New Superman Origin By Grant Morrison/Action Comics #5 Preview (SPOILERS)

[Scott Mateo]

From BleedingCool

Discuss!

[chasm]

Nicely done. Nothing too radically different that I can see and a nice explanation for how Krypto will reappear some day. Thumbs up.

[xBarryxAllenx]

Looks good to me. My only complaint (and it is a very small one) is the change of Krypto's breed of dog. I'll get used to that wolfhound-like look, but I'm so used to the old Jack Russell look (like the old RCA Victor dog) that it will actually take more getting used to than Supes' new uni. Otherwise, I like what we've seen so far.

[jafabian]

Interesting tag line on the cover. How many times has the origin been rebooted now?

[Call Me El]

Interesting tag line on the cover. How many times has the origin been rebooted now?

jafabian

Too many.

[Bizarro #98]

Good to see they're doing something worthwhile with an opportunity that could have been nothing more than an inconsequential fill-in arc induced by art delays.

Going by hair alone, I'd guess the Phantom Zone criminals are, from left to right:
Tor-An
Va-Kox
Az-Rel
Dru-Zod
Kru-El
Non
Ursa
Jax-Ur

Krypto is alive in the Phantom Zone (which explains how he was the dog of both Jor-El and Superman).

Did Jor-El reverse engineer the onboard computer system of his rocket from Brainiac's tech? Is that what attracted Brainiac to Earth in the first place?

Ha ha, "mothermatician". There's a Kirbyism for ya'.

[Simon DelMonte]

On the one hand, it's been done to death.

OTOH, Morrison has never done it, and the recent attempts to retell the origin have been rather underwhelming to me.

[jafabian]

I liked Geoff's Secret Origin though he focused more on Superman's time on Earth than the backstory of Krypton. Looks like Morrison is going there a bit more.

[Scott Mateo]

I wonder if Brainiac will still have a Coluan origin?

[virtuadept]

Would sueprman be cooler if he had a flying skate board?

[TJLamb0518]

Well, if it's not broke....beat it to death until it is. That seems to be the thinking vis-a-vis the Superman origin the last few years....

[Whealer]

Just read the issue and really enjoyed it, including the backup story. I found it interesting and fun as well.

[Simon DelMonte]

The overall retelling doesn't add much. But Grant and Sholly get Ma and Pa Kent right. I say this as a man who knows what they have been through. Well, expect for the finding a rocket from Krypton part. But it feels right and real, and how often can you say that about a Superman comic these days?

[Bizarro #98]

Nice callback to issue 2 with the fake alien.

The tall guy in the bubble helmut is Kru-El maybe? He seems to be wearing the same gauntlet as the Phantom Zone criminal who looked like Kru-El.

The Kryptonian crystals were first named "sunstone" in the 2007 Geoff Johns run. Glad to see that's being kept.

The Kryptonite Men! Seems like exactly the kind of idea I would come up with. K-man Red appears to be female. K-man Blue's powers don't seem like they would be very useful for a villain.

The Kents are Baptist! I knew it!

[Alan]

It IS a shame that the reboot happene so shortly after Geoff's recent version AND the JMS Earth One book, so this is the third new approach in about 2 years. Having said that, this is particularly good, gorgeous art as always from Kubert Jr, and Grant manages to add a number of interesting new touches, some of which resonated with me too. Very nice back up strip too.

[Bizarro #98]

It IS a shame that the reboot happene so shortly after Geoff's recent version AND the JMS Earth One book, so this is the third new approach in about 2 years.

Alan

It doesn't bother me, largely because it's clear Morrison has read Geoff's run and is keeping what he feels are the best aspects of it.

In fact, I would go so far as to say this first arc (not counting the current two-issue intermission) is the Secret Origin mini-series and the "Brainiac" arc, condensed down to their most essential story points and then combined together.

General Sam Lane's antagonism toward Superman. Metallo as a subordinate of General Lane and ex-boyfriend of Lois. Metallo starting out in mech armor as an homage to the original golden age version. Brainiac sending his probes/Terminauts to secure the planet before arriving personally. Metropolis being shrunk and bottled as an end-of-issue cliffhanger.

When I list it all out like that, it makes it sound like I'm just accusing Morrison of being unoriginal, but that's not my intent. Quite the contrary, I prefer when writers cherry pick rather than throwing the baby out with the bathwater. No need to reinvent the wheel.