how Superman comes across. He gives Robin a warning, but helps him dodge some trouble with Batman back at Wayne manor. Superman is a role model and a cool buddy. THAT's how Superman works for me. He's too powerful to motivate a lot of stories, so I love seeing him interact with other characters as either the good friend, the mentor, or the foil. That's why my favorite Supes stories are tales like Panic in the Sky, Death of Superman, Trial of Superman, and the Supermen of America. -- Good

JMS' has a prologue to his upcoming "Superman walks across America" arc. It's got all the warning signs that it is not going to be my type of book. A woman confronts Superman that he should have dealt with her husband's illness, but he was too busy dealing with New Krypton. Uh, yeah lady, that's right! Don't feel bad Superman, I think there might have been a bit more damage had Zod led an army of crazy Kryptonians against the Earth!

There is no realistic way to address real-world problems in comics. Hell, I don't WANT to see Superman dealing with normal problems. Is he going to walk around and cure diseases, build homeless people houses, and spay and neuter your pets? Superman should be punching gigantic monsters and robots. I just don't understand how DC can go from 2 years or whatever of Superman-less Super-books, then replace it with a book of Superman walking around. It's crazy, right? Or is it just me?

The thing is, this isn't badly done. The dialogue is fine, the art is decent, but I have no interest in this type of story. I'll get the trades from the library to keep up, but I cna't add this back to my pull list. -- Average

DC gave us three eras of Superman in this one, it's just too bad mine ended around 2000.

Overall - Average