Superman: The Last Son The Deluxe Edition

by Geoff Johns, Richard Donner, Adam Kubert (Illustrator)

Since he first arrived on our world as an infant, the Man of Steel believed that he was the only survivor of his native planet. But then another boy in a rocket crash-lands in Metropolis, and the unearthly powers he displays convince Clark Kent and his wife, Lois Lane, that they should raise him as their own. Joining Superman’s family, however, means taking on his enemies as well as his allies. Newly escaped from the Phantom Zone, General Zod and his renegade followers are determined to seize the child. Why is this youngster so precious? And can Superman protect both him and his adopted home from Zod’s plan to transform the Earth into a new Krypton?

Would-be warlords aren’t the only challenge that the Man of Tomorrow must face. His own imperfect clone, the misshapen monstrosity known as Bizarro, has created a new world to reflect his twisted body and mind—a mockery of a planet, where chaos and catastrophe are celebrated and ugliness is the ultimate virtue. When its zombie-like inhabitants turn on their misguided maker, he decides to kidnap Clark Kent’s adoptive father and force him to help subdue his subjects—or die trying. To rescue the man who raised him, Superman must brave the horrors of Bizarro World, where he will fight funhouse-mirror versions of some of his greatest foes—and friends.

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

288 pages, Hardcover

Published March 9, 2021

About the author

Geoff Johns originally hails from Detroit, Michigan. He attended Michigan State University, where he earned a degree in Media Arts and Film. He moved to Los Angeles in the late 1990s in search of work within the film industry. Through perseverance, Geoff ended up as the assistant to Richard Donner, working on Conspiracy Theory and Lethal Weapon 4. During that time, he also began his comics career writing Stars and S.T.R.I.P.E. and JSA (co-written with David S. Goyer) for DC Comics. He worked with Richard Donner for four years, leaving the company to pursue writing full-time.

His first comics assignments led to a critically acclaimed five-year run on the The Flash. Since then, he has quickly become one of the most popular and prolific comics writers today, working on such titles including a highly successful re-imagining of Green Lantern, Action Comics (co-written with Richard Donner), Teen Titans, Justice Society of America, Infinite Crisis and the experimental breakout hit series 52 for DC with Grant Morrison, Greg Rucka and Mark Waid. Geoff received the Wizard Fan Award for Breakout Talent of 2002 and Writer of the Year for 2005, 2006, 2007, and 2008 as well as the CBG Writer of the Year 2003 thru 2005, 2007 and CBG Best Comic Book Series for JSA 2001 thru 2005. Geoff also developed BLADE: THE SERIES with David S. Goyer, as well as penned the acclaimed “Legion” episode of SMALLVILLE. He also served as staff writer for the fourth season of ROBOT CHICKEN.

Geoff recently became a New York Times Bestselling author with the graphic novel Superman: Brainiac with art by Gary Frank.

Reviews

[Lashaan Balasingam · Rating 3 out of 5]

You can find my review on my blog by clicking here.

It’s truly agonizing to find yourself in a foreign environment where you’re often reminded that you don’t belong. Despite doing your best to fit in, to convince the people around you that you only wish for their well-being, you sometimes just can’t help feeling alone deep down. For one superhero, his arrival to Earth allowed him to be with people who looked like him but remained internally segregated by his unbelievable powers that humans could only dream of. However, when he finally meets someone like him, he can’t help but feel appeased that he might not be the last of his kind in the universe, that he might not be the last son of Krypton. In a never-before-seen team-up, writer Geoff Johns (Flashpoint, Blackest Night) joins forces with famed film director Richard Donner (Superman: The Movie, Lethal Weapon) to write a Man of Steel story alongside artists Adam Kubert (Wolverine, X-Men) and Eric Powell (The Goon).

What is Superman: The Last Son about? Believing to be the sole survivor of his native planet Krypton, Clark Kent went on to live his life as an outstanding yet klutz investigative journalist and, when trouble arises, as the Man of Steel for the citizens of Earth. It is the sudden descent of a rocket crash-landing into the middle of the streets of Metropolis that he and his wife Lois Lane discover a little boy who speaks Krpytonese. Compelled to protect him at all cost, they both decide to raise him as their own but his arrival also comes with a new set of problems, a problem that takes the form of General Zod and his renegade followers who have escaped the Phantom Zone looking to seize the child and rule Earth to create New Krypton. Unfortunately for Superman, this won’t be the only issue he’ll be running into as he later must go after Luthor’s monstrosity known as Bizarro who happens to have kidnapped Clark Kent’s father to bring him to his own twisted planet.

