Action Comics #891 - DC

Luthor is getting ready to go out in search of the energy of the Black Rings. He's become obsessed with it, really. But, apparently, this issue is a little respite before that actual adventure begins. The book starts out with Luthor back in Roman times . . he's playing the conquering hero. But it isn't long before we realize that all of this is an illusion created by Mr Mind. Apparently, someone has hired . . or, rather forced Mr Mind to first delay Lex. And then, through the use of his illusions, soften his mind enough to reprogram it to never, ever seek the help of others. But since he's been forced, Mr Mind isn't really into this, and I don't think he's putting his best efforts forward. He takes him through this roman adventure, and then a kind of Dr Frankenstein piece . . hence, the cover, and finally a Wild-West version of himself. However with each illusion Lex gains more and more control. Until finally he beats Mr Mind. The issue ends with him finally starting out on that trek, and deciding . . because of Mr Mind's theatrics, to take along someone for help . . his Lois Lane robot. I wonder what Lois, or Clark would do if they knew that Lex had this little piece of equipment in his possession? That's probably a story for another time. Lex has also decided to bring along a specialist . . Deathstroke. So next issue . . the adventure begins. I'm interested to see how Lex thinks he's going to be able to coalesce all these fragments of the Black Lantern's energy. I'm not sure what he hopes to accomplish. Anyways, this issue is brought to us by Paul Cornell. With Pete Woods and Cafu doing the art. Overall I thought it was a pretty solid book. I even liked the Mr Mind parts, which I usually don't. But I thought the best part about this book was the David Finch cover. It looked fantastic. If this is what we can expect between now and issue #900, I can't wait to see the rest.

Action Comics #890 - DC

Paul Cornell does a great job with Lex's character this issue. The issue starts out with these 3 guys who've apparently captured Lex, and they have him hanging over the side of his building. But surprisingly . . or not, he's seems to be very calm. The rest of the issue then is him looking back on how he got to be in this position. So really . . it's two separate stories. Kind of. It seems that Lex's brush with the power of Larfleeze's ring has left him with the itch to regain the power. It appears that the Avarice that accompanies the Orange Ring doesn't readily leave when that ring's power is then rescinded. Lex just can't get over the rush that he felt when he was in that position. And he wants it . . again! However, since he doesn't know where Larfleeze is, he's decided to try to go after one of the Black Rings. At the end of the recent battle they all seemed to vaporize into dust. However, after scouring the planet, he can't find a trace of their residue, or power anywhere. So he's expanded his search into space. And that's where he's found some deposits of black energy. It's also interesting to note, that as Lex is going through this dialogue, and thought process, he's doing it with his companion whom he's constructed to be his conscious . . for lack of a better word. 'She's doing exactly as she's programmed to: offering me another perspective, challenging me . . even surprising me.' And the construct that he's made to question him? None other than . . Lois Lane. Kind of ironic. Huh? Anyways, it's while he's going through this that he is attacked and then apprehended by these 3 mysterious people. They're mysterious because of the way their acting. They also appear very calm, and don't really seem to have any kind of agenda other than capturing Lex. For what ends . . we don't know. But then the real culprit reveals himself, and . . it's none other than Mister Mind. Why he's after Lex, we don't know. But I'm sure we'll find out more next issue. As I said, I thought Paul did a great job portraying Lex's character. The lust that he displays over his recent encounter with the ring was perfectly portrayed for his character. Plus it was kind of neat to see a story centered around him. We haven't seen that in a while. I also thought Pete Woods did a great job with the art. Only 9 more issues and then we'll be up to #900. I can't wait to see what they have in store for us.

Action Comics #889 - DC

Ok . . so Vohc the Destroyer has created his own version of Rao . . the Kryptonian God. He's also powered the beast by giving him a heart that's made up of an unstable sun. So as Rao gains power, he also gains mass. Eventually he'll get to the point where he'll overload his 'heart', and the sun will implode. Thereby collapsing in upon itself taking all of Earth with it. Yes it will also kill Vohc, but . . he's abated himself in the knowledge that it'll also take his love, Flamebird with it. However, when he sent Chris to the Phantom Zone last issue . . that still needs to be explained because I thought it was destroyed . . while in the Phantom Zone Chris comes into contact with, and discovers Nightwing. And since Nightwing controls the Phantom Zone, it's nothing for him to escape and come to his love's aid. Long story short, Rao is defeated and Chris and Thara . . Nightwing & Flamebird, escape before General Lane and the rest of the military show up. But there's something going on as one of the General's workers seems to be trying to gather up as many of Rao's pieces as possible. The General does not need this thing in his arsenal. I thought it was an interesting issue. Greg Rucka and Eric Trautmann provided an entertaining story. But like so many of these stories it left more questions than answers. I liked it, but . . I wasn't thrilled with it. Also, Pere Perez' art was ok. In the back-up Captain Comet's story is wrapped up. Last issue Miribai was beaten. This issue Aggaro reveals himself to be Mordru. He was in hiding so that he didn't have to fight Miribai directly. He was waiting for everything else to play out. So now he can go back to being the leader of Sorcerers World. And Captain Atom comes back to Earth and begins the path towards being a 'real American hero' once again. I don't really understand everything that happened here, but . . it all worked out for the best in the end. I guess. From here Captain Atom goes to the JLI: Generation Lost series. This part of the story was by James Robinson and Cafu. Overall I thought it was an ok book. But I am glad that this whole Rao storyline is finished. At least for now.

