Superman: The Dark Side

Superman: Miniseries

by John Francis Moore, Kieron Dwyer (Illustrator), Hilary Barta (Illustrator)

Superman created by Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster; The New Gods, Mister Miricle, the Forever People and related characters created by Jack Kirby.

Genres: Graphic Novels, Comics, Superman, Dc Comics, Comic Book, Science Fiction, Action

153 pages, Paperback

First published June 1, 1999

About the author

John Francis Moore is comic book writer known for stints as writer on such Marvel comics series as X-Force, X-Factor, Doom 2099 and X-Men 2099. He also wrote Elseworld's Finest and co-wrote Batman/Houdini: The Devil's Workshop, with Howard Chaykin, for DC's Elseworlds series, and was the writer for Howard Chaykin's American Flagg! series. He wrote some episodes of The Flash and Freakazoid television series.

Reviews

[Little Timmy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very good alternate history story. Nice art and a good read. Recommended

[Jesse A · Rating 3 out of 5]

One of the weaker Elseworld stories I've read. 2.5 stars.

[Cristina · Rating 3 out of 5]

Lástima que todo el interés inicial se diluya a medida que avanza la trama, para terminar todo en una batalla que pintaba muy épica y acaba demasiado deprisa y sin ningún contratiempo.


Por no hablar del poco cuidado de Salvat-ECC en la edición del que es el n° 48 de la colección Universos DC. Ya me he encontrado errores gramaticales en otras colecciones, pero nunca que estuvieran las últimas páginas desordenadas, impidiendo una lectura fluida del desenlace, además de la de los extras.


Es por todo lo anterior que le he bajado la nota, aunque me haya encantado lo bien que queda explicado el 4° Mundo de Kirby, con esa guerra entre Apokolips, liderados por Darkseid, y Nueva Génesis con Izaya, más conocido como Highfather, de gran líder de los Nuevos Dioses (similares a los de la mitología griega), y el dilema ético de Superman, prevaleciendo el que uno no se queda tal cual cómo lo han criado, sino que puede evolucionar y cambiar, lo que se conoce como "uno no nace, se hace".

Eso sí, si te interesan los Elseworlds, el Cuarto Mundo de Kirby, el Muro, la fuente, las cajas madre, la élite de Apokolips, Lightray y Orión de Nueva Génesis, etc, entonces sí te aconsejo su lectura, pero en una edición mejor. Valoración final: 2'75 de 5⭐.

[Victor Orozco · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's an awesome DC Elseworlds story, proving that the book is better than the adaptation. I have often witnessed stories that have imagined Superman being corrupted by Darkseid and they have been awful. From Bruce Timm's atrocious series finale from the Animated Series or Zack Snyder's Cuts of Batman v Superman and Justice League. But this is the story I have wanted to read for so long and it is made by someone who loves Superman as much as I do.

The story is as it is described, what if Superman wasn't found by a humble human family but instead intercepted by the New Gods of Apocalypse? Raised to become a powerful weapon of Darkseid in his war against New Genesis. The battle is fought and presumably won but it is only the beginning, especially when Izaya the Highfather grants knowledge of the Source to purify Kal-El of his corruption by sending him to Earth. From here he becomes the true Kal-El that we know from our universe, a beacon of Truth and Justice. With familiar faces guiding him to become Earth's champion, Superman.

It leads to truths revealed and horrors to fight in an epic climax that makes a story worth telling. I enjoyed how things were the same but also the differences. Scott Free becomes more than just Mr. Miracle, Lightray and Orion are still the dynamic duos of New Genesis while Kal-El and Barda become something more. This was as good as I imagined it would be and hope one day it can be adapted correctly. A great story.

[Rodrigo Tello · Rating 3 out of 5]

Buen elseworld homenaje al Cuarto Mundo, entretenida hasta el final, y lo mejor es que me gusta el equipo creativo. Otro elseworld de los buenos, para tener en cuenta

[Ian · Rating 3 out of 5]

An Elseworld story in which baby Kal-El's rocket, fleeing doomed Krypton, is diverted to Apokolips where the child grows up to become Darkseid's chief enforcer. However, after Darkseid's war with the New Gods spills over onto Earth, Kal-El begins to realise that his destiny is far greater than what his cruel patron had planned for him.

