Superman Vol. 1: Son Of Superman (Rebirth) Paperback – January 10, 2017

After five years of the love-it-or-hate-it New 52 where DC’s pantheon of superheroes where altering into younger, edgier, and less experienced versions of themselves, DC is has ushered in a new era known as Rebirth. DC’s Rebirth is not about another reboot, but more about honoring and accepting the companies entire 75+ years in comics. This means many of the most loved aspects about these characters has returned in their more approved status. For Superman, the original big-blue boyscout has returned to the forefront and it is one of the best Rebirth titles of the bunch.SUPERMAN VOL.1: SON OF SUPERMAN collects DC COMICS REBIRTH: SUPERMAN and issues #1-6. After the death of the New 52 Superman in Superman: The Final Days of Superman, the world is without the Man of Steel. The current Superman here hails from the pre-Flashpoint era who married to Lois Lane has entered into the new world after years of staying out of sight. The many years of hiding, Clark and Lois had a son Jonathan who they are trying to raise, also deal with Jon’s emerging superpowers. So trying to keep a strong family bond and teaching Jon life lessons is Superman’s current outlook on life. With things slowly working out for the Kent family in this Rebirth world, an ancient Kryptonian instrument known as the Eradicator is out to bring Krypton back to life with Superman’s son as the key.Because the new REBIRTH era is about installing the older feelings of classic characters, it is a mighty breath of fresh air for many heroes coming off of the 5 years of the edgy and darker NEW 52. Beyond the front cover of his angry glowing red eyes that is here, this is the quintessential Superman that is calm, loving, wise, and just likable again being the family man and farmer. This is helped greatly by the creative team of Peter Tomasi and artist Patrick Gleason who did top notch work together on a similar father-son angle in BATMAN & ROBIN in the New 52. The family aspect for Clark, Lois, and Jon can be a bit overly cheerful considering, but for those many people looking for the fuzzy warm feeling of the ideal Superman, it feels pretty great.Tomasi makes a decent balance of the Kent family dealing with the current landscape and world building of the Kents morals and values, with the other parts plenty of action with the big villain of the piece being THE DEATH AND RETURN OF SUPERMAN fame The Eradicator (it’s not a spoiler since its in the description and his picture is on the back cover). So fans get a good balance of soft and happy moments of the Kent living on the farm and a good helping of action as the Super-family take on Eradicator to see his beef with Jon’s emerging powers. Additional winks and nods are filled throughout for long time fans to take in, especially a certain Kryptonian canine and Bat-cameo from the creative teams past work on BATMAN & ROBIN.Long time collaborator Patrick Gleason does majority of the issues collected here and his art is topnotch level. Gleason’s cartoony style is vivid and lush with bold 2-page spreads that show the awe and somber moments wonderfully, while diving into action sequences that goes over the top like fighting on the moon! (And maybe even a secret lunar Bat-Cave?). Veteran artist Doug Mahnke does the SUPERMAN: REBIRTH #1 and issue #5 with guest artist Jorge Jimenez doing issue #4.While I am giving Amazon a 5-star rating, it’s more around 4 ½ stars. The first thing is the common flaw among the whole REBIRTH line in that it caters heavily on older fans who know the DC lore and not so much for new readers. I will say SUPERMAN is one of the few that is not so bad for new readership to catch up on, yet it still suffers a bit for explaining things that lead here. So as you to the opening SUPERMAN: REBIRTH #1 getting readers up to speed of who and what has happened to get to this point, there is still a little hazy patch of clarification as to how this Superman came to be (there is a purposeful mystery in the whole REBIRTH universe about this in other series that look like they will be answered in the future. If you want a good prelude on this Superman, read Superman: Lois and Clark). Even this version of The Eradicator is explained almost as if readers should already know who he/it is (Tomasi does give a new/extended origin so its not too bad). Beyond the introduction for new readers, the overall story near the middle does get a little stale and the Eradicator could have been a little better done.Beyond the gripes, for old school fans that want out of the dark and broody Man of Steel that the New 52 and current films have shown, SUPERMAN under the REBIRTH banner is a return to glory for the big blue boy scout. It has plenty heart, nostalgia, action, and great art to give fans that feeling they have longed for some time. It may not be breaking ground in terms of Superman stories, alas Peter Tomasi and Patrick Gleason’s work on The Man of Tomorrow is one of the strongest REBIRTH titles to show the return to DC’s roots and good sign of things to come. *Cue John Williams famous 1978 theme music*