Action Comics #888 - DC

Last issue we saw that Vohc the Destroyer was going after Flamebird with his newest creation . . Rao. Yes, he has attempted to create a god. Thara is going after the false god, but . . it's just to much for her to handle alone. It's a good thing the JSA shows up. But even they are hard pressed to slow the god down. And to make matters even worse, Jax-Ur has directed this abomination towards the Pakistan / India border. If either side sees this as a threat they're going to start launching nukes at each other. Putting Thara and the rest of the JSA at ground zero. But there's also something going on that none of them had counted on. Jax-Ur has sent Chris to the Phantom Zone. But I thought it was destroyed? Maybe Vohc rebuilt it . . I don't know. Anyways, Chris is sent there and he comes across the Nightwing creature of myth. I'm not sure how he found it . . or if it's really there . . maybe this is all just a fever dream in Chris' head. Anyways, they come to an agreement and they join forces to help them both escape. Which brings Chris back into the real world. And this time . . he really is Nightwing . . both in spirit and body. I have a feeling things are about to get a lot more interesting. This story is by Greg Rucka, Eric Trautmann and Pere Perez. In the Captain Atom back-up, by James Robinson and Cafu . . the good Captain finally gets the upper hand on Mirabai. She comes after him with a hex, but . . apparently things don't work the same on him because of his science. Also, putting Mirabai down doesn't mean that he's out of trouble. In a world of magic and mysticism things aren't always what they seem. It appears that he's stepped out of one trap right into another. I enjoyed this issue. I thought it was interesting. Also, nice cover by Yildiray Cinar.

Action Comics #887 - DC

Seeing as Chris and Thara are Nightwing and Flamebird . . so to is Jax-Ur Vohc, the destroyer. Remember, we learned about this whole Kryptonian mythology thing last issue. Anyways, as we saw there, Vohc would make his creations, and then Flamebird would come along and destroy them. Supposedly this is how they were instructed to interact by their god, Rao. Well now Jax-Ur, or rather Vohc has built his greatest creation . . he's built the new god Rao. And he's daring Flamebird to try and destroy him. He also uses Chris' own powers to banish him back into the Phantom Zone. However, since the Zone is supposed to be destroyed, I'm guessing that Vohc has built that again also. Anyways, all of this is going on in some base in Iraq. So Lois is using her clout to try to get out there and see what's going on. First she talks General Latham into having her dropped in Iraq. Then she has Simon Stagg transport her over the Iran/Iraq border. And from there Chris and Thara give her a lift to follow the False Rao towards India. Basically, Jax-Ur used the god energy from Chris and Thara to create this. That's the part of them that taps into the Nightwing and Flamebird essences. But it would take even more energy to make him bigger. To make him a true entity. Which is where this stroll that it's taking from Iraq towards India comes in. Everything that this governments are throwing at it is being absorbed. And when they try to nuke it . . it looks like creation itself. Apparently Jax-Ur's plan is to increase Rao's power, and then, on Earth, remake the world according to his vision, not Rao's. After this last boost is when Jax-Ur destroys Chris by banishing him to the shadows. Then . . Thara is despondent. She doesn't see the point in proceeding any furthur. She knows that she'd never be able to beat Rao on her own. To which Lois responds . .'Alone? Hardly! Let me make a few calls . . . ' This was like part 2 of the history lesson that we started last issue. Except this time we learn how the mythic figures are affecting our current reality. And right now . . it doesn't look good. I thought that Greg Rucka and Eric Trautmann did a good job with this story. I also like the way they had it framed around Lois' correspondence back to the Planet. She's trying to show the world that not all Kryptonians are bad. And that her father, General Lane, is lying. Pere Perez did the art again. I think this guy gets a little better with every issue. Overall I really enjoyed the story. In the back-up, Captain Atom crosses Skartaris to Sorcerer's World to confront Mirabai. He arrives just before the resistance is about to attack her castle with their newly formed army. His arrival and assistance has really helped to boost the moral of the ranks. The only problem is . . Mirabai knows that Nathaniel is here, and it's almost as if she's counting on it. Either he's being played, or . . he's doing exactly what she wants him to. We'll have to wait until next issue to find out which it is. I'm enjoying this story by James Robinson, and I think Cafu is doing a terrific job with the art.