The premise of this book is an interesting one. Whilst I've never particularly liked the New Gods or their counterparts on Apokolips, the idea of Kal-El being raised by Darkseid is one with plenty of story potential. I also liked the fact that it was Kal-El's interactions with the down-and-outs of Metropolis which begin to show him a different way of viewing life.
I'll also give lots of credit to Kieron Dwyer, whose designs for Kal-El's dark armour and his later proto-Superman outfits are absolutely brilliant.

The problem is, however, that there aren't really any surprises in this story.
Kal-El's conversion and eventually turn against Darkseid is not only totally predictable, but it also feels derivative. The story of the villain's champion developing a conscience and turning against the villain to become the hero is one that has played out countless times in fantasy and science fiction, so holds no innovation here.

* More reviews here: https://fsfh-book-review2.webnode.page *

[Cristina · Rating 3 out of 5]

Lástima que todo el interés inicial se diluya a medida que avanza la trama, para terminar todo en una batalla que pintaba muy épica y acaba demasiado deprisa y sin ningún contratiempo.


Por no hablar del poco cuidado de Salvat-ECC en la edición del que es el n° 48 de la colección Universos DC. Ya me he encontrado errores gramaticales en otras colecciones, pero nunca que estuvieran las últimas páginas desordenadas, impidiendo una lectura fluida del desenlace, además de la de los extras.


Es por todo lo anterior que le he bajado la nota, aunque me haya encantado lo bien que queda explicado el 4° Mundo de Kirby, con esa guerra entre Apokolips, liderados por Darkseid, y Nueva Génesis con Izaya, más conocido como Highfather, de gran líder de los Nuevos Dioses (similares a los de la mitología griega), y el dilema ético de Superman, prevaleciendo el que uno no se queda tal cual cómo lo han criado, sino que puede evolucionar y cambiar, lo que se conoce como "uno no nace, se hace".


Eso sí, si te interesan los Elseworlds, el Cuarto Mundo de Kirby, el Muro, la fuente, las cajas madre, la élite de Apokolips, Lightray y Orión de Nueva Génesis, etc, entonces sí te aconsejo su lectura, pero en una edición mejor. Valoración final: 2'75 de 5⭐.

[Peter · Rating 3 out of 5]

Enjoyable mostly for its artwork, which is gorgeous in a simple way. I would have given it four stars, then suddenly I realised how terrible the dialogue is - the amount of odd exposition towards other characters already in the know of said exposition is amazing.
I understand that everything is leaden at the beginning of an issue, a sort of semi-smooth recapping, but apart from that it was just wooden and heavy-handed.

[Moises Flores · Rating 3 out of 5]

una ucronia muy interesante en donde superman seria criado por darkside. esta trama va escalando poco a poco y resulta ser entretenida pero no ofrece una mayor aportación narrativa, el combate final termina precariamente, esperaba algo mejor.

[Joe :) · Rating 4 out of 5]

I shouldnt like this as much as I do, but the writing for Orion and Lightray is on point, and that always makes me love a comic.

[Kapitol Tank]

Supongo que lo voy a terminar leyendo de la edición española.

[Steve Howells · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun read.

[Sean · Rating 3 out of 5]

Elseworlds tales have always held a special place in my heart. They're the one kind of story where you know anything can happen and nothing is off limits. That doesn't mean they're all great but they allow creators to have freedom with tried and true characters. Here John Francis Moore gives us an idea that's been touched on many times (Superman landing somewhere other than Smallville) but its handled very well. Darkseid is always fun to read and the New Gods are always corny and that's true here as well. The story takes some interesting turns and the the art, for its time, is really solid. Overall, a fun read.

[Ralph · Rating 4 out of 5]

Everyone knows the story. A boy, the last of his kind, is sent in a rocket toward earth where he is raised by a kind couple as there own son. What if the rocket never made it to earth? What if the rocket was intercepted? What if the boy was raised by the ultimate evil as a weapon to be used against the universe? I really enjoyed the twist on the classic Superman story and am always a sucker for alternate realities. I didn't go in expecting it to be amazing, but it was enjoyable, fun, and a nice read. Give it a shot.

[Indah Threez Lestari · Rating 2 out of 5]

superman janten anak angkatna darkseid.
teu rame euy...

[Hikmat Kabir · Rating 3 out of 5]

Sigh expected way too much from this book

[Warren]

Elseworld Publication