This special deluxe edition collects for the first time ever every celebrated collaboration within the Action Comics series between Geoff Johns and Richard Donner, that is Action Comics #844-846, #851, and #855-857, and Action Comics Annual #10-11. It also includes an introduction by actor Marc McClure (known for his portrayal of Jimmy Olsen in the 1980s Superman movies) as well as a special and short sketchbook section from Adam Kubert.

There is plenty to appreciate from this story arc that introduces fans to a new character that will quickly enamour Superman on an intimate level. Through him, he sees a lot of himself and will feel an urge to protect him from those who wish to weaponize him before he could even grow up to make his own decisions in life. This connection to someone who apparently has Kryptonian origins is key to understanding Superman’s own predicament on Earth as an alien living among humans. Unfortunately, the story doesn’t delve much deeper into the emotional tie between these characters as it introduces Zod and his minions, steering the narrative towards a grand spectacle with chaotic repercussions. This then shifts the story towards action rather than psychological exploration, especially once Lex Luthor enters the picture and introduces his own team of lunatics. The impact of the finale, unfortunately, suffers from this formula and ends flatly rather than intensely but at least wraps up neatly enough to move on to other things.

If the introduction of this new kid in the block isn’t enough, fans will also learn the details regarding the various Kryptonite colours and their effect on Kryptonians throughout this volume. On top of that, the additional story included in this volume focuses on Bizarro with an original adventure that perfectly fits with his character’s odd nature. As off-the-wall as it is, not necessarily a flaw in itself, it remains quite zany, especially if you are familiar with Bizarro’s twisted mind. And let me tell you that Bizarro’s World, filled with funhouse-mirror versions of Superman’s allies, foes, and world, is even more twisted than you could imagine. Luckily, Adam Kubert and Eric Powell’s artwork make for an entertaining style that vividly captures these adventures and impressively brings to life these characters. Remaining conceptually loyal to the story-telling elements, their artwork rhymes wonderfully with writer Geoff John and Richard Donner’s stories without adding any more hiccups to this volume (one could argue that the additional stories at the end are quite forgettable but could be seen as bonuses to avid readers more than anything).

Superman: The Last Son is an amusing yet familiar story expanding on the Man of Steel’s sense of belonging and triumphant lore.

Yours truly,

Lashaan | Blogger and Book Reviewer
Official blog: https://bookidote.com/

[Tiago Guerreiro · Rating 4 out of 5]

Este livro é uma coleção de várias histórias do Super-Homem escritas por Geoff Johns e Richard Donner (o realizador de Superman: The Movie e Superman II), que são Superman: Last Son, Escape from Bizarro World e os breves contos de Action Comics Annual #10.

Last Son: 4.5/5
E se uma criança kryptoniana caísse repentinamente na Terra e ninguém soubesse porquê?
Senti que a história tinha mais para dar, no entanto o que temos aqui é essencial para qualquer leitor do Superman. A arte foi desenhada por Adam Kubert e é mesmo incrível, as cenas de ação são rápidas, furiosas e destrutivas.

Escape from Bizarro World: 3/5
E se o Bizarro raptasse o John Kent e ninguém soubesse porquê?
Não sou tão fã da arte por Eric Powell. No Mundo Bizarro temos a versão bizarra da Lois Lane, do Daily Planet, do Lex Luthor e todos os bizarros dizem o contrário do que querem dizer. No meio disto temos flashbacks meigos da infância do Clark com o pai, que exploram porque é que o Clark se tornou tão empático para com os outros. A história e a arte cantam, mas não encantam.

Action Comics Annual #10:
Das quais se destacam “Who is Clark Kent's Big Brother?” (que é um remake de Superboy #89 de 1961) e “The Criminals of Krypton”. Todos estes contos exploram melhor o mundo à volta do Super-Homem, explicando um pouco da história de fundo e desenvolvendo algumas das personagens secundárias. Agradeço a explicação de como pronunciar Mr. Mxyzptlk (Mix-yez-pittle-ik).

As histórias estão bem colecionadas neste livro: temos um princípio, meio e fim, o que é bastante incomum no que toca a BDs. Recomendo a qualquer pessoa que queria ler e aprender sobre o Super-Homem, ainda que a qualidade não seja transversal a todas as histórias aqui presentes.

Leitura prévia opcional: Superman: Up, Up and Away! de Kurt Busiek e Geoff Johns

Leitura adicional: Superman and the Legion of Super-Heroes, Superman: Brainiac e Superman: Secret Origin todos escritos por Geoff Johns

[Christian Oliverio · Rating 4 out of 5]

Two stories here: The Last Son and Escape From Bizarro World.