Action Comics #886 - DC

This issue we learn the true origin, and story of Nightwing and Flamebird. It was entertaining. My only complaint was that while reading the book it seemed like we were being given a history lesson. Which we were . . kind of. However, Greg Rucka and Eric Trautmann were giving us a whole lot of information this issue, so . . I'm not sure that there was any other way that they could've effective done it. Not in 22 pages of story and art. Although, I would've thought this type of story better fitting for an Annual, or Special or something. But . . we got it here, so . . it is what it is. Anyways, Chris is starting to doubt that he's the real Nightwing. He feels like it's just a name that Thara gave him. So she gives him a crystal that shows him the whole story. I won't go through the whole story, but basically . . he sees the creation of Rao. Maybe 'awareness' is more the right word. He was always there, he just decided to make himself manifest. Anyways, shortly after he created Krypton as well as Flamebird and Vohc, the builder. It seems that in Rao's quest to mold Krypton into the crown jewel of his creation, he tasked Vohc with building things, to which the chaos energy of Flamebird would destroy. It was a cycle so that every time Vohc built something it would be more magnificent than that which came before. Rao had also created Nightwing at the time, but it was quite a while before Vohc took notice of him. He lived in the shadows, and it took Vohc a while to figure it out. Nightwing was Rao's eyes in the night. His task was to . . ' . seek out evil and corruption that hides in the shadows, to pursue and destroy it.' Anyways, it was Vohc that introduce Nightwing to Flamebird. And sensing the loneliness within Nightwing, Flamebird immediately became enamored with him. So . . long story short, Vohc became jealous and when Flamebird destroyed his greatest creation he became filled with a new emotion . . boundless sorrow and the seeds of madness. That's when he created the Phantom Zone and trapped Nightwing in it. Even Flamebird couldn't destroy that. So they were separated forever. And Vohc the builder became Vohc the destroyer. And although the Phantom Zone is no more, it seems that Nightwing is still trapped . . somewhere. Which I think is what Jax-Ur offered Thara when he helped to cure Chris, as Dr Pillings. But I'm thinking that Jax-Ur is actually Vohc. And now he wants Flamebird to help him as he seems to be trying to reach out to God . . Rao. On the final page Jax-Ur has some type of machine that looks like it has the 'hand of God' reaching out through it. I'm not sure that this story has ever been told before. We've gotten bits and pieces of it over the years through various Superman stories. But I don't believe that it's ever been laid out like this. I thought it was interesting. A bit long-winded, but . . interesting. Greg and Eric did a good job with what they had to work with. And I think Pere Perez' art gets better and better with every issue. Now we just have to find out what Jax-Ur is up to, where Nightwing really is, and how this is all connected to the Earth/Krypton war that's looming. In Captain Atom's story, we see that he's enlisted the aid of Shadowact to try to help him get back to Mirabai's realm. We find out that it's actually Sorcerer's World. And that all of the DC Universe's magical realms are connected through it. Of course we've heard of Sorcerer's world in various Legion stories. But I think this is the first time that it's been connected to the regular DC Universe. Adam wants to get back there so that he can help the people that Mirabai used him to hurt. The problem is . . he's a man of science. He can't enter the realm through any of the normal magical portals because . . well, he just wouldn't fit. He'd be repelled . . like polar opposites. But there is a door that they know of. He just has to find, and enter . . Skartaris. To me . . this story just got a whole lot more interesting. I can't wait to see what Captain Atom does here. This story is brought to us by James Robinson and Cafu. I thought they both did a terrific job.

Action Comics #885 - DC

Well, it appears that everything with General Lane and project 7734 are about to come to a head. I think the war between New Krypton and Earth may be happening any time now. In the last few issues, when Chris and Thara went to STAR Labs to try to fix Chris' aging problem, we found out that Jax-Ur, one of Zod's sleeper agents, was actually Dr Pillings. He's the one that Dr Light takes them to for help. This issue, we find out that another agent is inside of the Science Police. Officer Romundi is actually Car-Vex. So that accounts for all of the sleepers, since Chris and Thara have already taken out 3 of them, except for Quex-Ul. I don't think we've even seen who he is yet. But, another point of note is that these agents of Zod, also appear to be helping General Lane's cause. I think it was Car-Vex that actually alerted the General that the Kryptonians were at STAR Labs. So, either they're helping him on purpose, perpetuating this war with New Krypton, or . . a war with Earth is also what General Zod wants. It seems that with every issue, more and more people are starting to realize that what General Lane's plans and motivations are . . and that they may not be entirely altruistic. Unfortunately, it's only a couple of people each time . . the Guardian, and a few Science Police officers. Sure Lane's trying to protect Earth. That's his job. Right? But I think he's also got alterior motives that we don't even have a clue of yet. Even Lois is amazed by the deceptiveness of her father. But the issue ends when, in trying to capture Chris and Thara, a bomb that Car-Vex has planted goes off taking the top half of the Science Police headquarters with it. It was a great story by Greg Rucka and Eric Trautmann. With art by Pere Perez. Overall I thought this was a good issue, and it moved the story along quite nicely. In the back-up, Captain Atom is trying plead his innocence to the JLA. But they're in a hit first and ask questions later type of mood right now. When they do finally calm down, Nathaniel tells them his story. They seem to believe him. But now he feels like he needs to get back to Mirabai's world. He's got some things he needs to fix there. However, with Zatanna AWOL right now, they need to find another way to get there. Which segues into the arrival of Detective Chimp and Shadowpact. This was also another great chapter by Greg Robinson and Cafu. This is another title that's approaching a landmark issue . . #900. And again . . I don't think the Action is going to slow down until we get there.

