Superman Vol. 5: Hopes and Fears by Peter J. Tomasi

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Issue 27-32 features three two-part Superman stories that examine the Man of Steel.

Issues 27 and 28 find Lois, Clark, and Jon on a patriotic road trip across America. This is heartfelt and really patriotic with some beautiful and moving art. It can also seem a bit talky and preachy, but I think it does a good job of showing how Lois and Clark would raise Jon and the values they taught them. Plus, we could use a bit non-partisan patriotism feels, so I like this one.

Issues 29 and 30 is by a guest creative team and finds Superman looking for lost children who are being taken by an incredibly scary looking alien creature. This one is...fine. It turns out to involve a villain most commonly associated with another character. The plot is less interesting than the simple character insights into Superman.

Issues 31 and 32 is by yet another guest team and finds Lois getting into danger while doing her job and settling for an interview with Deathstroke killed the person she was sent to interview. Then Deathstroke is hired to go after her. This one is good for the character insights and has an interesting idea about what even those morally gray characters want of Superman.

Overall, all the stories in this book are good enough. None are great, but they're all enjoyable. What works is that they do show an understanding of Superman's character and so often, writers just don't get Superman and I think every writer on this book did. So, that's enough for me. Well done.



View all my reviews