Superman is back! The New 52 Superman was an interesting take on the character, but I have missed the "real" (if such a word can be applied here!) Superman, and now he is back. The addition of Jonathan White, the new Superboy, is a great choice for DC - it allows us to see an aspect of the character that has, up until now, only been hinted at: Superman as a father. Having a son developing his own powers, wanting to follow in his father's footsteps and be a hero, but, at the same time, being alternately super and also vulnerable, means that Superman will have to grow and develop alongside his son. I also enjoy the interplay between Superman and the New 52 heroes, especially Batman and Wonder Woman - the "trinity" of the DC Universe now has one member that the others distrust. DC has tried for years to make Superman "relevant" with mixed success, but transporting the Superman and Lois Lane we all knew and loved from the "original" timeline, complete with 10 year old son, to the darker, more paranoid New 52 timeline, has succeeded. With luck, we will be able to enjoy these adventures for some time to come!

Superman's Rebirth series kicks off to a solid start with this first volume that focuses on the father son dynamics of Clark and his kid Jonathan. Keep in mind that to really get the most out of this book you'll have wanted to read at least the Superman: Lois and Clark book that reintroduces the titular pre-New 52 pairing. You'll probably also want to check out the Final Days of Superman book as it explains how the New 52 era's Supes passes away and symbolically gives the mantel back to his older predecessor. Suffice it so say, a version of Lois and Clark from before the New 52's reboot/retconn have been transported to our world and have lived in quiet solitude while keeping a low profile and avoiding their younger dopplegangers. They also have a son named Jonathan who is showing signs of inheriting his father's Kryptonian super powers.This volume begins with the single issue "Rebirth" story which sees the New 52 Lana Lang and the new (old?) Superman working together to transport the deceased Superman's remains to his home in Smallville, while also exploring the Fortress of Solitude. Clark realizes his New 52 counterpart won't cheat death like he did when he fought Doomsday and reaffirms his commitment to take the cape and shield back up.The main crux of the book concerns the return of the Eradicator, one of Clark's old enemies from the Death of Superman era. The Eradicator comes to attempt to help Superman reestablish his Kryptonian lineage, but sees his human family as a threat to that goal and attempts to wipe out Jonathan's human side, all while the new Superboy grapples with his new powers. The book's greatest strength is definitely the relationship between the Big Blue Boy Scout and his son; seeing this new side of the character is a blast and helps reestablish the do-gooder attitude of the old-school Clark. The only real downside is the fact that a lot of the history of the Eradicator seems to have been swept under the rug. The last we saw the character he had actually turned over a new leaf and even sacrificed himself to help Superman, yet upon first meeting here Supes is immediately ready to attack. It makes sense from the point of view of a new series attracting new readers, but for an event so concerned with reestablishing the old DC continuity it feels a bit odd that so much of the Eradicator's past with Supes was boiled down to them just be enemies only. Also, the fakeout death for Krypto, while amusing, does feel cheap. Having the oftentimes punch-line of a super-dog sacrifice himself to protect Clark is great, only for him to escape death literally an issue or two later.Overall a terrific start to one of Rebirth's best series and a great sign that the event is the best thing to happen to Superman in years.

Sweet sweet innocent Jon. What a beautifully optimistic and innocent character. And the relationship of the Kent family is amazing to see.