Action Comics #884 - DC

Lois Lane is wanted by the government! Lois wrote up the story on Flamebird and Nightwing. She wants to expose the government, and her father, for their conspiracy to fake Mon-Els's death. And the attempts to fan the flames of hatred by generating anti-Kryptonian hysteria. Then she gave it to Perry. He loves the story, but . . someone leaked it, and now the government, or specifically General Lane, her father want to bring her in for questioning. It'll be interesting to see how he found out about it because the only people that have read it are Perry, and Lana. But there was something screwy going on with Lana. Right? It seems like the General just wanted to bring Lois in to let her know that he's had his eye on her. 'You're my daughter, and believe it or not, I love you. But my planet will always come first. Remember that!' He lets her go, but now she knows that her every move is being watched. Anyways, while all of this is going on, Thara and Chris have gone to Star Labs to ask for Dr Hoshi . . the new Doctor Light . . and Dr Pillings for help. Chris made another age jump and this time he's become a senior citizen. It isn't until later, when Thara switches into her Flamebird identity, and starts talking to Dr Pillings in Kryptonese that she realizes that he's actually Jax-Ur. They accomplish the cure, sending Chris back to a more approximate age . . probably early 20's. However, I'm thinking that the whole thing may have been a scheme of Jax-Ur's. It seems that all he really wanted was a DNA sample of Flamebird. He doesn't know that Chris is actually Nightwing also. He thinks they're just lovers, or something. Hell, before Thara transformed, he wasn't even sure that the Flamebird sightings were real. They are the stuff of legend and lore afterall. But now he has it. The question is . . what does he want it for? I thought this was an interesting chapter by Greg Rucka, Eric Trautmann and Pere Perez. It looks like things are looming closer and closer to a war between the planets. In the backup, Major Force is trying to bring in Captain Atom for the General, but Mon El has shown up. With his help they leave the Major in the dust and head up to the JLA satellite. Mon El and Kory seem rather friendly, but then the gang from Cry for Justice show up. The Captain is telling Mon El and Kory that his memories are fragmented. He remembers bits and pieces, but nothing of his time as Monarch. 'I wish we could say we didn't remember, Captain . . but we do! You're a danger to the world . . a fugitive from the US military. And in dire need of Justice.' They look rather menacing, so we don't really know if they're here to judge, or to help. We'll have to wait until the next chapter to find out. I'm just glad that James Robinson and Cafu are finally getting us caught up on what's going on with this character. I think Captain Atom is a great character, but . . he's been relegated to the shadows for the last few years. Or . . he's been a scape-goat. Hopefully this will get him back into the mainstream, and on one of DC's various teams . . JLA, or Outsiders . . maybe?

Action Comics #883 - DC

I thought this was an interesting issue. In it we find that Jax-Ur has been hiding among the humans . . another of Zod's sleeper agents. But Jax-Ur seems to be in the place where he can do the most damage, and access the most technology . . STAR Labs. He been hiding as a Dr Pillings at STAR, while working with Dr Hoshi, Doctor Light. This issue Toronto is attacked by some form, or forms, of Brimstone. Apparently there was some type of seedpod that was triggered and it deployed these Brimstone type characters. They don't know where it came from, or who sent it, but . . it's now in the hands of STAR Labs, and Drs Pillings and Hoshi. Nightwing and Flamebird were on the scene to help save the city, but . . after the attack, everything is blamed on them. And they're still on the search for some of the Kryptonian sleeper agents . . Jax-Ur, Quex-Ul and Car-Vex. There's also something that happens between them. They're talking about their beliefs in the actual Nightwing and Flamebird . . something happens to Chris. It appears that something has triggered in him. He begins to glow and vibrate the building apart. But . . we aren't going to find out what that is until next issue. Meanwhile, Perry has been put on the trail of Jimmy. A recent flame of Jimmy's, Isabel Glenn, has come to the Planet looking for him. He's been missing for quite a while now. Perry listens and ends up in Jimmy's apartment looking for clues. He finds a paper behind a picture that says . .'N/EO JSEO' . . whatever that means. But now Perry's got the scent. You know he's not going to give up until he figures out what's going on. Oh wait . . I finally figured out what the last page means. Dr Hoshi has brought this decrepit old man to Dr Pillings claiming, ' . . before this 18 year old boy dies of old age . . we really need your help.' I didn't understand what it was at first, but . . it's Chris. Apparently he's taken another age leap. This time straight to senior citizenry. I didn't understand that the first time I read it. So Chris and Thara have been delivered straight to Jax-Ur. That can't be good. I thought this was an interesting issue by Greg Rucka, Eric Trautmann and Pere Perez. Not one of the best, but . . it does serve to progress the story. In the back-up, we find Captain Atom face to face with Major Force. Apparently Force has been ordered to bring him back. And by bring him back, we mean back to our Earth . . to General Lane and project 7734. Upon return, he's met with an army of men with weapons designed to contain him. But when they try . . someone interferes. It appears that Mon El is back. Also, it appears that Natasha's undercover assignment may have been compromised. Another great chapter by James Robinson, Greg Rucka and Cafu.

