Mild Mannered Reviews - Specials

The Superman Monster

The Superman Monster

Scheduled to arrive in stores: October 6, 1999

Cover date: December 1999

Writer: Dan Abnett and Andy Lanning
Penciller: Anthony Williams
Inker: Tom Palmer

Reviewed by: Gareth Baker (GHLBJEDI@aol.com)



In the Iceberg Lounge, a gentlemen's club in Gotham, Peregrine White recounts a horrifying story to his friend, Commissioner Gordon.

It is summer 1883, the place Switzerland. A young scientist, Vicktor Luthor, is brought before his peers and superiors at his university. His funding is to be cancelled. The university no longer agree with Luthor's research - finding the secret to life itself, so that one might cheat death.

At home, Luthor receives some cheerful news. His fiancee, Eloise Lane has told him that her father has softened towards their union. She feels they can now get married with his blessing. Luthor is very happy, they can begin arrangements and sort out the dowry. Luthor has found himself some new funding.

Two weeks later a grand party to celebrate is held. Here Luthor is given some bad news. Eloise's father has made the dowry so that Luthor can use none of it. Enraged, Luthor runs into the night only to see a shooting star. He follows it to its impact site, to discover a rocket ship some green rock and the skeleton of a dead baby. Suddenly a hologram of Jor-El appears. Luthor realises that he can use the Kryptonian knowledge to achieve his goals.

Renting a new house, Luthor begins to story the information the hologram gives him, and arranges for a corpse to be delivered to his house. The delivery man goes the way of his goods. Luthor sets up his experiment, and place, the S shield, that was found in the ship, upon the dead body as a conductor. As a storm passes over head, Luthor operates his machine, and his creation lives. A pale skinned monster, dressed in black with a metal S on his chest and metal bracelets.

Luthor is horrified by his creation, and in his bid to escape sets his house alight, but he his rescued by his creation. Leaping into the air, the pair are struck by lightening and sent crashing to the floor. When Luthor wakes up, it is daylight and his creation is gone.

In town a runaway carriage and horses speeds down the high street. Suddenly Luthor's creation rushes out and stops the carriage, much to the happiness of its occupant. The townsfolk, however, are afraid and pelt the poor creature with fruit and stones. He quickly leaps away.

Soon, our poor beast stays in the barn of an elderly couple called the Kants. When the monster rescues Johan Kant, they take him in as their own. The beast has somewhere to live. They teach him the ways of the land and how to read and write. All was happy until one night, Luthor and the townsfolk arrive at the farm to kill the monstrosity. Johan has a heart attack, and this enrages the creature. Somehow, Luthor is able to stop the superhuman beast with his cane - a cane that has a green crystal upon it! When the house catches fire, the beast leaps inside to rescue it's mother. Luthor leaves for his wedding.

The wedding is soon interrupted by the Superbeast. He has come for revenge on his parents death. In his fear. Luthor shoots at the creature, and reveals his own beastly nature as one of the bullets bounces off and kills Eloise! Using his cane, Luthor strikes at the beast and strikes and strikes...

Later that night Luthor's best man, Jimmy, discovers his friend in his lab. Luthor shoots him and dumps him with the beast. Above, Eloise rises from the dead, thanks to Luthor's twisted science. The beast kills Luthor and takes the she-beast, Eloise away with him.

Perry finishes, though Gordon is very sceptical. Perry completes the story by explaining that he knew the story because he had met Luthor when his ship had become trapped in ice. When Luthor dies, the beast came for him and took him away tom some fortress of solitude. Perry and Gordon, bid each other adieu and head home.

4Story - 4: This has to be one of the best Elseworlds I've read, and unless I'm mistaken I've read them all. I am not a huge fan of the Frankenstein story, but here the stories wove together very nicely. I really liked the way that the story began with Luthor, this put an interesting spin on things. It was nice to see some familiar faces, but I was confused as to why "Lois's" father was Morgan Edge? I guess that they are rivals in continuity I suppose. It would be nice to hear another of Perry's tales.

3Art - 3: The art really suited this story, especially the beat superman. As mch as I hate him, this story would have suited Kerion Dwyers art very nicely. My main problem with the art was this, was the woman Superman rescued in the carriage meant to be Eloise? She had different coloured hair, but she recognised him later in the story. I liked the way the kryptonian regen suit was used.

3Cover Art - 3: Quiet a gripping cover, but not quite gripping enough. I like the electrodes, but the poses is too oft used.


Mild Mannered Reviews

1999

Note: Month dates are from the issue covers, not the actual date when the comic was on sale.

June 1999

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