The Last Son was phenomenal. A kryptonian boy lands on earth and Superman quickly adopts him as he clings to any remnant of his home world, including "Chris Kent." The character work here was great, we had some fun fights where the stakes were high. We saw "don't mess with my family"/scary Superman, which is always a treat, especially since he rarely goes unhinged in main continuity. Plus the main villain of the story ended up forcing Superman to team up with Lex Luthor who had put together a team dedicated to killing him/Kryptonians... which is exactly what Supes needed. Yeah, Zod is the main villain, but he had a great introduction and really presented a physical and emotional challenge to Superman. Fun, emotional, and intense. All I could ever want in a Superman story. This is the ultimate Superman v. Zod story.

Escape From Bizarro World was another weird but fun Bizarro story. Bizarro thinks Jonathan Kent is his dad, kidnaps him, and brings him to a twisted world full of Bizarros. Most of the story was actually Superman and Bizarro teaming up to survive the warped citizens of this planet, giving it a new origin that is extremely weird. If you can get past the absurdity of it, this is a fun story which sees Superman try to wrap his head around said absurdity. Also we get to see Jonathan Kent K.O. Doomsday in one hit... so that alone with worth reading this. And the Bizarro JLA.

In short, two stories, one is easily a 5-star full of character work and high stakes, the other a fun and insane 4 star.

[Richard · Rating 4 out of 5]

After working with Kurt Busiek to bring back Superman after the Infinite Crisis with Superman: Up, Up, and Away!, Geoff Johns teamed up with Superman: The Movie director Richard Donner to continue his own run on Action Comics and write this story, an action-packed tale of Superman discovering that a new Kryptonian child has crash-landed in the middle of Metropolis.

This story clearly was a big inspiration for the Man of Steel movie as it reintroduces General Zod as an escapee of the Phantom Zone, dead-set on finding the child and creating a New Krypton on Earth. This also brings up interesting questions about whether Clark can bear a child with Lois and how that would affect him.

This deluxe edition also includes the subsequent “Escape From Bizorro World” storyline, which is one of the more skippable stories in Geoff Johns’s famed Superman run.

[Diego · Rating 5 out of 5]

A really good superhero comic with great writing and characterization for Superman. It had a great premise of Clark going through a character arc of showing why him being raised on Earth like he was is important, and how that affects his friends and foes. Also a really good, intense story of the first appearance of Zod, making things so intense, he has to team up with Lex Luthor, who gets a really good moment to shine as the great villain he is. This story is so good, I recommend it even if you aren’t a Superman fan.

[Égerházi Petra · Rating 5 out of 5]

Második DC képregényem volt, az első a kedvenc hősömről szólt, Wonder Woman-ről, de az annyira nem jött be. Ellenben ezt kevesebb, mint 2 óra alatt elolvastam. Eddig nem annyira kedveltem Superman-t, ennek a képregénynek viszont nagyon jó volt a story-ja is es szerethetővé tette számomra a karaktert.

[Ben Kimsal · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this one. The plot had some similarities with Man of Steel (which also featured General Zod as the main villain), but was far more enjoyable than that horrifying disaster of a film. While I disliked the way certain characters were drawn, Adam Kubert's art was mostly pretty good.

[Kevin · Rating 4 out of 5]

These stories are from a period when I wasn't reading the Superman titles. I enjoyed both the introduction of Christopher Kent and the reappearance of the Bizarro Justice League.

[Ronald Esporlas · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great anniversary story for the Man of Steel. A simple story with a deep meaning. It also shows the relevance of Superman in modern times.

[Ross Warburton · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5
The Last Son is good, Escape from Bizarro World and the extra issues are just alright.

[Scarred Wizard · Rating 4 out of 5]

First arc - 4/5
Second arc (Bizzaro World) is really weird - 3/5

Overall 3.5/5 read

[Art · Rating 4 out of 5]

Yet another iteration of Superman and Lois. This time with a strange child from another planet landing on the Earth. All is not as it seems. Duh.

Not bad.

[bbtubis · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5

[BRAMBILLA SIMONE · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Non date fiducia a Superman. Non salverà l'umanità perché non è umano."

[Matthew Peters · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5

My favorite story of Superman fighting Zod that I’ve read. Art is fantastic, story is epic.

[Kieran McAndrew · Rating 5 out of 5]

The arrival of a child from Krypton causes Clark to encounter General Zod in a fierce battle which sees the Man of Steel trapped in the Phantom Zone.

Smart artwork and a compelling story from Johns and Donner helps readers realise the loneliness of Superman. He may live as one of us, but Clark Kent is ultimately alone.