Action Comics #882 - DC

Something is up with Lana, but . . we don't know what it is yet. Somehow she's informing on her friends to Squad K. That, or they're tracking her somehow. Anyways, General Lane puts Reactron on the Squad K team this issue. Much to the dismay of Colonel Hazard, the Squad's leader. But before they can argue about it to much, the Squad is called into action because Lois has shaken her surveillance. So the General thinks she's up to something. Actually, she's meeting with Chris and Lana. Like I said, I think they're tracking Lana somehow. When the Squad's ship arrives in Metropolis, they seem to know the general area where they're meeting, but no specifics. Unfortunately, Chris doesn't want to see either of them hurt so he rushes out to distract them. Kara and Thara also saw the ship, but it passed the apartment without even slowing down. So I'm guessing, since that's where Lana lives, she's there most of the time and that's not considered a target. I guess they don't even suspect that she would allow them to live in her home. Anyways, before Chris has a chance to engage them, Kara and Thara show up. They're all trying to be a little more restrained this time because they don't want to destroy Metropolis, like what was done in Paris. But that may be out of there hands because . . remember? Reactron is with them. They start to go after them, but before things can get to heated Chris gives up. I think he figures that if they go in quietly at least their story will be heard. Which it is, and Hazard is starting to wonder about Reactron. But before he can do anything Reactron fries him and kills him. Supposedly per the General's orders. All 3 of them are contained by red-sun chains, and the issue ends with Kara in Reactron's grip as he's getting ready to kill her. The conclusion is next week in Supergirl #46. I can't wait. Greg Rucka and Sterling Gates wrote this issue, with Pere Perez on the art. In the back-up, we find out that Natasha Irons is in Mirabai's land. She's been undercover with the Army trying to make contact with Captain Atom. Which she does this issue. She tries to fill him in on what's going on, both here, and back in the real world with General Lane. But the Captain has done a lot of terrible stuff under Mirabai's control, so the villagers don't see him as a patriot. One of them wants to kill him, and that's when Major Force shows up. That should make for an interesting story next issue. This part of the book was by James Robinson, Greg Rucka and Cafu. This was a nice action packed issue. The story moved rather quickly, and I'm glad we're getting near the end. But it's not necessarily the end of the World Against Superman story-line. No it's just the end of this chapter, the Hunt for Reactron. I have a feeling that General Lane's story, the story of Project 7734, is far from over. But it's keeping all the Superman books linked, which is a great way to move the story along. Personally, I think the Superman titles are best when they do that. Now we only have to wait a week for the next part of the story.

Action Comics #881 - DC

In our World Against Superman story-line here, we start a new chapter with the Hunt for Reactron. First of all, Kara, Chris and Thara are being set up by General Lane. Right now the whole world thinks that they killed Mon El. We know that it was actually Mirabai, the witch or mystic that's working for Lane. She had Reactron and Metallo cloaked so they looked like Nightwing and Flamebird, and then they taped the fight between them and Mon El. We don't actually know that Mon El is dead, yet, but . . he hasn't been seen since the explosion occurred underground. So that's the assumption. Anyways, Kara pieces it together this issue that somehow Reactron was involved, because he's the only one capable of using Gold K on them . . which temporarily took away their powers. So this time she's decided that whenever she finds him, she's taking him back to New Krypton to face justice . . rather than trying to put him in a jail on Earth. The problem is, Kara, Chris and Thara keep fighting amongst themselves and drawing attention to them. On the final page of the issue, after hiding in Paris, they break out into another fight and find themselves facing Squad K. Overall I thought it was a decent story by Greg Rucka, Sterling Gates and Pere Perez. Although, I have to say . . I wasn't overly thrilled with Pere's art. It was ok. I just wasn't thrilled with it. Anyways, in the back-up, General Lane's forces are trying to get control of Captain Atom. He appears to be in another dimension, and Lane's forces are somehow mind controlling him. My guess is that they're in Mirabai's dimension. It seems to have a medieval type feel to it, and there's magic being thrown about. But we really don't know what the specifics are . . yet. This story gets more interesting with every issue. It's also by Greg with James Robinson, and Cafu on art. Overall I thought it was a decent book. And we won't have to wait long for the continuation as it rolls over into the next issue of Supergirl.

