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Superman #13

Scheduled to arrive in stores: July 10, 2019

Cover date: September 2019

"The House of El" - Part 7

Writer: Brian Michael Bendis
Penciller: Brandon Peterson & Ivan Reis
Inker: Brandon Peterson & Joe Prado
Cover: Ivan Reis, Joe Prado & Alex Sinclair
Variant Cover: Adam Hughes

Reviewed by: Adam Dechanel
Click to enlarge


The Science Council has rejected Jor-El's claims that Krypton will explode. Turning to The Circle he is doubly disappointed when they too reject to assist him in saving the planet, instead corroborating the Science Council's findings that Krypton is in no danger.

When Jor tries to force their assistance his actions make The Circle aggressive. Ali Apsa name drops their assassin, Rogol Zaar as a warning.

When Jor leaves the meeting Thanagarian soldiers soar into Kryptonopolis and try to kill Jor-El. Barely escaping with his life he realizes The Circle has betrayed him. He races home and tells Lara that they have to send Kal off planet.

The quakes begin and they realize Krypton is beginning to die. Jor makes a last ditch attempt to beg Gandelo and the Tamarans for refuge. Gandelo offers only assistance to the El family but insists that the planet and its population cannot be moved and despite the quakes, the planet is still safe.

In the present day, Jor and Kal arrive in Krypton's ruins and a broken Jor insists the truth will finally be revealed.

Back on Earth, a drone locates Lois Lane in her hideaway hotel room and projects a transmission from Lex Luthor along with a mysterious box.

Lois opens the box and is shocked by what she finds.

To Be Continued...

3Story - 3: Was Krypton's destruction a natural disaster? Was it helped along by Rogol Zaar and The Circle? The story reveals a little more of what we already know. We just don't know yet whether it was Zaar or Mother Nature that set Superman's origin in motion.

We also do not know yet why we need to know.

Still there is a cute scene between Jor-El and Lara discussing Kal's spit curl. Though with Kal a newborn on Krypton it now opens some large brain-achingly huge plot holes in continuity that given the 19 months we've waited for this story to get to this point means we'll likely never have that resolved.

Other than that mind bender, the teaser of 'Year Of The Villain' is the only real story development.

4Art - 4: The art this issue is lush, colorful and evocative of the silver age. I really enjoyed the glimpse into Jor-El's past for the visuals. Despite my gripes with the story, or lack thereof, Peterson, Reis and Prado do a great job of transporting you through imagination and creative visuals to a lost era. It looks like they enjoyed recreating elements of Krypton too.

5Cover Art - 5: I am torn. On the one hand this is a really amazing cover. Superman looks confident and ready to dish out some truth and justice. Nobody can deny the Man of Steel looks pretty epic here.

My annoyance lies in the lie. Adam Strange and Rann haven't been featured since Earth was shrunk and flung into the Phantom Zone and they haven't been part of 'The Unity Saga'. Likewise it is made to seem like Superman and Rann are about to kick Rogol Zaar's butt. Except despite the cover banner, the monster doesn't appear either.

False advertising, incorrect sequence print, editorial oversight? Like I said, I'm torn. I love the art but as a cover it's a real annoyance.

4Variant Cover Art - 4: Lois is rarely depicted in this way. I admit in recent years Lois has evolved into a different type of character. If you're new to the books Lois has taken a huge step back from the stories especially during The Unity Saga began. The new Greg Rucka book changes this up A LOT and so this cover really shows you how powerful a character she really is.

It says a lot that a single frame and her expression is all it takes to let you see just what kind of woman Lois Lane is.

Mild Mannered Reviews

2019

Note: Except for digital first releases, the month dates are from the issue covers, not the actual date when the comic went on sale.

January 2019 February 2019 March 2019 April 2019 May 2019 June 2019 July 2019 August 2019 September 2019 October 2019 November 2019 December 2019

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