3.5 stars. Though not as good as some of the other volumes, this is still a strong conclusion to Jurgens’ excellent run on Action Comics. I’m also pretty unfamiliar with Booster Gold and I think this made me a fan of his, he was a pretty cool character here. The art is mainly done by Brett Booth and Will Conrad and I thought it was really good.
The story itself was really fun, but Superman’s characterization here seemed a little flawed. Superman is traveling back in time to the moment Krypton exploded to find out if his father actually survived. This seems like a pretty reckless decision for someone who is always a responsible leader. So Booster Gold then travels back to make sure he doesn’t screw anything up, because Booster’s job is protecting time. Booster and Skeets are pretty cool and even though he is often comedic relief, Booster shows a lot of heart here and also acts responsibly.
So Superman continues to act pretty reckless. Something is clearly off with the Krypton they traveled to, as Zod and Jor-El are allies. The two then get discovered and Zod sends a bunch of Eradicator robots after them. It’s a difficult battle and Superman is insistent that he stays to get the answers he’s looking for even though Booster is rightfully saying they need to get out of there before they make things worse. They eventually flee and crash land in Booster’s future time in Gotham. They also try to keep a low profile but still get in a fight and Booster is taken to jail.
We get nice backstory that Booster had a really abusive criminal father and things were hard for him and his mom. He ends up in the same cell as his father. Superman then comes to the rescue and Booster has a nice reunion with his mom.
They jump through space and time again and end up on some unknown world set a couple decades in the future from normal present day. This is the planet Zod, Ursa, and Lor-Zod have taken over since we last saw them leave earth. They are brutal rulers and have enslaved everyone. They also have Eradicator robots patrolling everything. This is where Superman again gets a little annoying, because he desperately wants to save these people. Booster, again in the right, is saying do not worry about saving them because we can prevent this from happening in the first place and we need to go. Of course they end up captured and I like how brutal the Zod family is. This family is seriously so intense and out for revenge. It looks really bleak for Booster and Superman but Skeets makes a nice save. The heroes prevail but then Superman again insists on going back to the explosion of Krypton. This time it is the correct time, and Superman has to watch in horror his planet and mother die, but this also confirms that Jor-El did survive as he was mysteriously taken away at the last second. It is what it is I guess with this confirmation that Jor-El lived.
Meanwhile there has been this whole other plot with Lois trying to save her dad. Her and Sam Lane have not spoken to each other in years, before Jon was born. Sam was mad she exposed some secret military operation he was doing. He also does not trust Superman at all (but does not know his secret identity). Sam was captured and set to be killed the next day and the US military was going to say he went rogue and therefore make no rescue mission. Lois somehow gets him freed from prison and they are making a final escape to get lifted out by the US military. Jon also snuck in without her permission and helped at times, but this was largely Lois taking care of business. I liked it, but this also seems a little out of her league.
So then Booster and Superman are finally traveling back to present day earth when they see where Lois and Jon are. As Superman takes off to help them, Lois and Sam are killed. Booster, who has been so adamant about not changing the past, decides to make an exception this time and goes back in time just a little bit to save them. He never tells Superman the truth and Superman never knew this happened. Booster says he will deal with the consequences of his actions but he could not let them die. It was actually a pretty touching and dramatic scene.
Then we get some wrap up with Sam visiting the Kents but getting into a huge argument with Lois over Superman. Jon does not like all the fighting. Clark then arrives and smooths things over. It’s a fairly nice conclusion and getting the family back on better terms. Also, Superman felt pretty guilty hearing how inhumane the phantom zone was for Zod’s family. He knows it is ultra secure but he does not like how cruel it is. So he releases Henshaw from the phantom zone and after a brief fight, he creates some new prison for him in the fortress with a rare meteor fragment that should hold him. He gives him some kryptonian crystal that allows him to relive his best memories. Look, I understand Superman is all about hope and redemption, but seriously? Henshaw literally killed millions of people and you think the phantom zone is too cruel? I guess it’s in line with his character but Henshaw of all people is not someone to show mercy for.
The last story here is a one-off where some future Lex Luthor shows up and discovers Superman’s identity and his family. A big fight breaks out but then modern Lex also shows up to help out. Current Lex never finds out this was a future version of him. It was an ok story, but seems pretty inconsequential.
Overall, I liked the action, the art, and the character interactions, but Superman consistently seemed to act a little out of character or just be irrational. He was way too set on time traveling and interacting with the people in these new time streams despite countless lessons before about why this should never be done. Booster Gold was a definite highlight here. Overall, the Jurgens action comics run was consistently great. Stuff from the earliest issues still has implications here at the end of his run and it really felt like a nice connected narrative. This particular volume was not quite as good as others, but it was still strong.