Action Comics #880 - DC

Man this was a frustrating issue. Not frustrating from a readers perspective, but frustrating because of what General Lane, and this Project 7734 is putting Superman and the rest of the Kryptonians through. This storyline . . Codename: Patriot, it turns out that the Patriot . . the man willing to give up his own life, and freedom, to save them from the fall-out of a war between New Krypton and Earth . . it turns out the Patriot is actually Ral-Dar. He's the guy who tried to kill General Zod at the end of World of New Krypton #5. It seemed as if he was trying to escape to Earth, with Superman and Supergirl in hot pursuit, but . . it appears that he's actually playing a role . . the role that General Lane has given him to play. Also, we know the Lane has Atlas, Codename:Assassin, Reactron and Metallo in his arsenal. But what we didn't know is that apparently Morgan Edge is also part of this team . . it's media face. When the 3 of them approach Earth, the General notifies Edge, for the media coverage, and then sends up an unarmed squadron of fighter pilots to intercept them. The pictures speak for themselves, and they're pretty damning. The General is trying to sell it as an invasion of Earth. While Superman and Supergirl are trying to do everything in their power to minimize casualties. However, they play it that Mon-el interceded and stopped the loss of life. Also, Thara and Christopher are still looking for Nadira and Az-Rel. I don't think that the General realizes that they're also Kryptonian. As with the rest of the world, I believe he thinks they get their power from their suits. He lays a trap for them with Nadira and Az-Rel. They're actually Reactron and Metallo is disguise, but by their subterfuge they get the drop on Nightwing and Flamebird and take them out of the equation. But before that, Christopher actually shows his affection towards Thara this issue. This story was by Greg Rucka, James Robinson and art by Julian Lopez. All in all I thought it was a great issue. Like I said . . a bit frustrating. But . . it did make a lot of progress on the story-line. In the back-up, Nathaniel is trying to figure out who he is, and where he's at. He appears to be in mid-evil times, but he's in full Captain Atom garb. Of course the people see him as a threat, but really he's just trying to find the pieces of the puzzle. At the end though . . it seems as if he's in someone's sight. On this one, Cafu does the art. It looks fantastic.

Action Comics #879 - DC

What a cool cover by Andrew Robinson. As you can see, this issue is almost entirely about Nightwing & Flamebird. Part of the problem that Thara Ak-Var and Chris have right now is that they don't really know that the beings of Kryptonian legend, Nightwing & Flamebird, are actually part of the psyche and being. They think they're just filling roles, when actually they're filling destinies. However, while pursuing the other Kryptonians, Nadira and Az-Rel, they are ambushed by General Lanes forces. They hold Thara and probe her mind. But when they begin to threaten Chris . . Flamebird comes out and overpowers them all. When she finally catches up to Chris, I don't think she even remembers the incident. However, in the end, Mirabai goes out and captures Nadira and Az-Rel for the General. The issue ends with them in energy cells. And speaking of the General, Lois asks Mon-El for a favor. He verifies for her that the bones in her fathers casket are indeed not his. So now she knows . . her father is alive. And I'm sure soon, she'll be on his trail. Greg Rucka is bringing all of the pieces together slowly. And there's a new book coming out of this storyline . . Codename: Patriot. Diego Olmos also did a pretty decent job with the pencils. His style isn't really one of my favorites, but . . it's ok. Also this issue we start the Captain Atom back-up story. This one was kind of confusing. The good Captain is talking about taking out a military base, but then we see him attacking what looks like a castle from the 14th or 15th century. It's him against hundreds of foot-soldiers, privateers and archers. But then we get a glimpse of him actually standing in front of the JLA. I'm thinking that his conscious may be spread across 2 different dimensions. We don't get a lot of specifics in this issue. But James Robinson, Greg Rucka and Cafu have started us down a new path here. We'll have to wait and see where it leads us. Overall I thought it was a decent issue . . not fantastic, but . . it did move the story forward a bit.

Action Comics Annual #12 - DC

As annuals go, I thought this one did quite a bit to fill us in on Thara Ak-Var and Christopher Kent, K'Riss. The last we saw of K'Riss, then Christopher, he had volunteered to go back into the Phantom Zone to help out Superman. Plus . . he was only 6 or 7. Now, as we've seen in recent issues of Action, he's about 18 or 19, and . . he's Nightwing. Also, what about Thara? She was the head of security when Kandor first emerged on Earth. So, how did she go from being a trusted aide of Alura's to becoming Flamebird? Well . . it has to do with Kryptonian religion. Flamebird is a major character in their religion. Flame and fire is an important symbol to them. The creature that represents that, Flamebird is a half Phoenix, half dragon type character. Nightwing, her polar opposite is her antithesis and her lover. And here I thought Nightwing & Flamebird were just a couple of characters that Superman and Batman created when they visited the bottle city. At least that's how it was originally presented in those old World's Finest comics. This way makes a lot more sense though. Anyways, Thara became a member of the Religious Guild and through them had a vision of Flamebird, and she believes a melding of minds. That's when she became aware of Nightwing. K'Riss on the other hand, is suffering some kind of mutation, probably from being born in the Phantom Zone. In the time since he's been back his age has accelerated a couple of times. Non helps him hide from the rest of the Kryptonians, until Zod and Ursa get upset because K'Riss looks into Zod's collection of Brainiac stuff. It seems that Zod was obsessed with Brainiac before be became obsessed with Superman. But K'Riss isn't just looking. He puts one of Brainiac's devices on his head and . . everything in the room comes to life. At the same time, Thara has another vision but this time it's of K'Riss. She thinks of him as Flamebird would of Nightwing. And in that instant they become connected. She obtains an experimental Phantom Zone projector from her step-father, Zor-El, and goes into the Zone to free K'Riss. And . . ta-da! Just like that we're all caught up on their background story and the motivations for them becoming the crime-fighters that they are now . . Nightwing & Flamebird. Well, it's a little more involved than all of that, but . . I have to leave something for you to read. Right? Greg Rucka and Pere Perez did a great job with this story. It really filled us in on the whole transformation and brought another piece of Kryptonian lore up to date. Plus . . there was 40 pages of art in this issue. Fan-frikkin-tastic!

