[Read as single issues]
Everyone talks about the Super Sons’ famous fathers – and when they’re Batman and Superman, how can you blame them? But this time, the spotlight is on their mothers when Talia Al Ghul marks Lois Lane for death, and only Damian and Jon can stop her! Then, Kid Amazo returns and he’s out for blood – Super and Bat blood, to be precise. Plus, Krypto and Titus take centre stage as the Super-Pets solve a pet-napping spree!
The Super Sons’ final adventure (in the present anyway – there’s a 12 issue mini-series by Tomasi set in the past due out soon) flips the dynamic of the series on its head with a clever twist on the usual proceedings. As I mentioned in the introduction, this volume focuses on Talia Al Ghul and Lois Lane rather than Batman and Superman, so we get to see the other side of both our main heroes. They may be their fathers’ sons, but they aren’t free of their mothers traits either. I’m honestly surprised it took this long for Tomasi to tell a tale like this, since it’s a good way of holding up a different mirror to the two boys than usual.
The second two issues bring back Kid Amazo, and have the Super Sons attempting to rescue the Justice League; it’s a nice way to cap off the series and show just how far Damian and Jon have come. They’re not quite League level yet but they will be one day, and giving them a rematch with their first foe who gave them such a runaround last time, only to be defeated much more succinctly, is a good illustration of their progress.
Also included here is the Super Sons annual, which is more like a Super Dogs annual since it focuses on Krypto and Titus instead. This is almost a ‘Nuff Said type of story, since the dogs and other animals involved aren’t able to speak, and therefore the onus is on the artist to ensure the story makes sense. The dogs are just as heroic as their owners and this is a very entertaining issue, although I love heroic animals so I’m probably a bit biased here.
With regular series artist Jorge Jimenez graduating to the big leagues (quite literally) and pencilling Justice League, Carlo Barberi steps in to pencil the main four issues here. His art is youthful and fun, and full of the energy that these characters need. I mentioned that the artist has to sell a silent issue, and Paul Pelletier is exactly the kind of artist for the annual – he infuses the animals with life and emotion, which is never easy, but he manages to make it look it.
Super Sons goes out on a high with two stories that re-examine the characters we’ve spent nearly a year and a half getting to know, as well as a fun annual that reminds us that every member of the Bat and Super families is a hero, even if they have four legs. Tomasi, Barberi, and Pelletier are a brilliant creative team (even if Jimenez’s absence is felt), and I’m glad that two of the three are continuing into Adventures Of The Super-Sons.