Action Comics #878 - DC

Well, it appears that there's a lot more Kryptonians still running around on Earth than we originally thought. Thara Ak-Var has been recuperating in Lois' apartment, while Chris, K'Riss, went back to the fortress to get their Nightwing & Flamebird uniforms. However, Ursa was still there so K'Riss had to fight her. And, upon leaving, he was followed by some UAV's. He took care of them, but that doesn't sit to well with General Lane. He's also not to happy about the body that Ursa left behind there, David Carter. Although he's a little relieved to find out that he was actually a Kryptonian sleeper-agent. Not necessarily that he was an agent, but . . "Kryptonians killing Kryptonians. Certainly makes our job easier." We also see these 2 nut-jobs, Nadira and Az-Rel. They seem to be sleeper-agents also, who have just discovered their powers. So they're out making mayhem all over the south-west because . . well, just because they can. I'm not sure if they're purposefully being psychopathic, or they're just not concerned about the peripheral damage left in the use of their power. Personally . . I just think they're psychopathic. Anyways, Thara and K'Riss go after them, but . . by the time they arrive General Lane also has some . . well, I guess they're people, there also. Greg Rucka writes this story. It's interesting, but I'm just not sure where we're going with all of this. However, I do like to see that Lois is starting to put some of the pieces together. I wonder what she's going to think when she finds out that her sister is dead? Diego Olmos does the art for this issue. It's ok. It's not fantastic, but . . it works. Overall I enjoyed the story, it just seems to be coming together kind of slow. But, the World of New Krypton is set up to be a 15 issue series, so . . I guess they have to stretch the story out to coincide with that. Apparently we have another year until Superman comes back to Earth. Do you think he can stay away from Lois for that long?

Action Comics #877 - DC

Andrew Robinson does the cover of this book. I'm not thrilled with it, but . . the interior art is awesome. Sidney Teles does the art and it looks fantastic. He really draws some great action scenes. Last issue Christopher ended up on Lois' doorstep with Thara. They just got done fighting Ursa at the Fortress, and she stabbed Thara with a Kryptonite soaked knife. Lois calls in Dr Light to help them out. She uses her light powers to bombard her with photons that replicate solar light. She wants to give her Kryptonian immune system a jump-start. After she's stabilized and resting Christopher takes off for the Fortress to make sure that Ursa isn't doing anything she shouldn't. Now, here's where the problem comes in. General Lane has been tracking Dr Light. So of course he tracked her right to his daughter's apartment. He's also the one that prompted the order banning all Kryptonians from the planet. So when his satellites pick up 2 at her house, he's a bit concerned. But all he's got is a picture of Thara. Christopher he tracks in action as he flies back to the fortress. While there, I think he talked Ursa into going back to New Krypton. He knows that she and Zod have sleeper agents around the planet, and he explains that she's jeopardizing them by being here. Which . . I guess is what we see on the final page. This couple has just robbed a bank, but when they go out the door the cops already have the bank surrounded. They just stand there . . and start blasting them with their eyes. Greg Rucka wrote this story. I thought he did a fantastic job. I really liked this whole issue . . well, except for the cover. It didn't even really have anything to do with the story. I think Nightwing and Flamebird, Christopher and Thara, are a great addition to this title. Also, I can't wait to see what General Lane is going to do with all of this information.

Action Comics #876 - DC

I wasn't sure what to expect this issue, but . . I gotta tell you . . I was blown away. The story is great. I'll get into that, but . . the artwork . . Eddy Barrows pencils just blew me away. This guy gets better and better with every issue he does. It's just a shame that he's not on the Teen Titans anymore. Sidney Leles helps him out this issue . . I'm not sure how they compliment each other so well, but . . the final product was just fantastic. Basically, Lor-Zod, Christopher, and Thara Ak-Var have been posing as Nightwing & Flamebird back on Earth. Well Zod has dispatched Ursa to take out Thara, and return Lor to New Krypton where he belongs. Ursa is taking great zealousness in her task. Basically she wants to take Ursa apart piece by piece. The ironic part though is . . throughout this issue, Ursa is narrating her thoughts on how she's going to beat Ursa. "The luscious thing about fear is that is steals control. Create enough of it and you can even steal reason. You just have to know what buttons to press . . what words to say. Fear and anger give her away." However, when Christopher sees how much Ursa is hurting her, he starts fighting back. This pisses Ursa off to no end. And now she's the one that's loosing control because of her anger. He buries Ursa under a mountain of ice, and then head back to Earth, with Thara . . and straight to Lois. She looks out the window . . " You're not Superman." Christopher is floating there holding the broken Thara in his arms and says, "Hello, Mom." I thought Greg Rucka did a great job with this story. The dementia and pure evil, from Ursa, just seemed to ooze off the page. Not to mention the frustration from Thara and Christopher. All in all it was a great issue, and I think a good chapter in this World Without Superman story-line. I can't wait for the next chapter.

Action Comics #875 - DC

I probably should've read this issue before I read the Superman: New Krypton book. But who knew? Oh wait, they're doing the story numbers on the covers of the Superman titles again . . to help the reader keep them in order, but . . this one is 17 and New Krypton was 16. So I guess I did read them in the right order. But, from a readers point of view, it would've made more sense doing it the other way. Anyways, we find out who Nightwing and Flamebird are this issue. Flamebird is Alura's assistant, Thara Ak-Var. That's funny. I thought she might've been Super-woman. Oh well. Something seems to have put her over the edge, and started her on this campaign, but we don't find out all the details yet. At least not this issue. Nightwing? Nightwing is Chris. Yes, Superman's adopted son. It appears that he's going through some kind of growth spurts. When the issue starts he looks like a teen-ager. But then when he has one of his seizures, he comes out of it looking like he's in his 20's. They're assuming that it has something to do with the time he spent in the Phantom Zone. But, it's not happening to anyone else. And it didn't happen when he was living with Clark and Lois. So, I guess that's a mystery for another day. They seem to be on a mission to retrieve the other people that escaped the Zone onto Earth. This issue they take down Tor-An. He's been here about 18 months. There's a total of 6 that they're going after. But before they can do anything else, Ursa comes to Earth, and the Fortress, to take them both back to General Zod. I thought that Greg Rucka did a fantastic job with this story. And Eddy Barrows continues to amaze me with his art. I think he gets better and better with every issue he does. I was surprised to see him here though when I opened the book. Usually he's been doing the Teen Titans. It was a pleasant surprise. I can't wait for the next issue.

Action Comics #874 - DC

I have to say, so far I like the way James Robinson is handling this New Krypton story. Basically, things are taking a natural course of events. The only question is . . . what is Zod up to? Alura has granted him and his 'patriots' a pardon for their time-served in the Phantom Zone. And he appears to be turning a new corner as he becomes a citizen of New Krypton and the leader of it's army. This is the first issue where, when Alura talks, she didn't sound like some kind of zealot to me. When she talks about Zod and his redemption, I think she actually believes it. Whatever is going on . . I don't think it's her doing, but . . she may be a victim of it's intentions. We'll have to wait and see on that though. Meanwhile, Luthor has obtained Brainiac's ship and has brought it to the bunker where he and General Lane are examining him. And for some reason, the Phantom Zone seems to be falling apart. Superman releases Mon-el just in time, as it disintegrates. But now he has the face the possibility of dying of lead poisoning now that he's on Earth. And the United Nations has issued a decree banning all Kryptonians from Earth . . except for Superman. This causes distress for Nightwing & Flamebird as they'll have to speed up their plans. Whatever they are. My only concern with this entire issue was the artwork of Pablo Raimondi. Usually I like Pablo's work, however on this issue . . I don't think the inker did him any favors. Everything is inked real heavy and I just don't like the finished product. Anyways, there's a lot of stuff coming up in this next year, in the Superman-family of books. I think we're just seeing the tip of the iceberg here. It's going to get very interesting.

Action Comics #873 - DC

Even after everything that's happened, I still think Superman feels sorry for Alura. He honestly believes that her actions are predicated on her losing her husband, Zor. But we find out this issue that is definitely not the case. Alura is actually working in collusion with General Zod. But the big news this issue is that Kandor finally does what I knew inevitably it would have to . . . it's separate itself from our Earth. Superman and the JLA are trying to hold the Kandorians back, but they are significantly outnumbered. So they've called in their 'magical' compatriots. There's only about 12 or so of them, but . . magic, as with Kryptonite, is one of the Kandorian's weakness. Between Zatanna and Freddie they take out about 10,000 of the aliens with a single lightning bolt. That's when Alura, or as we know now Zod, decides to put their plan in place and remove Kandor from Earth. It goes out into space and somehow creates it's own planet. They put it in orbit of the sun exactly opposite of the Earth. We also see that General Lane and Luthor are still up to their plans to kill Superman. But they're beginning to argue about the methods. Somehow the New Guardian has also found out about this and has broken into the base, I would assume, to gather intel. Unfortunately, he's taken out by Superwoman who appears to be one of their guards. Also, I wondering how much of Kara's return to Kandor is because of her mother, or . . to be an inside man for Superman. It'll be interesting to see how that all plays out. There's a few other Kryptonian issues to deal with also . . . the Phantom Zone. Obvious Zod got out, but . . what about the rest? What about Bizarro, Mon-el, Chris . . and whomever else? And . . . aren't Nightwing and Flamebird Kandorian also? Or have I gotten the completely wrong read on them? Yes Kandor is now off-planet, but . . this issue, really, is in no way resolved. I'm really enjoying everything that Geoff Johns is weaving together here. There's an awful lot of stuff up in the air in Superman's world right now. And really I think we've only just begun. Pete Woods, Renato Guedes and Wilson Magalhaes share the artist chores this issue.